2:6 ‘And you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah,
are in no way least among the rulers of Judah,
for out of you will come a ruler who will shepherd my people Israel.’” 1
3:7 But when he saw many Pharisees 2 and Sadducees 3 coming to his baptism, he said to them, “You offspring of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the coming wrath?
3:11 “I baptize you with water, for repentance, but the one coming after me is more powerful than I am – I am not worthy 4 to carry his sandals. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire. 5
6:5 “Whenever you pray, do not be like the hypocrites, because they love to pray while standing in synagogues 6 and on street corners so that people can see them. Truly I say to you, they have their reward.
6:16 “When 7 you fast, do not look sullen like the hypocrites, for they make their faces unattractive 8 so that people will see them fasting. I tell you the truth, 9 they have their reward.
11:25 At that time Jesus said, 18 “I praise 19 you, Father, Lord 20 of heaven and earth, because 21 you have hidden these things from the wise 22 and intelligent, and revealed them to little children.
18:10 “See that you do not disdain one of these little ones. For I tell you that their angels in heaven always see the face of my Father in heaven.
21:23 Now after Jesus 35 entered the temple courts, 36 the chief priests and elders of the people came up to him as he was teaching and said, “By what authority 37 are you doing these things, and who gave you this authority?”
26:17 Now on the first day of the feast of 47 Unleavened Bread the disciples came to Jesus and said, 48 “Where do you want us to prepare for you to eat the Passover?” 49
1 sn A quotation from Mic 5:2.
2 sn Pharisees were members of one of the most important and influential religious and political parties of Judaism in the time of Jesus. There were more Pharisees than Sadducees (according to Josephus, Ant. 17.2.4 [17.42] there were more than 6,000 Pharisees at about this time). Pharisees differed with Sadducees on certain doctrines and patterns of behavior. The Pharisees were strict and zealous adherents to the laws of the OT and to numerous additional traditions such as angels and bodily resurrection.
3 sn The Sadducees controlled the official political structures of Judaism at this time, being the majority members of the Sanhedrin. They were known as extremely strict on law and order issues (Josephus, J. W. 2.8.2 [2.119], 2.8.14 [2.164-166]; Ant. 13.5.9 [13.171-173], 13.10.6 [13.293-298], 18.1.2 [18.11], 18.1.4 [18.16-17], 20.9.1 [20.199]; Life 2 [10-11]). See also Matt 16:1-12; 22:23-34; Mark 12:18-27; Luke 20:27-38; Acts 5:17; 23:6-8.
4 tn Grk “of whom I am not worthy.”
sn The humility of John is evident in the statement I am not worthy. This was considered one of the least worthy tasks of a slave, and John did not consider himself worthy to do even that for the one to come, despite the fact he himself was a prophet.
5 sn With the Holy Spirit and fire. There are differing interpretations for this phrase regarding the number of baptisms and their nature. (1) Some see one baptism here, and this can be divided further into two options. (a) The baptism of the Holy Spirit and fire could refer to the cleansing, purifying work of the Spirit in the individual believer through salvation and sanctification, or (b) it could refer to two different results of Christ’s ministry: Some accept Christ and are baptized with the Holy Spirit, but some reject him and receive judgment. (2) Other interpreters see two baptisms here: The baptism of the Holy Spirit refers to the salvation Jesus brings at his first advent, in which believers receive the Holy Spirit, and the baptism of fire refers to the judgment Jesus will bring upon the world at his second coming. One must take into account both the image of fire and whether individual or corporate baptism is in view. A decision is not easy on either issue. The image of fire is used to refer to both eternal judgment (e.g., Matt 25:41) and the power of the Lord’s presence to purge and cleanse his people (e.g., Isa 4:4-5). The pouring out of the Spirit at Pentecost, a fulfillment of this prophecy no matter which interpretation is taken, had both individual and corporate dimensions. It is possible that since Holy Spirit and fire are governed by a single preposition in Greek, the one-baptism view may be more likely, but this is not certain. Simply put, there is no consensus view in scholarship at this time on the best interpretation of this passage.
6 sn See the note on synagogues in 4:23.
7 tn Here δέ (de) has not been translated.
8 tn Here the term “disfigure” used in a number of translations was not used because it could convey to the modern reader the notion of mutilation. L&N 79.17 states, “‘to make unsightly, to disfigure, to make ugly.’ ἀφανίζουσιν γὰρ τὰ πρόσωπα αὐτῶν ‘for they make their faces unsightly’ Mt 6:16.”
9 tn Grk “Truly (ἀμήν, amhn), I say to you.”
10 tn Grk “grass of the field.”
11 tn Grk “into the oven.” The expanded translation “into the fire to heat the oven” has been used to avoid misunderstanding; most items put into modern ovens are put there to be baked, not burned.
sn The oven was most likely a rounded clay oven used for baking bread, which was heated by burning wood and dried grass.
12 sn The phrase even more is a typical form of rabbinic argumentation, from the lesser to the greater. If God cares for the little things, surely he will care for the more important things.
13 tn The participle ὄντες (ontes) has been translated concessively.
14 sn The provision of the good gifts is probably a reference to the wisdom and guidance supplied in response to repeated requests. The teaching as a whole stresses not that we get everything we want, but that God gives the good that we need.
