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ParallelVerse GEN EXO LEV NUM DEU JOB JOS JDG RUTH 1 SAM 2 SAM PSA AMOS HOS 1 KI 2 KI 1 CHR 2 CHR PROV ECC SNG JOEL MIC ISA ZEP HAB JER LAM YNA (JNA) NAH OBA DAN EZE EZRA EST NEH HAG ZEC MAL LAO GES LES ESG DNG 2 PS TOB JDT WIS SIR BAR LJE PAZ SUS BEL MAN 1 MAC 2 MAC 3 MAC 4 MAC YHN (JHN) MARK MAT LUKE ACTs YAC (JAM) GAL 1 TH 2 TH 1 COR 2 COR ROM COL PHM EPH PHP 1 TIM TIT 1 PET 2 PET 2 TIM HEB YUD (JUD) 1 YHN (1 JHN) 2 YHN (2 JHN) 3 YHN (3 JHN) REV
Luke Intro C1 C2 C3 C4 C5 C6 C7 C8 C9 C10 C11 C12 C13 C14 C15 C16 C17 C18 C19 C20 C21 C22 C23 C24
Luke 23 V1 V3 V5 V7 V9 V11 V13 V15 V19 V21 V23 V25 V27 V29 V31 V33 V35 V37 V39 V41 V43 V45 V47 V49 V51 V53 V55
Note: This view shows ‘verses’ which are not natural language units and hence sometimes only part of a sentence will be visible—click on any Bible version abbreviation down the left-hand side to see the verse in more of its context. Normally the OET discourages the reading of individual ‘verses’, but this view is only designed as a tool for doing comparisons of different translations—the older translations are further down the page (so you can read up from the bottom to trace the English translation history). The OET segments on this page are still very early looks into the unfinished texts of the Open English Translation of the Bible—please double-check these texts in advance before using in public.
Text critical issues=small word differences Clarity of original=clear Importance to us=normal (All still tentative.)
SR-GNT No SR-GNT LUKE 23:17 verse available
ULT [fn] [But he had obligation to release to them one prisoner at every feast.]
Some ancient manuscripts include verse 17.
UST [fn] [Pilate said this because he had to set one prisoner free at every Passover celebration.]
Some ancient manuscripts include verse 17.
MSB Now [Pilate] was obliged to release to [the people] one [prisoner] at [the] feast.[fn]
23:17 Literally Now it was necessary for him to release one to them at the feast; CT does not include verse 17; see Matthew 27:15 and Mark 15:6.
AICNT [[for he was obligated to release one to them at the festival.]]”[fn]
23:17, Some manuscripts include verse 17. ℵ(01) W(032) Latin(b e ff2) BYZ TR ‖ Absent from 𝔓75 A(02) B(03) Latin(a) NA28 SBLGNT THGNT.
23:17 Some later manuscripts add: He had to release someone to them at the feast.
WEBBE Now he had to release one prisoner to them at the feast.[fn]
23:17 NU omits verse 17.
WMBB (Same as above including footnotes)
23:17 [[EMPTY]]
LSV [[for it was necessary for him to release to them one at every celebration,]]
23:17 Verse 17 is not in most early manuscripts.
TCNT [fn]Now each year at the feast Pilate was obligated to release one prisoner for the people.
23:17 Now each year at the feast Pilate was obligated to release one prisoner for the people. 77.2% ¦ — CT 2%
T4T 16-17 So I will have my soldiers flog him and then release him.”[fn]
23:16-17 Pilate had to release one prisoner for the people during the Passover festival each year.
LEB No LEB LUKE 23:17 verse available
BBE []
Moff No Moff LUKE 23:17 verse available
23:17 Many ancient authorities insert v. 17. Now he must needs release unto them at the feast one prisoner. Comp. Mat 27:15; Mrk 15:6; Jhn 18:39. Others add the same words after v. 19.
DRA Now of necessity he was to release unto them one upon the feast day.
YLT for it was necessary for him to release to them one at every feast,
Drby (Now he was obliged to release one for them at the feast.)
23:17 Many ancient authorities insert ver. 17 Now he must needs release unto them at the feast one prisoner. Others add the same words after ver. 19.
SLT (And he had necessity to loose one at the festival.)
