GOD'S WORD® Translation (©1995)
Your house will be abandoned. I can guarantee that you will not see me again until you say, 'Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord!'"

King James Bible
Behold, your house is left unto you desolate: and verily I say unto you, Ye shall not see me, until the time come when ye shall say, Blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord.

Douay-Rheims Bible
Behold your house shall be left to you desolate. And I say to you, that you shall not see me till the time come, when you shall say: Blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord.

Darby Bible Translation
Behold, your house is left unto you; and I say unto you, that ye shall not see me until it come that ye say, Blessed is he that comes in the name of the Lord.

English Revised Version
Behold, your house is left unto you desolate: and I say unto you, Ye shall not see me, until ye shall say, Blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord.

Webster's Bible Translation
Behold, your house is left to you desolate. And verily I say to you, ye shall not see me, until the time shall come when ye shall say, Blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord.

Weymouth New Testament
See, your house is left to you. But I tell you that you will never see me again until you say, 'Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord!'"

World English Bible
Behold, your house is left to you desolate. I tell you, you will not see me, until you say, 'Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!'"

Young's Literal Translation
Lo, your house is being left to you desolate, and verily I say to you -- ye may not see me, till it may come, when ye may say, Blessed is he who is coming in the name of the Lord.'

Cross References

Psalm 69:25 May their camp be desolate; May none dwell in their tents.

Psalm 118:26 Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the LORD; We have blessed you from the house of the LORD.

Jeremiah 35:17 "Therefore thus says the LORD, the God of hosts, the God of Israel, 'Behold, I am bringing on Judah and on all the inhabitants of Jerusalem all the disaster that I have pronounced against them; because I spoke to them but they did not listen, and I have called them but they did not answer.'"

Matthew 21:9 The crowds going ahead of Him, and those who followed, were shouting, "Hosanna to the Son of David; BLESSED IS HE WHO COMES IN THE NAME OF THE LORD; Hosanna in the highest!"

Matthew 23:37 "Jerusalem, Jerusalem, who kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to her! How often I wanted to gather your children together, the way a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, and you were unwilling.

Luke 19:38 shouting: "BLESSED IS THE KING WHO COMES IN THE NAME OF THE LORD; Peace in heaven and glory in the highest!"

Luke 19:41 When He approached Jerusalem, He saw the city and wept over it,

Commentary

Matthew Henry's Whole Bible Commentary

Verses 31-35

Here is, I. A suggestion to Christ of his danger from Herod, now that he was in Galilee, within Herod's jurisdiction (v. 31): Certain of the Pharisees (for there were those of that sect dispersed all the nation over) came to Christ, pretending friendship and a concern for his safety, and said, Get thee out of this country, and depart hence, for otherwise Herod will kill thee, as he did John. Some think that these Pharisees had no ground at all for this, that Herod had not given out any words to this purport, but that they framed this lie, to drive him out of Galilee, where he had a great and growing interest, and to drive him into Judea, where they knew there were those that really sought his life. But, Christ's answer being directed to Herod himself, it should seem that the Pharisees had ground for what they said, and that Herod was enraged against Christ, and designed him a mischief, for the honourable testimony he had borne to John Baptist, and to the doctrine of repentance which John preached. Herod was willing to get rid of Christ out of his dominions; and, when he durst not put him to death, he hoped to frighten him away by sending him this threatening message.

