Luke 21

For a side-by-side English translation of the text of Marcion's Gospel of the Lord and Luke 21, see Luke Chapter 21

Summary:

From Ernest Evans on Adv. Marcion IV: Appendix 2: In ch. 21 he omits vv. 1-17 [with the reference to the temple treasury, the widow's two mites, and the question When shall these things be?, with most of our Lord's answer], but retains verse 18, a hair of your head, omitting vv. 21-2 [Then let them that are in Judaea etc.].

Details:

Luke 21:1-4 - The Widow's Two Cents

And he looked up, and saw the rich men casting their gifts into the treasury. [21:1]  And he saw also a certain poor widow casting in thither two mites. [21:2]  And he said, Of a truth I say unto you, that this poor widow hath cast in more than they all: [21:3]  For all these have of their abundance cast in unto the offerings of God: but she of her penury hath cast in all the living that she had. [21:4]

Neither Tertullian nor Epiphanius mention these verses. However, as they have parallels at Mk 12:41-44 that immediately follow the parallels to Lk 20:45-47, we should assume that they were present in Mcg [Marcion's gospel].

Luke 21:5-19 – Nation Against Nation

And as some spake of the temple, how it was adorned with goodly stones and gifts, he said, [21:5]  As for these things which ye behold, the days will come, in the which there shall not be left one stone upon another, that shall not be thrown down. [21:6]  And they asked him, saying, Master, but when shall these things be? and what sign will there be when these things shall come to pass? [21:7]  And he said, Take heed that ye be not deceived: for many shall come in my name, saying, I am Christ; and the time draweth near: go ye not therefore after them. [21:8]  But when ye shall hear of wars and commotions, be not terrified: for these things must first come to pass; but the end is not by and by. [21:9]  Then said he unto them, Nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom: [21:10]  And great earthquakes shall be in divers places, and famines, and pestilences; and fearful sights and great signs shall there be from heaven. [21:11]  But before all these, they shall lay their hands on you, and persecute you, delivering you up to the synagogues, and into prisons, being brought before kings and rulers for my name's sake. [21:12]  And it shall turn to you for a testimony. [21:13]  Settle it therefore in your hearts, not to meditate before what ye shall answer: [21:14]  For I will give you a mouth and wisdom, which all your adversaries shall not be able to gainsay nor resist. [21:15]  And ye shall be betrayed both by parents, and brethren, and kinsfolks, and friends; and some of you shall they cause to be put to death. [21:16]  And ye shall be hated of all men for my name's sake. [21:17]  But there shall not an hair of your head perish. [21:18]  In your patience possess ye your souls. [21:19]

In his Chapter 39 Tertullian quotes from or otherwise refers to most of these verses, with the exceptions of Mcg 21:5-6, 15 or 18. Epiphanius notes only Mcg 21:18, which he states was not present:

Again he falsified. “There shall not an hair of your head perish.” (Scholion 58)

According to Roth, “Volkmar … considered ... 21:6–7 and 21:18 possibly to be later additions,” and Baring-Gould wrote:

"There shall not an hair of your head perish," omitted, perhaps, lest the God of heaven, whom Christ revealed, should appear to concern himself about the vile bodies of men, under the dominion of the God of this world; but more probably this verse did not exist in the original text. The awkwardness of its position has led many critics to reject it as an interpolation, and the fact of Marcion’s gospel being without it goes far to prove that the original Luke Gospel was without it.

This passage has parallels at Mk 13:1-13 and Mt 24:1-13, and although Mt 24:9-12 vary in many details from the account in Mark and Luke there is no evidence to suggest that Mcg and Luke differed here. However, while Mk 13:13a parallels Lk 21:17 there is no parallel to Lk 21:18 in either Mark or Matthew. In addition, Lk 21:18 is omitted in the Curetonian Syriac ms (Sy-C). Both these points support the view given above that this verse could be an interpolation. Willker suggests that there is no obvious reason either to remove or insert this text:

It is possible that the words have been omitted as harmonization to Mt, but this is improbable, because the following words are different in Mt and Lk. It is also possible that the words have been omitted as inappropriate at this place. There is no reason why the words should have been added secondarily.

