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So John called two of his disciples and sent them to ask the Lord, “Are You the One who was to come, or should we look for someone else?”
Luke 7:19 · Berean Standard Bible
Parallel translations
  • WEB John, calling to himself two of his disciples, sent them to Jesus, saying, “Are you the one who is coming, or should we look for another?”
  • KJV And John calling unto him two of his disciples sent them to Jesus, saying, Art thou he that should come? or look we for another?
  • NKJV And John, calling two of his disciples to him, sent them to Jesus, saying, “Are You the Coming One, or do we look for another?”
  • NASB And after summoning two of his disciples, John sent them to the Lord, saying, “Are You the Coming One, or are we to look for another?”
  • NLT and he sent them to the Lord to ask him, “Are you the Messiah we’ve been expecting, or should we keep looking for someone else?”

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

John sends two disciples to ask Jesus whether He is the coming One or whether they should expect another. He seeks assurance about Jesus' messianic identity.

Overview

From prison, John, perhaps perplexed that Jesus' ministry differed from expectations of judgment, sends to confirm whether Jesus is the promised Messiah. Faithful interpreters see honest inquiry rather than unbelief here. The question gives Jesus occasion to point to His works as evidence that He is indeed the Christ foretold by Scripture.

Cross-references & the web

Cross-references · 23

  • Isa 9:6–7For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given, and the government will be upon His shoulders. And He will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.
  • John 4:25The woman said, “I know that Messiah” (called Christ) “is coming. When He comes, He will explain everything to us.”
  • Isa 40:10–11Behold, the Lord GOD comes with might, and His arm establishes His rule. His reward is with Him, and His recompense accompanies Him.
  • Mic 5:2But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, who are small among the clans of Judah, out of you will come forth for Me One to be ruler over Israel—One whose origins are of old, from the days of eternity.
  • Luke 10:1After this, the Lord appointed seventy-two others and sent them two by two ahead of Him to every town and place He was about to visit.
  • Isa 7:14Therefore the Lord Himself will give you a sign: Behold, the virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and will call Him Immanuel.
  • Isa 59:20–21“The Redeemer will come to Zion, to those in Jacob who turn from transgression,” declares the LORD.
  • Gen 3:15And I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your seed and her seed. He will crush your head, and you will strike his heel.”
  • Mal 3:1–3“Behold, I will send My messenger, who will prepare the way before Me. Then the Lord whom you seek will suddenly come to His temple—the Messenger of the covenant, in whom you delight—see, He is coming,” says the LORD of Hosts.
  • Jer 23:5–6Behold, the days are coming, declares the LORD, when I will raise up for David a righteous Branch, and He will reign wisely as King and will administer justice and righteousness in the land.
  • Zech 9:9Rejoice greatly, O Daughter of Zion! Shout in triumph, O Daughter of Jerusalem! See, your King comes to you, righteous and victorious, humble and riding on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey.
  • Hag 2:7I will shake all the nations, and they will come with all their treasures, and I will fill this house with glory, says the LORD of Hosts.
  • Dan 9:24–26Seventy weeks are decreed for your people and your holy city to stop their transgression, to put an end to sin, to make atonement for iniquity, to bring in everlasting righteousness, to seal up vision and prophecy, and to anoint the Most Holy Place.
  • Gen 22:18And through your offspring all nations of the earth will be blessed, because you have obeyed My voice.”
  • Gen 49:10The scepter will not depart from Judah, nor the staff from between his feet, until Shiloh comes and the allegiance of the nations is his.
  • Deut 18:15–18The LORD your God will raise up for you a prophet like me from among your brothers. You must listen to him.
  • Isa 11:1Then a shoot will spring up from the stump of Jesse, and a Branch from his roots will bear fruit.
  • Acts 10:7–8When the angel who spoke to him had gone, Cornelius called two of his servants and a devout soldier from among his attendants.
  • Mal 4:2“But for you who fear My name, the sun of righteousness will rise with healing in its wings, and you will go out and leap like calves from the stall.
  • Ps 110:1–4A Psalm of David. The LORD said to my Lord: “Sit at My right hand until I make Your enemies a footstool for Your feet.”
  • Rev 11:3And I will empower my two witnesses, and they will prophesy for 1,260 days, clothed in sackcloth.”
  • Josh 2:1Then Joshua son of Nun secretly sent two spies from Shittim, saying, “Go, inspect the land, especially Jericho.” So they went and entered the house of a prostitute named Rahab and stayed there.
  • Mark 6:7Then Jesus called the Twelve to Him and began to send them out two by two, giving them authority over unclean spirits.

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 7:19YouTube · 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 7:19 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.