Matthew 17:17
New International Version
“You unbelieving and perverse generation,” Jesus replied, “how long shall I stay with you? How long shall I put up with you? Bring the boy here to me.”

New Living Translation
Jesus said, “You faithless and corrupt people! How long must I be with you? How long must I put up with you? Bring the boy here to me.”

English Standard Version
And Jesus answered, “O faithless and twisted generation, how long am I to be with you? How long am I to bear with you? Bring him here to me.”

Berean Standard Bible
“O unbelieving and perverse generation!” Jesus replied. “How long must I remain with you? How long must I put up with you? Bring the boy here to Me.”

Berean Literal Bible
And Jesus answering said, "O unbelieving and perverted generation, how long will I be with you? How long will I bear with you? Bring him here to Me."

King James Bible
Then Jesus answered and said, O faithless and perverse generation, how long shall I be with you? how long shall I suffer you? bring him hither to me.

New King James Version
Then Jesus answered and said, “O faithless and perverse generation, how long shall I be with you? How long shall I bear with you? Bring him here to Me.”

New American Standard Bible
And Jesus answered and said, “You unbelieving and perverse generation, how long shall I be with you? How long shall I put up with you? Bring him here to Me.”

NASB 1995
And Jesus answered and said, “You unbelieving and perverted generation, how long shall I be with you? How long shall I put up with you? Bring him here to Me.”

NASB 1977
And Jesus answered and said, “O unbelieving and perverted generation, how long shall I be with you? How long shall I put up with you? Bring him here to Me.”

Legacy Standard Bible
And Jesus answered and said, “O you unbelieving and perverse generation, how long shall I be with you? How long shall I put up with you? Bring him here to Me.”

Amplified Bible
And Jesus answered, “You unbelieving and perverted generation, how long shall I be with you? How long shall I put up with you? Bring him here to Me.”

Christian Standard Bible
Jesus replied, “You unbelieving and perverse generation, how long will I be with you? How long must I put up with you? Bring him here to me.”

Holman Christian Standard Bible
Jesus replied, “You unbelieving and rebellious generation! How long will I be with you? How long must I put up with you? Bring him here to Me.”

American Standard Version
And Jesus answered and said, O faithless and perverse generation, how long shall I be with you? how long shall I bear with you? bring him hither to me.

Contemporary English Version
Jesus said, "You people are too stubborn to have any faith! How much longer must I be with you? Why do I have to put up with you? Bring the boy here."

English Revised Version
And Jesus answered and said, O faithless and perverse generation, how long shall I be with you? how long shall I bear with you? bring him hither to me.

GOD'S WORD® Translation
Jesus replied, "You unbelieving and corrupt generation! How long must I be with you? How long must I put up with you? Bring him here to me!"

Good News Translation
Jesus answered, "How unbelieving and wrong you people are! How long must I stay with you? How long do I have to put up with you? Bring the boy here to me!"

International Standard Version
Jesus replied, "You unbelieving and perverted generation! How long must I be with you? How long must I put up with you? Bring him here to me!"

Majority Standard Bible
?O unbelieving and perverse generation!? Jesus replied. ?How long must I remain with you? How long must I put up with you? Bring the boy here to Me.?

NET Bible
Jesus answered, "You unbelieving and perverse generation! How much longer must I be with you? How much longer must I endure you? Bring him here to me."

New Heart English Bible
Jesus answered, "Faithless and perverse generation. How long will I be with you? How long will I bear with you? Bring him here to me."

Webster's Bible Translation
Then Jesus answered and said, O faithless and perverse generation, how long shall I be with you? how long shall I suffer you? bring him hither to me.

Weymouth New Testament
"O unbelieving and perverse generation!" replied Jesus; "how long shall I be with you? how long shall I endure you? Bring him to me."

World English Bible
Jesus answered, “Faithless and perverse generation! How long will I be with you? How long will I bear with you? Bring him here to me.”
Literal Translations
Literal Standard Version
And Jesus answering said, “O generation, unsteadfast and perverse, until when will I be with you? Until when will I bear you? Bring him to Me here”;

Berean Literal Bible
And Jesus answering said, "O unbelieving and perverted generation, how long will I be with you? How long will I bear with you? Bring him here to Me."

