Luke 18:16

18:16 But Jesus called for the children, ¹  saying, “Let the little children come to me and do not try to stop them, for the kingdom of God ²  belongs to such as these. ³ 

Luke 23:2

23:2 They ⁴  began to accuse ⁵  him, saying, “We found this man subverting ⁶  our nation, forbidding ⁷  us to pay the tribute tax ⁸  to Caesar ⁹  and claiming that he himself is Christ, ¹⁰  a king.”

[18:16]  ¹ tn Grk “summoned them”; the referent (the children) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[18:16]  ² 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.

[18:16]  ³ sn The kingdom of God belongs to such as these. Children are a picture of those whose simple trust illustrates what faith is all about. The remark illustrates how everyone is important to God, even those whom others regard as insignificant.

[23:2]  ⁴ tn Here δέ (de) has not been translated.

[23:2]  ⁵ sn They began to accuse him. There were three charges: (1) disturbing Jewish peace; (2) fomenting rebellion through advocating not paying taxes (a lie – 20:20-26); and (3) claiming to be a political threat to Rome, by claiming to be a king, an allusion to Jesus’ messianic claims. The second and third charges were a direct challenge to Roman authority. Pilate would be forced to do something about them.

[23:2]  ⁶ tn On the use of the term διαστρέφω (diastrefw) here, see L&N 31.71 and 88.264.

[23:2]  ⁷ tn Grk “and forbidding.” Here καί (kai) has not been translated to suggest to the English reader that this and the following charge are specifics, while the previous charge was a summary one. See the note on the word “misleading” earlier in this verse.

[23:2]  ⁸ tn This was a “poll tax.” L&N 57.182 states this was “a payment made by the people of one nation to another, with the implication that this is a symbol of submission and dependence – ‘tribute tax.’”

[23:2]  ⁹ tn Or “to the emperor” (“Caesar” is a title for the Roman emperor).

[23:2]  ¹⁰ tn Or “Messiah”; both “Christ” (Greek) and “Messiah” (Hebrew and Aramaic) mean “one who has been anointed.”