But they did not understand this statement. It was veiled from them so that they could not comprehend it, and they were afraid to ask Him about it.
Parallel translations
- WEB But they didn’t understand this saying. It was concealed from them, that they should not perceive it, and they were afraid to ask him about this saying.
- KJV But they understood not this saying, and it was hid from them, that they perceived it not: and they feared to ask him of that saying.
- NKJV But they did not understand this saying, and it was hidden from them so that they did not perceive it; and they were afraid to ask Him about this saying.
- NASB But they did not understand this statement, and it was concealed from them so that they would not comprehend it; and they were afraid to ask Him about this statement.
- NLT But they didn’t know what he meant. Its significance was hidden from them, so they couldn’t understand it, and they were afraid to ask him about it.
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 disciples do not understand this saying, and it is concealed from them; they are afraid to ask. Their spiritual dullness keeps them from grasping the cross.
Overview
Despite Jesus' plain words, the disciples fail to comprehend His coming death, and the meaning is hidden from them for a time. Their fear to ask reveals reluctance to face so disturbing a truth. Full understanding would come only after the resurrection, when the Spirit opened their eyes.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 13
- Luke 18:34But the disciples did not understand any of these things. The meaning was hidden from them, and they did not comprehend what He was saying.
- Luke 2:50But they did not understand the statement He was making to them.
- John 12:16At first His disciples did not understand these things, but after Jesus was glorified they remembered what had been done to Him, and they realized that these very things had also been written about Him.
- Mark 9:32But they did not understand this statement, and they were afraid to ask Him about it.
- Mark 9:10So they kept this matter to themselves, discussing what it meant to rise from the dead.
- 2 Cor 3:14–16But their minds were closed. For to this day the same veil remains at the reading of the old covenant. It has not been lifted, because only in Christ can it be removed.
- John 16:17–18Then some of His disciples asked one another, “Why is He telling us, ‘In a little while you will not see Me, and then after a little while you will see Me’ and ‘Because I am going to the Father’?”
- Mark 8:16–18So they began to discuss with one another the fact that they had no bread.
- Mark 8:32–33He spoke this message quite frankly, and Peter took Him aside and began to rebuke Him.
- Matt 16:22Peter took Him aside and began to rebuke Him. “Far be it from You, Lord!” he said. “This shall never happen to You!”
- John 14:5“Lord,” said Thomas, “we do not know where You are going, so how can we know the way?”
- John 12:34The crowd replied, “We have heard from the Law that the Christ will remain forever. So how can you say that the Son of Man must be lifted up? Who is this Son of Man?”
- Luke 9:46Then an argument started among the disciples as to which of them would be the greatest.
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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 9:45 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.