Luke 3:20

3:20 Herod added this to them all: He locked up John in prison.

Luke 12:38

12:38 Even if he comes in the second or third watch of the night ¹  and finds them alert, ²  blessed are those slaves! ³ 

Luke 22:33

22:33 But Peter ⁴  said to him, “Lord, I am ready to go with you both to prison and to death!” ⁵ 

Luke 23:19

23:19 (This ⁶  was a man who had been thrown into prison for an insurrection ⁷  started in the city, and for murder.) ⁸ 

Luke 2:8

The Shepherds’ Visit

2:8 Now ⁹  there were shepherds ¹⁰  nearby ¹¹  living out in the field, keeping guard ¹²  over their flock at night.

Luke 23:25

23:25 He released the man they asked for, who had been thrown in prison for insurrection and murder. But he handed Jesus over ¹³  to their will. ¹⁴ 

Luke 21:12

21:12 But before all this, ¹⁵  they will seize ¹⁶  you and persecute you, handing you over to the synagogues ¹⁷  and prisons. You ¹⁸  will be brought before kings and governors because of my name.

Luke 12:58

12:58 As you are going with your accuser before the magistrate, ¹⁹  make an effort to settle with him on the way, so that he will not drag you before the judge, and the judge hand you over to the officer, ²⁰  and the officer throw you into prison.

¹ sn The second or third watch of the night would be between 9 p.m. and 3 a.m. on a Roman schedule and 10 p.m. to 6 a.m. on a Jewish schedule. Luke uses the four-watch schedule of the Romans in Acts 12:4, so that is more probable here. Regardless of the precise times of the watches, however, it is clear that the late-night watches when a person is least alert are in view here.

² tn Grk “finds (them) thus”; but this has been clarified in the translation by referring to the status (“alert”) mentioned in v. 37.

³ tn Grk “blessed are they”; the referent (the watchful slaves, v. 37) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

¹ tn Grk “he”; the referent (Peter) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

² sn The confidence Peter has in private (Lord, I am ready…) will wilt under the pressure of the public eye.

¹ tn Grk “who” (a continuation of the previous sentence).

² sn Ironically, what Jesus was alleged to have done, started an insurrection, this man really did.

³ sn This is a parenthetical note by the author.

¹ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “now” to indicate the transition to a new topic.

² sn Some argue that shepherds were among the culturally despised, but the evidence for this view of shepherds is late, coming from 5th century Jewish materials. December 25 as the celebrated date of Jesus’ birth arose around the time of Constantine (ca. a.d. 306-337), though it is mentioned in material from Hippolytus (a.d. 165-235). Some think that the reason for celebration on this date was that it coincided with the pagan Roman festival of Saturnalia, and Christians could celebrate their own festival at this time without fear of persecution. On the basis of the statement that the shepherds were living out in the field, keeping guard over their flock at night it is often suggested that Jesus’ birth took place in early spring, since it was only at lambing time that shepherds stood guard over their flocks in the field. This is not absolutely certain, however.

³ tn Grk “in that region.”

⁴ tn Grk “living in the field (see BDAG 15 s.v. ἀγραυλέω) and guarding their flock.”

¹ tn Or “delivered up.”

² sn He handed Jesus over to their will. Here is where Luke places the major blame for Jesus’ death. It lies with the Jewish nation, especially the leadership, though in Acts 4:24-27 he will bring in the opposition of Herod, Pilate, and all people.

¹ sn But before all this. Another note of timing is present, this one especially important in understanding the sequence in the discourse. Before the things noted in vv. 8-11 are the events of vv. 12-19.

² tn Grk “will lay their hands on you.”

³ sn Some of the persecution is of Jewish origin (the synagogues). Some fulfillment of this can be seen in Acts. See the note on synagogues in 4:15.

⁴ tn Because of the length and complexity of the Greek sentence, a new sentence was started here in the translation.

¹ sn The term magistrate (ἄρχων, arcwn) refers to an official who, under the authority of the government, serves as judge in legal cases (see L&N 56.29).

² sn The officer (πράκτωρ, praktwr) was a civil official who functioned like a bailiff and was in charge of debtor’s prison. The use of the term, however, does not automatically demand a Hellenistic setting (BDAG 859 s.v.; K. H. Rengstorf, TDNT 8:539; C. Maurer, TDNT 6:642).