Bible Study series: Luke 18:31-34. Jesus had already predicted his death in Luke 9:22 and 9:44 and here; and also see Luke 12:50; 13:32-33.
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I also translate to learn. The translations are mine, unless otherwise noted. If you would like to see many others, please click here:
In the next link to the original chapter, I comment more and offer the Greek text. At the bottom you will find a “Summary and Conclusion” section geared toward discipleship. Check it out!
In this post, links are provided for further study.
Let’s begin.
Scripture: Luke 18:31-34
31 Jesus took the twelve aside and said to them, “Consider! We are going up to Jerusalem, and everything written in the prophets about the Son of Man will be fulfilled. 32 He will be handed over to the Gentiles and be mocked and arrogantly mistreated and spit on. 33 And after they flog him, they will kill him, and on the third day he will rise again.” 34 But they understood none of this, and this spoken message was hidden from them, and they did not comprehend what was spoken. (Luke 18:31-34)
Comments:
Jesus had already predicted his death in Luke 9:22 and 9:44 and here; and also see Luke 12:50; 13:32-33. Here are the predictions and fulfillment. Luke’s first four verbs are passive, indicating God fulfills the predictions. Jesus won’t fight to fulfill the prophecies, but let God do this. Incidentally, in Matthew 20:17-19 and Mark 10:32-34, the verbs are active, indicating the responsibility rests on the people involved, like Pilate and Herod.
1..
Prediction: The Son of Man will be handed over to Gentiles.
Fulfillment: Luke 23:22, 25
2..
Prediction: He will be mocked.
Fulfillment: Luke 22:63; 23:11, 36
3..
Prediction: He will endure shameful treatment.
Fulfillment: the whole trial is shameful treatment, like false accusations and flogging and crowning him with thorns.
4..
Prediction: He will be spit on.
Fulfillment: Mark 14:65 // Matt. 26:67 and Mark 15:19 // Matt. 27:30.
Now we switch from the passive verbs to other forms.
5..
Prediction: They will flog him.
Fulfillment: John 19:1
6..
Prediction: They will kill him.
Fulfillment: Luke 23:26-46
7..
Prediction: He will rise again. (He will raise himself from the dead).
Fulfillment: Luke 24:1-6
Bock, pp. 1496-98, though I modified his version.
31:
“Consider”: it is a command or imperative that is often untranslated, but I like it. It could be translated as “Look!” In this context, it is much stronger than “Look!” Maybe “Look out!” But Luke had at his disposal other verbs that have this meaning, so let’s translate it as “Consider!” It is the storyteller’s art to draw attention to the people and action that follows. “As you, my audience, sit and listen to me read this Gospel, listen up! Look! The atmosphere is charged with a fatal moment.”
Jesus was predicted in the entire Bible. He fulfilled many of them about his first coming—right now—and he will fulfill the rest at his Second Coming. Please see my post with a long table of the OT verses next to NT verses:
“Son of Man”: see v. 8 for more comments and a link.
32:
Jesus will be placed in the hands of Pontius Pilate and his guard. They are the Gentiles (non-Jews).
“be mocked”: it can also be translated as “ridiculed, make fun of.”
“arrogantly mistreated”: this is one verb in Greek. It can also be translated as “treat in an arrogant or spiteful manner, mistreat, scoff at, insult.” It refers to the mockers who mistreat the righteous (Zeph. 3:11-12). It is equivalent to mocking.
“spit”: it simply means what it says here.
33:
“flog”: it means to lash with a whip. It may allude to Is. 50:6, which says that the Suffering Servant gave his back to those who strike. After the flogging, they shall kill him. They did this on the cross.
