He said to her, “What do you want?” She said to him, “Command that these, my two sons, may sit, one on your right hand, and one on your left hand, in your Kingdom.”
Parallel Translations
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He said to her, “What do you want?” She said to him, “Command that these, my two sons, may sit, one on your right hand, and one on your left hand, in your Kingdom.”
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And he sayd vnto her: what wilt thou have? She sayde vnto him: Gravnte that these my two sonnes may sit the one on thy right hond and the other on the lifte hond in thy kyngdome.
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And he said vnto her, What wouldest thou? She said to him, Graunt that these my two sonnes may sit, the one at thy right hand, and the other at thy left hand in thy kingdome.
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Contradictions (1)
Questions where the Bible appears to say two different things, with the passages on each side set together.
Cross-references (23)
Passages linked to Matthew 20:21 in the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge, ordered by reader-vote popularity; verse text shown in World English Bible.
- Matthew 19:28 Jesus said to them, “Most certainly I tell you that you who have followed me, in the regeneration when the Son of Man will sit on the throne of his glory, you also will sit on twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel.
- Mark 10:36-37 He said to them, “What do you want me to do for you?” They said to him, “Grant to us that we may sit, one at your right hand, and one at your left hand, in your glory.”
- Esther 5:3 Then the king asked her, “What would you like, queen Esther? What is your request? It shall be given you even to the half of the kingdom.”
- Psalms 110:1 Yahweh says to my Lord, “Sit at my right hand, until I make your enemies your footstool for your feet.”
- 1 Kings 3:5 In Gibeon, Yahweh appeared to Solomon in a dream by night; and God said, “Ask for what I should give you.”
- Matthew 18:1 In that hour the disciples came to Jesus, saying, “Who then is greatest in the Kingdom of Heaven?”
- Matthew 20:32 Jesus stood still, and called them, and asked, “What do you want me to do for you?”
- Mark 6:22 When the daughter of Herodias herself came in and danced, she pleased Herod and those sitting with him. The king said to the young lady, “Ask me whatever you want, and I will give it to you.”
- Acts 1:6 Therefore when they had come together, they asked him, “Lord, are you now restoring the kingdom to Israel?”
- Luke 22:24 A dispute also arose among them, which of them was considered to be greatest.
- John 15:7 If you remain in me, and my words remain in you, you will ask whatever you desire, and it will be done for you.
- Romans 12:10 In love of the brothers be tenderly affectionate to one another; in honor preferring one another;
- Colossians 3:1 If then you were raised together with Christ, seek the things that are above, where Christ is, seated on the right hand of God.
- Philemon 1:2-3 to the beloved Apphia, to Archippus our fellow soldier, and to the assembly in your house: Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
- Psalms 45:9 Kings’ daughters are among your honorable women. At your right hand the queen stands in gold of Ophir.
- Jeremiah 45:5 Do you seek great things for yourself? Don’t seek them; for, behold, I will bring evil on all flesh,’ says Yahweh; ‘but I will let you escape with your life wherever you go.’ ”
- Mark 10:51 Jesus asked him, “What do you want me to do for you?” The blind man said to him, “Rabboni, that I may see again.”
- Luke 17:20-21 Being asked by the Pharisees when God’s Kingdom would come, he answered them, “God’s Kingdom doesn’t come with observation; neither will they say, ‘Look, here!’ or, ‘Look, there!’ for behold, God’s Kingdom is within you.”
- Luke 18:41 “What do you want me to do?” He said, “Lord, that I may see again.”
- Luke 19:11 As they heard these things, he went on and told a parable, because he was near Jerusalem, and they supposed that God’s Kingdom would be revealed immediately.
- 1 Kings 2:19 Bathsheba therefore went to king Solomon, to speak to him for Adonijah. The king rose up to meet her, and bowed himself to her, and sat down on his throne, and caused a throne to be set for the king’s mother; and she sat on his right hand.
- Romans 8:34 Who is he who condemns? It is Christ who died, yes rather, who was raised from the dead, who is at the right hand of God, who also makes intercession for us.
- Mark 16:19 So then the Lord, after he had spoken to them, was received up into heaven, and sat down at the right hand of God.
Cross-references from openbible.info (CC BY 4.0)
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John Trapp 1656 · Public Domain 21 And he said unto her, What wilt thou?…
21 And he said unto her, What wilt thou? She saith unto him, Grant that these my two sons may sit, the one on thy right hand, and the other on the left, in thy kingdom.
