Semantic Analysis — Luke 1–24 (English → Romanian)

Scope and Method

This analysis follows the baseline Romans Language Package’s conventions exactly. Where a term already exists in translation_memory.json / bible_term_registry.json (the Romans baseline), the recorded Romanian rendering is reused without change, and this document only notes how the Lukan context inflects or reinforces that established rendering. Where Luke introduces vocabulary absent from Romans, a new candidate rendering is proposed with the same rigor, feeding forward into 08_core_glossary.md and, ultimately, the doctrine risk registry.

Risk tiers (Critical / High / Medium / Low) follow the baseline’s definitions exactly.

A major new collision zone not present in Romans at all must be flagged here: Luke 1–2’s Infancy Narrative introduces sustained Marian material (the Annunciation, “full of grace,” “mother of my Lord,” the Magnificat, Simeon’s sword prophecy). Romans never discusses Mary; Luke does, extensively, and Romanian Orthodox devotional life (Theotokos veneration, the “Bucură-te” akathist hymns, icons) is exceptionally dense here. This is treated as a standing Critical-risk category throughout Chapters 1–2.

A second major new collision zone: the Last Supper words of institution (Luke 22:19-20), entirely absent from Romans, land directly on Orthodox Eucharistic (real-presence, sacramental) theology.

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CORE PASSAGE: Luke 4:16-21 — Verse-by-Verse Analysis

Luke 4:16

“And he came to Nazareth, where he had been brought up. And he went to the synagogue on the Sabbath day, as was his custom, and he stood up to read.”

Term	Original	Transliteration	Literal Meaning	Semantic Range	English Variants	Contextual Theological Meaning	Romanian Rendering & Risk
Nazareth	Ναζαρά / Ναζαρέτ	Nazara / Nazaret	proper name of Galilean town	fixed toponym	”Nazareth”	Establishes Jesus’s ordinary human upbringing (cf. “Nazarene” as a term of scorn, John 1:46); sets stage for the shock of 4:22-30.	”Nazaret.” Low risk. Standard, unambiguous proper name across all Romanian Bible traditions.
synagogue	συναγωγή	synagōgē	a gathering, assembly place	Jewish congregational worship site; can mean the building or the assembly	”synagogue”	The institutional setting where Scripture was read and taught publicly; Jesus’s custom of attendance affirms continuity with covenant worship, not rejection of it.	”sinagogă.” Low risk. Established loanword, unambiguous.
Sabbath	σάββατον	sabbaton	rest-day	the seventh-day rest commanded in Torah; can denote the day itself or the broader Sabbath institution	”Sabbath,” “Sabbath day”	Programmatic: Jesus announces his mission on the Sabbath, and Sabbath healings become a recurring flashpoint (Luke 6, 13, 14).	“ziua Sabatului” / “Sabatul.” Medium risk. Romanian Orthodox practice centers Sunday (“Duminică,” the Lord’s Day/Resurrection day) rather than Saturday Sabbath observance; must not let readers assume Sabbath = Sunday, nor treat Sabbath-keeping as binding church practice — Luke narrates a Jewish institution Jesus engages on its own terms.
custom	τὸ εἰωθός	to eiōthos	that which was accustomed/habitual	settled practice, habit	”as was his custom,” “as he usually did”	Underscores Jesus’s lifelong faithful observance of synagogue worship, grounding his authority to interpret Scripture in ordinary covenant piety, not novelty.	”după obiceiul Său.” Low risk.
read	ἀναγινώσκω	anaginōskō	to read (aloud, publicly)	reading generally; specifically the formal public reading of Scripture in worship	”to read,” “stood up to read”	Public, authoritative reading of the prophetic scroll — the act that frames the entire pericope.	”a citi.” Low risk.

Luke 4:17

“And the scroll of the prophet Isaiah was given to him. He unrolled the scroll and found the place where it was written,“

Term	Original	Transliteration	Literal Meaning	Semantic Range	English Variants	Contextual Theological Meaning	Romanian Rendering & Risk
scroll/book	βιβλίον	biblion	small book, scroll	any written document; here a rolled parchment/papyrus scroll	”book,” “scroll”	The physical vehicle of prophetic revelation Jesus now embodies.	”cartea” (or more precisely “sulul cărții”). Low risk.
prophet	προφήτης	prophētēs	one who speaks forth (for God)	God’s spokesperson generally; here specifically Isaiah as author of the scroll read	”prophet”	Reuse of baseline term — see translation_memory.json.	”proroc” — reuse baseline exactly. Low risk (per baseline).
Isaiah	Ἠσαΐας	Ēsaias	proper name	fixed proper name	”Isaiah,” “Esaias”	The prophet whose Servant/Jubilee oracle (Isaiah 61:1-2) Jesus reads and claims to fulfill.	”Isaia” — matches baseline bible_term_registry.json transliteration standard already listed for the Romans package’s proper-name conventions. Low risk.
unrolled	ἀνοίξας (from ἀναπτύσσω/ἀνοίγω)	anoixas	having opened / unrolled	to open, unroll a scroll; can also carry the broader sense “to open” (eyes, mouth, Scripture)	“unrolled,” “opened”	Physical action that becomes theologically loaded: Jesus “opens” the scroll just as, in 24:32/45, the risen Christ “opens” the disciples’ minds and the Scriptures — a deliberate Lukan bookend.	”a deschis (sulul).” Low risk, but flag the literary connection to Luke 24:32,45 for translator awareness (same Romanian verb “a deschide” should be used consistently in both passages to preserve the bookend).
found	εὑρίσκω	heuriskō	to find	discovery, locating something sought	”found,” “found the place”	Signals deliberate selection of this specific text, not random reading.	”a găsi.” Low risk.
written	γεγραμμένον (γράφω)	gegrammenon	having been written	fixed written record; perfect tense stresses abiding, authoritative written status	”written,” “it was written”	Standard formula introducing an authoritative Scripture citation.	”era scris.” Low risk.

Luke 4:18

“The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim liberty to the captives and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty those who are oppressed,“

