Bible Strands
Luke 11:32
The men of Nineveh will stand at the judgment with this generation and condemn it; for they repented at the preaching of Jonah, and now One greater than Jonah is here.
Berean Standard Bible
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Study note
Setting — Jesus addresses a gathered crowd during His public ministry, directly confronting the unresponsive generation that witnesses His works. He positions His message against the historical responses of pagan Nineveh and the distant Queen of the South.
The words — The Greek verb ἀναστήσονται (anastēsontai) literally means “will stand up,” describing the Ninevites rising at the final judgment. Their physical posture of standing establishes a formal legal confrontation with the condemned generation.
The thread — The historical repentance of the Ninevites is recorded in Jonah 3:5, where they believed God and fasted after Jonah’s warning. Jesus explicitly references Jonah’s preaching in Luke 11:32 to link the ancient Assyrian response with the current rejection of His message.
Why it lands — The text states that the Ninevites repented at Jonah’s preaching and declares that One greater than Jonah is now present. It asks the reader to respond to the current revelation with immediate repentance, recognizing that greater authority has arrived and passive observation will result in condemnation.
Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.
The Greek words
King James Version
The men of Nineve shall rise up in the judgment with this generation, and shall condemn it: for they repented at the preaching of Jonas; and, behold, a greater than Jonas is here.
Cross-references
- Jonah 3:5 And the Ninevites believed God. They proclaimed a fast and dressed in sackcloth, from the greatest of them to the least.
- Jonah 1:2 “Get up! Go to the great city of Nineveh and preach against it, because its wickedness has come up before Me.”
- Jonah 4:9 Then God asked Jonah, “Have you any right to be angry about the plant?” “I do,” he replied. “I am angry enough to die!”
- Luke 11:31 The Queen of the South will rise at the judgment with the men of this generation and condemn them; for she came from the ends of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon, and now One greater than Solomon is here.
- Hebrews 7:26 Such a high priest truly befits us—One who is holy, innocent, undefiled, set apart from sinners, and exalted above the heavens.