Matthew 16:4

Matthew 16:4 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)A wicked and adulterous generation seeketh after a sign; and there shall no sign be given unto it, but the sign of the prophet Jonas. And he left them, and departed.
• New International Version (NIV)A wicked and adulterous generation looks for a sign, but none will be given it except the sign of Jonah.” Jesus then left them and went away.
• English Standard Version (ESV)An evil and adulterous generation seeks for a sign, but no sign will be given to it except the sign of Jonah." So he left them and departed.
• New Living Translation (NLT)Only an evil, adulterous generation would demand a miraculous sign, but the only sign I will give them is the sign of the prophet Jonah.” Then Jesus left them and went away.

Context of Matthew 16:4

2He answered and said to them, “When it is evening you say, ‘It will be fair weather, for the sky is red’; 3and in the morning, ‘It will be foul weather today, for the sky is red and threatening.’ Hypocrites! You know how to discern the face of the sky, but you cannot discern the signs of the times. A wicked and adulterous generation seeks after a sign, and no sign shall be given to it except the sign of the prophet Jonah.” And He left them and departed. 5Now when His disciples had come to the other side, they had forgotten to take bread. 6Then Jesus said to them, “Take heed and beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and the Sadducees.”

Matthew 16:4 word by word

γενεὰ πονηρὰ καὶ μοιχαλὶς σημεῖον ἐπιζητεῖ· καὶ σημεῖον οὐ δοθήσεται αὐτῇ εἰ μὴ τὸ σημεῖον Ἰωνᾶ καὶ καταλιπὼν αὐτοὺς ἀπῆλθεν.¶Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• A wickedπονηρόςponēros · evil/badG4190
• andκαίkai · andG2532
• adulterousμοιχαλίςmoichalis · adulterousG3428
• generationγενεάgenea · generationG1074
• seeketh afterἐπιζητέωepizēteō · to seek afterG1934
• a signσημεῖονsēmeion · signG4592
• there shallδίδωμιdidōmi · to giveG1325
• noοὐou · noG3756
• unto itαὐτόςautos · it/s/heG846
• ·εἰei · if: notG1487
• butμήmē · notG3361
• the signὁho hē to · the/this/whoG3588
• of the prophetπροφήτηςprophētēs · prophetG4396
• JonasἸωνᾶςIōnas · JonahG2495
• he leftκαταλείπωkataleipō · to leave behindG2641
• and departedἀπέρχομαιaperchomai · to go awayG565

Cross-references for Matthew 16:4

• Matthew 12:39But He answered and said to them, “An evil and adulterous generation seeks after a sign, and no sign will be given to it except the sign of the prophet Jonah.
• Mark 8:12But He sighed deeply in His spirit, and said, “Why does this generation seek a sign? Assuredly, I say to you, no sign shall be given to this generation.”
• Acts 2:40And with many other words he testified and exhorted them, saying, “Be saved from this perverse generation.”
• Jonah 1:17Now the Lord had prepared a great fish to swallow Jonah. And Jonah was in the belly of the fish three days and three nights.
• Luke 11:29And while the crowds were thickly gathered together, He began to say, “This is an evil generation. It seeks a sign, and no sign will be given to it except the sign of Jonah the prophet.
• Matthew 15:14Let them alone. They are blind leaders of the blind. And if the blind leads the blind, both will fall into a ditch.”
• Genesis 6:3And the Lord said, “My Spirit shall not strive with man forever, for he is indeed flesh; yet his days shall be one hundred and twenty years.”
• Hosea 4:17“Ephraim is joined to idols, Let him alone.
• Hosea 9:12Though they bring up their children, Yet I will bereave them to the last man. Yes, woe to them when I depart from them!
• Mark 5:17Then they began to plead with Him to depart from their region.
• Acts 18:6But when they opposed him and blasphemed, he shook his garments and said to them, “Your blood be upon your own heads; I am clean. From now on I will go to the Gentiles.”

Commentaries on Matthew 16:4

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 4Wicked and adulterous generation - The Jewish people are represented in the Sacred Writings as married to the Most High; but, like a disloyal wife, forsaking their true husband, and uniting themselves to Satan and sin. Seeketh after a sign, , seeketh sign upon sign, or, still another sign. Our blessed Lord had already wrought miracles sufficient to demonstrate both his Divine mission and his divinity; only one was farther necessary to take away the…Read the comment
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 1-4Verses 1-4 See also Mark 8:11-12. The Pharisees also, and the Sadducees - See the notes at Matthew 3:7. Tempting - That is, trying him - feigning a desire to see evidence that he was the Messiah, but with a real desire to see him make the attempt to work a miracle and fail, so that they might betray him and ruin him. A sign from heaven - Some miraculous appearance in the sky. Such appearances had been given by the prophets; and they supposed, if he was…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 1-12After being welcomed among the Gentiles (non-Jews), Jesus returned to his own people. There he faced rejection again.Read the comment

Topics related to Matthew 16:4

• Jesus Continued
• Jesus, the Christ
• Jonah
• Pharisees
• Reproof
• Sign
• Symbols and Similitudes

In the dictionaries

• Adulterous
• Bind
• Blood
• Gain
• Gate
• Hell
• Leaven
• Loose
• Miracle
• Pharisees

Commentaries on Matthew 16

• 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