Ver. 21. What wilt thou?] We may not overly hasty engage ourselves by promise of this or that to our best friends, but hold off and deliberate. Alioqui saliens antequam videat, casurus est ante quam debeat. Bernard.
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The one on thg right hand]
" Quid voveat dulci nutricula maius alumno?" Horat.
Our Saviour had promised in the former chapter that the twelve should sit upon twelve thrones, &c. These men’s suit was for the first and second seat. Self-love makes men ambitious, and teacheth them to turn the glass, to see themselves bigger, others lesser than they are; Paul, on the contrary, was least of saints, last of apostles.
John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
John Gill 1763 · Public Domain But Jesus answered, and said,.... To her two sons,
But Jesus answered, and said,.... To her two sons,
ye know not what ye ask. They were ignorant of the nature of Christ's kingdom, which is spiritual, and not of this world: or they would never have asked such a question, or sued for that which will never be enjoyed by any and supposing that Christ's kingdom had been such as they imagined, yet in asking for honours and riches, they might not know what they asked for; they might promise themselves much pleasure and happiness in the enjoyment of them, and yet, if indulged with them, might be disappointed, and find unexpected troubles and uneasiness. It would have been much more proper and seasonable, on hearing of Christ's being mocked, scourged, spit upon, and crucified, if they had put such a question to themselves, Christ here directs to,
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are ye able to drink of the cup that I shall drink of, and to be baptized with the baptism I am baptized with? meaning his reproaches, sorrows, sufferings, and death; which because of the disagreeableness of them, he compares to a bitter cup of vengeance, wrath, fury, and indignation; and because they were appointed to him, and allotted for him, they were his portion, therefore he expresses them by a "cup"; and because they were so many and great, of such an overwhelming nature, that he seemed to be plunged into them, and covered with them, therefore he likens them to a "baptism" and which the ordinance of water baptism, performed by immersion, is a lively representation of. Now Christ suggests to these disciples, that instead of indulging their ambitious desires of worldly grandeur, that they would do well to consider what a bitter cup he had to drink of, and what a sea of sorrows and sufferings he was about to be plunged into, and drenched in; and whether they could think of enduring anything of the like kind, for his sake, which was most likely to be in a short time, what they would be called unto, and not to honours, ease, and pleasure; and what they must be sure, more or less, to undergo, before they entered the everlasting kingdom of glory:
they say unto him, we are able; not considering the nature of these sufferings, and their own weakness; but partly through ignorance of themselves, and a vain confidence which possessed them; and chiefly through a vehement desire of the places in his kingdom, they asked for, and which they thought drinking his cup, and being baptized with his baptism, were the condition, and the means of enjoying; and so rashly affirm their ability, and which includes their willingness to comply herewith.
John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
John Wesley 1765 · Public Domain In thy kingdom - Still they expected a temporal…
In thy kingdom - Still they expected a temporal kingdom.
John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the Whole Bible (1754–1765) — public domain. Text via the GEBible commentary corpus.
Adam Clarke 1810 · Public Domain Verse 21. Grant that these my two sons] James…
Verse 21. Grant that these my two sons] James and John. See Mr 15:40. In the preceding chapter, Mt 19:28, our Lord had promised his disciples, that they should sit on twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes. Salome, probably hearing of this, and understanding it literally, came to request the chief dignities in this new government for her sons; and it appears it was at their instigation that she made this request, for Mark, Mr 10:35, informs us that these brethren themselves made the request, i.e. they made it through the medium of their mother.
One on thy right hand, and the other on (THY) left] I have added the pronoun in the latter clause on the authority of almost every MS. and version of repute.
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That the sons of Zebedee wished for ecclesiastical, rather than secular honours, may be thought probable, from the allusion that is made here to the supreme dignities in the great Sanhedrin. The prince of the Sanhedrin (HA-NASI) sat in the midst of two rows of senators or elders; on his right hand sat the person termed AB (the father of the Sanhedrin;) and on his left hand the CHACHAM, or sage. These persons transacted all business in the absence of the president. The authority of this council was at some periods very great, and extended to a multitude of matters both ecclesiastical and civil. These appear to have been the honours which James and John sought. They seem to have strangely forgot the lesson they had learned from the transfiguration.
Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Daniel D. Whedon 1874 · Public Domain 21. My two sons — James and John, with…
21. My two sons — James and John, with Peter, had been permitted to witness the transfiguration, and justly understood it to be an exhibition of Jesus in his royal glory as Messiah. They now perceive that he is going up to Jerusalem, and that the final crisis is approaching. They understand that somehow, through some terrible ordeal, he is to attain to the glorified kingdom which the transfiguration exhibited. Now, then, is the proper time to secure their elevated position in that new coming kingdom of glory. And who should more properly aspire to that position than those two disciples who had on so many occasions been distinguished by the Saviour’s particular preferences? Sit… right hand… left — Just as in the Sanhedrim, on each side of the high priest there sat the next highest dignitaries. In thy kingdom — In that transfiguration kingdom which thou art now going up to Jerusalem to assume. One at least of these brethren saw the Lord on his cross — on his right and left hand the crucified thieves. Bitter indeed must the remembrance of this ambitious prayer have been at that moment!
Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges 1878 · Public Domain 21. may sit, the one on thy right hand]…
21. may sit, the one on thy right hand] Cp. for the thought ch. Mat_19:28.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers 1878 · Public Domain (21) The one on thy right hand.—The favour which…
(21) The one on thy right hand.—The favour which had already been bestowed might, in some degree, seem to warrant the petition. John was known emphatically as “the disciple whom Jesus loved” (Joh_13:23; Joh_19:26; Joh_20:2), and if we may infer a general practice from that of the Last Supper (Joh_13:23), he sat near Him at their customary meals. James was one of the chosen three who had been witnesses of the Transfiguration (Mat_17:1). Both had been marked out for special honour by the new name of the Sons of Thunder (Mar_3:17). The mother might well think that she was but asking for her sons a continuance of what they had hitherto enjoyed. The sternness of our Lord’s words to Peter (Mat_16:23) might almost justify the thought that his position had been forfeited.
A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Pulpit Commentary 1880 · Public Domain What wilt thou. Jesus will make no unconditional promise;…
What wilt thou. Jesus will make no unconditional promise; he compels her to formulate her petition. Grant; eipe : command. These my two sons. She points to them, as they stood or knelt behind her. May sit...in thy kingdom. The right and left hand would be the places occupied by those next to the sovereign in dignity and consideration. There is here no thought of St. Peter"s pre-eminence. (comp. 1Ki_2:19 2Ch_18:18 Psa_45:9 Psa_110:1) The petition was urged at this moment, because it was felt that a great crisis was at hand. This visit to Jerusalem must have momentous results; here Jesus was about to set up his throne; now was the moment to secure the highest places in his court. He had announced his death; he had also announced his glory; they balanced one declaration against the other, and seized on that which was most consonant to their national prejudices and their own ambitious views. Probably they interpreted the unintelligible resurrection to mean the establishment of the kingdom of Messiah. (Luk_19:11) If this was imminent, no time was to be lost in making their claims known. So thought the "sons of thunder," and acted with energy and haste.
The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
B. W. Johnson 1891 · Public Domain 21. What wilt thou? We learn from Mark that…
21. What wilt thou? We learn from Mark that they asked him to grant what they wished before they stated it, after the manner of Herod to the daughter of Herodias, but he forced them to state their ambitious desire. The mother speaks for them. Sit, one on thy right hand, and the other on the left, in thy kingdom. They still believed that he would be an earthly monarch, notwithstanding that he had just told them of his speedy death.
B. W. Johnson's The People's New Testament with Notes (1889–1891) — public domain. Electronic text from the Christian Classics Ethereal Library (CCEL) ThML edition.
C. I. Scofield 1917 · Public Domain (See Scofield "Mat 3:2").
kingdom
(See Scofield "Mat 3:2").
The Scofield Reference Bible (1917 edition), notes by C. I. Scofield — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Tyndale Open Study Notes 2022 · CC BY-SA 4.0 20:21 The promise of sitting in positions of authority…
20:21 The promise of sitting in positions of authority in God’s Kingdom had already been given (19:28); the brothers’ request seems to have been motivated out of selfish desire for prominence, with no regard for the suffering the Messiah would soon undergo (see Matt 23:6; Luke 14:7-11).
Tyndale Open Study Notes — © Tyndale Open Resources, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Text via the HelloAO Bible API.