Lectionary Calendar
Saturday, December 27th, 2025
the Second Day after Christmas
Attention!
Take your personal ministry to the Next Level by helping StudyLight build churches and supporting pastors in Uganda.
Click here to join the effort!

Read the Bible

Contemporary English Version

Matthew 17:19

Later the disciples went to Jesus in private and asked him, "Why couldn't we force out the demon?"

Bible Study Resources

Concordances:

- Nave's Topical Bible - Doubting;   Faith;   Jesus, the Christ;   Miracles;   Unbelief;   Thompson Chain Reference - Distrust;   Faith-Unbelief;   Scepticism;   Unbelief;  

Dictionaries:

- Bridgeway Bible Dictionary - Faith;   Gifts of the spirit;   Baker Evangelical Dictionary of Biblical Theology - Demon;   Miracle;   Charles Buck Theological Dictionary - Heaven;   Hutchinsonians;   Holman Bible Dictionary - Deafness;   Matthew, the Gospel of;   Pilate, Pontius;   Hastings' Dictionary of the Bible - Faith;   Text of the New Testament;   Hastings' Dictionary of the New Testament - Children;   Cures;   Disease;   Exorcism;   Fig-Tree ;   Force;   Lunatic;   The Hawker's Poor Man's Concordance And Dictionary - Transfiguration;   People's Dictionary of the Bible - Chief parables and miracles in the bible;  

Encyclopedias:

- International Standard Bible Encyclopedia - Apart;   Healing, Gifts of;   Intercession;   Jesus Christ (Part 2 of 2);  

Parallel Translations

Christian Standard Bible®
Then the disciples approached Jesus privately and said, “Why couldn’t we drive it out?”
King James Version (1611)
Then came the Disciples to Iesus apart, and said, Why could not we cast him out?
King James Version
Then came the disciples to Jesus apart, and said, Why could not we cast him out?
English Standard Version
Then the disciples came to Jesus privately and said, "Why could we not cast it out?"
New American Standard Bible
Then the disciples came to Jesus privately and said, "Why could we not cast it out?"
New Century Version
The followers came to Jesus when he was alone and asked, "Why couldn't we force the demon out?"
Amplified Bible
Then the disciples came to Jesus privately and asked, "Why could we not drive it out?"
Geneva Bible (1587)
Then came the disciples to Iesus apart, and said, Why could not we cast him out?
New American Standard Bible (1995)
Then the disciples came to Jesus privately and said, "Why could we not drive it out?"
Legacy Standard Bible
Then the disciples came to Jesus privately and said, "Why could we not cast it out?"
Berean Standard Bible
Afterward the disciples came to Jesus privately and asked, "Why couldn't we drive it out?"
Complete Jewish Bible
Then the talmidim went to him privately and said, "Why couldn't we drive it out?"
Darby Translation
Then the disciples, coming to Jesus apart, said [to him], Why were not *we* able to cast him out?
Easy-to-Read Version
Then the followers came to Jesus alone. They said, "We tried to force the demon out of the boy, but we could not. Why were we not able to make the demon go out?"
George Lamsa Translation
Then the disciples came up to Jesus when he was alone, and said to him, Why could we not heal him?
Good News Translation
Then the disciples came to Jesus in private and asked him, "Why couldn't we drive the demon out?"
Lexham English Bible
Then the disciples approached Jesus privately and said, Why were we not able to expel it?"
Literal Translation
Then coming up to Jesus privately, the disciples said, Why were we not able to cast him out?
American Standard Version
Then came the disciples to Jesus apart, and said, Why could not we cast it out?
Bible in Basic English
Then the disciples came to Jesus privately, and said, Why were we not able to send it out?
Hebrew Names Version
Then the talmidim came to Yeshua privately, and said, "Why weren't we able to cast it out?"
International Standard Version
Then the disciples came to Jesus privately and said, "Why couldn't we drive it out?"
Etheridge Translation
Then came the disciples to Jeshu by himself, and said to him, Why were we not able to heal him?
Murdock Translation
Then came the disciples to Jesus, apart, and said to him: Why could not we heal him?
Bishop's Bible (1568)
Then came the disciples to Iesus secretely, and sayde: why coulde not we cast hym out?
English Revised Version
Then came the disciples to Jesus apart, and said, Why could not we cast it out?
World English Bible
Then the disciples came to Jesus privately, and said, "Why were we not able to cast it out?"
Wesley's New Testament (1755)
Then the disciples coming to Jesus apart said, Why could not we cast him out?
Weymouth's New Testament
Then the disciples came to Jesus privately and asked Him, "Why could not we expel the demon?"
Wycliffe Bible (1395)
Thanne the disciplis camen to Jhesu priueli, and seiden to hym, Whi myyten not we caste hym out?
Update Bible Version
Then the disciples came to Jesus apart, and said, Why couldn't we cast it out?
Webster's Bible Translation
Then came the disciples to Jesus apart, and said, Why could not we cast him out?
New English Translation
Then the disciples came to Jesus privately and said, "Why couldn't we cast it out?"
New King James Version
Then the disciples came to Jesus privately and said, "Why could we not cast it out?"
New Living Translation
Afterward the disciples asked Jesus privately, "Why couldn't we cast out that demon?"
New Life Bible
The followers came to Jesus when He was alone. They said, "Why were we not able to put the demon out?"
New Revised Standard
Then the disciples came to Jesus privately and said, "Why could we not cast it out?"
J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible
Then, the disciples, coming near, to Jesus, privately, said - Wherefore could, we, not cast it out?
Douay-Rheims Bible
(17-18) Then came the disciples to Jesus secretly, and said: Why could not we cast him out?
Revised Standard Version
Then the disciples came to Jesus privately and said, "Why could we not cast it out?"
Tyndale New Testament (1525)
Then came the disciples to Iesus secretly and sayde: Why could not we cast him out?
Young's Literal Translation
Then the disciples having come to Jesus by himself, said, `Wherefore were we not able to cast him out?'
Miles Coverdale Bible (1535)
Then came the disciples vnto Iesus secretly, & sayde: Why coude not we cast him out?
Mace New Testament (1729)
then came the disciples to Jesus in private, and said, why could not we cast him out?
THE MESSAGE
When the disciples had Jesus off to themselves, they asked, "Why couldn't we throw it out?"
Simplified Cowboy Version
The cowboys asked Jesus, "How come we couldn't rope and drag that ol' demon out?"

