Matthew 12:37

English Revised Version

For by thy words thou shalt be justified, and by thy words thou shalt be condemned.

Parallel Translations

Christian Standard Bible®
For by your words you will be acquitted, and by your words you will be condemned.”

King James Version (1611)
For by thy wordes thou shalt bee iustified, and by thy words thou shalt be condemned.

King James Version
For by thy words thou shalt be justified, and by thy words thou shalt be condemned.

English Standard Version
for by your words you will be justified, and by your words you will be condemned."

New American Standard Bible
"For by your words you will be justified, and by your words you will be condemned."

New Century Version
The words you have said will be used to judge you. Some of your words will prove you right, but some of your words will prove you guilty."

Amplified Bible
"For by your words [reflecting your spiritual condition] you will be justified and acquitted of the guilt of sin; and by your words [rejecting Me] you will be condemned and sentenced."

Geneva Bible (1587)
For by thy wordes thou shalt be iustified, and by thy wordes thou shalt be condemned.

New American Standard Bible (1995)
"For by your words you will be justified, and by your words you will be condemned."

Legacy Standard Bible
For by your words you will be justified, and by your words you will be condemned."

Berean Standard Bible
For by your words you will be acquitted, and by your words you will be condemned."

Contemporary English Version
On that day they will be told that they are either innocent or guilty because of the things they have said.

Complete Jewish Bible
for by your own words you will be acquitted, and by your own words you will be condemned."

Darby Translation
for by thy words thou shalt be justified, and by thy words thou shalt be condemned.

Easy-to-Read Version
Your words will be used to judge you. What you have said will show whether you are right or whether you are guilty."

George Lamsa Translation
For by your words you shall be justified, and by your words you shall be found guilty.

Good News Translation
Your words will be used to judge you—to declare you either innocent or guilty."

Lexham English Bible
For by your words you will be vindicated, and by your words you will be condemned."

Literal Translation
For by your words you will be justified, and by your words you will be condemned.

American Standard Version
For by thy words thou shalt be justified, and by thy words thou shalt be condemned.

Bible in Basic English
For by your words will your righteousness be seen, and by your words you will be judged.

Hebrew Names Version
For by your words you will be justified, and by your words you will be condemned."

International Standard Version
For by your words you will be acquitted, and by your words you will be condemned."

Etheridge Translation
For by thy words thou shalt be justified, and by thy words thou shalt be condemned.

Murdock Translation
For by thy words thou shalt be justified; and by thy words thou shalt be condemned.

Bishop's Bible (1568)
For of thy wordes, thou shalt be iustified: and of thy wordes, thou shalt be condemned.

World English Bible
For by your words you will be justified, and by your words you will be condemned."

Wesley's New Testament (1755)
For by thy words thou shalt be justified, or by thy words thou shalt be condemned.

Weymouth's New Testament
For each of you by his words shall be justified, or by his words shall be condemned."

Wycliffe Bible (1395)
for of thi wordis thou schalt be iustified, and of thi wordis thou shalt be dampned.

Update Bible Version
For by your words you shall be justified, and by your words you shall be condemned.

Webster's Bible Translation
For by thy words thou shalt be justified, and by thy words thou shalt be condemned.

New English Translation
For by your words you will be justified, and by your words you will be condemned."

New King James Version
For by your words you will be justified, and by your words you will be condemned."

New Living Translation
The words you say will either acquit you or condemn you."

New Life Bible
For it is by your words that you will not be guilty and it is by your words that you will be guilty."

New Revised Standard
for by your words you will be justified, and by your words you will be condemned."

J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible
For, by thy words, shalt thou be, justified, and, by thy words, shalt thou be condemned.

Douay-Rheims Bible
For by thy words thou shalt be justified, and by thy words thou shalt be condemned.

Revised Standard Version
for by your words you will be justified, and by your words you will be condemned."

Tyndale New Testament (1525)
For by thy wordes thou shalt be iustifyed: and by thy wordes thou shalt be condemned.

Young's Literal Translation
for from thy words thou shalt be declared righteous, and from thy words thou shalt be declared unrighteous.'

Miles Coverdale Bible (1535)
Out of thy wordes thou shalt be iustified, & out of thy wordes thou shalt be codemned.

Mace New Testament (1729)
for by thy words thou shalt be justified, and by thy words thou shalt be condemned.

Simplified Cowboy Version
Your words today will affect your outcome when you die. They will either get you turned out on perfect pastures or get you shipped off on the killer truck."

