John Preaches to the People(A)

Then he said to the multitudes that came out to be baptized by him, (B)“Brood[a] of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the wrath to come? Therefore bear fruits (C)worthy of repentance, and do not begin to say to yourselves, ‘We have Abraham as our father.’ For I say to you that God is able to raise up children to Abraham from these stones. And even now the ax is laid to the root of the trees. Therefore (D)every tree which does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.”

10 So the people asked him, saying, (E)“What shall we do then?”

11 He answered and said to them, (F)“He who has two tunics, let him give to him who has none; and he who has food, (G)let him do likewise.”

12 Then (H)tax collectors also came to be baptized, and said to him, “Teacher, what shall we do?”

13 And he said to them, (I)“Collect no more than what is appointed for you.”

14 Likewise the soldiers asked him, saying, “And what shall we do?”

So he said to them, “Do not [b]intimidate anyone (J)or accuse falsely, and be content with your wages.”

15 Now as the people were in expectation, and all reasoned in their hearts about John, whether he was the Christ or not, 16 John answered, saying to all, (K)“I indeed baptize you with water; but One mightier than I is coming, whose sandal strap I am not worthy to loose. He will (L)baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire. 17 His winnowing fan is in His hand, and He will thoroughly clean out His threshing floor, and (M)gather the wheat into His barn; but the chaff He will burn with unquenchable fire.”

18 And with many other exhortations he preached to the people.

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Footnotes

  1. Luke 3:7 Offspring
  2. Luke 3:14 Lit. shake down for money

John said to the crowds coming out to be baptized by him, “You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the coming wrath?(A) Therefore, bear fruits worthy of repentance, and do not begin to say to yourselves, ‘We have Abraham as our ancestor,’ for I tell you, God is able from these stones to raise up children to Abraham.(B) Even now the ax is lying at the root of the trees; therefore every tree that does not bear good fruit will be cut down and thrown into the fire.”(C)

10 And the crowds asked him, “What, then, should we do?”(D) 11 In reply he said to them, “Whoever has two coats must share with anyone who has none, and whoever has food must do likewise.”(E) 12 Even tax collectors came to be baptized, and they asked him, “Teacher, what should we do?”(F) 13 He said to them, “Collect no more than the amount prescribed for you.”(G) 14 Soldiers also asked him, “And we, what should we do?” He said to them, “Do not extort money from anyone by threats or false accusation, and be satisfied with your wages.”(H)

15 As the people were filled with expectation and all were questioning in their hearts concerning John, whether he might be the Messiah,[a](I) 16 John answered all of them by saying, “I baptize you with water, but one who is more powerful than I is coming; I am not worthy to untie the strap of his sandals. He will baptize you with[b] the Holy Spirit and fire.(J) 17 His winnowing fork is in his hand to clear his threshing floor and to gather the wheat into his granary, but the chaff he will burn with unquenchable fire.”(K)

18 So with many other exhortations he proclaimed the good news to the people.

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Footnotes

  1. 3.15 Or the Christ
  2. 3.16 Or in

So John[a] said to the crowds[b] that came out to be baptized by him, “You offspring of vipers![c] Who warned you to flee[d] from the coming wrath? Therefore produce[e] fruit[f] that proves your repentance, and don’t begin to say[g] to yourselves, ‘We have Abraham as our father.’[h] For I tell you that God can raise up children for Abraham from these stones![i] Even now the ax is laid at the root of the trees,[j] and every tree that does not produce good fruit will be[k] cut down and thrown into the fire.”

10 So[l] the crowds were asking[m] him, “What then should we do?” 11 John[n] answered them,[o] “The person who has two tunics[p] must share with the person who has none, and the person who has food must do likewise.” 12 Tax collectors[q] also came to be baptized, and they said to him, “Teacher, what should we do?” 13 He told them, “Collect no more[r] than you are required to.”[s] 14 Then some soldiers[t] also asked him, “And as for us—what should we do?”[u] He told them, “Take money from no one by violence[v] or by false accusation,[w] and be content with your pay.”

