Luke 21:1

And he looked up, and saw the rich men casting their gifts into the treasury.

EXPOSITORY (ENGLISH BIBLE)

Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers

XXI.

(1-4) And saw the rich men casting their gifts.—See Notes on Mark 12:41-44. This may, perhaps, be thought of as one of the incidents which St. Luke derived from verbal communication with his brother-evangelist. (See Introduction.)

Benson Commentary

Luke 21:1-4. And he looked up — From those on whom his eyes were fixed before; and saw the rich men casting their gifts, &c. — See on Mark 12:41.

Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary

21:1-4 From the offering of this poor widow, learn that what we rightly give for the relief of the poor, and the support of God's worship, is given unto God; and our Saviour sees with pleasure whatever we have in our hearts to give for the relief of his members, or for his service. Blessed Lord! the poorest of thy servants have two mites, they have a soul and a body; persuade and enable us to offer both unto thee; how happy shall we be in thine accepting of them!

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

See this explained in the notes at Mark 12:41-44.

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary

CHAPTER 21

Lu 21:1-4. The Widow's Two Mites.

1. looked up—He had "sat down over against the treasury" (Mr 12:41), probably to rest, for He had continued long standing as he taught in the temple court (Mr 11:27), and "looking up He saw"—as in Zaccheus' case, not quite casually.

the rich, &c.—"the people," says Mr 12:41 "cast money into the treasury, and many rich east in much"; that is, into chests deposited in one of the courts of the temple to receive the offerings of the people towards its maintenance (2Ki 12:9; Joh 8:20).Luke 21:1-4 Christ values the poor widow’s two mites above all

the larger offerings of the rich,

Luke 21:5,6 foretells the destruction of the temple,

Luke 21:7-24 the signs and calamities that should precede and

accompany it,

Luke 21:25-33 and what should happen at the time of the Son of

man’s coming.

Luke 21:31-38 He exhorteth to watchfulness and prayer.

Ver. 1-4. We met with this piece of history, Mark 12:41-44. Mark telleth us, that Christ was sitting right over against the treasury. For other things necessary to be known to understand this piece of history, See Poole on "Mark 12:41", and following verses to Mark 12:44.

Gill's Exposition of the Entire Bible

And he looked up,.... As Christ sat over against the treasury, looking upon the ground, he lift up his eyes; for the treasury was not in an high place, or above Christ, who was right against it. The Syriac, Arabic, and Persic versions leave out this clause.

And saw the rich men casting their gifts into the treasury; See Gill on Mark 12:41.

Geneva Study Bible

And {1} he looked up, and saw the rich men casting their gifts into the treasury.

(1) According to the judgment of God, the poor may even exceed the rich in generosity and liberality.

EXEGETICAL (ORIGINAL LANGUAGES)

Meyer's NT Commentary

Luke 21:1-4. See on Mark 12:41-44.

ἀναβλέψας] previously, Luke 20:45 ff., Jesus spoke to His disciples surrounding Him; now He lifts up His glance from these to the people farther off, and sees, etc. He must therefore have stood not far from the γαζοφυλάκ.

τοὺς βάλλοντας … πλουσίους] is connected together: the rich men casting in. After πλουσίους might also be supplied ὄντας (Bornemann), in which case, however, the meaning comes out less appropriately, for they were not rich people only who were casting in (comp. Mark 12:41).

Luke 21:2. τινα καὶ χήραν (see the critical remarks): aliquam, eamque viduam, egenam. Comp. Plat. Phaed. p. 58 D, and thereon Stallbaum. Καί is: and indeed.

Luke 21:4. οὗτοι refers to the more remote subject (Förtsch, Obss. in Lys. p. 74; Winer, p. 142 [E. T. 195]). Jesus points to the persons in question.

εἰς τὰ δῶρα] to the gifts (that were in the treasury), not: guae donarent (Beza), to which the article is opposed.

Expositor's Greek Testament

Luke 21:1-4. The widow’s offering (Mark 12:41-44), unfortunately placed at the beginning of this chapter, which should have been devoted wholly to Christ’s solemn discourse concerning the future. Yet this mal-arrangement corresponds to the manner in which Lk. introduces that discourse, by comparison with Mt. and Mk., markedly unemphatic.

Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges

Luke 21:1-4. The Widow’s Mite.

1. he looked up] The expression seems to shew that He was sitting with downcast eyes, saddened, perhaps, in His human spirit and agitated by the great Denunciation; but this last little incident is ‘like a rose amid a field of thistles,’—an act genuinely beautiful in the desert of ‘official devotion.’

the rich men] More literally, “He saw those who were casting their gifts into the treasury—rich men.” St Mark tells us that the gifts were large (Mark 12:41).

into the treasury] See John 8:20. This was in the Court of the Women. The High Priest Jehoiada had put a chest for this purpose at the entrance of the House, 2 Kings 12:9; see Nehemiah 10:38; Jos. B. J. vi. 5; Antt. xix. 6, § 1, and 2Ma 3:6-12. It contained the Corban, Matthew 27:6. But in our Lord’s day there were thirteen chests called Shopheroth, from their trumpet-shaped openings, adorned with various inscriptions. These rich men do not seem to have been observing the injunctions both sacred and Talmudic to give secretly, Matthew 6:4; Matthew 6:18.

Bengel's Gnomen

Luke 21:1. Ἀναβλέψας, having looked up) from His hearers to others. [Whatever thou mayest do, Jesus looks at thee also, and at thy action, and the intention with which thou doest it.—V. g.]

Pulpit Commentary

Verses 1-4. - The widow's mite. We find this little sketch only here and in St. Mark (Mark 12:41-44). The Master was sitting - resting, probably, after the effort of the great denunciation of the scribes and Pharisees - in the covered colonnade of that part of the temple which was open to the Jewish women. Here was the treasury, with its thirteen boxes in the wall, for the reception of the alms of the people. These boxes were called shopheroth, or trumpets, because they were shaped like trumpets, swelling out beneath, and tapering upward into a narrow mouth, or opening, into which the alms were dropped. Some of these "trumpets" were marked with special inscriptions, denoting the destination of the offerings. Verse 1. - And he looked up, and saw the rich men outing their gifts into the treasury. It is not improbable that a special stream of almsgivers were just then passing through the temple court, many being specially impressed by the solemn words they had just been listening to. Luke 21:1

Vincent's Word Studies

Treasury

See on Mark 12:41.

Rich

Standing last and emphatically in the sentence," Saw them that were casting, etc. - rich men." Not the rich only were casting in. Compare Mark 12:41.