MAT 7:21 Parallel Verse View

Note: This view shows ‘verses’ which are not natural language units and hence sometimes only part of a sentence will be visible—click on any Bible version abbreviation down the left-hand side to see the verse in more of its context. Normally the OET discourages the reading of individual ‘verses’, but this view is only designed as a tool for doing comparisons of different translations—the older translations are further down the page (so you can read up from the bottom to trace the English translation history). The OET segments on this page are still very early looks into the unfinished texts of the Open English Translation of the Bible—please double-check these texts in advance before using in public.

Text critical issues=small word differences Clarity of original=clear Importance to us=normal (All still tentative.)

OET (OET-RV) “Not everyone who goes around calling me ‘master’ will enter the heavenly kingdoms—only those who actually do what my father who lives in the heavens wants.

Key: khaki:verbs, light-green:nominative/subject, orange:accusative/object, pink:genitive/possessor, cyan:dative/indirect object, magenta:vocative, red:negative.
Note: Automatic aligning of the OET-RV to the LV is done by some temporary software, hence the RV alignments are incomplete (and may occasionally be wrong).

ULT Not everyone saying to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter into the kingdom of the heavens, but the one doing the will of my Father in the heavens.

UST Just calling me your Lord is not enough for you to participate in God’s heavenly kingdom. Rather, you need to do what God my Father, who rules from heaven, wants you to do.

BLB Not everyone saying to Me, 'Lord, Lord,' will enter into the kingdom of the heavens, but the one doing the will of My Father in the heavens.

AICNT “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter into the kingdom of the heavens, but the one who does the will of my Father who is in {the heavens}.[fn]

7:21, the heavens: Some manuscripts read “heaven.” W(032) BYZ TR

OEB Not everyone who says to me “Master! Master!” will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven.

WEBBE “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter into the Kingdom of Heaven, but he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven.

WMBB (Same as above)

NET “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter into the kingdom of heaven – only the one who does the will of my Father in heaven.

LSV Not everyone who is saying to Me, Lord, Lord, will come into the kingdom of the heavens, but he who is doing the will of My Father who is in the heavens.

FBV Not everyone who calls me ‘Lord, Lord’ will enter the kingdom of heaven—only those who do the will of my Father in heaven.

TCNT “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only he who does the will of my Father in heaven.

T4T “Even though many people habitually call me ‘Lord’, pretending that they have my authority, some of them will not go to heaven where God rules, because they do not do what he desires. Only those people who do what my Father, who is in heaven, desires will go there.

LEB ¶ “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter into the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven.

BBE Not everyone who says to me, Lord, Lord, will go into the kingdom of heaven; but he who does the pleasure of my Father in heaven.

Moff It is not everyone who says to me 'Lord, Lord!', who will get into the Realm of heaven, but he who does the will of my Father in heaven.

Wymth "Not every one who says to me, `Master, Master,' will enter the Kingdom of the Heavens, but only those who are obedient to my Father who is in Heaven.

ASV Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father who is in heaven.

DRA Not every one that saith to me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven: but he that doth the will of my Father who is in heaven, he shall enter into the kingdom of heaven.

YLT 'Not every one who is saying to me Lord, lord, shall come into the reign of the heavens; but he who is doing the will of my Father who is in the heavens.

Drby Not every one who says to me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of the heavens, but he that does the will of my Father who is in the heavens.

RV Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven.
(Not every one that saith/says unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doth/does the will of my Father which is in heaven. )

SLT Not every one saying to me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of the heavens; but he doing the will of my Father who is in the heavens.

Wbstr Not every one that saith to me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father who is in heaven.

KJB-1769 ¶ Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven.
(¶ Not every one that saith/says unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doth/does the will of my Father which is in heaven. )

KJB-1611 ¶ Not euery one that saith vnto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdome of heauen: but he that doth the will of my father which is in heauen.
(¶ Not every one that saith/says unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven: but he that doth/does the will of my father which is in heaven.)

