Luke 17:23

WARNING AGAINST IMPOSTORS

Luk 17:23-24. “And they will say to you, Lo here! lo there! Go not away, neither pursue them; for as the lightning, shining from the region under heaven, flashes out to that which is under heaven, so shall the Son of man be in His day.” Jesus knew that impostors were going to rise, and they did. Theudas, Simon Magus, Marchochab, and many others, did rise in that generation. So Jesus is warning them against these impostors who are going to rise, claiming to be Christ, and lead many after them, doomed to destruction. Now He gives a clear and unmistakable manifestation of His own coming, amply sufficient to fortify all of His disciples, in all coming ages, against imposture. So you see that when our Lord returns to the earth, a great light, like lightning, will flash athwart the firmament, girdling the globe with its splendor and glory, pouting its sweeping illuminations into every land and nation, so that “every eye shall behold Him.” (Rev 1:7) There is no reason why the disciples of the Lord should ever run after impostors, because the revelation of our Lord’s return will be so demonstrative that none can fail to find it out; and with the light of this Scripture before us, we can actually know that it is none other than the splendor radiating out from the glorified Savior, whose visible person will quickly appear to all the earth.

William B. Godbey, Commentary on the New Testament (1896–1900) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

17:23-24 People will tell you, ‘Look, there is the Son of Man’: False Messiahs have arisen throughout history, but expectations for the Messiah were particularly high in the first century, as a variety of figures claimed to be God’s agents of deliverance (see Acts 5:36-37; 21:38). Jesus warned his disciples not to follow these imposters. • For as the lightning flashes: Lightning lights up the whole sky and is visible to everyone in the area. Similarly, when Jesus suddenly returns, it will be evident to everyone.

Tyndale Open Study Notes — © Tyndale Open Resources, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

Luk 17:23. Ἐροῦσιν) they shall say [See, or Lo, here, or Lo there], the reverse of what happens in the case of the kingdom of God, Luk 17:21 [in the case of which “they shall not say, Lo here, or Lo there”]. But it is thus that they speak in the papacy, which affixes peculiar grace to particular places. The text is especially treating of the Apostolic age.—ἰδοὺ, Lo [See]) Here He is: viz. the Son of man, i.e. Jesus Christ. It is not the false Christs and their followers who are meant; but those who do not with truth point out the true Messiah.—μὴ ἀπέλθητε, do not go away) in the simple sense.—μηδὲ διώξητε, do not follow) with ardour. Often undue eagerness impels one towards an object, to which true reason does not guide.

Bengel's Gnomon of the New Testament — English translation (T&T Clark, Edinburgh, 1860) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Luk_17:23-24. See on Mat_24:23-27.

ἐροῦσιν κ.τ.λ.] on the occasion of the appearance of false Messiahs. A locality of fixed limits, moreover (comp. Luk_17:21), does not characterize the solemn appearing of the kingdom.

ἰδοὺ … ὧδε] namely: is the Messiah!

μὴ ἀπέλθ. μηδὲ διώξ.] a climax: Go not forth, nor follow after (sectamini), to wit, those of whom this is asserted.

Luk_17:24. The lightning which lightens; comp. similar expressions in Lobeck, Paral. p. 503.

ἐκ τῆς] Supply χώρας. See Bos, Ellips. ed. Schaefer, pp. 560, 562; Winer, p. 522 [E. T. 740]: flashing out from the one region under the heaven (which expands under the heaven, ὑπό with an accusative) lightens even to the other (opposite one[220]).

οὕτως] in such a manner of appearance as manifests itself in a moment and universally.

[220] What Lange reads into the passage, from the old world to the new, is not there at all. Comp. Mat_24:27.

Meyer — Critical and Exegetical Commentary on the New Testament — English translation by Peter Christie, edited by Frederick Crombie (T&T Clark, 1880) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Luk 17:23 . ἐκεῖ , ὧδε : cf. the more graphic version in Mat 24:26 , and notes thereon. μὴ διώξητε , do not follow them, give no heed to them.

The Expositor's Greek Testament, edited by W. Robertson Nicoll (1897–1910) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Christ forewarneth us that false Christs shall come, and that his glory shall suddenly be spread far and wide through the world, after that the ignomy of the cross is put out and extinguished.

Geneva Bible (1599) marginal notes — public domain. Text via Bolls.life.

they shall say, See here . . . go not, &c.--a warning to all so-called expositors of prophecy and their followers, who cry, Lo there and see here, every time that war breaks out or revolutions occur.

Jamieson, Fausset & Brown — Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

Verse 23. And they shall say] Or, And IF they shall say. Two MSS., the Syriac and Armenian, have εαν, IF.

See here] KM, sixteen others, and the later Syriac, have ο χριστος, Behold the Christ is here. This is undoubtedly the meaning of the place. See Clarke on Mt 24:23.

Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

(23) See here; or, see there.—See Note on Mat_24:23. The words are all but identical, but the difference in the context and the occasion should be noticed as another illustration of that reproduction of the same forms of thought and language to which attention has so often been called.

