Jesus answered and said to them, “Indeed, Elijah is coming first and will restore all things.
Parallel translations
- WEB Jesus answered them, “Elijah indeed comes first, and will restore all things,
- KJV And Jesus answered and said unto them, Elias truly shall first come, and restore all things.
- BSB Jesus replied, “Elijah does indeed come, and he will restore all things.
- NASB And He answered and said, “Elijah is coming and will restore all things;
- NLT Jesus replied, “Elijah is indeed coming first to get everything ready.
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
Jesus affirms that an Elijah figure does come first to restore all things. He upholds the truth of the prophecy while preparing to reinterpret it.
Overview
Jesus grants that Scripture rightly speaks of Elijah coming to prepare and restore (Malachi 4:5-6). Rather than denying the expectation, he affirms it before showing how it has been realized. This restoring ministry of turning hearts back to God describes the preparatory work that precedes the Messiah's coming.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 4
- Acts 3:21whom heaven must receive until the times of restoration of all things, which God spoke long ago by the mouth of his holy prophets.
- Luke 1:16–17He will turn many of the children of Israel to the Lord, their God.
- Mal 4:6He will turn the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the hearts of the children to their fathers, lest I come and strike the earth with a curse.”
- Luke 3:3–14He came into all the region around the Jordan, preaching the baptism of repentance for remission of sins.
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Christ at the center
Matthew presents Jesus as the promised King — son of David, son of Abraham — the new Moses and true Israel in whom every prophecy reaches 'that it might be fulfilled.'
How Matthew 17:11 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
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