Matthew 12:36

Modern

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

Traditional

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

Literal

And I say to you that every careless word that men will speak, they will give an account concerning it in the day of judgment.

Latin

Dico autem vobis quoniam omne verbum otiosum, quod locuti fuerint homines, reddent rationem de eo in die judicii.

Greek

English

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

The careless word, in this context, was the claim that demons empowered Jesus.
What a person says will either free or condemn them on the day of judgment. What people say shows the true state of their hearts.

Jesus addressed the main issue. The Pharisees did not accept him or believe his work came from God because they were wicked (see 7:15–27).

The Pharisees, the teachers of religious law, and many people of his generation rejected the Messiah.

Theme notes and profiles

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 1:14–15
Enoch, the seventh from Adam, also prophesied about them: “Behold, the Lord is coming with myriads of His holy ones
Ephesians 6:4–6
Fathers, do not provoke your children to wrath; instead, bring them up in the discipline and instruction of the Lord.