11:17 ‘We played the flute for you, yet you did not dance; 7
we wailed in mourning, 8 yet you did not weep.’
13:10 Then 9 the disciples came to him and said, “Why do you speak to them in parables?”
15:10 Then he called the crowd to him and said, 10 “Listen and understand.
16:5 When the disciples went to the other side, they forgot to take bread.
24:42 “Therefore stay alert, because you do not know on what day 16 your Lord will come.
1 sn This remark echoes the more common OT statements like Lev 19:2 or Deut 18:13: “you must be holy as I am holy.”
2 tn Grk “And behold.” The Greek word ἰδού (idou) has not been translated because it has no exact English equivalent here, but adds interest and emphasis (BDAG 468 s.v. 1). Here καί (kai) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence of events in the narrative.
3 tn Or “some of the scribes.” See the note on the phrase “experts in the law” in 2:4.
4 sn Blaspheming meant to say something that dishonored God. To claim divine prerogatives or claim to speak for God when one really does not would be such an act of offense. The remark raised directly the issue of the nature of Jesus’ ministry.
3 sn Aspects of Jesus’ ministry may have led John to question whether Jesus was the promised stronger and greater one who is to come that he had preached about in Matt 3:1-12.
4 tn John the Baptist is “more” because he introduces the one (Jesus) who brings the new era. The term is neuter, but may be understood as masculine in this context (BDAG 806 s.v. περισσότερος b).
5 sn ‘We played the flute for you, yet you did not dance…’ The children of this generation were making the complaint (see vv. 18-19) that others were not playing the game according to the way they played the music. John and Jesus did not follow “their tune.” Jesus’ complaint was that this generation wanted things their way, not God’s.
6 tn The verb ἐθρηνήσαμεν (eqrhnhsamen) refers to the loud wailing and lamenting used to mourn the dead in public in 1st century Jewish culture.
6 tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence of events within the narrative.
7 tn Grk “And calling the crowd, he said to them.” The participle προσκαλεσάμενος (proskalesamenos) has been translated as attendant circumstance. The emphasis here is upon Jesus’ speaking to the crowd.
8 tn Grk “he”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity. Here δέ (de) has not been translated.
9 sn A quotation from Lev 19:18.
10 tn Grk “answering, Jesus said to them.” This is somewhat redundant and has been simplified in the translation.
11 tn Or “Be on guard.”
11 tn Here δέ (de) has not been translated.
12 tc Most later
13 tn Grk “But answering, he said.” This is somewhat redundant and has been simplified in the translation.
14 tn Grk “Truly (ἀμήν, amhn), I say to you.”
14 tn Grk “the one who betrays me.”
15 tn Here καί (kai) has not been translated.
16 sn Judas’ act of betrayal when he kissed Jesus is especially sinister when it is realized that it was common in the culture of the times for a disciple to kiss his master when greeting him.