1
Συγκαλεσάμενος δὲ τοὺς δώδεκα ἔδωκεν αὐτοῖς δύναμιν καὶ ἐξουσίαν ἐπὶ πάντα τὰ δαιμόνια καὶ νόσους θεραπεύειν,
And calling the twelve together he gave them power and authority over all the demons and to heal diseases,
2
καὶ ἀπέστειλεν αὐτοὺς κηρύσσειν τὴν βασιλείαν τοῦ θεοῦ καὶ ἰᾶσθαι ⸂τοὺς ἀσθενεῖς⸃,
and he sent them to proclaim the kingdom of God and to cure the sick.
3
καὶ εἶπεν πρὸς αὐτούς· Μηδὲν αἴρετε εἰς τὴν ὁδόν, μήτε ⸀ῥάβδον μήτε πήραν μήτε ἄρτον μήτε ἀργύριον, μήτε ⸀ἀνὰ δύο χιτῶνας ἔχειν.
And he said to them, “Take nothing for the road — neither staff nor bag nor bread nor silver, nor have two tunics each.
4
καὶ εἰς ἣν ἂν οἰκίαν εἰσέλθητε, ἐκεῖ μένετε καὶ ἐκεῖθεν ἐξέρχεσθε.
And whatever house you enter, stay there and go out from there.
5
καὶ ὅσοι ⸀ἂν μὴ ⸀δέχωνται ὑμᾶς, ἐξερχόμενοι ἀπὸ τῆς πόλεως ⸀ἐκείνης τὸν κονιορτὸν ἀπὸ τῶν ποδῶν ὑμῶν ⸀ἀποτινάσσετε εἰς μαρτύριον ἐπ’ αὐτούς.
And as for those who do not receive you, when you go out from that city shake off the dust from your feet, for a testimony against them.”
6
ἐξερχόμενοι δὲ διήρχοντο κατὰ τὰς κώμας εὐαγγελιζόμενοι καὶ θεραπεύοντες πανταχοῦ.
And going out they were travelling through the villages, bringing good news and healing everywhere.
7
Ἤκουσεν δὲ Ἡρῴδης ὁ τετραάρχης τὰ ⸀γινόμενα πάντα, καὶ διηπόρει διὰ τὸ λέγεσθαι ὑπό τινων ὅτι Ἰωάννης ⸀ἠγέρθη ἐκ νεκρῶν,
And Herod the tetrarch heard of all that was happening, and he was thoroughly perplexed, because it was said by some that John had been raised from the dead,
8
ὑπό τινων δὲ ὅτι Ἠλίας ἐφάνη, ἄλλων δὲ ὅτι προφήτης ⸀τις τῶν ἀρχαίων ἀνέστη.
and by some that Elijah had appeared, and by others that one of the prophets of old had risen.
9
⸂εἶπεν δὲ⸃ ⸀ὁ Ἡρῴδης· Ἰωάννην ἐγὼ ἀπεκεφάλισα· τίς δέ ἐστιν οὗτος περὶ ⸀οὗ ἀκούω τοιαῦτα; καὶ ἐζήτει ἰδεῖν αὐτόν.
And Herod said, “John I beheaded; but who is this about whom I hear such things?” And he was seeking to see him.
10
Καὶ ὑποστρέψαντες οἱ ἀπόστολοι διηγήσαντο αὐτῷ ὅσα ἐποίησαν. καὶ παραλαβὼν αὐτοὺς ὑπεχώρησεν κατ’ ἰδίαν εἰς ⸂πόλιν καλουμένην Βηθσαϊδά⸃.
And the apostles returned and told him what they had done. And taking them along he withdrew privately to a city called Bethsaida.
11
οἱ δὲ ὄχλοι γνόντες ἠκολούθησαν αὐτῷ. καὶ ⸀ἀποδεξάμενος αὐτοὺς ἐλάλει αὐτοῖς περὶ τῆς βασιλείας τοῦ θεοῦ, καὶ τοὺς χρείαν ἔχοντας θεραπείας ἰᾶτο.
