This section is made up of the sending of the Twelve (vv. 1–6) and Herod’s perplexity about Jesus’ identity and the meaning of his ministry (vv. 7–9). It is probably legitimate to combine these two parts (derived from Mark 6:7–29 and portions of the sayings source) since Luke may have intended Herod’s question to be viewed against Jesus’ Galilean ministry as it reaches its climax in the sending of his men to preach and to heal, the very things that Jesus has been doing since Luke 4.

Luke 9 is for the evangelist a transitional chapter. In it we see the Galilean phase of Jesus’ ministry draw to a close. We also see the inauguration of his Jerusalem ministry at his transfiguration, where the heavenly voice speaks again (9:35) as it had at his baptism (3:22). The journey to Jerusalem is final…