# Where Two or Three Are Gathered (Matthew 18:20) > Matthew 18:20 belongs to a paragraph about correcting a brother. Jesus also promises to be with his people to the end of the age. - Canonical: https://apologetics.wiki/christianity/where-two-or-three-are-gathered - Religions: Christianity, Jehovah's Witnesses, Biblical Unitarianism - Denominations: none - Beliefs: none - Tags: matthew, presence, church - Updated: 2026-11-07 - Author: [Paul Ambrose](https://apologetics.wiki/author/hi-its-paul) [Matthew 18:20](/bible/matthew/18/20) is Jesus’ promise to be in the midst where two or three gather in his name. In the paragraph, those two or three are the witnesses in a case of a brother’s sin, not a count that makes a prayer meeting into the whole church. The same Jesus says, in [Matthew 28:20](/bible/matthew/28/20), that he is with his disciples to the end of the age. ## Key Points - [Matthew 18:15–17](/bible/matthew/18) tells a brother to go alone, then to take one or two more, “that in the mouth of two or three witnesses every word may be established,” and then to tell the church. - [Matthew 18:20](/bible/matthew/18/20): “For where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them.” [Matthew 18:19](/bible/matthew/18/19) is the agreement in prayer that the “for” explains. - [Pirkei Avot 3:2](https://www.sefaria.org/Pirkei_Avot.3.2), Joshua Kulp’s English, says if two sit and words of Torah are between them, the Shekhinah abides among them. [Avot 3:6](https://www.sefaria.org/Pirkei_Avot.3.6) says the same of ten, five, three, two, and even one. - The [New World Translation (Jehovah’s Witnesses’ Bible)](https://www.jw.org/en/library/bible/study-bible/books/matthew/18/) reads 18:20, “where there are two or three gathered together in my name, there I am in their midst.” The study note on 18:17 calls “the congregation” the body whose appointed men judge. - [BiblicalUnitarian.com on Matthew 28:20](https://www.biblicalunitarian.com/verses/matthew-28-20b) says Jesus need not be omnipresent to be “with” the eleven, and that God and Christ are “someone different” in 28:18. - [Matthew 28:20](/bible/matthew/28/20) promises presence to the end of the age. [John 1:1](/bible/john/1/1) says the Word was God. Presence everywhere, as God is present, is said of the one Christians confess as God the Son. ## What the Paragraph Is About [Matthew 18:15](/bible/matthew/18) begins, “if thy brother shall trespass against thee, go and tell him his fault between thee and him alone.” If he hears, the brother is gained. [Matthew 18:16](/bible/matthew/18/16): “if he will not hear thee, then take with thee one or two more, that in the mouth of two or three witnesses every word may be established.” That is [Deuteronomy 19:15](/bible/deuteronomy/19/15), a matter established at the mouth of two or three witnesses. [Matthew 18:17](/bible/matthew/18) says to tell it to the church, and if he will not hear the church, to treat him as an outsider. [Matthew 18:18](/bible/matthew/18) is binding and loosing. [Matthew 18:19](/bible/matthew/18/19) says if two agree on earth about anything they ask, it will be done by the Father in heaven. [Matthew 18:20](/bible/matthew/18/20), King James Version: > For where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them. The “for” attaches the promise to the two who agree and to the two or three witnesses. Jesus says he is there in that gathering in his name. The sentence is not a rule that three Christians in a hallway are the church, and it is not a rule that he is absent until the count is met. The count is the count of witnesses already in verse 16. ## The Mishnah on the Divine Presence Later rabbinic parallels also speak of the divine presence among people studying Torah. [Pirkei Avot 3:2](https://www.sefaria.org/Pirkei_Avot.3.2), in Joshua Kulp’s English on Sefaria, reports Rabbi Hananiah ben Teradion: if two sit and there are words of Torah between them, “the Shekhinah abides among them,” from [Malachi 3:16](/bible/malachi/3/16), those who feared the LORD spoke one to another and the LORD heard. [Pirkei Avot 3:6](https://www.sefaria.org/Pirkei_Avot.3.6), Rabbi Halafta of Kefar Hananiah: when ten sit and occupy themselves with Torah, the Shekhinah abides among them, from [Psalm 