Although the evidence is not conclusive, there does appear to be no reason why aMarcion would want to remove Lk 21:18. Tertullian's lack of comment on these words of Jesus suggests that he saw nothing different here.

Luke 21:20-24 – Days of Vengeance

And when ye shall see Jerusalem compassed with armies, then know that the desolation thereof is nigh. [21:20]  Then let them which are in Judaea flee to the mountains; and let them which are in the midst of it depart out; and let not them that are in the countries enter thereinto. [21:21]  For these be the days of vengeance, that all things which are written may be fulfilled. [21:22]  But woe unto them that are with child, and to them that give suck, in those days! for there shall be great distress in the land, and wrath upon this people. [21:23]  And they shall fall by the edge of the sword, and shall be led away captive into all nations: and Jerusalem shall be trodden down of the Gentiles, until the times of the Gentiles be fulfilled. [21:24]

Tertullian mentions the time of destruction "when Jerusalem should begin to be compassed with armies" [21:20], but makes no mention of Mcg 21:21-24. In Scholion 59 Epiphanius makes this comment on the passage:

Again, he falsified the following, “Then let them which are in Judaea flee to the mountains” [21:21] and so on, because of the words sub-joined in the text, “until all things that are written be fulfilled.” [21:22]

From this we know that Epiphanius did not see at least Mcg 21:21-22, but as “and so on” does not identify the end of the 'falsification,' it is possible that he is indicating that Mcg 21:23-24 also did not exist. A further clue suggesting this possibility can be found in Elenchus 59, where Epiphanius berates aMarcion for elsewhere having left in place text that makes the same point as the falsified text:

(a) Because of his own forgetfulness he thinks everyone is as stupid as he, and fails to realize that even if he leaves an unimportant text in place it serves for the exposure of the texts he has falsified, even though there are many of them. Thus nothing will keep anyone who wants from comparing the things he acknowledges with these witnesses which he has falsified.

(b) For it will be shown that <the words he left in place> in which, after his death, Abraham said, “They have Moses and the prophets; let them hear them,” agree with these words that he has removed. What the prophets and Moses said came from God the Father, from the Lord himself the Son of God, and the Holy Spirit; and once written they had to be fulfilled.

Here Epiphanius contrasts the absence of the falsified text with the presence of Mcg 16:29, 31 (“Moses and the prophets”). However, it would have been natural for Epiphanius to make his point by quoting Mcg 21:23-24 (which would have end with the words “until the times of the Gentiles be fulfilled”) if he was able to, and the fact that he did not suggests that these verses were part of the falsified text. Assuming this to be the case Tertullian’s lack of any mention of Mcg 21:21-24 suggests that they may not have been in his copy of Luke either.

This passage has parallels in both Mark and Matthew, but while Mk 13:14-19 is a very close parallel to Mt 24:15-24, Luke contains significant differences, using the basic Mark/Matthew structure to refer to a very different event. Although Lk 21:21a and 23a do parallel the equivalent verses in both Mark and Matthew, Lk 21:21b-22, 23b-24 have no direct counterpart in either. However, the existence of Lk 21:31-32 (forming the other half of a doublet) suggests that these verses could be a later interpolation. In addition, Lk 21:20, 25 read perfectly well without Lk 21:21-24 between them. A further indication that Lk 21:21-24 may be an interpolation is that in a few mss the transition from Lk 21:24 to 25 is different. In most mss the end of Lk 21:24 and the beginning of Lk 21:25 read as follows:

achri hou plērōthōsin              kairoi ethnōn                                                         kai esontai sēmeia

until the times of the Gentiles are fulfilled.                                                        And there will be signs …

