Luke 3:1

The Ministry of John the Baptist

3:1 In the fifteenth year of the reign of Tiberius Caesar, 1  when Pontius Pilate 2  was governor of Judea, and Herod 3  was tetrarch 4  of Galilee, and his brother Philip 5  was tetrarch of the region of Iturea and Trachonitis, and Lysanias 6  was tetrarch of Abilene,

Luke 3:19-20

3:19 But when John rebuked Herod 7  the tetrarch 8  because of Herodias, his brother’s wife, 9  and because of all the evil deeds 10  that he had done, 3:20 Herod added this to them all: He locked up John in prison.

1 tn Or “Emperor Tiberius” (“Caesar” is a title for the Roman emperor).

sn Tiberius Caesar was the Roman emperor Tiberius Claudius Caesar Augustus, who ruled from a.d. 14-37.

2 sn The rule of Pontius Pilate is also described by Josephus, J. W. 2.9.2-4 (2.169-177) and Ant. 18.3.1 (18.55-59).

3 sn Herod refers here to Herod Antipas, son of Herod the Great. He ruled from 4 b.c.-a.d. 39, sharing the rule of his father’s realm with his two brothers. One brother, Archelaus (Matt 2:22) was banished in a.d. 6 and died in a.d. 18; the other brother, Herod Philip (mentioned next) died in a.d. 34.

4 sn A tetrarch was a ruler with rank and authority lower than a king, who ruled only with the approval of the Roman authorities. This was roughly equivalent to being governor of a region. Several times in the NT, Herod tetrarch of Galilee is called a king (Matt 14:9, Mark 6:14-29), reflecting popular usage.

5 sn Philip refers to Herod Philip, son of Herod the Great and brother of Herod Antipas. Philip ruled as tetrarch of Iturea and Trachonitis from 4 b.c.-a.d. 34.

6 sn Nothing else is known about Lysanias tetrarch of Abilene.

7 sn Herod refers here to Herod Antipas. See the note on Herod Antipas in 3:1.

8 sn See the note on tetrarch in 3:1.

9 tc Several mss (A C K W Ψ 33 565 579 1424 2542 al bo) read τῆς γυναικὸς Φιλίππου τοῦ ἀδελφοῦ αὐτοῦ (th" gunaiko" Filippou tou adelfou autou, “the wife of his brother Philip”), specifying whose wife Herodias was. The addition of “Philip,” however, is an assimilation to Matt 14:3 and is lacking in the better witnesses.

sn This marriage to his brother’s wife was a violation of OT law (Lev 18:16; 20:21). In addition, both Herod Antipas and Herodias had each left previous marriages to enter into this union.

10 tn Or “immoralities.”