But the crowds, knowing it, followed him; and welcoming them he was speaking to them about the kingdom of God, and healing those who had need of healing.
12
Ἡ δὲ ἡμέρα ἤρξατο κλίνειν· προσελθόντες δὲ οἱ δώδεκα εἶπαν αὐτῷ· Ἀπόλυσον τὸν ὄχλον, ἵνα ⸀πορευθέντες εἰς τὰς κύκλῳ κώμας ⸀καὶ ἀγροὺς καταλύσωσιν καὶ εὕρωσιν ἐπισιτισμόν, ὅτι ὧδε ἐν ἐρήμῳ τόπῳ ἐσμέν.
And the day began to decline, and the twelve came and said to him, “Send the crowd away, so that they may go into the villages and fields around and lodge and find provisions, because here we are in a deserted place.”
13
εἶπεν δὲ πρὸς αὐτούς· Δότε αὐτοῖς ⸂ὑμεῖς φαγεῖν⸃. οἱ δὲ εἶπαν· Οὐκ εἰσὶν ἡμῖν πλεῖον ἢ ⸂ἄρτοι πέντε⸃ καὶ ἰχθύες δύο, εἰ μήτι πορευθέντες ἡμεῖς ἀγοράσωμεν εἰς πάντα τὸν λαὸν τοῦτον βρώματα.
But he said to them, “You give them something to eat.” And they said, “We have no more than five loaves and two fish — unless we go and buy food for all this people.”
14
ἦσαν γὰρ ὡσεὶ ἄνδρες πεντακισχίλιοι. εἶπεν δὲ πρὸς τοὺς μαθητὰς αὐτοῦ· Κατακλίνατε αὐτοὺς κλισίας ⸀ὡσεὶ ἀνὰ πεντήκοντα.
For there were about five thousand men. And he said to his disciples, “Have them recline in groups of about fifty.”
15
καὶ ἐποίησαν οὕτως καὶ ⸀κατέκλιναν ἅπαντας.
And they did so, and had them all recline.
16
λαβὼν δὲ τοὺς πέντε ἄρτους καὶ τοὺς δύο ἰχθύας ἀναβλέψας εἰς τὸν οὐρανὸν εὐλόγησεν αὐτοὺς καὶ κατέκλασεν καὶ ἐδίδου τοῖς μαθηταῖς ⸀παραθεῖναι τῷ ὄχλῳ.
And taking the five loaves and the two fish, and looking up to heaven, he blessed them and broke them and gave them to the disciples to set before the crowd.
17
καὶ ἔφαγον καὶ ἐχορτάσθησαν πάντες, καὶ ἤρθη τὸ περισσεῦσαν αὐτοῖς κλασμάτων κόφινοι δώδεκα.
And they all ate and were filled; and what was left over to them was taken up, twelve hampers of fragments.
18
Καὶ ἐγένετο ἐν τῷ εἶναι αὐτὸν προσευχόμενον κατὰ μόνας συνῆσαν αὐτῷ οἱ μαθηταί, καὶ ἐπηρώτησεν αὐτοὺς λέγων· Τίνα με ⸂οἱ ὄχλοι λέγουσιν⸃ εἶναι;
And it came to pass, while he was praying alone, that the disciples were with him; and he asked them, saying, “Who do the crowds say that I am?”
19
οἱ δὲ ἀποκριθέντες εἶπαν· Ἰωάννην τὸν βαπτιστήν, ἄλλοι δὲ Ἠλίαν, ἄλλοι δὲ ὅτι προφήτης τις τῶν ἀρχαίων ἀνέστη.
And answering they said, “John the Baptist; and others, Elijah; and others, that one of the prophets of old has risen.”
20
εἶπεν δὲ αὐτοῖς· Ὑμεῖς δὲ τίνα με λέγετε εἶναι; ⸂Πέτρος δὲ ἀποκριθεὶς⸃ εἶπεν· Τὸν χριστὸν τοῦ θεοῦ.
And he said to them, “But you — who do you say that I am?” And answering, Peter said, “The Christ of God.”
