Luke 22:70 - Printer Friendly

ESV: So they all said, "Are you the Son of God, then?" And he said to them, "You say that I am."

NIV: They all asked, "Are you then the Son of God?" He replied, "You say that I am."

NASB: And they all said, 'So You are the Son of God?' And He said to them, 'You say correctly that I am.'

CSB: They all asked, "Are you, then, the Son of God?" And he said to them, "You say that I am."

NLT: They all shouted, 'So, are you claiming to be the Son of God?' And he replied, 'You say that I am.'

KJV: Then said they all, Art thou then the Son of God And he said unto them, Ye say that I am.

NKJV: Then they all said, “Are You then the Son of God?” So He said to them, “You rightly say that I am.”

After a night of illegal trials and a morning filled with a legal trial before the Sanhedrin, the Jewish leaders almost have what they need to eliminate Jesus. He has just claimed that He will be "seated at the right hand of the power of God" (Luke 22:69). To Jews of that era, such a statement is a blasphemous insult. The transcendent God could never be in the presence of an unclean human. God would never sit beside any human. In their minds, that makes Jesus guilty of blasphemy. He has broken the Mosaic law. He is technically worthy of death. But that's only the first step.

They want Jesus destroyed, but they don't want to complete the act on their own. They're afraid of the people who love Jesus so much they may stone anyone who kills Him: even their own priests and elders (Luke 22:2). The Sanhedrin wants the Romans to kill Jesus, but to make that happen they need Jesus to break the Roman law. So, they ask Him if He is the Son of God. The thought would disgust them, but it would fill their purposes. To claim to the be the Son of God would claim an equal standing with the emperor.

Jesus' reply is oblique, as if He does not want to give a straight answer. The Sanhedrin takes it as a definite admission that breaks the Mosaic law and gives them what they need for Pilate. "What further testimony do we need?" they ask themselves. "We have heard it ourselves from his own lips" (Luke 22:71). They don't understand that what they've heard is the truth. Not only will Jesus, fully man, sit at the right hand of God, Jesus, fully God, is with them now.

Luke 22:66–71 records Jesus' third and only legal trial before the Jewish leaders. Whatever Jesus said in the first two trials doesn't matter. In this third trial, before the Sanhedrin, they make an official charge: Jesus formally claims to be the Son of God. His claim, they think, blasphemes God and the Roman emperor—a capital offense. Matthew 27:1–2 and Mark 15:1 only say that at this trial the Sanhedrin agree to take Jesus to Pilate (Luke 23:1–5). After Pilate sees Jesus, he'll send Him to Herod Antipas (Luke 23:6–12) before the Sanhedrin convinces Pilate to crucify Jesus (Luke 23:13–25).

Luke 22 is a long chapter which records events leading to Jesus' political trials and crucifixion. He has successfully taught crowds at the temple and proved His authority over the religious leaders (Luke 19:47—20). Meanwhile the leaders have spent the week planning to arrest Jesus and have Him killed (Luke 19:47–48). This chapter records the Last Supper, the arrest on the Mount of Olives, and the trials before the Jewish religious leaders. Matthew 26, Mark 14, and John 18 cover much of the same information.

Luke 23 continues Jesus' trials before Pilate and Herod Antipas. He is then led to the cross where He forgives His murderers and saves a thief before He dies. In Luke 24, Jesus rises from the dead, meets two disciples while they travel, and explains to them how the Old Testament prophesied the death of the Messiah. In the final scene of the gospel, Jesus is reunited with His disciples, blesses them, and ascends into heaven.

Luke was a traveling companion of Paul (Acts 16:10) and a physician (Colossians 4:14). Unlike Matthew, Mark, and John, Luke writes his gospel as an historian, rather than as a first-hand eyewitness. His extensive writings also include the book of Acts (Acts 1:1–3). These are deliberately organized, carefully researched accounts of those events. The gospel of Luke focuses on the earthly ministry of Jesus Christ. Luke's Gentile perspective presents Christ as a Savior for all people, offering both forgiveness and direction to those who follow Him.