Verse (Click for Chapter) New International Version “No one can serve two masters. Either you will hate the one and love the other, or you will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and money. New Living Translation “No one can serve two masters. For you will hate one and love the other; you will be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and be enslaved to money. English Standard Version “No one can serve two masters, for 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 God and money. Berean Standard Bible 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 money. Berean Literal Bible No one is able to serve two masters, for either he will hate the one and he will love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and he will despise the other. You are not able to serve God and mammon. King James Bible No man can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon. New King James Version “No one can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or else he will be loyal to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon. New American Standard Bible “No one can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and wealth. NASB 1995 “No one can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and wealth. NASB 1977 “No one can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will hold to one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon. Legacy Standard Bible “No one can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and wealth. Amplified Bible “No one can serve two masters; for 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 God and mammon [money, possessions, fame, status, or whatever is valued more than the Lord]. Christian Standard Bible “No one can serve two masters, since either he will hate one and love the other, or he will be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and money. Holman Christian Standard Bible “No one can be a slave of two masters, since either he will hate one and love the other, or be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot be slaves of God and of money. American Standard Version No man can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon. Aramaic Bible in Plain English No man can work for two masters, for either he will hate one and will love the other, or he will honor one and the other he will ignore. You cannot work for God and for money. Contemporary English Version You cannot be the slave of two masters! You will like one more than the other or be more loyal to one than the other. You cannot serve both God and money. Douay-Rheims Bible No man can serve two masters. For either he will hate the one, and love the other: or he will sustain the one, and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon. English Revised Version No man can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon. GOD'S WORD® Translation "No one can serve two masters. He will hate the first master and love the second, or he will be devoted to the first and despise the second. You cannot serve God and wealth. Good News Translation "You cannot be a slave of two masters; you will hate one and love the other; you will be loyal to one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and money. International Standard Version "No one can serve two masters, because either he will hate one and love the other, or be loyal to one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and riches!" Literal Standard Version None is able to serve two lords, for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will hold to the one, and despise the other; you are not able to serve God and wealth. Majority Standard Bible 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 money. New American Bible “No one can serve two masters. He will either hate one and love the other, or be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon. NET Bible "No one can serve two masters, for 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 God and money. New Revised Standard Version “No one can serve two masters; for a slave will either hate the one and love the other, or be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and wealth. New Heart English Bible "No one can serve two masters, for either he will hate the one and love the other; or else he will be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and Mammon. Webster's Bible Translation No man can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon. Weymouth New Testament "No man can be the bondservant of two masters; for either he will dislike one and like the other, or he will attach himself to one and think slightingly of the other. You cannot be the bondservants both of God and of gold. World English Bible “No one can serve two masters, for either he will hate the one and love the other, or else he will be devoted to one and despise the other. You can’t serve both God and Mammon. Young's Literal Translation 'None is able to serve two lords, for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will hold to the one, and despise the other; ye are not able to serve God and Mammon. Additional Translations ... Context The Lamp of the Body…23But if your eyes are bad, your whole body will be full of darkness. If then the light within you is darkness, how great is that darkness! 24No 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 money. 25Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothes?