Now in the early morning, when He was returning to the city, He became hungry.
Parallel translations
- WEB Now in the morning, as he returned to the city, he was hungry.
- KJV Now in the morning as he returned into the city, he hungered.
- BSB In the morning, as Jesus was returning to the city, He was hungry.
- NKJV Now in the morning, as He returned to the city, He was hungry.
- NLT In the morning, as Jesus was returning to Jerusalem, he was hungry,
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
Returning to the city in the morning, Jesus is hungry. This human moment sets up the sign of the fig tree.
Overview
Matthew notes Jesus' genuine hunger as he heads back to Jerusalem, a reminder of his true humanity. This simple detail introduces the encounter with the fruitless fig tree that follows. The episode will become a living parable of fruitless religion and the judgment it invites.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 6
- Matt 4:2When he had fasted forty days and forty nights, he was hungry afterward.
- Heb 4:15For we don’t have a high priest who can’t be touched with the feeling of our infirmities, but one who has been in all points tempted like we are, yet without sin.
- Matt 12:1At that time, Jesus went on the Sabbath day through the grain fields. His disciples were hungry and began to pluck heads of grain and to eat.
- Mark 11:20–24As they passed by in the morning, they saw the fig tree withered away from the roots.
- Mark 11:12–14The next day, when they had come out from Bethany, he was hungry.
- Luke 4:2for forty days, being tempted by the devil. He ate nothing in those days. Afterward, when they were completed, he was hungry.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
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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 21:18 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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