Matthew 28:13
New International Version
telling them, “You are to say, ‘His disciples came during the night and stole him away while we were asleep.’

New Living Translation
They told the soldiers, “You must say, ‘Jesus’ disciples came during the night while we were sleeping, and they stole his body.’

English Standard Version
and said, “Tell people, ‘His disciples came by night and stole him away while we were asleep.’

Berean Standard Bible
and instructed them: “You are to say, ‘His disciples came by night and stole Him away while we were asleep.’

Berean Literal Bible
saying, "Say that His disciples, having come by night, stole Him--we being asleep.

King James Bible
Saying, Say ye, His disciples came by night, and stole him away while we slept.

New King James Version
saying, “Tell them, ‘His disciples came at night and stole Him away while we slept.’

New American Standard Bible
and said, “You are to say, ‘His disciples came at night and stole Him while we were asleep.’

NASB 1995
and said, “You are to say, ‘His disciples came by night and stole Him away while we were asleep.’

NASB 1977
and said, “You are to say, ‘His disciples came by night and stole Him away while we were asleep.’

Legacy Standard Bible
and said, “You are to say, ‘His disciples came by night and stole Him away while we were asleep.’

Amplified Bible
and said, “You say this, ‘His disciples came at night and stole Him while we were sleeping.’

Christian Standard Bible
and told them, “Say this, ‘His disciples came during the night and stole him while we were sleeping.’

Holman Christian Standard Bible
and told them, “Say this, ‘His disciples came during the night and stole Him while we were sleeping.’

American Standard Version
saying, Say ye, His disciples came by night, and stole him away while we slept.

Contemporary English Version
They said to the soldiers, "Tell everyone that Jesus' disciples came during the night and stole his body while you were asleep.

English Revised Version
saying, Say ye, His disciples came by night, and stole him away while we slept.

GOD'S WORD® Translation
and told them to say that Jesus' disciples had come at night and had stolen his body while they were sleeping.

Good News Translation
and said, "You are to say that his disciples came during the night and stole his body while you were asleep.

International Standard Version
They said, "Say that Jesus' disciples came at night and stole him while you were sleeping.

Majority Standard Bible
and instructed them: “You are to say, ‘His disciples came by night and stole Him away while we were asleep.’

NET Bible
telling them, "You are to say, 'His disciples came at night and stole his body while we were asleep.'

New Heart English Bible
saying, "Say that his disciples came by night, and stole him away while we slept.

Webster's Bible Translation
Saying, Say ye, His disciples came by night, and stole him away while we slept.

Weymouth New Testament
telling them to say, "His disciples came during the night and stole his body while we were asleep."

World English Bible
saying, “Say that his disciples came by night and stole him away while we slept.
Literal Translations
Literal Standard Version
saying, “Say that His disciples having come by night, stole Him—we being asleep;

Berean Literal Bible
saying, "Say that His disciples, having come by night, stole Him--we being asleep.

Young's Literal Translation
saying, 'Say ye, that his disciples having come by night, stole him -- we being asleep;

Smith's Literal Translation
Saying, Say ye, That his disciples having come by night, stole him, we being asleep.
Catholic Translations
Douay-Rheims Bible
Saying: Say you, His disciples came by night, and stole him away when we were asleep.

Catholic Public Domain Version
saying: “Say that his disciples arrived at night and stole him away, while we were sleeping.

New American Bible
telling them, “You are to say, ‘His disciples came by night and stole him while we were asleep.’

New Revised Standard Version
telling them, “You must say, ‘His disciples came by night and stole him away while we were asleep.’
Translations from Aramaic
Lamsa Bible
Telling them, Say that his disciples came by night and stole him while we were sleeping.

Aramaic Bible in Plain English
And they were saying to them, “Say, 'His disciples came and stole it in the night, while we slept'.”
NT Translations
Anderson New Testament
saying: Say that his disciples came by night and stole him away, while we were asleep.

Godbey New Testament
saying, You tell, that His disciples, having come by night, stole Him away while we slept.

Haweis New Testament
saying, Report, that his disciples coming by night stole him away, while you were asleep.

Mace New Testament
do you say "his disciples came by night, and stole him away while we slept.

Weymouth New Testament
telling them to say, "His disciples came during the night and stole his body while we were asleep."

Worrell New Testament
saying, "Say ye that His disciples, coming by night, stole Him, while we were sleeping.

Worsley New Testament
saying, Do you say, that his disciples came by night, and stole Him away, while we were asleep.

