Luke 9:54

54 Now [when] the disciples James and John saw [it], they said, "Lord, do you want us to call fire to come down from heaven and consume them?"

Luke 9:54 Meaning and Commentary

Luke 9:54

And when his disciples, James and John, saw this
The Persic version reads thus; when "James and John, and the disciples saw this"; that is, the other disciples besides them, so making all the disciples say what follows; whereas only those two are intended, who having been the messengers, were the more provoked at this indignity to their Lord and master:

they said, Lord, wilt thou that we command fire to come down from
heaven, and consume them;
being enraged at this conduct of the Samaritans towards, Christ, and burning with love to him, and zeal for his honour; being "Boanerges's", sons of thunder, they were for punishing of them in a most terrible manner, even with, fire from heaven; by which Sodom and Gomorrah, and the cities of the plain, were destroyed: this they doubted not of doing, knowing what miraculous power was conferred upon them; but did not think proper to attempt to exert it, until they had asked leave of Christ to do it:

even as Elias did;
upon the two captains of fifties, with their fifties, as recorded in ( 2 Kings 1:9-12 ) This clause was wanting in a certain copy of Beza's, and is not in the Vulgate Latin version; but is in other copies and versions, and by all means to be retained.

Luke 9:54 In-Context

52 And he sent messengers before {him}, and they went [and] entered into a village of the Samaritans in order to prepare for him.

53 And they did not welcome him because {he was determined to go} to Jerusalem.

54 Now [when] the disciples James and John saw [it], they said, "Lord, do you want us to call fire to come down from heaven and consume them?"

55 But he turned around [and] rebuked them,

56 and they proceeded to another village.

Footnotes

• [a] *Here "[when]" is supplied as a component of the participle ("saw") which is understood as temporal
• [b] *Here the direct object is supplied from context in the English translation