Now in the fifteenth year of the reign of Tiberius Caesar, &c.] Emperor of Rome, and the third of the Caesars; Julius was the first, and Augustus the second, in whose time Christ was born, and this Tiberius the third; he was the son of Livia, the wife of Augustus, but not by him; but was adopted by…

Annas and Caiaphas being the high priests Some difficulty here arises, how these two could be both high priests; when according to the law of God, and the usages of the Jewish nation, there was to be, and was but one high priest at a time: many things are observed by writers, to solve this…

And he came into all the country about Jordan He came out of the wilderness of Judea, where he first began his ministry, to some parts of the country that bordered on Jordan, and was near unto it, on either side the river; sometimes he was at Bethabara, and sometimes at Aenon, near Salim; for he…

As it is written in the book of the words of Esaias the prophet saying, the voice of one crying in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of the Lord make his paths straight; (See Gill on Matt. 3:3).

Every valley shall be filled Luke cites more out of the same prophecy, as relating to the times of John the Baptist, and the Messiah, than the other Evangelists Matthew and Mark do: in the prophet it is, “every valley shall be exalted”; which is done, by filling it up; the metaphor is persisted in,…

And all flesh shall see the salvation of God. ] “By the salvation of God” is meant, the Messiah, the Lord Jesus Christ, the Saviour of God’s appointing and sending; and who is the author of that salvation which God resolved on, contrived, and approved of; and is his ordinance for salvation, unto…

Then said he to the multitude That is, John, as the Ethiopic version reads; and the multitude to whom he spake the following words, were many of the Pharisees and Sadducees, as appears from That came forth to be baptized of him; who came out of their houses, towns, and cities, round about, to the…

Bring forth therefore fruits worthy of repentance Or “meet” for it, such as will show it to be true and genuine: “and begin not to say within yourselves”: in one of Beza’s copies, and in another of Stephens’s, it was read, “think not”, as in . the sense is the same.

And now also the axe is laid unto the root of the trees, &c.] Not only to Jesse’s family, which as a root in a dry ground, and to Jerusalem, the metropolis of the nation; but to the root of the vain boasting of every Jew; their descent from Abraham, the covenant made with him, their ecclesiastical…

And the people asked him Not the same as in the Sadducees and Pharisees, for they seemed not to be at all affected with, and wrought upon, by the ministry of John; but rather were displeased with him, and turned their backs on him, and rejected him and his baptism; but the common people, that stood…

He answereth and saith unto them By telling them what they should do; and he does not put them upon ceremonial observances, nor severe exercises of religion, nor even the duties of the first table of the law, and others of the second, though necessary to be done; but upon acts of beneficence and…

Then came also publicans to be baptized Being convinced under John’s ministry of the evils of their past life, and desirous of being admitted to baptism, to which they understood repentance, and fruits meet for the same, were pre-requisite: these came nearer to John, and said unto him, master, what…

And he said unto them Not by advising them to quit their employments, as if it was a thing unlawful to impose pay, and collect taxes, but by directing them to perform their office aright: exact no more than that which is appointed you; by the government: there were two sorts of publicans; there…

And the soldiers likewise demanded of him Or “asked him”: why our translators have rendered it, “demanded of him”, I know not, unless they thought that such language best suited persons of a military character.

And as the people were in expectation, of the coming of the Messiah; Daniel’s seventy weeks being now accomplished, the sceptre being departed from Judah, and the Romans having the government in their hands, from whom they hoped for a deliverance by Christ; and all men mused in their hearts of…

John answered, saying unto them all For some of them might not only so think in their hearts, but express with their mouths the apprehension they had of him; and might put the question to him, as the priests and Levites from Jerusalem afterwards did; or he might know the secret thoughts of their…

Whose fan is in his hand (See Gill on Matt. 3:12)

And many other thing’s Relating to the person and office of the Messiah, to the nature of his kingdom, the Gospel dispensation, and to faith in him; for he pointed him out to the people, and exhorted them to believe in him, and expressed much joy and pleasure on the hearing of his success and…

But Herod the tetrarch being reproved by him By John, as the Syriac, Arabic, and Persic versions add: for Herodias his brother Philip’s wife; for taking her to wife, whilst his brother Philip was living.