21
Ὁ δὲ ἐπιτιμήσας αὐτοῖς παρήγγειλεν μηδενὶ ⸀λέγειν τοῦτο,
But rebuking them he charged them to tell this to no one,
22
εἰπὼν ὅτι Δεῖ τὸν υἱὸν τοῦ ἀνθρώπου πολλὰ παθεῖν καὶ ἀποδοκιμασθῆναι ἀπὸ τῶν πρεσβυτέρων καὶ ἀρχιερέων καὶ γραμματέων καὶ ἀποκτανθῆναι καὶ τῇ τρίτῃ ἡμέρᾳ ⸀ἐγερθῆναι.
saying that the Son of Man must suffer many things and be rejected by the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and on the third day be raised.
23
Ἔλεγεν δὲ πρὸς πάντας· Εἴ τις θέλει ὀπίσω μου ⸂ἔρχεσθαι, ἀρνησάσθω⸃ ἑαυτὸν καὶ ἀράτω τὸν σταυρὸν αὐτοῦ ⸂καθ’ ἡμέραν⸃, καὶ ἀκολουθείτω μοι.
And he was saying to them all, “If anyone wants to come behind me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me.
Why this rendering
Luke.9.23 Observation
Syntactic observation
The three books give this saying almost word for word, and Luke alone has two things more. First, **καθ’ ἡμέραν, daily** — absent from Matthew 16:24 and Mark 8:34; we compared the three texts side by side to confirm it. Second, the opening differs: Matthew τοῖς μαθηταῖς αὐτοῦ, to his disciples; Mark προσκαλεσάμενος τὸν ὄχλον σὺν τοῖς μαθηταῖς, calling the crowd with the disciples; Luke πρὸς πάντας, **to all**. So in Luke the hearers are widest and the carrying becomes daily. Third, the verb of denying differs: Matthew and Mark have ἀπαρνησάσθω, with ἀπο- prefixed; Luke has ἀρνησάσθω. It is one prefix. Matthew and Mark may look as though they divide the two — ἀπαρνέομαι for denying oneself (Matt 16:24; Mark 8:34) and ἀπαρνέομαι again for Peter's denial (Matt 26:34, 75; Mark 14:30, 72) — but Luke uses **both words of Peter's denial**: ἀπαρνέομαι at 22:34, 61 and ἀρνέομαι at 22:57. So no division can be claimed within Luke; only that at 9:23 he chose the unprefixed form.
Rendering options · 2
Adopted “take up his cross daily” and “to all” — as the base text has it
Basis What stands in the base text is rendered; its absence from Matthew and Mark is recorded in the analysis.
Harmonize — drop daily, or supply it in Matthew and Mark
Basis One saying, so the reading is evened out.
Rejected That the phrase is Luke's alone is what shows when the three texts are set side by side; harmonizing either way erases it.
24
ὃς γὰρ ⸀ἂν θέλῃ τὴν ψυχὴν αὐτοῦ σῶσαι, ἀπολέσει αὐτήν· ὃς δ’ ἂν ἀπολέσῃ τὴν ψυχὴν αὐτοῦ ἕνεκεν ἐμοῦ, οὗτος σώσει αὐτήν.
For whoever wants to save his life will lose it; and whoever loses his life because of me, he will save it.
25
τί γὰρ ὠφελεῖται ἄνθρωπος κερδήσας τὸν κόσμον ὅλον ἑαυτὸν δὲ ἀπολέσας ἢ ζημιωθείς;
For what does a man profit if he gains the whole world but loses or forfeits himself?
26
ὃς γὰρ ἂν ἐπαισχυνθῇ με καὶ τοὺς ἐμοὺς λόγους, τοῦτον ὁ υἱὸς τοῦ ἀνθρώπου ἐπαισχυνθήσεται, ὅταν ἔλθῃ ἐν τῇ δόξῃ αὐτοῦ καὶ τοῦ πατρὸς καὶ τῶν ἁγίων ἀγγέλων.
For whoever is ashamed of me and of my words, of him the Son of Man will be ashamed when he comes in his glory and the Father's and the holy angels'.
