Luke 21 — Clausal Layout (English)

independentparticipialrelativepurposecausecomparativecontentconditionaldashed = verbless / suspended

Flush-left = a main (independent) clause. Each dependent line begins directly beneath the word it attaches to in the line above — the anchor word is dotted-underlined, and lights up when you hover its dependent clause; each tag also names the attachment. A dashed border marks verbless, elliptical, or suspended lines. Where a long sentence's staircase runs wider than the page, the diagram scrolls sideways. (In print, or without JavaScript, lines fall back to stepped indent columns.)

The widow's two lepta 21:1–4

vv. 1–2 — the upward glance: the rich, and one poor widow

And looking up,participial — antecedent aorist participle — forward-leaning on εἶδεν; the glance that frames the contrast

he saw the rich casting their gifts into the treasury.independent — the rich, plural and anonymous — the trumpet-shaped chests of the Court of the Women

And he saw a poor widow casting in there two lepta,independent — εἶδεν doubled — one πενιχρά (NT hapax) against the many rich; the λεπτόν the smallest coin, 1/128 denarius

vv. 3–4 — the verdict: more than all of them

and he said:independent — the speech-frame of the pronouncement

'Truly I tell youcontent — Ἀληθῶς — Luke's Greek equivalent of the solemn ἀμήν-formula

that this poor widow has cast in more than all of them;content — the verdict inverts the visible arithmetic — πτωχή now, stronger than πενιχρά: destitute

for all these out of their abundance cast into the gifts,cause — the ground — ἐκ τοῦ περισσεύοντος: gifts skimmed from surplus

but she out of her poverty cast in all the livelihood that she had.'cause — the antithesis — ὑστέρημα against περίσσευμα; πάντα τὸν βίον, her whole means of living, the measure of the gift its cost

The temple's fall foretold and the disciples' question 21:5–7

vv. 5–6 — the admired stones and the demolition oracle

And while some were speaking about the temple,participial — genitive absolute — forward-leaning on εἶπεν; unnamed admirers (Luke's τινες, not Mark's disciple) set the occasion

that it was adorned with beautiful stones and votive offerings,content — the content of their admiration — Herod's ashlars and the ἀναθήματα (the golden vine, the dedicated crowns); perfect κεκόσμηται, a standing adornment

he said:independent — the answering oracle — speech-frame

'As for these things that you behold —content — pendent (hanging) nominative — the admired topic suspended, resumed only by the prophecy; asyndeton lends abruptness

the days will comecontent — the prophetic idiom 'days are coming' (LXX; cf. Luke 5:35; 17:22; 19:43)

in which not one stone will be left upon anotherrelative — the demolition — fulfilled A.D. 70; the λίθοι καλοί of v. 5 answered stone for stone

that will not be thrown down.'relative — the doubled negative relative makes the demolition exhaustive — καταλύω, dismantled stone from stone

v. 7 — the double question: when, and what sign

And they asked him, saying:independent — unnamed askers, still in the temple — Luke drops Mark's Olivet setting and four names

'Teacher, when then will these things be,content — the first question — πότε: timing; οὖν draws the inference from the oracle of v. 6

and what will be the signcontent — the second question, verbless — the demanded σημεῖον the discourse will both give (v. 20) and withhold

when these things are about to take place?'conditional — backward ὅταν on σημεῖον (typed cnd; no temporal key) — μέλλῃ, imminence built into the asking

The discourse — deceivers, persecutions, Jerusalem's desolation, the Son of Man, and the watch 21:8–36

vv. 8–9 — the keynote: do not be deceived, do not be terrified

And he said:independent — the discourse's first frame — Luke will re-frame it twice more (vv. 10, 29)

'Watch outcontent — the keynote imperative — deception, not delay, the first danger named

that you are not led astray;content — μή + subjunctive of apprehension — the feared passive: being deceived

for many will come in my name,cause — the ground of the warning — impostors trading on his name

saying:participial — speech-participle — the deceivers' two lines follow

'I am he,'content — the messianic self-claim, verbless in force — Ἐγώ εἰμι, the divine self-designation arrogated

and, 'The time has drawn near!'content — the second cry — Jesus' own perfect ἤγγικεν (10:9, 11) counterfeited as date-setting; Luke alone records it

Do not go after them.content — prohibitive aorist — do not so much as set out; ὀπίσω, the vocabulary of discipleship refused to impostors