… Cross References 1 Kings 18:21 Then Elijah approached all the people and said, "How long will you waver between two opinions? If the LORD is God, follow Him. But if Baal is God, follow him." But the people did not answer a word. 2 Kings 17:41 So these nations worshiped the LORD but also served their idols, and to this day their children and grandchildren continue to do as their fathers did. Luke 16:9 I tell you, use worldly wealth to make friends for yourselves, so that when it is gone, they will welcome you into eternal dwellings. Luke 16:11 So if you have not been faithful with worldly wealth, who will entrust you with true riches? Luke 16:13 No servant 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 money." Romans 6:20 For when you were slaves to sin, you were free of obligation to righteousness. 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. Treasury of Scripture No man can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon. serve. Matthew 4:10 Then saith Jesus unto him, Get thee hence, Satan: for it is written, Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou serve. Joshua 24:15,19,20 And if it seem evil unto you to serve the LORD, choose you this day whom ye will serve; whether the gods which your fathers served that were on the other side of the flood, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land ye dwell: but as for me and my house, we will serve the LORD… 1 Samuel 7:3 And Samuel spake unto all the house of Israel, saying, If ye do return unto the LORD with all your hearts, then put away the strange gods and Ashtaroth from among you, and prepare your hearts unto the LORD, and serve him only: and he will deliver you out of the hand of the Philistines. mammon. Luke 16:9,11,13 And I say unto you, Make to yourselves friends of the mammon of unrighteousness; that, when ye fail, they may receive you into everlasting habitations… 1 Timothy 6:9,10,17 But they that will be rich fall into temptation and a snare, and into many foolish and hurtful lusts, which drown men in destruction and perdition… Jump to Previous Able Attach Bondservants Despise Devoted Either Hate Hold Love Mammon Masters Servant Serve Slightingly ThinkJump to Next Able Attach Bondservants Despise Devoted Either Hate Hold Love Mammon Masters Servant Serve Slightingly ThinkMatthew 6 1. Giving to the Needy5. The Lord's Prayer 16. Proper Fasting 19. Store up Treasures in Heaven 25. Do Not Worry 33. but seek God's kingdom. (24) No man can serve two masters.--Literally, can be the slave of two masters. The clauses that follow describe two distinct results of the attempt to combine the two forms of service which are really incompatible. In most cases, there will be love for the one, and a real hatred for the other. The man who loves God cannot love the evil world, and, so far as it is evil, will learn to hate it. The man who loves the world will, even in the midst of lip-homage, hate the service of God in his inmost heart. But there are natures which seem hardly susceptible of such strong emotions as love or hatred. In that case there will be a like though not an identical, issue. The man's will will drift in one direction or another. He will cleave to one with such affection as he is capable of, and will hold the other cheap. God or mammon, not both together, will be the ruling power with him. Mammon.--The word means in Syriac "money" or "riches," and is used in this sense in Luke 16:9. It occurs frequently in the Chaldee Targum, but no word resembling it is found in the Hebrew of the Old Testament. In the fourth century Jerome found it in use in Syria, and Augustine in the Punic dialect of his native country. There is no ground for believing that it ever became the name of any deity, who, like the Plutus of the Greeks, was worshipped as the god of wealth. Here, there is obviously an approach to a personification for the sake of contrasting the service or worship of money with that which is due to God. Milton's description of Mammon among the fallen angels is a development of the same thought (Par. Lost, I. 678). Verse 24. - No man can serve two masters, etc. In Luke 16:13 the saying is found almost word for word immediately after the parable of the unjust steward. As the word "mammon" comes twice in that parable, but nowhere else in the New Testament, it is probable that its occurrence caused the insertion of this saying in that place (cf. ver. 22, note). No man can serve two masters. The thought is still of earnestness of purpose and singleness of heart. Our Lord here speaks of the impossibility of such divided service as he has been warning his disciples against attempting. No man can give due service to two masters. For, apart from the extent of the claim of each master - total bond-service (δουλεύειν) - thorough service of two masters is incompatible with the effects produced upon the servant himself. The result of service is to incline him towards the one master and against the other. Notice how our Lord continues his plan of setting forth the moral effect of modes of thought or action upon the agents themselves (cf. Romans 6:16). For either he will hate the one (τὸν ἕνα), and love the other. Because human nature is such that it must attach itself to one of two principles. "Cor hominis neque its vacuum esse potest, ut non serviat ant Dee aut creaturae: neque simul duobus servire" (Bengel). Or else he will hold to the one (η} ἑνὸς ἀνθέξεται). The Revised Version omits "the." The stress here is on "one - not both." Hold to; in steadfast application (cf. Ellicott, on Titus 1:9). Ye cannot serve God and mammon; "Ye moun not serve god and ricchesse" (Wickliffe). A repetition of