And he said unto the disciples, The days will come, when ye shall desire to see one of the days of the Son of man, and ye shall not see it.
Parallel translations
- WEB He said to the disciples, “The days will come, when you will desire to see one of the days of the Son of Man, and you will not see it.
- BSB Then He said to the disciples, “The time is coming when you will long to see one of the days of the Son of Man, but you will not see it.
- NKJV Then He said to the disciples, “The days will come when you will desire to see one of the days of the Son of Man, and you will not see it.
- NASB And He said to the disciples, “The days will come when you will long to see one of the days of the Son of Man, and you will not see it.
- NLT Then he said to his disciples, “The time is coming when you will long to see the day when the Son of Man returns, but you won’t see it.
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 warns his disciples they will long to see his return and not yet see it. They must endure a time of waiting.
Overview
Turning to his disciples, Jesus foretells a period of yearning for the days of the Son of Man, that is, his visible coming in glory. They will face hardship and longing during his apparent absence. The verse prepares believers for patient endurance between Christ's first and second comings.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 11
- Luke 5:35But the days will come, when the bridegroom shall be taken away from them, and then shall they fast in those days.
- Matt 9:15And Jesus said unto them, Can the children of the bridechamber mourn, as long as the bridegroom is with them? but the days will come, when the bridegroom shall be taken from them, and then shall they fast.
- John 8:21–24Then said Jesus again unto them, I go my way, and ye shall seek me, and shall die in your sins: whither I go, ye cannot come.
- John 16:16–22A little while, and ye shall not see me: and again, a little while, and ye shall see me, because I go to the Father.
- John 13:33Little children, yet a little while I am with you. Ye shall seek me: and as I said unto the Jews, Whither I go, ye cannot come; so now I say to you.
- Mark 2:20But the days will come, when the bridegroom shall be taken away from them, and then shall they fast in those days.
- John 7:33–36Then said Jesus unto them, Yet a little while am I with you, and then I go unto him that sent me.
- John 16:5–7But now I go my way to him that sent me; and none of you asketh me, Whither goest thou?
- Luke 13:35Behold, your house is left unto you desolate: and verily I say unto you, Ye shall not see me, until the time come when ye shall say, Blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord.
- John 17:11–13And now I am no more in the world, but these are in the world, and I come to thee. Holy Father, keep through thine own name those whom thou hast given me, that they may be one, as we are.
- John 12:35Then Jesus said unto them, Yet a little while is the light with you. Walk while ye have the light, lest darkness come upon you: for he that walketh in darkness knoweth not whither he goeth.
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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 17:22 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.