Added yet this above all This sin to all other sins, and which was of a more flagitious nature; and attended with more aggravating circumstances, especially in the issue of it: that he shut up John in prison; in the castle of Machaerus, by the instigation of Herodias; (See Gill on Matt. 14:3).

Now when all the people were baptized That came from several parts to John for this purpose, even as many as he judged to be proper subjects of that ordinance, as many of the common people, publicans, soldiers it came to pass that Jesus also being baptized; of John in Jordan, he coming from Galilee…

And the Holy Ghost descended in a bodily shape In a corporeal form, in a visible manner, and was seen with bodily eyes, at least by John the administrator; to whom this was a signal of his being the Messiah, and a fresh confirmation of it: like a dove upon him; either in the form of a dove, or this…

And Jesus himself began to be about thirty years of age, &c.] Or Jesus, when he was baptized and began his public ministry, was about thirty years of age: an age at which the priests, under the law, who were typical of Christ, entered on their work, The word, “began”, is left out in the Syriac and…

Which was the son of Matthat, which was the son of Levi, &c.] These two, Grotius says, are omitted in the ancient exemplars; and he thinks they ought to be left out; and for which he mentions the authorities of Irenaeus, Africanus, Eusebius, Nazianzen, Jerom, and Augustin: but not only the Vulgate…

Which was the son of Mattathias Surnamed Siloah, by the same Philo, who governed ten years: which was the son of Amos; whose surname, according to the same author, was Sirag; or, as some, Syrach, or Shyrach, who governed fourteen years: which was the son of Naum; who was called Mesalut, or Maslot,…

Which was the son of Maath Surnamed Aser, who governed nine years: which was the son of Mattathias; called Eli Matathias, who governed twelve years: which was the son of Semei; and named Abner Semei, who governed eleven years: which was the son of Joseph; called Joseph the first, who governed seven…

Which was the son of Joanna Johannes, or John, the son of Rhesa Mesullam, who governed fifty three years: which was the son of Rhesa, called, by the above writer, Rhesa Mesullam; and said, by him, to govern sixty six years: which was the son of Zorobabel who governed fifty eight years: which was…

Which was the son of Melchi This, with the following, “Addi, Cosam, Elmodam, Er, Jose, Eliezer, Jorim, Matthat, Levi, Simeon, Juda, Joseph, Jonan, Eliakim, Melea, Menan, and Mattatha”, all lived before the captivity, and were of the house of David, in the line of Nathan; for it follows, which was…

See Gill on Luke 3:28

See Gill on Luke 3:28

See Gill on Luke 3:28

Which was the son of Jesse The order of the persons from Jesse to Abraham, as Obed, Boaz, Salmon, Naasson, Aminadab, Aram, or Ram, Esrom, (for Joram, which the Arabic version here inserts, is to be rejected,) Phares, Judah, Jacob, Isaac, Abraham, perfectly agrees with the genealogy of Matthew, and…

See Gill on Luke 3:32

See Gill on Luke 3:32

Which was the son of Saruch The Septuagint call him Serouch, the same with Serug, (Gen. 11:22, Gen. 11:23) which was the son of Ragau; so the Septuagint, the same with Reu, (Gen. 40:20, Gen. 40:21) which was the son of Phaleg; the same with Peleg, (Gen. 11:18, Gen.

Which was the son of Cainan This Cainan is not mentioned by Moses in nor has he ever appeared in any Hebrew copy of the Old Testament, nor in the Samaritan version, nor in the Targum; nor is he mentioned by Josephus, nor in where the genealogy is repeated; nor is it in Beza’s most ancient Greek…

Which was the son of Mathusala The same with Methuselah; and so he is called by the Septuagint in which was the son of Enoch, (Gen. 5:21, Gen. 5:22) which was the son of Jared (Gen. 5:18, Gen.

Which was the son of Enos (Gen. 5:9, Gen. 5:10) which was the son of Seth, (Gen. 5:6, Gen. 5:7) which was the son of Adam (Gen. 5:3, Gen. 5:4) which was the son of God: not begotten, as all the rest were, by their immediate parents, but created by God, in a supernatural manner, out of the dust of…