Luke 8:45-46

8:45 Then ¹  Jesus asked, ²  “Who was it who touched me?” When they all denied it, Peter ³  said, “Master, the crowds are surrounding you and pressing ⁴  against you!” 8:46 But Jesus said, “Someone touched me, for I know that power has gone out ⁵  from me.”

Mark 5:30

5:30 Jesus knew at once that power had gone out from him. He turned around in the crowd and said, “Who touched my clothes?”

Mark 5:1

Healing of a Demoniac

5:1 So ⁶  they came to the other side of the lake, to the region of the Gerasenes. ⁷ 

Mark 2:9

2:9 Which is easier, ⁸  to say to the paralytic, ‘Your sins are forgiven,’ or to say, ‘Stand up, take your stretcher, and walk’?

[8:45]  ¹ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence of events within the narrative.

[8:45]  ² tn Grk “said.”

[8:45]  ³ tc Most mss, especially the later ones (א A C*^,3 D L W Θ Ξ Ψ Ë^1,13 33 Ï latt), also have “and those together with him” (with two different Greek constructions for the phrase “with him”), while several important witnesses omit this phrase (Ì⁷⁵ B Π 700* al sa). The singular verb εἶπεν (eipen, “he said”) could possibly suggest that only Peter was originally mentioned, but, if the longer reading is authentic, then εἶπεν would focus on Peter as the spokesman for the group, highlighting his prominence (cf. ExSyn 401-2). Nevertheless, the longer reading looks like a clarifying note, harmonizing this account with Mark 5:31.

[8:45]  ⁴ sn Pressing is a graphic term used in everyday Greek of pressing grapes. Peter says in effect, “How could you ask this? Everyone is touching you!”

[8:46]  ⁵ tn This is a consummative perfect. Jesus sensed that someone had approached him to be healed, as his reference to power makes clear. The perception underlies Jesus’ prophetic sense as well.

[5:1]  ⁶ tn Grk “And.” Here καί (kai) has been translated as “so” to indicate a summary and transition in the narrative.

[5:1]  ⁷ tc The textual tradition here is quite complicated. Most later mss (A C ˹³ Ï sy^p,h) read “Gadarenes,” which is the better reading in Matt 8:28. Other mss (א² L Δ Θ Ë¹ 28 33 565 579 700 892 1241 1424 al sy^s bo) have “Gergesenes.” Others (א* B D latt sa) have “Gerasenes,” which is the reading followed in the translation here and in Luke 8:26. The difference between Matthew and Mark (which is parallel to Luke) may well have to do with uses of variant regional terms.

[2:9]  ⁸ sn Which is easier is a reflective kind of question. On the one hand to declare sins are forgiven is easier, since one does not need to see it, unlike telling a paralyzed person to walk. On the other hand, it is harder, because for it to be true one must possess the authority to forgive the sin.