15 While the people were filled with anticipation[x] and they all wondered[y] whether perhaps John[z] could be the Christ,[aa] 16 John answered them all,[ab] “I baptize you with water,[ac] but one more powerful than I am is coming—I am not worthy[ad] to untie the strap[ae] of his sandals. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire.[af] 17 His winnowing fork[ag] is in his hand to clean out his threshing floor and to gather the wheat into his storehouse,[ah] but the chaff he will burn up with inextinguishable fire.”[ai]

18 And in this way,[aj] with many other exhortations, John[ak] proclaimed good news to the people.

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Footnotes

  1. Luke 3:7 tn Grk “he”; the referent (John) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
  2. Luke 3:7 sn The crowds. It is interesting to trace references to “the crowd” in Luke. It is sometimes noted favorably, other times less so. The singular appears 25 times in Luke while the plural occurs 16 times. Matt 3:7 singles out the Sadducees and Pharisees here.
  3. Luke 3:7 tn Or “snakes.”
  4. Luke 3:7 sn The rebuke “Who warned you to flee…?” compares the crowd to snakes who flee their desert holes when the heat of a fire drives them out.
  5. Luke 3:8 tn The verb here is ποιέω (poieō; see v. 4).
  6. Luke 3:8 tn Grk “fruits.” The plural Greek term καρπούς has been translated with the collective singular “fruit” (so NIV; cf. Matt 3:8 where the singular καρπός is found). Some other translations render the plural καρπούς as “fruits” (e.g., NRSV, NASB, NAB, NKJV).
  7. Luke 3:8 tn In other words, “do not even begin to think this.”
  8. Luke 3:8 sn We have Abraham as our father. John’s warning to the crowds really assumes two things: (1) A number of John’s listeners apparently believed that simply by their physical descent from Abraham, they were certain heirs of the promises made to the patriarch, and (2) God would never judge his covenant people lest he inadvertently place the fulfillment of his promises in jeopardy. In light of this, John tells these people two things: (1) they need to repent and produce fruit in keeping with repentance, for only that saves from the coming wrath, and (2) God will raise up “children for Abraham from these stones” if he wants to. Their disobedience will not threaten the realization of God’s sovereign purposes.
  9. Luke 3:8 sn The point of the statement God is able from these stones to raise up children to Abraham is that ancestry or association with a tradition tied to the great founder of the Jewish nation is not an automatic source of salvation.
  10. Luke 3:9 sn Even now the ax is laid at the root of the trees. The imagery of an “ax already laid at the root of the trees” is vivid, connoting sudden and catastrophic judgment for the unrepentant and unfruitful. The image of “fire” serves to further heighten the intensity of the judgment referred to. It is John’s way of summoning all people to return to God with all their heart and avoid his unquenchable wrath soon to be poured out. John’s language and imagery is probably ultimately drawn from the OT where Israel is referred to as a fruitless vine (Hos 10:1-2; Jer 2:21-22) and the image of an “ax” is used to indicate God’s judgment (Ps 74:5-6; Jer 46:22).
  11. Luke 3:9 tn Grk “is”; the present tense (ἐκκόπτεται, ekkoptetai) has futuristic force here.
  12. Luke 3:10 tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “so” to indicate the consequential nature of the people’s response.
  13. Luke 3:10 tn Though this verb is imperfect, in this context it does not mean repeated, ongoing questions, but simply a presentation in vivid style as the following verbs in the other examples are aorist.
  14. Luke 3:11 tn Grk “he”; the referent (John) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
  15. Luke 3:11 tn Grk “Answering, he said to them.” This construction with passive participle and finite verb is pleonastic (redundant) and has been simplified in the translation to “answered them.”
  16. Luke 3:11 tn Or “shirt” (a long garment worn under the cloak next to the skin). The name for this garment (χιτών, chitōn) presents some difficulty in translation. Most modern readers would not understand what a ‘tunic’ was any more than they would be familiar with a ‘chiton.’ On the other hand, attempts to find a modern equivalent are also a problem: “Shirt” conveys the idea of a much shorter garment that covers only the upper body, and “undergarment” (given the styles of modern underwear) is more misleading still. “Tunic” was therefore employed, but with a note to explain its nature.
  17. Luke 3:12 sn The Roman system of taxation was frequently characterized by “tax farming” where an individual would bid to collect taxes for the Roman government throughout an entire district and then add a surcharge or commission (often exorbitant) which they kept for themselves as their profit. The tax collectors referred to in the NT were generally not the holders of these tax contracts themselves, but hired subordinates who were often local residents. Since these tax collectors worked for Rome (even indirectly), they were viewed as traitors to their own people and were not well liked. In addition, the system offered many opportunities for dishonesty and greed, both of which were often associated with local tax collectors. Yet even they were moved by John’s call.