The meaning of the expression ‘the times of the Gentiles’ is unclear, with some Bibles containing translations of Lk 21:24 that have slightly different meanings, in some cases referring to ‘unbelievers,’ or ‘nations,’ instead of ‘Gentiles,’ but not actually explaining what it means to say that ‘the times’ ‘are fulfilled.’ However, in a few mss the end of Lk 21:24 either omits ‘the times of the Gentiles’ (kairoi ethnōn), or makes it possible to read this phrase with what we see as the beginning of Lk 21:25:

achri hou plērōthōsin                                                                                                    kai esontai sēmeia

until [they are?] fulfilled.                                                                                             And there will be signs…     D

achri hou plērōthōsin               [kai esontai] kairoi ethnōn                              kai esontai sēmeia

until [they are?] fulfilled.        [And there will be] times of the Gentiles, and there will be signs…      Wescott - Hort

achri hou plērōthōsin                kai esontai kairoi ethnōn                                 kai esontai sēmeia

until [they are?] fulfilled.         And there will be times of the Gentiles,    and there will be signs…      B

achri hou plērōthōsin kairoi   kai esontai kairoi ethnōn                                 kai estai sēmeia

until the times are fulfilled.    And there will be times of the Gentiles,     and there will be signs…      L, 892, 1241, bo

Willker comments as follows:

The D reading makes no sense, because an object is missing. The only explanation is that it is a parablepsis error from the B reading. D therefore seems to be a witness for the B reading.

It is possible that kai esontai, fell out due to homoioarcton kai - kai (from the B reading) or kairoi. - kairoi. (from the L reading). A secondary origin of kai esontai, is difficult to explain. Some kind of dittography error has been suggested with the beginning of verse 25, but I cannot see how this could be reasonably explained. It appears more probable that either the B or the L reading are original.

Note that only 01, B, D read esontai in verse 25. The only possibility I can see is that perhaps someone wrote kai esontai next to kai estai in verse 25 as a possible replacement and a subsequent scribe added it at the wrong place.

Essentially, the boundary between Lk 21:24 and 25 is uncertain, lending weight to the possibility that Lk 21:24 is not original, and, by inference, that it was not in Mcg either. Given that Mcg 21:21-22 did not exist it is reasonable to assume that Mcg 21:23 also did not exist. Finally, the lack of comment from Tertullian combined with the variants at the end of Lk 21:24 make it likely that all these verses were also not originally in Luke either.

Luke 21:25-28 – Signs in the Sky

And there shall be signs in the sun, and in the moon, and in the stars; and upon the earth distress of nations, with perplexity; the sea and the waves roaring; [21:25]  Men's hearts failing them for fear, and for looking after those things which are coming on the earth: for the powers of heaven shall be shaken. [21:26]  And then shall they see the Son of man coming in a cloud with power and great glory. [21:27]  And when these things begin to come to pass, then look up, and lift up your heads; for your redemption draweth nigh. [21:28]

As discussed above, the transition from Lk 21:24 to 25 is uncertain, but as neither Tertullian nor Epiphanius make any mention of these verses, all we can deduce is that they saw them the same in Mcg as they did in Luke.

Luke 21:29-36 – The Fig Tree (2)

And he spake to them a parable; Behold the fig tree, and all the trees; [21:29]  When they now shoot forth, ye see and know of your own selves that summer is now nigh at hand. [21:30]  So likewise ye, when ye see these things come to pass, know ye that the kingdom of God is nigh at hand. [21:31]  Verily I say unto you, This generation shall not pass away, till all be fulfilled. [21:32]  Heaven and earth shall pass away: but my words shall not pass away. [21:33]  And take heed to yourselves, lest at any time your hearts be overcharged with surfeiting, and drunkenness, and cares of this life, and so that day come upon you unawares. [21:34]  For as a snare shall it come on all them that dwell on the face of the whole earth. [21:35]  Watch ye therefore, and pray always, that ye may be accounted worthy to escape all these things that shall come to pass, and to stand before the Son of man. [21:36]

Tertullian mentions “the parable of the fig tree,” which he refers to as:

Reflect, in short, on the picture presented in the parable: "Behold the fig-tree, and all the trees; [21:29] when they produce their fruit, men know that summer is at hand. [21:30] So likewise ye, when ye see these things come to pass, know ye that the kingdom of God is very near." [21:31]

