Luke 9

Then Jesus called his twelve disciples together. He gave them power and authority over all demons, and power to cure diseases.

1Then he called his twelve disciples together, and gave them power and authority over all devils, and to cure diseases.

NoteKJV "devils" translates a Greek word meaning demons: lesser hostile spirits. The 1611 translators used the one English word both for these and for the singular figure of the Devil, so the plural here does not mean many devils in the modern sense.

2He sent them out to preach about the kingdom of God and to heal the sick.

2And he sent them to preach the kingdom of God, and to heal the sick.

Note"The kingdom of God" renders a phrase that means God's kingly rule or reign rather than a territory. To preach it was to announce that God was beginning to rule, not to describe a place people go.

3He told them, "Take nothing for the trip. Do not take walking sticks, or a travel bag, or bread, or money. Do not take a second shirt."

3And he said unto them, Take nothing for your journey, neither staves, nor scrip, neither bread, neither money; neither have two coats apiece.

Note"Staves" are walking staffs. A "scrip" is a traveler's leather pouch for carrying food. A "coat" is the tunic worn next to the skin, and travelers routinely carried a spare to sleep in, so "two coats apiece" means a change of clothing rather than an overcoat.

4"Whatever house you go into, stay in that house until you leave that place."

4And whatsoever house ye enter into, there abide, and thence depart.

5"If people will not welcome you, then when you leave their town, shake the dust off your feet. That will stand as a witness against them."

5And whosoever will not receive you, when ye go out of that city, shake off the very dust from your feet for a testimony against them.

NoteShaking dust off the feet was a recognized gesture. Jews returning from Gentile territory shook off its dust at the border. Directed at a town of their own people, the act publicly declared that the messengers had done their part and what followed was the town's own affair.

6So they left and went from village to village. They preached the good news and healed people everywhere they went.

6And they departed, and went through the towns, preaching the gospel, and healing every where.

Note"Gospel" is an old English word for good news. The Greek behind it was used of a public announcement of good tidings, such as news of a victory or of a ruler's accession.

7Now Herod the tetrarch, the ruler over part of the region, heard about everything Jesus was doing, and he did not know what to make of it. Some people were saying that John had come back from the dead.

7Now Herod the tetrarch heard of all that was done by him: and he was perplexed, because that it was said of some, that John was risen from the dead;

NoteA tetrarch was literally the ruler of a fourth part. This is Herod Antipas, a son of Herod the Great, who governed Galilee and Perea under Roman oversight. He held no royal title, though people commonly called him king.

8Some said that Elijah had appeared. Others said that one of the prophets from long ago had come back to life.

8And of some, that Elias had appeared; and of others, that one of the old prophets was risen again.

Note"Elias" is the Greek spelling of the Hebrew name Elijah, the prophet who was carried off alive rather than dying. The last of the Hebrew prophetic books promised he would come again before the day of the Lord, so his return was a live expectation in the period.

9Herod said, "I had John's head cut off. So who is this man I hear such things about?" And he kept trying to see Jesus.

9And Herod said, John have I beheaded: but who is this, of whom I hear such things? And he desired to see him.

10When the apostles came back, they told Jesus everything they had done. He took them with him and went away by themselves to a lonely place near the town called Bethsaida.

10And the apostles, when they were returned, told him all that they had done. And he took them, and went aside privately into a desert place belonging to the city called Bethsaida.

NoteA "desert place" in the King James Version is not sand but open, unfarmed country away from settlements. Bethsaida was a fishing town at the north end of the Sea of Galilee.

11But the crowds found out and followed him. He welcomed them, spoke to them about the kingdom of God, and healed the people who needed healing.

11And the people, when they knew it, followed him: and he received them, and spake unto them of the kingdom of God, and healed them that had need of healing.

12Late in the day the twelve came to him and said, "Send the crowd away, so they can go to the villages and farms nearby to find a place to sleep and get food. We are in an empty place here."

12And when the day began to wear away, then came the twelve, and said unto him, Send the multitude away, that they may go into the towns and country round about, and lodge, and get victuals: for we are here in a desert place.

Note"Victuals" means food supplies, and "lodge" means find somewhere to spend the night. Ordinary villages had no inns, so travelers depended on households taking them in.

