New International Version
Luke 9:54
54When the disciples James and John saw this, they asked, “Lord, do you want us to call fire down from heaven to destroy them?”
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?
- 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?”
- New Living Translation (NLT)When James and John saw this, they said to Jesus, “Lord, should we call down fire from heaven to burn them up?”
Context of Luke 9:54
52And he sent messengers on ahead, who went into a Samaritan village to get things ready for him; 53but the people there did not welcome him, because he was heading for Jerusalem. When the disciples James and John saw this, they asked, “Lord, do you want us to call fire down from heaven to destroy them?” 55But Jesus turned and rebuked them. 56Then he and his disciples 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 21:2The king summoned the Gibeonites and spoke to them. (Now the Gibeonites were not a part of Israel but were survivors of the Amorites; the Israelites had sworn to spare them, but Saul in his zeal for Israel and Judah had tried to annihilate them.)
- 2 Kings 10:16Jehu said, “Come with me and see my zeal for the Lord.” Then he had him ride along in his chariot.
- James 1:19My dear brothers and sisters, take note of this: Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry,
- James 3:14But if you harbor bitter envy and selfish ambition in your hearts, do not boast about it or deny the truth.
- 2 Kings 1:10Elijah answered the captain, “If I am a man of God, may fire come down from heaven and consume you and your fifty men!” Then fire fell from heaven and consumed the captain and his men.
- Acts 4:29Now, Lord, consider their threats and enable your servants to speak your word with great boldness.
- Revelation 13:3One of the heads of the beast seemed to have had a fatal wound, but the fatal wound had been healed. The whole world was filled with wonder 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
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