82:1](/bible/psalms/82/1). The same is said of five, of three (“In the midst of the judges He judges”), of two, and of one. [The Jewish Encyclopedia](https://www.jewishencyclopedia.com/articles/7076-halafta-of-kefar-hananiah-r) calls Halafta a tanna of the second century. Their existence does not establish that these formulations preceded Jesus or that Matthew depends on them. Trinitarian Christians read Matthew’s promise of Jesus’ presence alongside this theme as significant for his identity. [Does Jesus Do What Only God Does?](/islam/does-jesus-do-what-only-god-does) is the wider list of those acts. ## What Jehovah’s Witnesses Print Jehovah’s Witnesses, in the [New World Translation (Jehovah’s Witnesses’ Bible)](https://www.jw.org/en/library/bible/study-bible/books/matthew/18/), render [Matthew 18:20](/bible/matthew/18/20): “For where there are two or three gathered together in my name, there I am in their midst.” The study note on “the congregation” in 18:17 says that under the Mosaic Law, judges represented the congregation, that in Jesus’ day offenders answered to local courts, and that “later, responsible men would be appointed by the holy spirit to act as judges in each Christian congregation.” The note on binding and loosing says the plural “you” means not only Peter, and that a decision on earth follows a decision already made in heaven rather than creating it. The page prints Jesus’ “I am” in the midst of the two or three, and it explains the surrounding verses as congregation justice. It does not, on that page, say the sentence proves he is not God. Jehovah’s Witnesses do say, in other places this site quotes, that Jesus is a spirit creature and not God Almighty. [Is Jesus the Creator or a Creature?](/jehovahs-witnesses/is-jesus-the-creator-or-a-creature) is that claim. The study Bible’s own note here is about witnesses, the congregation, and heaven’s prior decision. ## What Biblical Unitarians Say About Presence Biblical Unitarians argue from the promise of presence that Jesus need not be God. [BiblicalUnitarian.com on Matthew 28:20](https://www.biblicalunitarian.com/verses/matthew-28-20b) quotes the NIV, “And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age,” and says this is sometimes used to prove the Trinity “because it is said that the only way that Jesus could always be with his Church is if he were God, and if he were omnipresent.” The page says that is mistaken. Jesus spoke “to his disciples (Matt. 28:16), not to the 500 people of 1 Corinthians 15:6, and not to the entire modern day Christian Church.” “Jesus does not have to be omnipresent to be ‘with’ 11 people, his disciples.” Presence can be “spiritual in nature, not physical”: he pays attention, intercedes, and uses them. The page adds that two verses earlier “Christ said he had been given ‘all authority’ presumably by God. God gave Christ all authority. God is someone different than Christ in Matthew 28:18.” It cites Snedeker, pages 408 and 409. That is a clear Unitarian reading of the presence promise: “with you” does not mean omnipresence, and a gift of authority means the giver and the receiver are two. The page is about Matthew 28:20, the end of the Gospel, not a separate commentary on 18:20. The two promises are the same speaker. [What Is Biblical Unitarianism?](/biblical-unitarianism/what-is-biblical-unitarianism) and [Does 1 Corinthians 8:6 Mean Only the Father Is God?](/biblical-unitarianism/one-god-the-father-1-corinthians-8-6) are the confession that the Father alone is God. ## Presence and Who Jesus Is [Matthew 28:20](/bible/matthew/28/20) says, “lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world.” The Unitarian page is right that “with” can be used for care, attention, and help, and that a body in Galilee is not standing in every room. Christians do not say Matthew 18:20 is a head count that creates the divine nature. They say the one who promises to be in the midst, and with them to the end, is the one Thomas calls Lord and God. [John 1:1](/bible/john/1/1) says the Word was with God and the Word was God. [John 14:23](/bible/john/14/23) says the Father and the Son will come and make their abode with the one who loves Jesus. [Matthew 28:19](/bible/matthew/28/19) names