Lukas 3:14

3:14 Then some soldiers ¹  also asked him, “And as for us – what should we do?” ²  He told them, “Take money from no one by violence ³  or by false accusation, ⁴  and be content with your pay.”

Lukas 16:1

The Parable of the Clever Steward

16:1 Jesus ⁵  also said to the disciples, “There was a rich man who was informed of accusations ⁶  that his manager ⁷  was wasting ⁸  his assets.

[3:14]  ¹ tn Grk “And soldiers.”

[3:14]  ² tn Grk “And what should we ourselves do?”

[3:14]  ³ tn Or “Rob no one.” The term διασείσητε (diaseishte) 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.

[3:14]  ⁴ tn The term translated “accusation” (συκοφαντήσητε, sukofanthshte) 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.

[16:1]  ⁵ tn Grk “He”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[16:1]  ⁶ tn These are not formal legal charges, but reports from friends, acquaintances, etc.; Grk “A certain man was rich who had a manager, and this one was reported to him as wasting his property.”

[16:1]  ⁷ sn His manager was the steward in charge of managing the house. He could have been a slave trained for the role.

[16:1]  ⁸ tn Or “squandering.” This verb is graphic; it means to scatter (L&N 57.151).