15 tn Grk “And.” Here καί (kai) has been translated as “but” to indicate the contrast present in this context.
16 tn Or “commanded” (often with the implication of a threat, L&N 33.331).
17 sn Who has authority over the seas and winds is discussed in the OT: Ps 104:3; 135:7; 107:23-30. When Jesus rebuked the winds and the sea he was making a statement about who he was.
18 tn Grk “At that time, answering, Jesus said.” This construction is somewhat redundant in English and has been simplified in the translation.
19 tn Or “thank.”
20 sn The title Lord is an important name for God, showing his sovereignty, but it is interesting that it comes next to a reference to the Father, a term indicative of God’s care. The two concepts are often related in the NT; see Eph 1:3-6.
21 tn Or “that.”
22 sn See 1 Cor 1:26-31.
23 tn Or “red and gloomy” (L&N 14.56).
24 tn Grk “The face of the sky you know how to discern.”
25 tn Grk “people.”
26 tn Here δέ (de) has been translated as “so” to indicate that the appearance of Moses and Elijah prompted Peter’s comment.
27 tn Grk “Peter answering said.” This construction is somewhat redundant and has been simplified in the translation.
28 tc Instead of the singular future indicative ποιήσω (poihsw, “I will make”), most witnesses (C3 D L W Θ [Φ] 0281 Ë[1],13 33 Ï lat sy co) have the plural aorist subjunctive ποιήσωμεν (poihswmen, “let us make”). But since ποιήσωμεν is the reading found in the parallel accounts in Mark and Luke, it is almost surely a motivated reading. Further, the earliest and best witnesses, as well as a few others (א B C* 700 pc) have ποιήσω. It is thus more likely that the singular verb is authentic.
29 tn Or “booths,” “dwellings” (referring to the temporary booths constructed in the celebration of the feast of Tabernacles).
sn Peter apparently wanted to celebrate the feast of Tabernacles or Booths that looked forward to the end and wanted to treat Moses, Elijah, and Jesus as equals by making three shelters (one for each). It was actually a way of expressing honor to Jesus, but the next verse makes it clear that it was not enough honor.
30 tn Grk “than having.”
31 tn Grk “the Gehenna of fire.”
sn See the note on the word hell in 5:22.
32 tn The words “the money” are not in the Greek text, but are implied. Direct objects were often omitted in Greek when clear from the context.
33 sn The call for sacrifice comes with a promise of eternal reward: You will have treasure in heaven. Jesus’ call is a test to see how responsive the man is to God’s direction through him. Will he walk the path God’s agent calls him to walk? For a rich person who got it right, see Zacchaeus in Luke 19:1-10.
34 tn Grk “the village lying before you” (BDAG 530 s.v. κατέναντι 2.b).
35 tn Grk “he.”
36 tn Grk “the temple.”
37 tn On this phrase, see BDAG 844 s.v. ποῖος 2.a.γ.1
38 tc Verses 29-31 involve a rather complex and difficult textual problem. The variants cluster into three different groups: (1) The first son says “no” and later has a change of heart, and the second son says “yes” but does not go. The second son is called the one who does his father’s will. This reading is found in the Western
39 tn Grk “Truly (ἀμήν, amhn), I say to you.”
40 sn See the note on tax collectors in 5:46.
41 sn Spelling of this name (Βαραχίου, Baraciou) varies among the English versions: “Barachiah” (RSV, NRSV); “Berechiah” (NASB); “Berachiah” (NIV).
42 tn Grk “answering, he said to them.” The participle ἀποκριθείς (ajpokriqei") is redundant in English and has not been translated.
43 tn Grk “Truly (ἀμήν, amhn), I say to you.”
44 sn With the statement not one stone will be left on another Jesus predicted the total destruction of the temple, something that did occur in
45 tn Grk “not one stone will be left here on another which will not be thrown down.”
46 tn Grk “His master said to him.”
47 tn The words “the feast of” are not in the Greek text, but have been supplied for clarity.
48 tn Grk “the disciples came to Jesus, saying.” The participle λέγοντες (legontes) has been translated as a finite verb to make the sequence of events clear in English.
49 sn This required getting a suitable lamb and finding lodging in Jerusalem where the meal could be eaten. The population of the city swelled during the feast, so lodging could be difficult to find. The Passover was celebrated each year in commemoration of the Israelites’ deliverance from Egypt; thus it was a feast celebrating redemption (see Exod 12). The Passover lamb was roasted and eaten after sunset in a family group of at least ten people (m. Pesahim 7.13). People ate the meal while reclining (see the note on table in 26:20). It included, besides the lamb, unleavened bread and bitter herbs as a reminder of Israel’s bitter affliction at the hands of the Egyptians. Four cups of wine mixed with water were also used for the meal. For a further description of the meal and the significance of the wine cups, see E. Ferguson, Backgrounds of Early Christianity, 523-24.
50 tn Here δέ (de) has not been translated.
51 tn Grk “produce” (“the produce of the vine” is a figurative expression for wine).
52 tn Here καί (kai) has not been translated.
53 tn Or “Messiah”; both “Christ” (Greek) and “Messiah” (Hebrew and Aramaic) mean “one who has been anointed.”
sn See the note on Christ in 1:16.