The Ignatius Catholic Study Bible New Testament (98 page)

19:45-48
Jesus' dramatic expulsion of Temple merchants both prophesies and preenacts the sanctuary's imminent downfall (21:5-6). He is appalled that God's
house of prayer
(Is 56:7) has been desecrated like a
den of robbers
(Jer 7:11).
See note on Mt 21:13
. 
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20:8 by what authority:
Jesus turns the tables on his interrogators to silence them. If the Jerusalem leaders rejected John's heavenly authority, they would inevitably reject Jesus and his divine mission as well (7:29-34). 
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20:9-16
The parable of the Wicked Tenants. Jesus pictorially recounts OT history as it culminates in the Messiah, God's
beloved son
(20:13). The parable challenges Israel's leaders, the
tenants
(20:9), and warns them of the consequences of rejecting Jesus (20:15-16). • Israel is often portrayed as Yahweh's
vineyard
in the OT (Ps 80:8; Is 5:1-7; Jer 2:21; Hos 10:1).
See note on Mk 12:1-9
. 
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20:17-18
Jesus brings together three OT texts that employ the image of a stone: Ps 118:22, Is 8:14-15, and Dan 2:44-45. • Psalm 118 describes the Messiah as one rejected by Israel's builders, yet chosen by Yahweh to be the honored foundation stone of a new Temple. Isaiah 8 describes the Lord as a stumbling stone that will trip and destroy the sinners of Israel, especially those in Jerusalem. Daniel 2 recounts a vision in which God destroys the empires of the earth with a crushing stone, replacing them with his messianic kingdom. Similar uses of these texts are found in Rom 9:33 and 1 Pet 2:6-8. 
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20:20 the governor:
Pontius Pilate, the Roman prefect of Judea.
See note on Lk 23:1
. 
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20:22 Is it lawful . . . ?:
A trap question. If Jesus affirms the tax, he will provoke to anger fellow Jews who aspire to national independence from Rome. If he denounces the tax, he will be reported to the Romans on charges of sedition.
See note on Mk 12:13
. 
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20:24 a coin:
A "denarius" bearing the stamped
likeness
(or "image") of the Roman emperor, Tiberius Caesar (
A.D.
14-37). 
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20:25 to Caesar . . . to God:
Jesus evades his interrogators' trap by using the example of Roman taxation to illustrate a higher duty. Since Caesar's image belongs to him, he should receive it back (Rom 13:1-7; 1 Pet 2:13-17). It is nevertheless more important to give yourself, stamped with the "image" of God, back to God (Gen 1:27).
See note on Mk 12:16
. 
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20:27-40
The
Sadducees
challenge Jesus about his teaching on the afterlife. They are convinced that the Mosaic Law says nothing about a future
resurrection
(20:27) and so present him with a dilemma: If Moses permits a woman to remarry every time her husband dies (Deut 25:5), will this not bring confusion into the next life? How will she determine who is her legitimate spouse if all of them are raised? Jesus deals with his objectors on their own terms: first, by denying that marriage exists in the next life and, second, by deliberately citing the Mosaic Law against them. • The burning bush episode shows that Yahweh identified himself with the patriarchs long after their death (Ex 3:6). If
Abraham, Isaac,
and
Jacob
are still with God, then life must endure beyond death and a future resurrection is implied in the Pentateuch. See topical essay:
Who Are the Sadducees?
at Mk 12. 
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20:35 that age:
The institution of marriage will not exist in heaven.
See note on Mt 22:30
. 
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20:36 equal to angels:
Like the angels, the saints will be clothed in glory and immortality; but, unlike the angels, they will ultimately live in resurrected bodies and not as disembodied spirits (1 Cor 15:35-50). They are thus equal in some respects, but not the same in all respects. • Belief in the general resurrection is central to the Christian faith. The Apostles' Creed and the Nicene Creed both state that our physical bodies will be raised again to enjoy eternal life. 
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20:41 David's son?:
The greatness of David was proverbial in the OT. He was the ideal king of Israel by whom all others were measured. • Jesus uses the OT to challenge a mistaken assumption that even the Messiah would be inferior to David. On the contrary, David himself calls the Messiah his superior "Lord" in Ps 110:1 (20:42; Acts 2:34-36).
