Matthew 12:39

Then Jesus said to them, “ You people have already seen me perform miracles, but you are evil, and you do not faithfully worship God [MET]! You want me to perform a miracle that would prove to you that God sent me, but God will enable you to see only one miracle. It will be like what happened to Jonah the prophet [MET].

Translation for Translators

In The King James Version

But he answered and said unto them, An evil and adulterous generation seeketh after a sign; and there shall no sign be given to it, but the sign of the prophet Jonas:

In Context

38Then some of the Pharisees and men who taught the Jewish laws responded to what Jesus was teaching by saying to him, “Teacher, we want to see you perform a miracle that would prove to us that God sent you.”

40Jonah was in the stomach of a huge fish for three days and nights before God caused him to live again. Similarly, for three days and nights I, the one who came from heaven, will be in a place where dead people are, and then God will cause me to live again.

Read all of Matthew 12

Cross References

Matthew 16:4You evil people have seen me perform miracles but you do not faithfully worship God [MET]. You want to see me perform a miracle that would prove that God has sent me. But God will enable you to see only one miracle. It will be like what happened [MET] to Jonah, the prophet, who was inside a huge fish for three days and then came out of it to live again.” Then Jesus left them and sailed away, along with us disciples.

Luke 11:29When the group of people around Jesus got larger, he said, “ Many of you people who have been observing my ministry are evil. You want me to perform a miracle to prove that I have come from God, but the only miracle that I will perform for you is one like happened to Jonah.

Matthew Henry on Matthew 12:39-46

The Pharisees Ask a Sign. 38 Then certain of the scribes and of the Pharisees answered, saying, Master, we would see a sign from thee. 39 But he answered and said unto them, An evil and adulterous generation seeketh after a sign; and there shall no sign be given to it, but the sign of the prophet Jonas: 40 For as Jonas was three days and three nights in the whale's belly; so shall the Son of man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth. 41 The men of Nineveh shall rise in judgment with this… Read the whole commentary →

This Verse In Other Editions

Study Matthew 12:39