II. His defiance of Herod's rage and the Pharisees' too; he fears neither the one nor the other: Go you, and tell that fox so, v. 32. In calling him a fox, he gives him his true character; for he was subtle as a fox, noted for his craft, and treachery, and baseness, and preying (as they say of a fox) furthest from his own den. And, though it is a black and ugly character, yet it did not ill become Christ to give it to him, nor was it in him a violation of that law, Thou shalt not speak evil of the ruler of thy people. For Christ was a prophet, and prophets always had a liberty of speech in reproving princes and great men. Nay, Christ was more than a prophet, he was a king, he was King of kings, and the greatest of men were accountable to him, and therefore it became him to call this proud king by his own name; but it is not to be drawn into an example by us. "Go, and tell that fox, yea, and this fox too" (for so it is in the original, teµ aloµpeki tauteµ); "that Pharisee, whoever he is, that whispers this in my ear, let him know that I do not fear him, nor regard his menaces. For," 1. "I know that I must die, and must die shortly; I expect it, and count upon it, the third day," that is, "very shortly; my hour is at hand." Note, It will help us very much above the fear of death, and of them that have the power of death, to make death familiar to us, to expect it, think of it, and converse with it, and see it at the door. "If Herod should kill me, he will not surprise me." 2. "I know that death will be not only no prejudice to me, but that it will be my preferment; and therefore tell him I do not fear him; when I die, I shall be perfected. I shall then have finished the hardest part of my undertaking; I shall have completed my business;" teleioumai-I shall be consecrated. When Christ dies, he is said to have sanctified himself; he consecrated himself to his priestly office with his own blood. 3. "I know that neither he nor any one else can kill me till I have done my work. Go, and tell him that I value not his impotent rage. I will cast out devils, and do cures, to-day and to-morrow," that is, "now and for some little space of time yet to come, in spite of him and all his threats. I must walk, I must go on in my intended journey, and it is not in his power to hinder me. I must go about, as I do, preaching and healing, to-day, and to-morrow, and the day following." Note, It is good for us to look upon the time we have before us as but a little, two or three days perhaps may be the utmost, that we may thereby be quickened to do the work of the day in its day. And it is a comfort to us, in reference to the power and malice of our enemies, that they can have no power to take us off as long as God has any work for us to do. The witnesses were not slain till they had finished their testimony. 4. "I know that Herod can do me no harm, not only because my time is not yet come, but because the place appointed for my death is Jerusalem, which is not within his jurisdiction: It cannot be that a prophet perish out of Jerusalem," that is, "any where but at Jerusalem." If a true prophet was put to death, he was prosecuted as a false prophet. Now none undertook to try prophets, and to judge concerning them, but the great sanhedrim, which always sat at Jerusalem; it was a cause which the inferior courts did not take cognizance of, and therefore, if a prophet be put to death, it must be at Jerusalem.

III. His lamentation for Jerusalem, and his denunciation of wrath against that city, v. 34, 35. This we had Mt. 23:37-39. Perhaps this was not said now in Galilee, but the evangelist, not designing to bring it in in its proper place, inserts it here, upon occasion of Christ's mentioning his being put to death at Jerusalem.

Note, 1. The wickedness of persons and places that more eminently than others profess religion and relation to God is in a particular manner provoking and grieving to the Lord Jesus. How pathetically does he speak of the sin and ruin of that holy city! O Jerusalem! Jerusalem! 2. Those that enjoy great plenty of the means of grace, if they are not profited by them, are often prejudiced against them. They that would not hearken to the prophets, nor welcome those whom God had sent to them, killed them, and stoned them. If men's corruptions are not conquered, they are provoked. 3. Jesus Christ has shown himself willing, freely willing, to receive and entertain poor souls that come to him, and put themselves under his protection: How often would I have gathered thy children together, as a hen gathereth her brood under her wings, with such care and tenderness! 4. The reason why sinners are not protected and provided for by the Lord Jesus, as the chickens are by the hen, is because they will not: I would, I often would, and ye would not. Christ's willingness aggravates sinners' unwillingness, and leaves their blood upon their own heads. 5. The house that Christ leaves is left desolate. The temple, though richly adorned, though greatly frequented, is yet desolate if Christ has deserted it. He leaves it to them; they had made an idol of it, and let them take it to themselves, and make their best of it, Christ will trouble it no more. 6. Christ justly withdraws from those that drive him from them. They would not be gathered by him, and therefore, saith he, "You shall not see me, you shall not hear me, any more," as Moses said to Pharaoh, when he forbade him his presence, Ex. 10:28, 29. 7. The judgment of the great day will effectually convince unbelievers that would not now be convinced: "Then you will say, Blessed is he that cometh," that is, "you will be glad to be among those that say so, and will not see me to be the Messiah till then when it is too late."

