Lukas 7:11

Raising a Widow’s Son

7:11 Soon ¹  afterward ²  Jesus ³  went to a town ⁴  called Nain, and his disciples and a large crowd went with him.

Lukas 14:15

The Parable of the Great Banquet

14:15 When ⁵  one of those at the meal with Jesus ⁶  heard this, he said to him, “Blessed is everyone ⁷  who will feast ⁸  in the kingdom of God!” ⁹ 

Lukas 14:18

14:18 But one after another they all ¹⁰  began to make excuses. ¹¹  The first said to him, ‘I have bought a field, ¹²  and I must go out and see it. Please excuse me.’ ¹³ 

Lukas 17:2

17:2 It would be better for him to have a millstone ¹⁴  tied around his neck and be thrown into the sea ¹⁵  than for him to cause one of these little ones to sin. ¹⁶ 

[7:11]  ¹ tn Grk “And it happened that soon.” The introductory phrase ἐγένετο (egeneto, “it happened that”), common in Luke (69 times) and Acts (54 times), is redundant in contemporary English and has not been translated.

[7:11]  ² tc Several variants to ἐγένετο ἐν τῷ (egeneto en tw) are found before the adverb ἑξῆς (Jexh"), all of them clarifying by the use of the feminine article that the next day is meant (τῇ [th] in D; ἐγένετο τῇ in W; ἐγένετο ἐν τῇ in א* C K 565 892 1424 pm). But these readings are decidedly secondary, for they are more specific than Luke usually is, and involve an unparalleled construction (viz., article + ἡμέρα [Jhmera] + ἑξῆς; elsewhere, when Luke uses this adverb, the noun it modifies is either implied or after the adverb [cf. Luke 9:37; Acts 21:1; 25:17; 27:18)]. The reading adopted for the translation is a more general time indicator; the article τῷ modifies an implied χρόνῳ (cronw), with the general sense of “soon afterward.”

[7:11]  ³ tn Grk “he”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[7:11]  ⁴ tn The term πόλις (polis) can refer to a small town, which is what Nain was. It was about six miles southeast of Nazareth.

[14:15]  ⁵ tn Here δέ (de) has not been translated.

[14:15]  ⁶ tn Grk “him”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[14:15]  ⁷ tn Grk “whoever” (the indefinite relative pronoun). This has been translated as “everyone who” to conform to contemporary English style.

[14:15]  ⁸ tn Or “will dine”; Grk “eat bread.” This refers to those who enjoy the endless fellowship of God’s coming rule.

[14:15]  ⁹ sn The kingdom of God is a major theme of Jesus. It is a realm in which Jesus rules and to which those who trust him belong. See Luke 6:20; 11:20; 17:20-21.

[14:18]  ¹⁰ tn Or “all unanimously” (BDAG 107 s.v. ἀπό 6). "One after another" is suggested by L&N 61.2.

[14:18]  ¹¹ sn To make excuses and cancel at this point was an insult in the culture of the time. Regardless of customs concerning responses to invitations, refusal at this point was rude.

[14:18]  ¹² sn I have bought a field. An examination of newly bought land was a common practice. It was this person’s priority.

[14:18]  ¹³ sn The expression Please excuse me is probably a polite way of refusing, given the dynamics of the situation, although it is important to note that an initial acceptance had probably been indicated and it was now a bit late for a refusal. The semantic equivalent of the phrase may well be “please accept my apologies.”

[17:2]  ¹⁴ tn This term refers to the heavy upper stone of a grinding mill (L&N 7.70; BDAG 660 s.v. μυλικός).

[17:2]  sn The punishment of drowning with a heavy weight attached is extremely gruesome and reflects Jesus’ views concerning those who cause others who believe in him to sin.

[17:2]  ¹⁵ tn Grk “if a millstone were tied…and he were thrown.” The conditional construction in Greek has been translated by English infinitives: “to have… and be thrown.”

[17:2]  ¹⁶ tn Or “to stumble.” This verb, σκανδαλίσῃ (skandalish), has the same root as the noun σκάνδαλον (skandalon) in 17:1, translated “stumbling blocks”; this wordplay is difficult to reproduce in English. It is possible that the primary cause of offense here would be leading disciples (“little ones”) astray in a similar fashion.