Luke 12:1

Fear God, Not People

12:1 Meanwhile, 1  when many thousands of the crowd had gathered so that they were trampling on one another, Jesus 2  began to speak first to his disciples, “Be on your guard against 3  the yeast of the Pharisees, 4  which is hypocrisy. 5 

Luke 12:15

12:15 Then 6  he said to them, “Watch out and guard yourself from 7  all types of greed, 8  because one’s life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions.”

1 tn The phrase ἐν οἷς (en Jois) can be translated “meanwhile.”

2 tn Grk “he”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

3 tn According to L&N 27.59, “to pay attention to, to keep on the lookout for, to be alert for, to be on your guard against.” This is another Lukan present imperative calling for constant vigilance.

4 sn See the note on Pharisees in 5:17.

5 sn The pursuit of popularity can lead to hypocrisy, if one is not careful.

6 tn Here δέ (de) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence of events within the narrative.

7 tn See L&N 13.154 for this use of the middle voice of φυλάσσω (fulassw) in this verse.

8 tn Or “avarice,” “covetousness.” Note the warning covers more than money and gets at the root attitude – the strong desire to acquire more and more possessions and experiences.