Bshps Not euery one, that sayeth vnto me Lorde, Lorde, shall enter into the kyngdome of heauen: but he that doeth the wyll of my father, which is in heauen.
(Modernised spelling is same as from KJB-1769 above, apart from capitalisation and punctuation)

Gnva Not euery one that sayeth vnto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdome of heauen, but he that doeth my Fathers will which is in heauen.
(Not every one that saith/says unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven, but he that doth/does my Fathers will which is in heaven. )

Cvdl Not all they that saye vnto me, LORDE LORDE, shall enter in to the kyngdome of heauen: but he that doth the will of my father which ys in heauen.
(Not all they that say unto me, LORD LORD, shall enter in to the kingdom of heaven: but he that doth/does the will of my father which is in heaven.)

TNT Not all they that saye vnto me Master Master shall enter in to the kyngdome of heven: but he that dothe my fathers will which ys in heven.
(Not all they that say unto me Master Master shall enter in to the kingdom of heaven: but he that doth/doese my fathers will which is in heaven. )

Wycl Not ech man that seith to me, Lord, Lord, schal entre in to the kyngdom of heuenes; but he that doith the wille of my fadir that is in heuenes, he schal entre in to the kyngdoom of heuenes.
(Not each man that saith/says to me, Lord, Lord, shall enter in to the kingdom of heavens; but he that doth/does the will of my father that is in heavens, he shall enter in to the kingdom of heavens.)

Luth Es werden nicht alle, die zu mir sagen: HErr, HErr! in das Himmelreich kommen, sondern die den Willen tun meines Vaters im Himmel
(It become not all, the to/for to_me say: LORD, LORD! in the heaven_riches/kingdom coming, rather the the Will do/put my father in_the heaven)

ClVg Non omnis qui dicit mihi, Domine, Domine, intrabit in regnum cælorum: sed qui facit voluntatem Patris mei, qui in cælis est, ipse intrabit in regnum cælorum.[fn]
(Not/No everyone who/which he_says to_me, Master, Master, will_enter in/into/on kingdom of_the_heavens: but who/which he_does will Father's my/mine, who/which in/into/on the_heavens it_is, exactly_that/himself will_enter in/into/on kingdom of_the_heavens. )

7.21 Non omnis qui dicit. Sicut cavendi sunt qui habent speciem bonæ vitæ propter dogma nequitiæ, sic et hic econtrario qui, cum integræ fidei et doctrinæ sint, turpiter vivunt. Utrumque enim necesse est, ut et opus sermone et sermo operibus comprobetur. Qui dicit: Domine, Domine. Iter regni Dei est obedientia, non nominis nuncupatio. Non est hoc illud vere et proprie dicere ubi prolatio discordat a voluntate. De quo Apostolus ait: Nemo potest dicere: Dominus Jesus, nisi in Spiritu sancto I Cor. 12..

7.21 Not/No everyone who/which he_says. Like cavendi are who/which they_have appearance good of_life because dogma wickedness, so and this/here econtrario who, when/with integræ of_faith and doctrines let_them_be, turpiter they_live. Utrumque because necessary it_is, as and work/need speech and speech works comprobetur. Who he_says: Master, Master. Iter of_the_kingdom of_God it_is obedience, not/no of_the_name nowupatio. Not/No it_is this it/this/that really/truly and properly to_say where prolatio I_learnrdat from willingly. From/About where Apostolus he_said: Nobody can to_say: Master Yesus, except in/into/on By_Spirit holy I Cor. 12..

UGNT οὐ πᾶς ὁ λέγων μοι, Κύριε, Κύριε, εἰσελεύσεται εἰς τὴν Βασιλείαν τῶν Οὐρανῶν, ἀλλ’ ὁ ποιῶν τὸ θέλημα τοῦ Πατρός μου τοῦ ἐν τοῖς οὐρανοῖς.
(ou pas ho legōn moi, Kurie, Kurie, eiseleusetai eis taʸn Basileian tōn Ouranōn, all’ ho poiōn to thelaʸma tou Patros mou tou en tois ouranois.)

