The Meaning of Luke 20:6 Explained

Luke 20:6

KJV: But and if we say, Of men; all the people will stone us: for they be persuaded that John was a prophet.

YLT: and if we may say, From men, all the people will stone us, for they are having been persuaded John to be a prophet.'

Darby: but if we should say, Of men, the whole people will stone us, for they are persuaded that John was a prophet.

ASV: But if we shall say, From men; all the people will stone us: for they are persuaded that John was a prophet.

KJV Reverse Interlinear

But and  if  we say,  Of  men;  all  the people  will stone  us:  for  they be  persuaded  that John  was  a prophet. 

What does Luke 20:6 Mean?

Context Summary

Luke 20:1-8 - The Unanswered Question
When anyone has received a divine commission, he does not need to prove it. His credentials are written large upon his life and message. It was so with John the Baptist. There was no need for him to argue his claims. The crowds in the Jordan valley; the multitudes in the baptismal waters, were sufficient to attest him as God's servant. What he said about God and sin found corroboration in their hearts. So it was with our Lord. The masses of people that followed Him and hung on His words had no doubt that He was the heir of the vineyard. The leaders professed to doubt it, because, to use the language of the parable that follows, they were reluctant to surrender their claims to the ownership of the vineyard. Probably, sufficient stress has not been laid upon the supreme intellectual power of our Lord, which shone out so clearly in these conflicts with Hebrew casuists, and in which He always came off conqueror, by the sheer force of His mind. "We have the mind of Christ!" [source]

Chapter Summary: Luke 20

1  Jesus confirms his authority by a question of John's baptism
9  The parable of the vineyard
19  Of giving tribute to Caesar
27  He instructs the Sadducees, who denied the resurrection
41  How Jesus is the Son of David
45  He warns his disciples to beware of the scribes

Greek Commentary for Luke 20:6

Will stone us [καταλιτασει]
Late verb and here only in the N.T. Literally, will throw stones down on us, stone us down, overwhelm us with stones. [source]
They be persuaded [πεπεισμενος εστιν]
Periphrastic perfect passive indicative of πειτω — peithō to persuade, a settled state of persuasion, “is persuaded” (no reason for use of “be” here). That John was a prophet (Ιωανην προπητην ειναι — Iōanēn prophētēn einai). Accusative and infinitive in indirect assertion. [source]
That John was a prophet [Ιωανην προπητην ειναι]
Accusative and infinitive in indirect assertion. [source]
Will stone [καταλιθάσει]
Only here in New Testament. “Stone us down ” ( κατά ); i.e., stone us to death. [source]
They be persuaded [πεπεισμένος ἐστιν]
Lit., It (the people collectively) is hawing been persuaded. Denoting a long-standing and settled persuasion.sa40 [source]

Reverse Greek Commentary Search for Luke 20:6

Mark 11:32 But should we say [αλλα ειπωμεν]
Deliberative subjunctive with aorist active subjunctive again. It is possible to supply εαν — ean from Mark 11:31 and treat it as a condition as there. So Matthew 21:26 and Luke 20:6. But in Mark the structure continues rugged after “from men” with anacoluthon or even aposiopesis - “they feared the people” Mark adds. Matthew has it: “We fear the multitude.” Luke puts it: “all the people will stone us.” All three Gospels state the popular view of John as a prophet. Mark‘s “verily” is οντως — ontōs really, actually. They feared John though dead as much as Herod Antipas did. His martyrdom had deepened his power over the people and disrespect towards his memory now might raise a storm (Swete). [source]
Luke 20:5 If we shall say [εαν ειπωμεν]
Third-class condition with second aorist active subjunctive. Suppose we say! So in Luke 20:6. [source]

What do the individual words in Luke 20:6 mean?

If however we should say From men the people all will stone us having been persuaded for they are John a prophet to be
ἐὰν δὲ εἴπωμεν Ἐξ ἀνθρώπων λαὸς ἅπας καταλιθάσει ἡμᾶς πεπεισμένος γάρ ἐστιν Ἰωάννην προφήτην εἶναι

δὲ  however 
Parse: Conjunction
Root: δέ  
Sense: but, moreover, and, etc.
εἴπωμεν  we  should  say 
Parse: Verb, Aorist Subjunctive Active, 1st Person Plural
Root: λέγω  
Sense: to speak, say.
ἀνθρώπων  men 
Parse: Noun, Genitive Masculine Plural
Root: ἄνθρωπος  
Sense: a human being, whether male or female.
λαὸς  people 
Parse: Noun, Nominative Masculine Singular
Root: λαός  
Sense: a people, people group, tribe, nation, all those who are of the same stock and language.
καταλιθάσει  will  stone 
Parse: Verb, Future Indicative Active, 3rd Person Singular
Root: καταλιθάζω  
Sense: to overwhelm with stones, to stone.
ἡμᾶς  us 
Parse: Personal / Possessive Pronoun, Accusative 1st Person Plural
Root: ἐγώ  
Sense: I, me, my.
πεπεισμένος  having  been  persuaded 
Parse: Verb, Perfect Participle Middle or Passive, Nominative Masculine Singular
Root: ἐπισείω 
Sense: persuade.
ἐστιν  they  are 
Parse: Verb, Present Indicative Active, 3rd Person Singular
Root: εἰμί  
Sense: to be, to exist, to happen, to be present.
Ἰωάννην  John 
Parse: Noun, Accusative Masculine Singular
Root: Ἰωάννης 
Sense: John the Baptist was the son of Zacharias and Elisabeth, the forerunner of Christ.
προφήτην  a  prophet 
Parse: Noun, Accusative Masculine Singular
Root: προφήτης  
Sense: in Greek writings, an interpreter of oracles or of other hidden things.
εἶναι  to  be 
Parse: Verb, Present Infinitive Active
Root: εἰμί  
Sense: to be, to exist, to happen, to be present.