A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

23. See here; or, see there] A vivid description of the perpetual Messianic excitements, which finally ceased in the days of Barcochba and the Rabbi Akibha. We find a similar warning in Luk_21:8. See Jos. Antt. Luk_20:8; B. J. 11. 13, Luk_6:5; Tac. Hist. v. 13. With the whole passage compare Mat_24:23-41.

The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

For as the lightning that lighteneth out of the one part under heaven,.... The Syriac version reads, "out of heaven", and the Arabic version, "in heaven"; which is the seat of lightning, and from whence it arises:

and shineth unto the other part under heaven; enlightens the earth, which is under the heaven: though the sense of the words, as they lie in the original text, seems to be, that as the lightning lightens at one end of the heavens, and shines to the other; which is done at once, in a moment, in a twinkling of the eye, and to which agrees the Ethiopic version;

so shall also the son of man be in his day: which is not to be understood of the swift progress of the Gospel, after his resurrection and ascension, and the pouring forth of his Spirit; but of his sudden coming, first to take vengeance on the Jewish nation for their rejection of him, and then at the last day, to judge both quick and dead. By his day, is meant his kingdom and glory, or his appearance with power, and great glory: Thus we read (f) for Solomon, "in his hour", that is, in his glory, in the time of his kingdom, when he was in his greatest magnificence.

(f) Misna Bava Metzia, c. 7. sect. 1. & Jarchi & Bartenora in ib. Vid. Shirhashirim Rabba, fol. 15. 4. & 16. 1.

John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

23 And they shall say to you, See here; or, see there: go not after them, nor follow them.

Ver. 23. See Mat 24:23; Mar 13:21.

John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

And they shall say ... - Many false Christs, according to Josephus, appeared about that time, attempting to lead away the people. See the notes at Mat 24:23-27.

Albert Barnes' Notes on the Bible (1834–1885) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

See Poole on "Mat 24:23", See Poole on "Mat 24:27". You will (saith our Saviour) have a great many false Christs and false prophets arise, and foolish credulous people will be deceived by them, and come and tell you, Lo, yonder is the Messiah, or, Lo, he is in another place; but believe them not. So it is in Mar 13:21. Follow them not, saith Luke. The Son of man shall have his day, a day when he will come in a glorious manner to judge the quick and the dead; but it will come upon the world like lightning, that suddenly shineth from one part of heaven to another, so as no man can foretell it, or observe the motion of it. Some do think that by

the day of the Son of man here was meant the spreading of his gospel; but certainly it is a strained sense, nor was the spreading of that a thing so sudden, but more gradually and observably accomplished.

Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

23. See here; or, see there—These local Messiahs starting up in different places, or rumored to have started up, will prove false. To the Pharisees, the contrast above was between the kingdom without and the kingdom within; the contrast now is between the Messiah from the earth and the Messiah from heaven. See notes on Mat_24:23-27.

Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

And they shall say to you, See here; or, See there: go not after them, nor follow them. Again addressed to the disciples in the first instance, but with a far more extended reference. In the early days of Christianity such false reports were exceedingly frequent; false Messiahs, too, from time to time sprang up; unhealthy visions of an immediate return disturbed the peace and broke into the quiet, steady work of the Church. Nor have these disturbing visions been unknown in later ages of Christianity. Dean Alford has a curious comment here. He sees in the words of this verse a warning to all so-called expositors and followers of expositors of prophecy who cry, "See here! or, See there! every time that war breaks out or revolutions occur.

The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

They shall say, See, Christ is here, or there - Limiting his presence to this or that place. Matt. xxiv, 23.

John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the Whole Bible (1754–1765) — public domain. Text via the GEBible commentary corpus.

23. ἰδοὺ ἐκεῖ, ἰδοὺ ὧδε. BL. Copt. The asyndeton adds to the vividness.

23. ἰδοὺ ἐκεῖ. A vivid description of the perpetual Messianic excitements which finally ceased in the days of Barcochba and the Rabbi Akibha. We find a similar warning in Luk 21:8. See Jos. Antt. XX. 8; B. J. II. 13, VI. 5; Tac. Hist. Luk 17:13. With the whole passage compare Mat 24:23-41.

Cambridge Greek Testament for Schools and Colleges (Cambridge University Press, 1896; 21 vols, various authors incl. Carr, Maclear, Plummer, Farrar, Lumby, Moule, M. R. James, Simcox) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

23. καὶ ἐρ. ὑμ.] ‘Ye shall not see one;—therefore do not run after false reports of my coming.’ A warning to all so-called expositors, and followers of expositors, of prophecy, who cry ἰδοὺ ἐκεῖ and ἰδοὺ ὧδε, every time that war breaks out, or revolutions occur.

See on these verses, 23, 24, Mat 24:23-27 and notes.

Henry Alford, The Greek Testament (1849–1861) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

23. There is no contradiction between this and ver. 21. That refers to true signs of the First Advent; this to false signs of the Second. It covers all premature announcements of the approach of the Last Day. All predictions of exact dates, and all statements as to local appearances, are to be mistrusted.

μὴ ἀπέλθητε μηδὲ διώξητε . “Do not leave your ordinary occupation, still less go after those who offer to lead you to the place of the Son of Man’s appearing.”

International Critical Commentary — older volumes (1896–1929), various authors — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.