Amplified Bible
Matthew 5:23
23So if you are presenting your offering at the altar, and while there you remember that your brother has something [such as a grievance or legitimate complaint] against you,
Matthew 5:23 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)Therefore if thou bring thy gift to the altar, and there rememberest that thy brother hath ought against thee;
- New International Version (NIV)“Therefore, if you are offering your gift at the altar and there remember that your brother or sister has something against you,
- English Standard Version (ESV)So if you are offering your gift at the altar and there remember that your brother has something against you,
- New King James Version (NKJV)Therefore if you bring your gift to the altar, and there remember that your brother has something against you,
Context of Matthew 5:23
21“You have heard that it was said to the men of old, ‘You shall not murder,’ and ‘Whoever murders shall be guilty before the court.’ 22But I say to you that everyone who continues to be angry with his brother or harbors malice against him shall be guilty before the court; and whoever speaks [contemptuously and insultingly] to his brother, ‘Raca (You empty-headed idiot)!’ shall be guilty before the supreme court (Sanhedrin); and whoever says, ‘You fool!’ shall be in danger of the fiery hell. So if you are presenting your offering at the altar, and while there you remember that your brother has something [such as a grievance or legitimate complaint] against you, 24leave your offering there at the altar and go. First make peace with your brother, and then come and present your offering. 25Come to terms quickly [at the earliest opportunity] with your opponent at law while you are with him on the way [to court], so that your opponent does not hand you over to the judge, and the judge to the guard, and you are thrown into prison.
Read all of Matthew 5Matthew 5:23 word by word
Ἐὰν οὖν προσφέρῃς τὸ δῶρόν σου ἐπὶ τὸ θυσιαστήριον κἀκεῖ μνησθῇς ὅτι ὁ ἀδελφός σου ἔχει τι κατὰ σοῦ,Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
- Thereforeοὖνoun · therefore/thenG3767
- ifἐάνean · ifG1437
- thou bringπροσφέρωprospherō · to bring toG4374
- thyσύsu · youG4771
- giftὁho hē to · the/this/whoG3588
- giftδῶρονdōron · giftG1435
- toἐπίepi · upon/to/againstG1909
- the altarθυσιαστήριονthusiastērion · altarG2379
- and thereκἀκεῖkakei · and thereG2546
- rememberestμιμνήσκωmimnēskō · to rememberG3403
- thatὅτιhoti · that/since: thatG3754
- brotherἀδελφόςadelphos · brotherG80
- hathἔχωechō · to have/beG2192
- oughtτιςtis · oneG5100
- againstκατάkata · according toG2596
Cross-references for Matthew 5:23
- Matthew 8:4And Jesus said to him, “See that you tell no one [about this]; but go, show yourself to the priest [for inspection] and present the offering that Moses commanded, as a testimony (evidence) to them [of your healing].”
- Matthew 23:19You [spiritually] blind men, which is more important, the offering, or the altar that sanctifies the offering?
- Deuteronomy 16:16“Three times a year all your males shall appear before the Lord your God in the place which He chooses, at the Feast of Unleavened Bread (Passover) and at the Feast of Weeks (Pentecost) and at the Feast of Booths (Tabernacles), and they shall not appear before the Lord empty-handed.
- 1 Samuel 15:22Samuel said, “Has the Lord as great a delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices As in obedience to the voice of the Lord? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, And to heed [is better] than the fat of rams.
- Isaiah 1:10Hear the word of the Lord [rulers of Jerusalem], You rulers of [another] Sodom, Listen to the law and instruction of our God, You people of [another] Gomorrah.
- Hosea 6:6For I desire and delight in [steadfast] loyalty [faithfulness in the covenant relationship], rather than sacrifice, And in the knowledge of God more than burnt offerings.
- Amos 5:21“I hate, I despise and reject your [sacred] feasts, And I do not take delight in your solemn assemblies.
- Genesis 41:9Then the chief cupbearer spoke to Pharaoh, saying, “I would mention my faults today.
- Genesis 42:21And they said to one another, “Truly we are guilty regarding our brother [Joseph], because we saw the distress and anguish of his soul when he pleaded with us [to let him go], yet we would not listen [to his cry]; so this distress and anguish has come on us.”
- Genesis 50:15When Joseph’s brothers saw that their father was dead, they said, “What if Joseph carries a grudge against us and pays us back in full for all the wrong which we did to him?”
- Leviticus 6:2“When anyone sins and acts unfaithfully against the Lord by deceiving his neighbor (companion, associate) in regard to a deposit or a security entrusted to him, or through robbery, or if he has extorted from his neighbor,
- 1 Kings 2:44The king also said to Shimei, “You are aware in your own heart of all the evil you did to my father David; so the Lord shall return your evil on your own head.
- Lamentations 3:20My soul continually remembers them And is bowed down within me.
- Ezekiel 16:63so that you may remember [in detail] and be ashamed and never open your mouth again because of your humiliation, when I have forgiven you for all that you have done,” says the Lord God.
- Luke 19:8Zaccheus stopped and said to the Lord, “See, Lord, I am [now] giving half of my possessions to the poor, and if I have cheated anyone out of anything, I will give back four times as much.”
Commentaries on Matthew 5:23
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 23Therefore if thou bring thy gift - Evil must be nipped in the bud. An unkind thought of another may be the foundation of that which leads to actual murder. A Christian, properly speaking, cannot be an enemy to any man; nor is he to consider any man his enemy, without the fullest evidence: for surmises to the prejudice of another can never rest in the bosom of him who has the love of God in his heart, for to him all men are brethren. He sees all men as…Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 23Therefore, if thou bring thy gift to the altar - The Pharisees were intent only on the external act in worship. They looked not at all to the internal state of the mind. If a man conformed to the external rites of religion, however much envy, and malice, and secret hatred he might have, they thought he was doing well. Our Saviour taught a different doctrine. It was of more consequence to have the heart right than to perform the outward act. If…Read the comment
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 21-26Verses 21-26 The Jewish teachers had taught, that nothing except actual murder was forbidden by the sixth commandment. Thus they explained away its spiritual meaning. Christ showed the full meaning of this commandment; according to which we must be judged hereafter, and therefore ought to be ruled now. All rash anger is heart murder. By our brother, here, we are to understand any person, though ever so much below us, for we are all made of one blood…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 23-26Jesus provides two examples of making peace in communities and society.Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 2323. Therefore--to apply the foregoing, and show its paramount importance. if thou bring thy gift to the altar, and there rememberest that thy brother hath aught--of just complaint "against thee."Read the comment
Topics related to Matthew 5:23
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Matthew 5
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
- Tyndale Open Study Notes
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
- Calvin’s Commentaries
- John Wesley’s Notes
- Catena Aurea
- Illustrated New Testament
- Burkitt’s Expository Notes
- Darby Translation Notes
- Family Bible Notes
- Geneva Bible Translation Notes
- Kingcomments
- John Lightfoot Commentary
- Luther’s Commentary on Selected Bible Passages
- Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
- Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
- The People’s New Testament
- Robertson’s Word Pictures
- Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
- The Fourfold Gospel and Commentary on Acts
- Original Douay–Rheims Annotations
- Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
- EGW Writings
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