Calvin's Commentary

Luke 13:31-33

31. The same day some of the Pharisees came, saying to him, Depart, and go hence: for Herod intends to kill thee. 32. And he said to them, Go, tell that fox, Lo, I cast out devils, and I perform cures today and tomorrow, and the third day I am completed. [280] 33. But yet I must walk today and tomorrow, and the following day; for it is not a usual occurrence that a prophet perish anywhere else than in Jerusalem. [281]

It deserves our attention, that Christ gives the designation, daughter of Abraham, to one whose body had been enslaved by Satan during eighteen years. She was so called, not only in reference to her lineage, as all the Jews without exception gloried in this title, but because she was one of the true and actual members of the Church. Here we perceive also what Paul tells us, that some are

delivered to Satan for the destruction of the flesh, that the spirit may be saved in the day of the Lord Jesus,
(1 Corinthians 5:5.)

And the length of time points out to us that, though the Lord does not immediately relieve our distresses, yet we ought not to despair.

It is difficult to ascertain the precise time when this happened, farther than that Christ was at that time residing in Galilee, as during the whole period of his public calling he remained longer there than in any other place. Certain persons, wishing to be considered as his friends, advise him that, if he wishes to be in safety, he should go beyond the boundaries of Herod's jurisdiction. In what manner those who gave that advice were affected towards him we have no means of knowing; but I am strongly inclined to conjecture, that they attempted to drive him to some other place, because they saw that the greater part of the people in that place were attached to Christ, so that the Gospel was generally received. We must observe who those advisers were. Luke says that they were some of the Pharisees Now we know that that sect was not so favorable to Christ as to make it probable that those men were anxious about his life. What then? Their design was, to awaken in him such fears as would drive him to some place of concealment; for they expected that, in a short time, his authority would decline, and that his whole doctrine would vanish away. But we must also direct our attention to the first originator and contriver of this scheme, Satan; for, as he endeavored at that time to interrupt the progress of the Gospel, by terrifying the Son of God, so he constantly invents and hatches up new grounds of alarm, to strike the ministers of Christ with dismay, and to constrain them to turn aside.

32. Go, tell that fox It is certain, that the person here spoken of is Herod Antipas. Though he had throughout the character of a fox, and was as remarkable for servility as for cunning, I do not think that the term, fox, is intended to refer generally to the cunning of his whole life, but rather to the insidious methods by which he labored to undermine the doctrine of the Gospel, when he did not venture to attack it openly. Christ tells him that, with all his craftiness, he will gain nothing by his schemes. "Whatever artifices he may devise," says Christ, "today and tomorrow I will discharge the office which God has enjoined upon me; and when I shall have reached the end of my course, I shall then be offered in sacrifice." That we may perceive more clearly the meaning of the words, Christ acknowledges, in the former part of his message, that on the third day--that is, within a very short time--he must die; and in this way shows, that he could not be deterred from his duty by any fear of death, to which he advanced boldly, with fixed purpose of mind.

33. It does not usually happen, etc. He next adds, that it is an idle bugbear, which is held out by false and hypocritical advisers; because there is no danger of death anywhere else than at Jerusalem. In this second clause he sharply attacks the Pharisees. "Is it you, who -- I foresee -- will be my executioners, that advise me to beware of Herod?" The reproof extends, indeed, much farther; for he says, not only that preparations had been made for his own death in Jerusalem, but that it might be said to have been, for a long period, a den of robbers, in which almost all the prophets had been murdered. Many had, no doubt, been slain in other places, and particularly at the time when that cruel fury, [282] Jezebel, (1 Kings 19:2,) raged against them; but because in no other place had the prophets, at any time, been fiercely tormented, Christ justly brings this reproach against the ungodly inhabitants of the holy city.

It usually happened that the prophets were slain there; because not only was it the source of all the ungodliness which spread over the whole of Judea, but it was also the field on which God trained his prophets. [283] We know that the more brightly the light of doctrine shines, so as to press more closely on wicked men, they are driven to a greater pitch of madness. What a dreadful example was it, that a place which had been chosen to be the sanctuary of divine worship, and the residence of the Law and of heavenly wisdom, should be polluted not by one or another murder,, but by a regular butchery of the prophets! It undoubtedly shows how obstinate is the rebellion of the world in rejecting sound doctrine.

Links

Luke 13 Commentaries: Barnes • Calvin • Clarke • Darby • Gill • Geneva • Guzik • JFB • KJV Translators' • Henry's Concise • Matthew Henry • People's NT • Scofield • TSK • Vincent • Wesley

NIV / NLT / ESV / GWT / KJV / ASV / DRB

Jump to Previous Occurrence
Blessed Desolate Forsaken House Time Verily Waste

Jump to Next Occurrence
Blessed Desolate Forsaken House Time Verily Waste

New American Standard Bible Copyright © 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation, La Habra, Calif. All rights reserved. For Permission to Quote Information visit http://www.lockman.org.