Young's Literal Translation
And Jesus answering said, 'O generation, unstedfast and perverse, till when shall I be with you? till when shall I bear you? bring him to me hither;'

Smith's Literal Translation
And Jesus, having answered, said, O faithless and perverted generation, how long shall I be with you how long shall I endure you? bring him here to me.
Catholic Translations
Douay-Rheims Bible
Then Jesus answered and said: O unbelieving and perverse generation, how long shall I be with you? How long shall I suffer you? bring him hither to me.

Catholic Public Domain Version
Then Jesus responded by saying: “What an unbelieving and perverse generation! How long shall I be with you? How long shall I endure you? Bring him here to me.”

New American Bible
Jesus said in reply, “O faithless and perverse generation, how long will I be with you? How long will I endure you? Bring him here to me.”

New Revised Standard Version
Jesus answered, “You faithless and perverse generation, how much longer must I be with you? How much longer must I put up with you? Bring him here to me.”
Translations from Aramaic
Lamsa Bible
Jesus answered and said, O faithless and crooked generation, how long shall I be with you? and how long shall I preach to you? bring him here to me.

Aramaic Bible in Plain English
Yeshua answered and he said, “Oh, faithless and twisted generation! How long shall I be with you, and how long shall I endure you? Bring him here to me.”
NT Translations
Anderson New Testament
Jesus answered and said: faithless and perverse generation, how long shall I be with you? How long shall I bear with you? Bring him hither to me.

Godbey New Testament
And Jesus responding said: O, faithless and perverse generation, how long shall I be with you? bring him hither to me.

Haweis New Testament
Then Jesus answering, said, O generation, faithless, and perverse! how long shall I be with you? how long shall I bear with you? bring him hither to me.

Mace New Testament
upon which Jesus answered, incredulous and perverse generation, how long shall I be with you? how long shall I suffer you?

Weymouth New Testament
"O unbelieving and perverse generation!" replied Jesus; "how long shall I be with you? how long shall I endure you? Bring him to me."

Worrell New Testament
And Jesus, answering, said, "O faithless and perverted generation! How long shall I be with you? Bring him here to Me."

Worsley New Testament
Then Jesus answered and said, O unbelieving and perverse generation, how long shall I be with you? how long shall I bear with you?

Additional Translations ...
Audio Bible



Context
The Boy with a Demon
16I brought him to Your disciples, but they could not heal him.” 17“O unbelieving and perverse generation!” Jesus replied. “How long must I remain with you? How long must I put up with you? Bring the boy here to Me.” 18Then Jesus rebuked the demon, and it came out of the boy, and he was healed from that moment.…

Cross References
Mark 9:19
“O unbelieving generation!” Jesus replied. “How long must I remain with you? How long must I put up with you? Bring the boy to Me.”

Luke 9:41
“O unbelieving and perverse generation!” Jesus replied. “How long must I remain with you and put up with you? Bring your son here.”

Deuteronomy 32:5
His people have acted corruptly toward Him; the blemish on them is not that of His children, but of a perverse and crooked generation.

Deuteronomy 32:20
He said: “I will hide My face from them; I will see what will be their end. For they are a perverse generation—children of unfaithfulness.

Numbers 14:11
And the LORD said to Moses, “How long will this people treat Me with contempt? How long will they refuse to believe in Me, despite all the signs I have performed among them?

Numbers 14:27
“How long will this wicked congregation grumble against Me? I have heard the complaints that the Israelites are making against Me.

Isaiah 63:10
But they rebelled and grieved His Holy Spirit. So He turned and became their enemy, and He Himself fought against them.

Psalm 78:8
Then they will not be like their fathers, a stubborn and rebellious generation, whose heart was not loyal, whose spirit was not faithful to God.

Psalm 95:10
For forty years I was angry with that generation, and I said, “They are a people whose hearts go astray, and they have not known My ways.”

