Matthew 4:25

4:25 And large crowds followed him from Galilee, the Decapolis, ¹  Jerusalem, ²  Judea, and beyond the Jordan River. ³ 

Matthew 15:30

15:30 Then ⁴  large crowds came to him bringing with them the lame, blind, crippled, mute, and many others. They ⁵  laid them at his feet, and he healed them.

Genesis 49:10

49:10 The scepter will not depart from Judah,

nor the ruler’s staff from between his feet, ⁶ 

until he comes to whom it belongs; ⁷ 

the nations will obey him. ⁸ 

Luke 8:4-8

The Parable of the Sower

8:4 While a large crowd was gathering and people were coming to Jesus ⁹  from one town after another, ¹⁰  he spoke to them ¹¹  in a parable: 8:5 “A sower went out to sow ¹²  his seed. ¹³  And as he sowed, some fell along the path and was trampled on, and the wild birds ¹⁴  devoured it. 8:6 Other seed fell on rock, ¹⁵  and when it came up, it withered because it had no moisture. 8:7 Other seed fell among the thorns, ¹⁶  and they grew up with it and choked ¹⁷  it. 8:8 But ¹⁸  other seed fell on good soil and grew, ¹⁹  and it produced a hundred times as much grain.” ²⁰  As he said this, ²¹  he called out, “The one who has ears to hear had better listen!” ²² 

[4:25]  ¹ tn Here καί (kai) has not been translated before each of the places in the list, since English normally uses a coordinating conjunction only between the last two elements in a series of three or more.

[4:25]  ² map For location see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.

[4:25]  ³ tn “River” is not in the Greek text but is supplied for clarity. The region referred to here is sometimes known as Transjordan (i.e., “across the Jordan”).

[15:30]  ⁴ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “Then.”

[15:30]  ⁵ tn Here καί (kai) has not been translated.

[49:10]  ⁶ tn Or perhaps “from his descendants,” taking the expression “from between his feet” as a euphemism referring to the genitals. In this case the phrase refers by metonymy to those who come forth from his genitals, i.e., his descendants.

[49:10]  ⁷ tn The Hebrew form שִׁילֹה (shiloh) is a major interpretive problem. There are at least four major options (with many variations and less likely alternatives): (1) Some prefer to leave the text as it is, reading “Shiloh” and understanding it as the place where the ark rested for a while in the time of the Judges. (2) By repointing the text others arrive at the translation “until the [or “his”] ruler comes,” a reference to a Davidic ruler or the Messiah. (3) Another possibility that does not require emendation of the consonantal text, but only repointing, is “until tribute is brought to him” (so NEB, JPS, NRSV), which has the advantage of providing good parallelism with the following line, “the nations will obey him.” (4) The interpretation followed in the present translation, “to whom it [belongs]” (so RSV, NIV, REB), is based on the ancient versions. Again, this would refer to the Davidic dynasty or, ultimately, to the Messiah.

[49:10]  ⁸ tn “and to him [will be] the obedience of the nations.” For discussion of this verse see J. Blenkinsopp, “The Oracle of Judah and the Messianic Entry,” JBL 80 (1961): 55-64; and E. M. Good, “The ‘Blessing’ on Judah,” JBL 82 (1963): 427-32.

[8:4]  ⁹ tn Grk “to him”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[8:4]  ¹⁰ tn This phrase renders a distributive use of κατά (kata) with πόλις (polis), literally “according to [each] town.”

[8:4]  ¹¹ tn The words “to them” do not appear in the Greek text but are supplied in the translation for clarity.

[8:5]  ¹² sn A sower went out to sow. The background for this well-known parable is a field through which a well-worn path runs in the Palestinian countryside. Sowing would occur in late fall or early winter (October to December) in the rainy season, looking for sprouting in April or May and a June harvest. The use of seed as a figure for God’s giving life has OT roots: Isa 55:10-11.

[8:5]  ¹³ tn Luke’s version of the parable, like Mark’s (cf. Mark 4:1-9) uses the collective singular to refer to the seed throughout, so singular pronouns have been used consistently throughout this parable in the English translation. However, the parallel account in Matt 13:1-9 begins with plural pronouns in v. 4 but then switches to the collective singular in v. 5 ff.

[8:5]  ¹⁴ tn Grk “the birds of the sky” or “the birds of the heaven”; the Greek word οὐρανός (ouranos) may be translated either “sky” or “heaven,” depending on the context. The idiomatic expression “birds of the sky” refers to wild birds as opposed to domesticated fowl (cf. BDAG 809 s.v. πετεινόν).

[8:6]  ¹⁵ sn The rock in Palestine would be a limestone base lying right under the soil.

[8:7]  ¹⁶ sn Palestinian weeds like these thorns could grow up to six feet in height and have a major root system.

[8:7]  ¹⁷ sn That is, crowded out the good plants.

[8:8]  ¹⁸ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “but” to indicate the contrast present in the final stage of the parable.

[8:8]  ¹⁹ tn Grk “when it grew, after it grew.”

[8:8]  ²⁰ sn Unlike the parallel accounts in Matt 13:8 and Mark 4:8, there is no distinction in yield in this version of the parable.

[8:8]  ²¹ tn Grk “said these things.”

[8:8]  ²² tn The translation “had better listen!” captures the force of the third person imperative more effectively than the traditional “let him hear,” which sounds more like a permissive than an imperative to the modern English reader. This was Jesus’ common expression to listen and heed carefully (cf. Matt 11:15; 13:9, 43; Mark 4:9, 23; Luke 14:35).