Luke 20 2

Luke 20:2 kjv

And spake unto him, saying, Tell us, by what authority doest thou these things? or who is he that gave thee this authority?

Luke 20:2 nkjv

and spoke to Him, saying, "Tell us, by what authority are You doing these things? Or who is he who gave You this authority?"

Luke 20:2 niv

"Tell us by what authority you are doing these things," they said. "Who gave you this authority?"

Luke 20:2 esv

and said to him, "Tell us by what authority you do these things, or who it is that gave you this authority."

Luke 20:2 nlt

They demanded, "By what authority are you doing all these things? Who gave you the right?"

Luke 20 verses

Luke 20 2 Meaning

This verse captures the direct challenge from the religious authorities – the chief priests, scribes, and elders – to Jesus’s legitimacy. They demand to know the source of His authority to perform the powerful deeds He has been doing, especially teaching in the temple and cleansing it. Their question, presented in two parts, seeks to identify either an institutional human permission or a self-claimed power, aiming to trap Jesus and invalidate His ministry in the eyes of the people. It reveals their rejection of His divine mandate and their self-preservation in the face of His transformative impact.

Luke 20 2 Context

This verse is situated during Jesus’s final week in Jerusalem, leading up to His crucifixion. Immediately prior to this, Luke 19 describes Jesus’s triumphant entry, His weeping over Jerusalem, His cleansing of the temple by casting out those buying and selling, and His subsequent daily teaching in the temple. His actions and words had created significant unrest among the established religious and political powers. Luke 20:1 states that “the chief priests and the scribes with the elders” approached Him while He was teaching. These were the most powerful members of the Sanhedrin, the highest Jewish ruling council. Their question is a direct and formal challenge to His authority, reflecting their alarm at His popularity and His disruption of their practices and control. They sought to entrap Him, either into claiming divine authority (which they could brand as blasphemy) or human authority (which could lead to a charge of sedition against Rome if unauthorized, or a rejection of Him as a true prophet if he named an earthly patron they did not recognize or approve). Their ultimate goal was to find a reason to condemn or discredit Him.

Luke 20 2 Word analysis

• And they spake unto him, saying:
  • This phrase introduces a formal confrontation. "They" refers specifically to the religious establishment: the chief priests, scribes, and elders (Luke 20:1), highlighting the collective and authoritative nature of the challenge from the Jewish leadership.
• Tell us:
  • This is not a genuine inquiry seeking understanding but a demand for a defense. It reflects their desire to scrutinize, challenge, and potentially accuse Jesus.
• by what authority (ἐν ποίᾳ ἐξουσίᾳ – en poia exousia):
  • ἐξουσίᾳ (exousia): This Greek word is critically important. It signifies not just power (dynamis, inherent ability), but the legitimate right, authorization, jurisdiction, or liberty to act. It encompasses the right to act, the power by which one acts, and the freedom or privilege to act. They are questioning His source of legitimacy. Was it human, angelic, or divine? From whose authorization did He perform such deeds?
  • This implies a search for a warrant, a commission, or a legitimate basis for His public actions.
• doest thou these things?:
  • "These things" refers specifically to Jesus’s recent actions: His authoritative teaching in the Temple (Luke 19:47), His driving out the money changers and vendors from the Temple precincts (Luke 19:45-46), and implicitly His miracles and healings, all of which demonstrated a power and authority they could not deny but struggled to categorize or legitimate.
• or who is he that gave thee this authority?:
  • This second part of the question re-emphasizes their focus on delegated or external authorization. They assume that if Jesus's authority is not self-claimed (which would be blasphemous or rebellious), then it must come from someone else. They are looking for a human patron, a school of rabbinic thought, or a Roman decree. Their question leaves no room for divine, direct authority outside their established channels. It also attempts to force Jesus into a situation where naming an individual or group could be used against Him.
• Words-group by words-group analysis:
  • "by what authority doest thou these things? or who is he that gave thee this authority?" This dual-pronged question is carefully crafted. It aims to eliminate all possible answers that do not align with their understanding of legitimate power.
    • If Jesus claimed authority Himself, they would charge Him with blasphemy (claiming to be God or an unsanctioned prophet) or sedition (usurping human rule).
    • If He named a human authority, they could investigate, discredit, or challenge that individual/group, thus discrediting Jesus.
    • The phrasing exposes their narrow understanding of authority, limited to human institutions and political/religious structures, incapable of discerning true divine authority directly manifested.

Luke 20 2 Bonus section

The interrogation concerning Jesus’s authority is not merely a historical account but presents an enduring theological principle: discerning the true source of spiritual authority. The religious leaders were fixated on external validation and established hierarchies, demonstrating a common human tendency to evaluate truth based on worldly credentials rather than divine origin. Jesus, in His response (Luke 20:3-8), cleverly exposes their hypocrisy and spiritual ineptitude, showing that their unwillingness to answer a simple question about John the Baptist’s authority revealed their unfitness to judge His. This interaction highlights that true spiritual authority is God-given and intrinsically linked to righteousness and divine commission, often standing in opposition to human systems that prioritize power, tradition, or self-preservation. It is a timeless lesson for discerning true leadership and ministry in the Kingdom of God.

Luke 20 2 Commentary

Luke 20:2 lays bare the foundational conflict between Jesus and the established religious leadership: a clash over the source and nature of divine authority. The chief priests, scribes, and elders, deeply entrenched in their positions and traditions, recognized Jesus’s powerful actions (cleansing the temple, teaching daily with unique impact) but were unable or unwilling to accept His inherent, divine right to do so. Their carefully worded question—probing both the direct basis ("by what authority?") and the delegated source ("who gave thee this authority?")—was a hostile interrogation. It sought to expose Jesus as a fraud, a revolutionary, or a blasphemer, enabling them to suppress His growing influence and uphold their own diminishing control. This challenge, therefore, was not born of sincere curiosity but of spiritual blindness, fear, and self-interest, underscoring their refusal to acknowledge the Anointed One who operated by a higher, perfect authority.