But on the third day, he will rise or be resurrected again. This is the key to early apostolic preaching. All throughout the first five chapters of Acts, Peter and the others refer to it time and again. Paul referenced the resurrection when he spoke to the Athenians in Mars Hill (Acts 17:30-32). As to the third day, some people take this to mean literally seventy-two hours, because Jonah spent three days and three nights in the big fish (Jnh. 1:17; Matt. 12:40), so Jesus must also spend seventy-two hours in the grave. But we over-read the intent here. The sign of Jonah was his coming out of the depths of the belly and the sea, which was a type of the resurrection. Let’s not over-analyze it. Jesus was crucified and died on Friday; he spent Saturday in the grave—or his body did—and his spirit and soul and body were raised from the dead early on Sunday morning: Friday, Saturday, and Sunday—three days. They don’t have to be seventy-two hours. It was the Jewish custom to count a partial day as one day. Go to biblegateway.com and type in third day, and it is amazing how many context the phrase appears and has deep significance.
How do I prove that “three days and three nights” can be partial? First, in 1 Sam. 30:12 (literally “today three days”), the day before yesterday. Second, in Esther, a period described as “three days and three nights” (4:16) is concluded on the third day (5:1). (Thanks, R. T. France, p. 491, fn. 12!). Third, Jesus says he will rise on the third day (Matt. 16:21; 17:23; 20:19; 27:64, and in Mark and Luke). Those verses in the Gospels where he quotes Jonah 1:17 and here where he says “on the third day” prove that he did not over-interpret Jonah, for the prophet was merely a sign and type. Jesus believed that three days and three nights could be partial. Fourth, even Paul said, “on the third day, according to the Scriptures”, that is, the OT (1 Cor. 15:4). So Paul must be using a semitic inclusive day out of three days of 72 hours. The days are partial. Go to Bible Gateway and type in third day and look at all the wonderful thematic hits.
But on the third day, he will rise or be resurrected again. This is the key to early apostolic preaching. All throughout the first five chapters of Acts, Peter and the others refer to it time and again. Paul referenced the resurrection when he spoke to the Athenians in Mars Hill (Acts 17:30-32).
1 Cor. 15:3-8 is all about the resurrection:
3 For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, 4 that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures, 5 and that he appeared to Cephas [Peter], and then to the Twelve. 6 After that, he appeared to more than five hundred of the brothers and sisters at the same time, most of whom are still living, though some have fallen asleep. 7 Then he appeared to James, then to all the apostles, 8 and last of all he appeared to me also, as to one abnormally born. (1 Cor. 15:3-8, NIV)
Paul omitted the fact that he appeared to women first. He appeared then to Cephas (Peter) and then the twelve. Next, he appeared to more than 500 at a time. Where did that happen? In Galilee? In or around Jerusalem? Probably the holy city. In any case, Paul recounted what he knew. And the resurrection is the key reality and doctrine. Never give it up as nonessential, people of God. It is the core of our faith.
11. Do I Really Know Jesus? He Was Resurrected from the Dead
12. Do I Really Know Jesus? What Was His Resurrected Body Like?
13. Do I Really Know Jesus? His Resurrection Changes Everything
34:
Now the twelve are still obtuse.
“this spoken message”: “this” is a demonstrative pronoun, and “spoken message” comes from the noun rhēma (pronounced ray-mah). The rhē stem means speaking, and the –ma suffix means “result of.” So the noun adds up to mean “the result of speaking.” BDAG says it means, depending on the context: (1) “that which is said, word, saying, expression, or statement of any kind”; (2) after the Hebrew it can mean “an event that can be spoken about, thing, object, matter, event.”
“what was spoken” is comes from the verb legō (pronounced leh-goh), and it is the standard verb for speaking or saying. So it is synonymous with rhēma.
The twelve were baffled. Apparently, they still expected a triumphal, Messianic, military coup on Jerusalem and the Gentiles. Instead, he will be handed over to the Gentiles, not conquer them. They will mistreat him and kill him. And then the Messiah will rise again, but even then he would not conquer the Romans, but win them to his kingdom, as the large Christian community in Rome proves.
GrowApp for Luke 18:31-34
1. Are you willing to follow God’s plan for your life, even if it involves some unpleasant obstacles?
2. Do you believe that God will help you overcome those obstacles? Do you have a story to tell?
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1. The Historical Reliability of the Gospels: Introduction to Series
BIBLIOGRAPHY AND MORE
To see the bibliography, please click on this link and scroll down to the bottom. You will also find a “Summary and Conclusion” for discipleship.
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