^9:57As¹⁸⁵ they were walking¹⁸⁶ along the road, someone said to him, “I will follow you wherever you go.”¹⁸⁷^9:58Jesus said to him, “Foxes have dens and the birds in the sky¹⁸⁸ have nests, but the Son of Man has no place to lay his head.”¹⁸⁹^9:59Jesus¹⁹⁰ said to another, “Follow me.” But he replied,¹⁹¹ “Lord, first let me go and bury my father.” ^9:60But Jesus¹⁹² said to him, “Let the dead bury their own dead,¹⁹³ but as for you, go and proclaim the kingdom of God.”¹⁹⁴^9:61Yet¹⁹⁵ another said, “I will follow you, Lord, but first let me say goodbye to my family.”¹⁹⁶^9:62Jesus¹⁹⁷ said to him, “No one who puts his¹⁹⁸ hand to the plow and looks back¹⁹⁹ is fit for the kingdom of God.”²⁰⁰

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Footnotes

185 Grk “And as.” Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style.
186 Grk “going,” but “walking” is an accurate description of how they traveled about.
187 Most (A C W Θ Ψ f13 33 𝔐) add κύριε (kurie, “Lord”) here, but scribes were prone to add to the text, especially appellations for the Lord. The shorter reading also enjoys significant support (𝔓45, 75 א B D L Ξ f1 lat co). The statement “I will follow you wherever you go” is an offer to follow Jesus as a disciple, no matter what the cost.
188 Grk “the birds of the sky” or “the birds of the heaven”; the Greek word οὐρανός (ouranos) may be translated either “sky” or “heaven,” depending on the context. The idiomatic expression “birds of the sky” refers to wild birds as opposed to domesticated fowl (cf. πετεινόν).
189 Jesus’ reply is simply this: Does the man understand the rejection he will be facing? Jesus has no home in the world (the Son of Man has no place to lay his head).
190 Grk “And he”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity. Here δέ (de) has not been translated.
191 Grk “said.”
192 Grk “he”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
193 There are several options for the meaning of Jesus’ reply Leave the dead to bury their own dead: (1) Recent research suggests that burial customs in the vicinity of Jerusalem from about 20 b.c. to a.d. 70 involved a reinterment of the bones a year after the initial burial, once the flesh had rotted away. At that point the son would have placed his father’s bones in a special box known as an ossuary to be set into the wall of the tomb. Thus Jesus could well be rebuking the man for wanting to wait around for as much as a year before making a commitment to follow him. In 1st century Jewish culture, to have followed Jesus rather than burying one’s father would have seriously dishonored one’s father (cf. Tobit 4:3–4). (2) The remark is an idiom (possibly a proverbial saying) that means, “The matter in question is not the real issue,” in which case Jesus was making a wordplay on the wording of the man’s (literal) request (see L&N 33.137). (3) This remark could be a figurative reference to various kinds of people, meaning, “Let the spiritually dead bury the dead.” (4) It could also be literal and designed to shock the hearer by the surprise of the contrast. Whichever option is preferred, it is clear that the most important priority is to preach the gospel (proclaim the kingdom of God).
194 The kingdom of God is a major theme of Jesus. It is a realm in which Jesus rules and to which those who trust him belong. See Luke 6:20; 11:20; 17:20–21.
195 Grk “And another also said.”
196 Grk “to those in my house.”
197 Here δέ (de) has not been translated.
198 Grk “the”; in context the article is used as a possessive pronoun ( ).
199 Jesus warns that excessive concern for family ties (looks back) will make the kingdom a lesser priority, which is not appropriate for discipleship. The image is graphic, for who can plow straight ahead toward a goal while looking back? Discipleship cannot be double-minded.
200 The kingdom of God is a major theme of Jesus. It is a realm in which Jesus rules and to which those who trust him belong. See Luke 6:20; 11:20; 17:20–21.

In other versions

ESVEnglish Standard Version

As they were going along the road, someone said to him, “I will follow you wherever you go.” And Jesus said to him, “Foxes have holes, and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay his head.” To another he said, “Follow me.” But he said, “Lord, let me first go and bury my father.” And Jesus said to him, “Leave the dead to bury their own dead. But as for you, go and proclaim the kingdom of God.” Yet another said, “I will follow you, Lord, but let me first say farewell to those at my home.” Jesus said to him, “No one who puts his hand to the plow and looks back is fit for the kingdom of God.”

NIVNew International Version (2011)

As they were walking along the road, a man said to him, “I will follow you wherever you go.”

Jesus replied, “Foxes have dens and birds have nests, but the Son of Man has no place to lay his head.”

He said to another man, “Follow me.”

But he replied, “Lord, first let me go and bury my father.”

Jesus said to him, “Let the dead bury their own dead, but you go and proclaim the kingdom of God.”

Still another said, “I will follow you, Lord; but first let me go back and say goodbye to my family.”

Jesus replied, “No one who puts a hand to the plow and looks back is fit for service in the kingdom of God.”

CSBChristian Standard Bible

As they were traveling on the road someone said to him, “I will follow you wherever you go.”

Jesus told him, “Foxes have dens, and birds of the sky have nests, but the Son of Man has no place to lay his head.” Then he said to another, “Follow me.”

“Lord,” he said, “first let me go bury my father.”

But he told him, “Let the dead bury their own dead, but you go and spread the news of the kingdom of God.”

Another said, “I will follow you, Lord, but first let me go and say good-bye to those at my house.”

But Jesus said to him, “No one who puts his hand to the plow and looks back is fit for the kingdom of God.”

NLTNew Living Translation

As they were walking along, someone said to Jesus, “I will follow you wherever you go.”

But Jesus replied, “Foxes have dens to live in, and birds have nests, but the Son of Man has no place even to lay his head.”

He said to another person, “Come, follow me.”

The man agreed, but he said, “Lord, first let me return home and bury my father.”

But Jesus told him, “Let the spiritually dead bury their own dead! Your duty is to go and preach about the Kingdom of God.”

Another said, “Yes, Lord, I will follow you, but first let me say good-bye to my family.”

But Jesus told him, “Anyone who puts a hand to the plow and then looks back is not fit for the Kingdom of God.”

LEBThe Lexham English Bible

And as they were traveling on the road, someone said to him, “I will follow you wherever you go!” And Jesus said to him, “Foxes have dens and birds of the sky have nests, but the Son of Man has no place to lay his head.” And he said to another, “Follow me!” But he said, “Lord, first allow me to go and bury my father.” But he said to him, “Leave the dead to bury their own dead! But you go and proclaim the kingdom of God.” And another person also said, “I will follow you, Lord, but first allow me to say farewell to those in my house.” But Jesus said, “No one who puts his hand on the plow and looks back is fit for the kingdom of God!”

KJV 1900King James Version

And it came to pass, that, as they went in the way, a certain man said unto him, Lord, I will follow thee whithersoever thou goest. And Jesus said unto him, Foxes have holes, and birds of the air have nests; but the Son of man hath not where to lay his head. And he said unto another, Follow me. But he said, Lord, suffer me first to go and bury my father. Jesus said unto him, Let the dead bury their dead: but go thou and preach the kingdom of God. And another also said, Lord, I will follow thee; but let me first go bid them farewell, which are at home at my house. And Jesus said unto him, No man, having put his hand to the plough, and looking back, is fit for the kingdom of God.

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