Hebrews 3:10
Therefore I was angry with that generation, and I said, ‘Their hearts are always going astray, and they have not known My ways.’

Hebrews 3:17
And with whom was God angry for forty years? Was it not with those who sinned, whose bodies fell in the wilderness?

John 20:27
Then Jesus said to Thomas, “Put your finger here and look at My hands. Reach out your hand and put it into My side. Stop doubting and believe.”

Matthew 16:8
Aware of their conversation, Jesus said, “You of little faith, why are you debating among yourselves about having no bread?

Matthew 23:37
O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, who kills the prophets and stones those sent to her, how often I have longed to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, but you were unwilling!

2 Kings 17:14
But they would not listen, and they stiffened their necks like their fathers, who did not believe the LORD their God.


Treasury of Scripture

Then Jesus answered and said, O faithless and perverse generation, how long shall I be with you? how long shall I suffer you? bring him here to me.

O faithless.

Matthew 6:30
Wherefore, if God so clothe the grass of the field, which to day is, and to morrow is cast into the oven, shall he not much more clothe you, O ye of little faith?

Matthew 8:26
And he saith unto them, Why are ye fearful, O ye of little faith? Then he arose, and rebuked the winds and the sea; and there was a great calm.

Matthew 13:58
And he did not many mighty works there because of their unbelief.

how long shall I be.

Exodus 10:3
And Moses and Aaron came in unto Pharaoh, and said unto him, Thus saith the LORD God of the Hebrews, How long wilt thou refuse to humble thyself before me? let my people go, that they may serve me.

Exodus 16:28
And the LORD said unto Moses, How long refuse ye to keep my commandments and my laws?

Numbers 14:11,27
And the LORD said unto Moses, How long will this people provoke me? and how long will it be ere they believe me, for all the signs which I have shewed among them? …

Jump to Previous
Bear Boy Endure Faithless False. Foolish Generation Hither Jesus Perverse Perverted Suffer Unbelieving Unstedfast
Jump to Next
Bear Boy Endure Faithless False. Foolish Generation Hither Jesus Perverse Perverted Suffer Unbelieving Unstedfast
Matthew 17
1. The transfiguration of Jesus.
14. He heals the boy with a demon,
22. foretells his own passion,
24. and pays tribute.














O unbelieving and perverse generation!
This phrase reflects Jesus' frustration with the lack of faith and spiritual understanding among the people, including His disciples. The term "unbelieving" indicates a failure to trust in God's power and promises, while "perverse" suggests a moral and spiritual corruption that distorts the truth. This echoes the language used in Deuteronomy 32:5, where Moses describes the Israelites as a "crooked and perverse generation," highlighting a recurring theme of faithlessness in Israel's history. Jesus' rebuke serves as a call to repentance and a reminder of the necessity of faith.

Jesus replied.
This indicates that Jesus is responding to a situation or question. In the context of Matthew 17, Jesus is addressing the inability of His disciples to cast out a demon from a boy. His response is not just to the disciples but to the broader audience, including the crowd and religious leaders, who often displayed skepticism and disbelief. This reply underscores Jesus' role as a teacher and prophet, confronting the spiritual state of the people.

How long must I remain with you?
This rhetorical question expresses Jesus' exasperation and highlights the limited time He has left on earth to teach and guide His followers. It reflects His awareness of His impending crucifixion and the urgency of His mission. The question also emphasizes the disciples' need to grow in faith and understanding, as Jesus will not always be physically present with them. This anticipates the coming of the Holy Spirit, who will empower and guide the believers after Jesus' ascension.

How long must I put up with you?
Here, Jesus conveys His patience and long-suffering nature, yet also His expectation for spiritual maturity among His followers. This echoes God's patience with Israel throughout the Old Testament, as seen in passages like Psalm 78:38, where God is described as compassionate and forgiving despite the people's rebellion. Jesus' endurance with human frailty and disbelief is a testament to His love and commitment to His redemptive mission.