Term	Original	Transliteration	Literal Meaning	Semantic Range	English Variants	Contextual Theological Meaning	Romanian Rendering & Risk
Spirit of the Lord	πνεῦμα Κυρίου	pneuma Kyriou	Spirit of the Lord	the personal, divine Spirit; in Isaiah, the Spirit empowering the Servant/Messiah	”Spirit of the Lord,” “Spirit of Yahweh”	Identifies the Holy Spirit’s anointing as the ground of Jesus’s messianic mission — the Lukan Gospel’s programmatic statement of “The Holy Spirit’s Work in Salvation History."	"Duhul Domnului.” Critical risk. Builds on baseline holy_spirit/lord entries (Duhul Sfânt / Domnul); here “Duhul Domnului” (OT-flavored phrasing, cf. Isaiah 61:1 LXX) must be recognized by readers as the same Holy Spirit, not a lesser or different “spirit of Yahweh” figure. Must not be flattened into a generic “spirit of the age” idiom.
anointed	ἔχρισεν (χρίω)	echrisen	anointed, smeared with oil	ceremonial anointing for kingship, priesthood, or prophetic office; root of “Christ/Messiah” (Χριστός = “Anointed One”)	“anointed,” “has anointed me”	Directly grounds Jesus’s identity as the Messiah/Christ (Χριστός) — the verbal root of the title itself. Must connect for the reader to Χριστός/Mesia.	”a uns” / “M-a uns.” Critical risk. Orthodox liturgical life uses “ungere” extensively for the sacrament of Chrismation/Anointing of the Sick (Taina Mirungerii, Taina Sfântului Maslu); the verse’s christological anointing (Jesus as the uniquely Anointed One) must not be collapsed into, or overshadowed by, the sacramental anointing category familiar from lived Orthodox practice. A translator note clarifying “this anointing establishes Jesus as the Christ/Messiah, the unique referent of Mesia, not a sacramental rite administered to him” is required.
proclaim good news	εὐαγγελίσασθαι (εὐαγγελίζομαι)	euangelisasthai	to announce good news	to preach/proclaim the gospel; the verbal form of εὐαγγέλιον	”to preach good news,” “to proclaim the gospel,” “to bring good news”	The verb form of the baseline noun “gospel” (evanghelie). Establishes that the gospel is, from its first Lukan definition, specifically good news to the poor.	”a vesti Evanghelia” / “a vesti Vestea cea bună.” High risk. Must reuse the baseline noun root evanghelie (see gospel in translation memory) rather than a generic “veste bună” divorced from the established term, so that the verbal and nominal forms are recognizably the same concept throughout both Romans and Luke curricula.
poor	πτωχοί (πτωχός)	ptōchoi	poor, destitute, beggarly	economic destitution; by extension in Luke, social powerlessness and marginalization generally	”the poor,” “the destitute”	Central to Luke’s distinctive theme “Good News to the Poor and Marginalized” — this is Luke’s programmatic thesis verse for that doctrine, paired with Luke 6:20 (“Blessed are you who are poor”) and 7:22.	”săracii.” High risk. Must retain concrete, economic-social force; Orthodox and general Romanian piety has a strong almsgiving tradition (milostenie) that could domesticate “săraci” into a generic object of charity rather than the direct beneficiaries and dignified recipients of Jesus’s own saving mission. Do not spiritualize into “poor in spirit” (that is a distinct Matthean phrase, absent here).
sent	ἀπέσταλκέν (ἀποστέλλω)	apestalken	has sent	commissioning, sending with a task or authority	”he has sent me”	Same verbal root as “apostle” (ἀπόστολος) — Jesus himself is sent, establishing the pattern of divine sending that undergirds all later apostolic and disciple mission in Luke-Acts.	”M-a trimis.” Medium risk. Should be recognized by readers as cognate with “apostol” (baseline reuse) — the Sender/sent pattern that grounds Christian mission (misiune, baseline reuse).
proclaim liberty	κηρύξαι … ἄφεσιν	kēryxai aphesin	to proclaim/herald release	κηρύσσω: to announce publicly, herald; ἄφεσις: release, liberation, forgiveness/pardon (same root used for “forgiveness of sins” elsewhere in Luke)	“proclaim liberty,” “proclaim release,” “preach deliverance”	Deliberately double-edged: ἄφεσις is the same word Luke later uses for the forgiveness of sins (1:77; 3:3; 24:47). The Isaiah citation’s “liberty to the captives” (originally exile-return imagery) becomes, in Luke’s theology, inseparable from the forgiveness of sins Jesus’s ministry brings.	”eliberare” (liberty/release) here, while later occurrences of the same Greek root in the sense “forgiveness of sins” render as “iertare.” Critical risk. This is a genuine translation decision point: Romanian, like English, typically needs two different words (eliberare vs. iertare) for a single Greek lexeme (ἄφεσις), which risks obscuring Luke’s deliberate wordplay. A translator note must record that “eliberare” (4:18) and “iertare” (1:77, 3:3, 24:47) translate the same underlying Greek word, so teaching material can make the connection explicit even though the Romanian text itself must use two different words for naturalness.
captives	αἰχμαλώτοις (αἰχμάλωτος)	aichmalōtois	prisoners of war, captives	literal captivity/exile; by extension spiritual/social bondage	”captives,” “prisoners”	Echoes Israel’s exile and anticipates a wider liberation Jesus brings — captivity to sin, oppression, and marginalization together.	”robilor” / “captivilor.” Medium risk. Avoid a purely literal-carceral reading that would exclude the passage’s broader liberative force (oppression, sin, social bondage) that the sermon’s remainder (healing, exorcism, table fellowship with outcasts) goes on to demonstrate.
recovering of sight	ἀνάβλεψιν (ἀνάβλεψις)	anablepsin	seeing again, recovery of sight	literal restoration of physical sight; in the Isaiah 61 LXX context also read messianically	”recovering of sight,” “sight,” “new sight”	Fulfilled literally throughout Luke’s healing narratives (e.g., 7:21-22, 18:35-43) — Jesus’s miracles are themselves the “fulfillment” language of v.21 in visible action.	”vederea celor orbi” / “orbii să vadă.” Medium risk. Keep the literal, physical sense primary (consistent with Luke’s healing narratives) without over-allegorizing into purely “spiritual sight” at the expense of the concrete miracles that follow.
blind	τυφλοῖς (τυφλός)	typhlois	blind (persons)	literal blindness; occasionally figurative of spiritual blindness elsewhere in Scripture, though not the primary sense here	”the blind”	Concrete social category among the marginalized whom Jesus’s ministry directly serves — ties to the “Marginalized” doctrine alongside “poor,” “captives,” “oppressed."	"orbilor.” Low-Medium risk.
set at liberty	ἀποστεῖλαι ἐν ἀφέσει	aposteilai en aphesei	to send in release	to send/dispatch in a state of release; effectively “to set free"	"to set at liberty,” “to release,” “to set free”	Repeats and reinforces the ἄφεσις (liberty/release) motif a second time within the citation, underscoring its centrality to Jesus’s self-announced mission.	”să dea drumul” / “să elibereze.” High risk — same ἄφεσις-wordplay concern as above; keep consistent with the “eliberare” choice used earlier in the same verse for internal coherence.
oppressed	τεθραυσμένους (τεθραυσμένος, from θραύω)	tethrausmenous	crushed, shattered, broken	those crushed/broken by oppression; can denote physical brokenness or social/economic crushing	”the oppressed,” “the brokenhearted” (in some English variants merging with Isaiah 61:1’s separate clause), “the downtrodden”	Names the socially crushed as direct objects of Jesus’s liberating mission — the fullest concrete expression in this verse of “Good News to … the Marginalized."	"asupriții” / “cei zdrobiți.” Medium risk. Choose a Romanian term that conveys being crushed by others’ action (oppression) rather than only inward emotional brokenness, to preserve the social-justice dimension Luke intends.

Luke 4:19

“to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.”

Term	Original	Transliteration	Literal Meaning	Semantic Range	English Variants	Contextual Theological Meaning	Romanian Rendering & Risk
proclaim	κηρύξαι (κηρύσσω)	kēryxai	to herald, announce publicly	authoritative public proclamation, as by a herald	”proclaim,” “preach,” “announce”	Repeats v.18’s κηρύσσω, bracketing the whole citation as a single authoritative herald-announcement — the same verb underlying later gospel proclamation throughout Luke-Acts.	”a vesti.” Medium risk. Keep consistent with the rendering chosen for the same verb elsewhere in Luke (e.g., 8:1, 9:2, 24:47) so the “proclamation” thread is traceable across the whole book.
year	ἐνιαυτόν (ἐνιαυτός)	eniauton	year	a year, a fixed period; in this context evokes the Jubilee year (Leviticus 25) of debt-release and land-restoration	”year”	Invokes the Jubilee background: a specific, bounded season of comprehensive divine restoration, now inaugurated in Jesus’s person and ministry.	”anul.” Medium risk. Without background teaching, Romanian readers (like most modern readers) will miss the Jubilee resonance entirely; requires an explicit teaching note tying this to Leviticus 25, since the word itself carries no automatic Jubilee association.
the Lord’s favor	δεκτόν (δεκτός)	dekton	acceptable, welcome, favorable	that which is pleasing/acceptable; in this Isaianic phrase, a season of God’s gracious favor and restoration	”the Lord’s favor,” “the acceptable year of the Lord,” “the year of the Lord’s favor”	The climactic phrase of the citation: Jesus announces the in-breaking of the long-promised era of God’s saving favor — the theological core of the whole core passage.	”anul plăcut Domnului” (the year pleasing/acceptable to the Lord). Critical risk. This phrase is the passage’s theological center of gravity. Must not be reduced to a vague “good time” or “blessed season”; must carry the weight of an epoch-inaugurating divine act of favor (grace, har, in action) — directly connecting v.19 to the baseline Critical term har/grace and to the doctrine “Kingdom of God Present and Future.”

Luke 4:20

“And he rolled up the scroll and gave it back to the attendant and sat down. And the eyes of all in the synagogue were fixed on him.”

Term	Original	Transliteration	Literal Meaning	Semantic Range	English Variants	Contextual Theological Meaning	Romanian Rendering & Risk
rolled up	πτύξας (πτύσσω)	ptyxas	having folded/rolled up	to roll or fold a scroll closed	”rolled up,” “closed”	Marks the formal close of the reading, before Jesus’s own authoritative comment begins.	”a înfășurat (sulul).” Low risk.
attendant	τῷ ὑπηρέτῃ (ὑπηρέτης)	hypēretē	servant, assistant, minister	a subordinate officer/assistant; in synagogue context, the attendant responsible for the scrolls	”attendant,” “assistant,” “minister”	A minor liturgical office, underscoring the ordinary, orderly synagogue setting in which an extraordinary claim is about to be made.	”slujitorul.” Low risk.
sat down	ἐκάθισεν (καθίζω)	ekathisen	sat down	to sit; in a teaching context, the posture of an authoritative rabbi/teacher beginning instruction	”sat down”	The posture of teaching authority — Jesus takes the seat of one who now expounds, not merely reads, the text.	”S-a așezat.” Low risk.
eyes … fixed	ἦσαν … ἀτενίζοντες (ἀτενίζω)	ēsan atenizontes	were gazing intently	to look fixedly, stare intently, gaze with sustained attention	”were fixed on him,” “were gazing at him”	Signals the congregation’s rapt anticipation of what this hometown son will say about the text he has just read — narrative tension before the shocking claim of v.21.	”priveau țintă la El.” Low risk.

