O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the city that kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to it! How often would I have gathered your children together as a hen gathers her brood under her wings, and you were not willing!
English Standard Version (ESV)
Jesus’ lament over Jerusalem isn’t just about the city’s past rejection of prophets; it’s a raw, personal yearning. The phrase "how often would I have gathered" reveals a deep, persistent desire within Jesus, a tender, parental longing that was actively, repeatedly thwarted by the people's "unwillingness."
O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the city that kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to it! How often would I have gathered your children together as a hen gathers her brood under her wings, and you were not willing!
English Standard Version (ESV)
Jesus is in Galilee, and certain Pharisees have just warned him that Herod wants to kill him. In response, Jesus dismisses Herod as a mere "fox" and declares that his own death is imminent but part of God's plan. This leads him to lament over Jerusalem, a city that has a history of rejecting God's messengers.
Jesus looks at Jerusalem and sees not just a city, but a tragedy. Why such intense sorrow over this place?
Jesus laments Jerusalem's history of rejecting God's messengers.
A Pattern of Violence
Jesus uses a vivid image of maternal care to describe His desire for Jerusalem. What does this metaphor reveal about God's heart?
The metaphor of a hen gathering her brood reveals Jesus' deep longing and protective love for Jerusalem and its people.
A Desire for Safety
Ask a follow-up
Jesus' lament over Jerusalem isn't just sad; it's a profound statement about choice and consequence. What is the ultimate cost of saying 'no' to God?
Jesus' words carry a heavy weight of consequence, stemming from Jerusalem's persistent 'unwillingness' to accept His protection.
The Inevitable Outcome
Understand the original words
Hierousalēm · Greek Noun
The holy city of Israel, the site of the Temple, and the center of Jewish worship. It serves as a symbol of the covenant relationship between God and His people, yet also as a place of historical rejection of God's messengers.
Jesus' lament reveals a deep, historical pattern of rejection by Jerusalem's leaders. The city repeatedly killed or 'stoned' God's messengers, even as Jesus longed to protect its people like a mother hen. This persistent rejection ultimately led to its devastating destruction.
c. 30 AD
Jesus' Ministry in Jerusalem
During His earthly ministry, Jesus made multiple trips to Jerusalem, especially during festival seasons. He taught and ministered within the Temple complex itself.
c. 30 AD— this verse
Pharisees Warn Jesus About Herod
Certain Pharisees approach Jesus, warning him to flee Jerusalem because Herod Antipas, the ruler of Galilee, intends to kill him.
c. 30 AD
Jesus' Lament Over Jerusalem
In response to the warning and in view of Jerusalem's resistance to His message, Jesus expresses profound sorrow over the city's impending destruction.
c. 30 AD
Prophecy of Jerusalem's Desolation
Jesus foretells that Jerusalem will be abandoned by God ('your house is left to you') and will not see Him again until the people recognize Him as the one who comes in the name of the Lord.
44 AD
Death of Prophet Agabus
While not directly named in Luke's account, the stoning of prophets was a pattern in Jerusalem, exemplified later by the death of James and potentially Agabus.
62 AD
Death of James, Brother of John
James, one of Jesus' disciples, was martyred in Jerusalem, possibly by stoning or beheading, following a period of intense persecution by religious leaders.
70 AD
Destruction of Jerusalem
The Roman army, under Titus, besieged and destroyed Jerusalem, fulfilling Jesus' prophecies and bringing an end to the Second Temple period.
This passage contains Jesus' identical lament and metaphor of the hen, providing a direct parallel to His sorrow over Jerusalem's rejection of His care.
Jeremiah also called the people of Jerusalem to repent and warned them of judgment, highlighting a consistent prophetic concern for this city and its spiritual state.
Deuteronomy 32:11This Old Testament passage uses the imagery of an eagle protecting its young, offering a precedent for God's protective care, which Jesus expands upon with the hen metaphor.
2 Chronicles 24:18-22This account shows how Jerusalem stoned prophets and rejected God's messengers, directly illustrating Jesus' accusation that the city killed those sent to it.
Luke 19:41-42Just before this, Jesus wept over Jerusalem, revealing His deep grief and longing for the city's peace, which echoes the tender, protective desire expressed in the hen metaphor.
barnesLuke 13:34: "O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, which killest the prophets, and stonest them that are sent unto thee; how often would I have gathered thy children together, as a hen doth gather her brood under her wings, and ye would not!"
See the notes at Matthew 23:37-39 . From the message which Jesus sent to Herod we may learn: 1. That our lives are safe in the hands of God, and that wicked people can do no more to injure us than he shall permit. Compare John 19:11. 2. That we "should" go on fearlessly…
gillLuke 13:34: "O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, which killest the prophets, and stonest them that are sent unto thee; how often would I have gathered thy children together, as a hen doth gather her brood under her wings, and ye would not!"
O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, which killest the prophets,.... These words, with what follow, as they stand in Matthew 23:37 were delivered by Christ, when he was in the temple at Jerusalem; but here they were spoken by him when in Galilee, in Herod's jurisdiction; so that it…
Jesus’ lament over Jerusalem isn’t just about the city’s past rejection of prophets; it’s a raw, personal yearning. The phrase "how often would I have gathered" reveals a deep, persistent desire within Jesus, a tender, parental longing that was actively, repeatedly thwarted by the people's "unwillingness."
Jesus is in Galilee, and certain Pharisees have just warned him that Herod wants to kill him. In response, Jesus dismisses Herod as a mere "fox" and declares that his own death is imminent but part of God's plan. This leads him to lament over Jerusalem, a city that has a history of rejecting God's messengers.
Jesus is in Galilee, and certain Pharisees have just warned him that Herod wants to kill him. In response, Jesus dismisses Herod as a mere "fox" and declares that his own death is imminent but part of God's plan. This leads him to lament over Jerusalem, a city that has a history of rejecting God's messengers.
"O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the city that kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to it! How often would I have gathered your children together as a hen gathers her brood under her wings, and you were not willing!" — Jesus’ lament over Jerusalem isn’t just about the city’s past rejection of prophets; it’s a raw, personal yearning. The phrase "how often would I have gathered" reveals a deep, persistent desire wi…
Get the original Greek and Hebrew, verse-by-verse context, and related passages inside the app.
Last reviewed October 2026