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The Grateful Leper

11 Now on[a] the way to Jerusalem,[b] Jesus[c] was passing along[d] between Samaria and Galilee. 12 As[e] he was entering[f] a village, ten men with leprosy[g] met him. They[h] stood at a distance, 13 raised their voices and said, “Jesus, Master, have mercy[i] on us.” 14 When[j] he saw them he said, “Go[k] and show yourselves to the priests.”[l] And[m] as they went along, they were cleansed. 15 Then one of them, when he saw he was healed, turned back, praising[n] God with a loud voice. 16 He[o] fell with his face to the ground[p] at Jesus’ feet and thanked him.[q] (Now[r] he was a Samaritan.)[s] 17 Then[t] Jesus said,[u] “Were[v] not ten cleansed? Where are the other[w] nine? 18 Was no one found to turn back and give praise to God except this foreigner?”[x] 19 Then[y] he said to the man,[z] “Get up and go your way. Your faith has made you well.”[aa]

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Footnotes

  1. Luke 17:11 tn Grk “Now it happened that on.” The introductory phrase ἐγένετο (egeneto, “it happened that”), common in Luke (69 times) and Acts (54 times), is redundant in contemporary English and has not been translated.
  2. Luke 17:11 sn This is another travel note about Jesus going to Jerusalem in Luke 9:51-19:48, the so-called “Jerusalem journey” section of Luke’s Gospel. It is not a straight line journey, because to travel along the Galilean and Samaritan border is to go east or west, not south to Jerusalem.
  3. Luke 17:11 tn Grk “he”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
  4. Luke 17:11 tn Or “was traveling about.”
  5. Luke 17:12 tn Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style.
  6. Luke 17:12 tn The participle εἰσερχομένου (eiserchomenou) is taken temporally.
  7. Luke 17:12 sn The ten men with leprosy would have been unable to approach Jesus (Lev 13:45-46; Num 5:2-3). A leper was totally ostracized from society until he was declared cured (Lev 13:45-46). For more on the condition, see the note on lepers in Luke 4:27.
  8. Luke 17:12 tn Grk “leprosy, who.” Because of the length and complexity of the Greek sentence, the relative pronoun was replaced with a personal pronoun and a new sentence started at this point in the translation.
  9. Luke 17:13 snHave mercy on us” is a request to heal them (Luke 18:38-39; 16:24; Matt 9:27; 15:22; 17:15; 20:31-32; Mark 10:47-49).
  10. Luke 17:14 tn Καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style.
  11. Luke 17:14 tn The participle πορευθέντες (poreuthentes) is a good example of an adverbial participle of attendant circumstance. As such, it picks up the force of an imperative from the verb to which it is related (ExSyn 640-45).
  12. Luke 17:14 sn These are the instructions of what to do with a healing (Lev 13:19; 14:1-11; Luke 5:14).
  13. Luke 17:14 tn Grk “And it happened that as.” The introductory phrase ἐγένετο (egeneto, “it happened that”), common in Luke (69 times) and Acts (54 times), is redundant in contemporary English and has not been translated.
  14. Luke 17:15 tn Grk “glorifying God.”
  15. Luke 17:16 tn Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style.
  16. Luke 17:16 tn Grk “he fell on his face” (an idiom for complete prostration).
  17. Luke 17:16 sn And thanked him. This action recognized God’s healing work through Jesus.
  18. Luke 17:16 tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “now” to indicate the introduction of a parenthetical comment.
  19. Luke 17:16 sn This is a parenthetical note by the author. The comment that the man was a Samaritan means that to most Jews of Jesus’ day he would have been despised as a half-breed and a heretic. The note adds a touch of irony to the account (v. 18).
  20. Luke 17:17 tn Here δέ (de) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence of events within the narrative.
  21. Luke 17:17 tn Grk “Jesus answering said”; this is redundant in contemporary English and has been simplified in the translation.
  22. Luke 17:17 tn The Greek construction used here (οὐχί, ouchi) expects a positive reply.
  23. Luke 17:17 tn The word “other” is implied in the context.
  24. Luke 17:18 sn Jesus’ point in calling the man a foreigner is that none of the other nine, who were presumably Israelites, responded with gratitude. Only the “outsiders” were listening and responding.
  25. Luke 17:19 tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence of events within the narrative.
  26. Luke 17:19 tn Grk “to him”; the referent has been specified in the translation for clarity.
  27. Luke 17:19 tn Or “has delivered you”; Grk “has saved you.” The remark about faith suggests the benefit of trusting in Jesus’ ability to deliver. Apparently the Samaritan benefited from the healing in a way the other nine did not.