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Luke 21 · a question people ask

Jesus says, "They will cause some of you to be put to death" (21:16), and then, "not a hair of your head will perish" (21:18). How can both be true?

In the text

Here are his words in order: "You will be handed over even by parents, brothers, relatives, and friends. They will cause some of you to be put to death." (21:16). "You will be hated by all men for my name’s sake." (21:17). "And not a hair of your head will perish." (21:18). "By your endurance you will win your lives." (21:19). He says both, one after the other. Luke tells of no explanation of how they fit together, and these notes give none.

The verses

“You will be handed over even by parents, brothers, relatives, and friends. They will cause some of you to be put to death. You will be hated by all men for my name’s sake. And not a hair of your head will perish. “By your endurance you will win your lives.”
Luke 21:16-19 · World English Bible

From Favor's study of Luke 21

Luke 21: Lift up your heads

The widow is called poor in two Greek words: Luke's own, penichros, in no other verse of the New Testament (21:2), and Jesus's, ptochos (21:3). And Jesus's answer ends in words from the parable of the farmer: in Greek, the cares of 21:34 are the cares that choke those among the thorns (8:14), and the endurance of 21:19 is the perseverance of those in the good ground (8:15).

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Last reviewed October 7, 2026. Scripture quotations are from the World English Bible, which is in the public domain. Every answer cites the verses it rests on. What we believe · All Bible questions