Luke 3
Disciples’ Literal New Testament
In The Fifteenth Year of Tiberius, John Is Sent Out By God
3 Now in the fifteenth[a] year of the government of Tiberius[b] Caesar— Pontius Pilate[c] being-governor of Judea, and Herod[d] being-tetrarch[e] of Galilee, and Philip[f] his brother being tetrarch of the region of Ituraea and Trachonitis, and Lysanias being tetrarch of Abilene, 2 in-the-time-of the high priest Annas and Caiaphas— the word of God came to[g] John, the son of Zechariah, in the wilderness.
John Proclaims a Baptism of Repentance, In Fulfillment of Isaiah
3 And he went into all the surrounding-region of the Jordan, proclaiming a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins, 4 as it has been written in the book of the words of Isaiah the prophet [in Isa 40:3-5], “A voice of one shouting in the wilderness: ‘Prepare the way of the Lord; be making His paths straight. 5 Every valley will be filled and every mountain and hill will be made-low. And the crooked paths will become straight, and the rough will become smooth paths. 6 And all flesh will see the salvation of God’”. 7 Therefore he was saying to the crowds coming out to be baptized by him, “Brood of vipers— who showed[h] you to flee from the coming wrath? 8 Therefore produce fruits worthy of repentance. And do not begin to say within[i] yourselves, ‘We have Abraham as our father’. For I say to you that God is able to raise-up children for Abraham from these stones! 9 And indeed the axe is already lying[j] at the root of the trees. Therefore every tree not producing good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire”.
The People Ask John What They Should Do To Produce Fruit Worthy of Repentance
10 And the crowds were questioning him, saying, “What then should we do?” 11 And having responded, he was saying to them, “Let the one having two tunics[k] give to the one not having, and let the one having food be doing likewise”. 12 And tax collectors also came to be baptized. And they said to him, “Teacher, what should we do?” 13 And the one said to them, “Be collecting nothing more than the amount having been commanded”. 14 And ones serving-as-soldiers also were questioning him, saying, “And us, what should we do?” And he said to them, “Do not violently-extort[l] anyone, nor extort-with-false-charges. And be content with your wages[m]”.
John Says One More Powerful Is Coming, Who Will Baptize With The Spirit And Fire
15 And while the populace was waiting-in-expectation and all were pondering in their hearts about John— if perhaps he might be the Christ— 16 John responded, saying to everyone, “I am baptizing you with[n] water, but the One more powerful than me is coming, of Whom I am not fit to untie the strap of His sandals. He will baptize you with[o] the Holy Spirit and fire[p]— 17 Whose winnowing-tool is in His hand so as to clean-out[q] His threshing floor and gather the wheat into His barn; but He will burn up the chaff with an inextinguishable fire”. 18 So indeed, while also exhorting many other things, he was announcing-good-news-to the people.
Herod Locked Up John In Prison
19 But Herod the tetrarch— while being rebuked[r] by him concerning Herodias[s], the wife of his brother, and concerning all the evil things which Herod did— 20 also added this to everything: he also locked-up John in prison.
Jesus Was Baptized When All The People Were Baptized
21 And it came about when[t] all the people were baptized, Jesus also having been baptized and praying, that the heaven was opened 22 and the Holy Spirit descended upon Him in a bodily form like[u] a dove, and a voice came from heaven: “You are My beloved Son. With You I was[v] well-pleased”.
At About Age Thirty, Jesus Begins His Ministry
23 And Jesus Himself was, [when] beginning His ministry, about thirty years old, being a son, as it was being supposed, of Joseph, the son of Heli, 24 the son of Matthat, the son of Levi, the son of Melchi, the son of Jannai, the son of Joseph, 25 the son of Mattathias, the son of Amos, the son of Nahum, the son of Hesli, the son of Naggai, 26 the son of Maath, the son of Mattathias, the son of Semein, the son of Josech, the son of Joda, 27 the son of Joanan, the son of Rhesa, the son of Zerubbabel, the son of Shealtiel, the son of Neri, 28 the son of Melchi, the son of Addi, the son of Cosam, the son of Elmadam, the son of Er, 29 the son of Joshua, the son of Eliezer, the son of Jorim, the son of Matthat, the son of Levi, 30 the son of Simeon, the son of Judah, the son of Joseph, the son of Jonam, the son of Eliakim, 31 the son of Melea, the son of Menna, the son of Mattatha, the son of Nathan, the son of David, 32 the son of Jesse, the son of Obed, the son of Boaz, the son of Sala, the son of Nahshon, 33 the son of Aminadab, the son of Admin, the son of Arni, the son of Hezron, the son of Perez, the son of Judah, 34 the son of Jacob, the son of Isaac, the son of Abraham, the son of Terah, the son of Nahor, 35 the son of Serug, the son of Reu, the son of Peleg, the son of Heber, the son of Shelah, 36 the son of Cainan, the son of Arphaxad, the son of Shem, the son of Noah, the son of Lamech, 37 the son of Methuselah, the son of Enoch, the son of Jared, the son of Mahalaleel, the son of Cainan, 38 the son of Enosh, the son of Seth, the son of Adam, the son of God.