the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit under one name, in the same speech as the promise of presence. Authority given to the Son, in [Matthew 28:18](/bible/matthew/28/18), is what the Gospels also say the Father gives the Son. It does not, in those books, make the Son a second god or a creature. [Is Jesus God?](/christianity/is-jesus-god) and [The Trinity](/christianity/the-trinity) are that confession. A gathering of two or three does not manufacture his presence. He states it. The church’s discipline in Matthew 18 is done before him because of who he is, not because the number three is magic. ## Frequently Asked Questions ### What Does Matthew 18:19 Mean? [Matthew 18:19](/bible/matthew/18/19) says that if two of you agree on earth about a request, the Father in heaven will do it. Verse 20 gives the reason: where two or three gather in his name, he is in the midst. The two are the two already in the discipline paragraph. ### What Does Matthew 18:18 Say? [Matthew 18:18](/bible/matthew/18) is binding and loosing: what the disciples bind or loose on earth is bound or loosed in heaven. The Jehovah’s Witnesses study note says the decision follows heaven’s decision. The verse sits between “tell it unto the church” and the promise of verse 20. ### Does the Verse Make Any Small Group the Whole Church? The two or three in verse 16 are witnesses so that every word may be established. Verse 17 still has a further step, the church. The promise of verse 20 does not delete that step. ## Keep Reading - [Matthew 18:19](/bible/matthew/18/19) - [Matthew 18:20](/bible/matthew/18/20) - [Does Jesus Do What Only God Does?](/islam/does-jesus-do-what-only-god-does) - [Is Jesus God?](/christianity/is-jesus-god) - [The Trinity](/christianity/the-trinity) - [What Do Jehovah’s Witnesses Believe?](/jehovahs-witnesses/what-do-jehovahs-witnesses-believe) - [What Is Biblical Unitarianism?](/biblical-unitarianism/what-is-biblical-unitarianism) - [Is Jesus the Creator or a Creature?](/jehovahs-witnesses/is-jesus-the-creator-or-a-creature) ## Passages Quoted on This Page ### Matthew 28:20 King James Version. > Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world. Amen. ### Matthew 18:15–17 King James Version. > [18:15] Moreover if thy brother shall trespass against thee, go and tell him his fault between thee and him alone: if he shall hear thee, thou hast gained thy brother. [18:16] But if he will not hear thee, then take with thee one or two more, that in the mouth of two or three witnesses every word may be established. [18:17] And if he shall neglect to hear them, tell it unto the church: but if he neglect to hear the church, let him be unto thee as an heathen man and a publican. ### Matthew 18:19 King James Version. > Again I say unto you, That if two of you shall agree on earth as touching any thing that they shall ask, it shall be done for them of my Father which is in heaven. ### John 1:1 King James Version. > In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. ### Matthew 18:15 King James Version. > Moreover if thy brother shall trespass against thee, go and tell him his fault between thee and him alone: if he shall hear thee, thou hast gained thy brother. ### Matthew 18:16 King James Version. > But if he will not hear thee, then take with thee one or two more, that in the mouth of two or three witnesses every word may be established. ### Deuteronomy 19:15 King James Version. > One witness shall not rise up against a man for any iniquity, or for any sin, in any sin that he sinneth: at the mouth of two witnesses, or at the mouth of three witnesses, shall the matter be established. ### Matthew 18:17 King James Version. > And if he shall neglect to hear them, tell it unto the church: but if he neglect to hear the church, let him be unto thee as an heathen man and a publican. ### Matthew 18:18 King James Version. > Verily I say unto you, Whatsoever ye shall bind on earth shall be bound in heaven: and whatsoever ye shall loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven. ### Malachi 3:16 King James Version. > Then they that feared the LORD spake often one to another: and the LORD hearkened, and heard it, and a book of remembrance was written before him for them that feared the LORD, and that