^19:39But¹⁰⁸ some of the Pharisees¹⁰⁹ in the crowd said to him, “Teacher, rebuke your disciples.”¹¹⁰^19:40He answered,¹¹¹ “I tell you, if they¹¹² keep silent, the very stones¹¹³ will cry out!”

Jesus Weeps for Jerusalem under Judgment

^19:41Now¹¹⁴ when Jesus¹¹⁵ approached¹¹⁶ and saw the city, he wept over it, ^19:42saying, “If you had only known on this day,¹¹⁷ even you, the things that make for peace!¹¹⁸ But now they are hidden¹¹⁹ from your eyes. ^19:43For the days will come upon you when your enemies will build¹²⁰ an embankment¹²¹ against you and surround you and close in on you from every side. ^19:44They will demolish you¹²²—you and your children within your walls¹²³—and they will not leave within you one stone¹²⁴ on top of another,¹²⁵ because you did not recognize the time of your visitation from God.”¹²⁶

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Footnotes

108 Here καί (kai) has been translated as “but” to indicate the contrast present in this context. Not all present are willing to join in the acclamation.
109 See the note on Pharisees in .
110 Teacher, rebuke your disciples. The Pharisees were complaining that the claims were too great.
111 Grk “and answering, he said.” This has been simplified in the translation to “He answered.” Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style.
112 Grk “these.”
113 This statement amounts to a rebuke. The idiom of creation speaking means that even creation knows what is taking place, yet the Pharisees miss it. On this idiom, see Gen 4:10 and Hab 2:11.
114 Here καί (kai) has been translated as “now” to indicate the transition to a new topic.
115 Grk “he.”
116 When Jesus approached and saw the city. This is the last travel note in Luke’s account (the so-called Jerusalem journey), as Jesus approached and saw the city before entering it.
117 On this day. They had missed the time of Messiah’s coming; see v. 44.
118 Grk “the things toward peace.” This expression seems to mean “the things that would ‘lead to,’ ‘bring about,’ or ‘make for’ peace.”
119 But now they are hidden from your eyes. This becomes an oracle of doom in the classic OT sense; see Luke 13:31–35; 11:49–51; Jer 9:2; 13:7; 14:7. They are now blind and under judgment (Jer 15:5; Ps 122:6).
120 Jesus now predicted the events that would be fulfilled in the fall of Jerusalem in a.d. 70. The details of the siege have led some to see Luke writing this after Jerusalem’s fall, but the language of the verse is like God’s exilic judgment for covenant unfaithfulness (Hab 2:8; Jer 6:6, 14; 8:13–22; 9:1; Ezek 4:2; 26:8; Isa 29:1–4). Specific details are lacking and the procedures described (build an embankment against you) were standard Roman military tactics.
121 An embankment refers to either wooden barricades or earthworks, or a combination of the two.
122 Grk “They will raze you to the ground.” The singular pronoun you refers to the city of Jerusalem personified.
123 Grk “your children within you.” The phrase “[your] walls” has been supplied in the translation to clarify that the city of Jerusalem, metaphorically pictured as an individual, is spoken of here.
124 (Not) one stone on top of another is an idiom for total destruction.
125 Grk “leave stone on stone.”
126 Grk “the time of your visitation.” To clarify what this refers to, the words “from God” are supplied at the end of the verse, although they do not occur in the Greek text. You did not recognize the time of your visitation refers to the time God came to visit them. They had missed the Messiah; see Luke 1:68–79.

In other versions

ESVEnglish Standard Version

And some of the Pharisees in the crowd said to him, “Teacher, rebuke your disciples.” He answered, “I tell you, if these were silent, the very stones would cry out.”

And when he drew near and saw the city, he wept over it, saying, “Would that you, even you, had known on this day the things that make for peace! But now they are hidden from your eyes. For the days will come upon you, when your enemies will set up a barricade around you and surround you and hem you in on every side and tear you down to the ground, you and your children within you. And they will not leave one stone upon another in you, because you did not know the time of your visitation.”

NIVNew International Version (2011)

Some of the Pharisees in the crowd said to Jesus, “Teacher, rebuke your disciples!”

“I tell you,” he replied, “if they keep quiet, the stones will cry out.”

As he approached Jerusalem and saw the city, he wept over it and said, “If you, even you, had only known on this day what would bring you peace—but now it is hidden from your eyes. The days will come upon you when your enemies will build an embankment against you and encircle you and hem you in on every side. They will dash you to the ground, you and the children within your walls. They will not leave one stone on another, because you did not recognize the time of God’s coming to you.”

CSBChristian Standard Bible

Some of the Pharisees from the crowd told him, “Teacher, rebuke your disciples.”

He answered, “I tell you, if they were to keep silent, the stones would cry out.”

As he approached and saw the city, he wept for it, saying, “If you knew this day what would bring peace—but now it is hidden from your eyes. For the days will come on you when your enemies will build a barricade around you, surround you, and hem you in on every side. They will crush you and your children among you to the ground, and they will not leave one stone on another in your midst, because you did not recognize the time when God visited you.”

NLTNew Living Translation

But some of the Pharisees among the crowd said, “Teacher, rebuke your followers for saying things like that!”

He replied, “If they kept quiet, the stones along the road would burst into cheers!”

But as he came closer to Jerusalem and saw the city ahead, he began to weep. “How I wish today that you of all people would understand the way to peace. But now it is too late, and peace is hidden from your eyes. Before long your enemies will build ramparts against your walls and encircle you and close in on you from every side. They will crush you into the ground, and your children with you. Your enemies will not leave a single stone in place, because you did not recognize it when God visited you.”

LEBThe Lexham English Bible

And some of the Pharisees from the crowd said to him, “Teacher, rebuke your disciples!” And he answered and said, “I tell you that if these keep silent, the stones will cry out!”

And when he approached and saw the city, he wept over it, saying, “If you had known on this day—even you—the things that make for peace! But now they are hidden from your eyes. For days will come upon you and your enemies will put up an embankment against you, and will surround you and press you hard from all directions. And they will raze you to the ground, you and your children within you, and will not leave a stone upon a stone within you, because you did not recognize the time of your visitation.”

KJV 1900King James Version

And some of the Pharisees from among the multitude said unto him, Master, rebuke thy disciples. And he answered and said unto them, I tell you that, if these should hold their peace, the stones would immediately cry out.

And when he was come near, he beheld the city, and wept over it, Saying, If thou hadst known, even thou, at least in this thy day, the things which belong unto thy peace! but now they are hid from thine eyes. For the days shall come upon thee, that thine enemies shall cast a trench about thee, and compass thee round, and keep thee in on every side, And shall lay thee even with the ground, and thy children within thee; and they shall not leave in thee one stone upon another; because thou knewest not the time of thy visitation.

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