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The[a] apostles said to the Lord, “Increase our faith!”[b] So[c] the Lord replied,[d] “If[e] you had faith the size of[f] a mustard seed, you could say to this black mulberry[g] tree, ‘Be pulled out by the roots and planted in the sea,’[h] and it would obey[i] you.

“Would any one of you say[j] to your slave[k] who comes in from the field after plowing or shepherding sheep, ‘Come at once and sit down for a meal’?[l] Won’t[m] the master[n] instead say to him, ‘Get my dinner ready, and make yourself ready[o] to serve me while[p] I eat and drink. Then[q] you may eat and drink’? He won’t thank the slave because he did what he was told,[r] will he?[s] 10 So you too, when you have done everything you were commanded to do, should say, ‘We are slaves undeserving of special praise;[t] we have only done what was our duty.’”[u]

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Footnotes

  1. Luke 17:5 tn Grk “And the.” Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style.
  2. Luke 17:5 sn The request of the apostles, “Increase our faith,” is not a request for a gift of faith, but a request to increase the depth of their faith.
  3. Luke 17:6 tn Here δέ (de) has been translated as “so” to indicate the implied result of previous action(s) in the narrative.
  4. Luke 17:6 tn Grk “said.”
  5. Luke 17:6 tn This is a mixed condition, with ἄν (an) in the apodosis.
  6. Luke 17:6 tn Grk “faith as,” “faith like.”
  7. Luke 17:6 sn A black mulberry tree is a deciduous fruit tree that grows about 20 ft (6 m) tall and has black juicy berries. This tree has an extensive root system, so to pull it up would be a major operation.
  8. Luke 17:6 tn The passives here (ἐκριζώθητι and φυτεύθητι, ekrizōthēti and phuteuthēti) are probably a circumlocution for God performing the action (the so-called divine passive, see ExSyn 437-38). The issue is not the amount of faith (which in the example is only very tiny), but its presence, which can accomplish impossible things. To cause a tree to be uprooted and planted in the sea is impossible. The expression is a rhetorical idiom. It is like saying a camel can go through the eye of a needle (Luke 18:25).
  9. Luke 17:6 tn The verb is aorist, though it looks at a future event, another rhetorical touch to communicate certainty of the effect of faith.
  10. Luke 17:7 tn Grk “Who among you, having a slave…would say to him.”
  11. Luke 17:7 tn See the note on the word “slave” in 7:2.
  12. Luke 17:7 tn Grk “and recline at table,” as 1st century middle eastern meals were not eaten while sitting at a table, but while reclining on one’s side on the floor with the head closest to the low table and the feet farthest away. See BDAG 70 s.v. ἀναπίπτω 1.
  13. Luke 17:8 tn The question includes a Greek particle, οὐχί (ouchi), that expects a positive reply. The slave is expected to prepare a meal before eating himself.
  14. Luke 17:8 tn Grk “he”; the referent has been specified in the translation for clarity.
  15. Luke 17:8 tn Grk “and gird yourself” (with an apron or towel, in preparation for service).
  16. Luke 17:8 tn BDAG 423 s.v. ἕως 2.b, “to denote contemporaneousness as long as, while…w. subjunctive…Lk 17:8.”
  17. Luke 17:8 tn Grk “after these things.”
  18. Luke 17:9 tn Grk “did what was commanded.”
  19. Luke 17:9 tn The Greek construction anticipates a negative reply which is indicated in the translation by the ‘tag’ at the end, “will he?” Thanks are not required.
  20. Luke 17:10 tn Some translations describe the slaves as “worthless” (NRSV) or “unworthy” (NASB, NIV) but that is not Jesus’ point. These disciples have not done anything deserving special commendation or praise (L&N 33.361), but only what would normally be expected of a slave in such a situation (thus the translation “we have only done what was our duty”).
  21. Luke 17:10 tn Or “we have only done what we were supposed to do.”

(A)And the apostles said to (B)the Lord, “Increase our faith!” And (C)the Lord said, “If you have faith like (D)a mustard seed, you would say to this (E)mulberry tree, ‘Be uprooted and be planted in the sea’; and it would [a]obey you.

“But which of you, having a slave plowing or tending sheep, will say to him when he has come in from the field, ‘Come immediately and [b]sit down to eat’? But will he not say to him, ‘(F)Prepare something for me to eat, and, [c]clothing yourself properly, serve me while I eat and drink; and [d]afterward you [e]may eat and drink’? Is he grateful to the slave because he did the things which were commanded? 10 In this way, you also, when you do all the things which are commanded of you, say, ‘We are unworthy slaves; we have done only that which we ought to have done.’”

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Footnotes

  1. Luke 17:6 Lit have obeyed
  2. Luke 17:7 Lit recline
  3. Luke 17:8 Lit gird
  4. Luke 17:8 Lit after these things
  5. Luke 17:8 Lit will