Jesus said this to emphasize what he would say next.
## If these were silent ##
This is a hypothetical situation. (See: [[rc://en/ta/man/translate/figs-hypo]]) Some translators may need to make it clear what Jesus was implying when he said this: "No, I will not rebuke them, for if these people were to be silent…" (See: [[rc://en/ta/man/translate/figs-explicit]])