13But he said to them, "You give them something to eat." They said, "All we have is five loaves of bread and two fish, unless we go and buy food for this whole crowd."

13But he said unto them, Give ye them to eat. And they said, We have no more but five loaves and two fishes; except we should go and buy meat for all this people.

NoteIn the King James Version "meat" means food of any kind, not flesh in particular. The loaves would be flat round cakes of bread, torn rather than sliced.

14There were about five thousand men there. He said to his disciples, "Have them sit down in groups of about fifty."

14For they were about five thousand men. And he said to his disciples, Make them sit down by fifties in a company.

NoteThe figure counts men. Ancient headcounts routinely numbered adult males only, so the crowd including women and children would have been larger than five thousand.

15They did that, and everyone sat down.

15And they did so, and made them all sit down.

16Then he took the five loaves and the two fish, looked up to heaven, and gave thanks for them. He broke them into pieces and gave them to the disciples to hand out to the crowd.

16Then he took the five loaves and the two fishes, and looking up to heaven, he blessed them, and brake, and gave to the disciples to set before the multitude.

NoteThe blessing spoken at a Jewish meal was addressed to God rather than to the food: the head of the table thanked God for providing bread. Breaking the loaf by hand was simply how a meal began, since flat loaves were torn apart and shared.

17Everyone ate and had enough. Afterward the disciples picked up twelve baskets of the pieces that were left over.

17And they did eat, and were all filled: and there was taken up of fragments that remained to them twelve baskets.

NoteThe word used here for basket refers to the stiff wicker container a traveler carried his own provisions in, a personal item rather than a large hamper.

18One time Jesus was praying by himself, and his disciples were with him. He asked them, "Who do the people say that I am?"

18And it came to pass, as he was alone praying, his disciples were with him: and he asked them, saying, Whom say the people that I am?

19They answered, "Some say John the Baptist. Some say Elijah. Others say that one of the prophets from long ago has come back to life."

19They answering said, John the Baptist; but some say, Elias; and others say, that one of the old prophets is risen again.

20He said to them, "But who do you say that I am?" Peter answered, "You are the Christ of God."

20He said unto them, But whom say ye that I am? Peter answering said, The Christ of God.

Note"Christ" is not a name but the Greek word for "anointed one", translating the Hebrew title Messiah. Kings and priests were anointed with oil when they took office, and by this period the title was used of the deliverer God was expected to send.

21He gave them strict orders not to tell anyone that.

21And he straitly charged them, and commanded them to tell no man that thing;

Note"Straitly charged" means sternly ordered. "Straitly" comes from "strait", meaning tight or strict, and has no connection with "straight".

22He said, "The Son of Man must suffer many things. He will be turned away by the elders, the chief priests, and the scribes, the men who taught the law. He will be killed, and on the third day he will be raised to life."

22Saying, The Son of man must suffer many things, and be rejected of the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be slain, and be raised the third day.

Note"The Son of man" renders a phrase that in Aramaic can mean simply "a human being", can serve as an indirect way of saying "I", and also names the figure in Daniel 7 who is given everlasting dominion. All of these senses were available to the first hearers, and the Gospels do not settle which is meant. The elders, chief priests and scribes were the three groups that made up the Sanhedrin, the ruling council in Jerusalem; scribes were professional experts in the law of Moses.

23Then he said to all of them, "If anyone wants to come after me, he must say no to himself, pick up his cross every day, and follow me."

23And he said to them all, If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow me.

NoteCrucifixion was a Roman method of execution, and a condemned man was made to carry the crossbeam through public streets to the place where he would die. "Take up his cross" called up that picture: a man already under sentence, walking out to his death, with the public shame that went with it.

24"Whoever wants to save his own life will lose it. But whoever loses his life for my sake will save it."

24For whosoever will save his life shall lose it: but whosoever will lose his life for my sake, the same shall save it.

25"What does a person gain if he gets the whole world but loses his own self, or is thrown away?"

25For what is a man advantaged, if he gain the whole world, and lose himself, or be cast away?

Note"Advantaged" means profited. The verse is built out of commercial vocabulary throughout: gain, profit, and loss. "Cast away" translates a word for suffering forfeit, as of money paid out in a penalty.