Footnotes
- Luke 3:1 This points to a year between a.d. 26 and 29.
- Luke 3:1 He was the Roman emperor from a.d. 14 to 37.
- Luke 3:1 He was the fifth Roman prefect (a military officer put in charge of a district to maintain order) of Judea, serving from a.d. 26 to 36.
- Luke 3:1 That is, Herod Antipas. See Mt 14:1.
- Luke 3:1 That is, being-governor, appointed by Rome.
- Luke 3:1 This Philip II was a half-brother of Herod Antipas. His capital was Philip’s Caesarea (seen in Mt 16:13). He reigned from 4 b.c. to a.d. 34.
- Luke 3:2 Or, upon.
- Luke 3:7 Or, indicated to, warned.
- Luke 3:8 Or, among.
- Luke 3:9 Or, being laid.
- Luke 3:11 That is, undergarments.
- Luke 3:14 That is, threaten or use violence to get money from citizens.
- Luke 3:14 Or, rations.
- Luke 3:16 Or, in.
- Luke 3:16 Or, in.
- Luke 3:16 See Mt 3:11.
- Luke 3:17 That is, by separating the threshings into wheat and chaff, and taking each to their destinations.
- Luke 3:19 Or, exposed.
- Luke 3:19 See Mt 14:3.
- Luke 3:21 That is, at the period of time when all the people were baptized.
- Luke 3:22 That is, having a body with an outward appearance similar to a dove.
- Luke 3:22 Or, am well pleased. See Mt 3:17.
Luke 3
Amplified Bible
John the Baptist Preaches
3 Now in the fifteenth year of [Emperor] [a]Tiberius Caesar’s reign—when Pontius Pilate was governor of Judea, and Herod [Antipas] was tetrarch of Galilee, and his brother Philip was tetrarch of the region of Ituraea and Trachonitis, and Lysanias was tetrarch of Abilene— 2 in the high [b]priesthood of Annas and [c]Caiaphas [his son-in-law], the word of God came to John, the son of Zacharias, in the wilderness. 3 And he went into all the country around the Jordan, preaching a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sin; 4 as it is written and forever remains written in the book of the words of Isaiah the prophet,
“The voice of one shouting in the wilderness,
‘Prepare the way of the Lord,
[d]Make His paths straight.
5
‘Every ravine shall be filled up,
And every mountain and hill shall be leveled;
And the crooked [places] shall be made straight,
And the rough roads smooth;
6
and [e]all mankind shall see the salvation of God.’”(A)
7 So he began saying to the crowds who were coming out to be baptized by him, “You brood of [f]vipers, who warned you to flee from the wrath [of God that is] to come? 8 Therefore produce fruit that is worthy of [and consistent with your] repentance [that is, live changed lives, turn from sin and seek God and His righteousness]. And do not even begin to say to yourselves [as a defense], ‘We have Abraham for our father [and so our heritage assures us of salvation]’; for I say to you that from these stones God is able to raise up children (descendants) for Abraham [for God can replace the unrepentant, regardless of their heritage, with those who are obedient].(B) 9 Even now the axe [of God’s judgment] is swinging toward the root of the trees; so every tree that does not produce good fruit is being cut down and thrown into the fire.”
10 The crowds asked him, “Then what are we to do?” 11 And John replied, “The man who has two tunics is to share with him who has none; and he who has food is to do the same.” 12 Even some tax collectors came to be baptized, and they asked, “Teacher, what are we to do?” 13 And he told them, “Collect no more than the fixed amount you have been ordered to [collect].” 14 Some soldiers asked him, “And what about us, what are we to do?” And he replied to them, “Do not [g]extort money from anyone or harass or blackmail anyone, and be satisfied with your wages.”
15 Now the people were in a state of expectation, and all were wondering in their hearts about John, as to whether he was the Christ (the Messiah, the Anointed). 16 John answered them all by saying, “As for me, I baptize you [only] [h]with water; but One who is mightier [more powerful, more noble] than I is coming, and I am not fit to untie the strap of His sandals [even as His slave]. He will baptize you [who truly repent] with the Holy Spirit and [you who remain unrepentant] with [i]fire.(C) 17 His [j]winnowing fork is in His hand to thoroughly clear His threshing floor, and to gather the wheat (believers) into His barn (kingdom); but He will burn up the chaff (the unrepentant) with unquenchable fire.”
