Luke 11:29-36

The Sign of Jonah

11:29 As ¹  the crowds were increasing, Jesus ²  began to say, “This generation is a wicked generation; it looks for a sign, ³  but no sign will be given to it except the sign of Jonah. ⁴  11:30 For just as Jonah became a sign to the people of Nineveh, ⁵  so the Son of Man will be a sign ⁶  to this generation. ⁷  11:31 The queen of the South ⁸  will rise up at the judgment ⁹  with the people ¹⁰  of this generation and condemn them, because she came from the ends of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon – and now, ¹¹  something greater ¹²  than Solomon is here! 11:32 The people ¹³  of Nineveh will stand up at the judgment with this generation and condemn it, because they repented when Jonah preached to them ¹⁴  – and now, ¹⁵  something greater than Jonah is here!

Internal Light

11:33 “No one after lighting a lamp puts it in a hidden place ¹⁶  or under a basket, ¹⁷  but on a lampstand, so that those who come in can see the light. 11:34 Your eye is the lamp of your body. When your eye is healthy, ¹⁸  your whole body is full of light, but when it is diseased, ¹⁹  your body is full of darkness. 11:35 Therefore see to it ²⁰  that the light in you ²¹  is not darkness. 11:36 If ²²  then ²³  your whole body is full of light, with no part in the dark, ²⁴  it will be as full of light as when the light of a lamp shines on you.” ²⁵ 

[11:29]  ¹ tn Here δέ (de) has not been translated.

[11:29]  ² tn Grk “he”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[11:29]  ³ sn The mention of a sign alludes back to Luke 11:16. Given what Jesus had done, nothing would be good enough. This leads to the rebuke that follows.

[11:29]  ⁴ sn As the following comparisons to Solomon and Jonah show, in the present context the sign of Jonah is not an allusion to Jonah being three days in the belly of the fish, but to Jesus’ teaching about wisdom and repentance.

[11:30]  ⁵ tn Grk “to the Ninevites.” What the Ninevites experienced was Jonah’s message (Jonah 3:4, 10; 4:1).

[11:30]  ⁶ tn The repetition of the words “a sign” are not in the Greek text, but are implied and are supplied here for clarity.

[11:30]  ⁷ tc Only the Western ms D and a few Itala mss add here a long reference to Jonah being in the belly of the fish for three days and nights and the Son of Man being three days in the earth, apparently harmonizing the text to the parallel in Matt 12:40.

[11:31]  ⁹ sn On the queen of the South see 1 Kgs 10:1-3 and 2 Chr 9:1-12, as well as Josephus, Ant. 8.6.5-6 (8.165-175). The South most likely refers to modern southwest Arabia, possibly the eastern part of modern Yemen, although there is an ancient tradition reflected in Josephus which identifies this geo-political entity as Ethiopia.

[11:31]  ¹⁰ sn For the imagery of judgment, see Luke 10:13-15 and 11:19. The warnings are coming consistently now.

[11:31]  ¹¹ tn Grk “men”; the word here (ἀνήρ, anhr) usually indicates males or husbands, but occasionally is used in a generic sense of people in general, as is the case here (cf. BDAG 79 s.v. 1, 2). The same term, translated the same way, occurs in v. 32.

[11:31]  ¹² tn Grk “behold.”

[11:31]  ¹³ sn The message of Jesus was something greater than what Solomon offered. On Jesus and wisdom, see Luke 7:35; 10:21-22; 1 Cor 1:24, 30.

[11:32]  ¹³ tn See the note on the word “people” in v. 31.

[11:32]  ¹⁴ tn Grk “at the preaching of Jonah.”

[11:32]  ¹⁵ tn Grk “behold.”

[11:33]  ¹⁷ tn Or perhaps “in a cellar” (L&N 28.78). The point is that the light of Jesus’ teaching has been put in public view.

[11:33]  ¹⁸ tc The phrase “or under a basket” is lacking in some important and early mss (Ì^45,75 L Γ Ξ 070 ˹ 700* 1241 2542 pc sy^s sa). It is hard to decide in this case, since the inclusion of “or under a basket” is widely attested by some early and decent witnesses, as well as the overwhelming majority of mss (א A B C D W Θ Ψ Ë¹³ Ï latt). The parallel passage in Luke 8:16 does not include “under a basket.” If the phrase “under a basket” were added as a harmonization with Mark 4:21 and Matt 5:15, it is perhaps surprising that scribes did not add the phrase at Luke 8:16 as well. It seems somewhat more likely that a scribe copying Luke would be inclined to harmonize 11:33 with 8:16 by omitting the phrase here. Thus, the words “or under a basket” seem to have the marks of authenticity.

[11:34]  ²¹ tn Or “sound” (so L&N 23.132 and most scholars). A few scholars take this word to mean something like “generous” here (L&N 57.107), partly due to the immediate context of this saying in Matt 6:22 which concerns money, in which case the “eye” is a metonymy for the entire person (“if you are generous”).

[11:34]  ²² tn Or “when it is sick” (L&N 23.149).

[11:35]  ²⁵ tn This is a present imperative, calling for a constant watch (L&N 24.32; ExSyn 721).

[11:35]  ²⁶ sn Here you is a singular pronoun, individualizing the application.

[11:36]  ²⁹ tn This is a first class condition in the Greek text, so the example ends on a hopeful, positive note.

[11:36]  ³⁰ tn Grk “Therefore”; the same conjunction as at the beginning of v. 35, but since it indicates a further inference or conclusion, it has been translated “then” here.

[11:36]  ³¹ tn Grk “not having any part dark.”

[11:36]  ³² tn Grk “it will be completely illumined as when a lamp illumines you with its rays.”