Luke 20:19

When the scribes and chief priests realized that Jesus had spoken this parable against them, they sought to arrest Him that very hour. But they were afraid of the people.

Berean Standard Bible

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Study note

Setting — The narrator reports that the scribes and chief priests recognized Jesus' parable as directed at them while He taught in the temple. They moved to seize Him immediately but hesitated due to fear of the surrounding crowd.

The words — ἐζήτησαν (ezētēsan) translates to "sought" or "tried to find," and ἐπιβαλεῖν (epibalein) means "to lay hold of" or "to attack." These verbs describe the leaders' deliberate attempt to physically apprehend Jesus at that moment.

The thread — The leaders' recognition of the parable's target aligns with Matthew 21:45, where they understand Jesus is speaking against them. Their plotted arrest parallels Luke 19:47, where the same groups seek to destroy Him while He teaches daily, and Luke 20:20, where they later resort to sending spies to trap His words.

Why it lands — The text records a concrete clash where religious authorities identify Jesus as a threat but are temporarily restrained by public sentiment. It demands the reader acknowledge that opposition to His teaching is both immediate and strategically calculated.

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

And the chief priests and the scribes the same hour sought to lay hands on him; and they feared the people: for they perceived that he had spoken this parable against them.

Cross-references

Luke 19:47 Jesus was teaching at the temple every day, but the chief priests, scribes, and leaders of the people were intent on killing Him.
Matthew 21:45 When the chief priests and Pharisees heard His parables, they knew that Jesus was speaking about them.
Matthew 26:3 At that time the chief priests and elders of the people assembled in the courtyard of the high priest, whose name was Caiaphas,
Mark 12:12 At this, the leaders sought to arrest Jesus, for they knew that He had spoken this parable against them. But fearing the crowd, they left Him and went away.
Luke 20:14 But when the tenants saw the son, they discussed it among themselves and said, ‘This is the heir. Let us kill him, and the inheritance will be ours.’