Luke 8:1

Note

Luke gathers a season of Jesus' work into one sentence. He went from town to town and village to village with the good news of the kingdom of God, and the Twelve and a company of women walked the road with Him.

Just before, at a Pharisee's table, Jesus had told a sinful woman that her sins were forgiven and sent her away with "Your faith has saved you; go in peace" (Luke 7:50). This verse takes the story from the house onto the road. The sentence runs on to verse 3 and names those who went along: women healed of evil spirits and infirmities, Mary called Magdalene, from whom seven demons had gone out, Joanna the wife of Herod's household manager Chuza, Susanna, "and many others," who supported them "out of their own means" (Luke 8:3). Next comes the parable of the sower, a parable about how this very message is heard (Luke 8:4–15).

Two participles stand side by side: kērussōn, "preaching" (kērussō), and euangelizomenos, "proclaiming the good news" (euangelizomai). Both are present, and the main verb, diōdeuen, "He was traveling," is imperfect: not one trip but a long circuit. The two participles share one object, "the kingdom of God." The first tells how it was announced, aloud like a herald's decree; the second tells what kind of announcement it was, good news. "Town and village" (kata polin kai kōmēn) means place by place, large and small alike. And "the Twelve were with Him" (sun autō): for now they stand beside Him, watching and learning. In the next chapter He sends them out to do the same (Luke 9:6).

The KJV reads "preaching and shewing the glad tidings of the kingdom of God," where "shewing" is the old English for declaring. The BSB has "preaching and proclaiming the good news," and the LSV nearly the same. All three keep both verbs; none lets one swallow the other, and so the English reader hears, as the Greek reader did, that the herald's cry and the good news are one act.

Matthew Henry reads the verse as a summary of a life: "We are here told what Christ made the constant business of his life, it was teaching the gospel. Tidings of the kingdom of God are glad tidings, and what Christ came to bring" Matthew Henry. In the Catena Titus of Bostra says, "He who descends from heaven to earth, brings tidings to them that dwell on earth of a heavenly kingdom" Titus of Bostra. Gregory of Nazianzus explains why He kept moving: "He passes from place to place, that He may not only gain many, but may consecrate many places" Gregory of Nazianzus.

Luke names Mary Magdalene and Joanna on this road and names them again in his last chapter, at the empty tomb (Luke 24:10). Those who heard the news of the kingdom beside Him on the roads of Galilee were there on its greatest day.