Luke 12:22-26

Exhortation Not to Worry

12:22 Then ¹  Jesus ²  said to his ³  disciples, “Therefore I tell you, do not worry ⁴  about your ⁵  life, what you will eat, or about your ⁶  body, what you will wear. 12:23 For there is more to life than food, and more to the body than clothing. 12:24 Consider the ravens: ⁷  They do not sow or reap, they have no storeroom or barn, yet God feeds ⁸  them. How much more valuable are you than the birds! 12:25 And which of you by worrying ⁹  can add an hour to his life? ¹⁰  12:26 So if ¹¹  you cannot do such a very little thing as this, why do you worry about ¹²  the rest?

¹ tn Here δέ (de) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence of events within the narrative. Jesus’ remarks to the disciples are an application of the point made in the previous parable.

² tn Grk “he”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

³ tc αὐτοῦ (autou, “his”) is lacking in Ì^45vid,75 B 1241 c e. Although the addition of clarifying pronouns is a known scribal alteration, in this case it is probably better to view the dropping of the pronoun as the alteration in light of its minimal attestation.

⁴ tn Or “do not be anxious.”

⁵ tc Most mss (Ì⁴⁵ Ψ 070 ˹³ 33 Ï) supply the pronoun ὑμῶν (Jumwn, “your”) here, although several important and early witnesses omit it (Ì⁷⁵ א A B D L Q W Θ Ë¹ 700 2542 al lat). Externally, the shorter reading is superior. Internally, the pronoun looks to be a scribal clarification. In context the article can be translated as a possessive pronoun anyway (ExSyn 215), as it has been done for this translation.

⁶ tc Some mss (B 070 ˹³ 33 1424 al) supply the pronoun ὑμῶν (Jumwn, “your”) here, although the witnesses for the omission are early, important, and varied (Ì^45vid,75 א A D L Q W Θ Ψ Ë¹ Ï lat). See previous tc note for more discussion.

⁷ tn Or “crows.” Crows and ravens belong to the same family of birds. English uses “crow” as a general word for the family. Palestine has several indigenous members of the crow family.

⁸ tn Or “God gives them food to eat.” L&N 23.6 has both “to provide food for” and “to give food to someone to eat.”

¹³ tn Or “by being anxious.”

¹⁴ tn Or “a cubit to his height.” A cubit (πῆχυς, phcu") can measure length (normally about 45 cm or 18 inches) or time (a small unit, “hour” is usually used [BDAG 812 s.v.] although “day” has been suggested [L&N 67.151]). The term ἡλικία (Jhlikia) is ambiguous in the same way as πῆχυς. Most scholars take the term to describe age or length of life here, although a few refer it to bodily stature (see BDAG 435-36 s.v. 1.a for discussion). Worry about length of life seems a more natural figure than worry about height. However, the point either way is clear: Worrying adds nothing to life span or height.

¹⁹ tn This is a first class condition in the Greek text.

²⁰ tn Or “why are you anxious for.”