Luke 10:14 kjv
But it shall be more tolerable for Tyre and Sidon at the judgment, than for you.
Luke 10:14 nkjv
But it will be more tolerable for Tyre and Sidon at the judgment than for you.
Luke 10:14 niv
But it will be more bearable for Tyre and Sidon at the judgment than for you.
Luke 10:14 esv
But it will be more bearable in the judgment for Tyre and Sidon than for you.
Luke 10:14 nlt
Yes, Tyre and Sidon will be better off on judgment day than you.
Luke 10 14 Cross References
Verse | Text | Reference |
---|---|---|
Luke 10:13 | "Woe to you, Chorazin! Woe to you, Bethsaida! For if the mighty works done in you had been done in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago, sitting in sackcloth and ashes." | Immediate context, explanation for the woe. |
Luke 10:15 | "And you, Capernaum, will you be exalted to heaven? You shall be brought down to Hades." | Condemnation of Capernaum for unbelief. |
Matt 11:21 | "Woe to you, Chorazin! Woe to you, Bethsaida! For if the mighty works done in you had been done in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago in sackcloth and ashes." | Direct parallel passage. |
Matt 11:22 | "But I tell you, it will be more bearable on the Day of Judgment for Tyre and Sidon than for you." | Explicit parallel, same verdict. |
Matt 11:23 | "And you, Capernaum, will you be exalted to heaven? You shall be brought down to Hades. For if the mighty works done in you had been done in Sodom, it would have remained until this day." | Capernaum compared to Sodom's judgment. |
Matt 10:15 | "Truly, I say to you, it will be more bearable on the Day of Judgment for the land of Sodom and Gomorrah than for that town." | General principle of judgment based on rejected truth. |
Deut 29:29 | "The secret things belong to the LORD our God, but the things that are revealed belong to us and to our children forever, that we may do all the words of this law." | Greater revelation, greater responsibility. |
Amos 3:2 | "You only have I known of all the families of the earth; therefore I will punish you for all your iniquities." | Privilege with God brings greater accountability. |
Luke 12:47-48 | "That servant who knew his master's will... will receive a severe beating... But the one who did not know... will receive a light beating." | Degrees of judgment based on knowledge. |
Jas 4:17 | "So whoever knows the right thing to do and fails to do it, for him it is sin." | Knowledge brings increased culpability. |
Eze 26:7-14 | Prophecy of God's judgment against Tyre. | Prophetic judgment on Tyre. |
Eze 28:1-10 | God's judgment against the ruler of Tyre for his pride. | Divine condemnation of Tyre's hubris. |
Isa 23:1-18 | Prophecy of the downfall of Tyre. | Tyre's destruction foretold. |
Joel 3:4-8 | God's judgment against Tyre, Sidon, and Philistia for slave trade involving His people. | Judgment for specific historical wrongs. |
1 Kings 16:31 | King Ahab married Jezebel, daughter of Ethbaal king of the Sidonians, fostering Baal worship in Israel. | Sidon's pagan influence on Israel. |
Rom 2:12 | "For all who have sinned without the law will also perish without the law, and all who have sinned under the law will be judged by the law." | Different standards of judgment. |
Rom 1:18-20 | God's wrath revealed against unrighteousness; universal guilt due to general revelation. | All humanity is without excuse. |
Acts 17:30-31 | God commands all to repent; a fixed day of righteous judgment by Jesus. | Universal repentance and certain judgment. |
Heb 9:27 | "And just as it is appointed for man to die once, and after that comes judgment." | Inevitability of judgment for all. |
Rev 20:11-15 | Description of the Great White Throne Judgment where the dead are judged according to their deeds. | Final judgment and its details. |
John 15:22 | "If I had not come and spoken to them, they would not have been guilty of sin, but now they have no excuse for their sin." | Increased guilt for rejecting Jesus' words. |
Heb 2:1-3 | "how shall we escape if we neglect such a great salvation?" | Grave consequence of ignoring Christ's salvation. |
Phil 2:9-11 | "Therefore God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow..." | Jesus' universal authority as Judge. |
Luke 10 verses
Luke 10 14 Meaning
Luke 10:14 proclaims that on the Day of Judgment, the historical pagan cities of Tyre and Sidon, despite their profound wickedness, will experience a more bearable (less severe) condemnation than the Galilean towns (specifically Chorazin, Bethsaida, and Capernaum from verses 13 and 15) which witnessed Jesus' powerful miracles and heard His divine teachings firsthand but failed to repent. This striking comparison highlights a crucial principle of God's justice: increased spiritual light and privilege bring heightened accountability, resulting in greater culpability and a more severe judgment if rejected.
Luke 10 14 Context
Luke 10:14 is part of a sobering section where Jesus pronounces "woes" upon unrepentant Galilean cities (Luke 10:13-16). This passage immediately follows Jesus' commissioning of seventy-two disciples, whom He sent ahead to prepare for His arrival in various towns and villages (Luke 10:1-12). He instructed them that if a town did not receive their message, they should shake the dust from their feet as a testimony against it, implying a coming judgment (Luke 10:10-12). In Luke 10:13, Jesus directly applies this principle of judgment to Chorazin and Bethsaida, mentioning Tyre and Sidon in comparison. This specific verse, 10:14, solidifies the extraordinary and seemingly counterintuitive statement: these privileged Jewish towns, which had directly witnessed Christ's unprecedented ministry, were more culpable than notorious ancient Gentile cities. Capernaum, Bethsaida, and Chorazin were prosperous Jewish settlements in Galilee, forming the core area of Jesus' earthly ministry, where He performed many of His mighty works and delivered significant teachings. They enjoyed unparalleled spiritual opportunity. In contrast, Tyre and Sidon were historical Phoenician port cities, thoroughly pagan, infamous for their idolatry, wealth-driven pride, and oppressive commercial practices against Israel, often the subject of Old Testament prophetic condemnations. Jesus' pronouncement highlights the severe condemnation awaiting those who, despite ample light and divine intervention, hardened their hearts in unbelief.
