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“Truly I tell you,” He said, “this poor widow has put in more than all the others.
Luke 21:3 · Berean Standard Bible
Parallel translations
  • WEB He said, “Truly I tell you, this poor widow put in more than all of them,
  • KJV And he said, Of a truth I say unto you, that this poor widow hath cast in more than they all:
  • NKJV So He said, “Truly I say to you that this poor widow has put in more than all;
  • NASB And He said, “Truly I say to you, this poor widow put in more than all of them;
  • NLT “I tell you the truth,” Jesus said, “this poor widow has given more than all the rest of them.

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 declares that this poor widow has given more than all the wealthy donors.

Overview

By heaven's measure, her tiny gift surpasses the large sums of the rich. God evaluates giving not by amount but by the love, faith, and sacrifice behind it. This overturns worldly standards of value and commends wholehearted devotion.

Cross-references & the web

Cross-references · 11

  • 2 Cor 8:12For if the eagerness is there, the gift is acceptable according to what one has, not according to what he does not have.
  • Acts 10:34Then Peter began to speak: “I now truly understand that God does not show favoritism,
  • 2 Cor 8:2–3In the terrible ordeal they suffered, their abundant joy and deep poverty overflowed into rich generosity.
  • Exod 35:21–29And everyone whose heart stirred him and whose spirit prompted him came and brought an offering to the LORD for the work on the Tent of Meeting, for all its services, and for the holy garments.
  • Mark 12:43–44Jesus called His disciples to Him and said, “Truly I tell you, this poor widow has put more than all the others into the treasury.
  • Luke 4:25But I tell you truthfully that there were many widows in Israel in the time of Elijah, when the sky was shut for three and a half years and great famine swept over all the land.
  • Mark 14:8–9She has done what she could to anoint My body in advance of My burial.
  • Luke 9:27But I tell you truthfully, some who are standing here will not taste death before they see the kingdom of God.”
  • Luke 12:44Truly I tell you, he will put him in charge of all his possessions.
  • Acts 4:27In fact, this is the very city where Herod and Pontius Pilate conspired with the Gentiles and the people of Israel against Your holy servant Jesus, whom You anointed.
  • 2 Cor 9:6–7Remember this: Whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows generously will also reap generously.

Themes, concepts, people & topics

Topics (4)

Resources, by level

Commentaries & study tools

  • VideoBibleProject — Luke videosBibleProject · Lay · Free · evangelical

    Free animated overview and word-study videos for this book.

  • VideoWatch teaching on Luke 21:3YouTube · Lay · Free

    Sermons and teaching on this passage from across YouTube.

  • CommentaryEnduring Word — verse-by-verseDavid Guzik · Lay · Free · evangelical

    Clear, readable, conservative exposition — the best free place to start on any passage.

  • CommentaryClassic commentaries for this verseBibleHub (20+ works) · Pastoral · Free

    Matthew Henry, Barnes, Gill, the Pulpit Commentary, Ellicott, Cambridge, and more — stacked on one page for this exact verse.

  • CommentaryMatthew Henry on LukeMatthew Henry · Pastoral · Free · evangelical

    The beloved Puritan exposition of this whole book — warm, devotional, and verse by verse (free, CCEL).

  • ReferenceInterlinear, lexicon & Strong'sBlue Letter Bible · Seminary · Free

    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 21:3 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.