26"If anyone is ashamed of me and of my words, the Son of Man will be ashamed of that person when he comes in his own glory, and in the glory of his Father and of the holy angels."

26For whosoever shall be ashamed of me and of my words, of him shall the Son of man be ashamed, when he shall come in his own glory, and in his Father’s, and of the holy angels.

27"But I tell you the truth: some of the people standing here will not die before they see the kingdom of God."

27But I tell you of a truth, there be some standing here, which shall not taste of death, till they see the kingdom of God.

Note"Taste of death" is a Semitic turn of phrase meaning simply to die.

28About eight days after he said these things, he took Peter, John, and James with him and went up a mountain to pray.

28And it came to pass about an eight days after these sayings, he took Peter and John and James, and went up into a mountain to pray.

Note"About an eight days after" is the King James Version's way of saying about a week later. Ancient reckoning counted both the first and the last day, so an interval described as eight days in one account and six in another can cover the same stretch of time.

29While he was praying, the look of his face changed, and his clothes became white and shining.

29And as he prayed, the fashion of his countenance was altered, and his raiment was white and glistering.

Note"The fashion of his countenance" means the appearance of his face. "Raiment" is clothing, and "glistering" is an older word for flashing or gleaming, unrelated to being wet.

30And there were two men talking with him. They were Moses and Elijah.

30And, behold, there talked with him two men, which were Moses and Elias:

NoteMoses was the figure through whom the law was given at Sinai; Elijah was the prophet of the northern kingdom. The end of each man was unusual in the Hebrew scriptures: no one knew where Moses was buried, and Elijah was carried off alive.

31They appeared in glory, and they spoke about his departure, which he was going to carry out at Jerusalem.

31Who appeared in glory, and spake of his decease which he should accomplish at Jerusalem.

NoteThe King James "decease" means death, but the Greek word is exodos, a going out or departure, the same word used of Israel's departure from Egypt. Both the sense of dying and the sense of setting out are present, and the rendering keeps the wider word.

32But Peter and the men with him were heavy with sleep. When they were fully awake, they saw Jesus' glory and the two men standing with him.

32But Peter and they that were with him were heavy with sleep: and when they were awake, they saw his glory, and the two men that stood with him.

33As the two men were leaving him, Peter said to Jesus, "Master, it is good for us to be here. Let us put up three shelters: one for you, one for Moses, and one for Elijah." He did not know what he was saying.

33And it came to pass, as they departed from him, Peter said unto Jesus, Master, it is good for us to be here: and let us make three tabernacles; one for thee, and one for Moses, and one for Elias: not knowing what he said.

Note"Tabernacles" here means tents or booths: temporary shelters put together from branches, of the kind Israelites built and lived in during the autumn Feast of Tabernacles.

34While he was speaking, a cloud came and covered them. They were afraid as they went into the cloud.

34While he thus spake, there came a cloud, and overshadowed them: and they feared as they entered into the cloud.

NoteA cloud covering or overshadowing people is the language the Hebrew scriptures use when God's presence settles on Sinai or fills the tent of meeting. The wording would have carried that association for Luke's first readers.

35A voice came out of the cloud. It said, "This is my Son, the one I love. Listen to him."

35And there came a voice out of the cloud, saying, This is my beloved Son: hear him.

NoteManuscripts differ at this point. Some read "my beloved Son", as the King James Version has it; others read "my Son, my Chosen One". Many modern translations follow the second.

36When the voice had finished, Jesus was there alone. The disciples kept this to themselves. In those days they told no one what they had seen.

36And when the voice was past, Jesus was found alone. And they kept it close, and told no man in those days any of those things which they had seen.

Note"They kept it close" means they kept it secret. "Close" here has the sense of shut up or closed off, not nearby.

37The next day, when they came down from the mountain, a large crowd met him.

37And it came to pass, that on the next day, when they were come down from the hill, much people met him.

38A man in the crowd shouted out, "Teacher, I beg you, take a look at my son. He is my only child."

38And, behold, a man of the company cried out, saying, Master, I beseech thee, look upon my son: for he is mine only child.

