Luke 13:27
in Luke 13And he will answer, ‘I tell you, I do not know where you are from. Depart from me, all you evildoers.’
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
and he shall say, I tell you, I know not whence ye are; depart from me, all ye workers of iniquity.
KJV
But he shall say, I tell you, I know you not whence ye are; depart from me, all ye workers of iniquity.
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This verse in Luke 13
Commentary
11 notes on this verse(reg. brev. ad int. 282.) He perhaps speaks to those whom the Apostle describes in his own person, saying, If I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, and have all knowledge, and give all my goods to feed the poor, but have not charity, it profiteth me nothing. For whatever is done not from regard to the love of God, but to gain praise from men, obtains no praise from God.
This site's exposition
gets up and shuts the door
on Luke 13:25-27
Once the master shuts the door, those outside plead their nearness: We ate and drank with you, and you taught in our streets. He answers, Depart from me, all you evildoers. Hearing Jesus teach and sharing His table differ from being known by Him.
This site's exposition
Depart from me, all you evildoers
Chrysostom, cited by Bonaventure, reads the master of the house refusing to know them as finding no likeness of Himself in them. The command to depart echoes Psalm 6:8. Matthew Henry says these evildoers kept secret haunts of sin under a pretence of piety.
The record, by era
The Church Fathers2 voices
(Serm. 111.) Now our Lord in no wise contradicts Himself when He says, that there are few who enter in at the strait gate, and elsewhere, Many shall come from the east and the west; (Matt. 8:11.) for there are few in comparison with those who are lost, many when united with the angels. Scarcely do they seem a grain when the threshing floor is swept, but so great a mass will come forth from this floor, that it will fill the granary of heaven.
A commentator
Pseudo-ClementSecond Epistle To The Corinthians (Pseudo-Clement) · Written before 400.
proposed
Let us, then, not only call Him Lord, for that will not save us. For He saith, "Not every one that saith to Me, Lord, Lord, shall be saved, but he that worketh righteousness." Wherefore, brethren, let us confess Him by our works, by loving …
The Medieval Church2 voices
And He will say to you: I do not know where you come from. Depart from me, all you workers of iniquity. He does not (say) that the feasting of legal festivals helps, one whom the piety of faith does not commend, the knowledge of …
And since the allegation of knowledge avails little without the allegation of imitation and work, therefore he adds: And he will say to you: I do not know you, whence you are. Chrysostom: "I do not recognize my image in you. You cannot receive the …
The Puritans and the Awakening1 voice
"Depart from my door, here is nothing for you, no, not a drop of water." Thirdly, He gives them such a character as is the reason of this doom: You are workers of iniquity. This is their ruin, that, under a pretence of piety, they kept up secret haunts of sin, and did the devil's drudgery in Christ's livery. [4.] How terrible their punishment will be (
quarantine:debris (2026-07-29) — unbalanced-parens
3 more voices on this verse
The Puritans and the Awakening1 voice
But he shall say, &c.
The Nineteenth Century2 voices
A commentator
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown1802–1910
Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)
But he shall say, &c.--(See on Mt 7:23). No nearness of external communion with Christ will avail at the great day, in place of that holiness without which no man shall see the Lord. Observe the style which Christ intimates that He will then assume, that of absolute Disposer of men's eternal destinies, and contrast it with His "despised and rejected" condition at that time.
A commentator
J.C. Ryle1816–1900
Expository Thoughts on the Gospels: Luke (lightly modernized text, Grace Gems edition) (1858)
proposed
We see in these verses — a remarkable question asked. We are told that a certain man said to Jesus, "Lord, are only a few people going to be saved?" We do not know who this enquirer was. He may have been a self-righteous Jew, trained to believe that there was no hope for the Gentile, and no salvation for any but the children of Abraham. He may have been an idle trifler with religion, who was ever wasting his time on curious and speculative questions. In any case, we must all feel that he asked a question of deep and momentous importance . He who desires to know the number of the saved, in the present time — need only turn to the Bible, and his curiosity will be satisfied. He will read these solemn words in the Sermon on the Mount, "Strait is the gate and narrow is the way which leads unto life — and few there are who find it." (Matthew 7:14.) He has only to look around him, and compare the ways of the many with the Word of God — and he will soon come to the conclusion, if he is an honest man — that the saved are few. It is a dreadful conclusion. Our souls naturally turn away from it. But Scripture and facts alike, combine to shut us up to it. Salvation to the uttermost, is offered to men. All things are ready on God's part. Christ is willing to receive sinners — but sinners are not willing to come to Christ. And hence few are saved. We see, secondly, in these verses — a striking exhortation given. We are told that when our Lord Jesus Christ was asked whether few would be saved, He said, "Strive to enter in at the strait gate." He addressed these words to the whole company of His hearers. He thought it unwise to gratify the curiosity of his questioner by a direct reply. He chose rather to press home on him, and all around him — their own immediate duty. In minding their own souls — they would soon find the question answered.
