Matthew 23:37-39
A Lament over Jerusalem
Read the passage
37O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, who kills the prophets and stones those sent to her, how often I have longed to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, but you were unwilling!
38Look, your house is left to you desolate.
39For I tell you that you will not see Me again until you say, ‘Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord.’”
Berean Standard Bible
Read aloud
Jesus cries out over Jerusalem: “O Jerusalem, Jerusalem,” the city that kills the prophets and stones those sent to it. He says how often he wanted to gather its children together as a hen gathers her brood under her wings, but they were unwilling.
The image joins judgment with tenderness. Jesus does not speak as a detached critic enjoying the city's failure. He grieves over people who refuse the protection and welcome he offers, even though their resistance has been persistent and destructive.
Jesus says their house is left desolate. He then says they will not see him again until they say, “Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord.” The passage ends with a future that remains in God's hands rather than with a simple claim that grief has exhausted hope.
Jerusalem's history includes rejected prophets, and Jesus places himself among those sent by God. His lament prepares us to see the cost of rejection without making suffering itself the center of the story. His desire is to gather and protect.
These words deserve reverence. They are not permission to celebrate another person's downfall. They ask whether we are willing to receive God's shelter and whether our own warnings toward others still carry grief and love.
How We Know
Jesus laments over Jerusalem, and Luke 13:34-35 preserves a close parallel with the image of a hen gathering her young. Matthew's placement after the woes gives the lament its particular force; Mark does not record it.
Questions
1 Why does Jesus grieve over Jerusalem?
AnswerJerusalem has killed God’s messengers and refuses the care Jesus longs to give. He announces desolation with grief over the people, rather than pleasure in their ruin.
2 What does the hen gathering her brood reveal about Jesus' desire?
AnswerHe longs to bring them close under His care. The familiar sight of a mother bird sheltering her young shows the tenderness of the One giving this severe warning.
3 How can hard warnings remain compassionate?
AnswerJesus names the wrong and its consequences while longing to gather the people. Compassion does not require silence, and telling the truth does not require contempt.
4 Where have we resisted wise protection or correction?
AnswerThe family can name one place where it has resisted wise protection or correction and respond with a humble conversation rather than defensiveness.
What This Means for Us
Jesus has just pronounced severe woes, yet He now speaks of sheltering Jerusalem’s children. His compassion is not exhausted by their resistance. We can confess our own refusal to listen without imagining that He enjoys turning sinners away.
The warning about a desolate house makes delay serious. Familiar worship, a long religious history and a place among God’s people cannot replace receiving His Son. His words call for a response to Him, not merely an opinion about Jerusalem.
When someone we love refuses help, grief can turn into a wish to be proved right. Jesus’ lament teaches us to keep desiring that person’s good. We can speak honestly about harm and offer practical care without pretending we can control the response.
Prayer
Jesus, gather us under your care. Give us hearts that grieve rather than mock, wisdom to recognize true protection, and humility to receive correction when we have resisted your ways. Amen.