Luke 1:23

1:23 When his time of service was over, ¹  he went to his home.

Luke 12:35

Call to Faithful Stewardship

12:35 “Get dressed for service ²  and keep your lamps burning; ³ 

Luke 1:8

1:8 Now ⁴  while Zechariah ⁵  was serving as priest before God when his division was on duty, ⁶ 

Luke 9:62

9:62 Jesus ⁷  said to him, “No one who puts his ⁸  hand to the plow and looks back ⁹  is fit for the kingdom of God.” ¹⁰ 

Luke 1:5

Birth Announcement of John the Baptist

1:5 During the reign ¹¹  of Herod ¹²  king of Judea, there lived a priest named Zechariah who belonged to ¹³  the priestly division of Abijah, ¹⁴  and he had a wife named Elizabeth, ¹⁵  who was a descendant of Aaron. ¹⁶ 

Luke 12:37

12:37 Blessed are those slaves ¹⁷  whom their master finds alert ¹⁸  when he returns! I tell you the truth, ¹⁹  he will dress himself to serve, ²⁰  have them take their place at the table, ²¹  and will come ²²  and wait on them! ²³ 

Luke 12:42

12:42 The Lord replied, ²⁴  “Who then is the faithful and wise manager, ²⁵  whom the master puts in charge of his household servants, ²⁶  to give them their allowance of food at the proper time?

[1:23]  ¹ tn Grk “And it happened that as the days of his service were ended.” The introductory phrase ἐγένετο (egeneto, “it happened that”), common in Luke (69 times) and Acts (54 times), is redundant in contemporary English and has not been translated.

[12:35]  ² tn Grk “Let your loins be girded,” an idiom referring to the practice of tucking the ends of the long cloak (outer garment) into the belt to shorten it in preparation for activities like running, etc.

[12:35]  ³ sn Keep your lamps burning means to be ready at all times.

[1:8]  ³ tn Grk “Now it happened that.” The introductory phrase ἐγένετο (egeneto, “it happened that”), common in Luke (69 times) and Acts (54 times), is redundant in contemporary English and has not been translated.

[1:8]  ⁴ tn Grk “he”; the referent (Zechariah) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[1:8]  ⁵ tn Grk “serving as priest in the order of his division before God.”

[9:62]  ⁴ tn Here δέ (de) has not been translated.

[9:62]  ⁵ tn Grk “the”; in context the article is used as a possessive pronoun (ExSyn 215).

[9:62]  ⁶ sn Jesus warns that excessive concern for family ties (looks back) will make the kingdom a lesser priority, which is not appropriate for discipleship. The image is graphic, for who can plow straight ahead toward a goal while looking back? Discipleship cannot be double-minded.

[9:62]  ⁷ sn The kingdom of God is a major theme of Jesus. It is a realm in which Jesus rules and to which those who trust him belong. See Luke 6:20; 11:20; 17:20-21.

[1:5]  ⁵ tn Grk “It happened that in the days.” The introductory phrase ἐγένετο (egeneto, “it happened that”), common in Luke (69 times) and Acts (54 times), is redundant in contemporary English and has not been translated.

[1:5]  ⁶ sn Herod was Herod the Great, who ruled Palestine from 37 b.c. until he died in 4 b.c. He was known for his extensive building projects (including the temple in Jerusalem) and for his cruelty.

[1:5]  ⁷ tn Grk “of”; but the meaning of the preposition ἐκ (ek) is more accurately expressed in contemporary English by the relative clause “who belonged to.”

[1:5]  ⁸ sn There were twenty-four divisions of priesthood and the priestly division of Abijah was eighth on the list according to 1 Chr 24:10.

[1:5]  ⁹ tn Grk “and her name was Elizabeth.”

[1:5]  ¹⁰ tn Grk “a wife of the daughters of Aaron.”

[12:37]  ⁶ tn See the note on the word “slave” in 7:2.

[12:37]  ⁷ tn Or “watching”; Grk “awake,” but in context this is not just being awake but alert and looking out.

[12:37]  ⁸ tn Grk “Truly (ἀμήν, amhn), I say to you.”

[12:37]  ⁹ tn See v. 35 (same verb).

[12:37]  ¹⁰ tn Grk “have them recline at table,” as 1st century middle eastern meals were not eaten while sitting at a table, but while reclining on one’s side on the floor with the head closest to the low table and the feet farthest away.

[12:37]  ¹¹ tn The participle παρελθών (parelqwn) has been translated as a finite verb due to requirements of contemporary English style.

[12:37]  ¹² sn He…will come and wait on them is a reversal of expectation, but shows that what Jesus asks for he is willing to do as well; see John 13:5 and 15:18-27, although those instances merely foreshadow what is in view here.

[12:42]  ⁷ tn Grk “And the Lord said.” Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style.

[12:42]  ⁸ tn Or “administrator,” “steward” (L&N 37.39).

[12:42]  ⁹ tn This term, θεραπεία (qerapeia), describes the group of servants working in a particular household (L&N 46.6).