SBL-GNT Οὐ πᾶς ὁ λέγων μοι· Κύριε κύριε εἰσελεύσεται εἰς τὴν βασιλείαν τῶν οὐρανῶν, ἀλλʼ ὁ ποιῶν τὸ θέλημα τοῦ πατρός μου τοῦ ἐν ⸀τοῖς οὐρανοῖς.
(Ou pas ho legōn moi; Kurie kurie eiseleusetai eis taʸn basileian tōn ouranōn, allʼ ho poiōn to thelaʸma tou patros mou tou en ⸀tois ouranois.)

RP-GNT Οὐ πᾶς ὁ λέγων μοι, Κύριε, κύριε, εἰσελεύσεται εἰς τὴν βασιλείαν τῶν οὐρανῶν· ἀλλ' ὁ ποιῶν τὸ θέλημα τοῦ πατρός μου τοῦ ἐν οὐρανοῖς.
(Ou pas ho legōn moi, Kurie, kurie, eiseleusetai eis taʸn basileian tōn ouranōn; all' ho poiōn to thelaʸma tou patros mou tou en ouranois.)

TC-GNT Οὐ πᾶς ὁ λέγων μοι, Κύριε, Κύριε, εἰσελεύσεται εἰς τὴν βασιλείαν τῶν οὐρανῶν· ἀλλ᾽ ὁ ποιῶν τὸ θέλημα τοῦ πατρός μου τοῦ ἐν [fn]οὐρανοῖς.
(Ou pas ho legōn moi, Kurie, Kurie, eiseleusetai eis taʸn basileian tōn ouranōn; all ho poiōn to thelaʸma tou patros mou tou en ouranois. )

7:21 ουρανοις ¦ τοις ουρανοις CT

Key for above GNTs: yellow:punctuation differs, red:words differ (from our SR-GNT base).

SOTN SIL Open Translator’s Notes:

Section 5:1–7:29: Jesus preached a sermon on a mountain

For many years, English versions and Christians have commonly referred to Matthew 5–7 as “The Sermon on the Mount.” In some translations, it may be helpful to include a heading for chapters 5–7 that is on a level above the section heading for 5:1–12.

Here are some other possible headings for this section:

The Sermon on the Mountain

The sermon that Jesus preached on a mountain

Jesus taught people on the side of a mountain/hill

7:21a

Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven,

¶ “Not all people who say to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of the one who lives in heaven.
¶ “Not everyone who calls me ‘Lord, Lord,’ will become a citizen/member of the kingdom of the one who lives in heaven.
¶ “Among the people who call me ‘My Lord,’ not all of them will be among those whom God rules.

Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter: The clause who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ means “who calls me their Lord/Master.”

Here are some other ways to translate this clause:

Among those who say to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ not all of them will enter

Some people who say to me ‘Lord, Lord,’ will not enter

In some languages, it may be more natural to make Lord, Lord indirect speech. For example:

Not everyone who calls me his Lord/Master will enter

Lord, Lord: The Greek word that the BSB translates as Lord means “master,” “owner” or “a person who has great authority.” It is used to refer to someone greater in status or power. People used it to address God the Father and Jesus. See how you translated this word in 3:3 and 5:33.

The double address of Lord, Lord probably indicates honor, respect, and deep emotion. The speakers were insisting that Jesus is their Lord. But as 7:23 indicates, the people who said this were not true followers of Jesus.

In some languages this double address will indicate a different meaning. If that is true in your language, indicate the honor and respect in another way. For example:

my Lord

dear/beloved Lord

will enter the kingdom of heaven: In this context, the word enter refers to “becoming a citizen of.” When people believe in Jesus, they become citizens/members of the kingdom of heaven.

The phrase the kingdom of heaven refers to God’s activity of ruling and caring for his people as their king. It does not refer to a land or country that he rules over. It refers to the relationship that he has with his people. He leads, protects, and cares for them. They obey, trust, and submit to him as their king.

Here Matthew used the word heaven as a Hebrew idiom to humbly refer to God.

Here are some other ways to translate this clause:

become a citizen of the kingdom of heaven

become one of those who are in the kingdom of the one who lives in heaven

be added to those over whom God rules

will God make part of his reign

This clause also occurs in 5:20.

