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We had hoped he was the Messiah who had come to rescue Israel. This all happened three days ago.
Luke 24:21 · New Living Translation
Parallel translations
  • WEB But we were hoping that it was he who would redeem Israel. Yes, and besides all this, it is now the third day since these things happened.
  • KJV But we trusted that it had been he which should have redeemed Israel: and beside all this, to day is the third day since these things were done.
  • BSB But we were hoping He was the One who would redeem Israel. And besides all this, it is the third day since these things took place.
  • NKJV But we were hoping that it was He who was going to redeem Israel. Indeed, besides all this, today is the third day since these things happened.
  • NASB But we were hoping that it was He who was going to redeem Israel. Indeed, besides all this, it is now the third day since these things happened.

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

They had hoped Jesus would redeem Israel, but it was now the third day. Their dashed hopes reveal a misunderstanding the risen Christ would correct.

Overview

The disciples confess their fading hope that Jesus was Israel's redeemer, noting that three days had passed. Their expectation of a political deliverer left them disillusioned by the cross. Yet their words unwittingly point to the very day of resurrection, the redemption they sought arriving in a greater way than they imagined.

Cross-references & the web

Cross-references · 7

  • Luke 1:68“Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel, for he has visited and redeemed his people;
  • Isa 59:20“A Redeemer will come to Zion, and to those who turn from disobedience in Jacob,” says Yahweh.
  • Luke 2:38Coming up at that very hour, she gave thanks to the Lord, and spoke of him to all those who were looking for redemption in Jerusalem.
  • 1 Pet 1:18–19knowing that you were redeemed, not with corruptible things, with silver or gold, from the useless way of life handed down from your fathers,
  • Ps 130:8He will redeem Israel from all their sins.
  • Rev 5:9They sang a new song, saying, “You are worthy to take the book, and to open its seals: for you were killed, and bought us for God with your blood, out of every tribe, language, people, and nation,
  • Acts 1:6Therefore when they had come together, they asked him, “Lord, are you now restoring the kingdom to Israel?”

Themes, concepts, people & topics

Topics (3)

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 24:21YouTube · 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 24:21 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.