Ezekiel 34:4

34:4 You have not strengthened the weak, healed the sick, bandaged the injured, brought back the strays, or sought the lost, but with force and harshness ¹  you have ruled over them.

Ezekiel 34:11

34:11 “‘For this is what the sovereign Lord says: Look, I myself will search for my sheep and seek them out.

Isaiah 40:11

40:11 Like a shepherd he tends his flock;

he gathers up the lambs with his arm;

he carries them close to his heart; ² 

he leads the ewes along.

Isaiah 61:1-3

The Lord Will Rejuvenate His People

61:1 The spirit of the sovereign Lord is upon me,

because the Lord has chosen ³  me. ⁴ 

He has commissioned ⁵  me to encourage ⁶  the poor,

to help ⁷  the brokenhearted,

to decree the release of captives,

and the freeing of prisoners,

61:2 to announce the year when the Lord will show his favor,

the day when our God will seek vengeance, ⁸ 

to console all who mourn,

61:3 to strengthen those who mourn in Zion,

by giving them a turban, instead of ashes,

oil symbolizing joy, ⁹  instead of mourning,

a garment symbolizing praise, ¹⁰  instead of discouragement. ¹¹ 

They will be called oaks of righteousness, ¹² 

trees planted by the Lord to reveal his splendor. ¹³ 

Micah 4:6-7

Restoration Will Follow Crisis

4:6 “In that day,” says the Lord, “I will gather the lame,

and assemble the outcasts whom I injured. ¹⁴ 

4:7 I will transform the lame into the nucleus of a new nation, ¹⁵ 

and those far off ¹⁶  into a mighty nation.

The Lord will reign over them on Mount Zion,

from that day forward and forevermore.” ¹⁷ 

Matthew 15:24

15:24 So ¹⁸  he answered, “I was sent only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.”

Matthew 18:11-14

18:11 [[EMPTY]] ¹⁹  18:12 What do you think? If someone ²⁰  owns a hundred ²¹  sheep and one of them goes astray, will he not leave the ninety-nine on the mountains and go look for the one that went astray? ²²  18:13 And if he finds it, I tell you the truth, ²³  he will rejoice more over it than over the ninety-nine that did not go astray. 18:14 In the same way, your Father in heaven is not willing that one of these little ones be lost.

Mark 2:17

2:17 When Jesus heard this he said to them, “Those who are healthy don’t need a physician, but those who are sick do. ²⁴  I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners.”

Luke 5:31-32

5:31 Jesus ²⁵  answered them, “Those who are well don’t need a physician, but those who are sick do. ²⁶  5:32 I have not come ²⁷  to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance.” ²⁸ 

Luke 15:4-7

15:4 “Which one ²⁹  of you, if he has a hundred ³⁰  sheep and loses one of them, would not leave the ninety-nine in the open pasture ³¹  and go look for ³²  the one that is lost until he finds it? ³³  15:5 Then ³⁴  when he has found it, he places it on his shoulders, rejoicing. 15:6 Returning ³⁵  home, he calls together ³⁶  his ³⁷  friends and neighbors, telling them, ‘Rejoice with me, because I have found my sheep that was lost.’ 15:7 I tell you, in the same way there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner ³⁸  who repents than over ninety-nine righteous people ³⁹  who have no need to repent. ⁴⁰ 

Luke 19:10

19:10 For the Son of Man came ⁴¹  to seek and to save the lost.”

[34:4]  ¹ tn The term translated “harshness” is used to describe the oppression the Israelites suffered as slaves in Egypt (Exod 1:13).

[40:11]  ² tn Heb “in his bosom” (so KJV, NAB, NASB, NRSV), an expression which reflects closeness and protective care.

[61:1]  ³ tn Heb “anointed,” i.e., designated to carry out an assigned task.

[61:1]  ⁴ sn The speaker is not identified, but he is distinct from the Lord and from Zion’s suffering people. He possesses the divine spirit, is God’s spokesman, and is sent to release prisoners from bondage. The evidence suggests he is the Lord’s special servant, described earlier in the servant songs (see 42:1-4, 7; 49:2, 9; 50:4; see also 51:16).

[61:1]  ⁵ tn Or “sent” (NAB); NCV “has appointed me.”

[61:1]  ⁶ tn Or “proclaim good news to.”

[61:1]  ⁷ tn Heb “to bind up [the wounds of].”

[61:2]  ⁸ tn Heb “to announce the year of the Lord’s favor, and the day of our God’s vengeance.

[61:3]  ⁹ tn Heb “oil of joy” (KJV, ASV); NASB, NIV, NRSV “the oil of gladness.”

[61:3]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “garment of praise.”

[61:3]  ¹¹ tn Heb “a faint spirit” (so NRSV); KJV, ASV “the spirit of heaviness”; NASB “a spirit of fainting.”

