God’s Word Translation
Matthew 7:6
6“Don’t give what is holy to dogs or throw your pearls to pigs. Otherwise, they will trample them and then tear you to pieces.
Matthew 7:6 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)Give not that which is holy unto the dogs, neither cast ye your pearls before swine, lest they trample them under their feet, and turn again and rend you.
- New International Version (NIV)“Do not give dogs what is sacred; do not throw your pearls to pigs. If you do, they may trample them under their feet, and turn and tear you to pieces.
- English Standard Version (ESV)"Do not give dogs what is holy, and do not throw your pearls before pigs, lest they trample them underfoot and turn to attack you.
- New King James Version (NKJV)“Do not give what is holy to the dogs; nor cast your pearls before swine, lest they trample them under their feet, and turn and tear you in pieces.
Context of Matthew 7:6
4How can you say to another believer, ‘Let me take the piece of sawdust out of your eye,’ when you have a beam in your own eye? 5You hypocrite! First remove the beam from your own eye. Then you will see clearly to remove the piece of sawdust from another believer’s eye. “Don’t give what is holy to dogs or throw your pearls to pigs. Otherwise, they will trample them and then tear you to pieces. 7“Ask, and you will receive. Search, and you will find. Knock, and the door will be opened for you. 8Everyone who asks will receive. The one who searches will find, and for the one who knocks, the door will be opened.
Read all of Matthew 7Matthew 7:6 word by word
Μὴ δῶτε τὸ ἅγιον τοῖς κυσὶν μηδὲ βάλητε τοὺς μαργαρίτας ὑμῶν ἔμπροσθεν τῶν χοίρων μήποτε καταπατήσουσιν αὐτοὺς ἐν τοῖς ποσὶν αὐτῶν, καὶ στραφέντες ῥήξωσιν ὑμᾶς.¶Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
- ·ὁho hē to · the/this/whoG3588
- Giveδίδωμιdidōmi · to giveG1325
- notμήmē · notG3361
- that which is holyἅγιοςhagios · holyG40
- unto the dogsκύωνkuōn · dogG2965
- neitherμηδέmēde · norG3366
- cast yeβάλλωballō · to throw: throwG906
- yourσύsu · youG4771
- pearlsμαργαρίτηςmargaritēs · pearlG3135
- beforeἔμπροσθενemprosthen · beforeG1715
- swineχοῖροςchoiros · pigG5519
- lestμήποτεmēpote mē pote · lestG3379
- they trampleκαταπατέωkatapateō · to trampleG2662
- themαὐτόςautos · it/s/heG846
- underἐνen · in/on/amongG1722
- feetπούςpous · footG4228
- andκαίkai · andG2532
- turn again andστρέφωstrephō · to turnG4762
- rendῥήγνυμιrhēgnumi rhēssō · to throw violentlyG4486
Cross-references for Matthew 7:6
- Matthew 10:14If anyone doesn’t welcome you or listen to what you say, leave that house or city, and shake its dust off your feet.
- Matthew 15:26Jesus replied, “It’s not right to take the children’s food and throw it to the dogs.”
- Proverbs 9:7Whoever corrects a mocker receives abuse. Whoever warns a wicked person gets hurt.
- Proverbs 23:9Do not talk directly to a fool, because he will despise the wisdom of your words.
- Proverbs 26:11As a dog goes back to its vomit, ⌞so⌟ a fool repeats his stupidity.
- Acts 13:45When the Jews saw the crowds, they became very jealous. They used insulting language to contradict whatever Paul said.
- Philippians 3:2Beware of dogs! Beware of those who do evil things. Beware of those who insist on circumcision.
- Hebrews 6:6Yet, they have deserted ⌞Christ⌟. They are crucifying the Son of God again and publicly disgracing him. Therefore, they cannot be led a second time to God.
- Hebrews 10:29What do you think a person who shows no respect for the Son of God deserves? That person looks at the blood of the promise (the blood that made him holy) as no different from other people’s blood, and he insults the Spirit that God gave us out of his kindness. He deserves a much worse punishment.
- 2 Peter 2:22These proverbs have come true for them: “A dog goes back to its vomit,” and “A sow that has been washed goes back to roll around in the mud.”
- Proverbs 11:22⌞Like⌟ a gold ring in a pig’s snout, ⌞so⌟ is a beautiful woman who lacks good taste.
- Matthew 22:5“But they paid no attention and went away. Some went to work in their own fields, and others went to their businesses.
- Matthew 24:10Then many will lose faith. They will betray and hate each other.
- 2 Corinthians 11:26Because I’ve traveled a lot, I’ve faced dangers from raging rivers, from robbers, from my own people, and from other people. I’ve faced dangers in the city, in the open country, on the sea, and from believers who turned out to be false friends.
- 2 Timothy 4:14Alexander the metalworker did me a great deal of harm. The Lord will pay him back for what he did.
Commentaries on Matthew 7:6
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 6Give not that which is holy - , the holy or sacred thing; i.e. any thing, especially, of the sacrificial kind, which had been consecrated to God. The members of this sentence should be transposed thus: - Give not that which is holy unto the dogs, Lest they turn again and rend you: Neither cast ye your pearls before swine, Lest they trample them under their feet The propriety of this transposition is self-evident. There are many such transpositions as…Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 6Give not that which is holy - By some the word “holy” has been supposed to mean “flesh offered in sacrifice,” made holy, or separated to a sacred use; but it probably means here “anything connected with religion” - admonition, precept, or doctrine. Pearls are precious stones found in shell-fish, chiefly in India, in the waters that surround Ceylon. They are used to denote anything especially precious, Revelation 17:4; Revelation 18:12-16; Matthew 13:45…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 6Rabbis often referred to important ideas or Scripture verses as pearls. The mysteries of the kingdom of God (13:11) are holy (see Exodus 29:33; Leviticus 2:3; 22:10–16; Numbers 18:8–10). do not give dogs what is holy: Jews often referred to non-Jewish (Gentile) people as dogs or pigs because these animals were ceremonially unclean (Matthew 15:26; Psalm 22:16, 20; Leviticus 11). Some think this means that many Gentiles would not accept the message of the…Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 66. Give not that which is holy unto the dogs--savage or snarling haters of truth and righteousness. neither cast ye your pearls before swine--the impure or coarse, who are incapable of appreciating the priceless jewels of Christianity. In the East, dogs are wilder and more gregarious, and, feeding on carrion and garbage, are coarser and fiercer than the same animals in the West. Dogs and swine, besides being ceremonially unclean, were peculiarly repulsive…Read the comment
Topics related to Matthew 7:6
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Matthew 7
- 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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