Church Fathers Commentary Matthew 10:5-8

"These twelve Jesus sent forth, and charged them, saying, Go not into [any] way of the Gentiles, and enter not into any city of the Samaritans: but go rather to the lost sheep of the house of Israel. And as ye go, preach, saying, The kingdom of heaven is at hand. Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse the lepers, cast out demons: freely ye received, freely give." — Matthew 10:5-8 (ASV)

Glossa Ordinaria: Because the manifestation of the Spirit, as the Apostle says, is given for the benefit of the Church, after bestowing His power on the Apostles, He sends them so that they may exercise this power for the good of others: These twelve Jesus sent forth. ¹

St. John Chrysostom: Observe the appropriateness of the time in which they were sent. After they had seen the dead raised, the sea rebuked, and other similar wonders, and had received sufficient proof of His excellent power in both word and deed, He then sent them.

Glossa Ordinaria: When He sends them, He teaches them where they should go, what they should preach, and what they should do. First, concerning where they should go, He gives them this command: Go not into the way of the Gentiles, and into any city of the Samaritans do not enter; but go rather to the lost sheep of the house of Israel. ²

St. Jerome: This passage does not contradict the command He gave later, Go and teach all nations, for this was before His resurrection, and that was after. It was necessary for the coming of Christ to be preached to the Jews first, so that they would not have a just reason to complain or to say that they were rejected by the Lord, who had sent the Apostles to the Gentiles and Samaritans.

St. John Chrysostom: They were also sent to the Jews first so that, having been trained in Judea as in a training ground, they might then enter the world’s arena to compete. In this way, He taught them to fly like weak nestlings.

St. Gregory the Great: Alternatively, His message was to be preached first in Judea and afterward to the Gentiles, so that the Redeemer’s preaching would appear to be seeking foreign lands only because it had been rejected in His own.

At that time, there were also some among the Jews who were to be called, and some among the Gentiles who were not, as they were unworthy of being renewed to life, yet did not deserve the greater punishment that would result from rejecting the Apostles' preaching. ³

St. Hilary of Poitiers: The people who first received the Law also deserved to be the first to hear the Gospel. In this way, Israel would have less excuse for its guilt, as it had received more careful warning.

St. John Chrysostom: Furthermore, so that the Israelites would not think they were hated by Christ because they had reviled Him and branded Him as demon-possessed, He first sought their healing. Withholding His disciples from all other nations, He sent physicians and teachers to this people.

He not only forbade them to preach to anyone else before the Jews, but He did not even want them to approach the road that led to the Gentiles, commanding, Go not into the way of the Gentiles. And because the Samaritans were at enmity with the Jews—even though they were more readily disposed to convert to the faith—He would not allow His message to be preached to them before the Jews.

Glossa Ordinaria: The Samaritans were Gentiles who had been settled in the land of Israel by the king of Assyria after the exile he had caused. They had been compelled by many terrors to adopt parts of Judaism, receiving circumcision and the five books of Moses but rejecting everything else. Therefore, there was no friendly interaction between the Jews and the Samaritans. ⁴

St. John Chrysostom: He therefore turns His disciples away from these groups and sends them to the children of Israel, whom He calls perishing sheep, not straying. In every way, He is crafting a defense for them and drawing them to Himself.

St. Hilary of Poitiers: Although they are called sheep here, they still raged against Christ with the tongues and throats of wolves and vipers.

St. Jerome: Figuratively, in this passage we who bear the name of Christ are commanded not to walk in the way of the Gentiles or the error of heretics. Just as we are separate in our religion, we should also be separate in our lives.

Glossa Ordinaria: Having told them to whom they should go, He now introduces what they should preach: Go and preach, saying, The kingdom of heaven is at hand. ⁵

Rabanus Maurus: The kingdom of heaven is said here to draw near through the faith in the unseen Creator that is given to us, not through any movement of the visible elements. The saints are rightly symbolized by the heavens, because they contain God by faith and love Him with deep affection.

St. John Chrysostom: Behold the greatness of their ministry and the dignity of the Apostles. They are not to preach about anything perceptible to the senses, as Moses and the Prophets did, but about things new and unexpected. The former preached of earthly goods, but these Apostles preach the kingdom of heaven and all the good things found there.

St. Gregory the Great: Miracles were also granted to the holy preachers, so that the power they showed might be a guarantee of the truth of their words. Those who preached new things were also to do new things. Therefore, it follows: Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse the lepers, cast out demons.

St. Jerome: So that these uneducated and illiterate peasants, lacking eloquence, would not fail to be believed when they announced the kingdom of heaven, He gave them power to do the things mentioned above. In this way, the greatness of the miracles would confirm the greatness of their promises.

St. Hilary of Poitiers: The exercise of the Lord's power is fully entrusted to the Apostles, so that they, who were formed in the image of Adam and the likeness of God, could now obtain the perfect image of Christ. Whatever evil Satan had introduced into the body of Adam, they could now repair through their fellowship with the Lord's power.

St. Gregory the Great: These signs were necessary in the beginning of the Church. The faith of believers had to be fed with miracles so that it could grow. ⁶

St. John Chrysostom: Afterward, however, these signs ceased once reverence for the faith was universally established. Or, if they continued at all, they were few and far between. For it is God's custom to perform such things when evil increases; it is then that He displays His power.

St. Gregory the Great: The Holy Church daily does spiritually what it then did physically through the Apostles—and indeed, she does far greater things, since she raises and cures souls, not bodies.

Remigius of Auxerre: The sick are the spiritually lazy who lack the strength to live well; the lepers are those who are unclean in sin and carnal pleasures; the demon-possessed are those who are given over to the power of the Devil.

St. Jerome: And because spiritual gifts are held in low regard when money is the means of obtaining them, He adds a condemnation of greed: Freely you have received, freely give. I, your Master and Lord, have given these gifts to you without cost; therefore, you must give them to others in the same way, so that the free grace of the Gospel is not corrupted.

Glossa Ordinaria: He says this so that Judas, who carried the money bag, would not use this power to get money—a clear condemnation of the abomination of the heresy of simony. ⁷

St. Gregory the Great: For He knew beforehand that there would be some who would turn the gift of the Spirit they had received into a commodity and pervert the power of miracles into an instrument of their greed. ⁸

St. John Chrysostom: Observe how He is as careful that they should be morally upright as that they should have miraculous powers, showing that miracles are nothing without moral virtue. The command Freely you have received seems to be a check on their pride, while freely give is a command to keep themselves pure from sordid gain.

Alternatively, so that their actions would not be seen as their own benevolence, He says, Freely you have received. It is as if to say: “You bestow nothing of your own on those you help, for you did not receive these gifts for money or as wages for labor. As you have received them, so you must give them to others, for it is impossible to receive a price equal to their value.”

1. non occ.
2. non occ.
3. Hom. in Ev., iv. 1
4. ap. Anselm
5. non occ.
6. Hom. in Ev., xxix, 4
7. non occ.
8. Hom. in Ev., iv, 4