Matthew 12:50
in Matthew 12For whoever does the will of My Father in heaven is My brother and sister and mother.”
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
For whosoever shall do the will of my Father who is in heaven, he is my brother, and sister, and mother.
KJV
For whosoever shall do the will of my Father which is in heaven, the same is my brother, and sister, and mother.
⋯
This verse in Matthew 12
Commentary
15 notes on this verseBut since he who does the will of the Father is called sister and brother of the Lord, on account of both sexes who are gathered to the faith, this is not surprising; yet it is greatly to be wondered how one is also called mother. For he deigned to call his faithful disciples brothers, saying: Go, announce to my brothers. Therefore, he who could become a brother of the Lord by coming to faith—it must be asked how he can also be a mother?
The record, by era
The Church Fathers5 voices
(Verses 49, 50.) Behold my mother and my brothers. For whoever does the will of my Father who is in heaven, he is my brother and sister and mother. These are my mother, who daily begets me in the souls of believers. These are my brothers, who do the works of my Father. Therefore, he did not deny his mother, as Marcion and Manichaeus believed, that he was born from a phantom; but he preferred the apostles to kinship, so that we may also prefer the spirit to the flesh in comparison of love.
He did not then, as Marcion and Manichæus say, disown His mother, so as to be thought to be born of a phantasm, but He preferred His Apostles to His kindred, that we also in a comparison of our affections should set the spirit before the flesh.
Let us also expound in another way. The Saviour is speaking to the multitude—that is, He teaches the Gentiles the inward mysteries; His mother and His brethren, that is the synagogue and the Jewish people, stand without. And when they shall have asked and enquired, and sent a messenger, they shall receive for answer, that their will is free, and that they can enter in, if they will believe.
A commentator
John ChrysostomHomily on the Gospel of Matthew 44 · Written in the 5th century.
proposed
Knowing therefore these things, let us neither pride ourselves on children that are of good report, unless we have their virtue; nor upon noble fathers, unless we be like them in disposition. For it is possible, both that he who begat a man should not be his father, and that he who did not beget him should be. Therefore in another place also, when some woman had said, "Blessed is the womb that bare Thee, and the paps which Thou hast sucked;" He said not, "The womb bare me not, neither did I suck the paps," but this, "Yea rather, blessed are they that do the will of my Father." Seest thou how on every occasion He denies not the affinity by nature, but adds that by virtue? And His forerunner too, in saying, "O generation of vipers, think not to say, We have Abraham to our father," means not this, that they were not naturally of Abraham, but that it profits them nothing to be of Abraham, unless they had the affinity by character; which Christ also declared, when He said, "If ye were Abraham's children, ye would do the works of Abraham;" not depriving them of their kindred according to the flesh, but teaching them to seek after that affinity which is greater than it, and more real. This then He establishes here also, but in a manner less invidious, and more measured, as became Him speaking to His mother. For He said not at all, "She is not my mother, nor are those my brethren, because they do not my will;" neither did He declare and pronounce judgment against them; but He yet left in it their own power to choose, speaking with the gentleness that becomes Him. "For he that doeth," saith He, "the will of my Father, this is my brother, and sister, and mother." Wherefore if they desire to be such, let them come this way. […]
A commentator
John ChrysostomHomily on the Gospel of Matthew 44 · Written in the 5th century.
proposed
That which I was lately saying, that when virtue is wanting all things are vain, this is now also pointed out very abundantly. For I indeed was saying, that age and nature, and to dwell in the wilderness, and all such things, are alike unprofitable, where there is not a good mind; but to-day we learn in addition another thing, that even to have borne Christ in the womb, and to have brought forth that marvellous birth, hath no profit, if there be not virtue. And this is hence especially manifest. "For while He yet talked to the people," it is said, "one told Him, Thy mother and Thy brethren seek Thee. But He saith, who is my mother, and who are my brethren?" And this He said, not as being ashamed of His mother, nor denying her that bare Him; for if He had been ashamed of her, He would not have passed through that womb; but as declaring that she hath no advantage from this, unless she do all that is required to be done. For in fact that which she had essayed to do, was of superfluous vanity; in that she wanted to show the people that she hath power and authority over her Son, imagining not as yet anything great concerning Him; whence also her unseasonable approach. See at all events both her self-confidence and theirs. Since when they ought to have gone in, and listened with the multitude; or if they were not so minded, to have waited for His bringing His discourse to an end, and then to have come near; they call Him out, and do this before all, evincing a superfluous vanity, and wishing to make it appear, that with much authority they enjoin Him. And this too the evangelist shows that he is blaming, for with this very allusion did he thus express himself, "While He yet talked to the people;" as if he should say, What? was there no other opportunity? Why, was it not possible to speak with Him in private? And what was it they wished to say? […]
9 more voices on this verse
The Church Fathers1 voice
He said these things, not in contempt of his mother and his brothers, but in order to show that he values more highly closeness of soul than any blood relation of body. For it was necessary to say this, both for those who thought that …
The Medieval Church3 voices
(Hom. in Ev. iii. 2.) The Lord deigned to call faithful disciples His brethren, saying, Go, tell my brethren. Since then a man may be made a brother of the Lord by coming to the faith, it should be enquired how one may become also His mother. Be it known by us then, that he that by believing is made brother or sister of Christ, becomes His mother by preaching; for in pouring Him into the heart of the hearer, he may be said to beget the Lord; and he is made the Lord's mother, when by his word love of the Lord is begotten in the mind of his neighbour.