Tertullian refers to the time when the trees “produce their fruit,” instead of “shoot forth,” and as mentioned in the Textual Considerations section the reference to producing fruit [cum fructum protulerint] is an almost exclusively Western (and mainly old Latin) variant, being found in D, 157, pc, Lat, Sy-S, Sy-C, Sy-Hmg.  A little later Tertullian writes that “He further declares that heaven and earth shall not pass away till all things be fulfilled.” While this could be taken as a mis-quote of Mcg 21:32-33 it might instead be simply summarizing the main point of these two verses, avoiding the problematic phrase “this generation,” about which the NET states:

This is one of the hardest verses in the gospels to interpret. Various views exist for what generation means.

Despite the problems of interpreting the meaning of ‘this generation,” there is no ms evidence of any variants here. We also have no word from Epiphanius regarding this text, which suggests that Tertullian is paraphrasing Mcg 21:32-33 here. He then refers to Mcg 21:34-35a, writing:

Let the disciples also be warned, "lest their hearts be overcharged with surfeiting and drunkenness, and cares of this world; and so that day come upon them unawares, like a snare"

Tertullian has the words “like a snare” (or trap) as the end of Mcg 21:34, although they are sometimes seen as the beginning of Lk 21:35. From this we may suspect that Tertullian did not see Mcg 21:35, as Sense suggests:

Tertullian refers to verse 34 thus: "For so Esaias also predicted, and let the disciples be warned: lest when their hearts are heavy with surfeiting and drunkenness, and worldly cares, and that day should come upon them suddenly, like a snare." Methodius quotes this verse in the same way (Ante-Nicene Christian Library, Methodius, p. 49), and hence I think it justifiable to strike out of verse 35 the words following 'snare.'

Tertullian may have read “heaven and earth” in Mcg 21:32, and not seen Mcg 21:35b-36 (for which there are no parallels in either Mark or Matthew), but in the absence of any comment from Epiphanius there is no supporting evidence for these possible differences.

Luke 21:37-38 – Teaching in the Temple

And in the day time he was teaching in the temple; and at night he went out, and abode in the mount that is called the mount of Olives. [21:37]  And all the people came early in the morning to him in the temple, for to hear him. [21:38]

There is nothing to suggest that in Mcg these verses differed from their counterparts in Luke. At the end of his chapter 39, Tertullian writes:

Some places there were in Jerusalem where to teach; other places outside Jerusalem whither to retire -- "in the day-time He was teaching in the temple;" [21:37a] just as He had foretold by Hosea: "In my house did they find me, and there did I speak with them." "But at night He went out to the Mount of Olives." [21:37b] For thus had Zechariah pointed out: "And His feet shall stand in that day on the Mount of Olives." [Zech 14:4] Fit hours for an audience there also were. "Early in the morning" [21:38] must they resort to Him, who (having said by Isaiah, "The Lord giveth me the tongue of the learned") added, "He hath appointed me the morning, and hath also given me an ear to hear." [Isa 50:4] Now if this is to destroy the prophets, what will it be to fulfil them?

Tertullian uses these verses to show how these actions were prophesied, and how aMarcion does himself no favors by leaving these verses in place. Sense states the issue this way:

It is amusing to find Tertullian stating that these practices of Jesus had been predicted by the Hebrew prophets, and he quotes the prophecies, and winds up his chapter by a hit at Marcion's abolition of the law and prophets. "If this is to dissolve the Prophets," he says, "what will it be to fulfil them?"

The NET notes the following:

Some mss (those of Ë13) place John 7:53-8:11 here after v. 38, no doubt because it was felt that this was a better setting for the pericope.

There is no hint in anything Tertullian writes that he saw in Mcg these verses that we see in John. Epiphanius is also silent on this point, so we can reasonably assume that neither of them saw these verses in either Mcg or Luke. There is nothing to suggest that the form of these verses in Mcg differed from that in Luke. 

Next chapter: Luke 22