See note on Mk 12:36
. 
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20:47 greater condemnation:
Severe judgment awaits the scribes who abuse their authority to exploit the defenseless. Widows were particularly vulnerable to their tactics. See note on 18:3. 
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21:2 two copper coins:
Literally, "two lepta". These were the least valuable (Jewish) coins in circulation. Within the Temple precincts, there were over a dozen receptacles for different types of donations (CCC 2544). •
Allegorically
(St. Bede,
In Marcum):
the widow's offering signifies the purity of the Church in contrast to unfaithful Jerusalem, which gives to God only from its surplus. The Church is the widow whose husband, Christ, has died on her behalf. She lives in poverty of spirit and gives devoutly to the Lord's treasury the two coins of charity— the love of God and neighbor. 
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21:5-36
Jesus' Olivet Discourse foretells the coming devastation of Jerusalem in language that makes use of several OT images and themes (21:6, 24). His words were confirmed a generation later, when the Romans trampled the city and the Temple to the ground in
A.D.
70. The catastrophe was a historical preview of the end of the world, showing how God's judgment upon the one nation of Israel at the end of the Old Covenant era prefigures the judgment of all nations at the end of the New (CCC 585-86). See topical essay:
End of the World?
at Mt 24. 
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21:5 noble stones:
Herod the Great began to renovate and expand the Jerusalem Temple in 19
B.C.
The structure was immense, with many of its stones measuring nearly 40 feet in length. According to Jesus, its indestructible appearance is only an illusion (21:6).
See note on Mk 13:1
. 
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21:8 many will come:
First-century Palestine experienced a surge of messianic fervor. Many claimed to be a "military Messiah" who would lead Israel to overthrow the Romans (Acts 5:33-39). 
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21:12 persecute you:
Disciples must fearlessly identify with Jesus despite opposition (Mk 8:38; Jn 16:2-4, 33). Persecution will provide opportunities to proclaim the gospel. Luke recounts several such episodes where believers are locked up in
prisons
(Acts 4:3; 5:18; 8:3; 12:4; 16:23) and hauled before
kings and governors
(Acts 25:23-26:32). 
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21:15 a mouth and wisdom:
Unlike professional orators who rehearse their speeches before delivering them, disciples should only prepare to be faithful. Christ will give them words through the Holy Spirit (Mt 10:20; Mk 13:11). Stephen was an example of this by his powerful witness in Jerusalem (Acts 6:9-10), as were other early Christians (Acts 4:8-14; 26:24-32). 
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21:16 parents . . . brothers . . . kinsmen:
Jesus demands heroic allegiance that may drive a wedge between family members (14:26). Whether martyred or persecuted, the faithful will "gain" their lives (21:19) by laying them down for Christ (9:24). 
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21:20 Jerusalem surrounded:
Jesus envisions the siege and destruction of Jerusalem that eventually took place in
A.D.
70. Some scholars infer from this verse and from 19:42-45 that Luke must have written his Gospel
after
the catastrophe of
A.D.
70. The claim is that Luke's wording in these passages reflects knowledge of the event as past history. Two considerations cast doubt on the validity of this interpretation.
(1)
The language of Jesus' discourse in Luke draws heavily on the wording and imagery of judgment oracles aimed at Jerusalem in the OT. Jesus formulated his own prophecies in this way to alert believers that Jerusalem would be laid waste for its iniquities in the first century
A.D.
just as it had been in the sixth century
B.C.
(Jer 6:6-8; 52:4; Ezek 4:1-3). To say that Luke must be dependent upon actual reports of the event is to minimize the prophetic character of Jesus' discourse and its distinctive biblical coloring.
(2)
There is nothing unique about Luke's description that suggests he must have known the details of Jerusalem's downfall. Although Roman troops did besiege and destroy the capital, the military operations described by Luke were commonplace in the ancient world for the overthrow of walled cities. See introduction:
Date
and note on Mt 24:15. 
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