Luke 4:25

Luke 4:25 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)But I tell you of a truth, many widows were in Israel in the days of Elias, when the heaven was shut up three years and six months, when great famine was throughout all the land;
• New International Version (NIV)I assure you that there were many widows in Israel in Elijah’s time, when the sky was shut for three and a half years and there was a severe famine throughout the land.
• English Standard Version (ESV)But in truth, I tell you, there were many widows in Israel in the days of Elijah, when the heavens were shut up three years and six months, and a great famine came over all the land,
• New King James Version (NKJV)But I tell you truly, many widows were in Israel in the days of Elijah, when the heaven was shut up three years and six months, and there was a great famine throughout all the land;

Context of Luke 4:25

23So he said to them, “You’ll probably quote this proverb to me, ‘Doctor, cure yourself!’ and then say to me, ‘Do all the things in your hometown that we’ve heard you’ve done in Capernaum.’ ” 24Then Jesus added, “I can guarantee this truth: A prophet isn’t accepted in his hometown. “I can guarantee this truth: There were many widows in Israel in Elijah’s time. It had not rained for three-and-a-half years, and the famine was severe everywhere in the country. 26But God didn’t send Elijah to anyone except a widow at Zarephath in the territory of Sidon. 27There were also many people with skin diseases in Israel in the prophet Elisha’s time. But God cured no one except Naaman from Syria.”

Luke 4:25 word by word

ἐπ᾽ ἀληθείας δὲ λέγω ὑμῖν· πολλαὶ χῆραι ἦσαν ἐν ταῖς ἡμέραις Ἠλίου ἐν τῷ Ἰσραὴλ ὅτε ἐκλείσθη ὁ οὐρανὸς ἐπὶ ἔτη τρία καὶ μῆνας ἕξ, ὡς ἐγένετο λιμὸς μέγας ἐπὶ πᾶσαν τὴν γῆν·Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• ·ὁho hē to · the/this/whoG3588
• Butδέde · thenG1161
• I tellλέγωlegō · to sayG3004
• youσύsu · youG4771
• ofἐπίepi · upon/to/againstG1909
• a truthἀλήθειαalētheia · truthG225
• manyπολύςpolus polos · muchG4183
• widowsχήραchēra · widowG5503
• wereεἰμίeimi · to beG1510
• inἐνen · in/on/amongG1722
• IsraelἸσραήλIsraēl · IsraelG2474
• the daysἡμέραhēmera · dayG2250
• of EliasἩλίαςHēlias · ElijahG2243
• whenὅτεhote ho te hē te tō te · whenG3753
• the heavenοὐρανόςouranos · heavenG3772
• was shut upκλείωkleiō · to shutG2808
• threeτρεῖςtreis tria · ThreeG5140
• yearsἔτοςetos · yearG2094
• andκαίkai · andG2532
• sixἕξhex · sixG1803
• monthsμήνmēn · monthG3376
• whenὡςhōs · as/whenG5613
• greatμέγαςmegas · greatG3173
• famineλιμόςlimos · hungerG3042
• wasγίνομαιginomai · to beG1096
• allπᾶςpas · allG3956
• the landγῆgē · earth: countryG1093

Cross-references for Luke 4:25

• Luke 10:21In that hour the Holy Spirit filled Jesus with joy. Jesus said, “I praise you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, for hiding these things from wise and intelligent people and revealing them to little children. Yes, Father, this is what pleased you.
• Isaiah 55:8“My thoughts are not your thoughts, and my ways are not your ways,” declares the Lord.
• Matthew 20:15Can’t I do what I want with my own money? Or do you resent my generosity towards others?’
• Mark 7:26The woman happened to be Greek, born in Phoenicia in Syria. She asked him to force the demon out of her daughter.
• Romans 9:15For example, God said to Moses, “I will be kind to anyone I want to. I will be merciful to anyone I want to.”
• Ephesians 1:9when he revealed the mystery of his plan to us. He had decided to do this through Christ.
• 1 Kings 17:1Elijah, who was from Tishbe but had settled in Gilead, said to Ahab, “I solemnly swear, as the Lord God of Israel whom I serve lives, there will be no dew or rain during the next few years unless I say so.”
• 1 Kings 18:1A while later in the third year of the drought, the Lord spoke his word to Elijah: “Present yourself to Ahab. I will allow rain to fall on the ground.”
• James 5:17Elijah was human like us. Yet, when he prayed that it wouldn’t rain, no rain fell on the ground for three-and-a-half years.

Commentaries on Luke 4:25

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 25In the days of Elias - See this history, 1 Kings 17:1-9, compared with 1 Kings 18:1-45. This was evidently a miraculous interference, as no rain fell for three years and six months, even in the rainy seasons. There were two of these in Judea, called the first and the latter rains; the first fell in October, the latter in April: the first prepared the ground for the seed, the latter ripened the harvest. As both these rains were withheld, consequently there…Read the comment
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 25Of a truth - Truly, and therefore worthy of your credit. He calls attention to two cases where “acknowledged” prophets had so little honor in their own nation that they bestowed their favors on foreigners. So, says he, such is the want of faith in my own country, that I shall work no miracles here, but shall give the evidence of my divine mission to others. In Israel - In the land of Israel, or Judea. It was therefore the more remarkable, since there were…Read the comment
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 14-30Verses 14-30 Christ taught in their synagogues, their places of public worship, where they met to read, expound, and apply the word, to pray and praise. All the gifts and graces of the Spirit were upon him and on him, without measure. By Christ, sinners may be loosed from the bonds of guilt, and by his Spirit and grace from the bondage of corruption. He came by the word of his gospel, to bring light to those that sat in the dark, and by the power of his…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 25-26widow of Zarephath: See 1 Kings 17–18.Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 25-2725-27. But I tell you, &c.--falling back for support on the well-known examples of Elijah and Elisha (Eliseus), whose miraculous power, passing by those who were near, expended itself on those at a distance, yea on heathens, "the two great prophets who stand at the commencement of prophetic antiquity, and whose miracles strikingly prefigured those of our Lord. As He intended like them to feed the poor and cleanse the lepers, He points to these miracles of…Read the comment

Topics related to Luke 4:25

• Jesus, the Christ
• Nazareth
• Predestination
• Prophets
• Synagogue
• Word of God

In the dictionaries

• Israel
• Israel, Israelites
• Jacob, Israel
• Capernaum
• Close
• Deliverance
• Elijah
• Gracious
• Isaiah, The Book of
• Keep

Commentaries on Luke 4

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
• Tyndale Open Study Notes
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
• Calvin’s Commentaries
• John Wesley’s Notes
• Catena Aurea
• Illustrated New Testament
• Burkitt’s Expository Notes
• Darby Translation Notes
• Family Bible Notes
• Geneva Bible Translation Notes
• Kingcomments
• John Lightfoot Commentary
• Luther’s Commentary on Selected Bible Passages
• Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
• Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
• The People’s New Testament
• Robertson’s Word Pictures
• Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
• The Fourfold Gospel and Commentary on Acts
• Original Douay–Rheims Annotations
• Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
• EGW Writings