As the women bowed their faces to the ground in terror, the two men asked them, “Why do you look for the living among the dead?
Parallel translations
- WEB Becoming terrified, they bowed their faces down to the earth. They said to them, “Why do you seek the living among the dead?
- KJV And as they were afraid, and bowed down their faces to the earth, they said unto them, Why seek ye the living among the dead?
- NKJV Then, as they were afraid and bowed their faces to the earth, they said to them, “Why do you seek the living among the dead?
- NASB and as the women were terrified and bowed their faces to the ground, the men said to them, “Why are you seeking the living One among the dead?
- NLT The women were terrified and bowed with their faces to the ground. Then the men asked, “Why are you looking among the dead for someone who is alive?
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 terrified women bowed down, and the angels asked why they sought the living among the dead. The question announces that Jesus is alive.
Overview
Overcome with awe, the women bow as the angels pose a pointed question. By calling Jesus the living one, the messengers declare His resurrection. The words gently rebuke the assumption that He remains among the dead and redirect the women's grief toward the joyful reality that Christ has risen.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 12
- Mark 16:5–6When they entered the tomb, they saw a young man dressed in a white robe sitting on the right side, and they were alarmed.
- Rev 1:18the Living One. I was dead, and behold, now I am alive forever and ever! And I hold the keys of Death and of Hades.
- Matt 28:3–5His appearance was like lightning, and his clothes were white as snow.
- Luke 1:12–13When Zechariah saw him, he was startled and gripped with fear.
- Rev 2:8To the angel of the church in Smyrna write: These are the words of the First and the Last, who died and returned to life.
- Dan 10:16And suddenly one with the likeness of a man touched my lips, and I opened my mouth and said to the one standing before me, “My lord, because of the vision, I am overcome with anguish, and I have no strength.
- Dan 10:19“Do not be afraid, you who are highly precious,” he said. “Peace be with you! Be strong now; be very strong!” As he spoke with me, I was strengthened and said, “Speak, my lord, for you have strengthened me.”
- Dan 10:7–12Only I, Daniel, saw the vision; the men with me did not see it, but a great terror fell upon them, and they ran and hid themselves.
- Dan 8:17–18As he came near to where I stood, I was terrified and fell facedown. “Son of man,” he said to me, “understand that the vision concerns the time of the end.”
- Acts 10:3–4One day at about the ninth hour, he had a clear vision of an angel of God who came to him and said, “Cornelius!”
- Heb 7:8In the case of the Levites, mortal men collect the tenth; but in the case of Melchizedek, it is affirmed that he lives on.
- Luke 1:29Mary was greatly troubled at his words and wondered what kind of greeting this might be.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
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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 24:5 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.