Wbstr (For of necessity he must release one to them at the feast.)
KJB-1769 (For of necessity he must release one unto them at the feast.)
KJB-1611 For of necessitie hee must release one vnto them at the Feast.
(Modernised spelling is same as from KJB-1769 above, apart from capitalisation and punctuation)
Bshps For of necessitie he must haue let one loose vnto them at the feast.
(For of necessity he must have let one loose unto them at the feast.)
Gnva (For of necessitie hee must haue let one loose vnto them at the feast.)
((For of necessity he must have let one loose unto them at the feast.) )
Cvdl For he must haue let one lowse vnto them after the custome of the feast.
(For he must have let one lowse unto them after the custom of the feast.)
TNT For of necessite he must have let one lowse vnto them at that feast.
(For of necessity he must have let one lowse unto them at that feast. )
Wycl But he moste nede delyuer to hem oon bi the feest dai.
(But he most need deliver to hem one by the feest day.)
Luth Denn er mußte ihnen einen nach Gewohnheit des Festes losgeben.
(Because he had_to to_them a after Gewohnheit the festivalss losgeben.)
ClVg Necesse autem habebat dimittere eis per diem festum unum.
(Necesse however had to_release to_them through day festival one. )
UGNT [fn] [Ἀνάγκην δὲ εἶχεν ἀπολύειν αὐτοῖς κατὰ ἑορτὴν ἕνα.]
( [Anagkaʸn de eiⱪen apoluein autois kata heortaʸn hena.])
Some ancient manuscripts include verse 17.
SBL-GNT No SBL-GNT LUKE 23:17 verse available
RP-GNT Ἀνάγκην δὲ εἶχεν ἀπολύειν αὐτοῖς κατὰ ἑορτὴν ἕνα.
(Anagkaʸn de eiⱪen apoluein autois kata heortaʸn hena.)
TC-GNT [fn]Ἀνάγκην δὲ εἶχεν ἀπολύειν αὐτοῖς κατὰ ἑορτὴν ἕνα.
(Anagkaʸn de eiⱪen apoluein autois kata heortaʸn hena. )
23:17 αναγκην δε ειχεν απολυειν αυτοις κατα εορτην ενα 77.2% ¦ — CT 2%
23:16-18 I will have him flogged (or I will teach him a lesson!): The Greek word can mean “instruct,” “punish,” or “discipline”; it refers to a relatively mild whipping given for lesser offenses. It was different from the severe flogging that Romans gave in preparation for crucifixion (see Matt 27:26; Mark 15:15).
Luke indicates that Jesus had several trials. These trials can also be considered to be several parts of the same trial. Luke recorded the details of four of these trials. The chart here lists them according to who was leading at each trial:
22:66–71 | the Jewish council |
23:1–5 | Pilate |
23:6–12 | Herod |
23:13–25 | Pilate again |
In all of Jesus’ trials, there was no one who could prove that Jesus had broken any law of God or man. However, even though he had not done anything wrong, the Roman governor Pilate sentenced him to die on a cross.
The Notes suggest a section heading for each of the trials in the chart. However, you may decide to have one heading for Section Group 22:66–23:25 like the one suggested in the Section Group box above. Another example of a heading for this section group is:
The leaders tried and condemned Jesus
Now Pilate was obligated to release to the people one prisoner at the feast.]]
[[¶ Pilate said this because he was required to release a Jewish prisoner for them at the festival.]]
[[¶ During Pilate’s rule, there was a custom that he must release one of the Jewish prisoners for them at the Passover celebration.]]
There is a textual issue concerning 23:17. The majority of Bible scholars think that 23:17 was probably not present in the original manuscript written by Luke. It was probably added later as background information.There is support for both its absence and its presence in a number of ancient Greek manuscripts. The noticeable variation in the wording of the verse is evidence that it was added in some of those manuscripts to explain why the people wanted Pilate to release Barabbas. It explains what the people said in 23:18. They shouted that Barabbas should be set free. This information is in Matthew 27:15 and Mark 15:6.
There are two main options for translating this verse:
Put a translation of the verse in a footnote. For example, the GW has this footnote:
Some manuscripts and translations add verse 17: “At every Passover festival the governor had to set someone free for them.” (GW) If you use this option, as most English versions do, you may want to include the verse number for 17 with the number at the beginning of 23:18. For example:
17–18With one voice…
Put the verse in brackets in the text. Here is one way to translate this:
17[Now he was obliged to release to them at the feast one prisoner.] (NASB)
If the national language version includes 23:17 without brackets in the text, you may decide to follow it. If you do this, it is good to include a footnote to explain that this verse is not present in some of the oldest Greek manuscripts of Luke.
The words in the Display and in the following notes come from the BSB footnote.
Now Pilate was obligated to release to the people one prisoner at the feast: This statement is background information. The BSB indicates that with the word Now. The word Now is not a time word in this context. Introduce the background information in a natural way in your language.
This statement contains implied information. Pilate was holding some Jews as prisoners. There was a custom that Pilate had to set one of those prisoners free on the Feast of Passover. Some other ways to translate this verse are:
Now it was necessary for him to release one prisoner to them during the Passover celebration.
Pilate said this because it was a custom that he must release one Jewish prisoner for them during the time that the Jews celebrated their Passover festival.
the feast: The term the feast refers here to the Passover feast. See the notes at 22:1a–b for translation suggestions.
Note 1 topic: translate-textvariants
Ἀνάγκην δὲ εἶχεν ἀπολύειν αὐτοῖς κατὰ ἑορτὴν ἕνα
(Anagkaʸn de eiⱪen apoluein autois kata heortaʸn hena)
See the discussion of textual issues at the end of the General Notes to this chapter to decide whether to include this verse in your translation. The notes below discuss translation issues in the verse, for those who decide to include it.
Note 2 topic: grammar-connect-time-background
δὲ
(de)
This verse uses the word But to introduce background information that will help readers understand what is happening. In the previous verse, Pilate was saying that Jesus would be the prisoner he was obligated to release. But in the next verse, the crowd shouts for him to release a different man instead. Alternate translation: [Now]
Note 3 topic: writing-pronouns
Ἀνάγκην & εἶχεν
(Anagkaʸn & eiⱪen)
The pronoun he refers to Pilate. Alternate translation: [Pilate was obligated]
Note 4 topic: figures-of-speech / nominaladj
ἕνα
(hena)
This verse is using the adjective one as a noun. In context, the term clearly means one prisoner. Your language may use adjectives in the same way. If not, you could supply the noun for clarity, as ULT does.
Note 5 topic: figures-of-speech / synecdoche
κατὰ ἑορτὴν
(kata heortaʸn)
This verse uses the general term feast to mean one feast in particular, Passover. Alternate translation: [during each Passover celebration]

Matthew 26-27; Mark 14-15; Luke 22-23; John 13-19
On the Thursday before he was crucified, Jesus had arranged to share the Passover meal with his disciples in an upper room, traditionally thought to be located in the Essene Quarter of Jerusalem. After they finished the meal, they went to the Garden of Gethsemane, where Jesus often met with his disciples. There Judas Iscariot, one of Jesus’ own disciples, betrayed him to soldiers sent from the High Priest, and they took Jesus to the High Priest’s residence. In the morning the leading priests and teachers of the law put Jesus on trial and found him guilty of blasphemy. The council sent Jesus to stand trial for treason before the Roman governor Pontius Pilate, who resided at the Praetorium while in Jerusalem. The Praetorium was likely located at the former residence of Herod the Great, who had died over 30 years earlier. When Pilate learned that Jesus was from Galilee, he sent him to Herod Antipas, who had jurisdiction over Galilee. But when Jesus gave no answer to Herod’s many questions, Herod and his soldiers sent him back to Pilate, who conceded to the people’s demands that Jesus be crucified. Jesus was forced to carry his cross out of the city gate to Golgotha, meaning Skull Hill, referring to what may have been a small unquarried hill in the middle of an old quarry just outside the gate. After Jesus was unable to carry his cross any further, a man named Simon from Cyrene was forced to carry it for him. There at Golgotha they crucified Jesus. After Jesus died, his body was hurriedly taken down before nightfall and placed in a newly cut, rock tomb owned by Joseph of Arimathea, a member of the Jewish high council. This tomb was likely located at the perimeter of the old quarry.