John 11:48

John 11:48 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)If we let him thus alone, all men will believe on him: and the Romans shall come and take away both our place and nation.
• New International Version (NIV)If we let him go on like this, everyone will believe in him, and then the Romans will come and take away both our temple and our nation.”
• English Standard Version (ESV)If we let him go on like this, everyone will believe in him, and the Romans will come and take away both our place and our nation."
• New King James Version (NKJV)If we let Him alone like this, everyone will believe in Him, and the Romans will come and take away both our place and nation.”

Context of John 11:48

46But some went to the Pharisees and told them what Jesus had done. 47Then the leading priests and Pharisees called the high council together. “What are we going to do?” they asked each other. “This man certainly performs many miraculous signs. If we allow him to go on like this, soon everyone will believe in him. Then the Roman army will come and destroy both our Temple and our nation.” 49Caiaphas, who was high priest at that time, said, “You don’t know what you’re talking about! 50You don’t realize that it’s better for you that one man should die for the people than for the whole nation to be destroyed.”

John 11:48 word by word

ἐὰν ἀφῶμεν αὐτὸν οὕτως, πάντες πιστεύσουσιν εἰς αὐτόν, καὶ ἐλεύσονται οἱ Ῥωμαῖοι καὶ ἀροῦσιν ἡμῶν καὶ τὸν τόπον καὶ τὸ ἔθνος.¶Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• Ifἐάνean · ifG1437
• we letἀφίημιaphiēmi · to release: leaveG863
• himαὐτόςautos · it/s/heG846
• thus aloneοὕτωςhoutō · thus(-ly)G3779
• allπᾶςpas · allG3956
• will believeπιστεύωpisteuō · to trust (in)G4100
• onεἰςeis · towardG1519
• andκαίkai · andG2532
• the RomansῬωμαῖοςRhōmaios · RomanG4514
• shall comeἔρχομαιerchomai · to come/goG2064
• take awayαἴρωairō · to take upG142
• ourἐγώegō · I/weG1473
• placeὁho hē to · the/this/whoG3588
• placeτόποςtopos · placeG5117
• nationἔθνοςethnos · GentilesG1484

Cross-references for John 11:48

• Acts 5:28“We gave you strict orders never again to teach in this man’s name!” he said. “Instead, you have filled all Jerusalem with your teaching about him, and you want to make us responsible for his death!”
• John 1:7to tell about the light so that everyone might believe because of his testimony.
• Luke 8:12The seeds that fell on the footpath represent those who hear the message, only to have the devil come and take it away from their hearts and prevent them from believing and being saved.
• Luke 11:52“What sorrow awaits you experts in religious law! For you remove the key to knowledge from the people. You don’t enter the Kingdom yourselves, and you prevent others from entering.”
• 1 Thessalonians 2:15For some of the Jews killed the prophets, and some even killed the Lord Jesus. Now they have persecuted us, too. They fail to please God and work against all humanity
• Deuteronomy 28:50a fierce and heartless nation that shows no respect for the old and no pity for the young.
• Daniel 9:26“After this period of sixty-two sets of seven, the Anointed One will be killed, appearing to have accomplished nothing, and a ruler will arise whose armies will destroy the city and the Temple. The end will come with a flood, and war and its miseries are decreed from that time to the very end.
• Zechariah 13:7“Awake, O sword, against my shepherd, the man who is my partner,” says the Lord of Heaven’s Armies. “Strike down the shepherd, and the sheep will be scattered, and I will turn against the lambs.
• Zechariah 14:1Watch, for the day of the Lord is coming when your possessions will be plundered right in front of you!
• Matthew 21:40“When the owner of the vineyard returns,” Jesus asked, “what do you think he will do to those farmers?”
• Matthew 22:7“The king was furious, and he sent out his army to destroy the murderers and burn their town.
• Matthew 23:35As a result, you will be held responsible for the murder of all godly people of all time—from the murder of righteous Abel to the murder of Zechariah son of Berekiah, whom you killed in the Temple between the sanctuary and the altar.
• Matthew 27:25And all the people yelled back, “We will take responsibility for his death—we and our children!”
• Luke 19:41But as he came closer to Jerusalem and saw the city ahead, he began to weep.
• Luke 21:20“And when you see Jerusalem surrounded by armies, then you will know that the time of its destruction has arrived.
• Luke 23:28But Jesus turned and said to them, “Daughters of Jerusalem, don’t weep for me, but weep for yourselves and for your children.

Commentaries on John 11:48

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 48All men will believe on him - If we permit him to work but a few more miracles like these two last (the cure of the blind man, and the resurrection of Lazarus) he will be universally acknowledged for the Messiah; the people will proclaim him king; and the Romans, who can suffer no government here but their own, will be so irritated that they will send their armies against us, and destroy our temple, and utterly dissolve our civil and ecclesiastical…Read the comment
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 48All men - That is, all men among the Jews. The whole nation. And the Romans shall come - They were then subject to the Romans - tributary and dependent. Whatever privileges they had they held at the will of the Roman emperor. They believed, or feigned to believe, that Jesus was intending to set up a temporal kingdom. As he claimed to be the Messiah, so they supposed, of course, that he designed to be a temporal prince, and they professed to believe that…Read the comment
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 47-53Verses 47-53 There can hardly be a more clear discovery of the madness that is in man's heart, and of its desperate enmity against God, than what is here recorded. Words of prophecy in the mouth, are not clear evidence of a principle of grace in the heart. The calamity we seek to escape by sin, we take the most effectual course to bring upon our own heads; as those do who think by opposing Christ's kingdom, to advance their own worldly interest. The fear…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 48The council met to discuss what to do about Jesus. During their discussion, they revealed their fear. They were afraid that everyone would believe in him. If many people believed that Jesus was the Messiah (God’s chosen one), this could cause political trouble. In that time, the Romans ruled over Judea. They did not tolerate leaders who claimed to be kings. The Romans viewed Jewish messiahs with suspicion. They feared rebellion. The council worried that…Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 47-5447-54. What do we? for this man doeth many miracles--"While we trifle, 'this man,' by His 'many miracles,' will carry all before Him; the popular enthusiasm will bring on a revolution, which will precipitate the Romans upon us, and our all will go down in one common ruin." What a testimony to the reality of our Lord's miracles, and their resistless effect, from His bitterest enemies!Read the comment

Topics related to John 11:48

• Jesus Continued
• Jesus, the Christ
• Prudence

In the dictionaries

• Awake
• Mourn
• Bethany
• Caiaphas
• Christ, Offices of
• Jesus Christ
• Jesus Christ, the Arrest and Trial of
• John, Gospel of
• Lazarus
• Olives, Mount of

Commentaries on John 11

• 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
• 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