He trusts in God. Let God deliver him now, if he wants him; for he said, ‘I am the Son of God.’”
Parallel translations
- KJV He trusted in God; let him deliver him now, if he will have him: for he said, I am the Son of God.
- BSB He trusts in God. Let God deliver Him now if He wants Him. For He said, ‘I am the Son of God.’”
- NKJV He trusted in God; let Him deliver Him now if He will have Him; for He said, ‘I am the Son of God.’ ”
- NASB He has trusted in God; let God rescue Him now, if He takes pleasure in Him; for He said, ‘I am the Son of God.’ ”
- NLT He trusted God, so let God rescue him now if he wants him! For he said, ‘I am the Son of God.’”
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
They mock Jesus' trust in God, daring God to deliver Him as His Son. Their scorn echoes Psalm 22 almost word for word.
Overview
The leaders sneer at Jesus' confidence in God, challenging God to rescue His professed Son. Their taunt unwittingly quotes Psalm 22, marking Jesus as the very righteous sufferer that psalm describes. Far from disproving His sonship, the cross is the place where the faithful Son entrusts Himself to the Father even in forsakenness.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 14
- Ps 22:8“He trusts in Yahweh; let him deliver him. Let him rescue him, since he delights in him.”
- John 10:36do you say of him whom the Father sanctified and sent into the world, ‘You blaspheme,’ because I said, ‘I am the Son of God?’
- Ps 71:11saying, “God has forsaken him. Pursue and take him, for no one will rescue him.”
- Ps 3:2Many there are who say of my soul, “There is no help for him in God.” Selah.
- John 19:7The Jews answered him, “We have a law, and by our law he ought to die, because he made himself the Son of God.”
- John 3:16–17For God so loved the world, that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish, but have eternal life.
- Isa 37:10“Thus you shall speak to Hezekiah king of Judah, saying, ‘Don’t let your God in whom you trust deceive you, saying, “Jerusalem won’t be given into the hand of the king of Assyria.”
- John 5:17–25But Jesus answered them, “My Father is still working, so I am working, too.”
- Ps 14:6You frustrate the plan of the poor, because Yahweh is his refuge.
- Matt 27:40and saying, “You who destroy the temple, and build it in three days, save yourself! If you are the Son of God, come down from the cross!”
- Ps 42:10As with a sword in my bones, my adversaries reproach me, while they continually ask me, “Where is your God?”
- Isa 36:15Don’t let Hezekiah make you trust in Yahweh, saying, “Yahweh will surely deliver us. This city won’t be given into the hand of the king of Assyria.”’
- John 10:30I and the Father are one.”
- Isa 36:18Beware lest Hezekiah persuade you, saying, “Yahweh will deliver us.” Have any of the gods of the nations delivered their lands from the hand of the king of Assyria?
Themes, concepts, people & topics
Resources, by level
Commentaries & study tools
Free animated overview and word-study videos for this book.
Sermons and teaching on this passage from across YouTube.
Clear, readable, conservative exposition — the best free place to start on any passage.
Matthew Henry, Barnes, Gill, the Pulpit Commentary, Ellicott, Cambridge, and more — stacked on one page for this exact verse.
The beloved Puritan exposition of this whole book — warm, devotional, and verse by verse (free, CCEL).
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 27:43 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.