  18. Luke 3:13 tn In the Greek text μηδὲν πλέον (mēden pleon, “no more”) is in an emphatic position.sn By telling the tax collectors to collect no more than…required John was calling for honesty and integrity in a business that was known for greed and dishonesty.
  19. Luke 3:13 tn Or “than you are ordered to.”
  20. Luke 3:14 tn Grk “And soldiers.”
  21. Luke 3:14 tn Grk “And what should we ourselves do?”
  22. Luke 3:14 tn Or “Rob no one.” The term διασείσητε (diaseisēte) here refers to “shaking someone.” In this context it refers to taking financial advantage of someone through violence, so it refers essentially to robbery. Soldiers are to perform their tasks faithfully. A changed person is to carry out his tasks in life faithfully and without grumbling.
  23. Luke 3:14 tn The term translated “accusation” (συκοφαντήσητε, sukophantēsēte) refers to a procedure by which someone could bring charges against an individual and be paid a part of the fine imposed by the court. Soldiers could do this to supplement their pay, and would thus be tempted to make false accusations.
  24. Luke 3:15 tn Or “with expectation.” The participle προσδοκῶντος (prosdokōntos) is taken temporally.sn The people were filled with anticipation because they were hoping God would send someone to deliver them.
  25. Luke 3:15 tn Grk “pondered in their hearts.”
  26. Luke 3:15 tn Grk “in their hearts concerning John, (whether) perhaps he might be the Christ.” The translation simplifies the style here.
  27. Luke 3:15 tn Or “Messiah”; both “Christ” (Greek) and “Messiah” (Hebrew and Aramaic) mean “one who has been anointed.”sn See the note on Christ in 2:11.
  28. Luke 3:16 tn Grk “answered them all, saying.” The participle λέγων (legōn) is redundant and has not been translated.
  29. Luke 3:16 tc A few mss (C D 892 1424 it) add εἰς μετάνοιαν (eis metanoian, “for repentance”). Although two of the mss in support are early and significant, it is an obviously motivated reading to add clarification, probably representing a copyist’s attempt to harmonize Luke’s version with Matt 3:11.
  30. Luke 3:16 tn Grk “of whom I am not worthy.”sn The humility of John is evident in the statement I am not worthy. This was considered one of the least worthy tasks of a slave, and John did not consider himself worthy to do even that for the one to come, despite the fact he himself was a prophet!
  31. Luke 3:16 tn The term refers to the leather strap or thong used to bind a sandal. This is often viewed as a collective singular and translated as a plural, “the straps of his sandals,” but it may be more emphatic to retain the singular here.
  32. Luke 3:16 sn With the Holy Spirit and fire. There are differing interpretations for this phrase regarding the number of baptisms and their nature. (1) Some see one baptism here, and this can be divided further into two options. (a) The baptism of the Holy Spirit and fire could refer to the cleansing, purifying work of the Spirit in the individual believer through salvation and sanctification, or (b) it could refer to two different results of Christ’s ministry: Some accept Christ and are baptized with the Holy Spirit, but some reject him and receive judgment. (2) Other interpreters see two baptisms here: The baptism of the Holy Spirit refers to the salvation Jesus brings at his first advent, in which believers receive the Holy Spirit, and the baptism of fire refers to the judgment Jesus will bring upon the world at his second coming. One must take into account both the image of fire and whether individual or corporate baptism is in view. A decision is not easy on either issue. The image of fire is used to refer to both eternal judgment (e.g., Matt 25:41) and the power of the Lord’s presence to purge and cleanse his people (e.g., Isa 4:4-5). The pouring out of the Spirit at Pentecost, a fulfillment of this prophecy no matter which interpretation is taken, had both individual and corporate dimensions. It is possible that since Holy Spirit and fire are governed by a single preposition in Greek, the one-baptism view may be more likely, but this is not certain. Simply put, there is no consensus view in scholarship at this time on the best interpretation of this passage.
  33. Luke 3:17 sn A winnowing fork is a pitchfork-like tool used to toss threshed grain in the air so that the wind blows away the chaff, leaving the grain to fall to the ground. The note of purging is highlighted by the use of imagery involving sifting though threshed grain for the useful kernels.
  34. Luke 3:17 tn Or “granary,” “barn” (referring to a building used to store a farm’s produce rather than a building for housing livestock).
  35. Luke 3:17 sn The image of fire that cannot be extinguished is from the OT: Job 20:26; Isa 34:8-10; 66:24.
  36. Luke 3:18 tn On construction μὲν οὖν καί (men oun kai), see BDF §451.1.
  37. Luke 3:18 tn Grk “he”; the referent (John) has been specified in the translation for clarity.