Luke 11:52

Woe to you lawyers! For you took away the key of knowledge. You didn’t enter in yourselves, and those who were entering in, you hindered.”

World English Bible
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Other translations

WEBBE

Woe to you lawyers! For you took away the key of knowledge. You didn’t enter in yourselves, and those who were entering in, you hindered.”

BSB

Woe to you experts in the law! For you have taken away the key to knowledge. You yourselves have not entered, and you have hindered those who were entering.”

KJV

Woe unto you, lawyers! for ye have taken away the key of knowledge: ye entered not in yourselves, and them that were entering in ye hindered.

ASV

Woe unto you lawyers! for ye took away the key of knowledge: ye entered not in yourselves, and them that were entering in ye hindered.

BBE

A curse is on you, teachers of the law! for you have taken away the key of knowledge: you did not go in yourselves, and you got in the way of those who were going in.

Original Greek

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Οὐαὶ Ouai Woe G3759 ὑμῖν humin to you G4771 τοῖς tois (the) G3588 νομικοῖς nomikois lawyers G3544 ὅτι hoti for G3754 ἤρατε ērate you have taken away G142 τὴν tēn the G3588 κλεῖδα kleida key G2807 τῆς tēs of the G3588 γνώσεως gnōseōs knowledge G1108 αὐτοὶ autoi You yourselves G846 οὐκ ouk not G3756 εἰσήλθατε eisēlthate did enter G1525 καὶ kai and G2532 τοὺς tous those G3588 εἰσερχομένους eiserchomenous entering G1525 ἐκωλύσατε.¶ ekōlusate you hindered G2967

The early church

Those also are even now condemned under the name of Jews, and made subject to future punishment, who, while usurping to themselves the teaching of divine knowledge, both hinder others, and do not themselves acknowledge that which they profess.
Ambrose of Milan · d. 397Catena Aurea (Aquinas, 1274)
(de qu. Ev. l. ii. q. 23.) But the key of knowledge is also the humility of Christ, which they would neither themselves understand, nor let be understood by others.
Augustine of Hippo · d. 430Catena Aurea (Aquinas, 1274)
Now we say, the law itself is the key of knowledge. For it was both a shadow and a figure of the righteousness of Christ, therefore it became the Lawyers, as instructors of the Law of Moses and the words of the Prophets, to reveal in a certain measure to the Jewish people the knowledge of Christ. This they did not, but on the contrary detracted from the divine miracles, and spoke against His teaching, Why hear ye him? So then they took away the key of knowledge. Hence it follows, Ye entered not in yourselves, and them that were entered in ye hindered. But faith also is the key of knowledge. For by faith comes also the knowledge of truth, according to that of Isaiah, Unless ye have believed, ye will not understand. (Isa. 7:9. LXX.) The Lawyers then have taken away the key of knowledge, not permitting men to believe in Christ.
Cyril of Alexandria · d. 444Catena Aurea (Aquinas, 1274)
It follows, Woe to you, lawyers, for ye have taken away the key of knowledge.
Ancient Greek Expositor · d. 1274Catena Aurea (Aquinas, 1274)

Commentary

Matthew Henry · Verses 37–54

We should all look to our hearts, that they may be cleansed and new-created; and while we attend to the great things of the law and of the gospel, we must not neglect the smallest matter God has appointed. When any wait to catch something out of our mouths, that they may insnare us, O Lord, give us thy prudence and thy patience, and disappoint their evil purposes. Furnish us with such meekness and patience that we may glory in reproaches, for Christ's sake, and that thy Holy Spirit may rest upon us.

Read Matthew Henry on Luke 11 →

Parallel passages

1

The same words or events elsewhere.

Matthew 23:13

Cross-references

8

Topics

BlindnessKnowledgeStumblingKeyScience

Cross-references: Treasury of Scripture Knowledge. Hebrew and Greek data from STEPBible.org (Tyndale House, Cambridge), CC BY 4.0. Library: sources.