Lukas 11:15

11:15 But some of them said, “By the power of Beelzebul, ¹  the ruler ²  of demons, he casts out demons.”

Lukas 11:20

11:20 But if I cast out demons by the finger ³  of God, then the kingdom of God ⁴  has already overtaken ⁵  you.

Lukas 14:35

14:35 It is of no value ⁶  for the soil or for the manure pile; it is to be thrown out. ⁷  The one who has ears to hear had better listen!” ⁸ 

[11:15]  ¹ tn Grk “By Beelzebul.”

[11:15]  sn Beelzebul is another name for Satan. So some people recognized Jesus’ work as supernatural, but called it diabolical.

[11:15]  ² tn Or “prince.”

[11:20]  ³ sn The finger of God is a figurative reference to God’s power (L&N 76.3). This phrase was used of God’s activity during the Exodus (Exod 8:19).

[11:20]  ⁴ sn The kingdom of God is a major theme of Jesus. It is a realm in which Jesus rules and to which those who trust him belong. See Luke 6:20; 11:20; 17:20-21.

[11:20]  ⁵ tn The phrase ἔφθασεν ἐφ᾿ ὑμᾶς (efqasen ef’ Juma") is important. Does it mean merely “approach” (which would be reflected in a translation like “has come near to you”) or actually “come upon” (as in the translation given above, “has already overtaken you,” which has the added connotation of suddenness)? The issue here is like the one in 10:9 (see note there on the phrase “come on”). Is the arrival of the kingdom merely anticipated or already in process? Two factors favor arrival over anticipation here. First, the prepositional phrase “upon you” suggests arrival (Dan 4:24, 28 Theodotion). Second, the following illustration in vv. 21-23 looks at the healing as portraying Satan being overrun. So the presence of God’s authority has arrived. See also L&N 13.123 for the translation of φθάνω (fqanw) as “to happen to already, to come upon, to come upon already.”

[14:35]  ⁶ tn Or “It is not useful” (L&N 65.32).

[14:35]  ⁷ tn Grk “they throw it out.” The third person plural with unspecified subject is a circumlocution for the passive here.

[14:35]  ⁸ tn The translation “had better listen!” captures the force of the third person imperative more effectively than the traditional “let him hear,” which sounds more like a permissive than an imperative to the modern English reader. This was Jesus’ common expression to listen and heed carefully (cf. Matt 11:15; 13:9, 43; Mark 4:9, 23; Luke 8:8).