And when you hear of wars and tumults,conditional — fronted ὅταν (typed cnd; no temporal key) — forward-leaning on μὴ πτοηθῆτε; ἀκαταστασίαι, Luke's insurrections for Mark's 'rumors of wars'

do not be terrified;content — the command of calm — πτοέω, panic forbidden to the forewarned

for these things must take place first,cause — the apocalyptic δεῖ — necessity inside God's plan; πρῶτον, sequence not signal

but the end is not at once.cause — verbless — οὐκ εὐθέως, Luke's delaying word for Mark's οὔπω: wars are preliminaries, not the end

vv. 10–11 — nation against nation: the catalogue of woes

Then he said to them:independent — the second frame — imperfect ἔλεγεν, continued teaching; the discourse re-keyed

'Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom;content — Isa 19:2 / 2 Chr 15:6 — the scripted convulsions; the verb gapped in the second pair

and there will be great earthquakes, and in various places famines and pestilences;content — the terrestrial list — λιμοὶ καὶ λοιμοί, the famous assonant pair; distributive κατὰ τόπους

and there will be terrors and great signs from heaven.content — the celestial list — φόβητρα (NT hapax), dread portents; the asked-for σημεῖα (v. 7) come plural and terrifying

vv. 12–19 — but before all this: persecution as testimony, the promised mouth, the hairs of your head

But before all these things they will lay their hands on you and persecute you,content — πρὸ δὲ τούτων πάντων — Luke's timeline reset: the disciples' trials precede the cosmic woes; ἐπιβάλλειν τὰς χεῖρας, the idiom of arrest (Acts 4:3; 5:18)

handing you over to the synagogues and prisons,participial — participle of means — παραδίδωμι, the verb of Jesus' own passion; the venues of Acts foretold

as you are led away before kings and governors for the sake of my name;participial — the arenas widen — Jewish courts to Roman tribunals (Herod and Pilate, Agrippa and Festus); ἕνεκεν τοῦ ὀνόματος, the charge is Christ

It will turn out for you as an occasion for testimony.content — asyndetic verdict — ἀποβαίνω εἰς: the dock turned pulpit; the persecutions' God-given outcome

Settle it therefore in your heartscontent — the Semitic idiom 'put in your hearts' — a resolve commanded in advance

not to prepare your defense beforehand;content — the content of the resolve — προμελετάω, the rhetor's term for rehearsing a speech (NT hapax); no prepared ἀπολογία

for I will give you a mouth and wisdomcause — the ground — emphatic ἐγώ: Christ himself the giver, where Mark 13:11 names the Spirit; fulfilled in Stephen (Acts 6:10)

which none of your adversaries will be able to withstand or contradict.relative — the irresistibility clause — ἀντιστῆναι ἢ ἀντειπεῖν, neither withstand nor out-argue; ἅπαντες … οὐ, the Semitic 'none at all'

You will be handed over even by parents and brothers and relatives and friends,content — Mic 7:6 — betrayal reaches the closest bonds; the fourfold list widens Mark's family pairs

and some of you they will put to death,content — partitive ἐξ ὑμῶν — some, not all: Stephen and James ahead (Acts 7; 12:2)

and you will be hated by all because of my name.content — future periphrastic — a standing state of hatred; the name of v. 8, now the offense

But not a hair of your head will perish.content — the proverbial assurance (1 Sam 14:45; Luke 12:7), Luke's own — set unharmonized beside the deaths of v. 16: preservation deeper than survival

By your endurance you will gain your lives.content — the section's maxim — instrumental ἐν; future κτήσεσθε read over the imperative κτήσασθε: endurance the means, the ψυχή the prize (the paradox of v. 18 resolved)

vv. 20–24 — Jerusalem surrounded: the days of vengeance and the times of the Gentiles

But when you see Jerusalem surrounded by armies,conditional — fronted ὅταν (typed cnd) — forward-leaning on γνῶτε; Luke's concrete siege (στρατόπεδα, NT hapax) replaces Mark's abomination of desolation — the sign made legible

then knowcontent — the apodosis — τότε answers the ὅταν; recognition commanded

that its desolation has drawn near.content — ἐρήμωσις — Daniel's word (Dan 9:27 LXX) kept even as the βδέλυγμα is dropped; the perfect ἤγγικεν, imminence as settled fact

Then let those in Judea flee to the mountains,content — the first of three third-person imperatives — flight, not defense (the Pella tradition remembers it obeyed)

and let those inside the city depart,content — ἐκχωρέω (NT hapax) — out of the doomed city, against every siege instinct

and let those in the countryside not enter it,content — the third command — the walls that promise refuge are the trap

because these are days of vengeance,cause — the ground of all three commands — ἡμέραι ἐκδικήσεως (Hos 9:7; Deut 32:35): the siege read as covenant judgment

to fulfill all that is written.purpose — τοῦ + infinitive of purpose/result — πάντα τὰ γεγραμμένα: the city's fall inside Scripture, not outside it

