Read Matthew 10 at Bible Gateway.
This chapter forms a chiastic structure with a portion of the next chapter. The chapter divisions did not appear in the original text, and when they were added, it was not with these natural breaks from the Spirit of God in mind, as they were unknown at the time.
Mat 10:1-11:24
1a) Mat 10:1-15, Disciples commissioned to do Messiah’s works;
1) Mat 10:1-6, The twelve disciples chosen and commissioned;
2) Mat 10:7-10, Power to preach, heal, cleanse lepers, cast out demons, raise the dead;
3) Mat 10:11-14, Shake off the dust of those who do not receive the disciples;
4) Mat 10:15, More tolerable for Sodom and Gomorrah on that day than for those cities;
1b) Mat 10:16-20, Those who will deliver the disciples up;
1c) Mat 10:21, Brother will deliver brother to death, fathers children, and children parents;
1d) Mat 10:22-25, You will be hated by all for My name’s sake, but he who endures to the end will be saved;
1e) Mat 10:26a, Therefore do not fear them;
central axis) Mat 10:26b-27, “For there is nothing covered that will not be revealed, and hidden that will not be known. Whatever I tell you in the dark, speak in the light; and what you hear in the ear, preach on the housetops;”
2e) Mat 10:28-31, Do not fear those who kill the body but cannot harm the soul;
2d) Mat 10:32-33, Confess Me before men and I will confess you before My Father;
2c) Mat 10:34-39, A man’s enemies will be those of his own household;
2b) Mat 10:40-42, Those who receive the disciples receive Jesus and will not lose their reward;
2a) Mat 11:1-24, Messiah’s works proclaim who He is;
1) Mat 11:1, When Jesus finished commanding His twelve disciples;
2) Mat 11:2-5, The works of Messiah (preaching, healing, etc.) testify that Jesus is Messiah;
3) Mat 11:6-19, Blessed is he who is not offended because of Me (mini chiastic structure);
4) Mat 11:20-24, More tolerable for Sodom and Gomorrah on that day than for the unrepentant cities.
Disciples are commissioned and empowered to witness of Jesus the Messiah. More than the twelve were commissioned and empowered: all who follow Him were commissioned with the Great Commission (Mat 28:18-20), and empowered with the Holy Spirit to be His witnesses (Act 1:8, 2). You and me are included among them.
But when we start to preach the kingdom of heaven, as we have seen John and Jesus preach it so far in Matthew — that sinners (you and me again) are spiritually sick with a sickness leading to death, but Jesus has been sent to heal and save all who repent of sin and receive Him — and start to do the works that Jesus did which testify that Jesus is the Messiah and our witness is true, then persecution will follow.
If the world is not offended at us, then perhaps it is time to reexamine our testimony and our works.
matthew 10, in the service of the king (2011)
matthew 10, the kingdom of heaven is at hand (2009)
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