Albert Barnes Commentary Matthew 10:17

"But beware of men: for they will deliver you up to councils, and in theirs synagogues they will scourge you;" — Matthew 10:17 (ASV)

But beware of men. That is, be on your guard against men who are like wolves (Matthew 10:16). Do not run unnecessarily into danger. Use suitable prudence and caution, and do not unnecessarily endanger your lives.

Councils. The word used here commonly signifies the great council of the nation, the Sanhedrin. (See Barnes on Matthew 5:22).

Here it seems to refer to any judicial tribunal, of which there were some in every village.

They will scourge you in their synagogues. Scourging, or whipping, is often mentioned in the New Testament as a part of punishment. The law of Moses directed that the number of stripes should not exceed forty, but might be any number less, at the discretion of the judge (Deuteronomy 25:2–3).

The person who was sentenced to scourging was formerly laid upon the ground, and the blows inflicted on his back in the presence of the judge. Afterwards, the criminal was tied to a low post. Scourging is still practiced in the East; but the blows are commonly inflicted on the soles of the feet. It is called the bastinado.

The instrument formerly used was a rod. Afterwards, they employed thongs or lashes attached to the rod. To make the blows severe and more painful, they sometimes fastened sharp points of iron, or pieces of lead, in the thongs. These were called scorpions (1 Kings 12:11).

The law was explicit that the number of stripes should not exceed forty. The Jews, to ensure greater accuracy in counting, used a scourge with three lashes, which inflicted three stripes at once. With this, the criminal was struck thirteen times, making the number of blows thirty-nine. Paul was five times scourged in this way (See 2 Corinthians 11:24).

The Romans did not feel bound by the law of the Jews regarding the number of stripes, but inflicted them as they pleased. Thus our Savior was scourged until He was so weak that He could not bear His cross. This was often done in the synagogue (Acts 22:19; Acts 26:11).