Matthew 23:18

English Standard Version

And you say, ‘If anyone swears by the altar, it is nothing, but if anyone swears by the gift that is on the altar, he is bound by his oath.'

Parallel Translations

Christian Standard Bible®
Also, ‘Whoever takes an oath by the altar, it means nothing; but whoever takes an oath by the gift that is on it is bound by his oath.’

King James Version (1611)
And whosoeuer shall sweare by the Altar, it is nothing: but whosoeuer sweareth by the gift that is vpon it, he is guiltie.

King James Version
And, Whosoever shall swear by the altar, it is nothing; but whosoever sweareth by the gift that is upon it, he is guilty.

New American Standard Bible
"And you say, 'Whoever swears by the altar, that is nothing; but whoever swears by the offering that is on it is obligated.'

New Century Version
And you say, ‘If people swear by the altar when they make a promise, that means nothing. But if they swear by the gift on the altar, they must keep that promise.'

Amplified Bible
"And [you scribes and Pharisees say], 'Whoever swears [an oath] by the altar, that is nothing (non-binding), but whoever swears [an oath] by the offering on it, he is obligated [as a debtor to fulfill his vow and keep his promise].'

New American Standard Bible (1995)
"And, 'Whoever swears by the altar, that is nothing, but whoever swears by the offering on it, he is obligated.'

Legacy Standard Bible
And, ‘Whoever swears by the altar, that is nothing, but whoever swears by the offering on it, he is obligated.'

Berean Standard Bible
And you say, 'If anyone swears by the altar, it means nothing; but if anyone swears by the gift on it, he is bound by his oath.'

Contemporary English Version
You also teach that it doesn't matter if a person swears by the altar. But you say that it does matter if someone swears by the gift on the altar.

Complete Jewish Bible
And you say, ‘If someone swears by the altar, he is not bound by his oath; but if he swears by the offering on the altar, he is bound.'

Darby Translation
And, Whosoever shall swear by the altar, it is nothing; but whosoever shall swear by the gift that is upon it is a debtor.

Easy-to-Read Version
"And you say, ‘If anyone uses the altar to make a promise, that means nothing. But anyone who uses the gift on the altar to make a promise must keep that promise.'

Geneva Bible (1587)
And whosoeuer sweareth by the altar, it is nothing: but whosoeuer sweareth by the offering that is vpon it, offendeth.

George Lamsa Translation
And whoever swears by the altar, it is nothing; but whoever swears by the offering that is on it, he is guilty.

Good News Translation
You also teach, ‘If someone swears by the altar, he isn't bound by his vow; but if he swears by the gift on the altar, he is bound.'

Lexham English Bible
And, ‘Whoever swears by the altar, it is nothing! But whoever swears by the gift that is on it is bound by his oath.'

Literal Translation
And you say , Whoever swears by the altar, it is nothing; but whoever swears by the gift on it, he is a debtor.

American Standard Version
And, Whosoever shall swear by the altar, it is nothing; but whosoever shall swear by the gift that is upon it, he is a debtor.

Bible in Basic English
And, Whoever takes an oath by the altar, it is nothing; but whoever takes an oath by the offering which is on it, he is responsible.

Hebrew Names Version
'Whoever will swear by the altar, it is nothing; but whoever will swear by the gift that is on it, he is a debtor.'

International Standard Version
Again you say,And">[fn] 'Whoever swears an oath by the altar is excused,is nothing">[fn] but whoever swears by the gift that is on it must keep his oath.'owes a debt">[fn]

Etheridge Translation
And (that) whoever sweareth by the altar, it is nothing; but [fn] he swear by the oblation which is upon it, he is liable.

Murdock Translation
And, whoever shall swear by the altar, it is nothing: but whoever shall swear by the oblation upon it, he is holden.

Bishop's Bible (1568)
And whosoeuer sweareth by the aulter, it is nothyng: but whosoeuer sweareth by the gyft that is vpon it, he is a detter.

English Revised Version
And, Whosoever shall swear by the altar, it is nothing; but whosoever shall swear by the gift that is upon it, he is a debtor.

World English Bible
'Whoever will swear by the altar, it is nothing; but whoever will swear by the gift that is on it, he is a debtor.'

Wesley's New Testament (1755)
And whosoever shall swear by the altar, ye say, it is nothing: but whosoever shall swear by the gift that is upon it, is bound.

Weymouth's New Testament
And you say, "`Whoever swears by the altar, it is nothing; but whoever swears by the offering lying on it is bound by the oath.'