27
λέγω δὲ ὑμῖν ἀληθῶς, εἰσίν τινες τῶν ⸀αὐτοῦ ⸀ἑστηκότων οἳ οὐ μὴ γεύσωνται θανάτου ἕως ἂν ἴδωσιν τὴν βασιλείαν τοῦ θεοῦ.
But I say to you truly, there are some of those standing here who will not taste death until they see the kingdom of God.”
28
Ἐγένετο δὲ μετὰ τοὺς λόγους τούτους ὡσεὶ ἡμέραι ὀκτὼ ⸀καὶ παραλαβὼν Πέτρον καὶ Ἰωάννην καὶ Ἰάκωβον ἀνέβη εἰς τὸ ὄρος προσεύξασθαι.
And it came to pass about eight days after these words that, taking along Peter and John and James, he went up the mountain to pray.
29
καὶ ἐγένετο ἐν τῷ προσεύχεσθαι αὐτὸν τὸ εἶδος τοῦ προσώπου αὐτοῦ ἕτερον καὶ ὁ ἱματισμὸς αὐτοῦ λευκὸς ἐξαστράπτων.
And it came to pass, while he was praying, that the appearance of his face became other, and his clothing white and flashing like lightning.
30
καὶ ἰδοὺ ἄνδρες δύο συνελάλουν αὐτῷ, οἵτινες ἦσαν Μωϋσῆς καὶ Ἠλίας,
And behold, two men were talking with him, who were Moses and Elijah;
31
οἳ ὀφθέντες ἐν δόξῃ ἔλεγον τὴν ἔξοδον αὐτοῦ ἣν ἤμελλεν πληροῦν ἐν Ἰερουσαλήμ.
who, appearing in glory, were speaking of his departure, which he was about to fulfil in Jerusalem.
Why this rendering
Luke.9.31 Observation
Syntactic observation
Only Luke records **what Moses and Elijah said.** Matthew 17:3 and Mark 9:4 say only συλλαλοῦντες, talking with him, and give no content. Luke says they spoke of τὴν ἔξοδον αὐτοῦ, his departure — ἔξοδος being unique in the corpus — and adds that he was about to fulfil it ἐν Ἰερουσαλήμ, in Jerusalem; twenty verses later, at 9:51, he sets his face toward Jerusalem. Other things here are Luke's alone: at v.28 the reason for going up the mountain is προσεύξασθαι, to pray; at v.29 the change comes ἐν τῷ προσεύχεσθαι, while he was praying; at v.32 the disciples are ὕπνῳ βεβαρημένοι, weighed down with sleep, and having διαγρηγορήσαντες, come fully awake, they see the glory. ἐξαστράπτω, to flash like lightning, and διαγρηγορέω are both unique in the corpus. Matthew 17:2 says his face shone like the sun; Luke 9:29 says the εἶδος, appearance, of his face became ἕτερον, other.
Rendering options · 2
Adopted “his departure” — rendered only as the word is built
Basis ἔξοδος is a going out; being unique there is no other place to check it against, so anything added is the translation's own judgement.
Unpack as “his death” or “what he was about to accomplish”
Basis Lets the reader see what is meant.
Rejected θάνατος is not in the text; and Luke's choosing this word is itself the datum, which unpacking erases.
32
ὁ δὲ Πέτρος καὶ οἱ σὺν αὐτῷ ἦσαν βεβαρημένοι ὕπνῳ· διαγρηγορήσαντες δὲ εἶδον τὴν δόξαν αὐτοῦ καὶ τοὺς δύο ἄνδρας τοὺς συνεστῶτας αὐτῷ.
And Peter and those with him were weighed down with sleep; and coming fully awake they saw his glory and the two men standing with him.
33
καὶ ἐγένετο ἐν τῷ διαχωρίζεσθαι αὐτοὺς ἀπ’ αὐτοῦ εἶπεν ⸀ὁ Πέτρος πρὸς τὸν Ἰησοῦν· Ἐπιστάτα, καλόν ἐστιν ἡμᾶς ὧδε εἶναι, καὶ ποιήσωμεν σκηνὰς τρεῖς, μίαν σοὶ καὶ μίαν Μωϋσεῖ καὶ μίαν Ἠλίᾳ, μὴ εἰδὼς ὃ λέγει.
