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Matthew 11:7-24
English Standard Version
Matthew 11:7-24
English Standard Version
7 As they went away, Jesus began to speak to the crowds concerning John: “What did you go out (A)into the wilderness to see? (B)A reed shaken by the wind? 8 What then did you go out to see? A man[a] dressed in soft clothing? Behold, those who wear soft clothing are in kings' houses. 9 What then did you go out to see? (C)A prophet?[b] Yes, I tell you, and more than a prophet. 10 This is he of whom it is written,
(D)“‘Behold, I send my messenger before your face,
who will prepare your way before you.’
11 Truly, I say to you, among those born of women there has arisen no one greater than John the Baptist. Yet the one who is least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he. 12 (E)From the days of John the Baptist until now the kingdom of heaven has suffered violence,[c] and the violent take it by force. 13 (F)For all the Prophets and the Law prophesied until John, 14 and if you are willing to accept it, he is (G)Elijah who is to come. 15 (H)He who has ears to hear,[d] let him hear.
16 “But to what shall I compare this generation? It is like children sitting in the marketplaces and calling to their playmates,
17 “‘We played the flute for you, and you did not dance;
we sang a dirge, and you did not mourn.’
18 For John came (I)neither eating (J)nor drinking, and they say, ‘He has a demon.’ 19 The Son of Man came (K)eating and drinking, and they say, ‘Look at him! A glutton and a drunkard, (L)a friend of (M)tax collectors and sinners!’ Yet wisdom is justified by her deeds.”[e]
Woe to Unrepentant Cities
20 (N)Then he began to denounce the cities where most of his mighty works had been done, because they did not repent. 21 (O)“Woe to you, Chorazin! Woe to you, Bethsaida! For if the mighty works done in you had been done in (P)Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago in sackcloth and ashes. 22 (Q)But I tell you, it will be more bearable on (R)the day of judgment for (S)Tyre and Sidon than for you. 23 And you, (T)Capernaum, will you be exalted to heaven? You will be brought down to (U)Hades. For if the mighty works done in you had been done in Sodom, it would have remained until this day. 24 (V)But I tell you that (W)it will be more tolerable on (X)the day of judgment for the land of Sodom than for you.”
Read full chapterFootnotes
- Matthew 11:8 Or Why then did you go out? To see a man
- Matthew 11:9 Some manuscripts Why then did you go out? To see a prophet?
- Matthew 11:12 Or has been coming violently
- Matthew 11:15 Some manuscripts omit to hear
- Matthew 11:19 Some manuscripts children (compare Luke 7:35)
Matthew 11:7-24
New American Standard Bible
Matthew 11:7-24
New American Standard Bible
Jesus’ Tribute to John
7 As these disciples of John were going away, Jesus began speaking to the crowds about John: “What did you go out into (A)the wilderness to see? A reed shaken by the wind? 8 [a]But what did you go out to see? A man dressed in soft clothing? Those who wear soft clothing are in kings’ [b]palaces! 9 [c]But what did you go out to see? (B)A prophet? Yes, I tell you, and one who is more than a prophet. 10 This is the one about whom it [d]is written:
11 Truly I say to you, among those born of women there has not arisen anyone greater than John the Baptist! Yet the one who is least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he. 12 And (D)from the days of John the Baptist until now the kingdom of heaven has been treated violently, and violent men take it by force. 13 For all the Prophets and the Law prophesied until John. 14 And if you are willing to accept it, John himself is (E)Elijah who [f]was to come. 15 (F)The one who has ears to hear, [g]let him hear.
16 “But to what shall I compare this generation? It is like children sitting in the marketplaces, who call out to the other children, 17 and say, ‘We played the flute for you, and you did not dance; we sang a song of mourning, and you did not [h]mourn.’ 18 For John came neither (G)eating nor (H)drinking, and they say, ‘(I)He has a demon!’ 19 The Son of Man came eating and drinking, and they say, ‘Behold, a gluttonous man and a [i]heavy drinker, (J)a friend of tax collectors and [j]sinners!’ And yet wisdom is vindicated by her deeds.”
The Unrepenting Cities
20 Then He began to reprimand the cities in which most of His [k](K)miracles were done, because they did not repent. 21 “(L)Woe to you, Chorazin! Woe to you, (M)Bethsaida! For if the [l]miracles that occurred in you had occurred in (N)Tyre and (O)Sidon, they would have repented long ago in [m](P)sackcloth and ashes. 22 Nevertheless I say to you, (Q)it will be more tolerable for Tyre and Sidon on (R)the day of judgment than for you. 23 And you, (S)Capernaum, will not be exalted to heaven, will you? You will be (T)brought down to (U)Hades! For if the [n]miracles that occurred in you had occurred in (V)Sodom, it would have remained to this day. 24 Nevertheless I say to you that (W)it will be more tolerable for the land of (X)Sodom on the day of judgment, than for you.”
Read full chapterFootnotes
- Matthew 11:8 Or Well then,
- Matthew 11:8 Lit houses
- Matthew 11:9 Or Well then,
- Matthew 11:10 Lit has been written
- Matthew 11:10 Lit before Your face
- Matthew 11:14 Or is going to come
- Matthew 11:15 Or hear! Or listen!
