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. BUT I WILL FOREWARN YOU WHOM YE SHALL FEAR: FEAR HIM WHICH AFTER HE HATH KILLED - that is, taken away the life of the body, as at length He does even by natural death, HATH POWER TO CAST INTO HELL; YEA, I SAY UNTO YOU, FEAR HIM. How striking the repetition of this word "Fear!" Only the fear of the Greater will effectually expel the fear of the less....

Luke 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,

1-12 A firm belief of the doctrine of God's universal providence, and the extent of it, would satisfy us when in peril, and encourage us to trust God in the way of duty. Providence takes notice of the meanest creatures, even of the sparrows, and therefore of the smallest interests of the disciples of Christ. Those who confess Christ now, shall be owned by him in the great day, before the angels of God. To deter us from denying Christ, and deserting his truths and ways, we are here assured that those who deny Christ, though they may thus save life itself, and though they may gain a kingdom by it, will be great losers at last; for Christ will not know them, will not own them, nor show them favour. But let no trembling, penitent backslider doubt of obtaining forgiveness. This is far different from the determined enmity that is blasphemy against the Holy Ghost, which shall never be forgiven,...

Verse Luke 12:5. _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....

NOTHING COVERED - See the notes at Matthew 10:26. Luke 12:3 SHALL BE PROCLAIMED UPON THE HOUSETOPS - See the notes at Matthew 10:27. The custom of making proclamation from the tops or roofs of houses still prevails in the East. Dr. Thomson (“The Land and the Book,” vol. i. p. 51, 52) says: “At the present day, local governors in country districts cause their commands thus to be published. Their proclamations are generally made in the evening, after the people have returned from their labors in the field. The public crier ascends the highest roof at hand, and lifts up his voice in a long-drawn call upon all faithful subjects to give ear and obe

EXPOSITION LUKE 12:1 _The Lord_,_ after leaving the Pharisee_'_s house_,_ speaks at great length to a numerous crowd waiting for him_,_ addressing his words principally to his own disciples. _The foregoing scene (Luke 11:1.), when the Master addressed his bitter reproaches to the learned and cultivated of the great Pharisee party, took place in a private house belonging to an apparently wealthy member of this, the dominant class. The name of the large village or provincial town where all this happened is unknown. The crowd who had been listening to the great Teacher before he accepted the Pharisee's invitation still lingered around the house. Many from the adjoining villages, hearing that Jesus was in this place and was publicly teaching, had

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 Matthew 10:28 YEA, I SAY UNTO YOU, FEAR HIM; and none else, not with a servile, but with a filial fear....

The teaching of our Lord, in this chapter, has very much to do with Christianity in connection with this present life, and its cares and troubles. God has nowhere promised us exemption from affliction and trial. Indeed, it has been said, with much truth, that the Old Testament promise was one of prosperity, but that the New Testament promise is one of tribulation. You may rest assured that, if it had been best for us to be taken away to heaven directly we were converted, the Lord would have done it, and that, as he has not done so, there are wise reasons why he keeps his people here for a while. The gold must go through the fire ere it has its place in the king's crown, and the wheat must be exposed to the winnowing fan ere it can be taken into the heavenly garner. Luke 12:1. In the mean time, when there were gathered together an innumerable multitude of people, insomuch that they trode...

HELL (_ See Scofield) - (Matthew 5:22). _...

CHAPTER 12 _ 1. Warning Against Hypocrisy. (Luke 12:1)_ 2. Encouragements. (Luke 12:4) 3. Warning Against Covetousness. (Luke 12:15) 4. Warning Against Anxiety. (Luke 12:22) 5. The Disciples Comfort and Hope. (Luke 12:32) 6. The Parable of the Steward. (Luke 12:41) 7. The Purpose of God and the Resulting Division. (Luke 12:49) 8. Concerning signs.