Luke 2:49

2:49 But ¹  he replied, ²  “Why were you looking for me? ³  Didn’t you know that I must be in my Father’s house?” ⁴ 

Luke 13:6

Warning to Israel to Bear Fruit

13:6 Then ⁵  Jesus ⁶  told this parable: “A man had a fig tree ⁷  planted in his vineyard, and he came looking for fruit on it and found none.

Luke 17:21

17:21 nor will they say, ‘Look, here it is!’ or ‘There!’ For indeed, the kingdom of God is ⁸  in your midst.” ⁹ 

[2:49]  ¹ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “but” to indicate the contrast.

[2:49]  ² tn Grk “he said to them.”

[2:49]  ³ tn Grk “Why is it that you were looking for me?”

[2:49]  ⁴ tn Or “I must be about my Father’s business” (so KJV, NKJV); Grk “in the [things] of my Father,” with an ellipsis. This verse involves an idiom that probably refers to the necessity of Jesus being involved in the instruction about God, given what he is doing. The most widely held view today takes this as a reference to the temple as the Father’s house. Jesus is saying that his parents should have known where he was.

[13:6]  ⁵ tn Here δέ (de) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence of events within the narrative.

[13:6]  ⁶ tn Grk “he”; the referent has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[13:6]  ⁷ sn The fig tree is a variation on the picture of a vine as representing the nation; see Isa 5:1-7.

[17:21]  ⁹ tn This is a present tense in the Greek text. In contrast to waiting and looking for the kingdom, it is now available.

[17:21]  ¹⁰ tn This is a far better translation than “in you.” Jesus would never tell the hostile Pharisees that the kingdom was inside them. The reference is to Jesus present in their midst. He brings the kingdom. Another possible translation would be “in your grasp.” For further discussion and options, see D. L. Bock, Luke (BECNT), 2:1414-19.