Luke 4:21

‘And he began to say to them, “Today this Scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing.”’

Term	Original	Transliteration	Literal Meaning	Semantic Range	English Variants	Contextual Theological Meaning	Romanian Rendering & Risk
began to say	ἤρξατο λέγειν (ἄρχομαι)	ērxato legein	began to speak	to begin an action; formulaic Lukan introduction to a significant pronouncement	”began to say,” “he said”	Standard narrative formula, but here introducing the single most theologically loaded sentence in the pericope.	”a început să le spună.” Low risk.
Today	σήμερον	sēmeron	today, this very day	the present day; in Luke’s theology, a recurring marker of the present arrival of salvation (cf. 2:11; 19:5,9; 23:43)	“today,” “this day”	A distinctively Lukan salvation-historical marker: God’s promised future breaks decisively into the present moment — the temporal heart of “Kingdom of God Present and Future."	"Astăzi.” Critical risk. Must be rendered with full force as a real, historical, present-tense claim (not a timeless liturgical “today” divorced from Jesus’s actual hearers) — while also alert to the fact that Orthodox liturgical usage often re-actualizes “today” language (e.g., Nativity/Nativity hymnody’s “today” formulas) as an asset: Romanian Orthodox hearers are already primed to hear “Astăzi” as a live, participatory liturgical announcement, which can reinforce rather than dilute Luke’s point if taught explicitly.
Scripture	ἡ γραφὴ αὕτη (γραφή)	hē graphē hautē	this writing/Scripture	a specific passage of Scripture (here, the Isaiah citation just read); by extension the authoritative sacred writings generally	”this Scripture,” “this passage”	Identifies the Isaiah 61 oracle specifically as the Scripture now fulfilled — grounding the doctrine “Fulfillment of Prophecy” precisely at this verse, the programmatic hinge of the whole Gospel.	”Scriptura aceasta.” High risk. Consistent with baseline doctrine fulfillment_of_prophecy; must be clearly tied to the specific Isaiah citation just read, not treated as a vague reference to “the Bible” in general.
fulfilled	πεπλήρωται (πληρόω)	peplērōtai	has been fulfilled, has been filled up	to fill, complete, bring to full realization; of prophecy, to bring about its intended fulfillment	”has been fulfilled,” “is fulfilled,” “has come true”	The single most important verb in the core passage: Jesus asserts, in his own hometown synagogue, that Isaiah’s Jubilee-Servant oracle finds its fulfillment in his own person and present ministry — the foundational Christological and salvation-historical claim of the entire Gospel.	”s-a împlinit.” Critical risk. Perfect tense (completed action with abiding present result) must not be flattened into a simple past (“was fulfilled, once, and that’s over”) nor into a merely future hope; must convey a decisive fulfillment that remains presently and abidingly true. This is the verbal anchor later echoed at 24:44 (“everything written about me … must be fulfilled”), and the two occurrences should use the same Romanian verb for the deliberate Lukan bookend.
hearing	ἐν τοῖς ὠσὶν ὑμῶν (ἀκοή/οὖς)	en tois ōsin hymōn	in your ears	the ears; by extension, the act of hearing/perceiving	”in your hearing,” “in your ears”	Emphasizes that this fulfillment is not abstract but concretely, audibly present to these specific listeners — a direct, personal address demanding a response (which Luke 4:22-30 shows was mixed).	“în auzul vostru” / “chiar în auzul vostru.” Low-Medium risk.

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Chapter-by-Chapter Study, Luke 1–24

Chapter 1 — Infancy Announcements, Magnificat, Benedictus

New load-bearing terms (in addition to core-passage vocabulary already fixed):

• favored one / full of grace — Gk. κεχαριτωμένη (kecharitōmenē, Luke 1:28), lit. “having been graced/favored.” Semantic range: perfect passive participle of χαριτόω, “to bestow grace/favor upon”; denotes one who is the object of God’s gracious action, not a description of inherent personal merit. English variants: “favored one,” “full of grace,” “highly favored.” Contextual meaning: God’s sovereign, unmerited grace (χάρις — cf. baseline har) singling out Mary for the unique role of bearing the Messiah. Critical risk. Romanian Orthodox liturgical tradition (the “Bucură-te, ceea ce ești plină de har” refrain used throughout Marian hymnody and akathists) already renders this phrase and gives it centuries of devotional weight; this is simultaneously an asset (deep cultural resonance) and a hazard (risk of importing later doctrines — sinlessness, co-mediatorial status — not asserted by the text itself). Render as “ceea ce ești plină de har,” matching established liturgical usage, but require a translator note distinguishing the verse’s actual claim (God’s gracious favor enabling Mary’s unique vocation) from later devotional/dogmatic accretions.
• mother of my Lord — Gk. ἡ μήτηρ τοῦ κυρίου μου (Luke 1:43). Literal: “the mother of my lord.” Semantic range: a title of honor recognizing the unborn child’s lordship; the biblical seed of the later conciliar title “Theotokos” (Θεοτόκος, “God-bearer”), though that precise term postdates Luke. Contextual meaning: Elizabeth’s Spirit-inspired recognition of the incarnate Lord’s presence in Mary’s womb. Critical risk. Directly touches the doctrine of the Incarnation (baseline întrupare) and the deity/lordship of Christ (baseline Domnul); render literally as “mama Domnului meu,” reusing baseline Domnul, while flagging for theologian review given its centrality to Orthodox Mariology.
• redeem / redemption — Gk. λυτρόω / λύτρωσις (lytroō / lytrōsis, Luke 1:68, “he has … redeemed his people”), lit. “to release by paying a ransom price.” Semantic range: buying back a slave or captive; by extension, God’s decisive liberating rescue of his people. English variants: “redeemed,” “brought redemption,” “ransomed.” Contextual meaning: the Benedictus grounds the whole Gospel’s salvation narrative in the language of covenantal rescue. Critical risk — genuinely new: not present in the Romans TM at all (the baseline glossary has no “redemption” entry). Proposed Romanian rendering: “a răscumpăra” / “răscumpărare,” a standard theological term but one that must be introduced with care since it is not inherited from the Romans package; recurs at Luke 21:28 (ἀπολύτρωσις) and load-bears through the whole book.
• horn of salvation — Gk. κέρας σωτηρίας (keras sōtērias, Luke 1:69), lit. “horn of salvation.” Semantic range: a Hebraic idiom (cf. Psalm 18:2) for strength/power, specifically royal-messianic strength to save. Contextual meaning: the Davidic king’s decisive saving power, fulfilled in Jesus. High risk. The animal-horn idiom is opaque in Romanian without explanation; render as “un izvor de mântuire” or literally “un corn de mântuire” with an explanatory note, reusing baseline mântuire.
• tender mercy — Gk. σπλάγχνα ἐλέους (splanchna eleous, Luke 1:78), lit. “bowels/inward parts of mercy.” Semantic range: the seat of deep visceral compassion; a Hebraic idiom for God’s heartfelt compassion. Contextual meaning: grounds John’s ministry and Jesus’s coming in God’s own deep compassion, previewing the “Jesus’ Compassion” doctrine developed narratively throughout Luke. Medium risk. Render as “îndurarea plină de milă a Dumnezeului nostru” or similar; avoid a coldly forensic rendering that loses the visceral, affectionate force of σπλάγχνα.
• humble estate / low estate — Gk. ταπείνωσις (tapeinōsis, Luke 1:48), lit. “lowliness.” Semantic range: social/economic lowliness or humility of position; related adjective ταπεινός (tapeinos, “humble/lowly,” 1:52). Contextual meaning: God’s characteristic pattern of exalting the lowly and humbling the proud — a major structural theme recurring at 14:11, 18:14. Medium-High risk. Romanian “smerenie” is a deeply established Orthodox ascetical-spiritual virtue term (a chief monastic virtue); Luke’s usage here is primarily about God’s reversal of social status (the poor/lowly exalted), not primarily an inner ascetical disposition to be cultivated — the two senses must be distinguished for learners, without denying that Luke’s Gospel also commends humility as a virtue (14:11).
• mercy — Gk. ἔλεος (eleos, Luke 1:50,54,58,72,78), lit. “mercy, compassion shown to the undeserving.” Standard NT term; recurs constantly through Luke (e.g., 10:37, 15:20, 18:38-39). Medium risk. Render as “milă” / “îndurare”; keep distinct from baseline grace (har) — mercy withholds deserved judgment, grace bestows undeserved favor; both matter for Luke’s soteriology and should not be merged into one Romanian word throughout.
• prophet of the Most High — Gk. προφήτης Ὑψίστου (prophētēs Hypsistou, Luke 1:76). Reuses baseline prophet (proroc); “Most High” (Ὕψιστος) is a divine title. Low-Medium risk. Render “Cel Preaînalt” for Ὕψιστος, a standard, established Romanian liturgical divine title.

