Luke 12:56

12:56 You hypocrites! ¹  You know how to interpret the appearance of the earth and the sky, but how can you not know how ²  to interpret the present time?

Luke 21:23

21:23 Woe to those who are pregnant and to those who are nursing their babies in those days! For there will be great distress ³  on the earth and wrath against this people.

Luke 21:25

The Arrival of the Son of Man

21:25 “And there will be signs in the sun and moon and stars, ⁴  and on the earth nations will be in distress, ⁵  anxious ⁶  over the roaring of the sea and the surging waves.

[12:56]  ¹ sn In Luke, the term hypocrites occurs here, in 6:42, and in 13:15.

[12:56]  ² tc Most mss (Ì⁴⁵ A W Ψ Ë^1,13 Ï lat) have a syntax here that reflects a slightly different rhetorical question: “but how do you not interpret the present time?” The reading behind the translation, however, has overall superior support: Ì⁷⁵ א B L Θ 33 892 1241 pc.

[21:23]  ³ sn Great distress means that this is a period of great judgment.

[21:25]  ⁵ sn Signs in the sun and moon and stars are cosmic signs that turn our attention to the end and the Son of Man’s return for the righteous. OT imagery is present: See Isa 13:9-10; 24:18-20; 34:4; Ezek 32:7-8; Joel 2:1, 30-31; 3:15.

[21:25]  ⁶ tn Grk “distress of nations.”

[21:25]  ⁷ tn Or “in consternation” (L&N 32.9).