New Living Translation
Luke 9:54
54When James and John saw this, they said to Jesus, “Lord, should we 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 to a Samaritan village to prepare for his arrival. 53But the people of the village did not welcome Jesus because he was on his way to Jerusalem. When James and John saw this, they said to Jesus, “Lord, should we call down fire from heaven to burn them up?” 55But Jesus turned and rebuked them. 56So they went on 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 21:2So the king summoned the Gibeonites. They were not part of Israel but were all that was left of the nation of the Amorites. The people of Israel had sworn not to kill them, but Saul, in his zeal for Israel and Judah, had tried to wipe them out.
- 2 Kings 10:16Then Jehu said, “Now come with me, and see how devoted I am to the Lord.” So Jehonadab rode along with him.
- James 1:19Understand this, my dear brothers and sisters: You must all be quick to listen, slow to speak, and slow to get angry.
- James 3:14But if you are bitterly jealous and there is selfish ambition in your heart, don’t cover up the truth with boasting and lying.
- 2 Kings 1:10But Elijah replied to the captain, “If I am a man of God, let fire come down from heaven and destroy you and your fifty men!” Then fire fell from heaven and killed them all.
- Acts 4:29And now, O Lord, hear their threats, and give us, your servants, great boldness in preaching your word.
- Revelation 13:3I saw that one of the heads of the beast seemed wounded beyond recovery—but the fatal wound was healed! The whole world marveled at this miracle and gave allegiance to 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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