And it came to pass, as they were parting from him, that Peter said to Jesus, “Master, it is good for us to be here; and let us make three tents, one for you and one for Moses and one for Elijah” — not knowing what he was saying.
34
ταῦτα δὲ αὐτοῦ λέγοντος ἐγένετο νεφέλη καὶ ⸀ἐπεσκίαζεν αὐτούς· ἐφοβήθησαν δὲ ἐν τῷ ⸂εἰσελθεῖν αὐτοὺς⸃ εἰς τὴν νεφέλην.
And while he was saying this a cloud came and overshadowed them; and they were afraid as they entered into the cloud.
35
καὶ φωνὴ ἐγένετο ἐκ τῆς νεφέλης λέγουσα· Οὗτός ἐστιν ὁ υἱός μου ὁ ⸀ἐκλελεγμένος, αὐτοῦ ἀκούετε.
And a voice came from the cloud, saying, “This is my Son, the chosen one; listen to him.”
Why this rendering
Luke.9.35 Observation
Syntactic observation
The voice from the cloud differs across the books. Matthew 17:5 has ὁ υἱός μου ὁ ἀγαπητός, ἐν ᾧ εὐδόκησα, my beloved Son, in whom I was well pleased, with ἀκούετε αὐτοῦ added; Mark 9:7 has ὁ υἱός μου ὁ ἀγαπητός, ἀκούετε αὐτοῦ; Luke 9:35 has ὁ υἱός μου **ὁ ἐκλελεγμένος**, my Son, **the chosen one** — not ἀγαπητός but the perfect passive participle of ἐκλέγομαι. That verb occurs four times in Luke (6:13, choosing the twelve; 9:35; 10:42, Mary choosing the good part; 14:7, choosing the places of honour), five times in John, once in Mark. So in Luke choosing is done both by people and by God, and only here does it attach to the Son. Matthew 3:17 and 17:5, and Mark 1:11 and 9:7, use ἀγαπητός at both the baptism and the transfiguration; Luke uses ἀγαπητός at the baptism (3:22) and changes it at the transfiguration — **within Luke the two places differ.** SBLGNT marks a variant here (⸀).
Rendering options · 2
Adopted “the chosen one” — kept apart from beloved at 3:22
Basis The base text prints a different word, and Luke words the two places differently within his own book, so the renderings divide.
Render as beloved, matching Matthew and Mark
Basis Some manuscripts read so, and the three books become even.
Rejected By our base-text decision we follow SBLGNT; and the direction runs one way — a rarer word being replaced by the familiar one is common, the reverse is not.
36
καὶ ἐν τῷ γενέσθαι τὴν φωνὴν ⸀εὑρέθη Ἰησοῦς μόνος. καὶ αὐτοὶ ἐσίγησαν καὶ οὐδενὶ ἀπήγγειλαν ἐν ἐκείναις ταῖς ἡμέραις οὐδὲν ὧν ἑώρακαν.
And when the voice came, Jesus was found alone. And they kept silent, and in those days told no one anything of what they had seen.
37
Ἐγένετο ⸀δὲ τῇ ἑξῆς ἡμέρᾳ κατελθόντων αὐτῶν ἀπὸ τοῦ ὄρους συνήντησεν αὐτῷ ὄχλος πολύς.
And it came to pass on the next day, when they had come down from the mountain, that a great crowd met him.
38
καὶ ἰδοὺ ἀνὴρ ἀπὸ τοῦ ὄχλου ⸀ἐβόησεν λέγων· Διδάσκαλε, δέομαί σου ἐπιβλέψαι ἐπὶ τὸν υἱόν μου, ὅτι μονογενής ⸂μοί ἐστιν⸃,
And behold, a man from the crowd cried out, saying, “Teacher, I beg you to look upon my son, for he is my only son;
39
καὶ ἰδοὺ πνεῦμα λαμβάνει αὐτόν, καὶ ἐξαίφνης κράζει, καὶ σπαράσσει αὐτὸν μετὰ ἀφροῦ καὶ ⸀μόγις ἀποχωρεῖ ἀπ’ αὐτοῦ συντρῖβον αὐτόν·
and behold, a spirit takes him, and suddenly he cries out, and it convulses him with foaming, and it hardly departs from him, crushing him.