He did not say this to offend His mother, but to correct this vainglorious and human thought of hers. For He did not say, "She is not My mother," but "Unless she does the will of God, that she bore Me is of no benefit …
Hence it says, Whoever does the will of my Father in heaven is my brother, and sister, and mother. For he had a heavenly generation and a temporal one, and he places the heavenly ahead of the temporal. For those who do the will of …
The Puritans and the Awakening2 voices
For whosoever shall do the will of my Father,.... This is not to be understood of a perfect obedience to the will of God, revealed in his righteous law; for since this cannot be performed by any mere man, no one could be in such a spiritual relation to Christ: but of the obedience of faith to the will of God, revealed in the Gospel; which is to believe in Christ, and have everlasting life; see Joh 6:
7 But if ye had known what this meaneth, I will have mercy, and not sacrifice, ye would not have condemned the guiltless. 8 For the Son of man is Lord even of the sabbath day. 9 And when he was departed thence, he went into their synagogue: 10 And, behold, there was a man which had his hand withered.
quarantine:scripture (2026-07-29) — verbatim-scripture
The Nineteenth Century3 voices
Whosoever shall do the will of my Father, etc. - Those are the best acknowledged relatives of Christ who are united to him by spiritual ties, and who are become one with him by the indwelling of his Spirit. We generally suppose that Christ’s relatives must have shared much of his affectionate attention; and doubtless they did: but here we find that whosoever does the will of God is equally esteemed by Christ, as his brother, sister, or even his virgin mother. What an encouragement for fervent attachment to God!
The beginning of this passage is one of those places which strikingly illustrate the truth of Old Testament history. Our Lord speaks of the Queen of the South as a real, true person, who had lived and died. He refers to the story of Jonah, and his miraculous preservation in the whale’s belly, as undeniable matters of fact. Let us remember this if we hear men professing to believe the writers of the New Testament, and yet sneering at the things recorded in the Old Testament as if they were fables.
The beginning of this passage is one of those places which strikingly illustrate the truth of Old Testament history. Our Lord speaks of the Queen of the South as a real, true person, who had lived and died. He refers to the story of Jonah, and his miraculous preservation in the whale’s belly, as undeniable matters of fact. Let us remember this if we hear men professing to believe the writers of the New Testament, and yet sneering at the things recorded in the Old Testament as if they were fables. Such men forget that in so doing they pour contempt upon Christ himself. The authority of the Old Testament and the authority of the New stand or fall together; the same Spirit inspired men to write of Solomon and Jonah who inspired the evangelists to write of Christ.These are not unimportant points in this day: let them be well fixed in our minds. The first practical lesson which demands our attention in these verses is the amazing power of unbelief. We should mark how the scribes and Pharisees call upon our Lord to show them more miracles. “Master, we would see asign from thee.” They pretended that they only wanted more evidence in order to be convinced and become disciples: they shut their eyes to the many wonderful works which Jesus had already done. It was not enough for them that he had healed the sick, and cleansed the lepers, raised the dead, and cast out demons: they were not yet persuaded; they yet demanded more proof. They would not see what our Lord plainly pointed at in his reply—that they had no real will to believe. There was evidence enough to convince them, but they had no wish to be convinced. There are many in the church of Christ who are exactly in the state of these scribes and Pharisees. They flatter themselves that they only require a little more proof to become decided Christians.
