26 “So have no fear of them, for nothing is covered that will not be revealed, or hidden that will not be known. 27 What I tell you in the dark, say in the light, and what you hear whispered, proclaim on the housetops. 28 And do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather fear him who can destroy both soul and body in hell.1 29 Are not two sparrows sold for a penny?2 And not one of them will fall to the ground apart from your Father. 30 But even the hairs of your head are all numbered. 31 Fear not, therefore; you are of more value than many sparrows. 32 So everyone who acknowledges me before men, I also will acknowledge before my Father who is in heaven, 33 but whoever denies me before men, I also will deny before my Father who is in heaven.”
Section Overview
Matthew 10:26–33 closely follows 10:5–25. There Jesus delivered a daunting message. The disciples would go forth, lightly trained, barely equipped, to announce the arrival of the kingdom and to reveal its power in bursts of miraculous activity. The faithful would receive them, but the rest would not. Indeed, they would suffer hatred, trials, betrayal, floggings, even death. They had a marvelous task and a blessed destiny: to become like Christ himself. Knowing human nature, Jesus next begins to exhort and encourage his apostles (vv. 26–33). “Have no fear,” he says. Men can kill the body, but not the soul. God cares even for sparrows, so he surely cares for his apostles. If they acknowledge Jesus through their ministry, he will acknowledge them before the Father.
Section Outline
IV.B. The Second Discourse: The Disciples Follow Jesus into Mission (10:1–11:1) . . .
6. Disciples Remain Fearless (10:26–31)
7. Disciples Confess Christ (10:32–33)
Matthew 10:26–33 resembles 6:25–34. There Jesus repeats “Do not be anxious”; here he repeats “Do not fear” in 10:26, 28, 31. Both times he invites disciples to reason with him from God’s ways. The grammar of the three commands differs slightly, and the ESV translation conveys that with slight differences in wording. The second and third commands are intertwined (cf. table 1.4).
TABLE 1.4: Commands in Matthew 10:26–31
|
Commands |
Reasons |
|
|
“So have no fear of them.” |
All will be revealed. |
|
|
“Do not fear those who kill the body.” |
There is a greater fear: God can destroy body and soul in hell. |
|
|
God cares for sparrows, even for the hairs on human heads, so he surely cares for his disciples. |
||
|
“Fear not, therefore . . .” |
“You are of more value” than sparrows and hairs. |
|
|
If anyone acknowledges Jesus before men, Jesus will acknowledge him before the Father in heaven. |
Response
The Bible says “Do not fear” about one hundred times, making it the most common command in Scripture. Scripture also explains why not to fear and what not to fear: conspiracy, shame, insult, hatred, financial loss, war, or, above all, death. God often tells his people to reorder their fears: “Do not fear what they fear” (Isa. 8:12; 1 Pet. 3:14, lit. trans.). Disciples could make a list of their fears—snakes, public singing, loneliness, cancer, jail—and then ask which of them is valid. Jesus recognizes that hatred, flogging, and death can be frightening, but he directs his disciples to ignore fears that stop their witness and proceed from fear of death. From his prison cell, Dietrich Bonhoeffer wrote, “Those who are still afraid of men have no fear of God, and those who have fear of God have ceased to be afraid of men.”171
Matthew 10 also clarifies what it means to confess Christ. Confession includes the saying of words, such as “Jesus is Lord” (Rom. 10:9), but one must verify a confession by actions that are at least generally coherent. So disciples confess Christ when they do his will, especially when it is dangerous. This demonstrates confidence that Christ arose after his crucifixion and will impart life to those who “die in the Lord” (Rev. 14:13).
Paul, James, Peter, Stephen, and others demonstrated a blessed willingness to die for Christ. This motivates others to a similar fearlessness. The Roman historian Lucian despised Christians because he thought they had been duped, but he had to recognize their fearlessness: “The poor wretches have convinced themselves . . . that they are going to be immortal . . . [so] they despise death.”172 This is an accusation one might hope to earn, for Jesus recognizes all who sacrifice for him.