Matthew 23:31
New International Version
So you testify against yourselves that you are the descendants of those who murdered the prophets.

New Living Translation
“But in saying that, you testify against yourselves that you are indeed the descendants of those who murdered the prophets.

English Standard Version
Thus you witness against yourselves that you are sons of those who murdered the prophets.

Berean Standard Bible
So you testify against yourselves that you are the sons of those who murdered the prophets.

Berean Literal Bible
Thus you bear witness to yourselves that you are sons of those having murdered the prophets.

King James Bible
Wherefore ye be witnesses unto yourselves, that ye are the children of them which killed the prophets.

New King James Version
“Therefore you are witnesses against yourselves that you are sons of those who murdered the prophets.

New American Standard Bible
So you testify against yourselves, that you are sons of those who murdered the prophets.

NASB 1995
“So you testify against yourselves, that you are sons of those who murdered the prophets.

NASB 1977
“Consequently you bear witness against yourselves, that you are sons of those who murdered the prophets.

Legacy Standard Bible
So you bear witness against yourselves, that you are sons of those who murdered the prophets.

Amplified Bible
So you testify against yourselves that you are the descendants of those who murdered the prophets.

Christian Standard Bible
So you testify against yourselves that you are descendants of those who murdered the prophets.

Holman Christian Standard Bible
You, therefore, testify against yourselves that you are sons of those who murdered the prophets.

American Standard Version
Wherefore ye witness to yourselves, that ye are sons of them that slew the prophets.

Contemporary English Version
But you prove you really are the relatives of the ones who killed the prophets.

English Revised Version
Wherefore ye witness to yourselves, that ye are sons of them that slew the prophets.

GOD'S WORD® Translation
So you testify against yourselves that you are the descendants of those who murdered the prophets.

Good News Translation
So you actually admit that you are the descendants of those who murdered the prophets!

International Standard Version
Therefore, you testify against yourselves that you are descendants of those who murdered the prophets.

Majority Standard Bible
So you testify against yourselves that you are the sons of those who murdered the prophets.

NET Bible
By saying this you testify against yourselves that you are descendants of those who murdered the prophets.

New Heart English Bible
Therefore you testify to yourselves that you are children of those who killed the prophets.

Webster's Bible Translation
Wherefore ye are witnesses to yourselves, that ye are the children of them who killed the prophets.

Weymouth New Testament
"So that you bear witness against yourselves that you are descendants of those who murdered the Prophets.

World English Bible
Therefore you testify to yourselves that you are children of those who killed the prophets.
Literal Translations
Literal Standard Version
So that you testify to yourselves that you are sons of them who murdered the prophets;

Berean Literal Bible
Thus you bear witness to yourselves that you are sons of those having murdered the prophets.

Young's Literal Translation
So that ye testify to yourselves, that ye are sons of them who did murder the prophets;

Smith's Literal Translation
Wherefore ye bear testimony to yourselves, that ye are the sons of those having slain the prophets.
Catholic Translations
Douay-Rheims Bible
Wherefore you are witnesses against yourselves, that you are the sons of them that killed the prophets.

Catholic Public Domain Version
And so you are witnesses against yourselves, that you are the sons of those who killed the prophets.

New American Bible
Thus you bear witness against yourselves that you are the children of those who murdered the prophets;

New Revised Standard Version
Thus you testify against yourselves that you are descendants of those who murdered the prophets.
Translations from Aramaic
Lamsa Bible
Now you testify concerning yourselves, that you are the children of those who killed the prophets.

Aramaic Bible in Plain English
Therefore you testify against yourselves that you are the children of those who murdered The Prophets.
NT Translations
Anderson New Testament
So then you testify against yourselves, that you are the sons of those who killed the prophets.

Godbey New Testament
So you witness to yourselves, that you are the sons of those who murdered the prophets.

Haweis New Testament
Wherefore ye bear a testimony to yourselves, that ye are the children of those who killed the prophets.

Mace New Testament
whereby you yourselves own that ye are indeed the children of those who killed the prophets,

Weymouth New Testament
"So that you bear witness against yourselves that you are descendants of those who murdered the Prophets.

