Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of Luke 12:5
But I will forewarn you whom ye shall fear: Fear him, which after he hath killed hath power to cast into hell; yea, I say unto you, Fear him.
5. Fear him, which after he hath killed ] Many commentators have understood this expression of the Devil, and one of the Fathers goes so far as to say that it is the only passage in the Bible in which we cannot be certain whether God or Satan is intended. There can, however, be no doubt that the reference is to God. If “fear” ever meant ‘be on your guard against,’ the other view might be tenable, but there is no instance of such a meaning, and we are bidden to defy and resist the Devil, but never to fear him; nor are we ever told that he has any power to cast into Gehenna.
to cast into hell ] Rather, into Gehenna. It is a deep misfortune that our English Version has made no consistent difference of rendering between ‘the place of the dead,’ ‘the intermediate state between death and resurrection’ (Hades, Sheol), and Gehenna, which is sometimes metaphorically used (as here) for a place of punishment after death. Gehenna was a purely Hebrew word, and corresponded primarily to purely Hebrew conceptions. Our Lord (if He spoke Greek) did not attempt to represent it by any analogous, but imperfectly equivalent, Greek term like Tartarus (see 2Pe 2:4), and certainly the Apostles and Evangelists did not. They simply transliterated the Hebrew term ( G Hinnom, Valley of Hinnom) into Greek letters. It is surely a plain positive duty to follow so clear an example, and not to render Gehenna by English terms which cannot connote exactly the same conceptions. The Valley of Hinnom, or of the Sons of Hinnom (Jos 15:8; Jos 18:16 ; 2Ki 23:10; Jer 7:31), was a pleasant valley outside Jerusalem, which had first been rendered infamous by Moloch worship; then defiled by Josiah with corpses; and lastly kept from putrefaction by large fires to consume the corpses and prevent pestilence. Milton describes it with his usual learned accuracy:
“First Moloch, horrid king, besmeared with blood
Of human sacrifice, and parents’ tears;
Though for the noise of drums and timbrels loud
Their children’s cries unheard that passed through fire
To his grim idol……
and made his grove
The pleasant Valley of Hinnom, Tophet thence
And black Gehenna called, the type of Hell.”
Par. Lost, I. 392.
Tophet is derived from the word Toph ‘a drum’ (compare ) , dub, thump, &c.).
Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges
Verse 5. Fear him] Even the friends of God are commanded to fear God, as a being who has authority to send both body and soul into hell. Therefore it is proper even for the most holy persons to maintain a fear of God, as the punisher of all unrighteousness. A man has but one life to lose, and one soul to save; and it is madness to sacrifice the salvation of the soul to the preservation of the life.
Fuente: Adam Clarke’s Commentary and Critical Notes on the Bible
5. Fear Him . . . Fear Himhowstriking the repetition here! Only the one fear would effectuallyexpel the other.
after he hath killed,c.Learn here(1) To play false with one’s convictions to saveone’s life, may fail of its end after all, for God can inflict aviolent death in some other and equally formidable way. (2) There isa hell, it seems, for the body as well as the soulconsequently, sufferings adapted to the one as well as the other. (3)Fear of hell is a divinely authorized and needed motive ofaction even to Christ’s “friends.” (4) As Christ’s meeknessand gentleness were not compromised by such harsh notes as these, sothose servants of Christ lack their Master’s spirit who soften downall such language to please ears “polite.” (See on Mr9:43-48).
Fuente: Jamieson, Fausset and Brown’s Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible
But I will forewarn you whom ye shall fear, I will be your monitor, and direct you to the proper object of fear and reverence, and whom you should be careful to displease and offend:
fear him, which after he hath killed; your body, as the Persic version adds; hath taken away the life of it, by separating soul and body asunder, by sending one disease or another, or death in one shape or another:
hath power to cast into hell; your soul, as the above version also adds; yea, to destroy both body and soul in hell, as in
[See comments on Mt 10:28]
yea, I say unto you, fear him; and none else, not with a servile, but with a filial fear.
Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible
Whom ye shall fear ( ). First aorist passive subjunctive deliberative retained in the indirect question. is the accusative, the direct object of this transitive passive verb (note in verse 4).
Fear him who ( ). First aorist passive imperative, differing from the preceding form only in the accent and governing the accusative also.
After he hath killed ( ). Preposition with the articular infinitive. Literally, “After the killing” (first aorist active infinitive of the common verb , to kill.
Into hell ( ). See on Mt 5:22. Gehenna is a transliteration of Ge-Hinnom, Valley of Hinnon where the children were thrown on to the red-hot arms of Molech. Josiah (2Ki 23:10) abolished these abominations and then it was a place for all kinds of refuse which burned ceaselessly and became a symbol of punishment in the other world.
This one fear ( ). As above.
