God’s Word Translation
Luke 9:54
54James and John, his disciples, saw this. They asked, “Lord, do you want us to call down fire from heaven to burn them up?”
Luke 9:54 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)And when his disciples James and John saw this, they said, Lord, wilt thou that we command fire to come down from heaven, and consume them, even as Elias did?
- New International Version (NIV)When the disciples James and John saw this, they asked, “Lord, do you want us to call fire down from heaven to destroy them?”
- English Standard Version (ESV)And when his disciples James and John saw it, they said, "Lord, do you want us to tell fire to come down from heaven and consume them?"
- New King James Version (NKJV)And when His disciples James and John saw this, they said, “Lord, do You want us to command fire to come down from heaven and consume them, just as Elijah did?”
Context of Luke 9:54
52He sent messengers ahead of him. They went into a Samaritan village to arrange a place for him to stay. 53But the people didn’t welcome him, because he was on his way to Jerusalem. James and John, his disciples, saw this. They asked, “Lord, do you want us to call down fire from heaven to burn them up?” 55But he turned and corrected them. 56So they went to another village.
Read all of Luke 9Luke 9:54 word by word
ἰδόντες δὲ οἱ μαθηταὶ Ἰάκωβος καὶ Ἰωάννης εἶπαν· κύριε, θέλεις εἴπωμεν πῦρ καταβῆναι ἀπὸ τοῦ οὐρανοῦ καὶ ἀναλῶσαι αὐτούςRead the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
- Andδέde · thenG1161
- whenὁράωhoraō · to see: seeG3708
- hisαὐτόςautos · it/s/heG846
- disciplesὁho hē to · the/this/whoG3588
- disciplesμαθητήςmathētēs · discipleG3101
- JamesἸάκωβοςIakōbos · JamesG2385
- andκαίkai · andG2532
- JohnἸωάννηςIōannēs · JohnG2491
- they saidλέγωlegō · to sayG3004
- Lordκύριοςkurios · lord: GodG2962
- wilt thouθέλωthelō ethelō · to will/desireG2309
- fireπῦρpur · fireG4442
- to come downκαταβαίνωkatabainō · to come/go downG2597
- fromἀπόapo · away fromG575
- heavenοὐρανόςouranos · heavenG3772
- consumeἀναλίσκωanaliskō · to consumeG355
- asὡςhōs · as/whenG5613
- EliasἩλίαςHēlias · ElijahG2243
- didποιέωpoieō · to do/make: doG4160
Cross-references for Luke 9:54
- 2 Samuel 21:2(The Gibeonites were not a part of Israel but were left over from the Amorites. Although the Israelites had sworn ⌞to spare them⌟, Saul, in his eagerness, tried to destroy them for Israel and Judah.) The king called the Gibeonites
- 2 Kings 10:16Jehu said, “Come with me. See how devoted I am to the Lord.” So he had Jehonadab ride on his chariot.
- James 1:19Remember this, my dear brothers and sisters: Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak, and should not get angry easily.
- James 3:14But if you are bitterly jealous and filled with self-centered ambition, don’t brag. Don’t say that you are wise when it isn’t true.
- 2 Kings 1:10Elijah answered the officer, “If I’m a man of God, fire will come from heaven and burn up you and your 50 men.” Then fire came from heaven and burned up the officer and his 50 men.
- Acts 4:29“Lord, pay attention to their threats now, and allow us to speak your word boldly.
- Revelation 13:3One of the beast’s heads looked like it had a fatal wound, but its fatal wound was healed. All the people of the world were amazed and followed the beast.
Commentaries on Luke 9:54
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 54That we command fire - Vengeance belongs to the Lord. What we suffer for his sake, should be left to himself to reprove or punish. The insult is offered to him, not to us. See the note on Mark 3:17.Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 54James and John - They were called Boanerges - sons of thunder - probably on account of their energy and power in preaching the gospel, or of their vehement and rash zeal - a remarkable example of which we have in this instance, Mark 3:17. Wilt thou - The insult had been offered to Jesus, their friend, and they felt it; but their zeal was rash and their spirit bad. Vengeance belongs to God: it was not theirs to attempt it. Fire from heaven - Lightning…Read the comment
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 51-56Verses 51-56 The disciples did not consider that the conduct of the Samaritans was rather the effect of national prejudices and bigotry, than of enmity to the word and worship of God; and through they refused to receive Christ and his disciples, they did not ill use or injure them, so that the case was widely different from that of Ahaziah and Elijah. Nor were they aware that the gospel dispensation was to be marked by miracles of mercy. But above all…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 54call down fire from heaven to consume them: Some ancient Greek versions add as Elijah did. The prophet Elijah called down fire from heaven three times against God's enemies (1 Kings 18:38; 2 Kings 1:1–17). James and John, in their enthusiasm, wanted to do the same.Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 5454. James and John--not Peter, as we should have expected, but those "sons of thunder" (Mr 3:17), who afterwards wanted to have all the highest honors of the Kingdom to themselves, and the younger of whom had been rebuked already for his exclusiveness (Lu 9:49, 50). Yet this was "the disciple whom Jesus loved," while the other willingly drank of His Lord's bitter cup. (See on Mr 10:38-40; and Ac 12:2). That same fiery zeal, in a mellowed and hallowed…Read the comment
Topics related to Luke 9:54
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Luke 9
- 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
God’s Word Translation — © 1995 God’s Word to the Nations Bible Society
Commentaries