The words behind it
15 Greek wordsEvery Greek word of this verse in the order it stands, with what it means and the door to its own study. The last column counts the times a word stands in the whole Bible: the rarer the word, the more the places it appears belong together.
| Greek | Sound | Meaning | Word study | In the Bible |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| καὶ | kai | And | G2532 → | 9120 times |
| ἐρεῖ· | erei | he will speak; | G4483 → | 46 times |
| λέγων | legon | saying | G3004 → | 1325 times |
| ὑμῖν· | humin | to you; | G4771 → | 2973 times |
| οὐκ | ouk | not | G3756 → | 1664 times |
| οἶδα | oida | I do know | ||
| ὑμᾶς | humas | you | G4771 → | 2973 times |
| πόθεν | pothen | from where | G4159 → | 29 times |
| ἐστέ, | este | you are, | G1510 → | 2333 times |
| ἀπόστητε | apostete | do depart | G868 → | 14 times |
| ἀπ᾽ | ap᾽ | from | G575 → | 640 times |
| ἐμοῦ | emou | me | G1473 → | 839 times |
| πάντες | pantes | all [you] | G3956 → | 1235 times |
| ἐργάται | ergatai | workers | G2040 → | 16 times |
| ἀδικίας. | adikias | of unrighteousness. | G93 → | 25 times |
καὶAnd
kaiG2532 →9120 times
ἐρεῖ·he will speak;
ereiG4483 →46 times
λέγωνsaying
legonG3004 →1325 times
ὑμῖν·to you;
huminG4771 →2973 times
οὐκnot
oukG3756 →1664 times
οἶδαI do know
oida
ὑμᾶςyou
humasG4771 →2973 times
πόθενfrom where
pothenG4159 →29 times
ἐστέ,you are,
esteG1510 →2333 times
ἀπόστητεdo depart
aposteteG868 →14 times
ἀπ᾽from
ap᾽G575 →640 times
ἐμοῦme
emouG1473 →839 times
πάντεςall [you]
pantesG3956 →1235 times
ἐργάταιworkers
ergataiG2040 →16 times
ἀδικίας.of unrighteousness.
adikiasG93 →25 times
A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.
The walk
8 stopsEach card is a verse this one points to, and under it the verses that one points to in turn. Where several paths arrive at the same place, that place is listed first: the text keeps returning to it.
Through
Psalms 1:6For the LORD guards the path of the righteous, but the way of the wicked will perish.
it leads to
- 2 Timothy 2:19
Nevertheless, God’s firm foundation stands, bearing this seal: “The Lord knows those who are His,” and, “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord must turn away from iniquity.”
- John 10:14
I am the good shepherd. I know My sheep and My sheep know Me,
- Proverbs 15:9
The LORD detests the way of the wicked, but He loves those who pursue righteousness.
- Nahum 1:7
The LORD is good, a stronghold in the day of distress; He cares for those who trust in Him.
- Psalms 37:18–24
The LORD knows the days of the blameless, and their inheritance will last forever.
- 2 Timothy 2:19
Through
Psalms 6:8Depart from me, all you workers of iniquity, for the LORD has heard my weeping.
it leads to
- Matthew 7:23
Then I will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you workers of lawlessness!’
Reached by 2 separate paths from here.
- Matthew 7:23
Through
Matthew 25:41Then He will say to those on His left, ‘Depart from Me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels.
it leads to
- 2 Peter 2:4
For if God did not spare the angels when they sinned, but cast them deep into hell, placing them in chains of darkness to be held for judgment;
- Jude 1:6–7
And the angels who did not stay within their own domain but abandoned their proper dwelling—these He has kept in eternal chains under darkness, bound for judgment on that great day.
- 2 Peter 2:4
Where this verse is studied
About Luke
This page draws on 11 works. Open the list of works
This page draws on Augustine of Hippo, Catena Aurea by Aquinas; Basil of Caesarea, Catena Aurea by Aquinas; Bede, On the Gospel of Luke; Bonaventure, Commentary on Luke, Chapter 13; J. C. Ryle, Expository Thoughts on the Gospels, Luke; J.C. Ryle, Expository Thoughts on the Gospels: Luke (lightly modernized text, Grace Gems edition); Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible; John Gill, Exposition of the New Testament; John Gill, Exposition of the New Testament (1746-1748); Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible and Pseudo-Clement, Second Epistle To The Corinthians (Pseudo-Clement).