But he began to curse and swear, “I do not know this man of whom you speak!”
Parallel translations
- WEB But he began to curse, and to swear, “I don’t know this man of whom you speak!”
- KJV But he began to curse and to swear, saying, I know not this man of whom ye speak.
- NKJV Then he began to curse and swear, “I do not know this Man of whom you speak!”
- NASB But he began to curse himself and to swear, “I do not know this Man of whom you speak!”
- NLT Peter swore, “A curse on me if I’m lying—I don’t know this man you’re talking about!”
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
Peter curses and swears that he does not know Jesus. His denial reaches its lowest point.
Overview
Invoking curses and oaths, Peter emphatically disowns the Lord he had vowed to die for. His collapse is complete, fulfilling Jesus' prediction in full. Yet this very failure, foreseen by Jesus, will become the occasion of deep repentance and restoration.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 4
- Jer 17:9The heart is deceitful above all things and beyond cure. Who can understand it?
- 2 Kgs 10:32In those days the LORD began to reduce the size of Israel. Hazael defeated the Israelites throughout their territory
- 2 Kgs 8:12–15“Why is my lord weeping?” asked Hazael. “Because I know the evil you will do to the Israelites,” Elisha replied. “You will set fire to their fortresses, kill their young men with the sword, dash their little ones to pieces, and rip open their pregnant women.”
- 1 Cor 10:12So the one who thinks he is standing firm should be careful not to fall.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
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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 14:71 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.