GOD'S WORD® is a copyrighted work of God's Word to the Nations. Quotations are used by permission. Copyright 1995 by God's Word to the Nations. All rights reserved.

Alphabetical: again and Behold Blessed comes desolate he house I in is left Look Lord Lord' me name not of say see tell the time to until when who will you your

Bible Browser

True Sabbath Observance
'And He was teaching in one of the synagogues on the Sabbath. 11. And, behold, there was a woman which had a spirit of infirmity eighteen years, and was bowed together, and could in no wise lift up herself. 12. And when Jesus saw her, He called her to Him, and said unto her, Woman, thou art loosed from thine infirmity. 13. And He laid His hands on her: and immediately she was made straight, and glorified God. 14. And the ruler of the synagogue answered with indignation, because that Jesus had healed …
Alexander Maclaren—Expositions Of Holy Scripture

The Strait Gate
'And He went through the cities and villages, teaching, and journeying toward Jerusalem. 23. Then said one unto Him, Lord, are there few that be saved? And He said unto them, 24. Strive to enter in at the strait gate: for many, I say unto you, will seek to enter in, and shall not he able. 25. When once the Master of the house is risen up, and hath shut to the door, and ye begin to stand without, and to knock at the door, saying, Lord, Lord, open unto us; and He shall answer and say unto you, I know …
Alexander Maclaren—Expositions Of Holy Scripture

Christ's Message to Herod
'And he said unto them, Go ye, and tell that fox, Behold, I cast out devils, and I do cures to-day and to-morrow, and the third day I shall be perfected. 33. Nevertheless I must walk to-day, and to-morrow, and the day following: for it cannot be that a prophet perish out of Jerusalem.'--LUKE xiii. 32, 33. Even a lamb might be suspicious if wolves were to show themselves tenderly careful of its safety. Pharisees taking Christ's life under their protection were enough to suggest a trick. These men …
Alexander Maclaren—Expositions Of Holy Scripture

On the Words of the Gospel, Luke xiii. 21 and 23, Where the Kingdom of God is Said to be "Like unto Leaven, which a Woman
1. "The three measures of meal" [3461] of which the Lord spake, is the human race. Recollect the deluge; three only remained, from whom the rest were to be re-peopled. Noe had three sons, by them was repaired the human race. That holy "woman who hid the leaven," is Wisdom. Lo, the whole world crieth out in the Church of God, "I know that the Lord is great." [3462] Yet doubtless there are but few who are saved. Ye remember a question which was lately set before us out of the Gospel, "Lord," it was …
Saint Augustine—sermons on selected lessons of the new testament

On the Words of the Gospel, Luke xiii. 6, Where we are Told of the Fig-Tree, which Bare no Fruit for Three Years; and of The
1. Touching "the fig-tree" which had its three years' trial, and bare no fruit, and "the woman which was in an infirmity eighteen years," hearken to what the Lord may grant me to say. The fig-tree is the human race. And the three years are the three times; one before the Law, the second under the Law, the third under grace. Now there is nothing unsuitable in understanding by "the fig-tree" the human race. For when the first man sinned, he covered his nakedness with fig-leaves; [3442] covered those …
Saint Augustine—sermons on selected lessons of the new testament

Upon Our Lord's SermonOn the Mount
Discourse 11 "Enter ye in at the strait gate: For wide is the gate, and broad is the way, which leadeth to destruction, and many there be which go in threat: Because strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it." Mat. 7:13, 14. 1. Our Lord, having warned us of the dangers which easily beset us at our first entrance upon real religion, the hinderances which naturally arise from within, from the wickedness of our own hearts; now proceeds to apprize …
John Wesley—Sermons on Several Occasions

The Mustard Seed: a Sermon for the Sabbath-School Teacher
At this time of the year, Sabbath-school teachers come together especially to pray for a blessing on their work, and pastors are invited to say a word to cheer them in their self-denying service. This request I would cheerfully fulfill, and therefore my discourse will not be a full explanation of the parable, but an adaptation of it to the cheering of those who are engaged in the admirable work of teaching the young the fear of the Lord. Never service more important; to overlook it would be a grave …
Charles Haddon Spurgeon—Spurgeon's Sermons Volume 35: 1889

