Matthew 7:6

Do not give dogs what is holy; do not throw your pearls before swine. If you do, they may trample them under their feet, and then turn and tear you to pieces.

Berean Standard Bible

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Study note

Setting — Jesus addresses his disciples during the Sermon on the Mount, positioned between instructions on removing personal hypocrisy and commands to pray persistently. He speaks to followers learning to navigate correction and spiritual discernment.

The words — The command μὴ δῶτε (mē dōte) literally means "do not give," while ἅγιον (hagion) translates to "that which is holy." The verb βάλητε (balēte) carries the literal sense "shall cast" or "throw."

The thread — The text warns against offering sacred truth to hostile audiences, a principle echoed in Proverbs 9:7 and Proverbs 23:9 regarding correction of mockers and fools. Jesus applies the same boundary-setting logic in Matthew 10:14 when instructing disciples to shake dust off their feet upon rejection.

Why it lands — The passage states that dogs and swine will trample holy things and attack those who offer them. It requires readers to practice restraint by withholding sacred instruction from those determined to mock or destroy it.

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

King James Version

Give not that which is holy unto the dogs, neither cast ye your pearls before swine, lest they trample them under their feet, and turn again and rend you.

Cross-references

Proverbs 9:7 He who corrects a mocker brings shame on himself; he who rebukes a wicked man taints himself.
Proverbs 23:9 Do not speak to a fool, for he will despise the wisdom of your words.
Matthew 10:14 And if anyone will not welcome you or heed your words, shake the dust off your feet when you leave that home or town.
Proverbs 26:11 As a dog returns to its vomit, so a fool repeats his folly.
Matthew 15:26 But Jesus replied, “It is not right to take the children’s bread and toss it to the dogs.”
Acts 13:45 But when the Jews saw the crowds, they were filled with jealousy, and they blasphemously contradicted what Paul was saying.
Philippians 3:2 Watch out for those dogs, those workers of evil, those mutilators of the flesh!
Hebrews 10:29 How much more severely do you think one deserves to be punished who has trampled on the Son of God, profaned the blood of the covenant that sanctified him, and insulted the Spirit of grace?
2 Peter 2:22 Of them the proverbs are true: “A dog returns to its vomit,” and, “A sow that is washed goes back to her wallowing in the mud.”
2 Timothy 4:14 Alexander the coppersmith did great harm to me. The Lord will repay him according to his deeds.