Matthew 11:12

Matthew 11:12 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)And from the days of John the Baptist until now the kingdom of heaven suffereth violence, and the violent take it by force.
• New International Version (NIV)From the days of John the Baptist until now, the kingdom of heaven has been subjected to violence, and violent people have been raiding it.
• English Standard Version (ESV)From the days of John the Baptist until now the kingdom of heaven has suffered violence, and the violent take it by force.
• New King James Version (NKJV)And from the days of John the Baptist until now the kingdom of heaven suffers violence, and the violent take it by force.

Context of Matthew 11:12

10John is the man to whom the Scriptures refer when they say, ‘Look, I am sending my messenger ahead of you, and he will prepare your way before you.’ 11“I tell you the truth, of all who have ever lived, none is greater than John the Baptist. Yet even the least person in the Kingdom of Heaven is greater than he is! And from the time John the Baptist began preaching until now, the Kingdom of Heaven has been forcefully advancing, and violent people are attacking it. 13For before John came, all the prophets and the law of Moses looked forward to this present time. 14And if you are willing to accept what I say, he is Elijah, the one the prophets said would come.

Matthew 11:12 word by word

ἀπὸ δὲ τῶν ἡμερῶν Ἰωάννου τοῦ βαπτιστοῦ ἕως ἄρτι ἡ βασιλεία τῶν οὐρανῶν βιάζεται, καὶ βιασταὶ ἁρπάζουσιν αὐτήν.Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• Andδέde · thenG1161
• fromἀπόapo · away fromG575
• the daysὁho hē to · the/this/whoG3588
• the daysἡμέραhēmera · dayG2250
• of JohnἸωάννηςIōannēs · JohnG2491
• the BaptistΒαπτιστήςBaptistēs · one who baptizesG910
• untilἕωςheōs · untilG2193
• nowἄρτιarti · nowG737
• the kingdomβασιλείαbasileia · kingdomG932
• of heavenοὐρανόςouranos · heavenG3772
• suffereth violenceβιάζωbiazō · to forceG971
• andκαίkai · andG2532
• the violentβιαστήςbiastēs · forceful personG973
• takeἁρπάζωharpazō · to seizeG726
• itαὐτόςautos · it/s/heG846

Cross-references for Matthew 11:12

• Matthew 21:23When Jesus returned to the Temple and began teaching, the leading priests and elders came up to him. They demanded, “By what authority are you doing all these things? Who gave you the right?”
• Luke 7:29When they heard this, all the people—even the tax collectors—agreed that God’s way was right, for they had been baptized by John.
• Luke 13:24“Work hard to enter the narrow door to God’s Kingdom, for many will try to enter but will fail.
• Luke 16:16“Until John the Baptist, the law of Moses and the messages of the prophets were your guides. But now the Good News of the Kingdom of God is preached, and everyone is eager to get in.
• John 6:27But don’t be so concerned about perishable things like food. Spend your energy seeking the eternal life that the Son of Man can give you. For God the Father has given me the seal of his approval.”
• Ephesians 6:11Put on all of God’s armor so that you will be able to stand firm against all strategies of the devil.
• Philippians 2:12Dear friends, you always followed my instructions when I was with you. And now that I am away, it is even more important. Work hard to show the results of your salvation, obeying God with deep reverence and fear.

Commentaries on Matthew 11:12

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 12The kingdom of heaven suffereth violence - The tax-gatherers and heathens, whom the scribes and Pharisees think have no right to the kingdom of the Messiah, filled with holy zeal and earnestness, seize at once on the proffered mercy of the Gospel, and so take the kingdom as by force from those learned doctors who claimed for themselves the chiefest places in that kingdom. Christ himself said, The tax-gatherers and harlots go before you into the kingdom of…Read the comment
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 12And from the days of John … - That is, from the days when John began to preach. It is not known how long this was, but it was not probably more than a year. Our Saviour here simply states a fact. He says there was a great rush or a crowd pressing to hear John. Multitudes went out to hear him, as if they were about to take the kingdom of heaven by force. See Matthew 3:5. So, he says, it has continued. Since “the kingdom of heaven,” or “the gospel,” has…Read the comment
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 7-15Verses 7-15 What Christ said concerning John, was not only for his praise, but for the people's profit. Those who attend on the word will be called to give an account of their improvements. Do we think when the sermon is done, the care is over? No, then the greatest of the care begins. John was a self-denying man, dead to all the pomps of the world and the pleasures of sense. It becomes people, in all their appearances, to be consistent with their…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 12The kingdom of heaven has been subject to violence: The Greek verb can mean either that the kingdom suffers violence (negative) or that it forcefully advances (positive). In Luke 16:16, a different verb (“preached”) makes the statement clearly positive. the violent lay claim to it: This phrase can also have either a negative or positive sense. Negatively, it may point to those who opposed John (see Matthew 11:2; 14:1–12) and persecuted the kingdom’s…Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 1-191. And it came to pass, when Jesus had made an end of commanding his twelve disciple--rather, "the twelve disciples," he departed thence to teach and to preach in their cities--This was scarcely a fourth circuit--if we may judge from the less formal way in which it was expressed--but, perhaps, a set of visits paid to certain places, either not reached at all before, or too rapidly passed through, in order to fill up the time till the return of the Twelve…Read the comment

Topics related to Matthew 11:12

• Jesus, the Christ
• John

In the dictionaries

• John the Baptist
• Easy
• Justify
• Learn
• Lowly
• Meek
• Mighty
• Pipe
• Rest
• Thou

Commentaries on Matthew 11

• 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