The words behind it
20 Greek wordsEvery Greek word of this verse in the order it stands, with what it means and the door to its own study. The last column counts the times a word stands in the whole Bible: the rarer the word, the more the places it appears belong together.
| Greek | Sound | Meaning | Word study | In the Bible |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ὅστις | hostis | Whoever | G3748 → | 144 times |
| γὰρ | gar | for | G1063 → | 1039 times |
| ἂν | an | maybe | G302 → | 165 times |
| ποιήσῃ | poiese | may do | G4160 → | 569 times |
| τὸ | to | the | G3588 → | 19766 times |
| θέλημα | thelema | will | G2307 → | 62 times |
| τοῦ | tou | the | G3588 → | 19766 times |
| πατρός | patros | Father | G3962 → | 410 times |
| μου | mou | of Mine | G3165 → | 1936 times |
| τοῦ | tou | who [is] | G3588 → | 19766 times |
| ἐν | en | in | G1722 → | 2738 times |
| οὐρανοῖς, | ouranois | [the] heavens, | G3772 → | 272 times |
| αὐτός | autos | he himself | G846 → | 5565 times |
| μου | mou | My | G3165 → | 1936 times |
| ἀδελφὸς | adelphos | brother | G80 → | 343 times |
| καὶ | kai | and | G2532 → | 9120 times |
| ἀδελφὴ | adelphe | sister | G79 → | 26 times |
| καὶ | kai | and | G2532 → | 9120 times |
| μήτηρ | meter | mother | G3384 → | 83 times |
| ἐστίν.¶ | estin | is. | G1510 → | 2333 times |
ὅστιςWhoever
hostisG3748 →144 times
γὰρfor
garG1063 →1039 times
ἂνmaybe
anG302 →165 times
ποιήσῃmay do
poieseG4160 →569 times
τὸthe
toG3588 →19766 times
θέλημαwill
thelemaG2307 →62 times
τοῦthe
touG3588 →19766 times
πατρόςFather
patrosG3962 →410 times
μουof Mine
mouG3165 →1936 times
τοῦwho [is]
touG3588 →19766 times
ἐνin
enG1722 →2738 times
οὐρανοῖς,[the] heavens,
ouranoisG3772 →272 times
αὐτόςhe himself
autosG846 →5565 times
μουMy
mouG3165 →1936 times
ἀδελφὸςbrother
adelphosG80 →343 times
καὶand
kaiG2532 →9120 times
ἀδελφὴsister
adelpheG79 →26 times
καὶand
kaiG2532 →9120 times
μήτηρmother
meterG3384 →83 times
ἐστίν.¶is.
estinG1510 →2333 times
A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.
The walk
8 stopsEach card is a verse this one points to, and under it the verses that one points to in turn. Where several paths arrive at the same place, that place is listed first: the text keeps returning to it.
Through
John 15:14You are My friends if you do what I command you.
it leads to
- 1 John 5:3
For this is the love of God, that we keep His commandments. And His commandments are not burdensome,
- James 2:23
And the Scripture was fulfilled that says, “Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness,” and he was called a friend of God.
- John 14:21
Whoever has My commandments and keeps them is the one who loves Me. The one who loves Me will be loved by My Father, and I will love him and reveal Myself to him.”
- John 14:15
If you love Me, you will keep My commandments.
- Luke 12:4
I tell you, My friends, do not be afraid of those who kill the body and after that can do no more.
- 1 John 5:3
Through
Luke 8:21But He replied, “My mother and brothers are those who hear the word of God and carry it out.”
it leads to
- Luke 11:27–28
As Jesus was saying these things, a woman in the crowd raised her voice and said, “Blessed is the womb that bore You, and blessed are the breasts that nursed You!”
- James 1:22
Be doers of the word, and not hearers only. Otherwise, you are deceiving yourselves.
- Luke 11:27–28
Through
Mark 3:35For whoever does the will of God is My brother and sister and mother.”
it leads to
- 1 John 2:17
The world is passing away, along with its desires; but whoever does the will of God remains forever.
- 1 John 2:17
Where this verse is studied
On this page
Studies12
On this verse
About Matthew
This page draws on 12 works. Open the list of works
This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Gregory the Dialogist, Forty Gospel Homilies, Homily 3; Gregory the Dialogist, Catena Aurea by Aquinas; J.C. Ryle, Expository Thoughts on the Gospels: Matthew; Jerome, Commentary on Matthew; Jerome, Catena Aurea by Aquinas; John Chrysostom, Homily on the Gospel of Matthew 44; John Gill, Exposition of the New Testament (1746-1748); Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible; Theodore of Mopsuestia, FRAGMENT 71.19; Theophylact of Ohrid, Commentary on Matthew and Thomas Aquinas, Commentary on Matthew.