But I say unto you, It shall be more tolerable for Tyre and Sidon at the day of judgment, than for you.
Parallel translations
- WEB But I tell you, it will be more tolerable for Tyre and Sidon on the day of judgment than for you.
- BSB But I tell you, it will be more bearable for Tyre and Sidon on 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 say unto you, That it shall be more tolerable for the land of Sodom in the day of judgment, than for thee.
- Heb 10:26–31For if we sin wilfully after that we have received the knowledge of the truth, there remaineth no more sacrifice for sins,
- Matt 10:15Verily 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.
- 1 Jn 4:17Herein is our love made perfect, that we may have boldness in the day of judgment: because as he is, so are we in this world.
- Luke 12:47–48And that servant, which knew his lord’s will, and prepared not himself, neither did according to his will, shall be beaten with many stripes.
- Matt 12:36But I say unto you, That every idle word that men shall speak, they shall give account thereof in the day of judgment.
- Jer 27:3And send them to the king of Edom, and to the king of Moab, and to the king of the Ammonites, and to the king of Tyrus, and to the king of Zidon, by the hand of the messengers which come to Jerusalem unto Zedekiah king of Judah;
- Jer 25:22And all the kings of Tyrus, and all the kings of Zidon, and the kings of the isles which are beyond the sea,
- Zech 9:2–3And Hamath also shall border thereby; Tyrus, and Zidon, though it be very wise.
- Heb 6:4–8For it is impossible for those who were once enlightened, and have tasted of the heavenly gift, and were made partakers of the Holy Ghost,
- Isa 23:1–18The burden of Tyre. Howl, ye ships of Tarshish; for it is laid waste, so that there is no house, no entering in: from the land of Chittim it is revealed to them.
- Ezek 29:18Son of man, Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon caused his army to serve a great service against Tyrus: every head was made bald, and every shoulder was peeled: yet had he no wages, nor his army, for Tyrus, for the service that he had served against it:
- Amos 1:9–10Thus saith the LORD; For three transgressions of Tyrus, and for four, I will not turn away the punishment thereof; because they delivered up the whole captivity to Edom, and remembered not the brotherly covenant:
- Luke 10:14But it shall be more tolerable for Tyre and Sidon at the judgment, than for you.
- Ezek 26:1–21And it came to pass in the eleventh year, in the first day of the month, that the word of the LORD came unto me, saying,
- Heb 2:3How shall we escape, if we neglect so great salvation; which at the first began to be spoken by the Lord, and was confirmed unto us by them that heard him;
- 2 Pet 2:9The Lord knoweth how to deliver the godly out of temptations, and to reserve the unjust unto the day of judgment to be punished:
- 2 Pet 3:7But the heavens and the earth, which are now, by the same word are kept in store, reserved unto fire against the day of judgment and perdition of ungodly men.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
Resources, by level
Commentaries & study tools
Free animated overview and word-study videos for this book.
Sermons and teaching on this passage from across YouTube.
Clear, readable, conservative exposition — the best free place to start on any passage.
Matthew Henry, Barnes, Gill, the Pulpit Commentary, Ellicott, Cambridge, and more — stacked on one page for this exact verse.
The beloved Puritan exposition of this whole book — warm, devotional, and verse by verse (free, CCEL).
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.