LUKE

      A New Covenant Commentary

      New Covenant Commentary Series

      Copyright © 2017 Diane G. Chen. All rights reserved. Except for brief quotations in critical publications or reviews, no part of this book may be reproduced in any manner without prior written permission from the publisher. Write: Permissions, Wipf and Stock Publishers, 199 W. 8th Ave., Suite 3, Eugene, OR 97401.

      Cascade Books

      An Imprint of Wipf and Stock Publishers

      199 W. 8th Ave., Suite 3

      Eugene, OR 97401

      www.wipfandstock.com

      paperback isbn: 978-1-62032-439-4

      hardcover isbn: 978-1-4982-4605-7

      ebook isbn: 978-1-4982-4604-0

      Cataloguing-in-Publication data:

      Names: Chen, Diane G.

      Title: Luke : a new covenant commentary / Diane G. Chen.

      Description: Eugene, OR: Cascade Books, 2017 | Series: New Covenant Commentary Series | Includes bibliographical references and index.

      Identifiers: isbn 978-1-62032-439-4 (paperback) | isbn 978-1-4982-4605-7 (hardcover) | isbn 978-1-4982-4604-0 (ebook)

      Subjects: LCSH: 1. Bible. Luke—Commentaries. | I. Title. | II. Series.

      Classification: BS2595.53 C4 2017 (print) | BS2595.53 (ebook)

      Manufactured in the U.S.A. 05/11/17

      NCCS | New Covenant Commentary Series

      The New Covenant Commentary Series (NCCS) is designed for ministers and students who require a commentary that interacts with the text and context of each New Testament book and pays specific attention to the impact of the text upon the faith and praxis of contemporary faith communities.

      The NCCS has a number of distinguishing features. First, the contributors come from a diverse array of backgrounds in regards to their Christian denominations and countries of origin. Unlike many commentary series that tout themselves as international the NCCS can truly boast of a genuinely international cast of contributors with authors drawn from every continent of the world (except Antarctica) including countries such as the United States, Puerto Rico, Australia, the United Kingdom, Kenya, India, Singapore, and Korea. We intend the NCCS to engage in the task of biblical interpretation and theological reflection from the perspective of the global church. Second, the volumes in this series are not verse-by-verse commentaries, but they focus on larger units of text in order to explicate and interpret the story in the text as opposed to some often atomistic approaches. Third, a further aim of these volumes is to provide an occasion for authors to reflect on how the New Testament impacts the life, faith, ministry, and witness of the New Covenant Community today. This occurs periodically under the heading of “Fusing the Horizons and Forming the Community.” Here authors provide windows into community formation (how the text shapes the mission and character of the believing community) and ministerial formation (how the text shapes the ministry of Christian leaders).

      It is our hope that these volumes will represent serious engagements with the New Testament writings, done in the context of faith, in service of the church, and for the glorification of God.

      To my three sisters:

      Agnes, Lucy, and Irene

      Acknowledgments

      I would like to thank the editors of the New Covenant Commentary Series, Craig Keener and Michael Bird, for the opportunity to write this mid-level commentary on my favorite Gospel for my favorite target audience—seminarians, pastors, Bible study leaders, and the curious laypersons in the pews. I could not have asked for more patient and gracious editors than Craig and Mike, especially when administrative duties and my father’s passing delayed my progress considerably at some points.

      I am grateful for my students at the Palmer Theological Seminary of Eastern University and the members of the Narberth Presbyterian Church, whose eagerness to study Scripture to nurture their faith and deepen their Christian walk has been a source of delight and encouragement. They make it necessary for me to explain the complexities of a biblical text in accessible ways without dumbing it down, and their questions hold me accountable in my own discipleship.

      I thank the trustees of Eastern University for granting me a sabbatical leave in 2015, during which a sizable portion of this commentary was written. Special thanks go to Jeron Ashford for her expeditious and careful editing, and to Chris Spinks, Mary Roth, and Ian Creeger of Cascade Books at Wipf and Stock Publishers for shepherding this project throughout the production process.

      This work is dedicated to my three older sisters, Agnes, Lucy, and Irene, whose diligent study of Scripture, service to God, and ministry to the local and global church have been an example to me throughout my life. Now they can stop asking me to explain a passage, at least, from this particular New Testament document.

      Abbreviations

      AB Anchor Bible

      ASV American Standard Version

      BBR Bulletin for Biblical Research

      BCE Before the Common Era

      BECNT Baker Exegetical Commentary on the New Testament

      BibInt Biblical Interpretation

      BSac Bibliotheca Sacra

      BTB Biblical Theology Bulletin

      CBQ Catholic Biblical Quarterly

      CE Common Era

      CEB Common English Bible

      Colloq Colloquium

      CTJ Calvin Theological Journal

      CTR Criswell Theological Review

      DJG Dictionary of Jesus and the Gospels, edited by Joel B. Green, Jeannine K. Brown, and Nicholas Perrin, 2nd ed. (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity, 2013)

      DNTB Dictionary of New Testament Background, edited by Craig A. Evans and Stanley E. Porter (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity, 2000)

      ESV English Standard Version

      ETSMS Evangelical Theological Society Monograph Series

      ExAud Ex Auditu

      ExpTim Expository Times

      HTR Harvard Theological Review

      Int Interpretation

      JBL Journal of Biblical Literature

      JETS Journal of the Evangelical Theological Society

      JSNT Journal for the Study of the New Testament

      JSNTSup Journal for the Study of the New Testament Supplement Series

      JTS Journal of Theological Studies

      LCL