‘Look, I am sending my messenger ahead of you, 7
who will prepare your way before you.’ 8
11:11 “I tell you the truth, 9 among those born of women, no one has arisen greater than John the Baptist. Yet the one who is least 10 in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he is. 11:12 From 11 the days of John the Baptist until now the kingdom of heaven has suffered violence, and forceful people lay hold of it. 12 11:13 For all the prophets and the law prophesied until John appeared. 13 11:14 And if you are willing to accept it, he is Elijah, who is to come.
1 tn Grk “says.” This is one of the few times Luke uses the historical present.
2 tn Or “obey”; Grk “hear.” This recalls the many OT texts calling for a righteous heart to respond to people in need (Deut 14:28-29; Isa 3:14-15; Amos 2:6-8; Mic 2:1-2; Zech 7:9-10).
3 tn Here δέ (de) has not been translated.
4 tn Or “obey”; Grk “hear.” See the note on the phrase “respond to” in v. 29.
5 sn The concluding statement of the parable, they will not be convinced even if someone rises from the dead, provides a hint that even Jesus’ resurrection will not help some to respond. The message of God should be good enough. Scripture is the sign to be heeded.
6 tn John the Baptist is “more” because he introduces the one (Jesus) who brings the new era. The term is neuter, but may be understood as masculine in this context (BDAG 806 s.v. περισσότερος b).
7 tn Grk “before your face” (an idiom).
8 sn The quotation is primarily from Mal 3:1 with pronouns from Exod 23:20. Here is the forerunner who points the way to the arrival of God’s salvation. His job is to prepare and guide the people, as the cloud did for Israel in the desert.
9 tn Grk “Truly (ἀμήν, amhn), I say to you.”
10 sn After John comes a shift of eras. The new era is so great that the lowest member of it (the one who is least in the kingdom of God) is greater than the greatest one of the previous era.
11 tn Here δέ (de) has not been translated.
12 tn Or “the kingdom of heaven is forcibly entered and violent people take hold of it.” For a somewhat different interpretation of this passage, see the note on the phrase “urged to enter in” in Luke 16:16.
13 tn The word “appeared” is not in the Greek text, but is implied.
14 sn Nathanael is traditionally identified with Bartholomew (although John never describes him as such). He appears here after Philip, while in all lists of the twelve except in Acts 1:13, Bartholomew follows Philip. Also, the Aramaic Bar-tolmai means “son of Tolmai,” the surname; the man almost certainly had another name.
15 tn “Also” is not in the Greek text, but is implied.
16 sn God foretold. Peter’s topic is the working out of God’s plan and promise through events the scriptures also note.
17 tn Grk “by the mouth of” (an idiom).
18 tn Or “Messiah”; both “Christ” (Greek) and “Messiah” (Hebrew and Aramaic) mean “one who has been anointed.”
19 tn Or “proclaimed.”
20 tn Or “forefathers”; Grk “fathers.”
21 tn Or “in your offspring”; Grk “in your seed.”
22 tn Or “families.” The Greek word πατριά (patria) can indicate persons of succeeding generations who are related by birth (“lineage,” “family”) but it can also indicate a relatively large unit of people who make up a sociopolitical group and who share a presumed biological descent. In many contexts πατριά is very similar to ἔθνος (eqnos) and λαός (laos). In light of the context of the OT quotation, it is better to translate πατριά as “nations” here.
23 sn A quotation from Gen 22:18.