Matthew 24:17

New Century Version

If people are on the roofs of their houses, they must not go down to get anything out of their houses.

Parallel Translations

Christian Standard Bible®
A man on the housetop

King James Version (1611)
Let him which is on the house top, not come downe, to take any thing out of his house:

King James Version
Let him which is on the housetop not come down to take any thing out of his house:

English Standard Version
Let the one who is on the housetop not go down to take what is in his house,

New American Standard Bible
"Whoever is on the housetop must not go down to get things out of his house.

Amplified Bible
"Whoever is on the housetop must not go down to get the things that are in his house [because there will not be enough time].

New American Standard Bible (1995)
"Whoever is on the housetop must not go down to get the things out that are in his house.

Legacy Standard Bible
Whoever is on the housetop must not go down to get the things out that are in his house.

Berean Standard Bible
Let no one on the housetop come down to retrieve anything from his house.

Contemporary English Version
If you are on the roof of your house, don't go inside to get anything.

Complete Jewish Bible
If someone is on the roof, he must not go down to gather his belongings from his house;

Darby Translation
let not him that is on the house come down to take the things out of his house;

Easy-to-Read Version
They should run away without wasting time to stop for anything. If they are on the roof of their house, they must not go down to get anything out of the house.

Geneva Bible (1587)
Let him which is on the house top, not come downe to fetch any thing out of his house.

George Lamsa Translation
And he who is on the roof, let him not come down to take things out of his house.

Good News Translation
Someone who is on the roof of a house must not take the time to go down and get any belongings from the house.

Lexham English Bible
The one who is on his housetop must not come down to take things out of his house,

Literal Translation
the one on the housetop, let him not go down to take anything out of his house;

American Standard Version
let him that is on the housetop not go down to take out the things that are in his house:

Bible in Basic English
Let not him who is on the house-top go down to take anything out of his house:

Hebrew Names Version
Let him who is on the housetop not go down to take out things that are in his house.

International Standard Version
The person who is on the housetop must not come down to get what is in his house,

Etheridge Translation
And let not him who is on the roof descend to take what [fn] his house;

Murdock Translation
and let him who is on the roof, not come down to take what is in his house:

Bishop's Bible (1568)
And let hym which is on the house toppe, not come downe to fet any thyng out of his house:

English Revised Version
let him that is on the housetop not go down to take out the things that are in his house:

World English Bible
Let him who is on the housetop not go down to take out things that are in his house.

Wesley's New Testament (1755)
come down to take any thing out of his house:

Weymouth's New Testament
let him who is on the roof not go down to fetch what is in his house;

Wycliffe Bible (1395)
come not doun to take ony thing of his hous; and he that is in the feeld,

Update Bible Version
let him that is on the housetop not go down to take out things that are in his house:

Webster's Bible Translation
Let him who is on the house-top not come down to take any thing out of his house:

New English Translation
The one on the roof must not come down to take anything out of his house,

New King James Version
Let him who is on the housetop not go down to take anything out of his house.

New Living Translation
A person out on the deck of a roof must not go down into the house to pack.

New Life Bible
The man who is on the top of his house should not come down to take anything out of his house.

New Revised Standard
the one on the housetop must not go down to take what is in the house;

J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible
And, he that is on the house-top, let him not come down, to take away the things out of his house;

Douay-Rheims Bible
And he that is on the housetop, let him not come down to take any thing out of his house:

Revised Standard Version
let him who is on the housetop not go down to take what is in his house;

Tyndale New Testament (1525)
And let him which is on ye housse toppe not come downe to fet eny thinge out of his housse.

Young's Literal Translation
he on the house-top -- let him not come down to take up any thing out of his house;

Miles Coverdale Bible (1535)
and let him which is on the house toppe, not come downe to fet eny thinge out of his house:

Mace New Testament (1729)
he that is on the battlements, let him not venture to go in to take any thing out of his house.

Simplified Cowboy Version
If you're patchin' some shakes on the roof, don't even go back inside, just ride.

