Luke 11:52 (KJV)

What does Luke 11:52 mean?

In Luke 11:52, Jesus condemns experts in Jewish law for blocking access to knowledge of God. Their position gave them influence over how people understood the law, yet Jesus says they neither entered themselves nor allowed others to enter.

Jesus speaks of knowledge as a key that opens a way in. The image presents the lawyers as people who have taken that key away. His charge comes near the end of a meal at which he has criticized both Pharisees and lawyers.

The Greek behind Luke 11:52

• “lawyers” — νομικός (nomikos): The word refers to someone skilled in law. Here, it describes experts in Jewish law, rather than lawyers in a modern courtroom.
• “knowledge” — γνῶσις (gnōsis): The word means knowledge or understanding. Paired with “key,” it pictures knowledge as giving access to something that can be entered.
• “hindered” — κωλύω (kōlyō): The word carries the sense of preventing or holding someone back. Jesus describes the lawyers as obstructing people who were already trying to enter.

Why Luke 11:52 matters

• Jesus connects the lawyers’ treatment of others with their own response. The verse makes both charges: “ye entered not in yourselves,” and those entering “ye hindered.”
• The charge is directed at people with recognized knowledge, not at learning itself. Their role as “lawyers” makes the accusation that they took away “the key of knowledge” especially pointed.
• Jesus’ words provoked hostility among the people he criticized. In the following verses, the scribes and Pharisees question him closely, looking for something they can use against him.