Truly I tell you, it will be more bearable for Sodom and Gomorrah on the day of judgment than for that town.
Parallel translations
- WEB Most certainly I tell you, it will be more tolerable for the land of Sodom and Gomorrah in the day of judgment than for that city.
- KJV Verily I say unto you, It shall be more tolerable for the land of Sodom and Gomorrha in the day of judgment, than for that city.
- NKJV Assuredly, I say to you, it will be more tolerable for the land of Sodom and Gomorrah in the day of judgment than for that city!
- NASB Truly I say to you, it will be more tolerable for the land of Sodom and Gomorrah on the day of judgment, than for that city.
- NLT I tell you the truth, the wicked cities of Sodom and Gomorrah will be better off than such a town on the judgment day.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
Jesus warns that judgment will fall harder on towns that reject the gospel than on Sodom and Gomorrah. Greater light brings greater accountability.
Overview
Sodom and Gomorrah were bywords for wickedness and divine judgment (Gen. 19). Yet Jesus says rejecting His messengers, with their clearer revelation, is even more culpable. The principle that responsibility increases with light pervades His teaching and points to the surpassing privilege, and peril, of hearing the gospel of Christ.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 12
- 2 Pet 2:6if He condemned the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah to destruction, reducing them to ashes as an example of what is coming on the ungodly;
- John 15:22–24If I had not come and spoken to them, they would not be guilty of sin. Now, however, they have no excuse for their sin.
- 1 Jn 4:17In this way, love has been perfected among us, so that we may have confidence on the day of judgment; for in this world we are just like Him.
- Matt 11:22–24But I tell you, it will be more bearable for Tyre and Sidon on the day of judgment than for you.
- Luke 10:11–12‘Even the dust of your town that clings to our feet, we wipe off as a testimony against you. Yet be sure of this: The kingdom of God is near.’
- Ezek 16:48–56As surely as I live, declares the Lord GOD, your sister Sodom and her daughters never did as you and your daughters have done.
- 2 Pet 3:7And by that same word, the present heavens and earth are reserved for fire, being kept for the day of judgment and destruction of ungodly men.
- Mark 6:11If anyone will not welcome you or listen to you, shake the dust off your feet when you leave that place, as a testimony against them.”
- 2 Pet 2:9if all this is so, then the Lord knows how to rescue the godly from trials and to hold the unrighteous for punishment on the day of judgment.
- Matt 12:36But I tell you that men will give an account on the day of judgment for every careless word they have spoken.
- Matt 5:18For I tell you truly, until heaven and earth pass away, not a single jot, not a stroke of a pen, will disappear from the Law until everything is accomplished.
- Matt 24:34–35Truly I tell you, this generation will not pass away until all these things have happened.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
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Christ at the center
Matthew presents Jesus as the promised King — son of David, son of Abraham — the new Moses and true Israel in whom every prophecy reaches 'that it might be fulfilled.'
How Matthew 10:15 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Greek word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.