Contextual Overview

⁴ Jesus answered, "Be careful that no one fools you. ⁵ Many will come in my name, saying, ‘I am the Christ,' and they will fool many people. ⁶ You will hear about wars and stories of wars that are coming, but don't be afraid. These things must happen before the end comes. ⁷ Nations will fight against other nations; kingdoms will fight against other kingdoms. There will be times when there is no food for people to eat, and there will be earthquakes in different places. ⁸ These things are like the first pains when something new is about to be born. ⁹ "Then people will arrest you, hand you over to be hurt, and kill you. They will hate you because you believe in me. ¹⁰ At that time, many will lose their faith, and they will turn against each other and hate each other. ¹¹ Many false prophets will come and cause many people to believe lies. ¹² There will be more and more evil in the world, so most people will stop showing their love for each other. ¹³ But those people who keep their faith until the end will be saved.

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

which: Matthew 6:25, Job 2:4, Proverbs 6:4, Proverbs 6:5, Mark 13:15, Mark 13:16, Luke 17:31-33

the housetop: Matthew 10:27, Deuteronomy 22:8

Reciprocal: Genesis 45:20 - stuff Joshua 2:6 - to the roof Joshua 2:19 - whosoever

Cross-References

Genesis 24:1
Abraham was now very old, and the Lord had blessed him in every way.

Genesis 24:6
Abraham said to him, "No! Don't take my son back there.

Genesis 24:7
The Lord , the God of heaven, brought me from the home of my father and the land of my relatives. And he promised me, ‘I will give this land to your descendants.' The Lord will send his angel before you to help you get a wife for my son there.

Genesis 24:17
The servant ran to her and said, "Please give me a little water from your jar."

Genesis 24:18
Rebekah said, "Drink, sir." She quickly lowered the jar from her shoulder and gave him a drink.

Genesis 24:35
The Lord has greatly blessed my master in everything, and he has become a rich man. The Lord has given him many flocks of sheep, herds of cattle, silver and gold, male and female servants, camels, and horses.

1 Kings 17:10
So Elijah went to Zarephath. When he reached the town gate, he saw a widow gathering wood for a fire. Elijah asked her, "Would you bring me a little water in a cup so I may have a drink?"

Isaiah 21:14
They gave water to thirsty travelers; the people of Tema gave food to those who were escaping.

Isaiah 30:25
Every mountain and hill will have streams filled with water. These things will happen after many people are killed and the towers are pulled down.

Isaiah 49:10
They will not be hungry or thirsty. Neither the hot sun nor the desert wind will hurt them. The God who comforts them will lead them and guide them by springs of water.

Gill's Notes on the Bible

Let him which is on the housetop,.... Who should be there either for his devotion or recreation; for the houses of the Jews were built with flat roofs and battlements about them, which they made use of both for diversion and pleasure, and for private meditation and prayer, for social conversation, and sometimes for public preaching; see Matthew 10:27

not come down to take anything out of his house: that is, let him not come down in the inner way, but by the stairs, or ladder, on the outside of the house, which was usual. They had two ways of going out of, and into their houses; the one they call d, דרך פתחים, "the way of the doors"; the other, דרך גגין, "the way of the roof": upon which the gloss is,

"to go up on the outside, דרך פולם, "by way" or "means" of a ladder, fixed at the entrance of the door of the upper room, and from thence he goes down into the house by a ladder;''

and in the same way they could come out; see Mark 2:4 and let him not go into his house to take any of his goods, or money, or food along with him necessary for his sustenance in his flight; lest, whilst he is busy in taking care of these, he loses his life, or, at least, the opportunity of making his escape; so sudden is this desolation represented to be.

d T. Bab. Bava Metzia, fol. 117. 1.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

Him which is on the house-top - The roofs of the houses in Eastern countries were made flat, so that they were favorable places for walking and retirement. See the notes at Matthew 9:1-8. The meaning here is, that He who should be on the house-top when this calamity came upon the city “should flee without delay;” He should not even take time to secure any article of apparel from his house. So sudden would be the calamity, that by attempting to do this He would endanger his life.

Clarke's Notes on the Bible

Verse Matthew 24:17. Let him which is on the house top — The houses of the Jews, as well as those of the ancient Greeks and Romans, were flat-roofed, and had stairs on the outside, by which persons might ascend and descend without coming into the house. In the eastern walled cities, these flat-roofed houses usually formed continued terraces from one end of the city to the other; which terraces terminated at the gates. He, therefore, who is walking on the house top, let him not come down to take any thing out of his house; but let him instantly pursue his course along the tops of the houses, and escape out at the city gate as fast as he can.

Any thing — Instead of τι, any thing, we should read τα, the things; which reading is supported by all the best MSS., versions, and fathers.