12:1 Meanwhile, 6 when many thousands of the crowd had gathered so that they were trampling on one another, Jesus 7 began to speak first to his disciples, “Be on your guard against 8 the yeast of the Pharisees, 9 which is hypocrisy. 10
12:8 “I 11 tell you, whoever acknowledges 12 me before men, 13 the Son of Man will also acknowledge 14 before God’s angels.
1 sn On the queen of the South see 1 Kgs 10:1-3 and 2 Chr 9:1-12, as well as Josephus, Ant. 8.6.5-6 (8.165-175). The South most likely refers to modern southwest Arabia, possibly the eastern part of modern Yemen, although there is an ancient tradition reflected in Josephus which identifies this geo-political entity as Ethiopia.
2 sn For the imagery of judgment, see Luke 10:13-15 and 11:19. The warnings are coming consistently now.
3 tn Grk “men”; the word here (ἀνήρ, anhr) usually indicates males or husbands, but occasionally is used in a generic sense of people in general, as is the case here (cf. BDAG 79 s.v. 1, 2). The same term, translated the same way, occurs in v. 32.
4 tn Grk “behold.”
5 sn The message of Jesus was something greater than what Solomon offered. On Jesus and wisdom, see Luke 7:35; 10:21-22; 1 Cor 1:24, 30.
6 tn The phrase ἐν οἷς (en Jois) can be translated “meanwhile.”
7 tn Grk “he”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
8 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.
9 sn See the note on Pharisees in 5:17.
10 sn The pursuit of popularity can lead to hypocrisy, if one is not careful.
11 tn Here δέ (de) has not been translated.
12 tn Or “confesses.”
13 tn Although this is a generic reference and includes both males and females, in this context “men” has been retained because of the wordplay with the Son of Man and the contrast with the angels. The same is true of the occurrence of “men” in v. 9.
14 sn This acknowledgment will take place at the judgment. Of course, the Son of Man is a reference to Jesus as it has been throughout the Gospel. On Jesus and judgment, see 22:69; Acts 10:42-43; 17:31.
16 tn Grk “the descent of”; this could refer to either the slope of the hillside itself or the path leading down from it (the second option has been adopted for the translation, see L&N 15.109).
17 sn See the note on the name Mount of Olives in v. 29.
18 tn Grk “the”; the Greek article has been translated here as a possessive pronoun (ExSyn 215).
19 tn Here the participle χαίροντες (caironte") has been translated as a finite verb in English; it could also be translated adverbially as a participle of manner: “began to praise God joyfully.”
20 sn See 2:13, 20; Acts 2:47; 3:8-9.
21 tn Or “works of power,” “miracles.” Jesus’ ministry of miracles is what has drawn attention. See Luke 7:22.
22 tn Grk “they had seen, saying.” The participle λέγοντες (legontes) is redundant in contemporary English and has not been translated.
21 tn Or “Be on guard against.” This is a present imperative and indicates that pride is something to constantly be on the watch against.
22 tn Or “of the scribes.” See the note on the phrase “experts in the law” in 5:21.
23 tn Grk “who,” continuing the sentence begun by the prior phrase.
24 sn There is later Jewish material in the Talmud that spells out such greetings in detail. See D. L. Bock, Luke (BECNT), 2:1642; H. Windisch, TDNT 1:498.
25 sn See Luke 14:1-14.
26 sn See the note on synagogues in 4:15.