18 So with many other appeals and various admonitions John preached the good news (gospel) to the people. 19 But when Herod [Antipas] the tetrarch was repeatedly reprimanded [and convicted by John’s disapproval] for having [k]Herodias, his brother’s wife [as his own], and for all the wicked things that Herod had done,(D) 20 he also added this to them all: he locked up John in prison.
Jesus’ Baptism
21 Now when all the people were baptized, Jesus was also baptized, and while He was praying, the [visible] heaven was opened,(E) 22 and the [l]Holy Spirit descended on Him in bodily form like a dove, and a voice came from heaven, “You are My Son, My Beloved, in You I am well-pleased and delighted!”(F)
Genealogy of Jesus
23 When He began His ministry, Jesus Himself was about thirty years of age, being, as was supposed, the son of Joseph, the son [by marriage] of Eli, 24 the son of Matthat, the son of Levi, the son of Melchi, the son of Jannai, the son of Joseph, 25 the son of Mattathias, the son of Amos, the son of Nahum, the son of Hesli, the son of Naggai, 26 the son of Maath, the son of Mattathias, the son of Semein, the son of Josech, the son of Joda, 27 the son of Joanan, the son of Rhesa, the son of Zerubbabel, the son of Shealtiel, the son of Neri, 28 the son of Melchi, the son of Addi, the son of Cosam, the son of Elmadam, the son of Er, 29 the son of Joshua, the son of Eliezer, the son of Jorim, the son of Matthat, the son of Levi, 30 the son of Simeon, the son of Judah, the son of Joseph, the son of Jonam, the son of Eliakim, 31 the son of Melea, the son of Menna, the son of Mattatha, the son of Nathan, the son of David, 32 the son of Jesse, the son of Obed, the son of Boaz, the son of Salmon, the son of Nahshon, 33 the son of Amminadab, the son of Admin, the son of Ram, the son of Hezron, the son of Perez, the son of Judah, 34 the son of Jacob, the son of Isaac, the son of Abraham, the son of Terah, the son of Nahor, 35 the son of Serug, the son of Reu, the son of Peleg, the son of Heber, the son of Shelah, 36 the son of Cainan, the son of Arphaxad, the son of Shem, the son of Noah, the son of Lamech, 37 the son of Methuselah, the son of Enoch, the son of Jared, the son of Mahalaleel, the son of Cainan, 38 the son of Enosh, the son of Seth, the son of Adam, the son of God.(G)
Footnotes
- Luke 3:1 See note Matt 22:17.
- Luke 3:2 Annas served from a.d. 6-15, before being deposed by Roman authorities; however, the Jews continued to recognize him as high priest de facto even though others, including his sons and son-in-law, held the official title and publicly appeared to serve as high priest.
- Luke 3:2 Served as high priest from a.d. 18-36, although Annas kept de facto authority.
- Luke 3:4 In spiritual terms, John’s message was clearing the way for the arrival of the Messiah by preparing the hearts of those who were to follow Him.
- Luke 3:6 I.e. salvation is available to both Jew and Gentile.
- Luke 3:7 I.e. poisonous snakes. An expression intended to describe the repulsive character of many people in the crowd.
- Luke 3:14 The Greek term is similar to our colloquial “shake down,” that is, using violence or threats to force someone to hand over money.
- Luke 3:16 The Greek here can be translated in, with, or by.
- Luke 3:16 Some scholars view “fire” as judgment; however, another view of “fire” purports that the text refers to the fiery baptism of the Holy Spirit, not judgment. The Holy Spirit promised here has been associated with Pentecost, purification, testing, and judgment. Each person who accepts Jesus is filled with the Holy Spirit (Acts 1:5-8). According to this view the fire indicates that the believer is purified as in the refining of gold. Fire burns up the impurities and the gold (the believer) survives (cf 1 Cor 3:12, 13; James 1:3).
- Luke 3:17 A tool roughly resembling a pitchfork, used to separate grains of wheat from the chaff by throwing the wheat into the air, and allowing the wind to blow away the lighter chaff.
- Luke 3:19 See note Matt 14:3.
- Luke 3:22 See note Matt 3:17.
Disciples' Literal New Testament: Serving Modern Disciples by More Fully Reflecting the Writing Style of the Ancient Disciples, Copyright © 2011 Michael J. Magill. All Rights Reserved. Published by Reyma Publishing
Copyright © 2015 by The Lockman Foundation, La Habra, CA 90631. All rights reserved.
