And if any man say ought unto you, ye shall say, The Lord hath need of them; and straightway he will send them.
Parallel translations
- WEB If anyone says anything to you, you shall say, ‘The Lord needs them,’ and immediately he will send them.”
- BSB If anyone questions you, tell him that the Lord needs them, and he will send them right away.”
- NKJV And if anyone says anything to you, you shall say, ‘The Lord has need of them,’ and immediately he will send them.”
- NASB And if anyone says anything to you, you shall say, ‘The Lord needs them,’ and he will send them on immediately.”
- NLT If anyone asks what you are doing, just say, ‘The Lord needs them,’ and he will immediately let you take them.”
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 tells the disciples to say 'The Lord needs them' if anyone questions them, and the owner will release the animals. His authority and foreknowledge govern the whole event.
Overview
The simple password, 'The Lord needs them,' will secure the animals, showing Jesus' authority and his foreknowledge of how the owner will respond. The title 'the Lord' marks Jesus' rightful claim over all things. Every detail unfolds under his sovereign direction as he moves toward his royal entry into Jerusalem.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 16
- Acts 17:25Neither is worshipped with men’s hands, as though he needed any thing, seeing he giveth to all life, and breath, and all things;
- 2 Cor 8:1–2Moreover, brethren, we do you to wit of the grace of God bestowed on the churches of Macedonia;
- John 3:35The Father loveth the Son, and hath given all things into his hand.
- 2 Cor 8:9For ye know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that, though he was rich, yet for your sakes he became poor, that ye through his poverty might be rich.
- Ps 50:10–11For every beast of the forest is mine, and the cattle upon a thousand hills.
- Ezra 1:5Then rose up the chief of the fathers of Judah and Benjamin, and the priests, and the Levites, with all them whose spirit God had raised, to go up to build the house of the LORD which is in Jerusalem.
- Ps 24:1The earth is the LORD’s, and the fulness thereof; the world, and they that dwell therein.
- Hag 2:8–9The silver is mine, and the gold is mine, saith the LORD of hosts.
- Ezra 7:27Blessed be the LORD God of our fathers, which hath put such a thing as this in the king’s heart, to beautify the house of the LORD which is in Jerusalem:
- John 17:2As thou hast given him power over all flesh, that he should give eternal life to as many as thou hast given him.
- Ezra 1:1Now in the first year of Cyrus king of Persia, that the word of the LORD by the mouth of Jeremiah might be fulfilled, the LORD stirred up the spirit of Cyrus king of Persia, that he made a proclamation throughout all his kingdom, and put it also in writing, saying,
- 2 Cor 8:16But thanks be to God, which put the same earnest care into the heart of Titus for you.
- 1 Kgs 17:9Arise, get thee to Zarephath, which belongeth to Zidon, and dwell there: behold, I have commanded a widow woman there to sustain thee.
- 1 Sam 10:26And Saul also went home to Gibeah; and there went with him a band of men, whose hearts God had touched.
- 1 Chr 29:14–16But who am I, and what is my people, that we should be able to offer so willingly after this sort? for all things come of thee, and of thine own have we given thee.
- Jas 1:17Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and cometh down from the Father of lights, with whom is no variableness, neither shadow of turning.
Resources, by level
Commentaries & study tools
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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 21:3 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.