And he said, The things which are impossible with men are possible with God.
Parallel translations
- WEB But he said, “The things which are impossible with men are possible with God.”
- BSB But Jesus said, “What is impossible with man is possible with God.”
- NKJV But He said, “The things which are impossible with men are possible with God.”
- NASB But He said, “The things that are impossible with people are possible with God.”
- NLT He replied, “What is impossible for people is possible with 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
Jesus replies that what is impossible for people is possible with God. Salvation is God's work of grace, not human achievement.
Overview
Jesus affirms that no one, rich or poor, can save himself, yet God can do what people cannot. Salvation is a divine gift accomplished by God's power and grace. This is the heart of the gospel: God saves sinners who could never save themselves, ultimately through the work of Christ.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 9
- Jer 32:17Ah Lord GOD! behold, thou hast made the heaven and the earth by thy great power and stretched out arm, and there is nothing too hard for thee:
- Matt 19:26But Jesus beheld them, and said unto them, With men this is impossible; but with God all things are possible.
- Luke 1:37For with God nothing shall be impossible.
- Job 42:2I know that thou canst do every thing, and that no thought can be withholden from thee.
- Gen 18:14Is any thing too hard for the LORD? At the time appointed I will return unto thee, according to the time of life, and Sarah shall have a son.
- Eph 1:19–20And what is the exceeding greatness of his power to us-ward who believe, according to the working of his mighty power,
- Dan 4:35And all the inhabitants of the earth are reputed as nothing: and he doeth according to his will in the army of heaven, and among the inhabitants of the earth: and none can stay his hand, or say unto him, What doest thou?
- Eph 2:4–10But God, who is rich in mercy, for his great love wherewith he loved us,
- Zech 8:6Thus saith the LORD of hosts; If it be marvellous in the eyes of the remnant of this people in these days, should it also be marvellous in mine eyes? saith the LORD of hosts.
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 18:27 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.