Matthew 11:22 kjv
But I say unto you, It shall be more tolerable for Tyre and Sidon at the day of judgment, than for you.
Matthew 11:22 nkjv
But I say to you, it will be more tolerable for Tyre and Sidon in the day of judgment than for you.
Matthew 11:22 niv
But I tell you, it will be more bearable for Tyre and Sidon on the day of judgment than for you.
Matthew 11:22 esv
But I tell you, it will be more bearable on the day of judgment for Tyre and Sidon than for you.
Matthew 11:22 nlt
I tell you, Tyre and Sidon will be better off on judgment day than you.
Matthew 11 22 Cross References
| Verse | Text | Reference |
|---|---|---|
| Matt 11:20 | Then He began to denounce the cities where most of His mighty works had been done, because they did not repent. | Introduces the context of unrepentant cities. |
| 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." | Direct context; Chorazin/Bethsaida had mighty works. |
| Matt 11:23 | "And you, Capernaum... will 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." | Similar comparison for Capernaum, greater judgment. |
| Matt 11:24 | "But I say to you that it will be more tolerable for the land of Sodom on the Day of Judgment than for you.” | Direct parallel on comparative judgment. |
| 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..." | Parallel account of Jesus' woes. |
| Luke 10:14 | "But it will be more tolerable in the judgment for Tyre and Sidon than for you." | Exact parallel from Luke. |
| Luke 12:47-48 | "That servant who knew his master’s will but did not get ready or act according to his will, will receive many blows... From everyone who has been given much, much will be demanded." | Principle of increased responsibility for knowledge. |
| 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." | Sin is amplified by rejecting explicit revelation. |
| Rom 1:20 | "For since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities... have been clearly seen... so that people are without excuse." | Accountability for general revelation. |
| Rom 2:6-9 | God "will repay each person according to what they have done... Tribulation and distress for every human being who does evil..." | God's righteous judgment according to deeds. |
| Deut 18:18-19 | "I will raise up for them a prophet like you from among their fellow Israelites, and I will put my words in his mouth. He will tell them everything I command him. And if anyone does not listen to my words that the prophet speaks in my name, I myself will call him to account." | Not heeding God's chosen prophet results in judgment. |
| Heb 10:28-29 | "Anyone who has set aside the Law of Moses dies without mercy... How much worse punishment, do you think, will be deserved by the one who has trampled underfoot the Son of God...?" | Greater punishment for rejecting Christ. |
| Amos 3:2 | "You only have I known of all the families of the earth; Therefore I will punish you for all your iniquities." | Divine favor increases accountability. |
| Ezek 26:7-14 | Prophecies detailing the utter destruction and fate of Tyre. | Prophetic judgment against Tyre. |
| Isa 23:1-18 | Oracle concerning Tyre, predicting its overthrow. | Earlier OT prophecy against Tyre. |
| Jer 25:22 | Jeremiah's prophecy mentioning the kings of Tyre and Sidon among those who will drink from the cup of God's wrath. | Prophetic judgment against Tyre/Sidon. |
| Joel 3:4-8 | God's retribution against Tyre, Sidon, and Philistia for taking His people and selling them. | God's vengeance against Tyre/Sidon. |
| Rev 20:12-13 | "And I saw the dead, great and small, standing before the throne, and books were opened... And the dead were judged from what was written in the books, according to their deeds." | Judgment based on deeds, implying varying degrees. |
| Matt 7:22-23 | "Many will say to Me in that day, 'Lord, Lord... did we not prophesy in Your name... cast out demons... perform many miracles?' And then I will declare to them, 'I never knew you.'" | Performing works does not guarantee salvation, requires true repentance. |
| Jonah 3:5-10 | Nineveh repents at the preaching of Jonah, and God relents. | Example of Gentile city repenting to avert judgment. |
| 2 Pet 2:9 | "then the Lord knows how to rescue the godly from trials, and to keep the unrighteous under punishment until the Day of Judgment." | God reserves the wicked for future judgment. |
| Acts 17:30-31 | "Therefore having overlooked the times of ignorance, God is now declaring to men that all everywhere should repent, because He has fixed a day on which He will judge the world in righteousness..." | Universal call to repentance and appointed judgment. |
| Mal 3:18 | "Then you will again see the distinction between the righteous and the wicked, between those who serve God and those who do not." | The final distinction between individuals at judgment. |
Matthew 11 verses
Matthew 11 22 Meaning
Matthew 11:22 reveals a profound principle of divine justice: accountability is directly proportional to the measure of revelation and witnessed power. Jesus declares that the notoriously sinful Gentile cities of Tyre and Sidon, despite their wickedness, will face a lesser degree of judgment on the Day of Judgment than the Jewish cities of Chorazin and Bethsaida. This is because Chorazin and Bethsaida had the immense privilege of witnessing Jesus’s mighty works and hearing His direct teaching, yet they remained unrepentant. The verse highlights the escalating responsibility associated with proximity to divine truth and power.
Matthew 11 22 Context
This verse is part of Jesus’s pronouncements of "woe" (curses/judgments) upon Galilean cities – Chorazin, Bethsaida, and Capernaum – following His testimony concerning John the Baptist. Previously, Jesus had extended invitations to "come to Him" (Matt 11:28-30). However, the immediate context (Matt 11:20-24) shows His lament over these cities’ unrepentance despite witnessing His powerful miracles and hearing His kingdom message. Tyre and Sidon, as well as Sodom, are Gentile cities notoriously known in the Old Testament for their wickedness and prophetic judgments against them. By comparing these unrepentant Jewish cities, recipients of astounding revelation, to those Gentile cities, Jesus underscores the severe spiritual blindness and hardened hearts of the people who rejected Him, implying a greater condemnation awaits them. This marked a shift in Jesus's public ministry, signaling judgment for those who rejected His light.