Worrell New Testament
So then ye testify to yourselves that ye are sons of those who killed the prophets;

Worsley New Testament
so that ye are witnesses yourselves, that ye are the children of those who killed the prophets:

Additional Translations ...
Audio Bible



Context
Woes to Scribes and Pharisees
30And you say, ‘If we had lived in the days of our fathers, we would not have been partners with them in shedding the blood of the prophets.’ 31So you testify against yourselves that you are the sons of those who murdered the prophets. 32Fill up, then, the measure of the sin of your fathers.…

Cross References
Acts 7:52
Which of the prophets did your fathers fail to persecute? They even killed those who foretold the coming of the Righteous One. And now you are His betrayers and murderers—

Luke 11:47-48
Woe to you! For you build tombs for the prophets, but it was your fathers who killed them. / So you are witnesses consenting to the deeds of your fathers: They killed the prophets, and you build their tombs.

Hebrews 11:36-38
Still others endured mocking and flogging, and even chains and imprisonment. / They were stoned, they were sawed in two, they were put to death by the sword. They went around in sheepskins and goatskins, destitute, oppressed, and mistreated. / The world was not worthy of them. They wandered in deserts and mountains, and hid in caves and holes in the ground.

1 Thessalonians 2:15
who killed both the Lord Jesus and their own prophets and drove us out as well. They are displeasing to God and hostile to all men,

Romans 11:3
“Lord, they have killed Your prophets and torn down Your altars. I am the only one left, and they are seeking my life as well”?

Acts 7:51-53
You stiff-necked people with uncircumcised hearts and ears! You always resist the Holy Spirit, just as your fathers did. / Which of the prophets did your fathers fail to persecute? They even killed those who foretold the coming of the Righteous One. And now you are His betrayers and murderers— / you who received the law ordained by angels, yet have not kept it.”

1 Kings 19:10
“I have been very zealous for the LORD, the God of Hosts,” he replied, “but the Israelites have forsaken Your covenant, torn down Your altars, and killed Your prophets with the sword. I am the only one left, and they are seeking my life as well.”

Nehemiah 9:26
But they were disobedient and rebelled against You; they flung Your law behind their backs. They killed Your prophets, who had admonished them to return to You. They committed terrible blasphemies.

Jeremiah 2:30
“I have struck your sons in vain; they accepted no discipline. Your own sword has devoured your prophets like a voracious lion.”

Jeremiah 26:23
They brought Uriah out of Egypt and took him to King Jehoiakim, who had him put to the sword and his body thrown into the burial place of the common people.

2 Chronicles 36:16
But they mocked the messengers of God, despising His words and scoffing at His prophets, until the wrath of the LORD against His people was stirred up beyond remedy.

2 Chronicles 24:20-21
Then the Spirit of God came upon Zechariah son of Jehoiada the priest, who stood up before the people and said to them, “This is what God says: ‘Why do you transgress the commandments of the LORD so that you cannot prosper? Because you have forsaken the LORD, He has forsaken you.’” / But they conspired against Zechariah, and by order of the king, they stoned him in the courtyard of the house of the LORD.

Ezekiel 2:3-5
“Son of man,” He said to me, “I am sending you to the Israelites, to a rebellious nation that has rebelled against Me. To this very day they and their fathers have rebelled against Me. / They are obstinate and stubborn children. I am sending you to them, and you are to say to them, ‘This is what the Lord GOD says.’ / And whether they listen or refuse to listen—for they are a rebellious house—they will know that a prophet has been among them.

Zechariah 1:4-6
Do not be like your fathers, to whom the former prophets proclaimed that this is what the LORD of Hosts says: ‘Turn now from your evil ways and deeds.’ But they did not listen or pay attention to Me, declares the LORD. / Where are your fathers now? And the prophets, do they live forever? / But did not My words and My statutes, which I commanded My servants the prophets, overtake your fathers? They repented and said, ‘Just as the LORD of Hosts purposed to do to us according to our ways and deeds, so He has done to us.’”

Zechariah 7:11-12
But they refused to pay attention and turned a stubborn shoulder; they stopped up their ears from hearing. / They made their hearts like flint and would not listen to the law or to the words that the LORD of Hosts had sent by His Spirit through the earlier prophets. Therefore great anger came from the LORD of Hosts.


Treasury of Scripture

Why you be witnesses to yourselves, that you are the children of them which killed the prophets.

witnesses.

Joshua 24:22
And Joshua said unto the people, Ye are witnesses against yourselves that ye have chosen you the LORD, to serve him. And they said, We are witnesses.

Job 15:5,6
For thy mouth uttereth thine iniquity, and thou choosest the tongue of the crafty…

Psalm 64:8
So they shall make their own tongue to fall upon themselves: all that see them shall flee away.

that.