Accidents, not Punishments
Now, men and brethren, such things as these have always happened in all ages of the world. Think not that this is a new thing; do not dream, as some do, that this is the produce of an overwrought civilization, or of that modern and most wonderful discovery of steam. If the steam engine had never been known, and if the railway had never been constructed, there would have been sudden deaths and terrible accidents, not withstanding. In taking up the old records in which our ancestors wrote down their …
Charles Haddon Spurgeon—Spurgeon's Sermons Volume 7: 1861

Liii. Repentance Enjoined. Parable of the Barren Fig-Tree.
^C Luke XIII. 1-9. ^c 1 Now there were some present at that very season [At the time when he preached about the signs of the times, etc. This phrase, however, is rather indefinite--Matt. xii. 1; xiv. 1] who told him of the Galilaeans, whose blood Pilate had mingled with their sacrifices. 2 And he answered and said unto them, Think ye that these Galilaeans were sinners above all the Galilaeans, because they have suffered these things? 3 I tell you, Nay: but, except ye repent, ye shall all in like …
J. W. McGarvey—The Four-Fold Gospel

Sabbath Healing. Mustard Seed and Leaven.
(Probably Peræa.) ^C Luke XIII. 10-21. ^c 10 And he was teaching in one of the synagogues on the sabbath day. [Our Lord's habit of teaching in the synagogue, which had been for some time interrupted by his retirement, had probably been revived during the mission of the seventy.] 11 And behold, a woman that had a spirit of infirmity eighteen years; and she was bowed together, and could in no wise lift herself up. [The use of the word "spirit" in this verse indicates that the curvature of the …
J. W. McGarvey—The Four-Fold Gospel

The Strait Gate. Warned against Herod.
(Peræa.) ^C Luke XIII. 22-35. ^c 22 And he went on his way through cities and villages, teaching, and journeying on unto Jerusalem. [This verse probably refers back to verse 10, and indicates that Jesus resumed his journey after the brief rest on the Sabbath day when he healed the woman with the curvature of the spine.] 23 And one said unto him, Lord, are they few that are saved? [It is likely that this question was asked by a Jew, and that the two parables illustrating the smallness of the …
J. W. McGarvey—The Four-Fold Gospel

At the Feast of the Dedication of the Temple.
ABOUT two months had passed since Jesus had left Jerusalem after the Feast of Tabernacles. Although we must not commit ourselves to such calculations, we may here mention the computation which identifies the first day of the Feast of Tabernacles of that year [4376] with Thursday the 23rd September; the last, the Great Day of the Feast,' with Wednesday the 29th; the Octave of the Feast with the 30th September; and the Sabbath when the man born blind was healed with the 2nd of October. [4377] In that …
Alfred Edersheim—The Life and Times of Jesus the Messiah

Christ's Discourses in Peræa - Close of the Peræan Ministry
From the Parables we now turn to such Discourses of the Lord as belong to this period of His Ministry. Their consideration may be the more brief, that throughout we find points of correspondence with previous or later portions of His teaching. Thus, the first of these Discourses, of which we have an outline, [4708] recalls some passages in the Sermon on the Mount,' [4709] as well as what our Lord had said on the occasion of healing the servant of the centurion. [4710] But, to take the first of these …
Alfred Edersheim—The Life and Times of Jesus the Messiah

The Historical Situation
1. When Tacitus, the Roman historian, records the attempt of Nero to charge the Christians with the burning of Rome, he has patience for no more than the cursory remark that the sect originated with a Jew who had been put to death in Judea during the reign of Tiberius. This province was small and despised, and Tacitus could account for the influence of the sect which sprang thence only by the fact that all that was infamous and abominable flowed into Rome. The Roman's scornful judgment failed to …
Rush Rhees—The Life of Jesus of Nazareth

The Early Ministry in Judea
113. We owe to the fourth gospel our knowledge of the fact that Jesus began his general ministry in Jerusalem. The silence of the other records concerning this beginning cannot discredit the testimony of John. For these other records themselves indicate in various ways that Jesus had repeatedly sought to win Jerusalem before his final visit at the end of his life (compare Luke xiii. 34; Matt. xxiii. 37). Moreover, the fourth gospel is confirmed by the probability, rising almost to necessity, that …
Rush Rhees—The Life of Jesus of Nazareth

