Matthew 12:36

But I tell you that men will give an account on the day of judgment for every careless word they have spoken.

Berean Standard Bible

Study note

Setting — Jesus addresses his listeners at the close of a dispute with the Pharisees (Matthew 12:22–34), immediately after contrasting the good and evil person in verse 35. This pronouncement serves as the hinge between that contrast and the verdict in verse 37.

The words — ῥῆμα (rhēma) is not a generic "word" but a declaration or utterance; ἀργόν (argon) marks the utterance as careless or idle, i.e. fruitless rather than merely wrong.

The thread — Ecclesiastes 12:14 extends judgment to every hidden deed; Romans 2:16 specifies that God will judge men's secrets through Christ; Revelation 20:12 depicts the dead standing before the throne with books opened.

Why it lands — It removes the category of "small talk" from the realm of the consequence-free. A reader is asked to treat every utterance as something that will be examined, not merely heard.

Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.

The Greek words

ΛέγωLegōI say δὲdenow ὑμῖνhuminto you ὅτιhotithat πᾶνpanevery ῥῆμαrhēmadeclaration ἀργὸνargoncareless ὃhothat ἐὰνeanif λαλήσουσινlalēsousinwill speak οἱhoi<the>ἄνθρωποι,anthrōpoimen,ἀποδώσουσινapodōsousinthey will give περὶperiof αὐτοῦautouit λόγονlogonan account ἐνenin ἡμέρᾳhēmeraday κρίσεως.kriseōsof judgment.

King James Version

But I say unto you, That every idle word that men shall speak, they shall give account thereof in the day of judgment.

Cross-references

Ecclesiastes 12:14 For God will bring every deed into judgment, along with every hidden thing, whether good or evil.
Romans 2:16 on the day when God will judge men’s secrets through Christ Jesus, as proclaimed by my gospel.
Revelation 20:12 And I saw the dead, great and small, standing before the throne. And books were opened, and one of them was the Book of Life. And the dead were judged according to their deeds, as recorded in the books.
Jude 1:14 Enoch, the seventh from Adam, also prophesied about them: “Behold, the Lord is coming with myriads of His holy ones
Ephesians 6:4 Fathers, do not provoke your children to wrath; instead, bring them up in the discipline and instruction of the Lord.