Additional Translations ...
Audio Bible



Context
The Report of the Guards
12And after the chief priests had met with the elders and formed a plan, they gave the soldiers a large sum of money 13and instructed them: “You are to say, ‘His disciples came by night and stole Him away while we were asleep.’ 14If this report reaches the governor, we will satisfy him and keep you out of trouble.”…

Cross References
Matthew 27:64
So give the order that the tomb be secured until the third day. Otherwise, His disciples may come and steal Him away and tell the people He has risen from the dead. And this last deception would be worse than the first.”

Matthew 27:62-63
The next day, the one after Preparation Day, the chief priests and Pharisees assembled before Pilate. / “Sir,” they said, “we remember that while He was alive that deceiver said, ‘After three days I will rise again.’

Acts 4:15-17
So they ordered them to leave the Sanhedrin and then conferred together. / “What shall we do with these men?” they asked. “It is clear to everyone living in Jerusalem that a remarkable miracle has occurred through them, and we cannot deny it. / But to keep this message from spreading any further among the people, we must warn them not to speak to anyone in this name.”

Acts 5:28
“We gave you strict orders not to teach in this name,” he said. “Yet you have filled Jerusalem with your teaching and are determined to make us responsible for this man’s blood.”

Acts 5:40
At this, they yielded to Gamaliel. They called the apostles in and had them flogged. Then they ordered them not to speak in the name of Jesus, and released them.

John 11:47-48
Then the chief priests and Pharisees convened the Sanhedrin and said, “What are we to do? This man is performing many signs. / If we let Him go on like this, everyone will believe in Him, and then the Romans will come and take away both our place and our nation.”

John 12:10-11
So the chief priests made plans to kill Lazarus as well, / for on account of him many of the Jews were deserting them and believing in Jesus.

Mark 14:55-59
Now the chief priests and the whole Sanhedrin were seeking testimony against Jesus to put Him to death, but they did not find any. / For many bore false witness against Jesus, but their testimony was inconsistent. / Then some men stood up and testified falsely against Him: ...

Luke 23:2
And they began to accuse Him, saying, “We found this man subverting our nation, forbidding payment of taxes to Caesar, and proclaiming Himself to be Christ, a King.”

Luke 24:11
But their words seemed like nonsense to them, and they did not believe the women.

John 20:2
So she came running to Simon Peter and the other disciple, the one whom Jesus loved. “They have taken the Lord out of the tomb,” she said, “and we do not know where they have put Him!”

Acts 23:12-15
When daylight came, the Jews formed a conspiracy and bound themselves with an oath not to eat or drink until they had killed Paul. / More than forty of them were involved in this plot. / They went to the chief priests and elders and said, “We have bound ourselves with a solemn oath not to eat anything until we have killed Paul. ...

Acts 24:5-9
We have found this man to be a pestilence, stirring up dissension among the Jews all over the world. He is a ringleader of the sect of the Nazarenes, / and he even tried to desecrate the temple; so we seized him. / but Lysias the commander came with great force and took him out of our hands, ...

Acts 25:7
When Paul arrived, the Jews who had come down from Jerusalem stood around him, bringing many serious charges that they could not prove.

1 Kings 21:8-10
Then Jezebel wrote letters in Ahab’s name, sealed them with his seal, and sent them to the elders and nobles who lived with Naboth in his city. / In the letters she wrote: “Proclaim a fast and give Naboth a seat of honor among the people. / But seat two scoundrels opposite him and have them testify, ‘You have cursed both God and the king!’ Then take him out and stone him to death.”


Treasury of Scripture

Saying, Say you, His disciples came by night, and stole him away while we slept.

stole.

Matthew 26:64
Jesus saith unto him, Thou hast said: nevertheless I say unto you, Hereafter shall ye see the Son of man sitting on the right hand of power, and coming in the clouds of heaven.

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Asleep Body Disciples His Night Secretly Sleeping Slept Stole Telling
Matthew 28
1. Christ's resurrection is declared by an angel to the women.
9. He himself appears unto them.
11. The chief priests pay the soldiers to say that he was stolen out of his tomb.
16. Christ appears to his disciples,
18. and sends them to baptize and teach all nations.














“You are to say”
This phrase indicates a directive or command given to the guards by the chief priests. In the Greek, the verb used here is "εἴπατε" (eipate), which is an imperative form, emphasizing the authority and urgency behind the instruction. The religious leaders were determined to control the narrative surrounding Jesus' resurrection, highlighting their continued resistance to accepting Jesus as the Messiah. This reflects a broader theme in the Gospels of human attempts to suppress divine truth.

