waiting to catch Him in something He might say.
Parallel translations
- WEB lying in wait for him, and seeking to catch him in something he might say, that they might accuse him.
- KJV Laying wait for him, and seeking to catch something out of his mouth, that they might accuse him.
- ESV lying in wait for him, to catch him in something he might say.
- NKJV lying in wait for Him, and seeking to catch Him in something He might say, that they might accuse Him.
- NASB plotting against Him to catch Him in something He might say.
- NLT They wanted to trap him into saying something they could use against him.
Scripture quotations are from the ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), copyright © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
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 leaders lay in wait to trap Jesus in His words so they could accuse Him. Their malice was deliberate and premeditated.
Overview
Luke describes a calculated effort to ensnare Jesus, setting verbal traps to find grounds for accusation. This persistent scheming sets the stage for the formal charges that would eventually be brought against Him. Yet their plots, however cunning, would only serve God's saving purpose, for through the cross the innocent Christ would secure redemption.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 8
- Mark 12:13Later, they sent some of the Pharisees and Herodians to catch Jesus in His words.
- Matt 22:35One of them, an expert in the law, tested Him with a question:
- Matt 22:15Then the Pharisees went out and conspired to trap Jesus in His words.
- Matt 22:18But Jesus knew their evil intent and said, “You hypocrites, why are you testing Me?
- Ps 37:32–33Though the wicked lie in wait for the righteous, and seek to slay them,
- Ps 56:5–6All day long they twist my words; all their thoughts are on my demise.
- Luke 20:20So they watched Him closely and sent spies who pretended to be sincere. They were hoping to catch Him in His words in order to hand Him over to the rule and authority of the governor.
- Mark 3:2In order to accuse Jesus, they were watching to see if He would heal on the Sabbath.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
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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 11:54 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.