Luke 23:26-28

New English Translation

Footnotes

1. Luke 23:26 tn Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style.
2. Luke 23:26 sn Jesus was beaten severely with a whip before this (the prelude to crucifixion, known to the Romans as verberatio, mentioned in Matt 27:26; Mark 15:15; John 19:1), so he would have been weak from trauma and loss of blood. Apparently he was unable to bear the cross himself, so Simon was conscripted to help. Cyrene was located in North Africa where Tripoli is today. Nothing more is known about this Simon. Mark 15:21 names him as father of two people apparently known to Mark’s audience.
3. Luke 23:26 tn Or perhaps, “was coming in from his field” outside the city (BDAG 15-16 s.v. ἀγρός 1).
4. Luke 23:26 tn Grk “they placed the cross on him to carry behind Jesus.”
5. Luke 23:27 sn The background of these women is disputed. Are they “official” mourners of Jesus’ death, appointed by custom to mourn death? If so, the mourning here would be more pro forma. However, the text seems to treat the mourning as sincere, so their tears and lamenting would have been genuine.
6. Luke 23:27 tn Or “who were beating their breasts,” implying a ritualized form of mourning employed in Jewish funerals. See the note on the term “women” earlier in this verse.
7. Luke 23:28 sn The title Daughters of Jerusalem portrays these women mourning as representatives of the nation.
8. Luke 23:28 sn Do not weep for me, but weep for yourselves. Judgment now comes on the nation (see Luke 19:41-44) for this judgment of Jesus. Ironically, they mourn the wrong person—they should be mourning for themselves.