And if any man ask you, Why do ye loose him? thus shall ye say unto him, Because the Lord hath need of him.
Parallel translations
- WEB If anyone asks you, ‘Why are you untying it?’ say to him: ‘The Lord needs it.’”
- BSB If anyone asks, ‘Why are you untying it?’ tell him, ‘The Lord needs it.’”
- NKJV And if anyone asks you, ‘Why are you loosing it? ’ thus you shall say to him, ‘Because the Lord has need of it.’ ”
- NASB And if anyone asks you, ‘Why are you untying it?’ you shall say this: ‘The Lord has need of it.’ ”
- NLT If anyone asks, ‘Why are you untying that colt?’ just say, ‘The Lord needs 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
If anyone questions them, the disciples are simply to say, "The Lord needs it." Christ's authority secures what his mission requires.
Overview
The title "the Lord" and the assurance that this answer will suffice reflect Jesus's sovereign claim and foreknowledge. The owners will release the colt at his word, showing that all things are at the King's disposal. The scene quietly affirms Jesus's lordship as he prepares to enter Jerusalem.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 5
- Ps 24:1The earth is the LORD’s, and the fulness thereof; the world, and they that dwell therein.
- Ps 50:10–12For every beast of the forest is mine, and the cattle upon a thousand hills.
- Mark 11:3–6And if any man say unto you, Why do ye this? say ye that the Lord hath need of him; and straightway he will send him hither.
- Matt 21:2–3Saying unto them, Go into the village over against you, and straightway ye shall find an ass tied, and a colt with her: loose them, and bring them unto me.
- Acts 10:36The word which God sent unto the children of Israel, preaching peace by Jesus Christ: (he is Lord of all:)
Resources, by level
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Hebrew/Greek interlinear, word definitions, and cross-references for this verse.
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 19:31 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.