Luke 10 14 Word analysis
- "However" (Πλὴν - Plēn): This strong adversative conjunction signifies a significant shift or emphasis, introducing a contrasting or conclusive point. It serves to intensify the declaration of judgment, making it a profound and certain statement.
- "it will be" (ἔσται - estai): The future tense indicates the absolute certainty and inevitability of the impending judgment. It underscores God's determined purpose to bring justice.
- "more bearable" (ἀνεκτότερον - anektoteron): This comparative adjective (from anektos, meaning "endurable" or "tolerable") directly implies degrees of suffering or punishment in the final judgment. It suggests that while Tyre and Sidon will certainly face judgment, their degree of suffering will be less severe than that of the unrepentant Galilean cities.
- "for Tyre" (Τύρῳ - Tyrō): An ancient and wealthy Phoenician coastal city. Historically condemned by Old Testament prophets (e.g., Ezekiel 26-28) for its pride, materialism, and ungodliness, it serves as a historical archetype of gentile wickedness.
- "and Sidon" (Σιδῶνι - Sidōni): Another significant Phoenician city, closely associated with Tyre, also known for its deep-rooted paganism and historical negative influence, such as through King Ahab's marriage to Jezebel, a Sidonian princess (1 Ki 16:31). Its inclusion reinforces the profound comparison.
- "in the judgment" (ἐν τῇ κρίσει - en tē krisei): The definite article "the" indicates a specific, ultimate eschatological event—the final Day of Judgment (krisis). Krisis refers to the definitive act of divine separation, assessment, and condemnation or acquittal. This emphasizes that Jesus' words refer to eternal consequences.
- "than for you" (ἢ ὑμῖν - ē hymin): The plural "you" refers to the towns of Chorazin, Bethsaida, and implicitly Capernaum (from vv.13, 15), symbolizing all unrepentant individuals who had witnessed and rejected Jesus' ministry. This comparison highlights their unique culpability due to their unprecedented privilege.
Words-group analysis:
- "more bearable...than for you": This phrase reveals a radical concept of proportional justice. Jesus implies that even for the historically and prophetically condemned Gentile cities of Tyre and Sidon, their fate in the eternal judgment will be "lighter" than that of the Jewish cities of Galilee. This is because the Jewish cities, despite being exposed to the incarnate Son of God, His teachings, and mighty works—the clearest manifestation of divine truth—chose not to repent. Their rejection of such profound light sealed their greater condemnation.
- "for Tyre and Sidon in the judgment": By specifically naming these deeply pagan and sinful cities, Jesus shocked His audience. For Jewish listeners, Tyre and Sidon represented the epitome of Gentile unrighteousness. Yet, Jesus places them in a position of lesser judgment than their own unrepentant countrymen, profoundly illustrating the weight of resisting divine revelation, particularly when it comes directly through God's Messiah. This underscores that ignorance, while not an excuse, results in a lesser condemnation than outright rejection of the clearly revealed truth.
Luke 10 14 Bonus section
The comparison drawn in Luke 10:14 indicates a crucial aspect of divine justice: not all sin carries the same weight in terms of eternal consequence. Degrees of punishment are implicitly affirmed here and in other Scriptures (e.g., Luke 12:47-48). The core issue is the response to revealed truth. The Galiean cities saw the 'finger of God' (Luke 11:20) in action and heard the 'words of eternal life' (John 6:68), making their spiritual blindness all the more tragic and culpable. This also serves as a strong encouragement for mission: even historically entrenched paganism could respond if given clear and convincing revelation. The primary indictment is against those who, having received great light, chose to remain in darkness. This verse also implicitly defends God's judgment against Gentiles by showing that they will be judged according to the light they had (general revelation), while those with special revelation (Israel and, by extension, believers today) are held to a higher standard.
Luke 10 14 Commentary
Luke 10:14 stands as a severe warning against spiritual apathy and willful unbelief, especially in the face of abundant divine revelation. Jesus' statement highlights a critical aspect of God's justice: accountability is proportionate to opportunity and privilege. The Galilean towns of Capernaum, Bethsaida, and Chorazin were recipients of unparalleled spiritual blessings, having Jesus Christ physically present among them, witnessing His extraordinary miracles, and hearing His very words. This profound privilege placed them under a greater responsibility. Their persistent impenitence, therefore, incurred a much heavier guilt than even the historical sins of Tyre and Sidon, pagan cities long steeped in idolatry and worldly ambition, who had never experienced the Messiah's manifest presence.
This verse teaches us that it is not simply sin that brings judgment, but crucially, the rejection of the light received. Had Tyre and Sidon received the same powerful ministry, Jesus implied they would have repented. The greater the exposure to God's truth, the more severe the consequence of its rejection. This principle holds immense significance for all who have access to the Gospel. Those living in environments rich with Christian heritage and biblical truth, yet choosing to ignore or reject Christ, face a more perilous eternal reality than those who have sinned in comparative spiritual darkness. The grace offered through Christ demands a response; to disregard such a great salvation (Heb 2:3) is to incur a condemnation far greater than that of those who lacked the full revelation of God's plan.