New Testament · Gospel

Luke 7:20

The Faith of an Outsider

When the men came to Jesus, they said, “John the Baptist sent us to ask, ‘Are You the One who was to come, or should we look for someone else?’” Luke 7:20 · Berean Standard Bible
What It Means

Luke 7:20, in plain English

The two men found Jesus and delivered John's message: 'John the Baptist sent us to ask — are You the One, or should we expect someone else?'

Why it's here

They asked the question the whole world still asks: Is Jesus really who He claims to be?

Who's speaking

John's disciples relay his question directly to Jesus.

Where it sits in the story

This is the question that matters most: is Jesus the One? It's the question every person eventually faces, and how you answer it changes everything.

A Closer Look

The scholarly reading

John's disciples faithfully relay his exact question, maintaining the precise wording of the messianic inquiry about ho erchomenos ("the Coming One").

Language and setting

The repetition of the question in verbatim form emphasizes its importance and ensures the reader understands the gravity of John's theological crisis.

Voice

John's disciples deliver his question to Jesus in person.

Significance

The formal repetition of John's question gives it weight and solemnity. This is not casual curiosity but a prophet's desperate need for confirmation.

In context

Luke 7:18–22

18Then John’s disciples informed him about all these things.

19So John called two of his disciples and sent them to ask the Lord, “Are You the One who was to come, or should we look for someone else?”

20When the men came to Jesus, they said, “John the Baptist sent us to ask, ‘Are You the One who was to come, or should we look for someone else?’”

21At that very hour Jesus healed many people of their diseases, afflictions, and evil spirits, and He gave sight to many who were blind.

22So He replied, “Go back and report to John what you have seen and heard: The blind receive sight, the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the good news is preached to the poor.

Read all of Luke 7 — A Roman centurion's faith astonishes Jesus, a widow's dead son is raised, and a sinful woman's tears become an act of worship.

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