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Luke 21

1 - He looked up, and saw the rich people who were putting their gifts into the treasury.
2 - He saw a certain poor widow casting in two small brass coins.
3 - He said,"Truly I tell you, this poor widow put in more than all of them,
4 - for all these put in gifts for God from their abundance, but she, out of her poverty, put in all that she had to live on."
5 - As some were talking about the temple and how it was decorated with beautiful stones and gifts, he said,
6 - "As for these things which you see, the days will come, in which there will not be left here one stone on another that will not be thrown down."
7 - They asked him, "Teacher, so when will these things be? What is the sign that these things are about to happen?"
8 - He said,"Watch out that you don't get led astray, for many will come in my name, saying, 'I am he,' and, 'The time is at hand.' Therefore don't follow them.
9 - When you hear of wars and disturbances, don't be terrified, for these things must happen first, but the end won't come immediately."
10 - Then he said to them,"Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom.
11 - There will be great earthquakes, famines, and plagues in various places. There will be terrors and great signs from heaven.
12 - But before all these things, they will lay their hands on you and will persecute you, delivering you up to synagogues and prisons, bringing you before kings and governors for my name's sake.
13 - It will turn out as a testimony for you.
14 - Settle it therefore in your hearts not to meditate beforehand how to answer,
15 - for I will give you a mouth and wisdom which all your adversaries will not be able to withstand or to contradict.
16 - You will be handed over even by parents, brothers, relatives, and friends. They will cause some of you to be put to death.
17 - You will be hated by all men for my name's sake.
18 - And not a hair of your head will perish.
19 - "By your endurance you will win your lives.
20 - "But when you see Jerusalem surrounded by armies, then know that its desolation is at hand.
21 - Then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains. Let those who are in the middle of her depart. Let those who are in the country not enter therein.
22 - For these are days of vengeance, that all things which are written may be fulfilled.
23 - Woe to those who are pregnant and to those who nurse infants in those days! For there will be great distress in the land, and wrath to this people.
24 - They will fall by the edge of the sword, and will be led captive into all the nations. Jerusalem will be trampled down by the Gentiles, until the times of the Gentiles are fulfilled.
25 - There will be signs in the sun, moon, and stars; and on the earth anxiety of nations, in perplexity for the roaring of the sea and the waves;
26 - men fainting for fear, and for expectation of the things which are coming on the world: for the powers of the heavens will be shaken.
27 - Then they will see the Son of Man coming in a cloud with power and great glory.
28 - But when these things begin to happen, look up, and lift up your heads, because your redemption is near."
29 - He told them a parable."See the fig tree, and all the trees.
30 - When they are already budding, you see it and know by your own selves that the summer is already near.
31 - Even so you also, when you see these things happening, know that God's Kingdom is near.
32 - Most certainly I tell you, this generation will not pass away until all things are accomplished.
33 - Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will by no means pass away.
34 - "So be careful, or your hearts will be loaded down with carousing, drunkenness, and cares of this life, and that day will come on you suddenly.
35 - For it will come like a snare on all those who dwell on the surface of all the earth.
36 - Therefore be watchful all the time, praying that you may be counted worthy to escape all these things that will happen, and to stand before the Son of Man."
37 - Every day Jesus was teaching in the temple, and every night he would go out and spend the night on the mountain that is called Olivet.
38 - All the people came early in the morning to him in the temple to hear him.
Luke Images and Notes

The Book of Luke

Luke 1:1-4 - Forasmuch as many have taken in hand to set forth in order a declaration of those things which are most surely believed among us, Even as they delivered them unto us, which from the beginning were eyewitnesses, and ministers of the word; It seemed good to me also, having had perfect understanding of all things from the very first, to write unto thee in order, most excellent Theophilus, That thou mightest know the certainty of those things, wherein thou hast been instructed.

Luke 2:49 - And he said unto them, How is it that ye sought me? wist ye not that I must be about my Father's business?

Luke 19:42 - Saying, If thou hadst known, even thou, at least in this thy day, the things [which belong] unto thy peace! but now they are hid from thine eyes.

Luke in The New Testament - A Brief Overview

Luke by El Greco 1605
Painting of St. Luke by El Greco - 1605

Introduction to The Gospel of Luke

The Word Gospel. The third book of the English Bible that most of us read from is the Gospel of Luke. Luke is the third of the four gospel writings, yet there is only one gospel about Jesus Christ and there are four different writers: Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. The word "Gospel" means "good news", and the good news is about Jesus Christ dying on the cross and then 3 days later conquering death and rising from the dead, offering salvation to all mankind, this is the Gospel.

Summary of The Book of Luke

Brief Summary. Jesus was the most perfect man of all men, the perfect Son of God. Completely devoted to everyone, especially the weak. He was the most humble man that ever lived, and not only a servant, but the lowest slave. He completely put others first before He thought of Himself, the Son of man.