40
καὶ ἐδεήθην τῶν μαθητῶν σου ἵνα ἐκβάλωσιν αὐτό, καὶ οὐκ ἠδυνήθησαν.
And I begged your disciples to cast it out, and they could not.”
41
ἀποκριθεὶς δὲ ὁ Ἰησοῦς εἶπεν· Ὦ γενεὰ ἄπιστος καὶ διεστραμμένη, ἕως πότε ἔσομαι πρὸς ὑμᾶς καὶ ἀνέξομαι ὑμῶν; προσάγαγε ⸂ὧδε τὸν υἱόν σου⸃.
And answering, Jesus said, “O unbelieving and twisted generation, how long will I be with you and bear with you? Bring your son here.”
42
ἔτι δὲ προσερχομένου αὐτοῦ ἔρρηξεν αὐτὸν τὸ δαιμόνιον καὶ συνεσπάραξεν· ἐπετίμησεν δὲ ὁ Ἰησοῦς τῷ πνεύματι τῷ ἀκαθάρτῳ, καὶ ἰάσατο τὸν παῖδα καὶ ἀπέδωκεν αὐτὸν τῷ πατρὶ αὐτοῦ.
And while he was still coming forward, the demon threw him down and convulsed him. But Jesus rebuked the unclean spirit and healed the boy and gave him back to his father.
43
ἐξεπλήσσοντο δὲ πάντες ἐπὶ τῇ μεγαλειότητι τοῦ θεοῦ. Πάντων δὲ θαυμαζόντων ἐπὶ πᾶσιν οἷς ⸀ἐποίει εἶπεν πρὸς τοὺς μαθητὰς αὐτοῦ·
And all were astounded at the greatness of God. And while all were marvelling at everything he was doing, he said to his disciples,
44
Θέσθε ὑμεῖς εἰς τὰ ὦτα ὑμῶν τοὺς λόγους τούτους, ὁ γὰρ υἱὸς τοῦ ἀνθρώπου μέλλει παραδίδοσθαι εἰς χεῖρας ἀνθρώπων.
“You, put these words into your ears: the Son of Man is about to be handed over into the hands of men.”
45
οἱ δὲ ἠγνόουν τὸ ῥῆμα τοῦτο, καὶ ἦν παρακεκαλυμμένον ἀπ’ αὐτῶν ἵνα μὴ αἴσθωνται αὐτό, καὶ ἐφοβοῦντο ἐρωτῆσαι αὐτὸν περὶ τοῦ ῥήματος τούτου.
But they did not know this saying; it was veiled from them, so that they might not perceive it, and they were afraid to ask him about this saying.
46
Εἰσῆλθεν δὲ διαλογισμὸς ἐν αὐτοῖς, τὸ τίς ἂν εἴη μείζων αὐτῶν.
And a reasoning entered among them as to which of them might be greater.
47
ὁ δὲ Ἰησοῦς ⸀εἰδὼς τὸν διαλογισμὸν τῆς καρδίας αὐτῶν ἐπιλαβόμενος ⸀παιδίον ἔστησεν αὐτὸ παρ’ ἑαυτῷ,
But Jesus, knowing the reasoning of their heart, took a child and set it beside himself,
48
καὶ εἶπεν αὐτοῖς· Ὃς ⸀ἂν δέξηται τοῦτο τὸ παιδίον ἐπὶ τῷ ὀνόματί μου ἐμὲ δέχεται, καὶ ὃς ⸁ἂν ἐμὲ δέξηται δέχεται τὸν ἀποστείλαντά με· ὁ γὰρ μικρότερος ἐν πᾶσιν ὑμῖν ὑπάρχων οὗτός ⸀ἐστιν μέγας.
and said to them, “Whoever receives this child in my name receives me; and whoever receives me receives the one who sent me. For the lesser among you all — he is great.”