Terms reused without change from baseline: Holy Spirit (Duhul Sfânt, 1:35,41,67), Son of God (Fiul lui Dumnezeu, 1:32,35 — of the yet-unborn Christ, full Critical force retained), covenant (legământ, 1:72), David (David, 1:27,32,69), Israel (Israel, 1:54,68).

Chapter 2 — Nativity, Shepherds, Presentation, Simeon and Anna

New load-bearing terms:

• Savior — Gk. σωτήρ (sōtēr, Luke 2:11), lit. “one who saves, deliverer.” Semantic range: a title applied in the Greco-Roman world to gods, emperors, and benefactors, but here claimed exclusively for the newborn Christ. English variants: “Savior,” “Deliverer.” Contextual meaning: the direct titular anchor of the baseline noun salvation (mântuire) — Jesus is the Savior, not one savior-figure among the Roman imperial cult’s many “sōtēr” claimants (an important collision Luke’s original readers would have felt sharply). Critical risk — genuinely new term, not in the Romans TM (which has “salvation” but not the agent-noun “Savior”). Proposed rendering: “Mântuitor,” built transparently on the baseline root mântuire, preserving lexical continuity between the Romans and Luke curricula.
• Christ the Lord — Gk. Χριστὸς Κύριος (Christos Kyrios, Luke 2:11). Reuses baseline messiah/Mesia and lord/Domnul directly, combined; render “Hristos, Domnul,” a title combination requiring both baseline terms to appear together without qualification.
• manger — Gk. φάτνη (phatnē, Luke 2:7,12,16), lit. “feeding trough.” Low risk, but a major cultural/liturgical asset: the manger scene is central to Romanian Christmas (“Nașterea Domnului”) iconography and hymnody. Render “iesle.”
• glory of the Lord — reuses baseline glory/slavă (Luke 2:9,14). Medium risk, consistent with baseline notes: an asset given constant Orthodox doxological usage.
• peace on earth — reuses baseline peace/pace (Luke 2:14); note the angelic proclamation’s cosmic scope should not be narrowed to inner tranquility alone.
• consolation of Israel — Gk. παράκλησις τοῦ Ἰσραήλ (paraklēsis, Luke 2:25), lit. “comfort/encouragement.” Medium risk. Render “mângâierea lui Israel,” reusing baseline Israel; ties messianic hope to concrete national expectation later reframed (in Luke-Acts) to include the Gentiles.
• light for revelation to the Gentiles — reuses baseline gentiles/neamuri (Luke 2:32); directly anticipates the curriculum doctrine “Jesus as Savior for All Nations.”
• sword will pierce your soul — Gk. ῥομφαία (rhomphaia, “sword,” Luke 2:35), a prophecy of Mary’s future sorrow. Critical risk given the Marian collision zone flagged above — must be translated plainly as prophetic anguish without amplifying it into a developed co-suffering/co-redemptrix theology the text itself does not assert.
• Passover — Gk. πάσχα (pascha, Luke 2:41). Medium risk as asset: “Paști”/“Sfintele Paști” is the central feast of Romanian Orthodox liturgical life (cf. baseline note on resurrection as a cultural asset); here it denotes the Jewish festival Jesus’s family observes, a distinct but related sense that should be taught with care to avoid conflating Passover-the-Jewish-feast with Pascha-the-Christian-Easter-feast, even though they share a Romanian root word.

Chapter 3 — John the Baptist’s Ministry, Genealogy

New load-bearing terms:

• repentance — Gk. μετάνοια (metanoia, Luke 3:3,8), lit. “a change of mind/heart.” Semantic range: a decisive inward turning that produces outward change of life direction; not mere regret. English variants: “repentance,” “turning,” “conversion of heart.” Contextual meaning: the theme announced at John’s ministry’s outset and carried through the entire Gospel (5:32; 15:7,10; 24:47) — one of the eight curriculum doctrines in its own right. Critical risk — genuinely new, not in Romans TM. Proposed rendering: “pocăință” / verb “a se pocăi.” Romanian Orthodox culture has an established, sacramentally-anchored category, “Taina Pocăinței” (the Sacrament/Mystery of Confession), administered by a priest; this is not wrong but risks narrowing Luke’s call to a decisive personal, Spirit-wrought turning of the whole life (available to every hearer, not only through the confessional rite) into merely “going to confession.” Requires an explicit teaching note in every occurrence.
• baptism — Gk. βάπτισμα / βαπτίζω (baptisma / baptizō, Luke 3:3,7,12,16,21), lit. “immersion, washing.” Semantic range: John’s preparatory water rite of repentance, distinguished explicitly in the text itself (3:16) from the coming baptism “with the Holy Spirit and fire.” English variants: “baptism,” “baptize.” Contextual meaning: John’s baptism is preparatory and repentance-signifying, not yet the full Trinitarian sacrament. Critical risk — genuinely new, not in Romans TM (Romans discusses baptism thematically at 6:3-4 but the term itself is absent from the baseline glossary). Proposed rendering: “botez”/“a boteza,” the standard, unambiguous Romanian term across all traditions; the risk is exclusively in explaining the distinction between John’s baptism and the later Christian sacrament (Taina Botezului), which Orthodox theology holds to be regenerative — this curriculum must present John’s baptism accurately as preparatory without either diminishing or anachronistically inflating it into the full sacrament.
• fruit worthy of repentance — reuses μετάνοια above; “fruit” (καρπός, karpos) low risk, standard agricultural metaphor for observable life-change.
• wrath to come — Gk. ὀργή (orgē, Luke 3:7). Medium risk. Render “mânia (care vine),” standard.
• tax collectors / soldiers ethical instructions — introduces τελώνης (telōnēs, “tax collector,” Luke 3:12), a socially despised occupational class central to the “Table Fellowship with Sinners” doctrine developed later (5:27-32; 7:34; 15:1; 18:10-14; 19:2-10). Medium risk. Render “vameș,” the standard, well-established Romanian term (also used in Orthodox liturgical readings, e.g., the Publican’s prayer).
• Son of God (of Adam) — Luke 3:38 calls Adam “son of God” (τοῦ θεοῦ). Critical distinction risk: this is a different, non-unique sense of “son of God” — Adam as creature made by God — from the baseline Critical term son_of_god (Fiul lui Dumnezeu, capitalized, denoting Christ’s unique, eternal Sonship). Render as lowercase, generic “fiu al lui Dumnezeu” here to visually and grammatically distinguish it from the capitalized “Fiul lui Dumnezeu” reserved for Christ, preventing confusion between the two entirely different theological categories.

Terms reused without change: Holy Spirit descending as a dove (Duhul Sfânt, 3:22); “You are my beloved Son” (Fiul, of Christ, full Critical force, 3:22); law/lege (implicit background); prophet/proroc (Isaiah citation, 3:4).

Chapter 4 (remainder, vv. 1-15, 22-44) — Temptation, Rejection at Nazareth, Capernaum Ministry

New load-bearing terms beyond the core passage (vv. 16-21, treated above):

• tempter / devil — Gk. ὁ διάβολος (diabolos, Luke 4:2,3,5,6,13), lit. “slanderer, accuser.” Semantic range: the personal spiritual adversary, not an impersonal force of evil. High risk. Romanian folk culture carries a rich, sometimes folkloric “diavol”/“drac” vocabulary; the curriculum must keep the biblical category personal, morally serious, and doctrinally precise (a real spiritual adversary opposing God’s kingdom) rather than a folkloric bogeyman figure. Render “diavolul,” the standard term, with a clarifying note.
• worship — Gk. προσκυνέω (proskyneō, Luke 4:7,8), lit. “to bow down, prostrate oneself in homage.” Semantic range: physical/spiritual acts of homage ranging from respectful obeisance to full religious worship due to God alone. High risk. Orthodox devotional life includes extensive veneration practices toward icons, relics, and saints, traditionally distinguished theologically (veneration/proskynesis vs. worship/latria due to God alone) — but this Lukan text (“worship the Lord your God, and him only shall you serve”) is Jesus’s own emphatic claim that worship belongs to God exclusively. Render “a se închina”; requires a translator note affirming exclusive worship of God without adjudicating the separate historical Orthodox-iconoclast debate over veneration versus worship, since Luke’s text does not address icons at all.
• authority — Gk. ἐξουσία (exousia, Luke 4:32,36), lit. “power, authority, right to act.” Medium-High risk. Render “putere”/“autoritate”; distinguishes Jesus’s teaching/exorcism authority from mere impressive rhetoric — an authority that will recur as a major theme (5:24; 9:1; 20:2; 22:53).
• unclean spirit / demon — Gk. πνεῦμα ἀκάθαρτον / δαιμόνιον (pneuma akatharton / daimonion, Luke 4:33,35,41). Medium risk. Render “duh necurat” / “demon,” standard; keep personal and morally serious, as with διάβολος above.
• rebuked — Gk. ἐπιτιμάω (epitimaō, Luke 4:35,39,41), “to command with authority, rebuke.” Low risk.
• Kingdom of God preached (4:43) — reuses baseline kingdom_of_god/împărăția lui Dumnezeu.

