Matthew 24 · Verse 48

Matthew 24:48

But and if that evil servant shall say in his heart, My lord delayeth his coming;
Matthew 24:48, King James Version

Matthew 24:48 in other translations

BSBBut suppose that servant is wicked and says in his heart, ‘My master will be away a long time.’
WEBBut if that evil servant should say in his heart, ‘My lord is delaying his coming,’
ASVBut if that evil servant shall say in his heart, My lord tarrieth;
YLT‘And, if that evil servant may say in his heart, My Lord doth delay to come,
DARBYBut if that evil bondman should say in his heart, My lord delays to come,
BBEBut if that evil servant says in his heart, My lord is a long time in coming;
WebsterBut if that evil servant shall say in his heart, My Lord delayeth his coming;

What does Matthew 24:48 mean?

Barnes' Notes
Verse 48. That evil servant. If that servant so appointed, having this office, should be evil or wicked.

Say in his heart. Secretly suppose.

Delayeth his coming. Will not return in a long time; or does not return as soon as was expected, and perhaps may not at all.

Albert Barnes, 1834 · public domain

Adam Clarke's Commentary
Verse 48 But, and if that evil servant - Here are three characters of a bad minister. 1. He has little or no faith in the speedy coming of Christ, either to punish for wickedness, or to pardon and sanctify those who believe. It may be, he does not outwardly profess this, but he says it in his heart, and God searches his heart, and knows that he professes to teach what he does not believe. 2. He governs with an absolute dominion, oppressing his colleagues and doing violence to the followers of Christ. And shall begin to smite, etc. 3. He leads an irregular life does not love the company of the children of God, but eats and drinks with the drunkards, preferring the tables of the great and the rich, whose god is their belly, and thus feeds himself without fear. Great God! save thine inheritance from being ravaged by such wolves!

Adam Clarke, 1831 · public domain

Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary on Matthew 24:42-51

To watch for Christ's coming, is to maintain that temper of mind which we would be willing that our Lord should find us in. We know we have but a little time to live, we cannot know that we have a long time to live; much less do we know the time fixed for the judgment. Our Lord's coming will be happy to those that shall be found ready, but very dreadful to those that are not. If a man, professing to be the servant…

Read the full comment on Matthew 24:42-51 →

Matthew 24:48 in the original Greek

Word-by-word with transliteration, English gloss and Strong's number. Tap a number for the full definition and every place the word is used.

ἘὰνEanIfG1437
δὲdehoweverG1161
εἴπῃeipēshall sayG2036
ὁhotheG3588
κακὸςkakosevilG2556
δοῦλοςdoulosservantG1401
ἐκεῖνοςekeinosthat oneG1565
ἐνeninG1722
τῇtēatheG3588
καρδίᾳkardiaheartG2588
αὐτοῦ·autouof him;G846
χρονίζειchronizeiDelaysG5549
μουmouMyG3165
ὁho<the>G3588
κύριοςkuriosmasterG2962

Source: STEPBible TAHOT/TAGNT (Tyndale House, CC BY 4.0).

Cross references for Matthew 24:48

  • 2 Peter 3:3-5

    Knowing this first, that there shall come in the last days scoffers, walking after their own lusts, And saying, Where is the promise of his coming? for since the fathers fell asleep, all things continue as they were from the beginning of the creation. For this they willingly are ignorant of, that by the word of God the heavens were of old, and the earth standing out of the water and in the water:

  • Matthew 18:32

    Then his lord, after that he had called him, said unto him, O thou wicked servant, I forgave thee all that debt, because thou desiredst me:

  • Luke 12:45

    But and if that servant say in his heart, My lord delayeth his coming; and shall begin to beat the menservants and maidens, and to eat and drink, and to be drunken;

  • Isaiah 32:6

    For the vile person will speak villany, and his heart will work iniquity, to practise hypocrisy, and to utter error against the Lord, to make empty the soul of the hungry, and he will cause the drink of the thirsty to fail.

  • Mark 7:21

    For from within, out of the heart of men, proceed evil thoughts, adulteries, fornications, murders,

  • John 13:2

    And supper being ended, the devil having now put into the heart of Judas Iscariot, Simon’s son, to betray him;

  • Acts 5:3

    But Peter said, Ananias, why hath Satan filled thine heart to lie to the Holy Ghost, and to keep back part of the price of the land?

  • Deuteronomy 9:4

    Speak not thou in thine heart, after that the Lord thy God hath cast them out from before thee, saying, For my righteousness the Lord hath brought me in to possess this land: but for the wickedness of these nations the Lord doth drive them out from before thee.

  • Deuteronomy 15:9

    Beware that there be not a thought in thy wicked heart, saying, The seventh year, the year of release, is at hand; and thine eye be evil against thy poor brother, and thou givest him nought; and he cry unto the Lord against thee, and it be sin unto thee.

  • 2 Kings 5:26

    And he said unto him, Went not mine heart with thee, when the man turned again from his chariot to meet thee? Is it a time to receive money, and to receive garments, and oliveyards, and vineyards, and sheep, and oxen, and menservants, and maidservants?

  • Luke 19:22

    And he saith unto him, Out of thine own mouth will I judge thee, thou wicked servant. Thou knewest that I was an austere man, taking up that I laid not down, and reaping that I did not sow:

  • Ezekiel 12:22

    Son of man, what is that proverb that ye have in the land of Israel, saying, The days are prolonged, and every vision faileth?

Ranked by reader votes · OpenBible.info cross references (CC BY).

Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
if.
18:32; 25:26; Lu 19:22
say.
De 9:4; 15:9; 2Ki 5:26; Isa 32:6; Mr 7:21; Lu 12:45; Joh 13:2; Ac 5:3
Ac 8:22
My.
Ec 8:11; Eze 12:22,27; 2Pe 3:3-5

Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (Samuel Bagster, c. 1836) · public domain

Context

  • Matthew 24:47

    Verily I say unto you, That he shall make him ruler over all his goods.

  • Matthew 24:48

    But and if that evil servant shall say in his heart, My lord delayeth his coming;

  • Matthew 24:49

    And shall begin to smite his fellowservants, and to eat and drink with the drunken;

Read all of Matthew 24

Matthew 24:48 in other languages

Spanish
Reina-Valera 1909
Y si aquel siervo malo dijere en su corazón: Mi señor se tarda en venir:
French
Bible J.N. Darby 1885
Mais si ce méchant esclave-là dit en son cœur: Mon maître tarde à venir,
German
Elberfelder 1871
Wenn aber jener böse Knecht in seinem Herzen sagt: Mein Herr verzieht zu kommen,
Latin
Clementine Vulgate
Si autem dixerit malus servus ille in corde suo: Moram fecit dominus meus venire: