UTN uW Translation Notes:

Luke 3 Chapter Introduction

Structure and Formatting

1. John the Baptist begins preaching and baptizing ([3:1–22](../03/01.md))2. The list of Jesus’ ancestors ([3:23–38](../03/23.md))Some translations set each line of poetry farther to the right than the rest of the text to make it easier to read. ULT does this with the poetry in [3:4–6](../03/04.md), which Luke is quoting from the Old Testament about John the Baptist.

Religious and Cultural Concepts in This Chapter

Justice

John’s instructions to the soldiers and tax collectors in [Luke 3:12–15](../03/12.md) are things that a person who wanted to live rightly would find reasonable and willingly do. (See: justice and Luke [3:12–15](../03/12.md))

Genealogy

A genealogy is a list that records a person’s ancestors or descendants. Such lists were very important in determining who had the right be king, because the king’s authority was usually passed down or inherited from his father. It was also common for other important people to have a recorded genealogy.

Translation Issues in This Chapter

Metaphor

Prophecy often involves the use of metaphors to express its meaning. Spiritual discernment is needed for proper interpretation of the prophecy. The prophecy that Luke quotes in [3:4–6](../03/04.md) from [Isaiah 40:3–5](../../isa/40/03.md) is an extended metaphor that describes the ministry of John the Baptist. See the individual notes to [3:4–6](../03/04.md) for recommendations about how to translate this passage. (See: prophet and figs-metaphor)

“Herod locked up John in prison”

This statement could cause confusion because Luke says that John was imprisoned, and then he implies that John was still able to baptize Jesus. But Luke makes this statement in anticipation of Herod’s imprisonment of John. It describes something that was still in the future at the time of the other events in the narrative. See the first note to [3:19](../03/19.md) for a further explanation.