Luke 12:39

12:39 But understand this: If the owner of the house had known at what hour the thief ¹  was coming, he would not have let ²  his house be broken into.

Luke 12:1

Fear God, Not People

12:1 Meanwhile, ³  when many thousands of the crowd had gathered so that they were trampling on one another, Jesus ⁴  began to speak first to his disciples, “Be on your guard against ⁵  the yeast of the Pharisees, ⁶  which is hypocrisy. ⁷ 

Luke 5:2

5:2 He ⁸  saw two boats by the lake, but the fishermen had gotten out of them and were washing their nets.

Revelation 3:3

3:3 Therefore, remember what you received and heard, ⁹  and obey it, ¹⁰  and repent. If you do not wake up, I will come like a thief, and you will never ¹¹  know at what hour I will come against ¹²  you.

¹ sn On Jesus pictured as a returning thief, see 1 Thess 5:2, 4; 2 Pet 3:10; Rev 3:3; 16:15.

² tc Most mss (א¹ A B L Q W Θ Ψ 070 Ë^1,13 33 Ï lat sy^p,h sa^ms bo) read “he would have watched and not let” here, but this looks like an assimilation to Matt 24:43. The alliance of two important and early mss along with a few others (Ì⁷⁵ א* [D] e i sy^s,c sa^mss), coupled with much stronger internal evidence, suggests that the shorter reading is authentic.

³ tn The phrase ἐν οἷς (en Jois) can be translated “meanwhile.”

⁴ tn Grk “he”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

⁵ 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.

⁶ sn See the note on Pharisees in 5:17.

⁷ sn The pursuit of popularity can lead to hypocrisy, if one is not careful.

⁸ tn Grk “And he.” Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style.

⁹ tn The expression πῶς εἴληφας καὶ ἤκουσας (pw" eilhfa" kai hkousa") probably refers to the initial instruction in the Christian life they had received and been taught; this included doctrine and ethical teaching.

¹⁰ tn Grk “keep it,” in the sense of obeying what they had initially been taught.

¹¹ tn The negation here is with οὐ μή (ou mh, the strongest possible form of negation in Koine Greek).

¹² tn Or “come on.”