Luke 7:11-18

Context

Raising a Widow’s Son

7:11 Soon¹ afterward² Jesus³ went to a town⁴ called Nain, and his disciples and a large crowd went with him. 7:12 As he approached the town gate, a man⁵ who had died was being carried out,⁶ the only son of his mother (who⁷ was a widow⁸), and a large crowd from the town⁹ was with her. 7:13 When¹⁰ the Lord saw her, he had compassion¹¹ for her and said to her, “Do not weep.”¹² 7:14 Then¹³ he came up¹⁴ and touched¹⁵ the bier,¹⁶ and those who carried it stood still. He¹⁷ said, “Young man, I say to you, get up!” 7:15 So¹⁸ the dead man¹⁹ sat up and began to speak, and Jesus²⁰ gave him back²¹ to his mother. 7:16 Fear²² seized them all, and they began to glorify²³ God, saying, “A great prophet²⁴ has appeared²⁵ among us!” and “God has come to help²⁶ his people!” 7:17 This²⁷ report²⁸ about Jesus²⁹ circulated³⁰ throughout³¹ Judea and all the surrounding country.

Jesus and John the Baptist

7:18 John’s³² disciples informed him about all these things. So³³ John called³⁴ two of his disciples

[7:11] ¹tn Grk “And it happened that soon.” The introductory phrase ἐγένετο (egeneto, “it happened that”), common in Luke (69 times) and Acts (54 times), is redundant in contemporary English and has not been translated.

[7:11] ²tc Several variants to ἐγένετο ἐν τῷ (egeneto en tw) are found before the adverb ἑξῆς (Jexh"), all of them clarifying by the use of the feminine article that the next day is meant (τῇ [th] in D; ἐγένετο τῇ in W; ἐγένετο ἐν τῇ in א* C K 565 892 1424 pm). But these readings are decidedly secondary, for they are more specific than Luke usually is, and involve an unparalleled construction (viz., article + ἡμέρα [Jhmera] + ἑξῆς; elsewhere, when Luke uses this adverb, the noun it modifies is either implied or after the adverb [cf. Luke 9:37; Acts 21:1; 25:17; 27:18)]. The reading adopted for the translation is a more general time indicator; the article τῷ modifies an implied χρόνῳ (cronw), with the general sense of “soon afterward.”

[7:11] ³tn Grk “he”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[7:11] ⁴tn The term πόλις (polis) can refer to a small town, which is what Nain was. It was about six miles southeast of Nazareth.

[7:12] ⁵tn Grk “behold.” The Greek word ἰδού (idou) has not been translated because it has no exact English equivalent here, but adds interest and emphasis (BDAG 468 s.v. 1).

[7:12] ⁶tn That is, carried out for burial. This was a funeral procession.

[7:12] ⁷tn Grk “and she.” The clause introduced by καί (kai) has been translated as a relative clause for the sake of English style.

[7:12] ⁸sn The description of the woman as a widow would mean that she was now socially alone and without protection in 1st century Jewish culture.

[7:12] ⁹tn Or “city.”

[7:13] ¹⁰tn Grk “And seeing her, the Lord.” Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style. The participle ἰδών (idwn) has been taken temporally.

[7:13] ¹¹sn He had compassion. It is unusual for Luke to note such emotion by Jesus, though the other Synoptics tend to mention it (Matt 14:14; Mark 6:34; Matt 15:32; Mark 8:2).

[7:13] ¹²tn The verb κλαίω (klaiw) denotes the loud wailing or lamenting typical of 1st century Jewish mourning.

[7:14] ¹³tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence of events within the narrative.

[7:14] ¹⁴tn Grk “coming up, he touched.” The participle προσελθών (proselqwn) has been translated as a finite verb due to requirements of contemporary English style.

[7:14] ¹⁵sn The act of having touched the bier would have rendered Jesus ceremonially unclean, but it did not matter to him, since he was expressing his personal concern (Num 19:11, 16).

[7:14] ¹⁶sn Although sometimes translated “coffin,” the bier was actually a stretcher or wooden plank on which the corpse was transported to the place of burial. See L&N 6.109.

[7:14] ¹⁷tn Grk “And he.” Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style.

[7:15] ¹⁸tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “so” to indicate the result of Jesus’ command.

[7:15] ¹⁹tn Or “the deceased.”

[7:15] ²⁰tn Grk “he”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[7:15] ²¹tn In the context, the verb δίδωμι (didwmi) has been translated “gave back” rather than simply “gave.”

[7:16] ²²tn Or “Awe.” Grk “fear,” but the context and the following remark show that it is mixed with wonder; see L&N 53.59. This is a reaction to God’s work; see Luke 5:9.

[7:16] ²³tn This imperfect verb has been translated as an ingressive imperfect.

[7:16] ²⁴sn That Jesus was a great prophet was a natural conclusion for the crowd to make, given the healing; but Jesus is more than this. See Luke 9:8, 19-20.

[7:16] ²⁵tn Grk “arisen.”

[7:16] ²⁶tn Grk “visited,” but this conveys a different impression to a modern reader. L&N 85.11 renders the verb, “to be present, with the implication of concern – ‘to be present to help, to be on hand to aid.’ … ‘God has come to help his people’ Lk 7:16.” The language recalls Luke 1:68, 78.

[7:17] ²⁷tn Grk “And this.” Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style.

[7:17] ²⁸sn See Luke 4:14 for a similar report.

[7:17] ²⁹tn Grk “him”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[7:17] ³⁰tn Grk “went out.”

[7:17] ³¹tn Grk “through the whole of.”

[7:18] ³²tn Grk “And John’s.” Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style. This is a reference to John the Baptist as the following context makes clear.

[7:18] ³³tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “so” to indicate that John’s action was a result of the report he had heard.

[7:18] ³⁴tn Grk “And calling two of his disciples, John sent.” The participle προσκαλεσάμενος (proskalesameno") has been translated as a finite verb due to requirements of contemporary English style.