Matthew 13:21 Meaning and Explanation
“Yet hath he not root in himself, but dureth for a while: for when tribulation or persecution ariseth because of the word, by and by he is offended.”
King James Version (KJV)
Read this verse in context with translation switching:
Read Full Chapter →Because the joyful hearer has no root, he falls away as soon as trouble or persecution comes.
What Does Matthew 13:21 Mean?
Jesus explains why the shallow joy fails. The hearer has no root in himself; his faith endures only for a while. When tribulation or persecution arises because of the word, he is quickly offended and falls away, by and by meaning at once.
Trouble here is not a sign of God's absence but the heat that reveals what was always shallow. Faith that costs nothing collapses when faith begins to cost. The verse urges the reader to seek a hidden root, a trust in Christ that goes deeper than feeling and can bear the weight of hardship, so that when testing comes it strengthens rather than scatters.
Matthew 13:21 in the Original Language
thlipsis (θλῖψις), 'tribulation' -- pressure or affliction, the crushing weight of trouble that tests what is real.
Frequently Asked Questions About Matthew 13:21
What does Matthew 13:21 mean?
Because the joyful hearer has no root, he falls away as soon as trouble or persecution comes.