And they shall come from the east, and from the west, and from the north, and from the south, and shall sit down in the kingdom of God.
Parallel translations
- WEB They will come from the east, west, north, and south, and will sit down in God’s Kingdom.
- BSB People will come from east and west and north and south, and will recline at the table in the kingdom of God.
- NKJV They will come from the east and the west, from the north and the south, and sit down in the kingdom of God.
- NASB And they will come from east and west, and from north and south, and will recline at the table in the kingdom of God.
- NLT And people will come from all over the world—from east and west, north and south—to take their places in the Kingdom of God.
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
People from every direction will come and recline at the kingdom's feast. The kingdom welcomes Gentiles and all who come in faith.
Overview
Gathering from east, west, north, and south signals the worldwide scope of salvation, fulfilling promises that nations would share Abraham's blessing. The image of reclining at table pictures the joyful messianic banquet. Many outsiders will be welcomed while presumptuous insiders are excluded, overturning expectations.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 13
- Isa 66:18–20For I know their works and their thoughts: it shall come, that I will gather all nations and tongues; and they shall come, and see my glory.
- Isa 43:6I will say to the north, Give up; and to the south, Keep not back: bring my sons from far, and my daughters from the ends of the earth;
- Isa 49:6And he said, It is a light thing that thou shouldest be my servant to raise up the tribes of Jacob, and to restore the preserved of Israel: I will also give thee for a light to the Gentiles, that thou mayest be my salvation unto the end of the earth.
- Mal 1:11For from the rising of the sun even unto the going down of the same my name shall be great among the Gentiles; and in every place incense shall be offered unto my name, and a pure offering: for my name shall be great among the heathen, saith the LORD of hosts.
- Isa 54:2–3Enlarge the place of thy tent, and let them stretch forth the curtains of thine habitations: spare not, lengthen thy cords, and strengthen thy stakes;
- Mark 13:27And then shall he send his angels, and shall gather together his elect from the four winds, from the uttermost part of the earth to the uttermost part of heaven.
- Rev 7:9–10After this I beheld, and, lo, a great multitude, which no man could number, of all nations, and kindreds, and people, and tongues, stood before the throne, and before the Lamb, clothed with white robes, and palms in their hands;
- Eph 3:6–8That the Gentiles should be fellowheirs, and of the same body, and partakers of his promise in Christ by the gospel:
- Acts 28:28Be it known therefore unto you, that the salvation of God is sent unto the Gentiles, and that they will hear it.
- Col 1:23If ye continue in the faith grounded and settled, and be not moved away from the hope of the gospel, which ye have heard, and which was preached to every creature which is under heaven; whereof I Paul am made a minister;
- Gen 28:14And thy seed shall be as the dust of the earth, and thou shalt spread abroad to the west, and to the east, and to the north, and to the south: and in thee and in thy seed shall all the families of the earth be blessed.
- Matt 8:11And I say unto you, That many shall come from the east and west, and shall sit down with Abraham, and Isaac, and Jacob, in the kingdom of heaven.
- Col 1:6Which is come unto you, as it is in all the world; and bringeth forth fruit, as it doth also in you, since the day ye heard of it, and knew the grace of God in truth:
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 13:29 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.