Luke 3:8

8 Live lives which shall prove your change of heart; and do not begin to say to yourselves, `We have Abraham as our forefather,' for I tell you that God can raise up descendants for Abraham from these stones.

Luke 3:8 Meaning and Commentary

Luke 3:8

Bring forth therefore fruits worthy of repentance
Or "meet" for it, such as will show it to be true and genuine: "and begin not to say within yourselves": in one of Beza's copies, and in another of Stephens's, it was read, "think not", as in ( Matthew 3:9 ) . the sense is the same. The Vulgate Latin and Ethiopic versions, leave out the phrase, "within yourselves": what they are forbid to say follows,

we have Abraham to our father, for I say unto you, God is able of
these stones to raise up children unto Abraham;
which need not be thought strange, when the creation of Adam out of the earth, and the production of such a numerous offspring, as the Israelites were, from Abraham and Sarah, when past all hope of children, and are signified by the rock and pit in ( Isaiah 51:1 Isaiah 51:2 ) are considered; (See Gill on Matthew 3:9).

Luke 3:8 In-Context

6 and then shall all mankind see God's salvation.'"

7 Accordingly John used to say to the crowds who came out to be baptized by him, "O vipers' brood, who has warned you to flee from the coming wrath?

8 Live lives which shall prove your change of heart; and do not begin to say to yourselves, `We have Abraham as our forefather,' for I tell you that God can raise up descendants for Abraham from these stones.

9 And even now the axe is lying at the root of the trees, so that every tree which fails to yield good fruit will quickly be hewn down and thrown into the fire."

10 The crowds repeatedly asked him, "What then are we to do?"