Matthew 12:39 BSB — MannaFest

Matthew 12:39

Jesus replied, “A wicked and adulterous generation demands a sign, but none will be given it except the sign of the prophet Jonah.

BSB

Parallel translations (2) ▾

ASV

But he answered and said unto them, An evil and adulterous generation seeketh after a sign; and there shall no sign be given to it but the sign of Jonah the prophet:

KJV

But he answered and said unto them, An evil and adulterous generation seeketh after a sign; and there shall no sign be given to it, but the sign of the prophet Jonas:

⋯

Commentary

1 voice

Origen of Alexandria

FRAGMENT 274 (253)

That generation was evil, on account of the influence that had come to be in it from the evil one. It was adulterous because it had left her natural husband—the word or law of truth—and had come to be wedded to a lie. The law which is "in the members" of our flesh wars against "the law of the mind." It is an adulterer of the soul. Every opposing power, when it has intercourse with the soul unfaithfully—the soul that has as its bridegroom the Word of God—causes the soul to commit adultery.

The record, by era

The Puritans and the Awakening1 voice

John Wesley

1703–1791

Explanatory Notes upon the New Testament (1755)

Such adulterers are all those who love the world, and all who seek the friendship of it. Seeketh a sign - After all they have had already, which were abundantly sufficient to convince them, had not their hearts been estranged from God, and consequently averse to the truth. The sign of Jonah - Who was herein a type of Christ.

The Nineteenth Century2 voices

Adam Clarke

1762–1832

Commentary on the Bible (1832)

An evil and adulterous generation - Or, race of people; for so γενεα should be translated here, and in most other places in the Gospels; for our Lord, in general, uses it to point out the Jewish people. This translation is a key to unlock some very obscure passages in the evangelists. Seeketh after a sign - Or, seeketh another sign, (επιζητει), so I think this word should be translated. Our Lord had already given the Jews several signs; and here they desire sign upon sign. Our Lord terms the Jews an adulterous race.

J.C. Ryle

1816–1900

Expository Thoughts on the Gospels: Matthew (1856)

Voices on this verse

loading…

Original language & word study

23 tagged words

Original	Transliteration	Meaning	Word study
Ὁ	Ho	<the>	G3588 →
δὲ	de	And	G1161 →
ἀποκριθεὶς	apokritheis	answering	G611 →
εἶπεν	eipen	He said	G2036 →
αὐτοῖς·	autois	to them;	G846 →
γενεὰ	genea	A generation	G1074 →
πονηρὰ	ponēra	evil	G4190 →
καὶ	kai	and	G2532 →
μοιχαλὶς	moichalis	adulterous	G3428 →
σημεῖον	sēmeion	a sign	G4592 →
ἐπιζητεῖ·	epizētei	seeks for;	G1934 →
καὶ	kai	and	G2532 →
σημεῖον	sēmeion	a sign	G4592 →
οὐ	ou	not	G3756 →
δοθήσεται	dothēsetai	will be given	G1325 →
αὐτῇ	autēa	to it	G846 →
εἰ	ei	only	G1487 →
μὴ	mē	except	G3361 →
τὸ	to	the	G3588 →
σημεῖον	sēmeion	sign	G4592 →
Ἰωνᾶ	Iōna	of Jonah	G2495 →
τοῦ	tou	the	G3588 →
προφήτου.	prophētou	prophet.	G4396 →

Rare words are the text's own signal of a deliberate thread: the fewer the occurrences, the more the places it appears belong together.

The walk

The walk8

Where the connections lead

Follow this verse’s cross-references two steps out. Each card is a verse this one points to, and beneath it the verses that one points to in turn. Where several different paths arrive at the same place, that place is listed first: the text keeps returning to it. Every stop shows its own words, and every stop is a page.

Through
James 4:4
You adulteresses! Do you not know that friendship with the world is hostility toward God? Therefore, whoever chooses to be a friend of the world renders himself an enemy of God.
leads to
- 1 John 2:15–16
  Do not love the world or anything in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him.
- Romans 8:7
  because the mind of the flesh is hostile to God: It does not submit to God’s law, nor can it do so.
- John 15:19
  If you were of the world, it would love you as its own. Instead, the world hates you, because you are not of the world, but I have chosen you out of the world.
- Matthew 6:24
  No one can serve two masters: Either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and…
- Galatians 1:10
  Am I now seeking the approval of men, or of God? Or am I striving to please men? If I were still trying to please men, I would not be a servant of Christ.
Through
Mark 8:38
If anyone is ashamed of Me and My words in this adulterous and sinful generation, the Son of Man will also be ashamed of him when He comes in His Father’s glory with the…
leads to
- James 4:4
  You adulteresses! Do you not know that friendship with the world is hostility toward God? Therefore, whoever chooses to be a friend of the world renders himself an enemy of God.
  Reached by 2 independent paths from here.
- Luke 12:8–9
  I tell you, everyone who confesses Me before men, the Son of Man will also confess him before the angels of God.
Through
Matthew 16:4
A wicked and adulterous generation demands a sign, but none will be given it except the sign of Jonah.” Then He left them and went away.
leads to
- Luke 11:29–30
  As the crowds were increasing, Jesus said, “This is a wicked generation. It demands a sign, but none will be given it except the sign of Jonah.

Featured studies on this passage

On Matthew 12:39

The Sign of Jonah

Open the study →

Walks through Matthew 12

The Giants of 1 Enoch

Open the study →

Walks through Matthew 12

The Binding of Isaac (Genesis 22), MannaFest

Open the study →

The Possessed Man in the Synagogue — James Tissot

Walks through Matthew 12

Blasphemy Against the Spirit

Open the study →

Walks through Matthew 12

The Bronze Serpent

Christ's own chosen picture of his death. A four-moment story across 1,400 years: sin and plague, command and cure, idolatry and smashing, crucifixion and fulfillment.

Open the study →

Walks through Matthew 12

The Deity of Christ

Open the study →

About Matthew

John the Baptist Baptizes Jesus — Gustave Doré (engraving, public domain)

Matthew: the study guide →Read chapter 12 →The featured study →

PersonDivided kingdomJonahThe prophet who fled his commission, prayed from the fish's belly, preached Nineveh's overthrow, and sulked at its mercy — the sig…

Continue: Matthew 12 →

01Commentary

The record, by era

Voices on this verse

02Original language & word study

03The walk

Where the connections lead

04Related verses

05Featured studies on this passage

06About Matthew

The record, by era

Where the connections lead

Commentary

Original language & word study

The walk

Related verses

Featured studies on this passage

About Matthew