Bring the boy here to Me.
This command demonstrates Jesus' authority and compassion. By instructing the boy to be brought to Him, Jesus shows His willingness to engage directly with human suffering and need. It also highlights His power over demonic forces, affirming His divine nature. This act of healing serves as a sign of the Kingdom of God breaking into the world, fulfilling prophecies such as Isaiah 61:1, which speaks of the Messiah bringing deliverance and healing. Jesus' invitation to bring the boy to Him is a call to bring all burdens and struggles to Christ, who is able to provide true healing and restoration.

Persons / Places / Events
1. Jesus
The central figure in this passage, expressing frustration over the lack of faith and understanding among His disciples and the crowd.

2. The Disciples
Followers of Jesus who were unable to heal the boy, demonstrating a lack of faith and understanding of Jesus' power.

3. The Boy
A young boy possessed by a demon, whose condition prompted the event and Jesus' response.

4. The Crowd
The people witnessing the event, representing the broader "unbelieving and perverse generation."

5. The Setting
This event takes place after the Transfiguration, as Jesus and His disciples return to the crowd.
Teaching Points
Faith and Frustration
Jesus' frustration highlights the importance of faith. We must examine our own faith and seek to strengthen it through prayer and study.

Spiritual Readiness
The disciples' inability to heal the boy shows the need for spiritual preparedness. We should be diligent in our spiritual disciplines to be ready for God's work.

Generational Accountability
The term "perverse generation" calls us to reflect on our own generation's faithfulness and how we can be a light in a dark world.

Dependence on Jesus
The call to bring the boy to Jesus underscores our need to bring our struggles and challenges directly to Him, trusting in His power and authority.

Persistent Patience
Jesus' question, "How long must I put up with you?" reminds us of the patience required in ministry and relationships, mirroring the patience God shows us.(17) O faithless and perverse generation.--The words were obviously addressed both to the scribes and the disciples. Both had shown their want of the faith which utters itself in prayer to the Father; both were alike "perverse," in finding in the misery brought before them only an occasion of wrangling and debate. This was not the way to obtain the power to heal, and the formulae of exorcism were but as an idle charm, without the faith of which they were meant to be the expression.

How long shall I suffer you?--The words are significant as suggesting the thought that our Lord's whole life was one long tolerance of the waywardness and perversity of men.

Bring him hither to me.--St. Mark, whose record is here by far the fullest, relates that at this moment "the spirit tare him," and that he "wallowed foaming," in the paroxysm of a fresh convulsion; that our Lord then asked, "How long is it ago since this came unto him?" and was told that he had suffered from his childhood; that the father appealed, half-despairing, to our Lord's pity, "If thou canst do anything, have compassion on us, and help us;" and was told that it depended on his own faith, "If thou canst believe; all things are possible to him that believeth;" and then burst out into the cry of a faith struggling with his despair, "Lord, I believe; help Thou my unbelief;" and that that faith, weak as it was, was accepted as sufficient.

Verse 17. - Jesus answered. Jesus did not directly respond to the father's appeal, nor repel the Pharisees' scoffs. In sorrow and indignation he goes at once to the root of the evil. O faithless and perverse generation! He seems to include in this denunciation all who were present - the father, scribes, people, apostles, especially the nine. Want of faith appertained to all. He often refers to the general body of his bearers by the term generation (comp. Matthew 11:16; Matthew 12:29, etc.). Perverse. The word is used by Moses in his great song (Deuteronomy 32:5, Septuagint) in reference to those who dealt corruptly; here it applies to persons who took a distorted view of Christ's work and teaching, and against light and knowledge obstinately persisted in their infidelity. How long shall I be with you?... suffer you? The sad question is not that of one who wants his work finished and his time of departure hastened; rather, it shows his sorrow and regret at the slowness of faith, the hardness of heart, which yet, notwithstanding all his teaching and his miracles, had not been overcome. How much longer was this to continue? Was this forgetfulness of the past, this dulness of comprehension, to last forever? Did they wish to wear out his long suffering, to exhaust his condescension? With Divine impatience at man's obduracy, he makes this mournful inquiry. Bring (φέρετε, bring ye) him hither to me. He speaks to the attendants or the crowd, and bids them bring the boy to him, not to the disciples. The prophet's staff in Gehazi's hand could not awake the dead; Elisha himself must undertake the work (2 Kings 4:31); so if the desired miracle had to he performed, Christ himself must do it. In spite of his grief and disappointment, he does not withhold relief, in the midst of wrath he remembers mercy.

