The crowd standing there heard it and said that it had thundered. Others said that an angel had spoken to Him.
Parallel translations
- WEB The multitude therefore, who stood by and heard it, said that it had thundered. Others said, “An angel has spoken to him.”
- KJV The people therefore, that stood by, and heard it, said that it thundered: others said, An angel spake to him.
- NKJV Therefore the people who stood by and heard it said that it had thundered. Others said, “An angel has spoken to Him.”
- NASB So the crowd who stood by and heard it were saying that it had thundered; others were saying, “An angel has spoken to Him!”
- NLT When the crowd heard the voice, some thought it was thunder, while others declared an angel had spoken to him.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
The crowd hears the voice but mistakes it for thunder or an angel. Spiritual dullness obscures the divine word.
Overview
The bystanders perceive the heavenly voice only as thunder or angelic speech, missing its meaning. Their confusion illustrates how spiritual realities can be heard yet not understood without faith. The verse highlights the gap between mere hearing and true perception of God's revelation.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 11
- Job 37:2–5Listen closely to the thunder of His voice and the rumbling that comes from His mouth.
- Rev 6:1Then I watched as the Lamb opened one of the seven seals, and I heard one of the four living creatures say in a thunderous voice, “Come!”
- Rev 14:2And I heard a sound from heaven like the roar of many waters and the loud rumbling of thunder. And the sound I heard was like harpists strumming their harps.
- Exod 19:16On the third day, when morning came, there was thunder and lightning. A thick cloud was upon the mountain, and a very loud blast of the ram’s horn went out, so that all the people in the camp trembled.
- Ezek 10:5The sound of the wings of the cherubim could be heard as far as the outer court, like the voice of God Almighty when He speaks.
- Job 40:9Do you have an arm like God’s? Can you thunder with a voice like His?
- Exod 20:18When all the people witnessed the thunder and lightning, the sounding of the ram’s horn, and the mountain enveloped in smoke, they trembled and stood at a distance.
- Rev 11:19Then the temple of God in heaven was opened, and the ark of His covenant appeared in His temple. And there were flashes of lightning, and rumblings, and peals of thunder, and an earthquake, and a great hailstorm.
- Acts 23:8–9For the Sadducees say that there is neither a resurrection, nor angels, nor spirits, but the Pharisees acknowledge them all.
- Rev 18:1–2After this I saw another angel descending from heaven with great authority, and the earth was illuminated by his glory.
- Rev 8:5Then the angel took the censer, filled it with fire from the altar, and hurled it to the earth; and there were peals of thunder, and rumblings, and flashes of lightning, and an earthquake.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
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Christ at the center
John declares him plainly: the eternal Word made flesh, the Lamb of God, the great 'I AM' — bread, light, door, shepherd, way, truth, life, resurrection — that you may believe and have life in his name.
How John 12:29 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Greek word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.