Exegesis:

agapate tēn prōtokathedrian en tais sunagōgais ‘you love the front seat in the synagogues.’ agapaō is used here with regard to human ambition. prōtokathedria also 20.46.

tous aspasmous en tais agorais ‘the salutations in the market places,’ cf. on 1.29. For agora cf. on 7.32.

Translation:

You love, or, ‘you want,’ ‘you like it to have,’ ‘you desire’; Tzeltal has ‘your hearts are glad.’

The best seat, or, ‘the front seat,’ ‘the seat of honour’; or in a verbal construction, ‘to sit on the best seat,’ ‘to sit in front,’ etc. Cultural equivalents are e.g. ‘the seat at the head end, or, at the inland/upstream side, or, at the right side, or, towards the east.’

Salutations, or, ‘to be greeted’ (e.g. in Shona 1963), ‘that people greet you’ (e.g. in Zarma); cf. “greeting” in 1.29, 40. Some terms for greeting imply already a showing of respect, as e.g. in Tzeltal, ‘to have the backs of your hands kissed,’ or in Marathi, ‘to take namaskar (an obeisance originally given to Brahmins only)’; elsewhere this has to be explicitly stated, either in addition to the term for “salutation”, e.g. ‘to be given praise greetings’ (Shona 1966, cf. also An American Translation), or instead of it, ‘people to honour you’ (Ekari), ‘to be-asked-permission’ (Balinese, referring to the custom that, on meeting a person on higher position, one has to ask to be allowed to pass him).

In the market places, or, ‘in public (places),’ ‘where people have gathered together’ (Shona 1966); and see on 7.32.

Quoted with permission from Reiling, J. and Swellengrebel, J.L. A Handbook on the Gospel of Luke. (UBS Handbook Series). New York: UBS, 1971. For this and other handbooks for translators see here . Make sure to also consult the Handbook on the Gospel of Mark for parallel or similar verses.