¹ tn Grk “behold.”

² tn Some translations render the word συγγενίς (sungeni") as “cousin” (so Phillips) but the term is not necessarily this specific.

³ tn Or “has conceived.”

⁴ tn Grk “and this is the sixth month for her who was called barren.” Yet another note on Elizabeth’s loss of reproach also becomes a sign of the truth of the angel’s declaration.

⁵ tn See the note on the word “servant” in v. 38.

⁶ tn Grk “for behold.”

⁷ sn From now on is a favorite phrase of Luke’s, showing how God’s acts change things from this point on (5:10; 12:52; 22:18, 69; Acts 18:6).

⁸ sn Mary is seen here as an example of an object of God’s grace (blessed) for all generations.

⁹ tn Grk “Behold a man.”

¹⁰ sn Neither were they happy with Jesus (the Son of Man), even though he was the opposite of John and associated freely with people like tax collectors and sinners. Either way, God’s messengers were subject to complaint.

¹¹ tn Grk “your house.”

¹² tn Or “describe.”

¹³ sn Jesus instructs the man to declare what God has done for him, in contrast to the usual instructions (e.g., 8:56; 9:21) to remain silent. Here in Gentile territory Jesus allowed more open discussion of his ministry. D. L. Bock (Luke [BECNT], 1:781) suggests that with few Jewish religious representatives present, there would be less danger of misunderstanding Jesus’ ministry as political.

¹⁴ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “so” to indicate the man’s response to Jesus’ instructions.

¹⁵ tn Or “city.”

¹⁶ sn Note that the man could not separate what God had done from the one through whom God had done it (what Jesus had done for him). This man was called to witness to God’s goodness at home.

¹⁷ tn Grk “And they.” Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style.

¹⁸ tn Grk “And answering, they said.” This is redundant in contemporary English and has been simplified to “They answered.”

¹⁹ sn The appearance of Elijah would mean that the end time had come. According to 2 Kgs 2:11, Elijah was still alive. In Mal 4:5 it is said that Elijah would be the precursor of Messiah.

²⁰ sn The phrase has risen could be understood to mean “has been resurrected,” but this is only a possible option, not a necessary one, since the phrase could merely mean that a figure had appeared on the scene who mirrored an earlier historical figure. Note that the three categories in the reply match the ones in Luke 9:7-8.

²¹ tn Grk “the birds of the sky” or “the birds of the heaven”; the Greek word οὐρανός (ouranos) may be translated either “sky” or “heaven,” depending on the context. The idiomatic expression “birds of the sky” refers to wild birds as opposed to domesticated fowl (cf. BDAG 809 s.v. πετεινόν).

²² sn Jesus’ reply is simply this: Does the man understand the rejection he will be facing? Jesus has no home in the world (the Son of Man has no place to lay his head).

²³ tn Or “city.”

²⁴ sn See Luke 9:5, where the verb is different but the meaning is the same. This was a sign of rejection.

²⁵ tn Here ὑμῖν (Jumin) has been translated as a dative of disadvantage.

²⁶ tn Or “has come near.” As in v. 9 (see above), the combination of ἐγγίζω (engizw) with the preposition ἐπί (epi) is decisive in showing that the sense is “has come” (see BDAG 270 s.v. ἐγγίζω 2, and W. R. Hutton, “The Kingdom of God Has Come,” ExpTim 64 [Dec 1952]: 89-91).

²⁷ tn Or “that this generation may be charged with”; or “the blood of all the prophets… may be required from this generation.” This is a warning of judgment. These people are responsible for the shedding of prophetic blood.

²⁸ tn Or “foundation.” However, this does not suggest a time to the modern reader.

²⁹ tn The order of the clauses in this complicated sentence has been rearranged to simplify it for the modern reader.

³⁰ tn Grk “to complete it, lest.” Because of the length and complexity of the Greek sentence, a new sentence was started here in the translation and ἵνα μήποτε ({ina mhpote, “lest”) has been translated as “Otherwise.”

³¹ tn The participle θέντος (qentos) has been taken temporally.

³² tn The words “the tower” are not in the Greek text, but are implied. Direct objects were frequently omitted in Greek when clear from the context.

³³ tn The word “it” is not in the Greek text, but is implied. Direct objects were frequently omitted in Greek when clear from the context.

³⁴ tn Or “mock,” “ridicule.” The person who did not plan ahead becomes an object of joking and ridicule.

³⁵ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence of events within the narrative.

³⁶ tn Grk “the”; in context the article is used as a possessive pronoun (ExSyn 215).

³⁷ sn Rejoice. Besides the theme of pursuing the lost, the other theme of the parable is the joy of finding them.

³⁸ tn Grk “drachma.”

³⁹ sn Note the younger son is not “my brother” but this son of yours (an expression with a distinctly pejorative nuance).

⁴⁰ sn This is another graphic description. The younger son’s consumption had been like a glutton. He had both figuratively and literally devoured the assets which were given to him.

⁴¹ sn The charge concerning the prostitutes is unproven, but essentially the older brother accuses the father of committing an injustice by rewarding his younger son’s unrighteous behavior.

⁴² sn See note on the phrase “fattened calf” in v. 23.

⁴³ tn Grk “they”; the referent is unspecified but is probably the crowd in general, who would have no great love for a man like Zacchaeus who had enriched himself many times over at their expense.

⁴⁴ tn This term is used only twice in the NT, both times in Luke (here and 15:2) and has negative connotations both times (BDAG 227 s.v. διαγογγύζω). The participle λέγοντες (legonte") is redundant in contemporary English and has not been translated.

⁴⁵ sn Being the guest of a man who is a sinner was a common complaint about Jesus: Luke 5:31-32; 7:37-50; 15:1-2.

⁴⁶ tn Grk “he”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

⁴⁷ tn Or “capstone,” “keystone.” Although these meanings are lexically possible, the imagery in Eph 2:20-22 and 1 Cor 3:11 indicates that the term κεφαλὴ γωνίας (kefalh gwnia") refers to a cornerstone, not a capstone.

sn The stone the builders rejected has become the cornerstone. The use of Ps 118:22-23 and the “stone imagery” as a reference to Christ and his suffering and exaltation is common in the NT (see also Matt 21:42; Mark 12:10; Acts 4:11; 1 Pet 2:6-8; cf. also Eph 2:20). The irony in the use of Ps 118:22-23 here is that in the OT, Israel was the one rejected (or perhaps her king) by the Gentiles, but in the NT it is Jesus who is rejected by Israel.

⁴⁸ sn Jesus’ death has been determined as a part of God’s plan (Acts 2:22-24).

⁴⁹ sn This man has done nothing wrong is yet another declaration that Jesus was innocent of any crime.