Fuente: Robertson’s Word Pictures in the New Testament
I will forewarn [] . Rev., warn. See on warned, ch. 3 7. Hell. See on Mt 5:22.
Fuente: Vincent’s Word Studies in the New Testament
1) “But I will forewarn you whom ye shall fear:” (hupodeikso de humin tina phobethete) “Yet I will warn you whom you may fear,” and to be forewarned, is to be “forearmed,” against slave-like fear, Rev 1:18.
2) “Fear him, which after he hath killed,” (phobethete ton meta to apokteinai) “Fear him, who after he has killed,” after the enemy has killed the body, Luk 12:4, 2Pe 2:4.
3) “Hath power to cast into hell;” (echonta eksousian embalein eis ten geennan) “Has, holds, or possesses administrative authority to cast into gehenne-hell,” to cast both soul and body, the soul in the resurrection body, fitted for duration in hell, Joh 5:28-29; Rev 20:11-15; Mat 5:22; Mat 10:28.
4) “Yea, I say unto you, Fear him.” (nai lego humin touton phobethete) “Yes, I tell you, you all fear this one,” the true God, Ecc 12:14; Isa 51:7-13; Mat 25:41; Mat 25:46.
Fuente: Garner-Howes Baptist Commentary
Luk 12:5
. Yea, I say to you, Fear Him This is an emphatic, (596) repetition of the statement. Christ must be viewed as saying, that when we give way to the dread of men, we pay no respect to God; and that if on the contrary we fear God, we have an easy victory in our hands, so that no efforts of men will draw us aside from our duty. The experience of every age shows the great necessity of this exhortation to the ministers of Christ, and likewise to all believers in general: for there never was a period when men did not rise furiously against God, and endeavor to overwhelm the Gospel. (597) All are not armed indeed with equal power to hold out to believers the dread of death, but the greater number are animated by that savage ferocity, which discovers itself as soon as an opportunity occurs. Frequently, too, Satan brings forward giants, in whose presence the servants of Christ would fall down lifeless, were it not that this doctrine fortifies them to maintain unshaken perseverance.
The two clauses being very closely related to each other, it is an incorrect view which some unskilful persons take, by reading separately this clause, Fear them not For Christ, (as we have already said,) in order to cure that wicked fear of men, which draws us aside from the right path contrasts with it a devout and holy fear of God: otherwise the consequence would not follow that, if we fear God, who is the Lord of body and soul, we have no reason to fear men, whose power goes no farther than the body. With regard to the statement that men have power to kill the body, Christ made it by way of concession. God allows wicked men to enjoy such a degree of liberty, that they are swelled with confidence in their own power, imagine that they may attempt any thing, and even succeed in terrifying weak minds, as if they could do whatever they pleased. Now the proud imaginations of wicked men, as if the life of the godly were placed at their disposal, is utterly unfounded: for God keeps them within limits, and restrains, whenever it pleases him, the cruelty and violence of their attacks. And yet they are said to have power to kill by his permission, for he often permits them to indulge their cruel rage. Besides, our Lord’s discourse consists of two parts. First, in order to instruct us to bear with composure the loss of the bodily life, he bids us contemplate both eternal life and eternal death, and then arrives gradually at this point, that the protection of our life is in the hand of God.
(596) “ Emporte poids;” — “carries weight.
(597) “ S’esforcans d’abattre et exterminer l’Evangile;” — “laboring to destroy and exterminate the Gospel.”
Fuente: Calvin’s Complete Commentary
5-7. They were to fear, not the hierarchy, but God who had the power of hell; whose eye neither the minute sparrow nor the slightest hair escaped.
Fuente: Whedon’s Commentary on the Old and New Testaments
“But I will warn you whom you shall fear. Fear him, who after he has killed has power to cast into hell. Yes, I say to you, Fear him.”
The One they should rather go in awe of is the One Who after He has killed the body has power to cast the person into Gehenna, the eternal rubbish dump, the place of fire (Mar 9:43-47; Isa 66:24). That is something men cannot do. The name is based on ge-Hinnom, ‘the valley of Hinnom’ which was the rubbish dump and incinerator outside the walls of Jerusalem. To look over the walls at night was an eerie sight, for far below in the valley could be seen the continually burning fires that consumed the city rubbish and the dead bodies of criminals which had been tossed there (Isa 66:24). The Jews were vividly aware of this picture and had made it a symbol of the place of unquenchable fire which would consume the wicked dead.
12. 6-7 “Are not five small birds sold for two assarion? and not one of them is forgotten in the sight of God. But the very hairs of your head are all numbered. Fear not. You are of more value than many small birds.”
However, while His disciples are to view God with reverential fear, they are not to be terrified of Him, for they should recognise that He cares for them so much that He has counted the hairs of their head, and values them far more than He does the small birds sold for food at five birds for two assarion (two small coins). They are to remember that He Who does not even forget a single one of those small birds, will certainly not forget them. For He is the Creator of all, and all things are open to the eye of Him with Whom we have to do. He knows all.
