Matthew 23:11

THE MESSAGE

"Do you want to stand out? Then step down. Be a servant. If you puff yourself up, you'll get the wind knocked out of you. But if you're content to simply be yourself, your life will count for plenty.

Parallel Translations

Christian Standard Bible®
The greatest among you will be your servant.

King James Version (1611)
But hee that is greatest among you, shall be your seruant.

King James Version
But he that is greatest among you shall be your servant.

English Standard Version
The greatest among you shall be your servant.

New American Standard Bible
"But the greatest of you shall be your servant.

New Century Version
Whoever is your servant is the greatest among you.

Amplified Bible
"But the greatest among you will be your servant.

New American Standard Bible (1995)
"But the greatest among you shall be your servant.

Legacy Standard Bible
But the greatest among you shall be your servant.

Berean Standard Bible
The greatest among you shall be your servant.

Contemporary English Version
Whoever is the greatest should be the servant of the others.

Complete Jewish Bible
The greatest among you must be your servant,

Darby Translation
But the greatest of you shall be your servant.

Easy-to-Read Version
Whoever serves you like a servant is the greatest among you.

Geneva Bible (1587)
But he that is greatest among you, let him be your seruant.

George Lamsa Translation
But he who is greatest among you, let him be your minister.

Good News Translation
The greatest one among you must be your servant.

Lexham English Bible
And the greatest among you will be your servant.

Literal Translation
But the greater of you shall be your servant.

American Standard Version
But he that is greatest among you shall be your servant.

Bible in Basic English
But let the greatest among you be your servant.

Hebrew Names Version
But he who is greatest among you will be your servant.

International Standard Version
The person who is greatest among you must be your servant.Matthew 20:26-27;">[xr]

Etheridge Translation
But he who is great among you, let him be your servitor.

Murdock Translation
And the great one among you will be your servitor.

Bishop's Bible (1568)
He that is greatest among you, shalbe your seruaunt.

English Revised Version
But he that is greatest among you shall be your servant.

World English Bible
But he who is greatest among you will be your servant.

Wesley's New Testament (1755)
But he that is greatest among you shall be your servant.

Weymouth's New Testament
He who is the greatest among you shall be your servant;

Wycliffe Bible (1395)
He that is grettest among you, schal be youre mynystre.

Update Bible Version
But he that is greatest among you shall be your servant.

Webster's Bible Translation
But he that is greatest among you, shall be your servant.

New English Translation
The greatest among you will be your servant.

New King James Version
But he who is greatest among you shall be your servant.

New Living Translation
The greatest among you must be a servant.

New Life Bible
"He who is greatest among you will be the one to care for you.

New Revised Standard
The greatest among you will be your servant.

J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible
And, the greatest of you, shall be to you, a minister;

Douay-Rheims Bible
He that is the greatest among you shall be your servant.

Revised Standard Version
He who is greatest among you shall be your servant;

Tyndale New Testament (1525)
He that is greatest amoge you shalbe youre seruaunte.

Young's Literal Translation
And the greater of you shall be your ministrant,

Miles Coverdale Bible (1535)
He that is greatest amoge you, shalbe youre seruaunt.

Mace New Testament (1729)
he that is greatest among you shall be your servant.

Simplified Cowboy Version
The one who is the top hand among you will be your servant who works like a pack mule.

Contextual Overview

¹Now Jesus turned to address his disciples, along with the crowd that had gathered with them. "The religion scholars and Pharisees are competent teachers in God's Law. You won't go wrong in following their teachings on Moses. But be careful about following them. They talk a good line, but they don't live it. They don't take it into their hearts and live it out in their behavior. It's all spit-and-polish veneer. ⁴"Instead of giving you God's Law as food and drink by which you can banquet on God, they package it in bundles of rules, loading you down like pack animals. They seem to take pleasure in watching you stagger under these loads, and wouldn't think of lifting a finger to help. Their lives are perpetual fashion shows, embroidered prayer shawls one day and flowery prayers the next. They love to sit at the head table at church dinners, basking in the most prominent positions, preening in the radiance of public flattery, receiving honorary degrees, and getting called ‘Doctor' and ‘Reverend.' ⁸"Don't let people do that to you, put you on a pedestal like that. You all have a single Teacher, and you are all classmates. Don't set people up as experts over your life, letting them tell you what to do. Save that authority for God; let him tell you what to do. No one else should carry the title of ‘Father'; you have only one Father, and he's in heaven. And don't let people maneuver you into taking charge of them. There is only one Life-Leader for you and them—Christ. ¹¹"Do you want to stand out? Then step down. Be a servant. If you puff yourself up, you'll get the wind knocked out of you. But if you're content to simply be yourself, your life will count for plenty.

