The Jewish Annotated New Testament (217 page)

44
:
Gave me no water
, a breach of etiquette.

49
:
Forgives sins
, see 5.20n.

50
:
Faith has saved you
, see 8.48; 17.19; 18.42. This
faith
, although not defined, suggests faith in Jesus as Lord and so the forgiveness he grants.

8.1
–3: Jesus’ patrons. 1:
Good news
, 1.19n.
Kingdom of God
, 4.43n.

2
:
Some women
, see 23.49.
Cured
, only Luke describes Jesus’ women followers as beneficiaries of healing.
Magdalene
, see 7.38n. Magdala (Tarichaea) was a fishing village on the western shore of the Sea of Galilee.

3
:
Wife of Herod’s steward
, suggesting elite class.
Provided for them
, women served as patrons to various individuals and groups, including synagogues and Pharisees (see 7.5n.). Luke does not here explicitly call them “disciples” (contrast Acts 9.36).

8.4
–15: Parable of the sower
(Mt 13.1–23; Mk 4.1–20).

9
:
What this parable meant
, this parable requires an allegorical key (see 15.7; 18.1).

10
:
Paraphrasing Isa 6.9–10 (see also Jer 5.21; Ezek 12.2). Here, the purpose of parables is to conceal truth; Luke omits Mark’s point (4.12) that parables prevent conversion and forgiveness.
Secrets
, veiled notices of God’s plan (see Dan 2.18–19,44–47 LXX; 1 Cor 2.1–7).

15
:
Heart
, see 6.45n.

8.16
–18: Independent sayings
(Mt 5.15; 10.26; 13.12; Mk 4.21–25).

18
:
Will be taken away
, see 19.26; those who do not follow Jesus will suffer eschatological loss.

8.19
–21: Jesus’ family
(Mt 12.46–50; Mk 3.31–35).

19
:
Brothers
, Mk 6.3 lists four brothers and mentions sisters.

21
:
Mk 3.20–21,33 increases the distance between Jesus and his natal family.
My mother and my brothers
, Jesus subordinates biological and marital relations to loyalty to God (5.11n.; 10.61), although the Greek can be taken as indicating the mother and brothers as model disciples.

8.22
–25: Stilling the storm
(Mt 8.23–27; Mk 4.35–41).

23
:
Fell asleep
, one of several connections between Jesus and Jonah (see Jon 1.5).

24
:
Rebuked the wind
, controlling nature indicates divine power (Ps 107.28–30).

8.26
–39: Gerasene demoniac
(Mt 8.28–34; Mk 5.1–20).

26
:
Gerasenes
, Gerasa,
opposite Galilee
, in the Transjordan, had a largely non-Jewish population. Mt 8.28 situates this event in Gadara, southeast of the Sea of Galilee.

28
:
Son of the Most High
, 1.32n.; the demoniac’s identification contrasts with the apostles’ confusion (8.25).

30
:
What is your name
, knowledge of one’s name provides advantage (see Gen 32.29).
Legion
, Roman army unit of approximately five thousand troops, suggesting Rome’s demonic power.

31
:
Abyss
, where God confines demons (Rev 9.1–11; 11.7; 17.8; 20.1–3); demonology, like angelology, developed during the Hellenistic period.

32
:
Swine
, indicating a non-Jewish area; archaeological investigation of lower Galilee shows no pig bones (see Lev 11.7; Deut 14.8).

39
:
Jesus had done
, in contrast to Jesus’ command to proclaim what “God” had done (but see 4.8; 5.25).

8.40
–56: Jairus’s daughter and hemorrhaging woman
(Mt 9.18–26; Mk 5.21–43).

41
:
Leader of the synagogue
, one who oversaw congregational activities.

42
:
Only daughter
, Jewish parents consistently display concern for their children (e.g., 2.48; 9.38; 11.7,11–13; 14.5; 18.15).

43
:
Hemorrhages
, probably vaginal or uterine (see Lev 15.25–30); no recounting of her story mentions matters of purity.

44
:
Fringe
, Heb “tzitzit,” see Num 15.38. Her hands would not convey impurity.

48
:
Daughter
, one of several linkages with Jairus’s daughter.
Made you well
, lit., “saved you”; see 7.50.

51
:
Peter, John, and James
, the inner circle (9.28).

54
:
By the hand
, Jesus violates no ritual taboos.

56
:
Tell no one
, 5.14n.

9.1
–6: Commissioning of the apostles
(Mt 10.1–14; Mk 6.6b–13).

3
:
Take nothing
, apostles are dependent on God and those to whom they minister.

5
:
Shake the dust off
, indicating they are not responsible for the fate of the inhospitable.

6
:
Good news
, see 1.19n.

9.7
–9: Herod’s speculations
(Mt 14.1–2; Mk 6.14–16).
Herod
Antipas, 3.1n.

8
:
Elijah
, 1.17n.; see also 9.18–19.
Prophets
, perhaps a reference to Deut 18.15, understanding “raise” as raise from the dead.

9
:
John I beheaded
, see Mk 6.17–29 (Luke does not directly describe John’s death).
Tried to see him
, see 23.7–12.

9.10
–11: Successful mission
(Mt 14.12–14; Mk 6.30–34).

10
:
Bethsaida
, north of the Sea of Galilee.

9.12
–17: Feeding of the five thousand
(Mt 14.15–21; Mk 6.35–44; Jn 6.5–14). See 2 Kings 4.43–44.

14
:
Five thousand men
, Mt 14.21 adds that the five thousand did not include the women and children also present.

16
:
Blessed
, traditional Jewish blessing before eating (see Deut 8.10;
b. Ber
. 48b;
Num. Rab
. 20.21; the traditional blessing over bread [“birchat ha-motsi”] is based on Ps 104.14). The scene here anticipates 22.17–20.

17
:
Twelve baskets
, perhaps suggesting Israel’s twelve tribes. Luke recounts a miracle, comparable to the giving of manna (Ex 16; 2 Kings 4.43–44; cf. Jn 6.31;
b. Yoma
75a on the sufficiency of manna), and not a sharing of resources.

9.18
–20: Peter’s confession (acknowledgment) of Jesus’ messiahship
(Mt 16.13–19; Mk 8.27–29).

19
:
John
…
Elijah
…
ancient prophets
, some of many messianic figures; see “Messianic Movements,” p.
530
.

20
:
Messiah of God
, Gk “ho Christos tou Theou,” “God’s anointed.”

9.21
–22: First Passion prediction
(Mt 16.20–21; Mk 8.30–31).

21
:
Not to tell anyone
, Given the earlier mission (9.2–6) and miracles, a problematic point.

22
:
Son of Man
, see 5.24n.
Elders, chief priests, and scribes
, Jewish leadership.
Be killed
, the passive subtly exonerates Pilate. Contemporaneous Jewish thought displays limited evidence of either a suffering messiah or “Son of Man.”

9.23
–27: Discipleship
(Mt 16.24–28; Mk 8.34–9.1).

23
:
Deny themselves
, see 7.33n.
Take up their cross
, the Greek is singular (lit., “anyone … his”), making the challenge personal.
Daily
, discipleship is a permanent state; Luke spiritualizes Mark’s focus on action leading to death to suggest continual self-denial (cf. 5.11; 8.21; 10.61).

26
:
Son of Man
, 5.24n.
Comes in his glory
, the “second coming” and final judgment. Jewish tradition does not separate the messiah and messianic age and thus has no “second coming.”