Woe to those who are pregnant and to those nursing in those days!content — verbless woe — compassion, not curse: the burdened cannot run (cf. 23:29, where the barren are called blessed)

For there will be great distress upon the land and wrath against this people,cause — the ground — ἀνάγκη on the land, ὀργή on this people: judgment named without euphemism

and they will fall by the edge of the swordcause — coordinate in the ground — στόμα μαχαίρης, the LXX's 'mouth of the sword' (Josephus counts the fallen in myriads)

and be led captive among all the nations;cause — the exile renewed — αἰχμαλωτίζω, deportation language of 587 B.C. replayed

and Jerusalem will be trodden down by the Gentiles,cause — future periphrastic — sustained trampling (Dan 8:13; Zech 12:3 LXX; cf. Rev 11:2)

until the times of the Gentiles are fulfilled.conditional — backward ἄχρι οὗ (typed cnd; no temporal key) — the καιροὶ ἐθνῶν, Luke's own phrase: Gentile dominion measured and bounded, judgment with a term set to it

vv. 25–28 — cosmic signs and the Son of Man: straighten up, your redemption nears

And there will be signs in sun and moon and stars,content — the scene widens from city to cosmos — Isa 13:10; the σημεῖον of v. 7 answered at last, in the heavens

and on the earth distress of nations in perplexity at the roaring of the sea and the surge,content — verbless — συνοχή, ἀπορία, σάλος, a cluster of rare words (Ps 65:7): the nations at a loss before the unquiet deep

people fainting from fear and foreboding of what is coming upon the world;participial — genitive absolute painting the distress — ἀποψύχω (NT hapax), breath failing; προσδοκία, dread of what is still only expected

for the powers of the heavens will be shaken.cause — the ground of the terror — Isa 34:4: the cosmic frame itself convulses before the theophany

And then they will see the Son of Man coming in a cloud with power and great glory.content — Dan 7:13 — the climax; Luke's singular νεφέλη, the one theophanic cloud (9:34–35; Acts 1:9): the advent visible to all

Now when these things begin to take place,participial — genitive absolute — forward-leaning on ἀνακύψατε; at the mere onset, not the end

straighten up and lift your heads,content — the discourse's reversal — while the nations faint, the disciples stand erect: the same signs, opposite posture

because your redemption is drawing near.'cause — the ground — ἀπολύτρωσις, Luke's only use in the Gospels: what terrifies the world is the believers' release approaching

vv. 29–33 — the fig tree and all the trees: this generation, the abiding words

And he told them a parable:independent — the third frame — Luke alone labels the fig tree a παραβολή

'Look at the fig tree, and all the trees;content — καὶ πάντα τὰ δένδρα — Luke's widening: the sign generalized beyond the fig, Israel's emblem, to every tree

when they have already put out leaves,conditional — fronted ὅταν (typed cnd) — forward-leaning on γινώσκετε; προβάλλω, the bursting into leaf

you see for yourselves and knowcontent — the apodosis — ἀφ’ ἑαυτῶν: the inference needs no teacher; the participle kept in line

that summer is now near;content — ἐγγύς — the nearness-word the application will reuse of the kingdom

So also you,content — the suspended subject — held across its protasis until γινώσκετε

when you see these things taking place,conditional — the ὅταν of the application (typed cnd) — forward-leaning on γινώσκετε; ταῦτα, the discourse's own events

knowcontent — the application's verb — imperative answering v. 30's habitual knowing

that the kingdom of God is near.content — Luke names the referent Mark leaves unexpressed — not 'he' but ἡ βασιλεία τοῦ θεοῦ: the kingdom is the summer

Truly I say to you,content — the ἀμήν-formula — oath-strength asseveration over the timing

that this generation will not pass awaycontent — ἡ γενεὰ αὕτη — the crux: most naturally Jesus' contemporaries, who saw Jerusalem fall; 'the Jewish people' and 'the final generation' are the rival escapes, named and declined

until all has taken place.conditional — backward ἕως ἄν (typed cnd; no temporal key) — πάντα: the sign-complex through v. 28, or all of it; the scope left open

Heaven and earth will pass away,content — the cosmos conceded transient — παρέρχομαι carried over from v. 32

but my words will never pass away.content — οὐ μή with the future — absolute denial; Isa 40:8, said of God's word, claimed for his own

vv. 34–36 — the closing charge: take heed to yourselves, stay awake and pray

But take heed to yourselves,content — προσέχετε ἑαυτοῖς — Luke's own closing charge (12:1; 17:3; Acts 20:28) where Mark tells the doorkeeper parable: the danger turned inward

lest your hearts be weighed down with dissipation and drunkenness and the cares of life,content — the feared clause — κραιπάλη (NT hapax, the hangover's heaviness), μέθη, and the μέριμναι βιωτικαί: the seed choked among thorns (8:14) restated for the last days

and that day come upon you suddenlycontent — coordinate in the μήποτε-clause — αἰφνίδιος, the suddenness of 1 Thess 5:3; ἡ ἡμέρα ἐκείνη, the Day absolute

like a snare.comparative — the verbless simile — Isa 24:17's snare on the earth-dwellers; the Day a trap sprung on the unwatchful

