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And when the chief priests and scribes saw the wonderful things that he did, and the children crying in the temple, and saying, Hosanna to the son of David; they were sore displeased,
Matthew 21:15 · King James Version
Parallel translations
  • WEB But when the chief priests and the scribes saw the wonderful things that he did, and the children who were crying in the temple and saying, “Hosanna to the son of David!” they were indignant,
  • BSB But the chief priests and scribes were indignant when they saw the wonders He performed and the children shouting in the temple courts, “Hosanna to the Son of David!”
  • NKJV But when the chief priests and scribes saw the wonderful things that He did, and the children crying out in the temple and saying, “Hosanna to the Son of David!” they were indignant
  • NASB But when the chief priests and the scribes saw the wonderful things that He had done, and the children who were shouting in the temple area, “Hosanna to the Son of David,” they became indignant,
  • NLT The leading priests and the teachers of religious law saw these wonderful miracles and heard even the children in the Temple shouting, “Praise God for the Son of David.” But the leaders were indignant.

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 chief priests and scribes grow indignant at Jesus' wonders and the children's cries of 'Hosanna to the Son of David.' Their anger exposes their rejection of the Messiah.

Overview

While children praise Jesus with messianic words, the religious leaders react with indignation rather than worship. Their hostility, set against the children's praise, reveals hardened, unbelieving hearts. The contrast shows that recognizing Jesus is a matter of the heart, not learning or status, and foreshadows the leaders' growing opposition.

Cross-references & the web

Cross-references · 19

  • Matt 21:9And the multitudes that went before, and that followed, cried, saying, Hosanna to the son of David: Blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord; Hosanna in the highest.
  • Luke 19:39–40And some of the Pharisees from among the multitude said unto him, Master, rebuke thy disciples.
  • Matt 21:23And when he was come into the temple, the chief priests and the elders of the people came unto him as he was teaching, and said, By what authority doest thou these things? and who gave thee this authority?
  • Matt 9:27And when Jesus departed thence, two blind men followed him, crying, and saying, Thou son of David, have mercy on us.
  • John 11:57Now both the chief priests and the Pharisees had given a commandment, that, if any man knew where he were, he should shew it, that they might take him.
  • Isa 26:11LORD, when thy hand is lifted up, they will not see: but they shall see, and be ashamed for their envy at the people; yea, the fire of thine enemies shall devour them.
  • Luke 22:66And as soon as it was day, the elders of the people and the chief priests and the scribes came together, and led him into their council, saying,
  • Matt 22:42Saying, What think ye of Christ? whose son is he? They say unto him, The son of David.
  • John 4:1When therefore the LORD knew how the Pharisees had heard that Jesus made and baptized more disciples than John,
  • John 7:42Hath not the scripture said, That Christ cometh of the seed of David, and out of the town of Bethlehem, where David was?
  • Luke 20:1And it came to pass, that on one of those days, as he taught the people in the temple, and preached the gospel, the chief priests and the scribes came upon him with the elders,
  • Matt 26:59Now the chief priests, and elders, and all the council, sought false witness against Jesus, to put him to death;
  • Matt 27:1When the morning was come, all the chief priests and elders of the people took counsel against Jesus to put him to death:
  • Matt 27:20But the chief priests and elders persuaded the multitude that they should ask Barabbas, and destroy Jesus.
  • Luke 22:2And the chief priests and scribes sought how they might kill him; for they feared the people.
  • Matt 26:3Then assembled together the chief priests, and the scribes, and the elders of the people, unto the palace of the high priest, who was called Caiaphas,
  • Mark 11:18And the scribes and chief priests heard it, and sought how they might destroy him: for they feared him, because all the people was astonished at his doctrine.
  • John 12:19The Pharisees therefore said among themselves, Perceive ye how ye prevail nothing? behold, the world is gone after him.
  • John 11:47–49Then gathered the chief priests and the Pharisees a council, and said, What do we? for this man doeth many miracles.

Themes, concepts, people & topics

Topics (2)

Resources, by level

Commentaries & study tools

  • VideoBibleProject — Matthew videosBibleProject · Lay · Free · evangelical

    Free animated overview and word-study videos for this book.

  • VideoWatch teaching on Matthew 21:15YouTube · Lay · Free

    Sermons and teaching on this passage from across YouTube.

  • CommentaryEnduring Word — verse-by-verseDavid Guzik · Lay · Free · evangelical

    Clear, readable, conservative exposition — the best free place to start on any passage.

  • CommentaryClassic commentaries for this verseBibleHub (20+ works) · Pastoral · Free

    Matthew Henry, Barnes, Gill, the Pulpit Commentary, Ellicott, Cambridge, and more — stacked on one page for this exact verse.

  • CommentaryMatthew Henry on MatthewMatthew Henry · Pastoral · Free · evangelical

    The beloved Puritan exposition of this whole book — warm, devotional, and verse by verse (free, CCEL).

  • ReferenceInterlinear, lexicon & Strong'sBlue Letter Bible · Seminary · Free

    Hebrew/Greek interlinear, word definitions, and cross-references for this verse.

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 21:15 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.