6:39 He also told them a parable: “Someone who is blind cannot lead another who is blind, can he? 1 Won’t they both fall 2 into a pit?
8:4 While a large crowd was gathering and people were coming to Jesus 3 from one town after another, 4 he spoke to them 5 in a parable:
13:6 Then 6 Jesus 7 told this parable: “A man had a fig tree 8 planted in his vineyard, and he came looking for fruit on it and found none.
14:7 Then 9 when Jesus 10 noticed how the guests 11 chose the places of honor, 12 he told them a parable. He said to them,
20:9 Then 13 he began to tell the people this parable: “A man 14 planted a vineyard, 15 leased it to tenant farmers, 16 and went on a journey for a long time.
1 tn Questions prefaced with μή (mh) in Greek anticipate a negative answer. This can sometimes be indicated by using a “tag” at the end in English (here it is “can he?”).
2 sn The picture of a blind man leading a blind man is a warning to watch who one follows: Won’t they both fall into a pit? The sermon has been about religious choices and reacting graciously to those who oppose the followers of Jesus. Here Jesus’ point was to be careful who you follow and where they are taking you.
3 tn Grk “to him”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
4 tn This phrase renders a distributive use of κατά (kata) with πόλις (polis), literally “according to [each] town.”
5 tn The words “to them” do not appear in the Greek text but are supplied in the translation for clarity.
6 tn Here δέ (de) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence of events within the narrative.
7 tn Grk “he”; the referent has been specified in the translation for clarity.
8 sn The fig tree is a variation on the picture of a vine as representing the nation; see Isa 5:1-7.
9 tn Here δέ (de) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence of events within the narrative.
10 tn Grk “he”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
11 tn Grk “those who were invited.”
12 tn Or “the best places.” The “places of honor” at the meal would be those closest to the host.
13 tn Here δέ (de) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence of events within the narrative. The parable Jesus tells here actually addresses the question put to him by the leaders.
14 tc ‡ There are several variants here, most of which involve variations in word order that do not affect translation. However, the presence or absence of τις (ti") after ἄνθρωπος (anqrwpo"), which would be translated “a certain man,” does affect translation. The witnesses that have τις include A W Θ Ë13 1241 2542 al sy. Those that lack it include א B C D L Ψ Ë1 33 Ï it. Externally, the evidence is significantly stronger for the omission. Internally, however, there is some pause. A feature unique to Luke-Acts in the NT is to use the construction ἄνθρωπος τις (cf. 10:30; 12:16; 14:2, 16; 15:11; 16:1; 19:12; Acts 9:33). However, scribes who were familiar with this idiom may have inserted it here. In light of the overwhelming external support for the omission of τις, the shorter reading is preferred. NA27 places τις in brackets, indicating some doubts as to its authenticity.
15 sn The vineyard is a figure for Israel in the OT (Isa 5:1-7). The nation and its leaders are the tenants, so the vineyard here may well refer to the promise that resides within the nation. The imagery is like that in Rom 11:11-24.
16 sn The leasing of land to tenant farmers was common in this period.