7:21b

but only he who does the will of My Father in heaven.

But the person who does the things that my Father in heaven desires/wants will enter.
Only the person who does what my Father in heaven wants will be a citizen/member of his kingdom.
Only the person who does what my Father in heaven wants will be among them.

but only he who does the will of My Father in heaven: The verb and object from 7:21a are implied but are not repeated. The complete sentence would be: but only he who does the will of My Father in heaven will enter the kingdom of heaven.

It may be more natural in your language to include some of the implied words. For example:

but only he who does the will of my Father in heaven will become one of the people whom God rules

but the person whom God will make part of his reign is the person who does my heavenly Father’s will

does the will of My Father in heaven: This clause means “does what God desires.”

Here are some other ways to translate this clause:

does what my Father in heaven wants (GW)

obey my Father in heaven (CEV)

My Father in heaven: The clause in heaven further describes Jesus’ Father, namely, God. It does not imply that there are other fathers of Jesus and only this one is in heaven. In some languages, it will be necessary to translate the correct meaning in a different way. For example:

my Father in heaven (GNT)

my heavenly Father

UTN uW Translation Notes:

Note 1 topic: figures-of-speech / reduplication

μοι, Κύριε, Κύριε

(Some words not found in SR-GNT: Οὒ πᾶς ὁ λέγων μοί Κύριε Κύριε εἰσελεύσεται εἰς τήν Βασιλείαν τῶν Οὐρανῶν ἀλλʼ ὁ ποιῶν τό θέλημα τοῦ Πατρός μού τοῦ ἐν τοῖς οὐρανοῖς)

Here Jesus could quote these people repeating the word Lord in order to: (1) express the urgency or earnestness of the address. Alternate translation: [to me, ‘My Lord!] (2) show that this address happens often. Alternate translation: [to me repeatedly, ‘Lord]

Note 2 topic: figures-of-speech / explicit

ἀλλ’ ὁ ποιῶν

but the_‹one› doing

Here Jesus means that the only people who enter into the kingdom of the heavens are those who do God’s will. You could include this information if that would be helpful to your readers. Alternate translation: [but only the one doing]

Note 3 topic: figures-of-speech / genericnoun

ὁ ποιῶν

¬which the_‹one› doing

The phrase the one doing represents anyone who does these things in general, not one particular person. If it would be helpful in your language, you could express the idea in another way. Alternate translation: [those who do]

Note 4 topic: figures-of-speech / abstractnouns

τὸ θέλημα τοῦ Πατρός μου τοῦ ἐν τοῖς οὐρανοῖς

If your language does not use an abstract noun for the idea of will, you could express the same idea in another way. Alternate translation: [what my Father in the heavens desires]

Note 5 topic: guidelines-sonofgodprinciples

τοῦ Πατρός μου

˱of˲_the Father who_‹is› (Some words not found in SR-GNT: Οὒ πᾶς ὁ λέγων μοί Κύριε Κύριε εἰσελεύσεται εἰς τήν Βασιλείαν τῶν Οὐρανῶν ἀλλʼ ὁ ποιῶν τό θέλημα τοῦ Πατρός μού τοῦ ἐν τοῖς οὐρανοῖς)

Father is an important title that describes the relationship between God the Father and Jesus.

Note 6 topic: figures-of-speech / explicit

τοῦ ἐν τοῖς οὐρανοῖς

˱of˲_the who_‹is› in the heavens

Here, the phrase in the heavens identifies the location in which God the Father is specially present and from which he rules. You could include this information if that would be helpful to your readers. Alternate translation: [who is in the heavens]

Note 7 topic: figures-of-speech / ellipsis

τοῦ ἐν τοῖς οὐρανοῖς

˱of˲_the who_‹is› in the heavens

Jesus is leaving out some of the words that in many languages a sentence would need in order to be complete. You could supply these words from earlier in the sentence if it would be clearer in your language. Alternate translation: [in the heavens will enter into the kingdom of the heavens]

Parallel MAT 7:21

Section 5:1–7:29: Jesus preached a sermon on a mountain

7:21a

7:21b