And they that sat at meat with him began to say within themselves, Who is this that forgiveth sins also?
Parallel translations
- WEB Those who sat at the table with him began to say to themselves, “Who is this who even forgives sins?”
- BSB But those at the table began to say to themselves, “Who is this who even forgives sins?”
- NKJV And those who sat at the table with Him began to say to themselves, “Who is this who even forgives sins?”
- NASB And then those who were reclining at the table with Him began saying to themselves, “Who is this Man who even forgives sins?”
- NLT The men at the table said among themselves, “Who is this man, that he goes around forgiving sins?”
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 other guests are stunned that Jesus claims to forgive sins, since only God can do that. Their question unwittingly points to who Jesus really is.
Overview
At a Pharisee's table, after Jesus pronounces a sinful woman forgiven, the guests murmur about His audacity. Their objection assumes, rightly, that forgiveness of sins is God's prerogative alone. The episode quietly presses the deeper claim of the Gospel: that in Jesus, God Himself has come to pardon sinners.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 3
- Luke 5:20–21And when he saw their faith, he said unto him, Man, thy sins are forgiven thee.
- Mark 2:7Why doth this man thus speak blasphemies? who can forgive sins but God only?
- Matt 9:3And, behold, certain of the scribes said within themselves, This man blasphemeth.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
Resources, by level
Commentaries & study tools
Free animated overview and word-study videos for this book.
Sermons and teaching on this passage from across YouTube.
Clear, readable, conservative exposition — the best free place to start on any passage.
Matthew Henry, Barnes, Gill, the Pulpit Commentary, Ellicott, Cambridge, and more — stacked on one page for this exact verse.
The beloved Puritan exposition of this whole book — warm, devotional, and verse by verse (free, CCEL).
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 7:49 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.