14:1 At that time Herod the tetrarch 5 heard reports about Jesus, 14:2 and he said to his servants, “This is John the Baptist. He has been raised from the dead! And because of this, miraculous powers are at work in him.”
3:1 In the fifteenth year of the reign of Tiberius Caesar, 6 when Pontius Pilate 7 was governor of Judea, and Herod 8 was tetrarch 9 of Galilee, and his brother Philip 10 was tetrarch of the region of Iturea and Trachonitis, and Lysanias 11 was tetrarch of Abilene,
9:7 Now Herod 12 the tetrarch 13 heard about everything that was happening, and he was thoroughly perplexed, 14 because some people were saying that John 15 had been raised from the dead, 9:8 while others were saying that Elijah 16 had appeared, and still others that one of the prophets of long ago had risen. 17 9:9 Herod said, “I had John 18 beheaded, but who is this about whom I hear such things?” So Herod wanted to learn about Jesus. 19
13:31 At that time, 20 some Pharisees 21 came up and said to Jesus, 22 “Get away from here, 23 because Herod 24 wants to kill you.”
1 tc Behind “his daughter Herodias” is a most difficult textual problem. The reading adopted in the translation, τῆς θυγατρὸς αὐτοῦ ῾Ηρῳδιάδος (th" qugatro" aujtou Jerwdiado"), is supported by א B D L Δ 565 pc; it is also the most difficult reading internally since it describes Herodias as Herod’s daughter. Other readings are less awkward, but they do not have adequate external support. The reading τῆς θυγατρὸς αὐτῆς τῆς ῾Ηρῳδιάδος (th" qugatro" auth" th" &erwdiado", “the daughter of Herodias herself”) is supported by A C (W) Θ Ë13 33 Ï, but this is also grammatically awkward. The easiest reading, τῆς θυγατρὸς τῆς ῾Ηρῳδιάδος (“the daughter of Herodias”) is supported by Ë1 pc, but this reading probably arose from an accidental omission of αὐτῆς in the previous reading. The reading τῆς θυγατρὸς αὐτοῦ ῾Ηρῳδιάδος, despite its historical difficulties, is most likely original due to external attestation and the fact that it most likely gave rise to the other readings as scribes sought to correct it.
2 tn Grk “and being deeply grieved, the king did not want.”
3 tn Grk “And.” Here καί (kai) has been translated as “so” to indicate the implied result of previous action(s) in the narrative.
4 tn Grk “his”; the referent (John the Baptist) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
5 sn A tetrarch, a ruler with rank and authority lower than a king, ruled only with the approval of the Roman authorities. This was roughly equivalent to being governor of a region. Several times in the NT, Herod, tetrarch of Galilee, is called a king (Matt 14:9, Mark 6:14-29), reflecting popular usage rather than an official title.
6 tn Or “Emperor Tiberius” (“Caesar” is a title for the Roman emperor).
7 sn The rule of Pontius Pilate is also described by Josephus, J. W. 2.9.2-4 (2.169-177) and Ant. 18.3.1 (18.55-59).
8 sn Herod refers here to Herod Antipas, son of Herod the Great. He ruled from 4
9 sn A tetrarch was a ruler with rank and authority lower than a king, who ruled only with the approval of the Roman authorities. This was roughly equivalent to being governor of a region. Several times in the NT, Herod tetrarch of Galilee is called a king (Matt 14:9, Mark 6:14-29), reflecting popular usage.
10 sn Philip refers to Herod Philip, son of Herod the Great and brother of Herod Antipas. Philip ruled as tetrarch of Iturea and Trachonitis from 4
11 sn Nothing else is known about Lysanias tetrarch of Abilene.
12 sn Herod refers here to Herod Antipas. See the note on Herod Antipas in 3:1.
13 sn See the note on tetrarch in 3:1.
14 tn Or “was very confused.” See L&N 32.10 where this verse is given as an example of the usage.
15 sn John refers to John the Baptist, whom Herod had beheaded (v. 9).
16 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.
17 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.
18 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.
19 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.
20 tn Grk “At that very hour.”
21 sn See the note on Pharisees in 5:17.
22 tn Grk “him”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
23 tn Grk “Go away and leave from here,” which is redundant in English and has been shortened to “Get away from here.”
24 sn Herod refers here to Herod Antipas. See the note on Herod Antipas in 3:1.
25 tn Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style.
26 sn Learning that Jesus was from Galilee and therefore part of Herod’s jurisdiction, Pilate decided to rid himself of the problem by sending him to Herod.
27 sn Herod was Herod Antipas, son of Herod the Great. See the note on Herod in 3:1.
28 sn Herod would probably have come to Jerusalem for the feast, although his father was only half Jewish (Josephus, Ant. 14.15.2 [14.403]). Josephus does mention Herod’s presence in Jerusalem during a feast (Ant. 18.5.3 [18.122]).
29 tn Here δέ (de) has not been translated.
30 tn Grk “to see some sign performed by him.” Here the passive construction has been translated as an active one in keeping with contemporary English style.
31 sn Herod, hoping to see him perform some miraculous sign, seems to have treated Jesus as a curiosity (cf. 9:7-9).
32 tn Here δέ (de) has been translated as “so” to indicate the implied result of the previous statements in the narrative about Herod’s desire to see Jesus.
33 tn Grk “he”; the referent (Herod) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
34 tn Grk “he”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
35 tn Or “and the scribes.” See the note on the phrase “experts in the law” in 5:21.
36 sn Luke portrays the Jewish leadership as driving events toward the cross by vehemently accusing Jesus.
37 tn This is a continuation of the previous Greek sentence, but because of its length and complexity, a new sentence was started here in the translation by supplying “then” to indicate the sequence of events.
38 sn This mockery involved putting elegant royal clothes on Jesus, either white or purple (the colors of royalty). This was no doubt a mockery of Jesus’ claim to be a king.
39 tn Grk “he”; the referent (Herod) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
40 sn Herod and Pilate became friends with each other. It may be that Pilate’s change of heart was related to the death of his superior, Sejanus, who had a reputation for being anti-Jewish. To please his superior, Pilate may have ruled the Jews with insensitivity. Concerning Sejanus, see Philo, Embassy 24 (160-61) and Flaccus 1 (1).
41 tn Grk “at enmity with each other.”