Contextual Overview

²² Then was brought unto him one possessed with a devil, blind and dumb: and he healed him, insomuch that the dumb man spake and saw. ²³ And all the multitudes were amazed, and said, Is this the son of David? ²⁴ But when the Pharisees heard it, they said, This man doth not cast out devils, but by Beelzebub the prince of the devils. ²⁵ And knowing their thoughts he said unto them, Every kingdom divided against itself is brought to desolation; and every city or house divided against itself shall not stand: ²⁶ and if Satan casteth out Satan, he is divided against himself; how then shall his kingdom stand? ²⁷ And if I by Beelzebub cast out devils, by whom do your sons cast them out? therefore shall they be your judges. ²⁸ But if I by the Spirit of God cast out devils, then is the kingdom of God come upon you. ²⁹ Or how can one enter into the house of the strong man, and spoil his goods, except he first bind the strong man? and then he will spoil his house. ³⁰ He that is not with me is against me; and he that gathereth not with me scattereth. ³¹ Therefore I say unto you, Every sin and blasphemy shall be forgiven unto men; but the blasphemy against the Spirit shall not be forgiven.

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

For by: Proverbs 13:3

justified: James 2:21-25

Reciprocal: Job 6:26 - reprove Job 9:20 - mine Job 15:3 - he reason Job 15:6 - own mouth Job 35:2 - Thinkest Job 37:20 - Shall it Psalms 59:12 - For the Isaiah 3:8 - because Luke 19:22 - Out James 3:2 - a perfect

Gill's Notes on the Bible

For by thy words thou shalt be justified,.... Theophylact seems to take these words to be a passage of Scripture cited by Christ, in proof of what he had said, but does not point to any; nor is any such Scripture to be found. They are rather proverbial expressions, in common use among the Jews; or refer to the usual methods of proceeding in courts of judicature, upon the acknowledgments and confessions of persons.

"Says Resh Lakish e, such an one and such an one, they justify; and such an one and such an one, they condemn. R. Eliezer replies, מדבריהן גזדכה פלוני, "by their words such an one and such an one are justified".''

The gloss upon it is,

"upon hearing the difference there is between them, and between their words, they are justified.''

Our Lord's meaning is, that not only works and actions, but words of all sorts, will come into account in the day of judgment, and will be evidences for, or against a man, to acquit or condemn him:

and by thy words thou shalt be condemned: according to these, the sentence of justification, or of condemnation, will be pronounced; as these will appear to be evidences for, or against a man's being in a state of grace and righteousness: thus for instance, a man that has spoken for Christ, and has freely confessed that all his hope of justification before God, and acceptance with him, is solely upon the account of the righteousness of Christ imputed; such a man will be declared a justified man according to the tenor of his own words: on the other hand, a man that has spoken hard speeches against Christ, and his righteousness; declaring he has no dependence on it, expects no justification by it; he will be convinced of these ungodly sayings, and out of his own mouth will be condemned. Some have thought, that Christ here strikes at a notion which obtained among the Jews, that little or no account would be taken of a man's words in the day of judgment; provided his life and actions were good, and regular; but whatever were the sentiments of the Pharisees, or of any of Christ's present hearers, it is certain, that it is the opinion of Jewish writers, that words, as well as actions, will be accounted for hereafter: they say f,

"When a man dies, he lifts up his eyes and sees two come to him, and write before him all that he has done in this world, וכל מה דאפיק מן פומיה, "and all that has proceeded out of his mouth", ויהיב דינא על כלא, "and he gives an account for all"; and a little after, כל אינון מלין, "all the words" of a man in this world, are prepared before him, and not one of them lost; and in the hour he goes to his grave, they are all set before him.''

e T. Bab. Sanhedrim, fol. 30. 1. f Zohar in Num. fol. 53. 2.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

By thy words thou shalt be justified ... - That is, “words” are the indication of the true principles of the heart; by “words” the heart shall be known, as the tree is by its fruit. If they are true, proper, chaste, instructive, pious, they will prove that the heart is right. If false, envious, malignant, and impious, they will prove that the heart is wrong, and will therefore be among the causes of condemnation. It is not meant that words will be the only thing that will condemn man, but that they will be an important part of the things for which he shall be condemned. See James 3:3-12.

Clarke's Notes on the Bible

Verse 37. By thy words thou shalt be justified — That is, the whole tenor of thy conversation will be an evidence for or against thee, in the great day. How many are there who count words for nothing! and yet eternity often depends on them. Lord, put a watch before the door of my lips! is a prayer proper for all men.