39"A spirit takes hold of him, and he suddenly screams. It shakes him hard so that he foams at the mouth. It keeps hurting him and hardly ever leaves him."

39And, lo, a spirit taketh him, and he suddenly crieth out; and it teareth him that he foameth again, and bruising him hardly departeth from him.

Note"Hardly" in the King James Version means with difficulty rather than rarely, so "bruising him hardly departeth from him" says the spirit mauls the boy and leaves him only after a struggle. The Greek can also be read as "rarely leaves him", and translators divide between the two.

40"I begged your disciples to drive it out, but they could not do it."

40And I besought thy disciples to cast him out; and they could not.

41Jesus answered, "You people have no faith and have turned the wrong way. How long must I stay with you and put up with you? Bring your son here."

41And Jesus answering said, O faithless and perverse generation, how long shall I be with you, and suffer you? Bring thy son hither.

Note"Suffer you" means bear with you or put up with you; in the King James Version "suffer" regularly means allow or endure. "Perverse" means twisted or turned out of the straight way, from the same root as "reverse".

42While the boy was still coming, the demon knocked him to the ground and shook him hard. But Jesus ordered the unclean spirit to stop, healed the boy, and gave him back to his father.

42And as he was yet a coming, the devil threw him down, and tare him. And Jesus rebuked the unclean spirit, and healed the child, and delivered him again to his father.

Note"Tare" is the old past tense of "tear", used here of a convulsion throwing the body about. "Unclean" is a ritual category rather than a matter of dirt: an unclean spirit is one that renders a person unfit to come near what is holy.

43Everyone was amazed at the mighty power of God. While they were all wondering at everything Jesus was doing, he said to his disciples,

43And they were all amazed at the mighty power of God. But while they wondered every one at all things which Jesus did, he said unto his disciples,

44"Let these words sink deep into your ears: the Son of Man is going to be handed over to men."

44Let these sayings sink down into your ears: for the Son of man shall be delivered into the hands of men.

Note"Delivered into the hands of men" translates a verb meaning to hand over, the ordinary word for surrendering a prisoner to authorities. It is also the word the Gospels use for betrayal, and the phrase leaves open who does the handing over.

45But they did not understand what he said. The meaning was hidden from them, so they could not grasp it, and they were afraid to ask him about it.

45But they understood not this saying, and it was hid from them, that they perceived it not: and they feared to ask him of that saying.

46Then an argument started among them about which of them was the greatest.

46Then there arose a reasoning among them, which of them should be greatest.

Note"A reasoning" here means a dispute or an argument, not calm reflection.

47Jesus knew what they were thinking in their hearts. He took a child and stood the child beside him.

47And Jesus, perceiving the thought of their heart, took a child, and set him by him,

NoteA child in that society had no standing: no legal rights, no property, and no honor to lend an adult who paid attention to one. That is the point of the object chosen, and it depends on the child's low status rather than on innocence.

48He said to them, "Whoever welcomes this child in my name welcomes me. And whoever welcomes me welcomes the one who sent me. The one who is least among you all is the one who is great."

48And said unto them, Whosoever shall receive this child in my name receiveth me: and whosoever shall receive me receiveth him that sent me: for he that is least among you all, the same shall be great.

Note"Receive" means to welcome as a guest into your house. To welcome someone "in my name" was to welcome that person as Jesus' representative; in the practice of the time an envoy carried the standing of the one who sent him, so how you treated the messenger counted as how you treated the sender.

49John said, "Master, we saw a man driving out demons by using your name, and we tried to stop him, because he does not go around with us."

49And John answered and said, Master, we saw one casting out devils in thy name; and we forbad him, because he followeth not with us.

NoteDriving out spirits by pronouncing a powerful name was standard practice among exorcists of the period, who invoked names they held to carry authority. The man is using Jesus' name in that customary way, without being one of his followers.

50Jesus said to him, "Do not stop him. Whoever is not against us is for us."

50And Jesus said unto him, Forbid him not: for he that is not against us is for us.

NoteManuscripts vary between "he that is not against us is for us" and "whoever is not against you is for you". The force of the saying is the same either way.

51When the time was coming for Jesus to be taken up, he firmly set his mind on going to Jerusalem.