The Barren Fig-Tree.
"There were present at that season some that told him of the Galileans, whose blood Pilate had mingled with their sacrifices. And Jesus answering said unto them, Suppose ye that these Galileans were sinners above all the Galileans, because they suffered such things? I tell you, Nay: but, except ye repent, ye shall all likewise perish. Or those eighteen, upon whom the tower in Siloam fell, and slew them, think ye that they were sinners above all men that dwelt in Jerusalem? I tell you, Nay: but, except …
William Arnot—The Parables of Our Lord

Completeness and Universality of his Character.
THE next feature we would notice is the completeness or pleromatic fullness of the moral and religious character of Christ. While all other men represent, at best, but broken fragments of the idea of goodness and holiness, he exhausts the list of virtues and graces which may be named. His soul is a moral paradise full of charming flowers, shining in every variety of color under the blue dome of the skies, drinking in the refreshing dews of heaven and the warming beams of the sun, sending its sweet …
Philip Schaff—The Person of Christ

The Christian Convert Warned Of, and Animated against those Discouragements which He must Expect to Meet when Entering on a Religious Course.
1. Christ has instructed his disciples to expect opposition and difficulties in the way to heaven.--2. Therefore a more particular view of them is taken, as arising from the remainder of indwelling sin.--3. From the world, and especially from former sinful companions.--4. From the temptations and suggest ions of Satan.--5, 6. The Christian is animated and encouraged, by various considerations, to oppose them; particularly by the presence of God; the aids of Christ; the example of others, who, though …
Philip Doddridge—The Rise and Progress of Religion in the Soul

The Sluggard.
The sluggard. The wishes that the sluggard frames, Prov 6:10; 24:30; 22:13; 20:4 Of course must fruitless prove; With folded arms he stands and dreams, But has no heart to move. His field from others may be known, The fence is broken through; The ground with weeds is overgrown, And no good crop in view. No hardship, he, or toil, can bear, No difficulty meet; He wastes his hours at home, for fear Of lions in the street. What wonder then if sloth and sleep, Distress and famine bring! Can he in …
John Newton—Olney Hymns

St. Athanasius,
PART I (AD 325-337) Alexander, the bishop of Alexandria by whom Arius had been excommunicated, died soon after returning home from the Council of Nicaea; and Athanasius, who was then about thirty years of age, was chosen in his stead, and governed the Alexandrian Church for six-and-forty years. Every one knows the name of St. Athanasius, from the creed which is called after it. That creed, indeed, was not made by St. Athanasius himself; but, as the Prayer-book says, it is "commonly called" his, because …
J. C. Roberston—Sketches of Church History, from AD 33 to the Reformation

Wesley's Remarkable vitality
1752. Sunday, March 15 (London).--While I was preaching at West Street in the afternoon, there was one of the most violent storms I ever remember. In the midst of the sermon a great part of a house opposite to the chapel was blown down. We heard a huge noise but knew not the cause; so much the more did God speak to our hearts, and great was the rejoicing of many in confidence of His protection. Between four and five I took horse, with my wife and daughter. The tiles were rattling from the houses …
John Wesley—The Journal of John Wesley

The Hopeless Condition of the Left-Behind Ones.
What will happen when Christendom awakens to the solemn fact that the real Church, the Church of God, has been removed from this earth and taken to be with the Lord? Again we say, it is not difficult for our imagination to supply the answer. But we are not left to the exercise of our imagination; the Holy Scriptures contain a plain and full reply to our inquiry. The Word of God intimates that following the Rapture of the saints many of the left-behind ones will earnestly seek the salvation of their …
Arthur W. Pink—The Redeemer's Return

First Attempts on Jerusalem.
Jesus, almost every year, went to Jerusalem for the feast of the passover. The details of these journeys are little known, for the synoptics do not speak of them,[1] and the notes of the fourth Gospel are very confused on this point.[2] It was, it appears, in the year 31, and certainly after the death of John, that the most important of the visits of Jesus to Jerusalem took place. Many of the disciples followed him. Although Jesus attached from that time little value to the pilgrimage, he conformed …
Ernest Renan—The Life of Jesus