thought upon his name. ### Psalms 82:1 King James Version. > God standeth in the congregation of the mighty; he judgeth among the gods. ### John 14:23 King James Version. > Jesus answered and said unto him, If a man love me, he will keep my words: and my Father will love him, and we will come unto him, and make our abode with him. ### Matthew 28:19 King James Version. > Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: ### Matthew 28:18 King James Version. > And Jesus came and spake unto them, saying, All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth. ### Matthew 18:15–20 King James Version. > [18:15] Moreover if thy brother shall trespass against thee, go and tell him his fault between thee and him alone: if he shall hear thee, thou hast gained thy brother. [18:16] But if he will not hear thee, then take with thee one or two more, that in the mouth of two or three witnesses every word may be established. [18:17] And if he shall neglect to hear them, tell it unto the church: but if he neglect to hear the church, let him be unto thee as an heathen man and a publican. [18:18] Verily I say unto you, Whatsoever ye shall bind on earth shall be bound in heaven: and whatsoever ye shall loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven. [18:19] Again I say unto you, That if two of you shall agree on earth as touching any thing that they shall ask, it shall be done for them of my Father which is in heaven. [18:20] For where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them. ## Sources Numbered to match the HTML References list. Item 1 is `#ref-1` under `#references`. Scripture links to the King James Version on this site. 1. [Gospel of Matthew, 18:15–20; 28:18–20](https://apologetics.wiki/bible/matthew/18). King James Version 2. [Mishnah, Pirkei Avot 3:2 and 3:6, Joshua Kulp, Mishnah Yomit](https://www.sefaria.org/Pirkei_Avot.3.6) (English on Sefaria. Avot 3:2 is two who speak words of Torah. Avot 3:6 counts down from ten to one.) 3. [Jewish Encyclopedia, Halafta of Kefar Hananiah, Tanna of the second century](https://www.jewishencyclopedia.com/articles/7076-halafta-of-kefar-hananiah-r) (Calls Halafta a tanna of the second century and says Avot 3:6 preserves his homily.) 4. [New World Translation (Jehovah’s Witnesses’ Bible), Matthew 18:15–20, Study Bible](https://www.jw.org/en/library/bible/study-bible/books/matthew/18/) (2013 study edition on jw.org. The study notes on the congregation and on binding are on that page.) 5. [BiblicalUnitarian.com, Matthew 28:20b, Snedeker, pp. 408–409](https://www.biblicalunitarian.com/verses/matthew-28-20b) (The page argues that “I am with you always” does not require omnipresence.) 6. [Gospel of John, 1:1; 14:23](https://apologetics.wiki/bible/john/1/1). King James Version ## See Also - [Did the Church Fall Into Apostasy?](https://apologetics.wiki/christianity/did-the-church-fall-into-apostasy) — Latter-day Saints teach a Great Apostasy after the Apostles, restored through Joseph Smith in 1820. Jehovah’s Witnesses teach that Christ freed his people from Babylon the Great in 1919. Matthew 16:18 says the gates of hell shall not prevail. - [When Was Christianity Created?](https://apologetics.wiki/christianity/when-was-christianity-created) — Acts places the Spirit on the disciples at Pentecost in Jerusalem, and the name Christian at Antioch. Jesus is the one that church confesses. The Council of Nicaea in 325 does not found it. - [Who Started the Catholic Church?](https://apologetics.wiki/christianity/who-started-the-catholic-church) — The Catechism says Jesus inaugurated the Church and made Peter its rock. Westminster says Christ is the only head and the pope cannot be head. The fetched texts do not say Constantine founded it. - [Who Was the First Pope?](https://apologetics.wiki/christianity/who-was-the-first-pope) — The Catechism says Jesus made Peter the rock and that the pope succeeds him. An Orthodox clergy answer says first among equals is not supremacy of jurisdiction. Westminster says Christ is the only head. - [Did Jesus Ever Claim to Be God?](https://apologetics.wiki/christianity/deity-of-christ) — The Gospels record Jesus forgiving sins, saying I am, and accepting Thomas’s Lord and God. Hearers treated those words as blasphemy.