# Matthew 12.11-12

<!-- type: passage | created: 2026-10-13 | updated: 2026-10-13 -->

**Book:** [Matthew](/codex/matthew/) · NASB95

## Immediate context (±2 verses)

**ASV** ([ASV](/codex/asv/))
> 9. And he departed thence, and went into their synagogue: 10. and behold, a man having a withered hand. And they asked him, saying, Is it lawful to heal on the sabbath day? that they might accuse him.
>
> **11. And he said unto them, <span class="rl-speech">What man shall there be of you, that shall have one sheep, and if this fall into a pit on the sabbath day, will he not lay hold on it, and lift it out?</span> 12. <span class="rl-speech">How much then is a man of more value than a sheep! Wherefore it is lawful to do good on the sabbath day.</span>**
>
> 13. Then saith he to the man, Stretch forth thy hand. And he stretched it forth; and it was restored whole, as the other. 14. But the Pharisees went out, and took counsel against him, how they might destroy him. (Matthew 12:9-14, ASV)

**WEB** ([WEB](/codex/web/))
> 9. He departed there, and went into their synagogue. 10. And behold there was a man with a withered hand. They asked him, “Is it lawful to heal on the Sabbath day?” that they might accuse him.
>
> **11. He said to them, <span class="rl-speech">“What man is there among you, who has one sheep, and if this one falls into a pit on the Sabbath day, won’t he grab on to it, and lift it out?</span> 12. <span class="rl-speech">Of how much more value then is a man than a sheep! Therefore it is lawful to do good on the Sabbath day.”</span>**
>
> 13. Then he told the man, <span class="rl-speech">“Stretch out your hand.”</span> He stretched it out; and it was restored whole, just like the other. 14. But the Pharisees went out, and conspired against him, how they might destroy him. (Matthew 12:9-14, WEB)

**KJV** ([KJV](/codex/kjv/))
> 9. And when he was departed thence, he went into their synagogue: 10. And, behold, there was a man which had his hand withered. And they asked him, saying, Is it lawful to heal on the sabbath days? that they might accuse him.
>
> **11. And he said unto them, <span class="rl-speech">What man shall there be among you, that shall have one sheep, and if it fall into a pit on the sabbath day, will he not lay hold on it, and lift it out?</span> 12. <span class="rl-speech">How much then is a man better than a sheep? Wherefore it is lawful to do well on the sabbath days.</span>**
>
> 13. Then saith he to the man, Stretch forth thine hand. And he stretched it forth; and it was restored whole, like as the other. 14. Then the Pharisees went out, and held a council against him, how they might destroy him. <sup>held: or, took counsel</sup> (Matthew 12:9-14, KJV)

**YLT** ([YLT](/codex/ylt/))
> 9. And having departed thence, he went to their synagogue, 10. and lo, there was a man having the hand withered, and they questioned him, saying, 'Is it lawful to heal on the sabbaths?' that they might accuse him.
>
> **11. And he said to them, <span class="rl-speech">'What man shall be of you, who shall have one sheep, and if this may fall on the sabbaths into a ditch, will not lay hold on it and raise [it]?</span> 12. <span class="rl-speech">How much better, therefore, is a man than a sheep?, so that it is lawful on the sabbaths to do good.'</span>**
>
> 13. Then saith he to the man, 'Stretch forth thy hand,' and he stretched [it] forth, and it was restored whole as the other. 14. And the Pharisees having gone forth, held a consultation against him, how they might destroy him, (Matthew 12:9-14, YLT)

## Setting

- **Speaker:** _TBD_
- **Audience:** _TBD_
- **Location:** _TBD_
- **Time period:** _TBD_

## Theological reading

_Patristic / early-church-father exegesis, to be added._

## Key words

_Theologically-loaded Greek or Hebrew words in this verse may have entries in the lexicon. Curated to roughly 100 contested terms across the corpus, not every word._

- [G1453 - egeiro](/codex/g1453-egeiro/), *egeiro*, Strong's G1453
- [G1520 - heis](/codex/g1520-heis/), *heis*, Strong's G1520

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## Quoted in

**Arguments and defeaters:**

- [Essene Origin of Christianity Objection Defeater](/codex/essene-origin-of-christianity-objection-defeater/)
- [Ritual Purity Laws Objection Defeater](/codex/ritual-purity-laws-objection-defeater/), via [Matthew 12.1-14](/codex/matthew-12-1-14/)

**Concepts:**

- [Jesus Said](/codex/jesus-said/), via [Matthew 12](/codex/matthew-12/)
- [Sabbath](/codex/sabbath/), via [Matthew 12.1-14](/codex/matthew-12-1-14/)

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## Notes

_Your annotations._

## Why these four translations

ris3n chose ASV, WEB, KJV, and YLT for two reasons together. They are the **most literal English translations available** (formal-equivalence: word-for-word renderings that preserve the Hebrew and Greek grammar rather than smoothing it into modern dynamic-equivalence idiom). And they are in the **public domain in the United States**, which means fair-use quotation at any length requires no publisher license. Modern licensed translations (NASB95, ESV, NIV) restrict volume of quotation under their copyright terms, so they are not used at stub-level coverage here. NASB95 appears only on hand-curated rich passage hubs under Lockman Foundation's fair-use allowance.

The four:

- **[ASV](/codex/asv/)** (American Standard Version, 1901). The basis of the modern critical-text English tradition.
- **[WEB](/codex/web/)** (World English Bible, contemporary). Public-domain revision in the ASV line, in current English.
- **[KJV](/codex/kjv/)** (King James Version, 1611). Reformation-era, Textus Receptus base.
- **[YLT](/codex/ylt/)** (Young's Literal Translation, Robert Young, 1862). Hyper-literal preservation of Hebrew and Greek grammar; useful for word-study work even where English reads stiff.

See [Bibles](/codex/bibles/) for the full per-translation history, translators, textual basis, strengths, and weaknesses.