Bible Strands
Luke 7:29
All the people who heard this, even the tax collectors, acknowledged God’s justice. For they had received the baptism of John.
Berean Standard Bible
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Study note
Setting — Jesus addresses a crowd in Galilee, just after declaring that John the Baptist is greater than any born of woman yet lesser than the least in the kingdom. He notes this contrast while explaining how different groups respond to John’s ministry.
The words — The Greek ἀκούσας (akousas) means “having heard,” marking a completed action that precedes the crowd’s response. τελῶναι (telōnai) translates literally to “tax collectors,” identifying a socially marginalized group that aligns with John’s message.
The thread — The tax collectors’ acceptance of John’s baptism parallels Luke 3:12, where they similarly come to be baptized. Their response stands in direct contrast to the Pharisees and experts in the law who reject God’s purpose, as recorded in Luke 7:30 and summarized by the principle of Luke 7:35.
Why it lands — The text records that those who heard Jesus and received John’s baptism acknowledged God’s justice as fulfilled. It requires a reader to examine whether they have submitted to God’s appointed means of righteousness or actively rejected it.
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The Greek words
King James Version
And all the people that heard him, and the publicans, justified God, being baptized with the baptism of John.
Cross-references
- Luke 3:12 Even tax collectors came to be baptized. “Teacher,” they asked, “what should we do?”
- Luke 7:35 But wisdom is vindicated by all her children.”
- Psalms 51:4 Against You, You only, have I sinned and done what is evil in Your sight, so that You may be proved right when You speak and blameless when You judge.
- Matthew 3:5 People went out to him from Jerusalem and all Judea and the whole region around the Jordan.
- Matthew 21:31 Which of the two did the will of his father?” “The first,” they answered. Jesus said to them, “Truly I tell you, the tax collectors and prostitutes are entering the kingdom of God before you.
- Acts 18:25 He had been instructed in the way of the Lord and was fervent in spirit. He spoke and taught accurately about Jesus, though he knew only the baptism of John.
- Acts 19:3 “Into what, then, were you baptized?” Paul asked. “The baptism of John,” they replied.
- Romans 10:3 Because they were ignorant of God’s righteousness and sought to establish their own, they did not submit to God’s righteousness.
- Revelation 15:3 and they sang the song of God’s servant Moses and of the Lamb: “Great and wonderful are Your works, O Lord God Almighty! Just and true are Your ways, O King of the nations!
- Revelation 16:5 And I heard the angel of the waters say: “Righteous are You, O Holy One, who is and was, because You have brought these judgments.