Contextual Overview

14 Jesus and his disciples returned to the crowd. A man knelt in front of him 15 and said, "Lord, have pity on my son! He has a bad case of epilepsy and often falls into a fire or into water. 16 I brought him to your disciples, but none of them could heal him." 17 Jesus said, "You people are too stubborn to have any faith! How much longer must I be with you? Why do I have to put up with you? Bring the boy here." 18 Then Jesus spoke sternly to the demon. It went out of the boy, and right then he was healed. 19 Later the disciples went to Jesus in private and asked him, "Why couldn't we force out the demon?" 20Jesus replied: It is because you don't have enough faith! But I can promise you this. If you had faith no larger than a mustard seed, you could tell this mountain to move from here to there. And it would. Everything would be possible for you.

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

Mark 4:10, Mark 9:28

Reciprocal: Judges 1:19 - but could Job 22:30 - pureness Psalms 106:34 - did not Matthew 17:16 - and they Matthew 24:3 - the disciples Mark 9:18 - and they Acts 3:16 - through 1 Corinthians 12:9 - faith 2 Corinthians 6:13 - be

Cross-References

Genesis 17:2
I will keep my solemn promise to you and give you more descendants than can be counted."
Genesis 17:3
Abram bowed with his face to the ground, and God said:
Genesis 17:6
I will give you a lot of descendants, and in the future they will become great nations. Some of them will even be kings.
Genesis 17:9
Abraham, you and all future members of your family must promise to obey me.
Genesis 17:10
As the sign that you are keeping this promise, you must circumcise every man and boy in your family.
Genesis 17:14
Any man who isn't circumcised hasn't kept his promise to me and cannot be one of my people.
Genesis 17:16
I will bless her, and you will have a son by her. She will become the mother of nations, and some of her descendants will even be kings.
Genesis 17:17
Abraham bowed with his face to the ground and thought, "I am almost a hundred years old. How can I become a father? And Sarah is ninety. How can she have a child?" So he started laughing.
Genesis 17:20
I have heard what you asked me to do for Ishmael, and so I will also bless him with many descendants. He will be the father of twelve princes, and I will make his family a great nation.
Genesis 17:21
But your son Isaac will be born about this time next year, and the promise I am making to you and your family will be for him and his descendants forever.

Gill's Notes on the Bible

Then came the disciples to Jesus apart,.... Or "secretly", as the Vulgate Latin, and Munster's Hebrew Gospel read; that is, privately, and when alone; and as Mark says, "when he was come into the house"; and was by himself, then came the nine disciples to him, to converse with him about this matter,

and said unto him, why could not we cast him out? That is, the devil, and so cure the lunatic; the Syriac and Persic versions render it, "why could not we heal him?" The lunatic; which only could be done by casting out the demon: they were concerned, fearing they had lost the power which Christ had bestowed on them, and wanted to know what they had done, which had deprived them of it; and what should be the cause of their late unsuccessful attempt, when they had so frequently triumphed over the unclean spirits, that were subject to them. Though they might have learned from the answer Christ gave to the father of the lunatic, and the general character of the Jewish nations in that answer, the true reason of their own inability; but this they took no notice of, imagining it belonged entirely to others, and not to them.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

Then came the disciples ... - This inquiry was made in some house to which they retired near the place where the miracle was performed (Mark). Jesus told them, in reply, that it was because of their unbelief that they had not been able to cast him out. They were appalled by the difficulty of the case and the obstinacy of the disease. Their faith would not have made it more easy for God to work this miracle, but such was his will - such the way in which he worked miracles, that he required faith in those who were the instruments.

Clarke's Notes on the Bible

Verse Matthew 17:19. Why could not we cast him out? — They were confounded at their want of success-but not at their want of faith, which was the cause of their miscarriage! When the ministers of the Gospel find their endeavours, with respect to some places or persons, ineffectual, they should come, by private prayer, to Christ, humble themselves before him, and beg to be informed whether some evil in themselves have not been the cause of the unfruitfulness of their labours.


 
adsfree-icon
Ads FreeProfile