Then they sent to Him some of the Pharisees and the Herodians, to catch Him in His words.
Parallel translations
- WEB They sent some of the Pharisees and of the Herodians to him, that they might trap him with words.
- KJV And they send unto him certain of the Pharisees and of the Herodians, to catch him in his words.
- BSB Later, they sent some of the Pharisees and Herodians to catch Jesus in His words.
- NASB Then they *sent some of the Pharisees and Herodians to Him in order to trap Him in a statement.
- NLT Later the leaders sent some Pharisees and supporters of Herod to trap Jesus into saying something for which he could be arrested.
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 leaders send Pharisees and Herodians to entrap Jesus with His own words.
Overview
These ordinarily opposed groups unite against Jesus, showing how threatening they find Him. Their aim is not honest inquiry but to catch Him in a politically dangerous statement. The plot reveals their malice and Jesus' growing isolation before the cross.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 11
- Luke 20:20–26They watched him, and sent out spies, who pretended to be righteous, that they might trap him in something he said, so as to deliver him up to the power and authority of the governor.
- Luke 11:54lying in wait for him, and seeking to catch him in something he might say, that they might accuse him.
- Mark 3:6The Pharisees went out, and immediately conspired with the Herodians against him, how they might destroy him.
- Mark 8:15He warned them, saying, “Take heed: beware of the yeast of the Pharisees and the yeast of Herod.”
- Matt 16:6Jesus said to them, “Take heed and beware of the yeast of the Pharisees and Sadducees.”
- Matt 22:15–22Then the Pharisees went and took counsel how they might entrap him in his talk.
- Isa 29:21who cause a person to be indicted by a word, and lay a snare for the arbiter in the gate, and who deprive the innocent of justice with false testimony.
- Ps 56:5–6All day long they twist my words. All their thoughts are against me for evil.
- Ps 140:5The proud have hidden a snare for me, they have spread the cords of a net by the path. They have set traps for me. Selah.
- Ps 38:12They also who seek after my life lay snares. Those who seek my hurt speak mischievous things, and meditate deceits all day long.
- Jer 18:18Then they said, “Come, and let us devise devices against Jeremiah; for the law shall not perish from the priest, nor counsel from the wise, nor the word from the prophet. Come, and let us strike him with the tongue, and let us not give heed to any of his words.”
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
Mark drives urgently to the cross, showing Jesus the Son of God as the suffering Servant who 'came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.'
How Mark 12:13 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.