Luke 4:14

The Beginning of Jesus’ Ministry in Galilee

4:14 Then ¹  Jesus, in the power of the Spirit, ²  returned to Galilee, and news about him spread ³  throughout the surrounding countryside. ⁴ 

Luke 4:32

4:32 They ⁵  were amazed ⁶  at his teaching, because he spoke ⁷  with authority. ⁸ 

Luke 4:36

4:36 They ⁹  were all amazed and began to say ¹⁰  to one another, “What’s happening here? ¹¹  For with authority and power ¹²  he commands the unclean spirits, and they come out!”

[4:14]  ¹ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence of events within the narrative.

[4:14]  ² sn Once again Jesus is directed by the Spirit. Luke makes a point about Jesus’ association with the Spirit early in his ministry (3:22, 4:1 [2x]; 4:18).

[4:14]  ³ tn Grk “went out.”

[4:14]  ⁴ tn Grk “all the surrounding region.”

[4:32]  ⁵ tn Grk “And they.” Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style.

[4:32]  ⁶ sn They were amazed. The astonishment shown here is like that in Luke 2:48.

[4:32]  ⁷ tn Grk “because his word was.”

[4:32]  ⁸ sn Jesus’ teaching impressed the hearers with the directness of its claim (with authority). A study of Jewish rabbinic interpretation shows that it was typical to cite a list of authorities to make one’s point. Apparently Jesus addressed the issues in terms of his own understanding.

[4:36]  ⁹ tn Grk “And they.” Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style.

[4:36]  ¹⁰ tn This imperfect verb has been translated as an ingressive imperfect.

[4:36]  ¹¹ tn Grk “What is this word?” The Greek term λόγος (logos) has a wide range of meaning. Here it seems to mean, “What is this matter?” More idiomatically it would be, “What’s going on here?!”

[4:36]  ¹² sn The phrase with authority and power is in an emphatic position in the Greek text. Once again the authority of Jesus is the point, but now it is not just his teaching that is emphasized, but his ministry. Jesus combined word and deed into a powerful testimony in Capernaum.