Zechariah 3:8

3:8 Listen now, Joshua the high priest, both you and your colleagues who are sitting before you, all of you ¹  are a symbol that I am about to introduce my servant, the Branch. ² 

Luke 9:51

Rejection in Samaria

9:51 Now when ³  the days drew near ⁴  for him to be taken up, ⁵  Jesus ⁶  set out resolutely ⁷  to go to Jerusalem. ⁸ 

John 11:8

11:8 The disciples replied, ⁹  “Rabbi, the Jewish leaders ¹⁰  were just now trying ¹¹  to stone you to death! Are ¹²  you going there again?”

John 11:16

11:16 So Thomas (called Didymus ¹³ ) ¹⁴  said to his fellow disciples, “Let us go too, so that we may die with him.” ¹⁵ 

[3:8]  ¹ tn Heb “these men.” The cleansing of Joshua and his elevation to enhanced leadership as a priest signify the coming of the messianic age.

[3:8]  ² sn The collocation of servant and branch gives double significance to the messianic meaning of the passage (cf. Isa 41:8, 9; 42:1, 19; 43:10; 44:1, 2, 21; Ps 132:17; Jer 23:5; 33:15).

[9:51]  ³ tn Grk “And it happened that when.” 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.

[9:51]  ⁴ tn Grk “the days were being fulfilled.” There is literary design here. This starts what has been called in the Gospel of Luke the “Jerusalem Journey.” It is not a straight-line trip, but a journey to meet his fate (Luke 13:31-35).

[9:51]  ⁵ sn Taken up is a reference to Jesus’ upcoming return to heaven by crucifixion and resurrection (compare Luke 9:31). This term was used in the LXX of Elijah’s departure in 2 Kgs 2:9.

[9:51]  ⁶ tn Grk “he”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[9:51]  ⁷ tn Grk “he set his face,” a Semitic idiom that speaks of a firm, unshakable resolve to do something (Gen 31:21; Isa 50:7).

[9:51]  ⁸ map For location see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.

[11:8]  ⁹ tn Grk “The disciples said to him.”

[11:8]  ¹⁰ tn Or “the Jewish authorities”; Grk “the Jews.” In NT usage the term ᾿Ιουδαῖοι (Ioudaioi) may refer to the entire Jewish people, the residents of Jerusalem and surrounding territory, the authorities in Jerusalem, or merely those who were hostile to Jesus. (For further information see R. G. Bratcher, “‘The Jews’ in the Gospel of John,” BT 26 [1975]: 401-9.) Here the phrase refers to the Jewish leaders. See the previous references and the notes on the phrase “Jewish people” in v. 19, and “Jewish religious leaders” in vv. 24, 31, 33.

[11:8]  ¹¹ tn Grk “seeking.”

[11:8]  ¹² tn Grk “And are.” Because of the difference between Greek style, which often begins sentences or clauses with “and,” and English style, which generally does not, καί (kai) has not been translated here.

[11:16]  ¹³ sn Didymus means “the twin” in Greek.

[11:16]  ¹⁴ sn This is a parenthetical note by the author.

[11:16]  ¹⁵ sn One gets the impression from Thomas’ statement “Let us go too, so that we may die with him” that he was something of a pessimist resigned to his fate. And yet his dedicated loyalty to Jesus and his determination to accompany him at all costs was truly commendable. Nor is the contrast between this statement and the confession of Thomas in 20:28, which forms the climax of the entire Fourth Gospel, to be overlooked; certainly Thomas’ concept of who Jesus is has changed drastically between 11:16 and 20:28.