5:12 While 3 Jesus 4 was in one of the towns, 5 a man came 6 to him who was covered with 7 leprosy. 8 When 9 he saw Jesus, he bowed down with his face to the ground 10 and begged him, 11 “Lord, if 12 you are willing, you can make me clean.”
1 tn Grk “before him”; the referent (the Lord) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
2 sn These two lines cover all relationships: Turn the hearts of the fathers back to their children points to horizontal relationships, while (turn) the disobedient to the wisdom of the just shows what God gives from above in a vertical manner.
3 tn Grk “And it happened that while.” 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.
4 tn Grk “he”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
5 tn Or “cities.”
6 tn Grk “towns, behold, a man covered with leprosy.” The Greek word ἰδού (idou, “behold”) has not been translated because it has no exact English equivalent here, but adds interest and emphasis (BDAG 468 s.v. 1).
7 tn Grk “full of leprosy” (an idiom for a severe condition).
8 sn The ancient term for leprosy covers a wider array of conditions than what is called leprosy today. A leper was totally ostracized from society until he was declared cured (Lev 13:45-46).
9 tn Grk “And seeing.” Because of the difference between Greek style, which often begins sentences or clauses with “and,” and English style, which generally does not, δέ (de) has not been translated here. The participle ἰδών (idwn) has been taken temporally.
10 tn Grk “he fell on his face”; an idiom for bowing down with one’s face to the ground.
11 tn Grk “and begged him, saying.” The participle λέγων (legwn) is redundant in English and has not been translated.
12 tn This is a third class condition. The report portrays the leper making no presumptions about whether Jesus will heal him or not.
13 tn Grk “And it happened that as.” 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. Here καί (kai) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence of events within the narrative.
14 tn Grk “as they”; the referent (“the men,” referring to Moses and Elijah) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
15 tn Grk “to leave from him.”
16 tn Or “booths,” “dwellings” (referring to the temporary booths constructed in the celebration of the feast of Tabernacles).
sn By making three shelters Peter apparently wanted to celebrate the Feast of Tabernacles or Booths that looked forward to the end and to treat Moses, Elijah, and Jesus as equals. It was actually a way of expressing honor to Jesus, but the remark at the end of the verse makes it clear that it was not enough honor.
17 sn The term distracted means “to be pulled away” by something (L&N 25.238). It is a narrative comment that makes clear who is right in the account.
18 tn Grk “with much serving.”
19 tn Here δέ (de) has been translated as “so” to indicate that the following was a result of Martha’s distraction.
20 tn The negative οὐ (ou) used with the verb expects a positive reply. Martha expected Jesus to respond and rebuke Mary.
21 tn Grk “has left me to serve alone.”
22 tn The conjunction οὖν (oun, “then, therefore”) has not been translated here.
23 sn The term magistrate (ἄρχων, arcwn) refers to an official who, under the authority of the government, serves as judge in legal cases (see L&N 56.29).
24 sn The officer (πράκτωρ, praktwr) was a civil official who functioned like a bailiff and was in charge of debtor’s prison. The use of the term, however, does not automatically demand a Hellenistic setting (BDAG 859 s.v.; K. H. Rengstorf, TDNT 8:539; C. Maurer, TDNT 6:642).