He said, “Leave; for the girl has not died, but is asleep.” And they began laughing at Him.
Parallel translations
- WEB he said to them, “Make room, because the girl isn’t dead, but sleeping.” They were ridiculing him.
- KJV He said unto them, Give place: for the maid is not dead, but sleepeth. And they laughed him to scorn.
- BSB “Go away,” He told them. “The girl is not dead, but asleep.” And they laughed at Him.
- NKJV He said to them, “Make room, for the girl is not dead, but sleeping.” And they ridiculed Him.
- NLT “Get out!” he told them. “The girl isn’t dead; she’s only asleep.” But the crowd laughed at him.
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 says the girl is only sleeping, and the crowd mocks him. To Jesus, raising the dead is as simple as waking a sleeper.
Overview
By calling death 'sleep,' Jesus signals that for him death is not final but a state from which he can awaken her. The mourners' ridicule shows their certainty that she is dead, making the coming miracle undeniable. His words reflect the Christian hope that, in Christ, death is a sleep from which believers will be raised.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 9
- Acts 20:10Paul went down, and fell upon him, and embracing him said, “Don’t be troubled, for his life is in him.”
- John 11:11–13He said these things, and after that, he said to them, “Our friend, Lazarus, has fallen asleep, but I am going so that I may awake him out of sleep.”
- Isa 49:7Yahweh, the Redeemer of Israel, and his Holy One, says to him whom man despises, to him whom the nation abhors, to a servant of rulers: “Kings shall see and rise up; princes, and they shall worship; because of Yahweh who is faithful, even the Holy One of Israel, who has chosen you.”
- Isa 53:3He was despised, and rejected by men; a man of suffering, and acquainted with disease. He was despised as one from whom men hide their face; and we didn’t respect him.
- Acts 9:40Peter sent them all out, and knelt down and prayed. Turning to the body, he said, “Tabitha, get up!” She opened her eyes, and when she saw Peter, she sat up.
- John 11:4But when Jesus heard it, he said, “This sickness is not to death, but for the glory of God, that God’s Son may be glorified by it.”
- Matt 27:39–43Those who passed by blasphemed him, wagging their heads,
- 1 Kgs 17:18–24She said to Elijah, “What have I to do with you, you man of God? You have come to me to bring my sin to memory, and to kill my son!”
- Ps 22:6–7But I am a worm, and no man; a reproach of men, and despised by the people.
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 9:24 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.