the statement of the impossibility of serving two masters, but more than a repetition, for it is enforced by defining who the masters are. Mammon. The change in the Revised Version from a capital to a small m has probably been made to prevent "mammon" being understood as the proper name of some god. The derivation of the word (μαμωνᾶς, ממונא) is very doubtful. The most probable suggestion is that it is formed from the stem of מנה, and is equivalent to that which is apportioned or counted (cf. Levy, 'Neuheb. Worterb.,' s.v.; Edersheim, 'Life,' 2. p. 269). Hence its well-known meaning of property, wealth, especially money. Observe that our Lord does not here contrast God and Satan; he is emphasizing the thought which he has been adducing since ver. 19, viz., the relation that his disciples must hold to things of earth, which are summed up by him under the term "mammon" as with us under the term "wealth." Observe also that it is not the possession of wealth that he condemns, but the serving it, making it an object of thought and pursuit. Gathering it and using it in the service of and according to the will of God is not serving mammon (cf. Weiss, 'Matthaus-Ev.').Parallel Commentaries ... Greek No oneΟὐδεὶς (Oudeis) Adjective - Nominative Masculine Singular Strong's 3762: No one, none, nothing. can δύναται (dynatai) Verb - Present Indicative Middle or Passive - 3rd Person Singular Strong's 1410: (a) I am powerful, have (the) power, (b) I am able, I can. Of uncertain affinity; to be able or possible. serve δουλεύειν (douleuein) Verb - Present Infinitive Active Strong's 1398: To be a slave, be subject to, obey, be devoted. From doulos; to be a slave to. two δυσὶ (dysi) Adjective - Dative Masculine Plural Strong's 1417: Two. A primary numeral; 'two'. masters: κυρίοις (kyriois) Noun - Dative Masculine Plural Strong's 2962: Lord, master, sir; the Lord. From kuros; supreme in authority, i.e. controller; by implication, Master. Either ἢ (ē) Conjunction Strong's 2228: Or, than. A primary particle of distinction between two connected terms; disjunctive, or; comparative, than. he will hate μισήσει (misēsei) Verb - Future Indicative Active - 3rd Person Singular Strong's 3404: To hate, detest, love less, esteem less. From a primary misos; to detest; by extension, to love less. the τὸν (ton) Article - Accusative Masculine Singular Strong's 3588: The, the definite article. Including the feminine he, and the neuter to in all their inflections; the definite article; the. one ἕνα (hena) Adjective - Accusative Masculine Singular Strong's 1520: One. (including the neuter Hen); a primary numeral; one. and καὶ (kai) Conjunction Strong's 2532: And, even, also, namely. love ἀγαπήσει (agapēsei) Verb - Future Indicative Active - 3rd Person Singular Strong's 25: To love, wish well to, take pleasure in, long for; denotes the love of reason, esteem. Perhaps from agan; to love. the τὸν (ton) Article - Accusative Masculine Singular Strong's 3588: The, the definite article. Including the feminine he, and the neuter to in all their inflections; the definite article; the. other, ἕτερον (heteron) Adjective - Accusative Masculine Singular Strong's 2087: (a) of two: another, a second, (b) other, different, (c) one's neighbor. Of uncertain affinity; other or different. or ἢ (ē) Conjunction Strong's 2228: Or, than. A primary particle of distinction between two connected terms; disjunctive, or; comparative, than. he will be devoted to ἀνθέξεται (anthexetai) Verb - Future Indicative Middle - 3rd Person Singular Strong's 472: From anti and the middle voice of echo; to hold oneself opposite to, i.e. adhere to; by extension to care for. [the] one ἑνὸς (henos) Adjective - Genitive Masculine Singular Strong's 1520: One. (including the neuter Hen); a primary numeral; one. and καὶ (kai) Conjunction Strong's 2532: And, even, also, namely. despise καταφρονήσει (kataphronēsei) Verb - Future Indicative Active - 3rd Person Singular Strong's 2706: To despise, scorn, and show it by active insult, disregard. From kata and phroneo; to think against, i.e. Disesteem. the τοῦ (tou) Article - Genitive Masculine Singular Strong's 3588: The, the definite article. Including the feminine he, and the neuter to in all their inflections; the definite article; the. other. ἑτέρου (heterou) Adjective - Genitive Masculine Singular Strong's 2087: (a) of two: another, a second, (b) other, different, (c) one's neighbor. Of uncertain affinity; other or different. You cannot δύνασθε (dynasthe) Verb - Present Indicative Middle or Passive - 2nd Person Plural Strong's 1410: (a) I am powerful, have (the) power, (b) I am able, I can. Of uncertain affinity; to be able or possible. serve [both] δουλεύειν (douleuein) Verb - Present Infinitive Active Strong's 1398: To be a slave, be subject to, obey, be devoted. From doulos; to be a slave to. God Θεῷ (Theō) Noun - Dative Masculine Singular Strong's 2316: A deity, especially the supreme Divinity; figuratively, a magistrate; by Hebraism, very. and καὶ (kai) Conjunction Strong's 2532: And, even, also, namely. money. μαμωνᾷ (mamōna) Noun - Dative Masculine Singular Strong's 3126: (Aramaic), riches, money, possessions, property. Of Chaldee origin; mammonas, i.e. Avarice. Links Matthew 6:24 NIVMatthew 6:24 NLT Matthew 6:24 ESV Matthew 6:24 NASB Matthew 6:24 KJV Matthew 6:24 BibleApps.com Matthew 6:24 Biblia Paralela Matthew 6:24 Chinese Bible Matthew 6:24 French Bible Matthew 6:24 Catholic Bible NT Gospels: Matthew 6:24 No one can serve two masters (Matt. Mat Mt) |
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