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And the people stood beholding. And the rulers also with them derided him, saying, He saved others; let him save himself, if he be Christ, the chosen of God.
Luke 23:35 · King James Version
Parallel translations
  • WEB The people stood watching. The rulers with them also scoffed at him, saying, “He saved others. Let him save himself, if this is the Christ of God, his chosen one!”
  • BSB The people stood watching, and the rulers sneered at Him, saying, “He saved others; let Him save Himself if He is the Christ of God, the Chosen One.”
  • NKJV And the people stood looking on. But even the rulers with them sneered, saying, “He saved others; let Him save Himself if He is the Christ, the chosen of God.”
  • NASB And the people stood by, watching. And even the rulers were sneering at Him, saying, “He saved others; let Him save Himself if this is the Christ of God, His Chosen One.”
  • NLT The crowd watched and the leaders scoffed. “He saved others,” they said, “let him save himself if he is really God’s Messiah, the Chosen One.”

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 rulers scoffed, daring Jesus to save Himself if He were truly the Christ. They mocked the very salvation He was accomplishing.

Overview

As the people watched, the leaders taunted Jesus, demanding self-rescue as proof of His Messiahship. Their words echo Psalm 22:7-8 and reveal blindness to the truth that He saves others precisely by not saving Himself. The cross is not a failure of power but the means of redemption, for He could not save others and Himself at once.

Cross-references & the web

Cross-references · 22

  • Ps 22:17I may tell all my bones: they look and stare upon me.
  • Isa 42:1Behold my servant, whom I uphold; mine elect, in whom my soul delighteth; I have put my spirit upon him: he shall bring forth judgment to the Gentiles.
  • 1 Pet 2:4To whom coming, as unto a living stone, disallowed indeed of men, but chosen of God, and precious,
  • Mark 15:29–32And they that passed by railed on him, wagging their heads, and saying, Ah, thou that destroyest the temple, and buildest it in three days,
  • Matt 12:18Behold my servant, whom I have chosen; my beloved, in whom my soul is well pleased: I will put my spirit upon him, and he shall shew judgment to the Gentiles.
  • Isa 53:3He is despised and rejected of men; a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief: and we hid as it were our faces from him; he was despised, and we esteemed him not.
  • Luke 16:14And the Pharisees also, who were covetous, heard all these things: and they derided him.
  • Ps 22:6–8But I am a worm, and no man; a reproach of men, and despised of the people.
  • Matt 27:38–43Then were there two thieves crucified with him, one on the right hand, and another on the left.
  • Ps 35:15But in mine adversity they rejoiced, and gathered themselves together: yea, the abjects gathered themselves together against me, and I knew it not; they did tear me, and ceased not:
  • Ps 69:26For they persecute him whom thou hast smitten; and they talk to the grief of those whom thou hast wounded.
  • Zech 12:10And I will pour upon the house of David, and upon the inhabitants of Jerusalem, the spirit of grace and of supplications: and they shall look upon me whom they have pierced, and they shall mourn for him, as one mourneth for his only son, and shall be in bitterness for him, as one that is in bitterness for his firstborn.
  • Ps 71:11Saying, God hath forsaken him: persecute and take him; for there is none to deliver him.
  • Ps 69:7–12Because for thy sake I have borne reproach; shame hath covered my face.
  • Ps 35:19–25Let not them that are mine enemies wrongfully rejoice over me: neither let them wink with the eye that hate me without a cause.
  • Ps 22:12–13Many bulls have compassed me: strong bulls of Bashan have beset me round.
  • Isa 49:7Thus saith the LORD, the Redeemer of Israel, and his Holy One, to him whom man despiseth, to him whom the nation abhorreth, to a servant of rulers, Kings shall see and arise, princes also shall worship, because of the LORD that is faithful, and the Holy One of Israel, and he shall choose thee.
  • Lam 3:14I was a derision to all my people; and their song all the day.
  • Matt 3:17And lo a voice from heaven, saying, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.
  • Luke 22:67–70Art thou the Christ? tell us. And he said unto them, If I tell you, ye will not believe:
  • Gen 37:19–20And they said one to another, Behold, this dreamer cometh.
  • Ps 4:2O ye sons of men, how long will ye turn my glory into shame? how long will ye love vanity, and seek after leasing? Selah.

Themes, concepts, people & topics

Topics (2)

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 23:35YouTube · 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 23:35 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.