49
Ἀποκριθεὶς ⸀δὲ Ἰωάννης εἶπεν· Ἐπιστάτα, εἴδομέν τινα ⸀ἐν τῷ ὀνόματί σου ἐκβάλλοντα δαιμόνια, καὶ ⸀ἐκωλύομεν αὐτὸν ὅτι οὐκ ἀκολουθεῖ μεθ’ ἡμῶν.
And answering, John said, “Master, we saw someone casting out demons in your name, and we tried to stop him, because he does not follow with us.”
50
⸂εἶπεν δὲ⸃ πρὸς αὐτὸν ⸀ὁ Ἰησοῦς· Μὴ κωλύετε, ὃς γὰρ οὐκ ἔστιν καθ’ ⸂ὑμῶν ὑπὲρ ὑμῶν⸃ ἐστιν.
But Jesus said to him, “Do not stop him; for whoever is not against you is for you.”
51
Ἐγένετο δὲ ἐν τῷ συμπληροῦσθαι τὰς ἡμέρας τῆς ἀναλήμψεως αὐτοῦ καὶ αὐτὸς τὸ ⸀πρόσωπον ⸀ἐστήρισεν τοῦ πορεύεσθαι εἰς Ἰερουσαλήμ,
And it came to pass, as the days of his being taken up were being fulfilled, that he set his face to go to Jerusalem.
Why this rendering
Luke.9.51 Observation
Syntactic observation
The texture of Luke changes at this verse. ἀνάλημψις, a taking up, is unique in the corpus, and τὸ πρόσωπον ἐστήρισεν, he set his face, is a Semitic idiom. στηρίζω occurs three times in Luke (9:51; 16:26, the great chasm fixed between Abraham and the rich man; 22:32, strengthen your brothers) and never in Matthew, Mark or John. Verse 53 takes the phrase up at once: the Samaritan village did not receive him because τὸ πρόσωπον αὐτοῦ ἦν πορευόμενον εἰς Ἰερουσαλήμ, his face was going toward Jerusalem. So the face carries direction across two verses. The spelling of the city is striking too: here it is Ἰερουσαλήμ, the Semitic form — in Matthew that form stood at 23:37 alone, and in Luke it is common. And πορεύομαι, to go, occurs fifty-one times in Luke against twenty-nine in Matthew, three in Mark, thirteen in John — after 9:51 Luke becomes a book that keeps going.
Rendering options · 2
Adopted “he set his face to go to Jerusalem” — the Semitic idiom kept
Basis Verse 53 takes up the same word, so removing face cuts the link; the oddity is in the Greek too.
Render by sense — “he resolutely set out for Jerusalem”
Basis Setting the face is not idiomatic in either language.
Rejected Verse 53 answers with his face was going, so removing the face at 51 leaves 53 stranded; that the two verses are bound by one phrase is the datum.
52
καὶ ἀπέστειλεν ἀγγέλους πρὸ προσώπου αὐτοῦ. καὶ πορευθέντες εἰσῆλθον εἰς κώμην Σαμαριτῶν, ⸀ὡς ἑτοιμάσαι αὐτῷ·
And he sent messengers before his face; and going they entered a village of Samaritans, to make ready for him.
53
καὶ οὐκ ἐδέξαντο αὐτόν, ὅτι τὸ πρόσωπον αὐτοῦ ἦν πορευόμενον εἰς Ἰερουσαλήμ.
And they did not receive him, because his face was going toward Jerusalem.
54
ἰδόντες δὲ οἱ ⸀μαθηταὶ Ἰάκωβος καὶ Ἰωάννης εἶπαν· Κύριε, θέλεις εἴπωμεν πῦρ καταβῆναι ἀπὸ τοῦ οὐρανοῦ καὶ ἀναλῶσαι ⸀αὐτούς;
And seeing it the disciples James and John said, “Lord, do you want us to tell fire to come down from heaven and consume them?”
