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But their words seemed like nonsense to them, and they did not believe the women.
Luke 24:11 · Berean Standard Bible
Parallel translations
  • WEB These words seemed to them to be nonsense, and they didn’t believe them.
  • KJV And their words seemed to them as idle tales, and they believed them not.
  • NKJV And their words seemed to them like idle tales, and they did not believe them.
  • NASB But these words appeared to them as nonsense, and they would not believe the women.
  • NLT But the story sounded like nonsense to the men, so they didn’t believe 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

The apostles dismissed the women's report as nonsense and did not believe. Even Jesus' closest followers struggled to accept the resurrection.

Overview

The disciples regard the women's account as idle talk and refuse to believe. Their skepticism shows they were not gullible inventors of a myth but doubters who needed convincing. This honest detail strengthens the historical credibility of the resurrection, which would soon overcome their unbelief through the risen Lord's appearances.

Cross-references & the web

Cross-references · 7

  • Job 9:16If I summoned Him and He answered me, I do not believe He would listen to my voice.
  • Mark 16:11And when they heard that Jesus was alive and she had seen Him, they did not believe it.
  • Gen 19:14So Lot went out and spoke to the sons-in-law who were pledged in marriage to his daughters. “Get up,” he said. “Get out of this place, for the LORD is about to destroy the city!” But his sons-in-law thought he was joking.
  • Ps 126:1A song of ascents. When the LORD restored the captives of Zion, we were like dreamers.
  • Luke 24:25Then Jesus said to them, “O foolish ones, how slow are your hearts to believe all that the prophets have spoken!
  • Acts 12:9So Peter followed him out, but he was unaware that what the angel was doing was real. He thought he was only seeing a vision.
  • 2 Kgs 7:2But the officer on whose arm the king leaned answered the man of God, “Look, even if the LORD were to make windows in heaven, could this really happen?” “You will see it with your own eyes,” replied Elisha, “but you will not eat any of it.”

Themes, concepts, people & topics

Topics (1)

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 24:11YouTube · 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 24:11 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.