Luke 4:34

4:34 “Ha! Leave us alone, ¹  Jesus the Nazarene! Have you come to destroy us? I know who you are – the Holy One ²  of God.”

Luke 7:36

Jesus’ Anointing

7:36 Now one of the Pharisees ³  asked Jesus ⁴  to have dinner with him, so ⁵  he went into the Pharisee’s house and took his place at the table. ⁶ 

Luke 9:19

9:19 They ⁷  answered, ⁸  “John the Baptist; others say Elijah; ⁹  and still others that one of the prophets of long ago has risen.” ¹⁰ 

Luke 23:39

23:39 One of the criminals who was hanging there railed at him, saying, “Aren’t ¹¹  you the Christ? ¹²  Save yourself and us!”

[4:34]  ¹ tn Grk “What to us and to you?” This is an idiom meaning, “We have nothing to do with one another,” or “Why bother us!” The phrase τί ἡμῖν καὶ σοί (ti Jhmin kai soi) is Semitic in origin, though it made its way into colloquial Greek (BDAG 275 s.v. ἐγώ). The equivalent Hebrew expression in the Old Testament had two basic meanings: (1) When one person was unjustly bothering another, the injured party could say “What to me and to you?” meaning, “What have I done to you that you should do this to me?” (Judg 11:12; 2 Chr 35:21; 1 Kgs 17:18). (2) When someone was asked to get involved in a matter he felt was no business of his, he could say to the one asking him, “What to me and to you?” meaning, “That is your business, how am I involved?” (2 Kgs 3:13; Hos 14:8). Option (1) implies hostility, while option (2) merely implies disengagement. BDAG suggests the following as glosses for this expression: What have I to do with you? What have we in common? Leave me alone! Never mind! Hostility between Jesus and the demons is certainly to be understood in this context, hence the translation: “Leave me alone….” For a very similar expression, see Luke 8:28 and (in a different context) John 2:4.

[4:34]  ² sn The confession of Jesus as the Holy One here is significant, coming from an unclean spirit. Jesus, as the Holy One of God, who bears God’s Spirit and is the expression of holiness, comes to deal with uncleanness and unholiness.

[7:36]  ³ sn See the note on Pharisees in 5:17.

[7:36]  ⁴ tn Grk “him”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[7:36]  ⁵ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “so” to indicate that Jesus’ action was the result of the Pharisee’s invitation.

[7:36]  ⁶ tn Grk “and reclined at table,” as 1st century middle eastern meals were not eaten while sitting at a table, but while reclining on one’s side on the floor with the head closest to the low table and the feet farthest away.

[9:19]  ⁵ tn Grk “And they.” Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style.

[9:19]  ⁶ tn Grk “And answering, they said.” This is redundant in contemporary English and has been simplified to “They answered.”

[9:19]  ⁷ sn The appearance of Elijah would mean that the end time had come. According to 2 Kgs 2:11, Elijah was still alive. In Mal 4:5 it is said that Elijah would be the precursor of Messiah.

[9:19]  ⁸ sn The phrase has risen could be understood to mean “has been resurrected,” but this is only a possible option, not a necessary one, since the phrase could merely mean that a figure had appeared on the scene who mirrored an earlier historical figure. Note that the three categories in the reply match the ones in Luke 9:7-8.

[23:39]  ⁷ tc Most mss (A C³ W Θ Ψ Ë^1,13 33 Ï lat) read εἰ σὺ εἶ (ei su ei, “If you are”) here, while οὐχὶ σὺ εἶ (ouci su ei, “Are you not”) is found in overall better and earlier witnesses (Ì⁷⁵ א B C* L 070 1241 pc it). The “if” clause reading creates a parallel with the earlier taunts (vv. 35, 37), and thus is most likely a motivated reading.

[23:39]  ⁸ tn Or “Messiah”; both “Christ” (Greek) and “Messiah” (Hebrew and Aramaic) mean “one who has been anointed.”