Luke 9:62

9:62 Jesus ¹  said to him, “No one who puts his ²  hand to the plow and looks back ³  is fit for the kingdom of God.” ⁴ 

Luke 20:19

20:19 Then ⁵  the experts in the law ⁶  and the chief priests wanted to arrest ⁷  him that very hour, because they realized he had told this parable against them. But ⁸  they were afraid of the people.

Luke 21:12

21:12 But before all this, ⁹  they will seize ¹⁰  you and persecute you, handing you over to the synagogues ¹¹  and prisons. You ¹²  will be brought before kings and governors because of my name.

[9:62]  ¹ tn Here δέ (de) has not been translated.

[9:62]  ² tn Grk “the”; in context the article is used as a possessive pronoun (ExSyn 215).

[9:62]  ³ sn Jesus warns that excessive concern for family ties (looks back) will make the kingdom a lesser priority, which is not appropriate for discipleship. The image is graphic, for who can plow straight ahead toward a goal while looking back? Discipleship cannot be double-minded.

[9:62]  ⁴ sn The kingdom of God is a major theme of Jesus. It is a realm in which Jesus rules and to which those who trust him belong. See Luke 6:20; 11:20; 17:20-21.

[20:19]  ⁵ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence of events within the narrative.

[20:19]  ⁶ tn Or “The scribes” See the note on the phrase “experts in the law” in 5:21.

[20:19]  ⁷ tn Grk “tried to lay hands on him.”

[20:19]  ⁸ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “but” to indicate the contrast present in this context.

[21:12]  ⁹ sn But before all this. Another note of timing is present, this one especially important in understanding the sequence in the discourse. Before the things noted in vv. 8-11 are the events of vv. 12-19.

[21:12]  ¹⁰ tn Grk “will lay their hands on you.”

[21:12]  ¹¹ sn Some of the persecution is of Jewish origin (the synagogues). Some fulfillment of this can be seen in Acts. See the note on synagogues in 4:15.

[21:12]  ¹² tn Because of the length and complexity of the Greek sentence, a new sentence was started here in the translation.