For it will come upon all who dwell on the face of the whole earth.cause — the ground — ἐπεισέρχομαι (NT hapax), it rushes in; πάσης τῆς γῆς: universal, so no one may presume exemption

But stay awake at all times,content — the positive counterpart — ἀγρυπνέω for Mark's γρηγορεῖτε; ἐν παντὶ καιρῷ, vigilance without calendar

prayingparticipial — participle of means — wakefulness practiced as petition (cf. 18:1, 'always to pray and not lose heart')

that you may have strength to escape all these things that are about to take place,purpose — the prayer's aim — κατισχύσητε read over the later καταξιωθῆτε ('be counted worthy'): strength asked, not status

and to stand before the Son of Man.'content — the second infinitive — σταθῆναι, to be made to stand (divine passive): not escape only but vindication before the Judge of v. 27; the discourse's last word

The coda — days in the temple, nights on Olivet 21:37–38

vv. 37–38 — the rhythm of the final week, and the people at dawn

Now by day he was teaching in the temple,independent — periphrastic imperfect — the customary rhythm; accusative τὰς ἡμέρας, day after day

but at night he would go out and lodge on the mount called Olivet;independent — the nightly withdrawal — αὐλίζομαι, he bivouacked on the very mount of the discourse's name; the pattern Judas will exploit (22:39)

and all the people would come to him early in the morning in the templeindependent — ὀρθρίζω (NT hapax) — πᾶς ὁ λαός rising at dawn: the public ministry closes with the people still eager, the leaders' hour not yet come

to hear him.purpose — infinitive of purpose — hearing him the chapter's last act, as watching for him was its last command

Analysis. Luke 21 sets the widow's two lepta at the door of the Olivet discourse: the same upward glance (Ἀναβλέψας, v. 1) that sees the rich casting their gifts sees the poor widow whose whole βίος outweighs them all — true value measured against the doomed splendor the next verses admire. Where Mark hangs his whole discourse on one ἤρξατο λέγειν, Luke re-frames it three times — Ὁ δὲ εἶπεν (v. 8), Τότε ἔλεγεν αὐτοῖς (v. 10, the imperfect of continued teaching), Καὶ εἶπεν παραβολὴν αὐτοῖς (v. 29) — so the page shows three blue cnt catenae at constant depth under three speech-anchors, the discourse re-keyed at each frame. Against that column the grammar indents as in Mark: fronted ὅταν-temporals lean forward anchor-less on their apodoses (vv. 9, 20, 30, 31), the γάρ-grounds hang cau beneath the commands they motivate (vv. 8, 9, 15, 23, 35), and πρὸ δὲ τούτων πάντων (v. 12) resets the timeline — persecution comes BEFORE the cosmic catalogue, and is turned to μαρτύριον by Christ's own promise of στόμα καὶ σοφίαν (v. 15), the hairs of your head kept even of those put to death (vv. 16, 18 — the paradox is left standing, resolved only by v. 19's κτήσεσθε). Luke's distinctives are kept explicit: the encircling στρατόπεδα replace Mark's abomination (v. 20), and trampled Jerusalem runs ἄχρι οὗ the καιροὶ ἐθνῶν are fulfilled — a bounded, therefore hope-bearing, judgment (v. 24); the fig tree is joined by πάντα τὰ δένδρα (v. 29); and the closing charge is Lukan paraenesis — προσέχετε ἑαυτοῖς against κραιπάλη, μέθη and the μέριμναι βιωτικαί, ἀγρυπνεῖτε δεόμενοι for strength to escape and to stand before the Son of Man (vv. 34–36). Text-critical sides follow the data file: the future κτήσεσθε at v. 19 ('you will gain your lives,' not the imperative), κατισχύσητε at v. 36 over the later καταξιωθῆτε. At v. 32 ἡ γενεὰ αὕτη is glossed with its natural sense — Jesus' contemporaries, who saw the city fall — with the rival referents ('the Jewish people,' 'the final generation') named, not adopted; v. 33 then sets the permanence of his words above heaven and earth. The narrative coda (vv. 37–38) closes the public ministry in a rhythm: days teaching in the temple, nights on Olivet, and all the people rising at dawn to hear him.