Matthew 7:16 (YLT)

Passage

From their fruits ye shall know them; do <FI>men<Fi> gather from thorns grapes? or from thistles figs?

Nearby Context

Matthew 7:14 how strait <FI>is<Fi> the gate, and compressed the way that is leading to the life, and few are those finding it!

Matthew 7:15 `But, take heed of the false prophets, who come unto you in sheep's clothing, and inwardly are ravening wolves.

Matthew 7:16 From their fruits ye shall know them; do <FI>men<Fi> gather from thorns grapes? or from thistles figs?

Matthew 7:17 so every good tree doth yield good fruits, but the bad tree doth yield evil fruits.

Matthew 7:18 A good tree is not able to yield evil fruits, nor a bad tree to yield good fruits.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "fruits", "shall", "gather", "thorns", "grapes", "thistles", and "figs". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "fruits" and "shall", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 15's "But take heed of the false prophets..." into verse 17's "so every good tree doth yield good...", so "fruits" and "shall" 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 "fruits" and "shall" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.