Chapter 5 — Calling of Disciples, Leviticus Healing, Call of Levi

New load-bearing terms:

• follow me — Gk. ἀκολούθει μοι (akolouthei moi, from ἀκολουθέω, Luke 5:27), lit. “follow/accompany me.” Semantic range: literal physical accompaniment; theologically, committed personal allegiance and apprenticeship to Jesus. High risk. Central to the “Cost and Joy of Discipleship” doctrine; render “vino după Mine” / “urmează-Mă,” ensuring it is not reduced to admiration for a teacher but understood as total reorientation of life (illustrated by Levi leaving his tax booth immediately, 5:28).
• leprosy / leper — Gk. λεπρός (lepros, Luke 5:12). Medium risk. Standard term “lepros”/“lepră,” carrying Levitical ritual-impurity and social-exclusion background relevant to the “marginalized” doctrine; render with a note on ritual exclusion so the healing’s social-reintegration significance is not lost.
• fishers of men — Gk. ἀνθρώπους ἔσῃ ζωγρῶν (anthrōpous esē zōgrōn, Luke 5:10), lit. “you will be catching men (alive).” Mission metaphor; low-medium risk.
• “I have not come to call the righteous but sinners to repentance” (Luke 5:32) — combines reused terms righteous (dreptate-family adjective δίκαιος), sinner (Gk. ἁμαρτωλός, hamartōlos, new — lit. “one who misses the mark, transgressor”; render “păcătos,” reusing baseline sin/păcat root), called (reuse chemat), and repentance (pocăință, new above). Critical risk as a whole programmatic verse: this is the single-sentence thesis of the “Table Fellowship with Sinners” doctrine and must be rendered so the paradox (Jesus’s mission is to sinners, not the self-sufficiently righteous) is unmistakable, not softened into generic moral exhortation.

Chapter 6 — Sermon on the Plain: Beatitudes and Woes, Love of Enemies, the Twelve

New load-bearing terms:

• blessed — Gk. μακάριος (makarios, Luke 6:20-22), lit. “happy, fortunate, blessed.” Semantic range: not subjective emotional happiness but an objective, eschatologically-grounded state of divine favor and flourishing, pronounced over the poor, hungry, weeping, and persecuted. English variants: “blessed,” “happy,” “fortunate.” Critical risk. Must not be rendered with a term implying present material or emotional well-being (which the beatitudes’ own content — poverty, hunger, weeping — directly contradicts); render “ferice de” / “fericiți,” the standard Romanian Bible term, with a teaching note that this is God’s pronounced favor upon those the world does not consider fortunate — directly reinforcing “Good News to the Poor and Marginalized.”
• woe — Gk. οὐαί (ouai, Luke 6:24-26), an interjection of lament/warning. High risk. Render “vai,” the standard interjection; paired structurally with the beatitudes as prophetic reversal-pronouncements over the rich, full, laughing, and well-regarded — must retain full prophetic-judgment force, not be softened into mild regret.
• Lord of the Sabbath — reuses sabbath/Sabat (introduced ch.4) and lord/Domnul (Luke 6:5); Jesus’s claim to authority over the Sabbath institution. High risk, ties Sabbath controversies to Christ’s lordship directly.
• love your enemies — Gk. ἀγαπᾶτε τοὺς ἐχθρούς ὑμῶν (agapate tous echthrous hymōn, Luke 6:27,35), using ἀγάπη-family love (self-giving, willed love, distinct from erotic or merely affectionate love). High risk. Render “iubiți-vă vrăjmașii,” standard; central ethical instruction, must not be diluted into mere tolerance.
• merciful — Gk. οἰκτίρμων (oiktirmōn, Luke 6:36), “compassionate, merciful.” Medium risk. Render “milostiv,” reinforcing the ἔλεος/mercy theme from ch.1.
• the twelve apostles — reuses baseline apostle/apostol (Luke 6:13).

Chapter 7 — Widow of Nain, John’s Question, the Sinful Woman, the Centurion

New load-bearing terms:

• compassion — Gk. σπλαγχνίζομαι (splanchnizomai, Luke 7:13), lit. “to be moved in one’s inward parts/bowels.” Semantic range: deep, visceral, gut-level compassion moving to action (not mere sentiment). English variants: “had compassion,” “was moved with pity,” “his heart went out to her.” Contextual meaning: central verb of the “Jesus’ Compassion” doctrine, recurring at the Good Samaritan (10:33) and the Prodigal’s father (15:20). High risk — genuinely new, not in Romans TM. Proposed rendering: “I s-a făcut milă” / “a fost mișcat de milă,” conveying the visceral, active dimension the Romanian “milă” alone (a more general noun) can understate if not reinforced by a strong verb phrase.
• widow — Gk. χήρα (chēra, Luke 7:12; recurs 18:1-8; 21:1-4). Medium risk. Render “văduvă,” standard; socioeconomically vulnerable class central to “poor and marginalized” doctrine.
• save / saved — Gk. σῴζω (sōzō, Luke 7:50, “your faith has saved you”), the verbal form of baseline noun salvation/mântuire. Critical risk. Render “te-a mântuit,” reusing the baseline root exactly, so the verb and noun forms are recognizably unified across Romans and Luke curricula.
• sinful woman / sinner — reuses ἁμαρτωλός/păcătos (ch.5); table-fellowship setting at a Pharisee’s house directly instantiates the doctrine “Jesus’ Compassion and Table Fellowship with Sinners.”
• “her sins … are forgiven” — reuses ἄφεσις-family forgiveness vocabulary (see ch.1, core passage v.18); render “iertate,” consistent with established rendering.

Chapter 8 — Parable of the Sower, Calming the Storm, Legion, Woman with the Flow of Blood, Jairus’s Daughter

New load-bearing terms:

• word of God — Gk. ὁ λόγος τοῦ θεοῦ (ho logos tou theou, Luke 8:11,21), reuses baseline god/Dumnezeu; “word” (λόγος) standard, low-medium risk, foundational to the Sower parable’s interpretation.
• parable — Gk. παραβολή (parabolē, Luke 8:4,9-10), lit. “a placing beside, comparison.” Semantic range: an extended figurative teaching form deliberately concealing as much as revealing (8:10, “that seeing they may not see”). Medium risk. Render “pildă,” the standard, well-established Romanian term (distinct from a mere fable or proverb); requires a note on the deliberate concealing/revealing dual function Luke assigns it.
• your faith has made you well/saved you — reuses σῴζω (see ch.7).
• fear / believe — Gk. φοβέομαι / πιστεύω (phobeomai / pisteuō, Luke 8:50), the latter reusing baseline faith-family verb (a se crede/a avea credință). Low-medium risk.

Chapter 9 — Mission of the Twelve, Feeding of the Five Thousand, Peter’s Confession, the Transfiguration, Passion Predictions, Cost of Discipleship Sayings

New load-bearing terms:

• Transfiguration — Gk. μετεμορφώθη (metemorphōthē, from μεταμορφόω, Luke 9:29), lit. “was transformed in form/appearance.” Medium risk, doctrinal asset. Like resurrection in the baseline, this is the basis of a major, culturally central Romanian Orthodox feast (“Schimbarea la Față,” Aug. 6) — the term already carries deep liturgical familiarity. The task is precision (a real, visible, bodily manifestation of Christ’s divine glory on the mountain, witnessed by Peter, James, and John) rather than mere folk-festival association. Render “s-a schimbat la față,” matching the established feast name exactly.
• “You are the Christ of God” — reuses baseline Mesia/Hristos (Luke 9:20). Critical risk, Peter’s confession, the Lukan parallel to Romans 10:9’s confession.
• take up his cross daily — Gk. σταυρός (stauros, Luke 9:23), lit. “cross” (the Roman execution implement); by extension, radical self-denying discipleship. English variants: “take up his cross,” “bear his cross.” Critical risk — genuinely new, not in the Romans TM (Romans discusses Christ’s death but the “cross” as a discipleship-cost term is absent from baseline glossary). Proposed rendering: “cruce” / “să-și ia crucea,” the standard, unambiguous Romanian term; central to the “Cost and Joy of Discipleship” doctrine, must retain the full, costly, self-denying force (reinforced by “daily,” καθ’ ἡμέραν, unique to Luke’s version of this saying) rather than becoming a vague metaphor for minor inconvenience.
• deny himself — Gk. ἀπαρνέομαι (aparneomai, Luke 9:23). High risk. Render “să se lepede de sine,” standard, strong term.
• lose his life / save it — Gk. ἀπολέσῃ / σώσῃ (Luke 9:24), a deliberate paradox using the same σῴζω root as elsewhere. High risk, must preserve the paradoxical structure exactly.
• Son of Man — Gk. ὁ υἱὸς τοῦ ἀνθρώπου (ho huios tou anthrōpou, Luke 9:22,26,44,58 and throughout Luke — Luke’s most frequent Christological self-designation for Jesus, ~25 occurrences total). Lit. “the son of the man.” Semantic range: a messianic self-designation drawing on Daniel 7:13-14’s exalted heavenly figure, while also carrying overtones of humble, suffering humanity — a deliberate paradox Jesus exploits throughout his ministry. Critical risk — genuinely new, not in the Romans TM. Proposed rendering: “Fiul Omului,” the standard, established rendering across all Romanian Bible traditions (Orthodox and Evangelical alike); must be clearly distinguished from the baseline Critical term son_of_god (Fiul lui Dumnezeu) — these are two distinct, both messianically loaded, titles that must never be merged or used interchangeably in translation.

Chapter 10 — Sending of the Seventy-Two, the Kingdom Near, the Good Samaritan, Mary and Martha

New load-bearing terms:

• the kingdom of God has come near — Gk. ἤγγικεν (ēngiken, from ἐγγίζω, Luke 10:9,11), lit. “has drawn near, has approached.” Semantic range: genuinely ambiguous between “has arrived/is now present” and “is imminent/about to arrive” — a debate that has occupied NT scholarship for a century. Critical risk. This is the linguistic crux of the doctrine “The Kingdom of God Present and Future”: the Romanian rendering must preserve the same productive ambiguity present in the Greek (avoid resolving it prematurely toward either a purely present, already-fully-arrived kingdom, or a purely future, not-yet-present one). Render “s-a apropiat,” which carries the same dual “near/arriving” sense in Romanian as the Greek, and flag for theologian review whenever it recurs (11:20; 17:21; 21:31).
• neighbor — Gk. πλησίον (plēsion, Luke 10:27,29,36), lit. “the one near, close by.” Medium risk. Render “aproapele,” the standard Romanian Bible term; central to the Good Samaritan’s redefinition of neighbor-love across ethnic/religious boundary lines, directly reinforcing “Savior for All Nations and All People.”
• Samaritan — Gk. Σαμαρίτης (Samaritēs, Luke 10:33), a Jewish-adjacent but historically despised ethnic-religious out-group. Medium risk. Render “samarinean”; requires a background note (mutual Jewish-Samaritan hostility) for Romanian readers to feel the parable’s full shock, since no directly equivalent social category exists in the modern Romanian context, though the parable’s cross-group compassion principle transfers readily.
• compassion — reuses σπλαγχνίζομαι (ch.7) at Luke 10:33, the Samaritan’s decisive action.

Chapter 11 — The Lord’s Prayer, Teaching on Prayer, Beelzebul Controversy, Woes to the Pharisees

New load-bearing terms:

• prayer — Gk. προσευχή / προσεύχομαι (proseuchē / proseuchomai, Luke 11:1-13 throughout), lit. “prayer, to pray.” High risk — genuinely new as a standalone glossary entry (Romans TM has intercession/mijlocire but not the general term “prayer” itself). Proposed rendering: “rugăciune”/“a se ruga,” standard and unambiguous; central to the “Prayer and Dependence on God” doctrine. Note the connection to baseline intercession (mijlocire): the Lord’s Prayer models direct, dependent address to the Father, complementing rather than replacing the Spirit’s/Christ’s intercessory work taught in Romans 8.
• daily bread — Gk. τὸν ἄρτον … τὸν ἐπιούσιον (ton arton ton epiousion, Luke 11:3), containing the notoriously rare adjective ἐπιούσιος, whose precise meaning (“daily,” “for today,” “for tomorrow,” or “necessary for existence”) is genuinely disputed among Greek lexicographers — it is barely attested outside this prayer. Medium-High risk, flagged specifically as a translation-ambiguity term: Romanian, like most translation traditions, must choose one rendering (“pâinea noastră cea de toate zilele,” the standard, established liturgical phrasing used identically in the Orthodox Divine Liturgy’s own recitation of the Lord’s Prayer) while recording the genuine semantic uncertainty for teaching purposes. This is a doctrinal asset: the Romanian liturgical phrasing is already fixed and universally known, requiring no translation innovation.
• forgive us our sins as we forgive — reuses ἄφεσις-family/iertare vocabulary; Luke’s version (11:4) uses ἁμαρτίας directly (reuse baseline sin/păcat) alongside ὀφείλοντι (“one who owes,” debt-metaphor) — low-medium additional risk in the debt-metaphor nuance, otherwise reuse.
• sign of Jonah — Gk. σημεῖον (sēmeion, Luke 11:29-30), “sign, miraculous confirming mark.” Medium risk. Render “semn,” standard.
• woes to the Pharisees — reuses οὐαί/vai (ch.6).

Chapter 12 — Fear God Not Man, Blasphemy Against the Holy Spirit, the Rich Fool, Anxiety, Faithful Stewards

New load-bearing terms:

• blasphemy against the Holy Spirit — Gk. βλασφημία εἰς τὸ Ἅγιον Πνεῦμα (blasphēmia, Luke 12:10), lit. “slanderous/defamatory speech.” Critical risk. Render “hulă împotriva Duhului Sfânt,” reusing baseline holy_spirit/Duhul Sfânt; requires careful, pastorally sensitive theological framing (this describes a decisive, willful rejection of the Spirit’s witness to Christ, not any careless remark or momentary doubt) to avoid inducing unwarranted despair in readers, a well-documented pastoral hazard with this text across all traditions.
• treasure (in heaven) — Gk. θησαυρός (thēsauros, Luke 12:33-34). Low-medium risk, standard.
• little flock — Gk. ποίμνιον (poimnion, Luke 12:32). Low risk, standard pastoral metaphor.
• faithful steward — Gk. οἰκονόμος (oikonomos, Luke 12:42), “household manager, steward.” Medium risk. Render “ispravnic”/“administrator”; reinforces accountability themes echoing baseline’s universal_human_accountability doctrine category from Romans, now applied to stewardship of entrusted gifts/resources rather than moral guilt generally.

Chapter 13 — Repent or Perish, the Barren Fig Tree, Sabbath Healing, Kingdom Parables, the Narrow Door, Lament over Jerusalem

New load-bearing terms:

• repent or perish (Luke 13:3,5) — reuses μετάνοια/pocăință directly; “perish” (ἀπόλλυμι, apollymi) anticipates the “lost” vocabulary of ch.15. High risk, reinforcing repentance doctrine with urgency.
• kingdom of God like a mustard seed / like leaven (Luke 13:18-21) — reuses baseline kingdom_of_god; growth imagery is a doctrinal asset for teaching the “present and future” tension: small, hidden present beginnings with a certain, large future consummation. Medium risk.
• narrow door — Gk. θύρα (thyra, Luke 13:24), “door, gate.” Low-medium risk, standard exclusion/inclusion imagery.
• Jerusalem lament (Luke 13:34, “how often would I have gathered you”) — reuses compassion vocabulary (σπλαγχνίζομαι-adjacent, though here a different verb, ἐπισυνάγω, “to gather together”) in a judgment-oracle register; low-medium risk, standard.

Chapter 14 — Sabbath Healing, Humility at the Banquet, the Great Banquet, Cost of Discipleship

New load-bearing terms:

• the great banquet: poor, crippled, lame, blind invited (Luke 14:13,21) — reuses baseline-adjacent πτωχός/săraci (established in the core passage) plus two genuinely new terms: crippled — Gk. ἀνάπηρος (anapēros, Luke 14:13,21), “maimed, disabled.” Low-Medium risk. Render “neputincioși”/“schilozi.” lame — Gk. χωλός (chōlos, Luke 14:13,21), “lame.” Low risk. Render “șchiopi.” Together with “poor” and “blind,” this list of four categories forms Luke’s most explicit roster of the marginalized invited to full table fellowship in God’s kingdom, directly echoing and expanding the core passage’s Isaiah 61 categories (poor, captives, blind, oppressed) — a deliberate structural connection the curriculum should make explicit.
• humility / exaltation — reuses ταπεινόω/ὑψόω-family vocabulary from ch.1 (Magnificat); “whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted” (Luke 14:11). Medium risk, consistent with ch.1 notes on distinguishing social-reversal theme from purely ascetical “smerenie.”
• count the cost (tower-builder and king-at-war parables, Luke 14:28-33) — reuses discipleship-cost doctrine established at 9:23; low-medium additional risk.

