Bible Strands
Matthew 24:17
Let no one on the housetop come down to retrieve anything from his house.
Berean Standard Bible
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Study note
Setting — Jesus addresses his disciples during the Olivet Discourse regarding the imminent tribulation. He gives this command to those in Judea who must flee when the abomination of desolation appears.
The words — The imperative καταβάτω (katabatō) commands a person to "come down" from the dwelling. The infinitive ἆραι (arai) specifies the purpose as "to take" or retrieve belongings.
The thread — This prohibition against retrieving possessions appears in Mark 13:15 and Luke 17:31. The housetop imagery also contrasts with Matthew 10:27, where it functions as a platform for proclamation rather than flight.
Why it lands — The text commands immediate departure without stopping to secure material goods. It requires the reader to prioritize urgent obedience over personal attachment.
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
Let him which is on the housetop not come down to take any thing out of his house:
Cross-references
- Luke 17:31 On that day, let no one on the housetop come down to retrieve his possessions. Likewise, let no one in the field return for anything he has left behind.
- Mark 13:15 Let no one on the housetop go back inside to retrieve anything from his house.
- Matthew 10:27 What I tell you in the dark, speak in the daylight; what is whispered in your ear, proclaim from the housetops.
- Luke 12:3 What you have spoken in the dark will be heard in the daylight, and what you have whispered in the inner rooms will be proclaimed from the housetops.
- Acts 10:9 The next day at about the sixth hour, as the men were approaching the city on their journey, Peter went up on the roof to pray.
- Deuteronomy 22:8 If you build a new house, you are to construct a railing around your roof, so that you do not bring bloodguilt on your house if someone falls from it.
- 1 Samuel 9:25 And after they had come down from the high place into the city, Samuel spoke with Saul on the roof of his house.
- Matthew 6:25 Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothes?
- Luke 5:19 but they could not find a way through the crowd. So they went up on the roof and lowered him on his mat through the tiles into the middle of the crowd, right in front of Jesus.
- Job 2:4 “Skin for skin!” Satan replied. “A man will give up all he owns in exchange for his life.