Jesus’ disciples then said to him, “If this is the case, it is better not to marry!”
Parallel translations
- WEB His disciples said to him, “If this is the case of the man with his wife, it is not expedient to marry.”
- KJV His disciples say unto him, If the case of the man be so with his wife, it is not good to marry.
- BSB His disciples said to Him, “If this is the case between a man and his wife, it is better not to marry.”
- NKJV His disciples said to Him, “If such is the case of the man with his wife, it is better not to marry.”
- NASB The disciples *said to Him, “If the relationship of the man with his wife is like this, it is better not to marry.”
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
The disciples react that if marriage is so binding, it is better not to marry. Jesus' high standard startles them.
Overview
Accustomed to easier divorce, the disciples find Jesus' teaching demanding and wonder whether marriage is worth the commitment. Their reaction reveals how counter-cultural his view of lifelong fidelity was. It opens the way for Jesus to speak about the calling of singleness.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 13
- 1 Cor 7:32–35But I desire to have you to be free from cares. He who is unmarried is concerned for the things of the Lord, how he may please the Lord;
- 1 Tim 4:3forbidding marriage and commanding to abstain from foods which God created to be received with thanksgiving by those who believe and know the truth.
- Prov 21:9It is better to dwell in the corner of the housetop, than to share a house with a contentious woman.
- Prov 19:13–14A foolish son is the calamity of his father. A wife’s quarrels are a continual dripping.
- 1 Cor 7:39–40A wife is bound by law for as long as her husband lives; but if the husband is dead, she is free to be married to whomever she desires, only in the Lord.
- 1 Cor 7:1–2Now concerning the things about which you wrote to me: it is good for a man not to touch a woman.
- Prov 21:19It is better to dwell in a desert land, than with a contentious and fretful woman.
- 1 Cor 7:8But I say to the unmarried and to widows, it is good for them if they remain even as I am.
- Prov 5:15–19Drink water out of your own cistern, running water out of your own well.
- 1 Tim 5:11–15But refuse younger widows, for when they have grown wanton against Christ, they desire to marry;
- Prov 18:22Whoever finds a wife finds a good thing, and obtains favor of Yahweh.
- 1 Cor 7:26–28I think that it is good therefore, because of the distress that is on us, that it is good for a man to be as he is.
- Gen 2:18Yahweh God said, “It is not good for the man to be alone. I will make him a helper comparable to him.”
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 19:10 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.