God’s Word Translation
Matthew 18:8
8“If your hand or your foot causes you to lose your faith, cut it off and throw it away. It is better for you to enter life disabled or injured than to have two hands or two feet and be thrown into everlasting fire.
Matthew 18:8 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)Wherefore if thy hand or thy foot offend thee, cut them off, and cast them from thee: it is better for thee to enter into life halt or maimed, rather than having two hands or two feet to be cast into everlasting fire.
- New International Version (NIV)If your hand or your foot causes you to stumble, cut it off and throw it away. It is better for you to enter life maimed or crippled than to have two hands or two feet and be thrown into eternal fire.
- English Standard Version (ESV)And if your hand or your foot causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away. It is better for you to enter life crippled or lame than with two hands or two feet to be thrown into the eternal fire.
- New King James Version (NKJV)“If your hand or foot causes you to sin, cut it off and cast it from you. It is better for you to enter into life lame or maimed, rather than having two hands or two feet, to be cast into the everlasting fire.
Context of Matthew 18:8
6“These little ones believe in me. It would be best for the person who causes one of them to lose faith to be drowned in the sea with a large stone hung around his neck. 7How horrible it will be for the world because it causes people to lose their faith. Situations that cause people to lose their faith will arise. How horrible it will be for the person who causes someone to lose his faith! “If your hand or your foot causes you to lose your faith, cut it off and throw it away. It is better for you to enter life disabled or injured than to have two hands or two feet and be thrown into everlasting fire. 9If your eye causes you to lose your faith, tear it out and throw it away. It is better for you to enter life with one eye than to have two eyes and be thrown into hellfire. 10“Be careful not to despise these little ones. I can guarantee that their angels in heaven always see the face of my Father, who is in heaven.
Read all of Matthew 18Matthew 18:8 word by word
εἰ δὲ ἡ χείρ σου ἢ ὁ πούς σου σκανδαλίζει σε, ἔκκοψον αὐτὸν καὶ βάλε ἀπὸ σοῦ· καλόν σοί ἐστιν εἰσελθεῖν εἰς τὴν ζωὴν κυλλὸν ἢ χωλὸν ἢ δύο χεῖρας ἢ δύο πόδας ἔχοντα βληθῆναι εἰς τὸ πῦρ τὸ αἰώνιον.Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
- ·ὁho hē to · the/this/whoG3588
- Whereforeδέde · thenG1161
- ifεἰei · ifG1487
- thyσύsu · youG4771
- handχείρcheir · handG5495
- orἤē · orG2228
- footπούςpous · footG4228
- offendσκανδαλίζωskandalizō · to cause to stumbleG4624
- cutἐκκόπτωekkoptō · to preventG1581
- themαὐτόςautos · it/s/heG846
- andκαίkai · andG2532
- castβάλλωballō · to throw: throwG906
- fromἀπόapo · away fromG575
- it isεἰμίeimi · to beG1510
- betterκαλόςkalos · goodG2570
- to enterεἰσέρχομαιeiserchomai · to enterG1525
- intoεἰςeis · towardG1519
- lifeζωήzōē · lifeG2222
- haltχωλόςchōlos · lameG5560
- maimedκυλλόςkullos · crippledG2948
- havingἔχωechō · to have/beG2192
- twoδύοduo · twoG1417
- everlastingαἰώνιοςaiōnios · eternalG166
- fireπῦρpur · fireG4442
Cross-references for Matthew 18:8
- Matthew 5:29“So if your right eye causes you to sin, tear it out and throw it away. It is better for you to lose a part of your body than to have all of it thrown into hell.
- Matthew 14:3Herod had arrested John, tied him up, and put him in prison. Herod did this for Herodias, the wife of his brother Philip.
- Deuteronomy 13:6Your own brother, son, or daughter, the wife you love, or your best friend may secretly tempt you, saying, “Let’s go worship other gods.” (Those gods may be gods that you and your ancestors never knew.
- Mark 9:43“So if your hand causes you to lose your faith, cut it off! It is better for you to enter life disabled than to have two hands and go to hell, to the fire that cannot be put out.
- Luke 14:26“If people come to me and are not ready to abandon their fathers, mothers, wives, children, brothers, and sisters, as well as their own lives, they cannot be my disciples.
- Luke 18:22When Jesus heard this, he said to him, “You still need one thing. Sell everything you have. Distribute the money to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then follow me!”
- Isaiah 2:20On that day people will throw to the moles and the bats the silver and gold idols that they made for themselves to worship.
- Isaiah 30:22Then you will dishonor your silver-plated idols and your gold-covered statues. You will throw them away like clothing ruined by stains. You will say to them, “Get out!”
- Ezekiel 18:31Stop all the rebellious things that you are doing. Get yourselves new hearts and new spirits. Why do you want to die, nation of Israel?
- Romans 13:12The night is almost over, and the day is near. So we should get rid of the things that belong to the dark and take up the weapons that belong to the light.
- Philippians 3:8It’s far more than that! I consider everything else worthless because I’m much better off knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. It’s because of him that I think of everything as worthless. I threw it all away in order to gain Christ
- Matthew 15:30A large crowd came to him, bringing with them the lame, blind, disabled, those unable to talk, and many others. They laid them at his feet, and he cured them.
- Matthew 25:41“Then the king will say to those on his left, ‘Get away from me! God has cursed you! Go into everlasting fire that was prepared for the devil and his angels!
- Isaiah 33:14The sinners in Zion are terrified. Trembling seizes the ungodly. Can any of us live through a fire that destroys? Can any of us live through a fire that burns forever?
- Mark 9:48In hell worms that eat the body never die, and the fire is never put out.
- Luke 16:24He yelled, ‘Father Abraham! Have mercy on me! Send Lazarus to dip the tip of his finger in water to cool off my tongue. I am suffering in this fire.’
Commentaries on Matthew 18:8
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 8If thy hand, etc. - See the notes on Matthew 5:29-30; (note).Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 8If thy hand - See the notes at Matthew 5:29-30. The sense in all these instances is the same. Worldly attachments, friendships, and employments of any kind, that cannot be pursued without leading us into sin, be they ever so dear to us, must be abandoned, or the soul will be lost. It is better for thee to enter into life halt or maimed - It is not meant, by this, that when the body shall be raised it will be maimed and disfigured in this manner. It…Read the comment
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 7-14Verses 7-14 Considering the cunning and malice of Satan, and the weakness and depravity of men's hearts, it is not possible but that there should be offences. God permits them for wise and holy ends, that those who are sincere, and those who are not, may be made known. Being told before, that there will be seducers, tempters, persecutors, and bad examples, let us stand on our guard. We must, as far as lawfully we may, part with what we cannot keep without…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 8-9Jesus shifts his concern to the person. You must remove anything that leads you to sin (see Matthew 5:29–30; Colossians 3:5–17).Read the comment
Topics related to Matthew 18:8
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Matthew 18
- 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
God’s Word Translation — © 1995 God’s Word to the Nations Bible Society
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