Matthew 12:20

Matthew 12:20 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)A bruised reed shall he not break, and smoking flax shall he not quench, till he send forth judgment unto victory.
• New International Version (NIV)A bruised reed he will not break, and a smoldering wick he will not snuff out, till he has brought justice through to victory.
• English Standard Version (ESV)a bruised reed he will not break, and a smoldering wick he will not quench, until he brings justice to victory;
• New King James Version (NKJV)A bruised reed He will not break, And smoking flax He will not quench, Till He sends forth justice to victory;

Context of Matthew 12:20

18“Here is my servant whom I have chosen, the one I love, in whom I take great delight. I will put my Spirit on him, and he will proclaim justice to the nations. 19He will not quarrel or cry out, nor will anyone hear his voice in the streets. He will not break a bruised reed or extinguish a smoldering wick, until he brings justice to victory. 21And in his name the Gentiles will hope.” 22Then they brought to him a demon-possessed man who was blind and mute. Jesus healed him so that he could speak and see.

Matthew 12:20 word by word

κάλαμον συντετριμμένον οὐ κατεάξει καὶ λίνον τυφόμενον οὐ σβέσει ἕως ἂν ἐκβάλῃ εἰς νῖκος τὴν κρίσιν.Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• A bruisedσυντρίβωsuntribō · to breakG4937
• reedκάλαμοςkalamos · reed/stick/penG2563
• shall heκατάγνυμιkatagnumi · to breakG2608
• notοὐou · noG3756
• andκαίkai · andG2532
• smokingτύφωtuphō · to smoulderG5188
• flaxλίνονlinon · linen/wickG3043
• shall heσβέννυμιsbennumi · to extinguishG4570
• tillἕωςheōs · untilG2193
• ·ἄνan · ifG302
• he send forthἐκβάλλωekballō · to expelG1544
• judgmentὁho hē to · the/this/whoG3588
• judgmentκρίσιςkrisis · judgmentG2920
• untoεἰςeis · towardG1519
• victoryνῖκοςnikos · victoryG3534

Cross-references for Matthew 12:20

• Matthew 11:28Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.
• 2 Kings 18:21Now look, you must be trusting in Egypt, that splintered reed staff. If a man leans for support on it, it punctures his hand and wounds him. That is what Pharaoh king of Egypt does to all who trust in him.
• Psalms 51:17The sacrifices God desires are a humble spirit – O God, a humble and repentant heart you will not reject.
• Psalms 147:3He heals the brokenhearted, and bandages their wounds.
• Isaiah 40:11Like a shepherd he tends his flock; he gathers up the lambs with his arm; he carries them close to his heart; he leads the ewes along.
• Isaiah 57:15For this is what the high and exalted one says, the one who rules forever, whose name is holy: “I dwell in an exalted and holy place, but also with the discouraged and humiliated, in order to cheer up the humiliated and to encourage the discouraged.
• Isaiah 61:1The spirit of the sovereign Lord is upon me, because the Lord has chosen me. He has commissioned me to encourage the poor, to help the brokenhearted, to decree the release of captives, and the freeing of prisoners,
• Lamentations 3:31For the Lord will not reject us forever.
• Ezekiel 34:16I will seek the lost and bring back the strays; I will bandage the injured and strengthen the sick, but the fat and the strong I will destroy. I will feed them – with judgment!
• Luke 4:18“The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim release to the captives and the regaining of sight to the blind, to set free those who are oppressed,
• 2 Corinthians 2:7so that now instead you should rather forgive and comfort him. This will keep him from being overwhelmed by excessive grief to the point of despair.
• Hebrews 12:12Therefore, strengthen your listless hands and your weak knees,
• Psalms 98:1Sing to the Lord a new song, for he performs amazing deeds! His right hand and his mighty arm accomplish deliverance.
• Isaiah 42:3A crushed reed he will not break, a dim wick he will not extinguish; he will faithfully make just decrees.
• Romans 15:17So I boast in Christ Jesus about the things that pertain to God.
• 2 Corinthians 2:14But thanks be to God who always leads us in triumphal procession in Christ and who makes known through us the fragrance that consists of the knowledge of him in every place.

Commentaries on Matthew 12:20

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 20A bruised reed shall he not break - A reed is, in Scripture, the emblem of weakness, Ezekiel 29:6; and a bruised reed must signify that state of weakness that borders on dissolution and death. And smoking flax shall he not quench - . means the wick of a lamp, and is intended to point out its expiring state, when the oil has been all burnt away from it, and nothing is left but a mere snuff, emitting smoke. Some suppose the Jewish state, as to…Read the comment
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 14-21Verses 14-21 This account is found also in Mark 3:6-12. Matthew 12:14 The Pharisees … held a council … - Mark adds that the Herodians also took a part in this plot. They were probably a “political” party attached firmly to Herod Antipas, son of Herod the Great, tetrarch of Galilee. He was the same man who had imprisoned and beheaded John the Baptist, and to whom the Saviour, when arraigned, was sent by Pilate. See the notes at Luke 3:1. He was under Roman…Read the comment
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 14-21Verses 14-21 The Pharisees took counsel to find some accusation, that Jesus might be condemned to death. Aware of their design, as his time was not come, he retired from that place. Face does not more exactly answer to face in water, than the character of Christ drawn by the prophet, to his temper and conduct as described by the evangelists. Let us with cheerful confidence commit our souls to so kind and faithful a Friend. Far from breaking, he will…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 20Jesus does not add to people’s spiritual burdens. Instead, he gives them forgiveness with compassion and the sustenance (nourishment and strength) they need (see Matthew 11:28–30; 12:1–14).Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 2020. A bruised reed shall he not break, and smoking flax shall he not quench, till he send forth judgment unto victory--"unto truth," says the Hebrew original, and the Septuagint also. But our Evangelist merely seizes the spirit, instead of the letter of the prediction in this point. The grandeur and completeness of Messiah's victories would prove, it seems, not more wonderful than the unobtrusive noiselessness with which they were to be achieved. And…Read the comment

Topics related to Matthew 12:20

• Flax
• Gentiles
• Jesus Continued
• Jesus, the Christ
• Meekness
• Penitent
• Prophecy
• Quotations and Allusions
• Reed

In the dictionaries

• Adulterous
• Condemn
• Desolation
• Idle
• Judgment
• Reed
• Restore
• Sin
• Wither
• Bruise; Bruised

Commentaries on Matthew 12

• 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