Church Fathers Commentary Matthew 10:9-10

"Get you no gold, nor silver, nor brass in your purses; no wallet for [your] journey, neither two coats, nor shoes, nor staff: for the laborer is worthy of his food." — Matthew 10:9-10 (ASV)

St. John Chrysostom: After forbidding them to make a business of spiritual things, the Lord goes on to pull up the root of all evil, saying, Possess neither gold, nor silver.

St. Jerome: For if they were to preach without receiving payment, the possession of gold, silver, and wealth was unnecessary. If they had such things, they would have been seen as preaching not for the sake of people's salvation, but for their own gain.

St. John Chrysostom: This command, then, first frees the Apostles from all suspicion. Secondly, it frees them from all worldly care, so that they may devote their whole time to preaching the word. Thirdly, it reveals their excellence. This is what He said to them later: Was anything lacking to you, when I sent you without bag or money pouch?

St. Jerome: Just as He had cut off riches, which are signified by gold and silver, He now cuts off even the basic necessities of life. He did this so that the Apostles, as teachers of the true religion who taught that all things are directed by God's providence, might show themselves to be without anxiety for tomorrow.

Glossa Ordinaria: This is why He adds, Nor money in your belts. For there are two kinds of necessary things: one is the means of buying necessities, which is signified by the money in their belts; the other is the necessities themselves, which are signified by the traveling bag. ¹

St. Jerome: In forbidding the traveling bag, neither a bag for your journey, He was critiquing those philosophers commonly called Bactroperatae. Although they despised this world and considered all things as nothing, they still carried a bag with them.

Nor two coats. By this, He seems to mean a change of clothing. He is not commanding us to be content with a single tunic in the snow and frost of Scythia, but rather that we should not carry a change of clothes, wearing one and keeping another as a provision for the future.

Nor shoes. It is a precept of Plato that the two extremities of the body should be left unprotected, and that we should not accustom ourselves to the delicate care of the head and feet. For if these parts are tough, it follows that the rest of the body will be vigorous and healthy. Nor a staff; for having the Lord's protection, why would we need the help of a staff?

Remigius of Auxerre: The Lord shows by these words that the holy preachers were restored to the dignity of the first man, who, as long as he possessed heavenly treasures, did not desire earthly ones. But having lost the heavenly treasures by sinning, he immediately began to desire the earthly.

St. John Chrysostom: A happy exchange! In place of gold, silver, and the like, they received power to heal the sick and raise the dead. For He had not commanded them from the beginning, Possess neither gold nor silver, but only when He also said, Cleanse the lepers, cast out demons.

From this, it is clear that He made them more like angels than men, freeing them from all the anxieties of this life so that they might have only one concern: teaching. And even of that, He in a way removes the burden, saying, Do not be anxious about what you are to speak. Thus, what seemed hard and burdensome, He shows to be light and easy.

For nothing is so pleasant as to be delivered from all care and anxiety, especially when it is possible, being delivered from this, to lack nothing—with God being present and taking the place of all things for us.

St. Jerome: Since He had sent the Apostles out on their mission unprovided and unencumbered, and the teachers' condition seemed harsh, He tempered the severity of the rules with this maxim: The laborer is worthy of his wages. This means they should receive what they need for food and clothing. This is why the Apostle says, Having food and clothing, with these we shall be content (1 Timothy 6:8). And again, Let him who is taught the word share all good things with him who teaches. In this way, those whose disciples reap spiritual things should make them partakers of their carnal things—not to gratify greed, but to supply their needs.

St. John Chrysostom: It was fitting for the Apostles to be supported by their disciples. This was so they would not become arrogant toward those they taught, as if they gave everything and received nothing, and so their disciples, in turn, would not fall away from being overlooked by them.

Furthermore, so the Apostles would not cry out, "He commands us to live like beggars," and be ashamed of it, He shows that this support is their due, calling them "laborers" and what is given their "hire." They were not to think that because they only gave words, the benefit they conferred was small. Therefore, He says, The laborer is worthy of his food.

He said this not to suggest that the Apostles' labors were worth only that much, but to establish a rule for the Apostles and to persuade those who gave that they were only providing what was owed.

