Lukas 5:23-24

5:23 Which is easier, ¹  to say, ‘Your sins are forgiven,’ or to say, ‘Stand up and walk’? 5:24 But so that you may know ²  that the Son of Man ³  has authority on earth to forgive sins” – he said to the paralyzed man ⁴  – “I tell you, stand up, take your stretcher ⁵  and go home.” ⁶ 

Lukas 18:29

18:29 Then ⁷  Jesus ⁸  said to them, “I tell you the truth, ⁹  there is no one who has left home or wife or brothers ¹⁰  or parents or children for the sake of God’s kingdom

Lukas 23:46

23:46 Then Jesus, calling out with a loud voice, said, “Father, into your hands I commit my spirit!” ¹¹  And after he said this he breathed his last.

[5:23]  ¹ sn Which is easier is a reflective kind of question. On the one hand to declare sins are forgiven is easier, since one does not need to see it, unlike telling a paralyzed person to walk. On the other hand, it is harder, because for it to be true one must possess the authority to forgive the sin.

[5:24]  ² sn Now Jesus put the two actions together. The walking of the man would be proof (so that you may know) that his sins were forgiven and that God had worked through Jesus (i.e., the Son of Man).

[5:24]  ³ sn The term Son of Man, which is a title in Greek, comes from a pictorial description in Dan 7:13 of one “like a son of man” (i.e., a human being). It is Jesus’ favorite way to refer to himself. Jesus did not reveal the background of the term here, which mixes human and divine imagery as the man in Daniel rides a cloud, something only God does. He just used it. It also could be an idiom in Aramaic meaning either “some person” or “me.” So there is a little ambiguity in its use here, since its origin is not clear at this point. However, the action makes it clear that Jesus used it to refer to himself here.

[5:24]  ⁴ tn Grk “to the one who was paralyzed”; the Greek participle is substantival and has been simplified to a simple adjective and noun in the translation.

[5:24]  sn Jesus did not finish his sentence with words but with action, that is, healing the paralytic with an accompanying pronouncement to him directly.

[5:24]  ⁵ tn This word, κλινίδιον (klinidion), is the same as the one used in v. 19. In this context it may be translated “stretcher” (see L&N 6.107).

[5:24]  ⁶ tn Grk “to your house.”

[18:29]  ⁷ tn Here δέ (de) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence of events within the narrative.

[18:29]  ⁸ tn Grk “he”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[18:29]  ⁹ tn Grk “Truly (ἀμήν, amhn), I say to you.”

[18:29]  ¹⁰ tn The term “brothers” could be understood as generic here, referring to either male or female siblings. However, it is noteworthy that in the parallel passages in both Matt 19:29 and Mark 10:29, “sisters” are explicitly mentioned in the Greek text.

[23:46]  ¹¹ sn A quotation from Ps 31:5. It is a psalm of trust. The righteous, innocent sufferer trusts in God. Luke does not have the cry of pain from Ps 22:1 (cf. Matt 27:46; Mark 15:34), but notes Jesus’ trust instead.