Chapter 15 — the Lost Sheep, the Lost Coin, the Prodigal Son

New load-bearing terms:

• lost — Gk. ἀπολωλός (apolōlos, participle of ἀπόλλυμι, Luke 15:4,6,9,17,24,32), lit. “having been lost/destroyed.” Semantic range: something/someone gone astray from where it belongs, at risk of ultimate ruin, yet recoverable. English variants: “lost,” “that which was lost.” Contextual meaning: the organizing metaphor of Luke 15’s three parables and the direct object of Jesus’s mission statement at 19:10. High risk — genuinely new, not in Romans TM. Proposed rendering: “pierdut”/“cel pierdut,” standard and clear; central to both the “Repentance and Forgiveness” and “Compassion” doctrines.
• rejoice / joy — Gk. χαρά / χαίρω (chara / chairō, Luke 15:5-7,9-10,32), “joy, gladness; to rejoice.” Semantic range: not mere pleasant feeling but the specific, exuberant celebration of heaven itself over a recovered sinner. High risk — genuinely new as a standalone term (Romans TM lacks it), directly grounding the doctrine “the Cost and Joy of Discipleship” and the recurring motif of heavenly rejoicing over repentance. Proposed rendering: “bucurie”/“a se bucura,” standard; must retain the specific theological weight (heaven’s own celebration, not merely human contentment) whenever tied to repentance contexts (15:7,10) or the resurrection appearances’ joy (24:41,52).
• “he came to himself” (Luke 15:17) — idiomatic; low risk, standard rendering “și-a venit în fire.”
• “was dead and is alive again, was lost and is found” (Luke 15:24,32) — Medium-High risk: uses ζωή/ἀναζάω (“to live again”) in a metaphorical, familial-restoration sense, not the technical resurrection term ἀνάστασις. Must render in a way that clearly signals metaphorical restoration to relationship/life (e.g., “era mort și a înviat” is permissible idiomatically but requires a translator note distinguishing this metaphorical use from the literal, bodily, historical resurrection of Christ — baseline’s Critical resurrection/înviere doctrine — so that Romanian readers do not conflate the two senses of “a învia.”

Chapter 16 — the Shrewd Manager, God and Money, the Rich Man and Lazarus

New load-bearing terms:

• mammon — Gk. μαμωνᾶς (mamōnas, Luke 16:9,11,13), an Aramaic loanword for “wealth, money,” retained untranslated in Greek and traditionally in many Bible translations. Medium risk. Render either as a retained loanword “mamona” (following the pattern set by baseline’s retention of “Avva”) or as “avuția”/“banii,” depending on target register; recommend retaining “mamona” per established Romanian Bible tradition (both Orthodox and Cornilescu retain it), since it functions almost as a personified rival “master” to God in this text.
• Hades — Gk. ᾅδης (hadēs, Luke 16:23), the realm/place of the dead. Critical risk. Romanian Orthodox popular piety carries an extensive folk tradition of the soul’s journey after death (the “vămile văzduhului,” toll-houses of the air), which, while widespread devotionally, is extra-biblical and must not be read into this text. Render “locuința morților” or transliterated “Hades,” with a required translator/theologian note clarifying that the parable’s comfort/torment contrast (Lazarus vs. the rich man) illustrates a real post-mortem moral accounting without endorsing or requiring the toll-house tradition as the passage’s meaning.
• Abraham’s bosom — Gk. κόλπος Ἀβραάμ (kolpos Abraam, Luke 16:22), “the bosom/side of Abraham,” a Jewish idiom for the blessed rest of the righteous dead. Medium risk. Render “în sânul lui Avraam,” a recognizable idiom in Romanian as well; reuses baseline david-style proper-name convention pattern for Abraham (Avraam, per baseline’s own proper-name list).

Chapter 17 — On Forgiveness, Faith, the Ten Lepers, the Kingdom in Your Midst

New load-bearing terms:

• the kingdom of God is in your midst — Gk. ἐντὸς ὑμῶν (entos hymōn, Luke 17:21), lit. “within/inside you” or “in your midst/among you” — genuinely and famously ambiguous between an inward-spiritual sense and a communal/relational-presence sense. Critical risk, flagged specifically as a translation-ambiguity term for the “Kingdom Present and Future” doctrine; render “în mijlocul vostru” (favoring the “among you” sense, consistent with most modern scholarly consensus and avoiding an overly individualistic-interiorized misreading), while recording “înăuntrul vostru” as an alternative considered, per the baseline’s ambiguity-handling protocol.
• ten lepers, one Samaritan returns giving thanks — reuses λεπρός/lepros (ch.5), Σαμαρίτης/samarinean (ch.10), and baseline thanksgiving/mulțumire exactly (Luke 17:16, εὐχαριστία-cognate εὐχαριστῶν) — a direct, deliberate reuse point connecting Luke’s narrative to the baseline term.
• your faith has made you well — reuses σῴζω (ch.7).

Chapter 18 — the Persistent Widow, the Pharisee and the Tax Collector, the Rich Ruler, the Blind Beggar

New load-bearing terms:

• “God, be merciful to me, a sinner” — Gk. ὁ θεός, ἱλάσθητί μοι (hilasthēti moi, from ἱλάσκομαι, Luke 18:13), lit. “be propitiated to me” / “be merciful to me” — the same root-family as the propitiation vocabulary of Romans 3:25 (an atonement term the baseline doctrine risk registry flags as an automatic theologian-review trigger despite lacking its own TM entry). Critical risk. Standard Romanian rendering is the simple “ai milă de mine, păcătosul,” which is linguistically natural but risks losing the underlying propitiatory nuance (a plea for God’s wrath to be appeased, not only for kindness to be shown). Requires a translator note explaining the deeper root sense for theologian awareness, without necessarily forcing an artificial, unnatural Romanian phrase.
• “this man went down to his house justified” — Gk. δεδικαιωμένος (dedikaiōmenos, from δικαιόω, Luke 18:14), the verbal form of the baseline Critical noun justification/îndreptățire. Critical risk. This is Luke’s only explicit use of the justification-declaring verb and must be rendered “îndreptățit,” reusing the baseline noun root exactly, directly and deliberately connecting this parable to the Romans curriculum’s central justification doctrine.
• Son of David — Gk. υἱὸς Δαυίδ (huios Dauid, Luke 18:38-39), a messianic title tied to the Davidic covenant. High risk. Render “Fiul lui David,” reusing baseline david; connect explicitly to baseline’s seed_of_david/davidic_covenant doctrine categories from the Romans package.
• “who then can be saved?” — reuses σῴζω (ch.7).

Chapter 19 — Zacchaeus, the Parable of the Minas, the Triumphal Entry, Weeping over Jerusalem

New load-bearing terms:

• “salvation has come to this house” (Luke 19:9) — reuses baseline salvation/mântuire directly.
• “the Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost” (Luke 19:10) — a programmatic summary verse combining Son of Man (Fiul Omului, ch.9), σῴζω/a mântui (ch.7), and ἀπολωλός/pierdut (ch.15). Critical risk as the single clearest one-sentence statement of Luke’s entire soteriological purpose; all three component terms must appear in their already-established renderings, with no substitution.
• triumphal entry: “Blessed is the King” — Gk. εὐλογημένος (eulogēmenos, from εὐλογέω, Luke 19:38), lit. “well-spoken of, blessed” — a benedictory blessing distinct from the beatitude-adjective μακάριος (ch.6). Medium risk, requires distinguishing the two Greek “blessed” words for translator awareness even if Romanian naturally uses “binecuvântat” for this one and “ferice de/fericiți” for the beatitudes, avoiding confusion between the two categories. Note also that Luke’s version (uniquely among the Synoptics) omits “Hosanna” and instead echoes the angels’ song of 2:14 (“peace in heaven, glory in the highest”) — reuse baseline peace/pace and glory/slavă exactly, reinforcing the deliberate Lukan bookend between the Nativity and the entry into Jerusalem.
• weeping over Jerusalem (Luke 19:41) — reuses compassion/lament vocabulary from ch.13.

