Matius 22:8

22:8 Then he said to his slaves, ‘The wedding is ready, but the ones who had been invited were not worthy.

Lukas 20:35

20:35 But those who are regarded as worthy to share in ¹  that age and in the resurrection from the dead neither marry nor are given in marriage. ² 

Lukas 21:36

21:36 But stay alert at all times, ³  praying that you may have strength to escape all these things that must ⁴  happen, and to stand before the Son of Man.”

Lukas 21:2

21:2 He also saw a poor widow put in two small copper coins. ⁵ 

Lukas 1:5-7

Birth Announcement of John the Baptist

1:5 During the reign ⁶  of Herod ⁷  king of Judea, there lived a priest named Zechariah who belonged to ⁸  the priestly division of Abijah, ⁹  and he had a wife named Elizabeth, ¹⁰  who was a descendant of Aaron. ¹¹  1:6 They ¹²  were both righteous in the sight of God, following ¹³  all the commandments and ordinances of the Lord blamelessly. ¹⁴  1:7 But they did not have a child, because Elizabeth was barren, ¹⁵  and they were both very old. ¹⁶ 

Wahyu 3:4

3:4 But you have a few individuals ¹⁷  in Sardis who have not stained ¹⁸  their clothes, and they will walk with me dressed ¹⁹  in white, because they are worthy.

[20:35]  ¹ tn Grk “to attain to.”

[20:35]  ² sn Life in the age to come is different than life here (they neither marry nor are given in marriage). This means Jesus’ questioners had made a false assumption that life was the same both now and in the age to come.

[21:36]  ³ sn The call to be alert at all times is a call to remain faithful in looking for the Lord’s return.

[21:36]  ⁴ tn For the translation of μέλλω (mellw) as “must,” see L&N 71.36.

[21:2]  ⁵ sn These two small copper coins were lepta (sing. “lepton”), the smallest and least valuable coins in circulation in Palestine, worth one-half of a quadrans or 1/128 of a denarius, or about six minutes of an average daily wage. This was next to nothing in value.

[1:5]  ⁶ tn Grk “It happened that in the days.” 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.

[1:5]  ⁷ sn Herod was Herod the Great, who ruled Palestine from 37 b.c. until he died in 4 b.c. He was known for his extensive building projects (including the temple in Jerusalem) and for his cruelty.

[1:5]  ⁸ tn Grk “of”; but the meaning of the preposition ἐκ (ek) is more accurately expressed in contemporary English by the relative clause “who belonged to.”

[1:5]  ⁹ sn There were twenty-four divisions of priesthood and the priestly division of Abijah was eighth on the list according to 1 Chr 24:10.

[1:5]  ¹⁰ tn Grk “and her name was Elizabeth.”

[1:5]  ¹¹ tn Grk “a wife of the daughters of Aaron.”

[1:5]  sn It was not unusual for a priest to have a wife from a priestly family (a descendant of Aaron); this was regarded as a special blessing.

[1:6]  ¹² tn Grk “And they.” Because of the difference between Greek style, which often begins sentences or clauses with “and,” and English style, which generally does not, καί (kai) has not been translated here.

[1:6]  ¹³ tn Grk “walking in” (an idiom for one’s lifestyle).

[1:6]  sn The description of Zechariah and Elizabeth as following… blamelessly was not to say that they were sinless, but that they were faithful and pious. Thus a practical righteousness is meant here (Gen 6:8; Deut 28:9).

[1:6]  ¹⁴ tn The predicate adjective has the effect of an adverb here (BDF §243).

[1:7]  ¹⁵ sn Elizabeth was barren. Both Zechariah and Elizabeth are regarded by Luke as righteous in the sight of God, following all the commandments and ordinances of the Lord blamelessly (v. 6). With this language, reminiscent of various passages in the OT, Luke is probably drawing implicit comparisons to the age and barrenness of such famous OT personalities as Abraham and Sarah (see, e.g., Gen 18:9-15), the mother of Samson (Judg 13:2-5), and Hannah, the mother of Samuel (1 Sam 1:1-20). And, as it was in the case of these OT saints, so it is with Elizabeth: After much anguish and seeking the Lord, she too is going to have a son in her barrenness. In that day it was a great reproach to be childless, for children were a sign of God’s blessing (cf. Gen 1:28; Lev 20:20-21; Pss 127 and 128; Jer 22:30). As the dawn of salvation draws near, however, God will change this elderly couple’s grief into great joy and grant them the one desire time had rendered impossible.

[1:7]  ¹⁶ tn Grk “were both advanced in days” (an idiom for old age).

[3:4]  ¹⁷ tn Grk “a few names”; here ὄνομα (onoma) is used by figurative extension to mean “person” or “people”; according to L&N 9.19 there is “the possible implication of existence or relevance as individuals.”

[3:4]  ¹⁸ tn Or “soiled” (so NAB, NRSV, NIV); NCV “have kept their clothes unstained”; CEV “have not dirtied your clothes with sin.”

[3:4]  ¹⁹ tn The word “dressed” is not in the Greek text, but is implied.