Luke 3:23 NIV

Bridgeway Bible Commentary - Luke 3:23-38

6. Genealogies of Jesus (Matthew 1:1-17; Luke 3:23-38)The genealogies recorded by Matthew and Luke show how the birth of Jesus fulfilled the promises made to Abraham (Genesis 12:2-3; Genesis 22:18). Matthew, writing for the Jews, begins his genealogy with Abraham, father of the Jewish race (Matthew 1:1-2a). Luke, writing for non-Jews, traces Jesus’ genealogy back past Abraham to Adam, to emphasize Jesus’ union with the whole human race (Luke 3:34-38).Between Abraham and David the two... read more

E.W. Bullinger

E.W. Bullinger's Companion Bible Notes - Luke 3:23

began = when He began [His ministry? ] He was about thirty years of age. as was supposed = as reckoned by law. Greek. nomizo = to lay down a thing as law; to hold by custom, or usage; to reckon correctly, take for granted. See Matthew 20:10 . Mat 2:44 .Acts 7:25 ; Acts 14:19 ; Acts 16:13 , Acts 16:27 . Joseph was begotten by Jacob , and was his natural son (Matthew 1:16 ). He could be the legal son of Heli, therefore, only by marriage with Hell's daughter (Mary), and be reckoned so ... read more

James Burton Coffman

Coffman Commentaries on the Bible - Luke 3:23

And Jesus himself, when he began to teach, was about thirty years of age, being the son (as was supposed) of Joseph, the son of Heli, the son of Matthat ...THE GENEALOGY OF JESUS THROUGH MARYThirty years of age ... On the bearing this has with reference to dating the birth of Jesus, see under Luke 3:2.We shall not undertake any exhaustive "harmonization" of the two separate genealogies of Jesus in Matthew and here. It is now and has been this student's conviction for many years that Luke's... read more

Thomas Coke

Thomas Coke Commentary on the Holy Bible - Luke 3:23

Luke 3:23. And Jesus himself began to be, &c.— Our Lord having received these different testimonies from his Father, from the Spirit, and from John the Baptist, all given in the presence of the multitudes assembled to John's baptism, began his ministry when he was about thirty years old, the age at which the priests entered on their sacred ministrations in the temple. See the beginning of the first note on this chapter. To understand St. Luke's account of our Lord's age at his baptism... read more

Robert Jamieson; A. R. Fausset; David Brown

Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible - Luke 3:23

23. he began to be about thirty—that is, "was about entering on His thirtieth year." So our translators have taken the word (and so CALVIN, BEZA, BLOOMFIELD, WEBSTER and WILKINSON, c.): but "was about thirty years of age when He began [His ministry]," makes better Greek, and is probably the true sense [BENGEL, OLSHAUSEN, DE WETTE, MEYER, ALFORD, &c.]. At this age the priests entered on their office ( :-). being, as was supposed, the son of Joseph, &c.—Have we in this genealogy, as well... read more

Thomas Constable

Expository Notes of Dr. Thomas Constable - Luke 3:23

Luke probably mentioned the round number "30" to describe Jesus’ age when He launched His ministry because many significant Old Testament characters began their service of God when they were 30 (cf. Genesis 41:46; 2 Samuel 5:4; Ezekiel 1:1). This included Israel’s priests (Numbers 4). Evidently Jesus was 32 years old when He began His ministry. [Note: Hoehner, pp. 37-38.] Luke also clarified that Jesus was not the physical son of Joseph. People only supposed that He was. read more

Thomas Constable

Expository Notes of Dr. Thomas Constable - Luke 3:23-38

C. The genealogy of Jesus 3:23-38 (cf. Matthew 1:1-17)Why did Luke place his genealogy of Jesus at this point in his Gospel? Probably he did so because this was the beginning of Jesus’ public ministry. Matthew recorded Jesus’ genealogy to show that He had a legitimate right by birth to occupy the Davidic throne. Consequently he placed his genealogy at the very beginning of his Gospel. Luke wanted to show the ancestry of Jesus, who now began His ministry, as the authenticated Son of God.There... read more

John Dummelow

John Dummelow's Commentary on the Bible - Luke 3:1-38

John’s Ministry. Baptism and Genealogy of Jesus1-14.. Preliminary Ministry of the Baptist (Matthew 3:1; Mark 1:1). See on Mt.1. In the fifteenth year] If the years of Tiberius are reckoned from the death of Augustus, who died 14 a.d., the date is 28, 29 a.d. Most authorities, however, suppose that the years of Tiberius are here reckoned from 11 a.d., when he was made the colleague of Augustus in the empire, with equal authority over all the provinces and armies. This gives the date 25, 26 a.d.... read more

Charles John Ellicott

Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers - Luke 3:23

(23) Began to be about thirty years of age.—At this age the Levites entered on their full work (Numbers 4:23; Numbers 4:30; Numbers 4:35), a kind of probationary period beginning at twenty-five (Numbers 8:24) or even, in later times, when their work was lighter, at twenty (1 Chronicles 23:27). No age was fixed for the beginning of the priesthood, nor of the prophet’s work; but it may fairly be inferred that thirty was looked on as the time when manhood reached its completeness, and we may... read more

William Nicoll

Expositor's Dictionary of Texts - Luke 3:1-38

Luke 3:2 Prophets have passed for something as well as priests in making God's will known; and Established Church priesthoods have not been generally on particularly good terms with prophets. The only occasion on which the two orders are said to have been in harmony was when the prophets prophesied lies, and the priests bore rule in their name. Froude. Luke 3:2 The young who are of healthy, lively blood and clean conscience have either emotion or imagination to fold them defensively from an... read more