Purpose. Luke seems to portray Jesus as an ideal man, very appealing to the Greek culture which exalted reason, philosophy, the human mind, and beauty. Luke's writings were orderly and classical. he mentions that Jesus spent the whole night in prayer before He chose His apostles (Luke 6:12-16), unlike the other Gospel accounts. There are also statements in Luke that speak of His purity more clearly, like when the centurion said "certainly this was a righteous man" (Luke 23:47). The other Gospel accounts seem to have a different focus in their portrayal of Christ. Luke also seems to reveal Christianity as a religion for all mankind and not just the Jews. For example, the lineage of Jesus is traced past Abraham all the way back to Adam the first man. Jesus is seen in Luke as a friend of sinners and a savior to anyone who would believe in Him. When considering both of Luke's works it is clear that he traces the origin, heart, and description of the Christian movement from Bethlehem to Jerusalem, to Antioch, to Macedonia, to Achaia, to Ephesus, and finally to Rome, the capital of the world. He examined eyewitnesses, knew personally and had close contact with the main followers of Christ like Mark and James, the brother of the Lord, Paul. Silas (a member of the Jerusalem Church) and no doubt many others.

Audience. Luke addressed his account of the life of Christ and the Acts of the Apostles to a man named Theophilus, yet it possesses a style that would appeal to all intelligent gentiles and would certain appeal to any believer. Theophilus could have been a gentile convert to Christianity who desired to know more of the facts surrounding the life of Jesus Christ, possibly a wealthy contributor to Christianity, no one can say for certain. The name Theophilus means "lover of God" and has been supposed by many to be a euphemism for all lovers of God in Christ.

Authorship. The gospel of Luke does not proclaim who the author is within the document, yet the historical information we have from the first two centuries of the Christian Era was unanimous in concluding that the writer was Luke. Luke also wrote the Acts of the Apostles (Acts 1:1) as a continuing document, from the birth of John the Baptist and Jesus to Paul's imprisonment and ministry in Rome.

Date. Since the Book of Acts was written while Paul was in Rome, the date of Acts would be around 62 AD, and since the Gospel of Luke was mentioned as a "former 'treatise," Luke must have been written a few years earlier.

Place. It cannot be determined with certainty where the Gospel of Luke was written. Some of the early Church writers said it was written in Achaia. Many think Acts was most likely written in Rome and therefore Luke must have also. One common speculation is that the Gospel of Luke was written in Caesarea Maritima while Paul was in prison there a couple years before his journey to Rome.

The Man Luke. Luke was a gentile (non-Jew) and was not mentioned during the actual life of Jesus, but afterward he became a Christian under the influence of Paul the Apostle. Luke was described by Paul in his letter to the Church in Colossae as "the beloved physician" (Colossians 4:14). Luke was also mentioned as a companion of Paul on his missionary journeys, and on his third and last missionary journey he said that "only Luke is with me" (2 Timothy 4:11). Luke must have been an amazing man because he claims in the beginning of his account of the life of Christ that he "investigated everything carefully" (Luke 1 :1- 4). This would mean that he would have spoken with eyewitnesses to the miracles and events surround the ministry of Jesus. He was clearly persuaded by the facts that he was told and became a devoted follower of Christ and a companion of Paul until the end. There can be no doubt that Luke was a gentile believer, even his name "Luke" is a gentiloe name. Also in Colossians 4 it mentions the names Epaphras, Demas and Luke in contrast with those "of the circumcision." It is interesting to note that early Church leaders Irenaeus, Tertullian, Origen, and Eusebius mentioned in their writings that Luke was influenced by Paul when he wrote the third Gospel account.

Language. Luke was written in Greek, he was a gentile believer and uses a style similar to other important Greek documents. He uses a popular, non-literary Greek style, omitting Semitic and Latin "barbarisms"; yet, he manifests a rich vocabulary and a high degree of literary artistry, as seen in his ability to sketch the character of an individual in a few graphic strokes of the pen. A noted French philosopher and critic of the Bible called the book of Luke "the most beautiful book ever written."

Historical Trustworthiness. Throughout the history of the Church and especially during the 1800's their has been many targeted attacks on the historical trustworthiness of Luke's writings. As the science of archaeology increased technologically and archaeological discoveries from the first century were being uncovered, Luke's writings were emerged as extremely accurate. Luke has been heralded by many scholars as one of the ablest and most accurate historians of the ancient world.

Outline of the Book of Luke

His Birth, Childhood, Early Ministry - Chapters 1:1-4:13
His Ministry in Galilee - Chapters 4:14-9:50
His Journey to Jerusalem, Ministry - Chapters 9:51-21:38
His Rejection and Death - Chapters 22:1-23:56
His Resurrection and Ascension - Chapter 24:1-53

Jesus written in Hebrew
The Name Jesus In Ancient Hebrew Text
"Yeshua" in First Century Hebrew Text. This is how the name "Jesus" would have been written in ancient Hebrew documents. The four letters or consonants from right to left are Yod, Shin, Vav, Ayin (Y, SH, OO, A). Jesus is the Greek name for the Hebrew name Joshua or Y'shua which means "The LORD or Yahweh is Salvation".

Luke Resources

Outline of the Life of Jesus in Harmony
Simple Map of First Century Israel
Topographical Map of First Century Israel
Map of the Ministry of Jesus
Map of the Roads in Ancient Israel
Map of the Roman Empire