Luke 20:2

2 and said to him, "Tell us, what right do you have to do these things? Who gave you such right?"

Luke 20:2 Meaning and Commentary

Luke 20:2

And spoke unto him, saying, tell us by what authority
doest thou these things?
&c.] The Arabic and Ethiopic versions read, "this thing"; as if the sanhedrim only referred to his preaching the Gospel, which is mentioned in the preceding verse, and was what he was about when they came to him: but the Persic version reads, "all these things"; not only preaching, but working miracles; and particularly driving the buyers and sellers out of the temple, which especially affected them, they losing their rents thereby:

or who is he that gave thee this authority?
God or man? (See Gill on Matthew 21:23).

Luke 20:2 In-Context

1 One day when Jesus was in the Temple teaching the people and preaching the Good News, the chief priests and the teachers of the Law, together with the elders, came

2 and said to him, "Tell us, what right do you have to do these things? Who gave you such right?"

3 Jesus answered them, "Now let me ask you a question. Tell me,

4 did John's right to baptize come from God or from human beings?"

5 They started to argue among themselves, "What shall we say? If we say, "From God,' he will say, "Why, then, did you not believe John?'