Acts 7:51,52
Ye stiffnecked and uncircumcised in heart and ears, ye do always resist the Holy Ghost: as your fathers did, so do ye…

1 Thessalonians 2:15,16
Who both killed the Lord Jesus, and their own prophets, and have persecuted us; and they please not God, and are contrary to all men: …

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Bear Children Death Descendants Killed Murder Murdered Prophets Slew Testify Wherefore Witness Witnesses Yourselves
Matthew 23
1. Jesus admonishes the people to follow good doctrine, not bad examples
5. His disciples must beware of their ambition.
13. He denounces eight woes against their hypocrisy and blindness,
34. and prophesies of the destruction of Jerusalem.














So you testify against yourselves
This phrase underscores the self-incrimination of the religious leaders. The Greek word for "testify" is "μαρτυρέω" (martureo), which means to bear witness or give evidence. In a legal sense, it implies providing testimony that can be used in judgment. Here, Jesus is highlighting the Pharisees' acknowledgment of their spiritual lineage. Historically, the religious leaders prided themselves on their heritage, yet Jesus points out that their actions and attitudes align them with their forefathers who opposed God's messengers. This self-testimony is a powerful indictment, as it reveals their complicity in the same rebellious spirit.

that you are the sons
The term "sons" in this context is not merely biological but denotes a spiritual and moral kinship. In Hebrew culture, being a "son" often implied sharing in the character or actions of one's ancestors. The Greek word "υἱός" (huios) is used here, which can signify a follower or one who embodies the traits of another. Jesus is emphasizing that the Pharisees are not just descendants by blood but are spiritually aligned with their forebears' disobedience and hostility towards God's prophets.

of those who murdered the prophets
This phrase is a direct accusation linking the current religious leaders to the historical persecution of God's messengers. The word "murdered" comes from the Greek "φονεύω" (phoneuo), meaning to kill or slay. Throughout Israel's history, prophets were often rejected and killed for delivering God's truth, as seen in the accounts of prophets like Isaiah and Jeremiah. Jesus is drawing a parallel between the past and present, suggesting that the same spirit of rejection and violence resides in the hearts of the Pharisees. This historical context serves as a sobering reminder of the persistent resistance to divine truth and the tragic consequences of such actions.

(31) Ye be witnesses unto yourselves.--Their words were true in another sense than that in which they had spoken them. They were reproducing in their deeds the very lineaments of those fathers whom they condemned.

Verse 31. - Ye be witnesses unto yourselves. By busying yourselves about adorning the tombs of the prophets slain by your ancestors, you show your descent and the spirit which animates you. Ye are the children; ye are sons. They were true sons of their fathers, inheriting their murderous instincts, following their steps. Like father, like son. They inherited and put in practice the same false principles which led their ancestors astray.

Parallel Commentaries ...


Greek
So
ὥστε (hōste)
Conjunction
Strong's 5620: So that, therefore, so then, so as to. From hos and te; so too, i.e. Thus therefore.

you testify
μαρτυρεῖτε (martyreite)
Verb - Present Indicative Active - 2nd Person Plural
Strong's 3140: To witness, bear witness, give evidence, testify, give a good report. From martus; to be a witness, i.e. Testify.

against yourselves
ἑαυτοῖς (heautois)
Reflexive Pronoun - Dative Masculine 3rd Person Plural
Strong's 1438: Himself, herself, itself.

that
ὅτι (hoti)
Conjunction
Strong's 3754: Neuter of hostis as conjunction; demonstrative, that; causative, because.

you are
ἐστε (este)
Verb - Present Indicative Active - 2nd Person Plural
Strong's 1510: I am, exist. The first person singular present indicative; a prolonged form of a primary and defective verb; I exist.

[the] sons
υἱοί (huioi)
Noun - Nominative Masculine Plural
Strong's 5207: A son, descendent. Apparently a primary word; a 'son', used very widely of immediate, remote or figuratively, kinship.

of those
τῶν (tōn)
Article - Genitive Masculine Plural
Strong's 3588: The, the definite article. Including the feminine he, and the neuter to in all their inflections; the definite article; the.

who murdered
φονευσάντων (phoneusantōn)
Verb - Aorist Participle Active - Genitive Masculine Plural
Strong's 5407: To murder, kill. From phoneus; to be a murderer.

the
τοὺς (tous)
Article - Accusative Masculine Plural
Strong's 3588: The, the definite article. Including the feminine he, and the neuter to in all their inflections; the definite article; the.

prophets.
προφήτας (prophētas)
Noun - Accusative Masculine Plural
Strong's 4396: From a compound of pro and phemi; a foreteller; by analogy, an inspired speaker; by extension, a poet.


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NT Gospels: Matthew 23:31 Therefore you testify to yourselves that you (Matt. Mat Mt)
Matthew 23:30
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