51And it came to pass, when the time was come that he should be received up, he stedfastly set his face to go to Jerusalem,

Note"Received up" means taken up and away from his followers. "He stedfastly set his face" is a Hebrew idiom, used of the prophets, for turning resolutely toward a place or a task with no intention of being deflected.

52He sent messengers ahead of him. They went into a village in Samaria to get things ready for him.

52And sent messengers before his face: and they went, and entered into a village of the Samaritans, to make ready for him.

NoteSamaritans lived in the region between Galilee and Judea. They kept their own version of the law of Moses and held that God was to be worshiped at Mount Gerizim rather than at the temple in Jerusalem, and Jews and Samaritans regarded each other with long standing hostility. Galilean pilgrims heading south often took the road straight through Samaria, which meant asking hospitality from people who rejected their destination.

53But the people there would not welcome him, because he was clearly heading for Jerusalem.

53And they did not receive him, because his face was as though he would go to Jerusalem.

Note"His face was as though he would go to Jerusalem" means it was plain where he was headed. He was visibly a pilgrim bound for the rival sanctuary, which is why the village would not take him in.

54When his disciples James and John saw this, they said, "Lord, do you want us to call fire down from heaven to burn them up, the way Elijah did?"

54And when his disciples James and John saw this, they said, Lord, wilt thou that we command fire to come down from heaven, and consume them, even as Elias did?

NoteThe reference is to 2 Kings 1, where fire from heaven consumed the soldiers sent to arrest Elijah. The words "even as Elias did" are missing from the earliest manuscripts and many modern translations omit them.

55But he turned and corrected them. He said, "You do not know what kind of spirit you belong to."

55But he turned, and rebuked them, and said, Ye know not what manner of spirit ye are of.

NoteThe clause "and said, Ye know not what manner of spirit ye are of", along with the first sentence of verse 56, is absent from the oldest manuscripts. It stands in the later copies the King James translators worked from, which is why it appears here and is dropped or footnoted in most modern versions.

56"The Son of Man did not come to destroy people's lives, but to save them." Then they went on to another village.

56For the Son of man is not come to destroy men’s lives, but to save them. And they went to another village.

57As they were walking along the road, a man said to him, "Lord, I will follow you wherever you go."

57And it came to pass, that, as they went in the way, a certain man said unto him, Lord, I will follow thee whithersoever thou goest.

58Jesus said to him, "Foxes have holes, and birds of the sky have nests, but the Son of Man has no place to lay his head."

58And Jesus said unto him, Foxes have holes, and birds of the air have nests; but the Son of man hath not where to lay his head.

59He said to another man, "Follow me." But the man said, "Lord, let me first go and bury my father."

59And he said unto another, Follow me. But he said, Lord, suffer me first to go and bury my father.

NoteBurying a father was among the most binding duties a son had, and was held to take precedence over other religious obligations. The request may mean the father has just died and the funeral is imminent, or, since a son could be expected to remain at home until his parents died, it may mean "let me wait until my father's death". The wording does not decide between them.

60Jesus said to him, "Let the dead bury their own dead. You go and preach about the kingdom of God."

60Jesus said unto him, Let the dead bury their dead: but go thou and preach the kingdom of God.

NoteThe saying uses "dead" twice, the second time of people who are physically alive. The jarring effect is in the Greek as well, and what exactly the first "dead" refers to has been argued over since antiquity.

61Another man also said, "Lord, I will follow you, but first let me go and say goodbye to my family at home."

61And another also said, Lord, I will follow thee; but let me first go bid them farewell, which are at home at my house.

NoteIn 1 Kings 19 Elisha asks Elijah for leave to kiss his father and mother goodbye before following him, and is allowed to go. A hearer who knew that story would catch the echo in this man's request.

62Jesus said to him, "No one who starts plowing and then looks back is fit for the kingdom of God."

62And Jesus said unto him, No man, having put his hand to the plough, and looking back, is fit for the kingdom of God.

NoteThe plow of the period was a light wooden frame with a single iron point, guided with one hand while the other held the goad for the ox. It scratched a shallow furrow and needed constant watching, so a plowman who looked over his shoulder cut a crooked line.