Matthew 18:16 (YLT)

Passage

and if he may not hear, take with thee yet one or two, that by the mouth of two witnesses or three every word may stand.

Nearby Context

Matthew 18:14 so it is not will in presence of your Father who is in the heavens, that one of these little ones may perish.

Matthew 18:15 `And if thy brother may sin against thee, go and show him his fault between thee and him alone, if he may hear thee, thou didst gain thy brother;

Matthew 18:16 and if he may not hear, take with thee yet one or two, that by the mouth of two witnesses or three every word may stand.

Matthew 18:17 `And if he may not hear them, say <FI>it<Fi> to the assembly, and if also the assembly he may not hear, let him be to thee as the heathen man and the tax-gatherer.

Matthew 18:18 `Verily I say to you, Whatever things ye may bind upon the earth shall be having been bound in the heavens, and whatever things ye may loose on the earth shall be having been loosed in the heavens.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "hear", "take", "thee", "mouth", "witnesses", "three", "word", and "stand". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "hear" and "take", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 15's "And if thy brother may sin against..." into verse 17's "And if he may not hear them...", so "hear" and "take" belong inside that flow. In Matthew context, the local focus is Christ, faith, and discipleship.

A plain takeaway is to answer the verse's own emphasis on "hear" and "take" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.