Word Analysis
- But: Greek: Plēn (Πλήν). This word functions as a strong contrastive conjunction, similar to "nevertheless" or "however." It highlights a critical distinction, here setting the following statement in opposition to the preceding "woe" and affirming a truth that might be counter-intuitive or emphasize the certainty of the statement.
- I say to you: Greek: Legō hymīn (λέγω ὑμῖν). An emphatic declaration by Jesus, asserting His divine authority and revealing divine truth. This phrase is used repeatedly by Jesus in Matthew (e.g., Matt 5:22, 28, 32, 34, 39, 44), distinguishing His teaching from traditional rabbinic interpretation and aligning it with the ultimate authority of God.
- it will be: Greek: Estai (ἔσται). Simple future tense of "to be," indicating an inevitable occurrence.
- more tolerable: Greek: Anektoteron (ἀνεκτότερον). Comparative adjective derived from anektos, meaning "bearable" or "endurable." The comparative form implies degrees of judgment. It does not suggest that Tyre and Sidon will escape judgment, but that their punishment will be less severe, or "more bearable," in comparison to those who received greater light and rejected it. This principle shows that God's justice accounts for knowledge and opportunity.
- for Tyre: Greek: Tyrou (Τύρου). An ancient Phoenician city on the Mediterranean coast, famous for its wealth, trade, and strong defenses (Tyre means "rock"). Often denounced by Old Testament prophets (e.g., Isa 23, Jer 25, Ezek 26-28, Joel 3) for its pride, idolatry, and oppressive actions against Israel, facing prophesied destruction.
- and Sidon: Greek: Kai Sidōnos (καὶ Σιδῶνος). Another major Phoenician city, older than Tyre, and associated with similar vices and idolatry (e.g., Jezebel, from Sidon, introduced Baal worship to Israel, 1 Kgs 16:31). Both cities symbolized extreme pagan wickedness from an Israelite perspective.
- on the Day of Judgment: Greek: En hēmera kriseōs (ἐν ἡμέρᾳ κρίσεως). This refers to the future, eschatological time when God will justly judge all humanity according to their deeds, beliefs, and response to divine revelation. This concept is foundational in both Old and New Test Testaments (e.g., Eccl 12:14; Dan 7:10; Matt 25:31-46; Rev 20:11-15). The emphasis is on the final, definitive reckoning.
- than for you: Greek: Hymin (ὑμῖν). The plural "you" refers to Chorazin and Bethsaida, the cities Jesus had just pronounced woe upon (Matt 11:21). This "you" highlights their heightened responsibility and consequent greater culpability compared to the Gentile cities.
- Word-group Analysis:
- "But I say to you, it will be more tolerable": This phrase encapsulates Jesus's divine prerogative to pronounce a new understanding of judgment. He sets the standard, emphasizing that not all judgments are equal, and the determining factor is the amount of divine light received and rejected. This goes against any simplistic understanding of sin or automatic condemnation based purely on traditional "righteous" vs. "pagan" labels.
- "for Tyre and Sidon... than for you": This comparison is staggering to Jesus's contemporary Jewish audience. It places Gentile cities known for egregious sin in a comparatively better position on the Day of Judgment than privileged Jewish cities. This serves as a stark warning about the danger of spiritual complacency and rejection of Christ's unparalleled presence and power. The implication is that even without seeing Jesus's miracles directly, Tyre and Sidon did not reject the full truth of God as seen in His Son, making their sin less damnable in that specific aspect.
Matthew 11 22 Commentary
Matthew 11:22 articulates a critical theological principle: divine justice operates on the basis of revealed truth and corresponding responsibility. Jesus pronounces a severe verdict on Chorazin and Bethsaida, cities that were granted the unique privilege of witnessing His many mighty works and hearing His direct teachings. Their failure to repent despite this immense spiritual light rendered them more accountable than pagan cities like Tyre and Sidon, who, though historically wicked, never directly encountered the Messiah’s power and person. This highlights that while all humanity will face judgment, the degree of condemnation will vary according to the light received and whether it was embraced or rejected. Proximity to God’s truth, far from guaranteeing salvation, amplifies one's responsibility to respond in faith and repentance. This verse warns against spiritual indifference in the face of abundant divine revelation.
Bonus Section
- Implicit Polemic: This statement carries a strong polemic against the complacent assumption that Jewish cities, due to their heritage and association with God’s covenant people, would automatically fare better than notorious Gentile cities like Tyre and Sidon. Jesus overturns this ethno-religious privilege, establishing a moral calculus based on response to revelation rather than birthright or cultural identity.
- Fairness of God: The concept of "more tolerable" highlights the fairness and nuance of God's justice. While all who reject God face judgment, God accounts for different levels of opportunity and knowledge. This supports the biblical teaching that "to whom much is given, much will be required" (Luke 12:48).
- Universal Day of Judgment: The reference to "the Day of Judgment" underscores the ultimate, universal accountability of all humanity before God. It reinforces that all people, regardless of background or level of revelation, will face divine scrutiny for their lives.