Ye fools, did not he that made that which is without make that which is within also?
Parallel translations
- WEB You foolish ones, didn’t he who made the outside make the inside also?
- BSB You fools! Did not the One who made the outside make the inside as well?
- NKJV Foolish ones! Did not He who made the outside make the inside also?
- NASB You foolish ones, did He who made the outside not make the inside also?
- NLT Fools! Didn’t God make the inside as well as the outside?
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
Jesus reminds them that God made both the inside and the outside. The Creator cares about the heart, not just appearances.
Overview
By appealing to God as Maker of both, Jesus insists the inner life cannot be ignored. To cleanse only the outside is foolish before the God who sees the heart. True religion must begin within, where God alone can purify.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 17
- Luke 12:20But God said unto him, Thou fool, this night thy soul shall be required of thee: then whose shall those things be, which thou hast provided?
- 1 Cor 15:36Thou fool, that which thou sowest is not quickened, except it die:
- Prov 1:22How long, ye simple ones, will ye love simplicity? and the scorners delight in their scorning, and fools hate knowledge?
- Prov 8:5O ye simple, understand wisdom: and, ye fools, be ye of an understanding heart.
- Ps 94:8–9Understand, ye brutish among the people: and ye fools, when will ye be wise?
- Matt 23:26Thou blind Pharisee, cleanse first that which is within the cup and platter, that the outside of them may be clean also.
- Matt 23:17Ye fools and blind: for whether is greater, the gold, or the temple that sanctifieth the gold?
- Gen 2:7And the LORD God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul.
- Luke 24:25Then he said unto them, O fools, and slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have spoken:
- Ps 75:4–5I said unto the fools, Deal not foolishly: and to the wicked, Lift not up the horn:
- Ps 33:15He fashioneth their hearts alike; he considereth all their works.
- Jer 5:21Hear now this, O foolish people, and without understanding; which have eyes, and see not; which have ears, and hear not:
- Heb 12:9Furthermore we have had fathers of our flesh which corrected us, and we gave them reverence: shall we not much rather be in subjection unto the Father of spirits, and live?
- Num 16:22And they fell upon their faces, and said, O God, the God of the spirits of all flesh, shall one man sin, and wilt thou be wroth with all the congregation?
- Ps 14:1The fool hath said in his heart, There is no God. They are corrupt, they have done abominable works, there is none that doeth good.
- Gen 1:26And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth.
- Zech 12:1The burden of the word of the LORD for Israel, saith the LORD, which stretcheth forth the heavens, and layeth the foundation of the earth, and formeth the spirit of man within him.
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Christ at the center
Luke shows Jesus the Savior for all — outsiders, the poor, the nations — the one who, on the Emmaus road, opened all the Scriptures to show they were about himself.
How Luke 11:40 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.