An assarion is one sixteenth of a denarius, the value of less than an hour’s labour. The birds would be bought by the poor for eating (thus these were not necessarily sparrows, for sparrows were not eaten as far as we know). So if even the very food that they eat is known by God, they can be sure that they are known by Him as well, however poor and humble they may be. As the Rabbis would later say, ‘No bird perishes without God — how much less a man.’
Mat 10:26-31 contains similar sayings but was clearly spoken at a different time for it speaks of two sparrows for one assarion and even ignoring the other differences it is hyper-criticism which suggests that one or other (or their sources) would change the price of the birds. The differing prices clearly reflect different times of the year when supply and demand for small edible birds considerably altered. A free gift of one small bird for buying double the amount suggests a period of glut which resulted in having to increase demand by tempting offers. At this particular time traders in general were having their yearly ‘sales’.
Fuente: Commentary Series on the Bible by Peter Pett
5 But I will forewarn you whom ye shall fear: Fear him, which after he hath killed hath power to cast into hell; yea, I say unto you, Fear him.
Ver. 5. See Trapp on “ Mat 10:28 “
Fuente: John Trapp’s Complete Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
forewarn = shew, or warn; p. Luk 3:7.
ye shall fear. See note on Luk 12:4.
Fear. Note the second Anadiplosis. App-6.
Him, which: i.e. God Who.
power = authority. See App-172.
into. Greek. eis. App-104.
hell = the Gehenna. See note on 2Ki 23:10. Mat 5:3, and App-131.
Fuente: Companion Bible Notes, Appendices and Graphics
Luk 12:5. , I will show or suggest to you) viz. my friends.-, fear) This verb is employed thrice with the greatest force.[114]- ) The verb is employed as it were impersonally [after the act of killing has taken place].-, hell, Gehenna) Weighty and stern language this, addressed even to friends.
[114] Therefore in Luk 12:4 it would be better, instead of Engl. Vers. Be-afraid of, to use the same word fear to translate the thrice repeated , both in Luk 12:4-5.-ED. and TRANSL.
Fuente: Gnomon of the New Testament
hell
(See Scofield “Mat 5:22”).
Fuente: Scofield Reference Bible Notes
forewarn: Mar 13:23, 1Th 4:6
Fear: Pro 14:26, Jer 5:22, Jer 10:7, Rev 14:7, Rev 15:4
power: Psa 9:17, Mat 10:28, Mat 25:41, Mat 25:46, 2Pe 2:4, Rev 20:14
Reciprocal: Exo 1:17 – feared God Exo 15:11 – fearful Lev 25:17 – fear Deu 6:2 – fear Deu 9:19 – For I Job 37:24 – fear Psa 56:4 – in God I have Psa 89:7 – General Psa 90:11 – General Psa 96:4 – he is Pro 16:14 – wrath Pro 19:12 – king’s Ecc 8:4 – the word Isa 2:10 – for fear Isa 8:12 – fear ye Isa 8:13 – and let him Isa 51:7 – fear Isa 51:12 – that thou Jer 1:8 – not afraid Jer 41:18 – for they Eze 32:25 – though Dan 3:19 – was Nebuchadnezzar Dan 6:26 – tremble Mat 5:22 – hell Mat 5:30 – cast Mat 6:25 – I say Luk 23:40 – Dost Joh 19:13 – heard 2Co 5:11 – the terror Phi 1:14 – without Heb 10:31 – to fall Heb 11:23 – and they Heb 13:6 – I will Jam 4:12 – able 1Pe 3:14 – and be
Fuente: The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
5
God is the one who can cast the entire being into hell, hence our conduct should be such that He will not regard us as deserving that awful doom. The full definition of the word hell is quoted at Mat 5:30.
Fuente: Combined Bible Commentary
12:5 But I will {b} forewarn you whom ye shall fear: Fear him, which after he hath killed hath power to cast into hell; yea, I say unto you, Fear him.
(b) He warns them of dangers that presently hang over their heads, for those that come upon one suddenly make a greater wound.
Fuente: Geneva Bible Notes
Rather than fearing their persecutors the disciples should fear God more. God has the power to affect eternal, not just temporal, destiny. Jesus was not implying that the disciples would end up in hell if they proved unfaithful (cf. Joh 10:27-28; 2Ti 2:11-13). He was warning them about the possibility of losing an eternal reward. He cited God’s punitive power to deter hypocrisy. This is Luke’s only reference to hell (Gr. geenna), but elsewhere it is a place of eternal torment (cf. Mat 5:22; Mat 18:8-9; Mar 9:43-48; Jas 4:12; 1 Enoch 27:2).
"Jesus taught the reality of hell unambiguously." [Note: Liefeld, "Luke," p. 959.]