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While they were greatly perplexed about this, behold, two men stood by them in dazzling clothing.
Luke 24:4 · World English Bible
Parallel translations
  • KJV And it came to pass, as they were much perplexed thereabout, behold, two men stood by them in shining garments:
  • BSB While they were puzzling over this, suddenly two men in radiant apparel stood beside them.
  • NKJV And it happened, as they were greatly perplexed about this, that behold, two men stood by them in shining garments.
  • NASB While they were perplexed about this, behold, two men suddenly stood near them in gleaming clothing;
  • NLT As they stood there puzzled, two men suddenly appeared to them, clothed in dazzling robes.

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

As they stood perplexed, two men in dazzling clothing appeared. Heavenly messengers came to interpret the empty tomb.

Overview

While the women puzzle over the missing body, two angelic figures in radiant garments stand by them. Their dazzling appearance marks them as messengers from God sent to explain the resurrection. Heaven itself bears witness to what has happened, lest the empty tomb be misunderstood or doubted.

Cross-references & the web

Cross-references · 5

  • Mark 16:5Entering into the tomb, they saw a young man sitting on the right side, dressed in a white robe, and they were amazed.
  • John 20:11–12But Mary was standing outside at the tomb weeping. So, as she wept, she stooped and looked into the tomb,
  • Acts 1:10While they were looking steadfastly into the sky as he went, behold, two men stood by them in white clothing,
  • Matt 28:2–6Behold, there was a great earthquake, for an angel of the Lord descended from the sky, and came and rolled away the stone from the door, and sat on it.
  • Gen 18:2He lifted up his eyes and looked, and saw that three men stood opposite him. When he saw them, he ran to meet them from the tent door, and bowed himself to the earth,

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 24:4YouTube · 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 24:4 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.