Lukas 3:15

3:15 While the people were filled with anticipation ¹  and they all wondered ²  whether perhaps John ³  could be the Christ, ⁴ 

Lukas 3:1

The Ministry of John the Baptist

3:1 In the fifteenth year of the reign of Tiberius Caesar, ⁵  when Pontius Pilate ⁶  was governor of Judea, and Herod ⁷  was tetrarch ⁸  of Galilee, and his brother Philip ⁹  was tetrarch of the region of Iturea and Trachonitis, and Lysanias ¹⁰  was tetrarch of Abilene,

[3:15]  ¹ tn Or “with expectation.” The participle προσδοκῶντος (prosdokwnto") is taken temporally.

[3:15]  sn The people were filled with anticipation because they were hoping God would send someone to deliver them.

[3:15]  ² tn Grk “pondered in their hearts.”

[3:15]  ³ tn Grk “in their hearts concerning John, (whether) perhaps he might be the Christ.” The translation simplifies the style here.

[3:15]  ⁴ tn Or “Messiah”; both “Christ” (Greek) and “Messiah” (Hebrew and Aramaic) mean “one who has been anointed.”

[3:15]  sn See the note on Christ in 2:11.

[3:1]  ⁵ tn Or “Emperor Tiberius” (“Caesar” is a title for the Roman emperor).

[3:1]  sn Tiberius Caesar was the Roman emperor Tiberius Claudius Caesar Augustus, who ruled from a.d. 14-37.

[3:1]  ⁶ sn The rule of Pontius Pilate is also described by Josephus, J. W. 2.9.2-4 (2.169-177) and Ant. 18.3.1 (18.55-59).

[3:1]  ⁷ sn Herod refers here to Herod Antipas, son of Herod the Great. He ruled from 4 b.c.-a.d. 39, sharing the rule of his father’s realm with his two brothers. One brother, Archelaus (Matt 2:22) was banished in a.d. 6 and died in a.d. 18; the other brother, Herod Philip (mentioned next) died in a.d. 34.

[3:1]  ⁸ sn A tetrarch was a ruler with rank and authority lower than a king, who ruled only with the approval of the Roman authorities. This was roughly equivalent to being governor of a region. Several times in the NT, Herod tetrarch of Galilee is called a king (Matt 14:9, Mark 6:14-29), reflecting popular usage.

[3:1]  ⁹ sn Philip refers to Herod Philip, son of Herod the Great and brother of Herod Antipas. Philip ruled as tetrarch of Iturea and Trachonitis from 4 b.c.-a.d. 34.

[3:1]  ¹⁰ sn Nothing else is known about Lysanias tetrarch of Abilene.