Wycliffe Bible (1395)
And who euer swerith in the auter, it is no thing; but he that swerith in the yifte that is on the auter, owith.

Update Bible Version
And, Whoever shall swear by the altar, it is nothing; but whoever shall swear by the gift that is on it, he is a debtor.

Webster's Bible Translation
And whoever shall swear by the altar, it is nothing; but whoever sweareth by the gift that is upon it, he is guilty.

New English Translation
And, ‘Whoever swears by the altar is bound by nothing. But if anyone swears by the gift on it he is bound by the oath.'

New King James Version
And, "Whoever swears by the altar, it is nothing; but whoever swears by the gift that is on it, he is obliged to perform it.'

New Living Translation
And you say that to swear ‘by the altar' is not binding, but to swear ‘by the gifts on the altar' is binding.

New Life Bible
You say, ‘Whoever will promise by the altar, his promise does not have to be kept. But whoever makes a promise by the gift on the altar, then his promise has to be kept.'

New Revised Standard
And you say, ‘Whoever swears by the altar is bound by nothing, but whoever swears by the gift that is on the altar is bound by the oath.'

J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible
And, whosoever shall swear by the altar, it is, nothing, but, whosoever shall swear by the gift that is upon it, is bound:

Douay-Rheims Bible
And whosoever shall swear by the altar, it is nothing; but whosoever shall swear by the gift that is upon it is a debtor.

Revised Standard Version
And you say, 'If any one swears by the altar, it is nothing; but if any one swears by the gift that is on the altar, he is bound by his oath.'

Tyndale New Testament (1525)
And whosoever sweareth by the aulter it is nothinge: but whosoever sweareth by ye offeringe yt lyeth on ye aultre offendeth.

Young's Literal Translation
`And, whoever may swear by the altar, it is nothing; but whoever may swear by the gift that is upon it -- is debtor!

Miles Coverdale Bible (1535)
And who so euer sweareth by the altare, that is nothinge: but who so euer sweareth by the offeringe that is vpo it, he is giltye.

Mace New Testament (1729)
again, if any one swear by the altar he is under no engagement but if he swear by the gift that is upon it, he is bound thereby.

Simplified Cowboy Version

Contextual Overview

¹³ "But woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you shut the kingdom of heaven in people's faces. For you neither enter yourselves nor allow those who would enter to go in. Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you travel across sea and land to make a single proselyte, and when he becomes a proselyte, you make him twice as much a child of hell as yourselves. "Woe to you, blind guides, who say, ‘If anyone swears by the temple, it is nothing, but if anyone swears by the gold of the temple, he is bound by his oath.' You blind fools! For which is greater, the gold or the temple that has made the gold sacred? And you say, ‘If anyone swears by the altar, it is nothing, but if anyone swears by the gift that is on the altar, he is bound by his oath.' You blind men! For which is greater, the gift or the altar that makes the gift sacred? So whoever swears by the altar swears by it and by everything on it. And whoever swears by the temple swears by it and by him who dwells in it. And whoever swears by heaven swears by the throne of God and by him who sits upon it. "Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you tithe mint and dill and cumin, and have neglected the weightier matters of the law: justice and mercy and faithfulness. These you ought to have done, without neglecting the others. You blind guides, straining out a gnat and swallowing a camel! "Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you clean the outside of the cup and the plate, but inside they are full of greed and self-indulgence. You blind Pharisee! First clean the inside of the cup and the plate, that the outside also may be clean. "Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you are like whitewashed tombs, which outwardly appear beautiful, but within are full of dead people's bones and all uncleanness. So you also outwardly appear righteous to others, but within you are full of hypocrisy and lawlessness. "Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you build the tombs of the prophets and decorate the monuments of the righteous, saying, ‘If we had lived in the days of our fathers, we would not have taken part with them in shedding the blood of the prophets.' Thus you witness against yourselves that you are sons of those who murdered the prophets. Fill up, then, the measure of your fathers. You serpents, you brood of vipers, how are you to escape being sentenced to hell? Therefore I send you prophets and wise men and scribes, some of whom you will kill and crucify, and some you will flog in your synagogues and persecute from town to town, so that on you may come all the righteous blood shed on earth, from the blood of righteous Abel to the blood of Zechariah the son of Barachiah, whom you murdered between the sanctuary and the altar. Truly, I say to you, all these things will come upon this generation. "O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the city that kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to it! How often would I have gathered your children together as a hen gathers her brood under her wings, and you were not willing! See, your house is left to you desolate. For I tell you, you will not see me again, until you say, ‘Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.'" ¹⁴Seven Woes to the Scribes and Pharisees Then Jesus said to the crowds and to his disciples, "The scribes and the Pharisees sit on Moses' seat, so do and observe whatever they tell you, but not the works they do. For they preach, but do not practice. They tie up heavy burdens, hard to bear, and lay them on people's shoulders, but they themselves are not willing to move them with their finger. They do all their deeds to be seen by others. For they make their phylacteries broad and their fringes long, and they love the place of honor at feasts and the best seats in the synagogues and greetings in the marketplaces and being called rabbi by others. But you are not to be called rabbi, for you have one teacher, and you are all brothers. And call no man your father on earth, for you have one Father, who is in heaven. Neither be called instructors, for you have one instructor, the Christ. The greatest among you shall be your servant. Whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and whoever humbles himself will be exalted. "But woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you shut the kingdom of heaven in people's faces. For you neither enter yourselves nor allow those who would enter to go in. ¹⁵ Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you travel across sea and land to make a single proselyte, and when he becomes a proselyte, you make him twice as much a child of hell as yourselves. ¹⁶ "Woe to you, blind guides, who say, ‘If anyone swears by the temple, it is nothing, but if anyone swears by the gold of the temple, he is bound by his oath.' ¹⁷ You blind fools! For which is greater, the gold or the temple that has made the gold sacred? ¹⁸ And you say, ‘If anyone swears by the altar, it is nothing, but if anyone swears by the gift that is on the altar, he is bound by his oath.' ¹⁹ You blind men! For which is greater, the gift or the altar that makes the gift sacred? ²⁰ So whoever swears by the altar swears by it and by everything on it. ²¹ And whoever swears by the temple swears by it and by him who dwells in it. ²² And whoever swears by heaven swears by the throne of God and by him who sits upon it.

