Luke 3:14

Soldiers also asked him, saying, “What about us? What must we do?” He said to them, “Extort from no one by violence, neither accuse anyone wrongfully. Be content with your wages.”

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WEBBE

Soldiers also asked him, saying, “What about us? What must we do?” He said to them, “Extort from no one by violence, neither accuse anyone wrongfully. Be content with your wages.”

BSB

Then some soldiers asked him, “And what should we do?” “Do not take money by force or false accusation,” he said. “Be content with your wages.”

ASV

And soldiers also asked him, saying, And we, what must we do? And he said unto them, Extort from no man by violence, neither accuse [any one] wrongfully; and be content with your wages.

Original Greek

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ἐπηρώτων epērōtōn Were asking G1905 δὲ de then G1161 αὐτὸν auton him G846 καὶ kai also G2532 στρατευόμενοι strateuomenoi those being soldiers G4754 λέγοντες legontes saying G3004 τί ti What G5101 ποιήσωμεν poiēsōmen may do G4160 καὶ kai also G2532 ἡμεῖς; hēmeis we ourselves G3165 καὶ kai And G2532 εἶπεν eipen he said G2036 πρὸς pros to G4314 αὐτοῖς autois to them G846 μηδένα mēdena No one G3367 διασείσητε diaseisēte may extort G1286 μηδὲ mēde nor G3366 συκοφαντήσητε sukophantēsēte may accuse falsely G4811 καὶ kai and G2532 ἀρκεῖσθε arkeisthe do be content G714 τοῖς tois with the G3588 ὀψωνίοις opsōniois wages G3800 ὑμῶν.¶ humōn of you G4771

The early church

All 6
(Orat. 19.) For by wages he refers to the imperial pay, and the rewards assigned to distinguished actions.
Gregory of Nazianzus · d. 390Catena Aurea (Aquinas, 1274)
Teaching thereby that wages were affixed to military duty, lest men seeking for gain should go about as robbers.
Ambrose of Milan · d. 397Catena Aurea (Aquinas, 1274)
(cont. Faust. lib. xxii c. 74.) For he knew that soldiers, when they use their arms, are not homicides, but the ministers of the law; not the avengers of their own injuries, but the defenders of the public safety. Otherwise he might have answered, "Put away your arms, abandon warfare, strike no one, wound no one, destroy no one." For what is it that is blamed in war? Is it that men die, who some time or other must die, that the conquerors might rule in peace? To blame this is the part of timid not religious men. The desire of injury, the cruelty of revenge, a savage and pitiless disposition, the fierceness of rebellion, the lust of power, and such like things are the evils which are justly blamed in wars, which generally for the sake of thereby bringing punishment upon the violence of those who resist, are undertaken and carried on by good men either by command of God or some lawful authority, when they find themselves in that order of things in which their very condition justly obliges them either to command such a thing themselves, or to obey when others command it.
Augustine of Hippo · d. 430Catena Aurea (Aquinas, 1274)
It follows, But the soldiers also asked him. In the justest manner he advises them not to seek gain by falsely accusing those whom they ought to benefit by their protection. Hence it follows, And he says unto them, Strike no one, (i. e. violently,) nor accuse any falsely, (i. e. by unjustly using arms,) and be content with your wages.
Bede · d. 735Catena Aurea (Aquinas, 1274)
(Hom. in Matt. 11.) But John's desire when he spoke to the Publicans and soldiers, was to bring them over to a higher wisdom, for which as they were not fitted, he reveals to them commoner truths, lest if he put forward the higher they should pay no attention thereto, and be deprived of the others also.
John Chrysostom · d. 407Catena Aurea (Aquinas, 1274)

Commentary

Matthew Henry · Verses 1–14

The scope and design of John's ministry were, to bring the people from their sins, and to their Saviour. He came preaching, not a sect, or party, but a profession; the sign or ceremony was washing with water. By the words here used John preached the necessity of repentance, in order to the remission of sins, and that the baptism of water was an outward sign of that inward cleansing and renewal of heart, which attend, or are the effects of true repentance, as well as a profession of it. Here is the fulfilling of the Scriptures, Is 40:3, in the ministry of John. When way is made for the gospel into the heart, by taking down high thoughts, and bringing them into obedience to Christ, by levelling the soul, and removing all that hinders us in the way of Christ and his grace, then preparation is made to welcome the salvation of God. Here are general warnings and exhortations which John gave. The guilty, corrupted race of mankind is become a generation of vipers; hateful to God, and hating one another. There is no way of fleeing from the wrath to come, but by repentance; and by the change of our way the change of our mind must be shown. If we are not really holy, both in heart and life, our profession of religion and relation to God and his church, will stand us in no stead at all; the sorer will our destruction be, if we do not bring forth fruits meet for repentance. John the Baptist gave instructions to several sorts of persons. Those that profess and promise repentance, must show it by reformation, according to their places and conditions. The gospel requires mercy, not sacrifice; and its design is, to engage us to do all the good we can, and to be just to all men. And the same principle which leads men to forego unjust gain, leads to restore that which is gained by wrong. John tells the soldiers their duty. Men should be cautioned against the temptations of their employments. These answers declared the present duty of the inquirers, and at once formed a test of their sincerity. As none can or will accept Christ's salvation without true repentance, so the evidence and effects of this repentance are here marked out.

Read Matthew Henry on Luke 3 →

Cross-references

13

Topics

IntegrityAccusation, FalseFalse TeachersSoldiersInjusticeContentmentWages

Cross-references: Treasury of Scripture Knowledge. Hebrew and Greek data from STEPBible.org (Tyndale House, Cambridge), CC BY 4.0. Library: sources.