9:1 After 1 Jesus 2 called 3 the twelve 4 together, he gave them power and authority over all demons and to cure 5 diseases, 9:2 and he sent 6 them out to proclaim 7 the kingdom of God 8 and to heal the sick. 9 9:3 He 10 said to them, “Take nothing for your 11 journey – no staff, 12 no bag, 13 no bread, no money, and do not take an extra tunic. 14 9:4 Whatever 15 house you enter, stay there 16 until you leave the area. 17 9:5 Wherever 18 they do not receive you, 19 as you leave that town, 20 shake the dust off 21 your feet as a testimony against them.” 9:6 Then 22 they departed and went throughout 23 the villages, proclaiming the good news 24 and healing people everywhere.
9:7 Now Herod 25 the tetrarch 26 heard about everything that was happening, and he was thoroughly perplexed, 27 because some people were saying that John 28 had been raised from the dead, 9:8 while others were saying that Elijah 29 had appeared, and still others that one of the prophets of long ago had risen. 30 9:9 Herod said, “I had John 31 beheaded, but who is this about whom I hear such things?” So Herod wanted to learn about Jesus. 32
9:10 When 33 the apostles returned, 34 they told Jesus 35 everything they had done. Then 36 he took them with him and they withdrew privately to a town 37 called Bethsaida. 38 9:11 But when the crowds found out, they followed him. He 39 welcomed them, spoke to them about the kingdom of God, 40 and cured those who needed healing. 41 9:12 Now the day began to draw to a close, 42 so 43 the twelve came and said to Jesus, 44 “Send the crowd away, so they can go into the surrounding villages and countryside and find lodging 45 and food, because we are in an isolated place.” 46 9:13 But he said to them, “You 47 give them something to eat.” They 48 replied, 49 “We have no more than five loaves and two fish – unless 50 we go 51 and buy food 52 for all these people.”
1 tn Here δέ (de) has not been translated.
2 tn Grk “he”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
3 tn An aorist participle preceding an aorist main verb may indicate either contemporaneous (simultaneous) action (“When he called… he gave”) or antecedent (prior) action (“After he called… he gave”). The participle συγκαλεσάμενος (sunkalesameno") has been translated here as indicating antecedent action.
4 tc Some
5 sn Note how Luke distinguishes between exorcisms (authority over all demons) and diseases here.
6 sn “To send out” is often a term of divine commission in Luke: 1:19; 4:18, 43; 7:27; 9:48; 10:1, 16; 11:49; 13:34; 24:49.
7 tn Or “to preach.”
8 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.
9 sn As Jesus’ own ministry (Luke 4:16-44) involved both word (to proclaim) and deed (to heal) so also would that of the disciples.
10 tn Grk “And he.” Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style.
11 tn Grk “the”; in context the article is used as a possessive pronoun (ExSyn 215).
12 sn Mark 6:8 allows one staff. It might be that Luke’s summary (cf. Matt 10:9-10) means not taking an extra staff or that the expression is merely rhetorical for “traveling light” which has been rendered in two slightly different ways.
13 tn Or “no traveler’s bag”; or possibly “no beggar’s bag” (L&N 6.145; BDAG 811 s.v. πήρα).
14 tn Grk “have two tunics.” See the note on the word “tunics” in 3:11.
15 tn Grk “And whatever.” Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style.
16 sn Jesus telling his disciples to stay there in one house contrasts with the practice of religious philosophers in the ancient world who went from house to house begging.
17 tn Grk “and depart from there.” The literal wording could be easily misunderstood; the meaning is that the disciples were not to move from house to house in the same town or locality, but remain at the same house as long as they were in that place.
18 tn Grk “And wherever.” Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style.
19 tn Grk “all those who do not receive you.”
20 tn Or “city.”
21 sn To shake the dust off represented shaking off the uncleanness from one’s feet; see Luke 10:11; Acts 13:51; 18:6. It was a sign of rejection.
22 tn Here δέ (de) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence of events within the narrative.
23 tn This is a distributive use of κατά (kata); see L&N 83:12 where this verse is cited as an example of the usage.
24 tn Or “preaching the gospel.”
25 sn Herod refers here to Herod Antipas. See the note on Herod Antipas in 3:1.
26 sn See the note on tetrarch in 3:1.
27 tn Or “was very confused.” See L&N 32.10 where this verse is given as an example of the usage.
28 sn John refers to John the Baptist, whom Herod had beheaded (v. 9).
29 sn The appearance of Elijah would mean that the end time had come. According to 2 Kgs 2:11, Elijah was still alive. In Mal 4:5 it is said that Elijah would be the precursor of Messiah.
30 sn The phrase had risen could be understood to mean “had been resurrected,” but this is only a possible option, not a necessary one, since the phrase could merely mean that a figure had appeared on the scene who mirrored an earlier historical figure. The three options of vv. 7-8 will be repeated in v. 19.
31 tn Grk “John I beheaded”; John’s name is in emphatic position in the Greek text. The verb is causative, since Herod would not have personally carried out the execution.
32 tn The expression ἐζήτει ἰδεῖν αὐτόν (ezhtei idein auton, “was seeking to see him”) probably indicates that Herod, for curiosity’s sake or more likely for evil purposes, wanted to get to know Jesus, i.e., who he was and what he was doing. See I. H. Marshall, Luke (NIGTC), 357. Herod finally got his wish in Luke 23:6-12, with inconclusive results from his point of view.
33 tn Grk “And when.” Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style.
34 tn The participle ὑποστρέψαντες (Jupostreyante") has been taken temporally.
35 tn Grk “him”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
36 tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence of events within the narrative.
37 tc There is a seeming myriad of variants for this text. Many
38 sn Bethsaida was a town on the northeast side of the Sea of Galilee. Probably this should be understood to mean a place in the vicinity of the town. It represents an attempt to reconcile the location with the place of the miraculous feeding that follows.
39 tn Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style.
40 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.
41 sn Again the combination of word (spoke to them) and healing (cured, compassionate deed) is what summarizes Jesus’ ministry: See Luke 4:38-44; 6:17-19; 7:22 (as also the disciples, 9:6).
42 tn Grk “the day began to decline,” looking to the approach of sunset.
43 tn Here δέ (de) has been translated as “so” to indicate that the disciples’ request was related to the approach of sunset.
44 tn Grk “him”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
45 tn That is, find someone to show them hospitality. L&N 34.61 has “find lodging,” using this verse as an example.
46 tn Or “in a desert” (meaning a deserted or desolate area with sparse vegetation). Here ὧδε (Jwde) has not been translated.
47 tn Here the pronoun ὑμεῖς (Jumeis) is used, making “you” in the translation emphatic.
48 tn Here δέ (de) has not been translated.
49 tn Grk “said.”
50 tn This possibility is introduced through a conditional clause, but it is expressed with some skepticism (BDF §376).
51 tn The participle πορευθέντες (poreuqente") has been taken as indicating attendant circumstance.
52 sn Not only would going and buying food have been expensive and awkward at this late time of day, it would have taken quite a logistical effort to get the food back out to this isolated location.