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

guilty: or, debtor, Matthew 23:15, or bound

Reciprocal: Numbers 30:2 - to bind 2 Chronicles 6:22 - the oath Mark 7:11 - It is Corban Galatians 5:3 - a debtor

Cross-References

Genesis 34:20
So Hamor and his son Shechem came to the gate of their city and spoke to the men of their city, saying,

Ruth 4:1
Now Boaz had gone up to the gate and sat down there. And behold, the redeemer, of whom Boaz had spoken, came by. So Boaz said, "Turn aside, friend; sit down here." And he turned aside and sat down.

Jeremiah 32:12
And I gave the deed of purchase to Baruch the son of Neriah son of Mahseiah, in the presence of Hanamel my cousin, in the presence of the witnesses who signed the deed of purchase, and in the presence of all the Judeans who were sitting in the court of the guard.

Gill's Notes on the Bible

And whosoever shall swear by the altar, it is nothing,.... These are again the words or savings of the scribes and Pharisees, and express their sentiments and practice: it was usual with them to swear by the altar; and this was reckoned either no sin at all, or such an oath was not accounted binding on a man; he might break, or keep it as he thought fit: of this kind of swearing, we have the following instances. One said to another r,

"swear to me that thou wilt not discover me, and he swore to him; by what did he swear? says R. Jose bar Chanina,

במזבח הפנימי, "by the innermost altar".''

Again, it is said of Zedekiah s,

"that he (Nebuchadnezzar) made him to swear; by what did he make him to swear? says R. Jose, by the covenant he made him to swear; Rabbi says במזבח, "by the altar" he made him to swear.''

And elsewhere t it is said of him,

""and he also rebelled against king Nebuchadnezzar, who made him swear by God", 2 Chronicles 36:13. By what did he make him swear? says R. Jose bar Chanina, "by the horns of the innermost altar" he made him swear.''

But whosoever sweareth by the gift that is upon it, he is guilty: of perjury, if he does not make good his oath; he is bound to perform it, it is obligatory; whatever he swore should be a gift for the altar, he was indispensably obliged to bring it; for whatever he swore by "Korban", or the gift, could never be put to any other use.

r Echa Rabbati, fol. 54. 1. s Midrash Kohelet, fol. 78. 1. t Midrash Megillat Esther, fol. 89. 1.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

The altar - The altar of burnt-offerings, in the court of the priests. See the notes at Matthew 21:12. It was made of brass, about 30 feet in length and breadth, and 15 feet in height, 2 Chronicles 4:1. On this altar were offered all the beasts and bloody oblations of the temple.

The gift that is upon it - The gift or offering made to God, so called because it was devoted or “given” to him. The gift upon this altar was always beasts and birds.