“His disciples came by night”
The phrase suggests a clandestine operation, implying deceit and stealth. The Greek word for "night" is "νυκτός" (nyktos), which often symbolizes darkness and evil in biblical literature. This accusation against the disciples is ironic, as it was the religious leaders who were engaging in deception. Historically, this reflects the tension between the early Christian community and the Jewish authorities, who were trying to discredit the resurrection.

“and stole Him away”
The verb "stole" in Greek is "ἔκλεψαν" (eklepsan), which means to take secretly or by stealth. This accusation was intended to undermine the miraculous nature of the resurrection by suggesting a human explanation. Theologically, this reflects the ongoing spiritual battle between truth and falsehood, as the resurrection is a cornerstone of Christian faith, affirming Jesus' victory over death.

“while we were asleep”
This phrase is crucial because it implies negligence on the part of the guards, which would have been a serious offense. The Greek word for "asleep" is "κοιμωμένων" (koimomenon), which can also mean to be dead or inactive. This highlights the absurdity of the claim, as it would be unlikely for all guards to be asleep simultaneously. Theologically, it underscores the futility of human efforts to thwart God's plans.

(13) His disciples came by night.--The story was on the face of it self-contradictory. How could they tell, if they had been asleep, who had stolen the body? All that they could know was that they had fallen asleep, and that when they awoke the sepulchre was open and empty.

Verse 13. - Say ye, etc. They put the lie into the soldiers' mouth, directing them to answer inquiries in this way. The last resource of an infatuated obstinacy! If they were asleep, how could they know that the disciples stole the body? St. Chrysostom comments well on the infamous transaction, "How did they steal him? O most foolish of all men! For because of the clearness and conspicuousness of the truth, they are not even able to make up a falsehood. For indeed, what they said was highly incredible, and the falsehood had not even speciousness. For how, I ask, did the disciples steal him, men poor and unlearned, and not venturing so much as to show themselves? What? was not a seal put upon it? What? were there not many watchmen and soldiers and Jews stationed round it? What? did not those men suspect this very thing, and take thought, and break their rest, and are in anxiety about it? And wherefore, moreover, did they steal it? That they might feign the doctrine of the resurrection? And how should it enter their minds to feign such a thing - men who were well content to be hidden and to live? And how could they remove the stone that was made sure? How could they have escaped the observation of so many? Nay, though they had despised death, they would not have attempted without purpose and fruitlessly to venture in defiance of so many who were on the watch. And that moreover they were timorous, what they had done before showed clearly: at least, when they saw him seized, all rushed away from him. If, then, at that time they did not dare so much as to stand their ground when they saw him alive, how when he was dead could they but have feared such a number of soldiers?" ('Hem.,' 90.).

Parallel Commentaries ...


Greek
[and] instructed them:
λέγοντες (legontes)
Verb - Present Participle Active - Nominative Masculine Plural
Strong's 3004: (a) I say, speak; I mean, mention, tell, (b) I call, name, especially in the pass., (c) I tell, command.

“You are to say,
Εἴπατε (Eipate)
Verb - Aorist Imperative Active - 2nd Person Plural
Strong's 2036: Answer, bid, bring word, command. A primary verb; to speak or say.

‘His
αὐτοῦ (autou)
Personal / Possessive Pronoun - Genitive Masculine 3rd Person Singular
Strong's 846: He, she, it, they, them, same. From the particle au; the reflexive pronoun self, used of the third person, and of the other persons.

disciples
μαθηταὶ (mathētai)
Noun - Nominative Masculine Plural
Strong's 3101: A learner, disciple, pupil. From manthano; a learner, i.e. Pupil.

came
ἐλθόντες (elthontes)
Verb - Aorist Participle Active - Nominative Masculine Plural
Strong's 2064: To come, go.

by night
νυκτὸς (nyktos)
Noun - Genitive Feminine Singular
Strong's 3571: The night, night-time. A primary word; 'night'.

[and] stole
ἔκλεψαν (eklepsan)
Verb - Aorist Indicative Active - 3rd Person Plural
Strong's 2813: To steal. A primary verb; to filch.

His [body]
αὐτὸν (auton)
Personal / Possessive Pronoun - Accusative Masculine 3rd Person Singular
Strong's 846: He, she, it, they, them, same. From the particle au; the reflexive pronoun self, used of the third person, and of the other persons.

{while} we
ἡμῶν (hēmōn)
Personal / Possessive Pronoun - Genitive 1st Person Plural
Strong's 1473: I, the first-person pronoun. A primary pronoun of the first person I.

were asleep.’
κοιμωμένων (koimōmenōn)
Verb - Present Participle Middle or Passive - Genitive Masculine Plural
Strong's 2837: From keimai; to put to sleep, i.e. to slumber; figuratively, to decease.


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