New Testament · Gospel

Matthew 23:37

Woe to the Hypocrites

O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, who kills the prophets and stones those sent to her, how often I have longed to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, but you were unwilling! Matthew 23:37 · Berean Standard Bible
What It Means

Matthew 23:37, in plain English

Jesus' tone shifts from fierce to heartbroken. He cries out over Jerusalem, saying how many times He longed to gather them close like a mother hen protects her baby chicks. But they wouldn't let Him.

Why it's here

This is one of the most emotional moments in the Gospels. After all the strong words, you see Jesus' heart: He's not angry because He hates them. He's grieving because He loves them.

Who's speaking

Jesus speaks with raw, aching love, revealing the tender heart behind every strong word He's spoken.

Where it sits in the story

If the woes showed Jesus' justice, this verse shows His love. He wanted to protect them, hold them close, keep them safe. But they chose to walk away.

A Closer Look

The scholarly reading

Jesus' lament over Jerusalem (Ierousalēm, Ierousalēm) — the double vocative expressing deep emotion — reveals His heart. The metaphor of a hen (ornis) gathering chicks (nossia) under her wings expresses maternal, protective love. Yet the city 'was unwilling' (ouk ēthelēsate).

Language and setting

This lament echoes God's own grief over Israel in the prophets (Hos 11:8; Isa 31:5). Jesus identifies Himself with God's persistent, unrequited love for His people across centuries.

Voice

Jesus speaks with profound emotional anguish, expressing divine love and grief in the most personal terms.

Significance

After the fiercest rebuke comes the tenderest lament. Jesus weeps over Jerusalem like a mother bird mourning her lost chicks. His anger flows from love, not hatred.

In context

Matthew 23:35–39

35And so upon you will come all the righteous blood shed on earth, from the blood of righteous Abel to the blood of Zechariah son of Berechiah, whom you murdered between the temple and the altar.

36Truly I tell you, all these things will come upon this generation.

37O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, who kills the prophets and stones those sent to her, how often I have longed to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, but you were unwilling!

38Look, your house is left to you desolate.

39For I tell you that you will not see Me again until you say, ‘Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord.’”

Read all of Matthew 23 — Seven devastating woes crash down on the religious establishment. Jesus doesn't whisper his critique — he thunders it.

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