Luke 7:24

7:24 When ¹  John’s messengers had gone, Jesus ²  began to speak to the crowds about John: “What did you go out into the wilderness ³  to see? A reed shaken by the wind? ⁴ 

Luke 7:27

7:27 This is the one about whom it is written, ‘Look, I am sending my messenger ahead of you, ⁵  who will prepare your way before you.’ ⁶ 

[7:24]  ¹ tn Here δέ (de) has not been translated.

[7:24]  ² tn Grk “he”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[7:24]  ³ tn Or “desert.”

[7:24]  ⁴ tn There is a debate as to whether one should read this figuratively (“to see someone who is easily blown over?”) or literally (Grk “to see the wilderness vegetation?…No, to see a prophet”). Either view makes good sense, but the following examples suggest the question should be read literally and understood to point to the fact that a prophet drew them to the desert.

[7:27]  ⁵ tn Grk “before your face” (an idiom).

[7:27]  ⁶ sn The quotation is primarily from Mal 3:1 with pronouns from Exod 23:20. Here is the forerunner who points the way to the arrival of God’s salvation. His job is to prepare and guide the people, as the cloud did for Israel in the desert.