The Textus Receptus gives Jesus the active verb: I will liken him. The critical text uses a passive: he shall be likened. At verse 26, where the foolish builder appears, both read the passive.
“Whosoever heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them, I will liken him unto a wise man.” — Matthew 7:24
The difference changes the paragraph’s voice, not its two foundations.
Critics can point to Luke 6:47, where Jesus says, “I will shew you to whom he is like.” The active Matthew reading may be harmonized toward Luke. The passive also has early support and may look less expected.
Yet the immediate source for change is even nearer. Verse 26 says the disobedient hearer “shall be likened unto a foolish man.” A copyist who likes matched clauses can make verse 24 passive as well. The critical form gives perfect grammatical symmetry.
The received asymmetry gives something else. Jesus personally identifies the wise builder: “I will liken him.” The fool’s collapse then speaks for itself under the passive verdict. That variation fits the authoritative first person that has filled the sermon—“I say unto you.”
Both builders hear. The difference is doing. Rock is not bare mental assent; it is Christ’s word received in obedient faith. The rain, flood, and wind expose foundations that sunshine concealed.
The passage does not teach sinless performance. The Beatitudes began with spiritual poverty. It teaches that grace does not leave Christ’s sayings outside the life.
The active reading has broad and early transmission and explains the passive through assimilation to verse 26. Luke’s similar active wording may preserve the Lord’s repeated self-presentation rather than a scribe’s borrowing.
“I will liken him” should remain. At the end of the sermon Jesus is not merely one item inside the comparison. He is the speaker who names wisdom, sends the storm of judgment, and demands that his words be done.
The two voices also give the paragraph a subtle moral contour. The wise hearer receives Christ’s personal commendation before the storm. The foolish hearer is handed over to the likeness his conduct has chosen. Matthew can create that difference without implying that anyone escapes Christ’s final judgment.
Luke’s wording matters, but parallel influence is not one-directional proof. If Matthew originally had the active, Luke confirms a form of the Lord’s self-comparison. If Matthew had the passive, Luke offers a source for change. The manuscripts and Matthew’s internal contrast must decide which explanation carries more weight.
The house does not stand because the builder’s execution is flawless. It stands because the foundation bears the storm. Doing Christ’s sayings is the shape of living faith resting on him. The active verb keeps the Lord himself at the center of both command and comparison.
Sources and further reading
- Matthew 5–7; Luke 6:46–49; James 1:22–25.
- Bruce M. Metzger, A Textual Commentary on the Greek New Testament, note on Matthew 7:24.
- John William Burgon and Edward Miller, The Traditional Text of the Holy Gospels.