- Matthew 11:17 Lit beat the breast
- Matthew 11:19 Or wine drinker
- Matthew 11:19 I.e., irreligious Jews
- Matthew 11:20 Or works of power
- Matthew 11:21 Or works of power
- Matthew 11:21 I.e., symbols of mourning
- Matthew 11:23 Or works of power
Matthew 11:7-24
New International Version
Matthew 11:7-24
New International Version
7 As John’s(A) disciples were leaving, Jesus began to speak to the crowd about John: “What did you go out into the wilderness(B) to see? A reed swayed by the wind? 8 If not, what did you go out to see? A man dressed in fine clothes? No, those who wear fine clothes are in kings’ palaces. 9 Then what did you go out to see? A prophet?(C) Yes, I tell you, and more than a prophet. 10 This is the one about whom it is written:
11 Truly I tell you, among those born of women there has not risen anyone greater than John the Baptist; yet whoever is least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he. 12 From the days of John the Baptist until now, the kingdom of heaven has been subjected to violence,[b] and violent people have been raiding it. 13 For all the Prophets and the Law prophesied until John.(F) 14 And if you are willing to accept it, he is the Elijah who was to come.(G) 15 Whoever has ears, let them hear.(H)
16 “To what can I compare this generation? They are like children sitting in the marketplaces and calling out to others:
17 “‘We played the pipe for you,
and you did not dance;
we sang a dirge,
and you did not mourn.’
18 For John came neither eating(I) nor drinking,(J) and they say, ‘He has a demon.’ 19 The Son of Man came eating and drinking, and they say, ‘Here is a glutton and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and sinners.’(K) But wisdom is proved right by her deeds.”
Woe on Unrepentant Towns(L)
20 Then Jesus began to denounce the towns in which most of his miracles had been performed, because they did not repent. 21 “Woe to you, Chorazin! Woe to you, Bethsaida!(M) For if the miracles that were performed in you had been performed in Tyre and Sidon,(N) they would have repented long ago in sackcloth and ashes.(O) 22 But I tell you, it will be more bearable for Tyre and Sidon on the day of judgment than for you.(P) 23 And you, Capernaum,(Q) will you be lifted to the heavens? No, you will go down to Hades.[c](R) For if the miracles that were performed in you had been performed in Sodom, it would have remained to this day. 24 But I tell you that it will be more bearable for Sodom on the day of judgment than for you.”(S)
Footnotes
- Matthew 11:10 Mal. 3:1
- Matthew 11:12 Or been forcefully advancing
- Matthew 11:23 That is, the realm of the dead
Matthew 11:7-24
New Living Translation
Matthew 11:7-24
New Living Translation
7 As John’s disciples were leaving, Jesus began talking about him to the crowds. “What kind of man did you go into the wilderness to see? Was he a weak reed, swayed by every breath of wind? 8 Or were you expecting to see a man dressed in expensive clothes? No, people with expensive clothes live in palaces. 9 Were you looking for a prophet? Yes, and he is more than a prophet. 10 John is the man to whom the Scriptures refer when they say,
‘Look, I am sending my messenger ahead of you,
and he will prepare your way before you.’[a]
11 “I tell you the truth, of all who have ever lived, none is greater than John the Baptist. Yet even the least person in the Kingdom of Heaven is greater than he is! 12 And from the time John the Baptist began preaching until now, the Kingdom of Heaven has been forcefully advancing,[b] and violent people are attacking it. 13 For before John came, all the prophets and the law of Moses looked forward to this present time. 14 And if you are willing to accept what I say, he is Elijah, the one the prophets said would come.[c] 15 Anyone with ears to hear should listen and understand!
16 “To what can I compare this generation? It is like children playing a game in the public square. They complain to their friends,
17 ‘We played wedding songs,
and you didn’t dance,
so we played funeral songs,
and you didn’t mourn.’
18 For John didn’t spend his time eating and drinking, and you say, ‘He’s possessed by a demon.’ 19 The Son of Man,[d] on the other hand, feasts and drinks, and you say, ‘He’s a glutton and a drunkard, and a friend of tax collectors and other sinners!’ But wisdom is shown to be right by its results.”
Judgment for the Unbelievers
20 Then Jesus began to denounce the towns where he had done so many of his miracles, because they hadn’t repented of their sins and turned to God. 21 “What sorrow awaits you, Korazin and Bethsaida! For if the miracles I did in you had been done in wicked Tyre and Sidon, their people would have repented of their sins long ago, clothing themselves in burlap and throwing ashes on their heads to show their remorse. 22 I tell you, Tyre and Sidon will be better off on judgment day than you.
23 “And you people of Capernaum, will you be honored in heaven? No, you will go down to the place of the dead.[e] For if the miracles I did for you had been done in wicked Sodom, it would still be here today. 24 I tell you, even Sodom will be better off on judgment day than you.”
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English Standard Version (ESV) 
The ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. ESV Text Edition: 2025.
New American Standard Bible (NASB) 
New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. All rights reserved.
New International Version (NIV) 
Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
NIV Reverse Interlinear Bible: English to Hebrew and English to Greek. Copyright © 2019 by Zondervan.
New Living Translation (NLT)
Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.