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Albert Barnes

Albert Barnes' Notes on the Whole Bible - Luke 2:49

How is it ... - “Why” have ye sought me with so much anxiety? “Mary” should have known that the Son of God was safe; that his heavenly Father would take care of him, and that he could do nothing amiss.Wist ye not - “Know ye not.” You had reason to know. You knew my design in coming into the world, and that design was “superior” to the duty of obeying earthly parents, and they should be willing always to give me up to the proper business for which I live.My Father’s business - Some think that... read more

Joseph Benson

Joseph Benson's Commentary of the Old and New Testaments - Luke 2:48-50

Luke 2:48-50. And when they saw him they were amazed The clause, thus rendered, signifies, that Joseph and Mary were amazed when they saw him, but it may be translated, They who saw him were amazed, namely, not his parents only, or chiefly, but others. In this sense Dr. Campbell understands it, as suiting better the scope of the passage. “His parents,” says he, “may be said to have had reason of surprise, or even amazement, when they discovered that he was not in their company; but... read more

Donald C. Fleming

Bridgeway Bible Commentary - Luke 2:41-52

13. Jesus twelve years old (Luke 2:41-52)Joseph and Mary, being sincere and faithful Jews, went to Jerusalem for the Passover each year. Jesus, who accompanied them on the occasion recorded here, was twelve years old at the time. At this age Jewish boys were being prepared for entrance into the adult affairs of the synagogue (Luke 2:41-42).In the Jewish form of instruction, teacher and student often took turns at asking and answering questions, many of which were concerned with details of the... read more

E.W. Bullinger

E.W. Bullinger's Companion Bible Notes - Luke 2:49

wist ye not = knew ye not. Greek. oida. See App-132 . must. These are the first recorded words of the Lord. The reference is to Psalms 40:5-11 , John 4:34 . Hence the Divine necessity. Compare Matthew 16:21 ; Matthew 26:54 .Mark 8:31 . Mar 4:43 ; Mark 9:22 ; Mark 13:33 ; Mar 24:7 , Mar 24:26 , Mar 24:46 . John 3:14 ; John 4:4 ; John 12:34 , &c. The last-recorded wordsthe Son of man were, "It is finished": i.e. the Father's business which He came to be about. Compare His first and last... read more

James Burton Coffman

Coffman Commentaries on the Bible - Luke 2:49

And he said unto them, How is it that ye sought me? knew ye not that I must be in my Father's house?What did Jesus mean? He was saying, Look, we were all in the temple; I did not leave it; you did. I did not leave you; you left me!In my Father's house ... This is the first recorded utterance of Jesus; and, in it, he laid claim to a relationship to Almighty God, in a sense that distinguished his relationship from one that is open to other men; and throughout his ministry, this claim of Jesus was... read more

Thomas Coke

Thomas Coke Commentary on the Holy Bible - Luke 2:49

Luke 2:49. Wist ye not, &c.— Some render this, Know ye not that I must be in my Father's house? With this translation the Syriac version agrees: and it is certain that the Greek will well bear this translation, and that the reply appears with peculiar propriety, if it be supposed to signify, that though they thought him lost, yet he was at home; he was in his Father's house. He calls the temple his Father's house, Joh 2:16 and thus gives a tacit hint, that in staying behind at Jerusalem, he... read more

Robert Jamieson; A. R. Fausset; David Brown

Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible - Luke 2:49

49. about my Father's business—literally, "in" or "at My Fathers," that is, either "about My Father's affairs," or "in My Father's courts"—where He dwells and is to be found—about His hand, so to speak. This latter shade of meaning, which includes the former, is perhaps the true one, Here He felt Himself at home, breathing His own proper air. His words convey a gentle rebuke of their obtuseness in requiring Him to explain this. "Once here, thought ye I should so readily hasten away? Let... read more

Thomas Constable

Expository Notes of Dr. Thomas Constable - Luke 2:1-52

D. The birth and early life of Jesus ch. 2Luke followed the same pattern of events with Jesus’ birth and early life as he did for those of John. His purpose was to compare and contrast these two important individuals. read more

Thomas Constable

Expository Notes of Dr. Thomas Constable - Luke 2:5-52

II. THE BIRTH AND CHILDHOOD OF JESUS 1:5-2:52This section contains material unique in Luke. The only repeated statement occurs in Luke 2:39 and Matthew 2:23. Other unique features are the way Luke alternated the reader’s attention between John and Jesus, and the joy that several individuals expressed (Luke 1:46-55; Luke 1:68-79; Luke 2:14; Luke 2:29-32). [Note: For studies of the structure of this passage, see Robert C. Tannehill, The Narrative Unity of Luke-Acts , 1:15-20; R. E. Brown, The... read more

Thomas Constable

Expository Notes of Dr. Thomas Constable - Luke 2:41-50

6. Jesus’ visit to the temple as a boy 2:41-50This is the only inspired incident that God has given us of Jesus’ experiences during His boyhood. Luke stressed Jesus’ wisdom and His conscious awareness that He was the Son of God so his readers would have confidence in Jesus’ deity. There is a strong contrast between Jesus’ earthly parents and His heavenly Father. Stories of the precocious condition of a great person in his or her youth were and are common. They demonstrate the uniqueness of the... read more

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