Yet they could not find a way to do so, because all the people hung on His words.
Parallel translations
- WEB They couldn’t find what they might do, for all the people hung on to every word that he said.
- KJV And could not find what they might do: for all the people were very attentive to hear him.
- NKJV and were unable to do anything; for all the people were very attentive to hear Him.
- NASB and yet they could not find anything that they might do, for all the people were hanging on to every word He said.
- NLT But they could think of nothing, because all the people hung on every word he said.
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 cannot act against Jesus because the people hang on his every word. His teaching holds the crowds and restrains his enemies for a time.
Overview
The people's eager attention to Jesus protects him for the moment and frustrates the leaders' schemes. Luke shows that the timing of the cross remains under God's control, not man's. Jesus continues his ministry until the appointed hour of his suffering arrives.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 6
- Neh 8:3So Ezra read it aloud from daybreak until noon as he faced the square before the Water Gate, in front of the men and women and those who could understand. And all the people listened attentively to the Book of the Law.
- Matt 22:15–16Then the Pharisees went out and conspired to trap Jesus in His words.
- Luke 22:2–4and the chief priests and scribes were looking for a way to put Jesus to death; for they feared the people.
- Acts 16:14Among those listening was a woman named Lydia, a dealer in purple cloth from the city of Thyatira, who was a worshiper of God. The Lord opened her heart to respond to Paul’s message.
- Luke 20:19–20When the scribes and chief priests realized that Jesus had spoken this parable against them, they sought to arrest Him that very hour. But they were afraid of the people.
- John 7:46–49“Never has anyone spoken like this man!” the officers answered.
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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 19:48 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.