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But I tell you, it will be more bearable for Tyre and Sidon on the day of judgment than for you.
Matthew 11:22 · Berean Standard Bible
Parallel translations
  • WEB But I tell you, it will be more tolerable for Tyre and Sidon on the day of judgment than for you.
  • KJV But I say unto you, It shall be more tolerable for Tyre and Sidon at the day of judgment, than for you.
  • NKJV But I say to you, it will be more tolerable for Tyre and Sidon in the day of judgment than for you.
  • NASB Nevertheless I say to you, it will be more tolerable for Tyre and Sidon on the day of judgment than for you.
  • NLT I tell you, Tyre and Sidon will be better off on judgment day than you.

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

Judgment will be more bearable for Tyre and Sidon than for these privileged towns. Accountability rises with the light received.

Overview

Jesus declares that the day of judgment will be more tolerable for pagan Tyre and Sidon than for the towns that rejected Him despite His miracles. This implies degrees of judgment proportioned to one's exposure to the truth. The sober principle warns all who hear the gospel that knowledge unheeded increases guilt.

Cross-references & the web

Cross-references · 18

  • Matt 11:24But I tell you that it will be more bearable for Sodom on the day of judgment than for you.”
  • Heb 10:26–31If we deliberately go on sinning after we have received the knowledge of the truth, no further sacrifice for sins remains,
  • Matt 10:15Truly I tell you, it will be more bearable for Sodom and Gomorrah on the day of judgment than for that town.
  • 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.
  • Luke 12:47–48That servant who knows his master’s will but does not get ready or follow his instructions will be beaten with many blows.
  • Matt 12:36But I tell you that men will give an account on the day of judgment for every careless word they have spoken.
  • Jer 27:3Send word to the kings of Edom, Moab, Ammon, Tyre, and Sidon through the envoys who have come to Jerusalem to Zedekiah king of Judah.
  • Jer 25:22all the kings of Tyre and Sidon; the kings of the coastlands across the sea;
  • Zech 9:2–3and also against Hamath, which borders it, as well as Tyre and Sidon, though they are very shrewd.
  • Heb 6:4–8It is impossible for those who have once been enlightened, who have tasted the heavenly gift, who have shared in the Holy Spirit,
  • Isa 23:1–18This is the burden against Tyre: Wail, O ships of Tarshish, for Tyre is laid waste, without house or harbor. Word has reached them from the land of Cyprus.
  • Ezek 29:18“Son of man, Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon caused his army to labor strenuously against Tyre. Every head was made bald and every shoulder made raw. But he and his army received no wages from Tyre for the labor they expended on it.
  • Amos 1:9–10This is what the LORD says: “For three transgressions of Tyre, even four, I will not revoke My judgment, because they delivered up a whole congregation of exiles to Edom and broke a covenant of brotherhood.
  • Luke 10:14But it will be more bearable for Tyre and Sidon at the judgment than for you.
  • Ezek 26:1–21In the eleventh month of the twelfth year, on the first day of the month, the word of the LORD came to me, saying,
  • Heb 2:3how shall we escape if we neglect such a great salvation? This salvation was first announced by the Lord, was confirmed to us by those who heard Him,
  • 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.
  • 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.

Themes, concepts, people & topics

Topics (5)

Resources, by level

Commentaries & study tools

  • VideoBibleProject — Matthew videosBibleProject · Lay · Free · evangelical

    Free animated overview and word-study videos for this book.

  • VideoWatch teaching on Matthew 11:22YouTube · Lay · Free

    Sermons and teaching on this passage from across YouTube.

  • CommentaryEnduring Word — verse-by-verseDavid Guzik · Lay · Free · evangelical

    Clear, readable, conservative exposition — the best free place to start on any passage.

  • CommentaryClassic commentaries for this verseBibleHub (20+ works) · Pastoral · Free

    Matthew Henry, Barnes, Gill, the Pulpit Commentary, Ellicott, Cambridge, and more — stacked on one page for this exact verse.

  • CommentaryMatthew Henry on MatthewMatthew Henry · Pastoral · Free · evangelical

    The beloved Puritan exposition of this whole book — warm, devotional, and verse by verse (free, CCEL).

  • ReferenceInterlinear, lexicon & Strong'sBlue Letter Bible · Seminary · Free

    Hebrew/Greek interlinear, word definitions, and cross-references for this verse.

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 11:22 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.