4:18 “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me,
because he has anointed 3 me to proclaim good news 4 to the poor. 5
He has sent me 6 to proclaim release 7 to the captives
and the regaining of sight 8 to the blind,
to set free 9 those who are oppressed, 10
8:1 Some time 17 afterward 18 he went on through towns 19 and villages, preaching and proclaiming the good news 20 of the kingdom of God. 21 The 22 twelve were with him,
16:16 “The law and the prophets were in force 23 until John; 24 since then, 25 the good news of the kingdom of God 26 has been proclaimed, and everyone is urged to enter it. 27
1 tn Grk “behold.”
2 tn Grk “I evangelize to you great joy.”
3 sn The phrase he has anointed me is an allusion back to Jesus’ baptism in Luke 3:21-22.
4 tn Grk “to evangelize,” “to preach the gospel.”
5 sn The poor is a key term in Luke. It refers to the pious poor and indicates Jesus’ desire to reach out to those the world tends to forget or mistreat. It is like 1:52 in force and also will be echoed in 6:20 (also 1 Pet 2:11-25). Jesus is commissioned to do this.
6 tc The majority of
7 sn The release in view here is comprehensive, both at a physical level and a spiritual one, as the entire ministry of Jesus makes clear (Luke 1:77-79; 7:47; 24:47; Acts 2:38; 5:31; 10:43).
8 sn Again, as with the previous phrase, regaining of sight may well mean more than simply miraculously restoring physical sight, which itself pictures a deeper reality (Luke 1:77-79; 18:35-43).
9 sn The essence of Jesus’ messianic work is expressed in the phrase to set free. This line from Isa 58 says that Jesus will do what the nation had failed to do. It makes the proclamation messianic, not merely prophetic, because Jesus doesn’t just proclaim the message – he brings the deliverance. The word translated set free is the same Greek word (ἄφεσις, afesi") translated release earlier in the verse.
10 sn Again, as with the previous phrases, oppressed may well mean more than simply political or economic oppression, but a deeper reality of oppression by sin (Luke 1:77-79; 18:35-43).
5 tn Grk “he”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
6 tn Here δεῖ (dei, “it is necessary”) indicates divine commission (cf. Luke 2:49).
7 sn The good news of the kingdom, the kingdom of the rule of God through the Messiah, is the topic of Jesus’ preaching.
8 tn Or “cities.”
9 sn Jesus was sent by God for this purpose. This is the language of divine commission.
10 tn Grk “because for this purpose I was sent.”
7 tn Grk “And it happened that some time.” The introductory phrase ἐγένετο (egeneto, “it happened that”), common in Luke (69 times) and Acts (54 times), is redundant in contemporary English and has not been translated.
8 tn Καθεξῆς (Kaqexh") is a general temporal term and need not mean “soon afterward”; see Luke 1:3; Acts 3:24; 11:4; 18:23 and L&N 61.1.
9 tn Or “cities.”
10 sn The combination of preaching and proclaiming the good news is a bit emphatic, stressing Jesus’ teaching ministry on the rule of God.
11 sn The kingdom of God is a major theme of Jesus. It is a realm in which Jesus rules and to which those who trust him belong. See Luke 6:20; 11:20; 17:20-21.
12 tn Grk “And the.” Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style.
9 tn There is no verb in the Greek text; one must be supplied. Some translations (NASB, NIV) supply “proclaimed” based on the parallelism with the proclamation of the kingdom. The transitional nature of this verse, however, seems to call for something more like “in effect” (NRSV) or, as used here, “in force.” Further, Greek generally can omit one of two kinds of verbs – either the equative verb or one that is already mentioned in the preceding context (ExSyn 39).
10 sn John refers to John the Baptist.
11 sn Until John; since then. This verse indicates a shift in era, from law to kingdom.
12 sn The kingdom of God is a major theme of Jesus. It is a realm in which Jesus rules and to which those who trust him belong. See Luke 6:20; 11:20; 17:20-21.
13 tn Many translations have “entereth violently into it” (ASV) or “is forcing his way into it” (NASB, NIV). This is not true of everyone. It is better to read the verb here as passive rather than middle, and in a softened sense of “be urged.” See Gen 33:11; Judg 13:15-16; 19:7; 2 Sam 3:25, 27 in the LXX. This fits the context well because it agrees with Jesus’ attempt to persuade his opponents to respond morally. For further discussion and details, see D. L. Bock, Luke (BECNT), 2:1352-53.