Chapter 20 — Question of Authority, the Wicked Tenants, Paying Taxes to Caesar, the Resurrection Debate, Son of David and Lord

New load-bearing terms:

• resurrection debate with the Sadducees (Luke 20:27-40) — reuses baseline Critical resurrection/înviere directly and precisely; “God … is not God of the dead, but of the living” (20:38) is a major doctrinal statement requiring the same rigor the baseline notes as already carried by Romanian liturgical life. Critical risk, no new term, full reuse.
• authority (Luke 20:2,8) — reuses ἐξουσία/putere-autoritate (ch.4).
• render to Caesar what is Caesar’s (Luke 20:25) — low risk, civil-authority theme echoing Romans 13’s government doctrine; no new theological term, but a useful cross-curriculum thematic bridge for teaching notes.
• Son of David / Lord (Psalm 110 citation, Luke 20:41-44) — reuses david/David and lord/Domnul.

Chapter 21 — the Widow’s Offering, Signs of the End, the Coming of the Son of Man

New load-bearing terms:

• the widow’s offering (Luke 21:1-4) — reuses χήρα/văduvă (ch.7) and πτωχός/săraci (core passage), her poverty framed as the standard of true generosity.
• redemption draws near — Gk. ἀπολύτρωσις (apolytrōsis, Luke 21:28), lit. “a buying back, ransoming,” the noun form built on the same root as λύτρωσις/răscumpărare (ch.1, Benedictus). Critical risk. Render “răscumpărarea,” maintaining lexical consistency with the ch.1 rendering, so that the whole Gospel’s redemption vocabulary (1:68; 21:28; and implicitly 24:21) is recognizable as a single unified theme by the time of the final chapters.
• Son of Man coming with power and great glory — reuses Son of Man/Fiul Omului (ch.9) and glory/slavă (baseline).

Chapter 22 — the Last Supper, the New Covenant, Gethsemane, the Arrest

New load-bearing terms:

• body / blood (words of institution) — Gk. σῶμα / αἷμα (sōma / haima, Luke 22:19-20), “This is my body … this cup … is my blood.” Critical risk — an entirely new collision zone, absent from Romans in narrative form. Romanian Orthodox sacramental theology holds a strong real-presence Eucharistic doctrine (Sfânta Împărtășanie/Sfânta Euharistie is central to Orthodox liturgical and sacramental life); this curriculum must render Luke’s own words of institution faithfully and precisely (“Acesta este trupul Meu,” “acesta este sângele Meu”) without either overriding that established Orthodox sacramental reading or artificially imposing a memorial-only reading foreign to Luke’s own text and to the Orthodox tradition it will be read within. Standard Romanian liturgical phrasing already exists (used verbatim in the Divine Liturgy’s Anaphora) and should be reused rather than freshly translated, making this simultaneously a Critical risk and a liturgical asset.
• new covenant — Gk. καινὴ διαθήκη (kainē diathēkē, Luke 22:20), reuses baseline covenant/legământ plus the adjective “new” (καινός, kainos, low risk, “nou”). Critical risk as a compound, given its direct connection to Eucharistic theology above.
• “do this in remembrance of me” — Gk. εἰς τὴν ἐμὴν ἀνάμνησιν (anamnēsis, Luke 22:19), lit. “for my remembrance/memorial.” Critical risk, doctrinal asset: this exact phrase is already quoted verbatim in the Orthodox Divine Liturgy’s Anaphora (“întru pomenirea Mea”), giving Romanian Orthodox hearers immediate, precise liturgical recognition — an asset comparable to the baseline’s treatment of resurrection. Render “întru pomenirea Mea,” matching the liturgical text exactly, while flagging for theologian review given the stakes of Eucharistic theology riding on this phrase.
• Gethsemane: agony, “not my will but yours” — Gk. ἀγωνία (agōnia, Luke 22:44), “anguish, agony.” Medium risk. Render “agonie” / “chin”; standard, low ambiguity.
• betrayed — Gk. παραδίδωμι (paradidōmi, Luke 22:4,6,21,22,48), “to hand over, betray.” Low-Medium risk. Render “a vinde/a preda/a trăda,” context-dependent.

Chapter 23 — Trial, Crucifixion, the Two Criminals, Death and Burial

New load-bearing terms:

• crucify — Gk. σταυρόω (stauroō, Luke 23:21,23,33), the verbal form of σταυρός/cruce (ch.9), now the literal historical event. Critical risk. Render “a răstigni,” standard and unambiguous.
• paradise — Gk. παράδεισος (paradeisos, Luke 23:43, “today you will be with me in paradise”). Critical risk. As with Hades (ch.16), this touches immediate post-mortem destiny and risks entanglement with the extra-biblical Orthodox toll-house tradition. Render “rai,” the standard, well-established Romanian term; requires a translator note affirming the immediate assurance Jesus gives the repentant criminal (a decisive statement of grace and forgiveness received in the moment of death) without over-systematizing the passage into a full doctrine of the intermediate state beyond what the text itself states.
• “Father, forgive them” — reuses ἄφεσις-family/iertare (ch.1, core passage).
• righteous / innocent — Gk. δίκαιος (dikaios, Luke 23:47, the centurion’s confession), reuses baseline δικαιοσύνη-family/dreptate. Medium-High risk, ties the crucifixion narrative directly back to the baseline’s Critical righteousness doctrine.
• “into your hands I commit my spirit” — Gk. παρατίθεμαι (paratithemai, Luke 23:46), “I entrust/commit.” Low-medium risk, standard prayer-of-trust language, reinforcing “Prayer and Dependence on God.”

Chapter 24 — the Resurrection, the Emmaus Road, the Commissioning, the Ascension

New load-bearing terms:

• “He is not here, but has risen” — Gk. ἠγέρθη (ēgerthē, from ἐγείρω, Luke 24:6), “has been raised.” Related to but lexically distinct from the noun ἀνάστασις (baseline resurrection/înviere); the verb ἐγείρω (“to raise up”) and the noun ἀνάστασις (“resurrection/rising”) both describe the same event and are both, in established Romanian Bible tradition, rendered with the same verbal family “a învia/înviere.” Critical risk, full reuse of baseline term, climactic occurrence.
• eyes were opened / kept from recognizing him (Luke 24:16,31) — Gk. διακρατέω / διανοίγω (dianoigō, “to open thoroughly,” of eyes at 24:31 and of minds/Scriptures at 24:45). Medium risk. Render “li s-au deschis ochii” and “le-a deschis mintea,” respectively; deliberately echoes the “opening” (ἀνοίξας) of the scroll back in 4:17, forming a major bookend the curriculum should make explicit.
• burning hearts — Gk. καιομένη (kaiomenē, from καίω, Luke 24:32, “did not our hearts burn within us”). Low-Medium risk. Render “nu ne ardea inima,” standard idiom, conveying warm, Spirit-stirred recognition of Christ in Scripture.
• “everything … must be fulfilled” (Luke 24:44) — reuses πληρόω/s-a împlinit exactly from the core passage (4:21), the deliberate final bookend of the whole Gospel’s fulfillment theme. Critical risk, must use the identical Romanian verb form as 4:21.
• “repentance and forgiveness of sins … to all nations” (Luke 24:47) — combines μετάνοια/pocăință, ἄφεσις ἁμαρτιῶν/iertarea păcatelor, and baseline gentiles/neamuri (here in the sense “all nations/peoples,” πάντα τὰ ἔθνη) into a single Great-Commission-parallel programmatic verse. Critical risk, direct anchor for the curriculum doctrine “Jesus as Savior for All Nations and All People,” and the Gospel’s own final restatement of the mission first announced at 4:18-19.
• clothed with power from on high — reuses baseline power_of_god/puterea lui Dumnezeu (Luke 24:49) and Holy Spirit (implicit, fulfilled at Pentecost/Acts 2).
• ascension — Gk. ἀνελήμφθη (anelēmphthē, from ἀναλαμβάνω, Luke 24:51), “was taken up.” Critical risk, doctrinal asset. Like the Transfiguration (ch.9) and Resurrection, this grounds an established, central Romanian Orthodox liturgical feast (“Înălțarea Domnului”). Render “S-a înălțat” / “a fost înălțat,” matching the feast name exactly — precision, not persuasion, is the translation task, as with the baseline’s resurrection note.
• worshiped him … with great joy (Luke 24:52) — reuses προσκυνέω/a se închina (ch.4) and χαρά/bucurie (ch.15), the Gospel’s own closing bookend of worshipful joy, corresponding to the angels’ proclamation of joy at 2:10 and the shepherds’ response.

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Summary Note on Full-Book Coverage

Every chapter of Luke (1–24) has been reviewed. Chapters 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, and 24 each contribute either new load-bearing theological vocabulary (documented above) or deliberate, explicitly-noted reuse of vocabulary already established earlier in the book or inherited from the Romans baseline. No chapter’s content has been silently omitted; where a chapter’s primary theological weight rests on reused rather than new vocabulary (e.g., ch.20’s civil-authority pericope, most of ch.22-23’s narrative connective material), this is stated explicitly above rather than left unaddressed.