[61:3]  ¹² tn Rather than referring to the character of the people, צֶדֶק (tsedeq) may carry the nuance “vindication” here, suggesting that God’s restored people are a testimony to his justice. See v. 2, which alludes to the fact that God will take vengeance against the enemies of his people. Cf. NAB “oaks of justice.”

[61:3]  ¹³ tn Heb “a planting of the Lord to reveal splendor.”

[4:6]  ¹⁴ sn The exiles of the nation are compared to lame and injured sheep.

[4:7]  ¹⁵ tn Heb “make the lame into a remnant.”

[4:7]  ¹⁶ tn The precise meaning of this difficult form is uncertain. The present translation assumes the form is a Niphal participle of an otherwise unattested denominative verb הָלָא (hala’, “to be far off”; see BDB 229 s.v.), but attractive emendations include הַנַּחֲלָה (hannakhalah, “the sick one[s]”) from חָלָה (khalah) and הַנִּלְאָה (hannil’ah, “the weary one[s]”) from לָאָה (la’ah).

[4:7]  ¹⁷ tn Heb “from now until forever.”

[15:24]  ¹⁸ tn Grk “And answering, he said.” The construction in Greek is somewhat redundant and has been simplified in the translation. Here δέ (de) has been translated as “so” to indicate the implied result of the disciples’ request.

[18:11]  ¹⁹ tc The most important mss (א B L* Θ* Ë^1,13 33 892* pc e ff¹ sy^s sa) do not include 18:11 “For the Son of Man came to save the lost.” The verse is included in D L^mg W Θ^c 078^vid Ï lat sy^c,p,h, but is almost certainly not original, being borrowed, as it were, from the parallel in Luke 19:10. The present translation follows NA²⁷ in omitting the verse number as well, a procedure also followed by a number of other modern translations.

[18:12]  ²⁰ tn Grk “a certain man.” The Greek word ἄνθρωπος (anqrwpo") is used here in a somewhat generic sense.

[18:12]  ²¹ sn This individual with a hundred sheep is a shepherd of modest means, as flocks often had up to two hundred head of sheep.

[18:12]  ²² sn Look for the one that went astray. The parable pictures God’s pursuit of the sinner. On the image of Jesus as the Good Shepherd, see John 10:1-18.

[18:13]  ²³ tn Grk “Truly (ἀμήν, amhn), I say to you.”

[2:17]  ²⁴ sn Jesus’ point is that he associates with those who are sick because they have the need and will respond to the offer of help. A person who is healthy (or who thinks mistakenly that he is) will not seek treatment.

[5:31]  ²⁵ tn Grk “And Jesus.” Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style.

[5:31]  ²⁶ sn Jesus’ point is that he associates with those who are sick because they have the need and will respond to the offer of help. A person who is well (or who thinks mistakenly that he is) will not seek treatment.

[5:32]  ²⁷ sn I have not come is another commission statement by Jesus; see 4:43-44.

[5:32]  ²⁸ sn Though parallels exist to this saying (Matt 9:13; Mark 2:17), only Luke has this last phrase but sinners to repentance. Repentance is a frequent topic in Luke’s Gospel: 3:3, 8; 13:1-5; 15:7, 10; 16:30; 17:3-4; 24:47.

[15:4]  ²⁹ tn Grk “What man.” The Greek word ἄνθρωπος (anqrwpo") is used here in a somewhat generic sense.

[15:4]  ³⁰ sn This individual with a hundred sheep is a shepherd of modest means, as flocks often had up to two hundred head of sheep.

[15:4]  ³¹ tn Or “desert,” but here such a translation might suggest neglect of the 99 sheep left behind.

[15:4]  ³² tn Grk “go after,” but in contemporary English the idiom “to look for” is used to express this.

[15:4]  ³³ sn Until he finds it. The parable pictures God’s pursuit of the sinner. On the image of Jesus as the Good Shepherd, see John 10:1-18.

[15:5]  ³⁴ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence of events within the narrative.

[15:6]  ³⁵ tn Grk “And coming into his…” Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style.

[15:6]  ³⁶ sn A touch of drama may be present, as the term calls together can mean a formal celebration (1 Kgs 1:9-10).

[15:6]  ³⁷ tn Grk “the”; in context the article is used as a possessive pronoun (ExSyn 215). It occurs before “neighbors” as well (“his friends and his neighbors”) but has not been translated the second time because of English style.

[15:7]  ³⁸ sn There will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents. The pursuit of the sinner is a priority in spite of the presence of others who are doing well (see also Luke 5:32; 19:10). The theme of repentance, a major Lukan theme, is again emphasized.

[15:7]  ³⁹ tn Here δικαίοις (dikaioi") is an adjective functioning substantivally and has been translated “righteous people.”

[15:7]  ⁴⁰ tn Or “who do not need to repent”; Grk “who do not have need of repentance.”

[19:10]  ⁴¹ sn The Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost is Jesus’ mission succinctly defined. See Luke 15:1-32.