St. Augustine of Hippo: The Gospel, therefore, is not for sale, to be preached for a reward. For if they sell it, they sell a great thing for a small price. Let preachers, then, receive their necessary support from the people, and from God the reward for their service. For the people do not give payment to those who minister to them in the love of the Gospel, but rather a stipend to support them so they are able to work. ²

To put it another way, when the Lord said to the Apostles, Do not possess gold, He immediately added, The laborer is worthy of his wages, to show why He did not want them to possess and carry these things. It was not that these things were unneeded for the support of this life, but that He sent them in such a way as to show that these provisions were owed to them by those to whom they preached the Gospel, like pay for soldiers.

It is clear that this command from the Lord does not at all imply that they were forbidden, according to the Gospel, from living by any other means than the contributions of those to whom they preached; otherwise, Paul would have transgressed this command when he lived by the labor of his own hands.

Rather, He gave the Apostles the authority to receive these things from the household in which they stayed. When the Lord issues a command, it is a sin of disobedience if it is not performed. But when He grants a privilege, it is in anyone's power not to use it and, as it were, to refrain from claiming one's right. ³

The Lord, then, having sanctioned the principle that those who preach the Gospel should live from the Gospel, said these things to the Apostles so that they, being confident in this provision, should not possess or carry with them the necessities of life, whether great or small. Therefore He adds, Nor a staff, to show that all things are due to His ministers from His people, and they require no extras. He signifies this authority by the staff, saying in Mark, Take nothing but a staff only (Mark 6:18). And when He forbids them (in Matthew) to take shoes with them, He forbids the anxiety and forethought that would worry about carrying them for fear they might be needed.

We must also understand the command about the two coats in the same way: no one should think it necessary to carry a second coat, supposing he might need it, for it would be in his power to obtain one by the authority the Lord gave. Furthermore, the fact that we read in Mark that they should be shod with sandals seems to imply that this kind of footwear has a symbolic meaning: the foot should be neither covered on top nor bare underneath. That is, the Gospel should not be hidden, nor should it rely on earthly advantage.

When He forbids them to carry two coats, He also warned them not to walk deceitfully, but in simplicity. So we cannot doubt that the Lord said all these things partly in a literal sense and partly in a figurative one, and that of the two Evangelists, one included some details and the other included others in his narrative. If anyone thinks that the Lord could not, in one speech, say some things literally and others symbolically, let him look at any of His other sayings, and he will see how hasty and unlearned his opinion is. When the Lord commands that the left hand should not know what the right hand does, does he think that almsgiving and the rest of His commands in that passage are to be taken figuratively?

St. Jerome: So far, we have interpreted this literally. But speaking metaphorically—as we often find gold representing the meaning, silver the words, and bronze the voice—we can say that we are not to receive these from others, but must have them given by the Lord. We are not to accept the teaching of heretics, philosophers, or corrupt doctrine.

St. Hilary of Poitiers: The "belt" represents preparation for ministry, the equipping of ourselves to be active in our duty. We may suppose that forbidding money in the belt is a warning not to allow anything in the ministry to be bought or sold. We are not to have "a bag for the journey"; that is, we are to leave behind all concern for our worldly substance, for all treasure on earth is harmful to the heart, which will be where the treasure is.

Not two coats, for it is enough to have once put on Christ; nor, after gaining true knowledge of Him, should we be clothed with any other garment of heresy or of the law.

Not shoes, because, like Moses, we are standing on holy ground, not covered with the thorns and prickles of sin. We are instructed to have no other preparation for our walk than what we have received from Christ.

St. Jerome: Alternatively, the Lord teaches us in this that our feet are not to be bound with the chains of death, but are to be bare as we tread on holy ground. We are not to carry a staff that can be turned into a serpent, nor are we to trust in any "arm of flesh." For any such support is a reed that, if a person leans on it even lightly, will break and go into their hand and pierce them.

St. Hilary of Poitiers: Neither a staff; that is, we are not to seek the authority of any external power, since we have a rod from the root of Jesse.

1. non occ.
2. Serm., 46
3. De Cons. Evan., ii, 30