Parallel Commentaries ...


Greek
“O
(Ō)
Interjection
Strong's 5599: A primary interjection; as a sign of the vocative case, O; as a note of exclamation, oh.

unbelieving
ἄπιστος (apistos)
Adjective - Vocative Feminine Singular
Strong's 571: (passively) untrustworthy (person), or incredible (thing).

and
καὶ (kai)
Conjunction
Strong's 2532: And, even, also, namely.

perverse
διεστραμμένη (diestrammenē)
Verb - Perfect Participle Middle or Passive - Vocative Feminine Singular
Strong's 1294: To pervert, corrupt, oppose, distort. From dia and strepho; to distort, i.e. misinterpret, or corrupt.

generation!”
γενεὰ (genea)
Noun - Vocative Feminine Singular
Strong's 1074: From genos; a generation; by implication, an age.

Jesus
Ἰησοῦς (Iēsous)
Noun - Nominative Masculine Singular
Strong's 2424: Of Hebrew origin; Jesus, the name of our Lord and two other Israelites.

replied.
Ἀποκριθεὶς (Apokritheis)
Verb - Aorist Participle Passive - Nominative Masculine Singular
Strong's 611: From apo and krino; to conclude for oneself, i.e. to respond; by Hebraism to begin to speak.

“How long
ἕως (heōs)
Preposition
Strong's 2193: A conjunction, preposition and adverb of continuance, until.

must I remain
ἔσομαι (esomai)
Verb - Future Indicative Middle - 1st Person Singular
Strong's 1510: I am, exist. The first person singular present indicative; a prolonged form of a primary and defective verb; I exist.

with
μεθ’ (meth’)
Preposition
Strong's 3326: (a) gen: with, in company with, (b) acc: (1) behind, beyond, after, of place, (2) after, of time, with nouns, neut. of adjectives.

you?
ὑμῶν (hymōn)
Personal / Possessive Pronoun - Genitive 2nd Person Plural
Strong's 4771: You. The person pronoun of the second person singular; thou.

How long
ἕως (heōs)
Preposition
Strong's 2193: A conjunction, preposition and adverb of continuance, until.

must I put up with
ἀνέξομαι (anexomai)
Verb - Future Indicative Middle - 1st Person Singular
Strong's 430: To endure, bear with, have patience with, suffer, admit, persist.

you?
ὑμῶν (hymōn)
Personal / Possessive Pronoun - Genitive 2nd Person Plural
Strong's 4771: You. The person pronoun of the second person singular; thou.

Bring
φέρετέ (pherete)
Verb - Present Imperative Active - 2nd Person Plural
Strong's 5342: To carry, bear, bring; I conduct, lead; perhaps: I make publicly known. A primary verb.

[the boy]
αὐτὸν (auton)
Personal / Possessive Pronoun - Accusative Masculine 3rd Person Singular
Strong's 846: He, she, it, they, them, same. From the particle au; the reflexive pronoun self, used of the third person, and of the other persons.

here
ὧδε (hōde)
Adverb
Strong's 5602: From an adverb form of hode; in this same spot, i.e. Here or hither.

to Me.”
μοι (moi)
Personal / Possessive Pronoun - Dative 1st Person Singular
Strong's 1473: I, the first-person pronoun. A primary pronoun of the first person I.


Links
Matthew 17:17 NIV
Matthew 17:17 NLT
Matthew 17:17 ESV
Matthew 17:17 NASB
Matthew 17:17 KJV

Matthew 17:17 BibleApps.com
Matthew 17:17 Biblia Paralela
Matthew 17:17 Chinese Bible
Matthew 17:17 French Bible
Matthew 17:17 Catholic Bible

NT Gospels: Matthew 17:17 Jesus answered Faithless and perverse generation! (Matt. Mat Mt)
Matthew 17:16
Top of Page
Top of Page