Some people say proves Jesus isn’t God. They argue that since Jesus said He did not “know” the day of His return, He must not be all-knowing. But that claim breaks down when we look at the language, the context, and what Jesus was teaching.

The Greek word for “know” in this verse is oida. That word doesn’t always mean “having information.” Often, it means “not revealing” or “not making something known.” This is because the Greek verb oida is built off the perfect form of the verb "to see" (eidon). It often blurs the line between seeing, knowing, and acknowledging. So, context becomes everything. In many places, oida is used not just to say "I know internally" but "I publicly recognize, or I state as true." This is what we call declarative knowledge. This is seen all over the New Testament.

Look at The religious leaders claimed they didn’t “know,” but they were avoiding the question. The meaning here is closer to “we are not saying.”

Also in the word oida is not describing private mental knowledge or internal clarity. It is about Jesus declaring His heavenly origin and mission as a matter of public, authoritative testimony. He is not saying, “I personally understand.” He is saying, “I can speak on this with full authority because it is mine to reveal.”

So in Jesus is not saying He is ignorant. He is saying that it is not His role to declare or reveal that timing while in His earthly mission. This fits with the pattern of a Jewish wedding. In that culture, the groom prepared a place for the bride, but only the father of the groom decided the day of the wedding. Jesus is the Bridegroom. The Church is His bride. He is waiting for the Father's signal.

Now look at the very next verse:
The word “know” here is also oida, but this is clearly not a claim that humans lack the capacity for divine nature. It simply means they don’t have access to that information. In other words, just like the Son, they haven’t revealed or received the timing. The word is the same, but the sense of the word is not. This destroys the argument that verse 32 teaches Jesus is not God. That kind of logic would mean no angel or human is anything more than ignorant, which isn’t true. Instead, it is about authority and roles in revelation.

But Wait, Doesn’t the Holy Spirit Live in Jesus?
Yes. And that’s a great question. Since Jesus was filled with the Holy Spirit without measure wouldn’t that mean the Spirit knew and could have told Him?

Here’s the thing: the Spirit never acts apart from the will of the Father. The Holy Spirit does not override Jesus’ obedience to the Father's timing. Jesus, in His incarnate mission, chose to submit to the Father’s will completely even to the point of withholding certain declarations.

This is not a lack of knowledge, it’s a limit in disclosure. The Spirit lived in Jesus, but that doesn't mean Jesus was under obligation to share everything He knew in divine power while in human form.


Jesus humbled Himself and walked in full obedience. The fact that He said the Father alone would reveal the hour does not mean Jesus was any less divine. It means He was waiting, like a faithful Son and Bridegroom, to come when the time is right.

The early Church condemned the claim that Jesus was ignorant in His divine nature. That was called the Agnoetic Heresy, and it was rejected as false teaching. The New Testament makes it clear that Jesus, in His divine identity, knows all things:


Even Paul uses the word oida to focus attention, not admit ignorance:

Paul obviously knew many things, but he chose to focus his teaching on the most important truth. In the same way, Jesus in Mark 13:32 was pointing to the Father's authority to declare the moment, not denying His own divinity.

A fun vid from our brother God Logic