55
στραφεὶς δὲ ἐπετίμησεν ⸀αὐτοῖς.
But turning he rebuked them.
56
⸀καὶ ἐπορεύθησαν εἰς ἑτέραν κώμην.
And they went to another village.
57
⸀Καὶ πορευομένων αὐτῶν ἐν τῇ ὁδῷ εἶπέν τις πρὸς αὐτόν· Ἀκολουθήσω σοι ὅπου ⸀ἐὰν ⸀ἀπέρχῃ.
And as they were going along the road, someone said to him, “I will follow you wherever you go.”
58
καὶ εἶπεν αὐτῷ ὁ Ἰησοῦς· Αἱ ἀλώπεκες φωλεοὺς ἔχουσιν καὶ τὰ πετεινὰ τοῦ οὐρανοῦ κατασκηνώσεις, ὁ δὲ υἱὸς τοῦ ἀνθρώπου οὐκ ἔχει ποῦ τὴν κεφαλὴν κλίνῃ.
And Jesus said to him, “The foxes have dens and the birds of the sky nesting places, but the Son of Man has nowhere to incline his head.”
59
εἶπεν δὲ πρὸς ἕτερον· Ἀκολούθει μοι. ὁ δὲ εἶπεν· ⸀Κύριε, ἐπίτρεψόν μοι ⸂ἀπελθόντι πρῶτον⸃ θάψαι τὸν πατέρα μου.
And he said to another, “Follow me.” But he said, “Lord, allow me first to go and bury my father.”
60
εἶπεν δὲ ⸀αὐτῷ· Ἄφες τοὺς νεκροὺς θάψαι τοὺς ἑαυτῶν νεκρούς, σὺ δὲ ἀπελθὼν διάγγελλε τὴν βασιλείαν τοῦ θεοῦ.
And he said to him, “Leave the dead to bury their own dead; but you go and proclaim the kingdom of God.”
61
εἶπεν δὲ καὶ ἕτερος· Ἀκολουθήσω σοι, κύριε· πρῶτον δὲ ἐπίτρεψόν μοι ἀποτάξασθαι τοῖς εἰς τὸν οἶκόν μου.
And another also said, “I will follow you, Lord; but first allow me to say farewell to those at my house.”
62
εἶπεν δὲ ⸂ὁ Ἰησοῦς⸃· Οὐδεὶς ἐπιβαλὼν τὴν ⸀χεῖρα ἐπ’ ἄροτρον καὶ βλέπων εἰς τὰ ὀπίσω εὔθετός ἐστιν ⸂τῇ βασιλείᾳ⸃ τοῦ θεοῦ.
And Jesus said to him, “No one who puts his hand to the plough and looks back is fit for the kingdom of God.”
Why this rendering
Luke.9.62 Observation
Syntactic observation
Three would-be followers appear at vv.57-62, where Matthew 8:19-22 has two and nothing answering to the third (vv.61-62). ἄροτρον, a plough, is unique in the corpus, and εὔθετος, fit, occurs twice in Luke (9:62; 14:35, salt that has lost its taste is fit for nothing). The answer to the first (v.58) matches Matthew 8:20 word for word — φωλεός, hole, and κατασκήνωσις, roost, stand at two places each, and these are the two. The answer to the second (vv.59-60) is nearly Matthew 8:21-22, except that Luke adds σὺ δὲ ἀπελθὼν διάγγελλε τὴν βασιλείαν τοῦ θεοῦ, but you go and proclaim the kingdom of God. So to the two he shares with Matthew Luke adds a clause, and the third is wholly his own. The request at v.61 to say farewell to those at home resembles what Elisha says to Elijah at 1 Kings 19:20; the text marks no quotation, and we say no more than that.
Rendering options · 2
Adopted “no one who puts his hand to the plough and looks back is fit for the kingdom of God” — one word with 14:35
Basis εὔθετος occurs twice in Luke, so one rendering joins it to the salt of 14:35.
Render as “worthy”
Basis Uses the settled rendering.
Rejected Worthy renders ἄξιος, which stands separately in Luke; εὔθετος is about fitness for use and is kept apart.