Psalms 89:19

89:19 Then you ¹  spoke through a vision to your faithful followers ²  and said:

“I have energized a warrior; ³ 

I have raised up a young man ⁴  from the people.

Isaiah 49:1-3

Ideal Israel Delivers the Exiles

49:1 Listen to me, you coastlands! ⁵ 

Pay attention, you people who live far away!

The Lord summoned me from birth; ⁶ 

he commissioned me when my mother brought me into the world. ⁷ 

49:2 He made my mouth like a sharp sword,

he hid me in the hollow of his hand;

he made me like a sharpened ⁸  arrow,

he hid me in his quiver. ⁹ 

49:3 He said to me, “You are my servant,

Israel, through whom I will reveal my splendor.” ¹⁰ 

Luke 23:35

23:35 The people also stood there watching, but the rulers ridiculed ¹¹  him, saying, “He saved others. Let him save ¹²  himself if ¹³  he is the Christ ¹⁴  of God, his chosen one!”

Luke 23:1

Jesus Brought Before Pilate

23:1 Then ¹⁵  the whole group of them rose up and brought Jesus ¹⁶  before Pilate. ¹⁷ 

Luke 2:4

2:4 So ¹⁸  Joseph also went up from the town of Nazareth ¹⁹  in Galilee to Judea, to the city ²⁰  of David called Bethlehem, ²¹  because he was of the house ²²  and family line ²³  of David.

[89:19]  ¹ tn The pronoun “you” refers to the Lord, who is addressed here. The quotation that follows further develops the announcement of vv. 3-4.

[89:19]  ² tc Many medieval mss read the singular here, “your faithful follower.” In this case the statement refers directly to Nathan’s oracle to David (see 2 Sam 7:17).

[89:19]  ³ tn Heb “I have placed help upon a warrior.”

[89:19]  ⁴ tn Or perhaps “a chosen one.”

[49:1]  ⁵ tn Or “islands” (NASB, NIV); NLT “in far-off lands.”

[49:1]  ⁶ tn Heb “called me from the womb.”

[49:1]  ⁷ tn Heb “from the inner parts of my mother he mentioned my name.”

[49:2]  ⁸ tn Or perhaps, “polished” (so KJV, ASV, NAB, NIV, NRSV); NASB “a select arrow.”

[49:2]  ⁹ sn The figurative language emphasizes the servant’s importance as the Lord’s effective instrument. The servant’s mouth, which stands metonymically for his words, is compared to a sharp sword because he will be an effective spokesman on God’s behalf (see 50:4). The Lord holds his hand on the servant, ready to draw and use him at the appropriate time. The servant is like a sharpened arrow reserved in a quiver for just the right moment.

[49:3]  ¹⁰ sn This verse identifies the servant as Israel. This seems to refer to the exiled nation (cf. 41:8-9; 44:1-2, 21; 45:4; 48:20), but in vv. 5-6 this servant says he has been commissioned to reconcile Israel to God, so he must be distinct from the exiled nation. This servant is an ideal “Israel” who, like Moses of old, mediates a covenant for the nation (see v. 8), leads them out of bondage (v. 9a), and carries out God’s original plan for Israel by positively impacting the pagan nations (see v. 6b). By living according to God’s law, Israel was to be a model of God’s standards of justice to the surrounding nations (Deut 4:6-8). The sinful nation failed, but the servant, the ideal “Israel,” will succeed by establishing justice throughout the earth.

[23:35]  ¹¹ tn A figurative extension of the literal meaning “to turn one’s nose up at someone”; here “ridicule, sneer at, show contempt for” (L&N 33.409).

[23:35]  ¹² sn The irony in the statement Let him save himself is that salvation did come, but later, not while on the cross.

[23:35]  ¹³ tn This is a first class condition in the Greek text.

[23:35]  ¹⁴ tn Or “Messiah”; both “Christ” (Greek) and “Messiah” (Hebrew and Aramaic) mean “one who has been anointed.”

[23:1]  ¹⁵ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence of events within the narrative.

[23:1]  ¹⁶ tn Grk “him”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[23:1]  ¹⁷ sn Pilate was the Roman prefect (procurator) in charge of collecting taxes and keeping the peace. His immediate superior was the Roman governor (proconsul) of Syria, although the exact nature of this administrative relationship is unknown. Pilate’s relations with the Jews had been rocky (v. 12). Here he is especially sensitive to them.

[2:4]  ¹⁸ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “so” to indicate the consequential nature of the action.

[2:4]  ¹⁹ sn On Nazareth see Luke 1:26.

[2:4]  ²⁰ tn Or “town.” The translation “city” is used here because of its collocation with “of David,” suggesting its importance, though not its size.

[2:4]  ²¹ sn The journey from Nazareth to the city of David called Bethlehem was a journey of about 90 mi (150 km). Bethlehem was a small village located about 7 miles south-southwest of Jerusalem.

[2:4]  ²² sn Luke’s use of the term “house” probably alludes to the original promise made to David outlined in the Nathan oracle of 2 Sam 7:12-16, especially in light of earlier connections between Jesus and David made in Luke 1:32. Further, the mention of Bethlehem reminds one of the promise of Mic 5:2, namely, that a great king would emerge from Bethlehem to rule over God’s people.

[2:4]  ²³ tn Or “family,” “lineage.”