Luke 3:9

3:9 Even now the ax is laid at the root of the trees, ¹  and every tree that does not produce good fruit will be ²  cut down and thrown into the fire.”

Luke 8:33

8:33 So ³  the demons came out of the man and went into the pigs, and the herd of pigs ⁴  rushed down the steep slope into the lake and drowned.

Luke 12:18

12:18 Then ⁵  he said, ‘I ⁶  will do this: I will tear down my barns and build bigger ones, and there I will store all my grain and my goods.

Luke 19:5

19:5 And when Jesus came to that place, he looked up ⁷  and said to him, “Zacchaeus, come down quickly, ⁸  because I must ⁹  stay at your house today.” ¹⁰ 

Luke 23:53

23:53 Then ¹¹  he took it down, wrapped it in a linen cloth, ¹²  and placed it ¹³  in a tomb cut out of the rock, ¹⁴  where no one had yet been buried. ¹⁵ 

[3:9]  ¹ sn Even now the ax is laid at the root of the trees. The imagery of an “ax already laid at the root of the trees” is vivid, connoting sudden and catastrophic judgment for the unrepentant and unfruitful. The image of “fire” serves to further heighten the intensity of the judgment referred to. It is John’s way of summoning all people to return to God with all their heart and avoid his unquenchable wrath soon to be poured out. John’s language and imagery is probably ultimately drawn from the OT where Israel is referred to as a fruitless vine (Hos 10:1-2; Jer 2:21-22) and the image of an “ax” is used to indicate God’s judgment (Ps 74:5-6; Jer 46:22).

[3:9]  ² tn Grk “is”; the present tense (ἐκκόπτεται, ekkoptetai) has futuristic force here.

[8:33]  ³ tn Here δέ (de) has been translated as “so” to indicate a conclusion and transition in the narrative.

[8:33]  ⁴ tn The words “of pigs” are supplied because of the following verb in English, “were drowned,” which is plural.

[12:18]  ⁵ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence of events within the narrative.

[12:18]  ⁶ sn Note how often the first person pronoun is present in these verses. The farmer is totally self absorbed.

[19:5]  ⁷ tc Most mss (A [D] W [Ψ] ˹³ 33^vid Ï latt) read “Jesus looking up, saw him and said.” The words “saw him and” are not in א B L T Θ Ë¹ 579 1241 2542 pc co. Both the testimony for the omission and the natural tendency toward scribal expansion argue for the shorter reading here.

[19:5]  ⁸ tn Grk “hastening, come down.” σπεύσας (speusa") has been translated as a participle of manner.

[19:5]  ⁹ sn I must stay. Jesus revealed the necessity of his associating with people like Zacchaeus (5:31-32). This act of fellowship indicated acceptance.

[19:5]  ¹⁰ sn On today here and in v. 9, see the note on today in 2:11.

[23:53]  ⁹ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence of events within the narrative.

[23:53]  ¹⁰ tn The term σινδών (sindwn) can refer to a linen cloth used either for clothing or for burial.

[23:53]  ¹¹ tn In the Greek text this pronoun (αὐτόν, auton) is masculine, while the previous one (αὐτό, auto) is neuter, referring to the body.

[23:53]  ¹² tn That is, cut or carved into an outcropping of natural rock, resulting in a cave-like structure (see L&N 19.26).

[23:53]  ¹³ tc Codex Bezae (D), with some support from 070, one Itala ms, and the Sahidic version, adds the words, “And after he [Jesus] was laid [in the tomb], he [Joseph of Arimathea] put a stone over the tomb which scarcely twenty men could roll.” Although this addition is certainly not part of the original text of Luke, it does show how interested the early scribes were in the details of the burial and may even reflect a very primitive tradition. Matt 27:60 and Mark 15:46 record the positioning of a large stone at the door of the tomb.