Matthew 12:30

30 “Whoever is not with me is against me, and whoever does not gather with me scatters.

Matthew 12:30 in Other Translations

KJV
30 He that is not with me is against me; and he that gathereth not with me scattereth abroad.
ESV
30 Whoever is not with me is against me, and whoever does not gather with me scatters.
NLT
30 “Anyone who isn’t with me opposes me, and anyone who isn’t working with me is actually working against me.
MSG
30 "This is war, and there is no neutral ground. If you're not on my side, you're the enemy; if you're not helping, you're making things worse.
CSB
30 Anyone who is not with Me is against Me, and anyone who does not gather with Me scatters.

Matthew 12:30 Meaning and Commentary

Matthew 12:30

He that is not with me, is against me
These words chiefly refer to Satan, and are a further proof, that Christ did not cast out devils by him; since they two are as much opposites, as can possibly be; Satan is not on the side of Christ, but an adversary to him; there is an original, and implacable enmity, between the serpent and the seed of the woman; there is an open war between them, and therefore one cannot be thought to lend assistance to the other. They were concerned in different things, had different views and interests, and so took different methods;

and he that gathereth not with me, scattereth:
Christ is the good shepherd, that gathers his sheep to himself, and into his fold, by the external ministry of the word, and internal efficacy of his grace; Satan is the wolf, that catches and scatters the sheep, and seeks to kill and destroy them: and since there is such an open war proclaimed and carried on between Christ and the devil, none ought to be neutral; whoever is not on the side of Christ, is reckoned as an enemy; and whoever is not concerned by prayer or preaching, or other means to gather souls to his word and ordinances, and to his church, and to himself, is deemed by him a scatterer of them.

Matthew 12:30 In-Context

28 But if it is by the Spirit of God that I drive out demons, then the kingdom of God has come upon you.
29 “Or again, how can anyone enter a strong man’s house and carry off his possessions unless he first ties up the strong man? Then he can plunder his house.
30 “Whoever is not with me is against me, and whoever does not gather with me scatters.
31 And so I tell you, every kind of sin and slander can be forgiven, but blasphemy against the Spirit will not be forgiven.
32 Anyone who speaks a word against the Son of Man will be forgiven, but anyone who speaks against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven, either in this age or in the age to come.

Cross References 1

  • 1. Mark 9:40; Luke 11:23
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