Luke 9:7

Herod’s Confusion about Jesus

9:7 Now Herod ¹  the tetrarch ²  heard about everything that was happening, and he was thoroughly perplexed, ³  because some people were saying that John ⁴  had been raised from the dead,

Mark 6:14

The Death of John the Baptist

6:14 Now ⁵  King Herod ⁶  heard this, for Jesus’ ⁷  name had become known. Some ⁸  were saying, “John the baptizer ⁹  has been raised from the dead, and because of this, miraculous powers are at work in him.”

John 10:32

10:32 Jesus said to them, ¹⁰  “I have shown you many good deeds ¹¹  from the Father. For which one of them are you going to stone me?”

John 11:8-10

11:8 The disciples replied, ¹²  “Rabbi, the Jewish leaders ¹³  were just now trying ¹⁴  to stone you to death! Are ¹⁵  you going there again?” 11:9 Jesus replied, ¹⁶  “Are there not twelve hours in a day? If anyone walks around in the daytime, he does not stumble, ¹⁷  because he sees the light of this world. ¹⁸  11:10 But if anyone walks around at night, ¹⁹  he stumbles, ²⁰  because the light is not in him.”

¹ sn Herod refers here to Herod Antipas. See the note on Herod Antipas in 3:1.

² sn See the note on tetrarch in 3:1.

³ tn Or “was very confused.” See L&N 32.10 where this verse is given as an example of the usage.

⁴ sn John refers to John the Baptist, whom Herod had beheaded (v. 9).

⁵ tn Grk “And.” Here καί (kai) has been translated as “now” to indicate the transition to a new topic.

⁶ sn Herod was technically not a king, but a tetrarch, a ruler with rank and authority lower than a king. A tetrarch ruled only with the approval of the Roman authorities. This was roughly equivalent to being governor of a region. In the NT, Herod, who ruled over Galilee, is called a king (Matt 14:9, Mark 6:14-29), reflecting popular usage rather than an official title.

⁷ tn Grk “his”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

⁸ tn Because of the length and complexity of the Greek sentence, a new sentence was started here in the translation.

⁹ tn While Matthew and Luke consistently use the noun βαπτίστης (baptisths, “the Baptist”) to refer to John, as a kind of a title, Mark prefers the substantival participle ὁ βαπτίζων (Jo baptizwn, “the one who baptizes, the baptizer”) to describe him (only twice does he use the noun [Mark 6:25; 8:28]).

¹⁰ tn Grk “Jesus answered them.”

¹¹ tn Or “good works.”

¹² tn Grk “The disciples said to him.”

¹³ tn Or “the Jewish authorities”; Grk “the Jews.” In NT usage the term ᾿Ιουδαῖοι (Ioudaioi) may refer to the entire Jewish people, the residents of Jerusalem and surrounding territory, the authorities in Jerusalem, or merely those who were hostile to Jesus. (For further information see R. G. Bratcher, “‘The Jews’ in the Gospel of John,” BT 26 [1975]: 401-9.) Here the phrase refers to the Jewish leaders. See the previous references and the notes on the phrase “Jewish people” in v. 19, and “Jewish religious leaders” in vv. 24, 31, 33.

¹⁴ tn Grk “seeking.”

¹⁵ tn Grk “And are.” Because of the difference between Greek style, which often begins sentences or clauses with “and,” and English style, which generally does not, καί (kai) has not been translated here.

¹⁶ tn Grk “Jesus answered.”

¹⁷ tn Or “he does not trip.”

¹⁸ sn What is the light of this world? On one level, of course, it refers to the sun, but the reader of John’s Gospel would recall 8:12 and understand Jesus’ symbolic reference to himself as the light of the world. There is only a limited time left (Are there not twelve hours in a day?) until the Light will be withdrawn (until Jesus returns to the Father) and the one who walks around in the dark will trip and fall (compare the departure of Judas by night in 13:30).

¹⁹ tn Grk “in the night.”

²⁰ tn Or “he trips.”