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

Matthew 20:26, Matthew 20:27, Mark 10:43, Mark 10:44, Luke 22:26, Luke 22:27, John 13:14, John 13:15, 1 Corinthians 9:19, 2 Corinthians 4:5, 2 Corinthians 11:23, Galatians 5:13, Philippians 2:5-8

Reciprocal: Matthew 18:1 - Who Matthew 18:4 - humble Luke 9:48 - he that

Cross-References

Genesis 23:7
Then Abraham got up, bowed respectfully to the people of the land, the Hittites, and said, "If you're serious about helping me give my wife a proper burial, intercede for me with Ephron son of Zohar. Ask him to sell me the cave of Machpelah that he owns, the one at the end of his land. Ask him to sell it to me at its full price for a burial plot, with you as witnesses."

Genesis 23:12
Abraham bowed respectfully before the assembled council and answered Ephron: "Please allow me—I want to pay the price of the land; take my money so that I can go ahead and bury my wife."

Numbers 35:30
"Anyone who kills another may be executed only on the testimony of eyewitnesses. But no one can be executed on the testimony of only one witness.

Deuteronomy 17:6
But only on the testimony of two or three witnesses may a person be put to death. No one may be put to death on the testimony of one witness. The witnesses must throw the first stones in the execution, then the rest of the community joins in. You have to purge the evil from your community.

Deuteronomy 19:15
You cannot convict anyone of a crime or sin on the word of one witness. You need two or three witnesses to make a case.

Ruth 4:1
Boaz went straight to the public square and took his place there. Before long the "closer relative," the one mentioned earlier by Boaz, strolled by. "Step aside, old friend," said Boaz. "Take a seat." The man sat down.

Ruth 4:9
Boaz then addressed the elders and all the people in the town square that day: "You are witnesses today that I have bought from Naomi everything that belonged to Elimelech and Kilion and Mahlon, including responsibility for Ruth the foreigner, the widow of Mahlon—I'll take her as my wife and keep the name of the deceased alive along with his inheritance. The memory and reputation of the deceased is not going to disappear out of this family or from his hometown. To all this you are witnesses this very day."

Ruth 4:11
All the people in the town square that day, backing up the elders, said, "Yes, we are witnesses. May God make this woman who is coming into your household like Rachel and Leah, the two women who built the family of Israel. May God make you a pillar in Ephrathah and famous in Bethlehem! With the children God gives you from this young woman, may your family rival the family of Perez, the son Tamar bore to Judah."

Luke 19:24
"Then he said to those standing there, ‘Take the money from him and give it to the servant who doubled my stake.'

Gill's Notes on the Bible

But he that is greatest among you,.... Either who really is so, having more grace, and greater gifts bestowed upon him, than others; which doubtless was the case of some of the disciples, or who desired to be the greatest, was ambitious of, and affected a superiority over others, and to be in the highest post and place, as it is certain some of them did. This was what they were often contending about among themselves, who should be greatest: and Christ here seems to have regard to that vain spirit, which appeared among them; and his view is, to check and restrain it: "shall be your servant"; or "let him be your servant". Service is the way to honour; he that would be most esteemed ought to do the most work; and the man that has the most grace, and the greatest gifts, ought to employ them for the use and benefit of others;

:-.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

See the notes at Matthew 20:26.

He that shall humble himself ... - God will exalt or honor him that is humble, and that seeks a lowly place among people. That is true religion, and God will reward it.

Clarke's Notes on the Bible

Verse Matthew 23:11. Your servant. — διακονος, deacon. See on Matthew 20:26.