Christian Standard Bible
Matthew 17:20
20“Because of your little faith,” he told them. “For truly I tell you, if you have faith the size of a mustard seed, you will tell this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you.”
Matthew 17:20 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)And Jesus said unto them, Because of your unbelief: for verily I say unto you, If ye have faith as a grain of mustard seed, ye shall say unto this mountain, Remove hence to yonder place; and it shall remove; and nothing shall be impossible unto you.
- New International Version (NIV)He replied, “Because you have so little faith. Truly I tell you, if you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you.”
- English Standard Version (ESV)He said to them, "Because of your little faith. For truly, I say to you, if you have faith like a grain of mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, 'Move from here to there,' and it will move, and nothing will be impossible for you."
- New King James Version (NKJV)So Jesus said to them, “Because of your unbelief; for assuredly, I say to you, if you have faith as a mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move; and nothing will be impossible for you.
Context of Matthew 17:20
18Then Jesus rebuked the demon, and it came out of him, and from that moment the boy was healed. 19Then the disciples approached Jesus privately and said, “Why couldn’t we drive it out?” “Because of your little faith,” he told them. “For truly I tell you, if you have faith the size of a mustard seed, you will tell this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you.” 22As they were gathering together in Galilee, Jesus told them, “The Son of Man is about to be betrayed into the hands of men.
Read all of Matthew 17Matthew 17:20 word by word
Ὁ δὲ λέγει αὐτοῖς· διὰ τὴν ὀλιγοπιστίαν ὑμῶν. ἀμὴν γὰρ λέγω ὑμῖν· ἐὰν ἔχητε πίστιν ὡς κόκκον σινάπεως, ἐρεῖτε τῷ ὄρει τούτῳ· μετάβα ἔνθεν ἐκεῖ, καὶ μεταβήσεται· καὶ οὐδὲν ἀδυνατήσει ὑμῖν.¶Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
- ·ὁho hē to · the/this/whoG3588
- Andδέde · thenG1161
- JesusἸησοῦςIēsous · JesusG2424
- saidλέγωlegō · to sayG3004
- unto themαὐτόςautos · it/s/heG846
- Becauseδιάdia · through/because ofG1223
- ofἀπιστίαapistia · unbeliefG570
- yourσύsu · youG4771
- forγάρgar · forG1063
- verilyἀμήνamēn · amenG281
- Ifἐάνean · ifG1437
- ye haveἔχωechō · to have/beG2192
- faithπίστιςpistis · faithG4102
- asὡςhōs · as/whenG5613
- a grainκόκκοςkokkos · seedG2848
- of mustard seedσίναπιsinapi · mustardG4615
- ye shall sayἐρῶereō · to sayG2046
- untoὄροςoros · mountainG3735
- thisοὗτοςhoutos houtoi hautē hautai · this/he/she/itG3778
- Removeμεταβαίνωmetabainō · to departG3327
- henceἐντεῦθεν, ἔνθενenteuthen · from hereG1782
- to yonder placeἐκεῖekei · thereG1563
- andκαίkai · andG2532
- nothingοὐδείςoudeis · noneG3762
- shall be impossibleἀδυνατέωadunateō · be impossibleG101
Cross-references for Matthew 17:20
- Matthew 17:17Jesus replied, “You unbelieving and perverse generation, how long will I be with you? How long must I put up with you? Bring him here to me.”
- Matthew 14:30But when he saw the strength of the wind, he was afraid, and beginning to sink he cried out, “Lord, save me!”
- Hebrews 3:19So we see that they were unable to enter because of unbelief.
- Matthew 21:21Jesus answered them, “Truly I tell you, if you have faith and do not doubt, you will not only do what was done to the fig tree, but even if you tell this mountain, ‘Be lifted up and thrown into the sea,’ it will be done.
- Mark 11:23Truly I tell you, if anyone says to this mountain, ‘Be lifted up and thrown into the sea,’ and does not doubt in his heart, but believes that what he says will happen, it will be done for him.
- Luke 17:6“If you have faith the size of a mustard seed,” the Lord said, “you can say to this mulberry tree, ‘Be uprooted and planted in the sea,’ and it will obey you.
- 1 Corinthians 12:9to another, faith by the same Spirit, to another, gifts of healing by the one Spirit,
- 1 Corinthians 13:2If I have the gift of prophecy and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have all faith so that I can move mountains but do not have love, I am nothing.
- Matthew 13:31He presented another parable to them: “The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed that a man took and sowed in his field.
- Mark 4:31It’s like a mustard seed that, when sown upon the soil, is the smallest of all the seeds on the ground.
- Mark 9:23Jesus said to him, “‘If you can’? Everything is possible for the one who believes.”
- Luke 1:37For nothing will be impossible with God.”
- Luke 18:27He replied, “What is impossible with man is possible with God.”
Commentaries on Matthew 17:20
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 20Because of your unbelief - Are we preachers of the Gospel? Do the things of God rest upon our minds with a deep and steady conviction? Can we expect that a doctrine which we do not, from conviction, credit ourselves, can be instrumental in our hands of begetting faith in others? So we preached, end so ye believed. The word preached generally begets in the people the same spirit which the preacher possesses. Instead of Ϛ, unbelief, the famous Vatican MS…Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 20As a grain of mustard-seed - See the notes at Matthew 13:31-32. The mustard-seed was the smallest of all seeds. It has been supposed by some, therefore, that he meant to say, If you have the smallest or feeblest faith that is genuine, you can do all things. The mustard-seed produced the largest of all herbs. It has been supposed by others, therefore, to mean, If you have increasing, expanding, enlarged faith, growing and strengthening from small…Read the comment
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 14-21Verses 14-21 The case of afflicted children should be presented to God by faithful and fervent prayer. Christ cured the child. Though the people were perverse, and Christ was provoked, yet care was taken of the child. When all other helps and succours fail, we are welcome to Christ, may trust in him, and in his power and goodness. See here an emblem of Christ's undertaking as our Redeemer. It encourages parents to bring children to Christ, whose souls are…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 20Here, the phrase so little faith means the same as no faith. faith the size of a mustard seed: This suggests that even a tiny amount of faith can help the disciples achieve great things (Hebrews 21:21; compare 1 Corinthians 13:2). It also suggests that if they let their faith increase (see Matthew 13:31–32), they could act with strong belief. "Moving mountains" is a saying that means overcoming obstacles and achieving God's goals (Isaiah 40:4; 49:11…Read the comment
Topics related to Matthew 17:20
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Matthew 17
- 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
- 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
Christian Standard Bible — © 2017 Holman Bible Publishers
Commentaries