John Gill Commentary Luke 12

In the mean time, while Christ was discoursing with the Pharisees, and they were using him in the vilest manner, throwing out their invectives against him in order to draw off the people from him: when there were gathered together an innumerable multitude of people. There were "myriads" of them, as in the original text, and a myriad is ten thousand; the meaning is, that there were several thousands of them: insomuch that they trod one upon another, striving to get near to Christ, either to see his person, or to hear his discourses; and particularly, what he would say to the Pharisees, who had fallen upon him in so violent a manner.

he began to say unto his disciples first of all; he directed his discourse not to the Pharisees, nor to the multitude, but to his disciples in the first place; at least, chiefly to them; for whom he had a regard, who were his dear friends, and were to be the preachers of his Gospel every where; and therefore it was proper that they should be aware of the dissembling arts of the Scribes and Pharisees, and have their minds fortified against approaching dangers, persecutions, and death itself. The last phrase, "first of all", is omitted in the Vulgate Latin version; and by all the Oriental versions, it is joined to the next clause, and read thus, "especially", or "before all things".

He said, before all things, beware of the leaven of the Pharisees, which is hypocrisy; expressed both in their doctrines, and in their lives; which carried a great show of piety and holiness, but was in appearance only.

Very aptly is hypocrisy in doctrine and manners, compared to leaven; which at first is small and little, but gradually increases and spreads itself, and lies hid and covered, and is not easily discerned, nor its influence and effects observed; but in time, it infects and corrupts the whole of men's principles and practices, and puffs and swells them up with a vain opinion of themselves; and when our Lord bids his disciples beware of it, his meaning not only is, that they take heed that they were not infected with it themselves, but that they were not imposed upon by the specious pretences of these artful and designing men.

For there is nothing covered that shall not be revealed ,
&c.] No sin, be it ever so secret or privately done, as nothing is more covered than hypocrisy, but what shall be detected sooner or later; if not in this world, which is often the case, yet the last judgment, and in the world to come:

neither hid, that shall not be known ;
for how careful soever men may be to hide their vices from others, they are known to God; who will bring every thing into judgment, and make manifest the secrets of all hearts. These were general sentences, which were used by Christ at different times, upon different occasions, and applied to particular cases; (See Gill on Matthew 10:26).

Therefore whatsoever you have spoken in darkness
In the most private manner, to one another:

shall be heard in the light ;
which makes all things manifest, the day shall declare it:

and that which you have spoken in the ear in closets ;
whispered to persons in their bedchambers, and places of the most secret retirement;

shall be proclaimed upon the housetops ;
declared in the most public manner: in (Matthew 10:27) these words are so expressed, as to carry in them such a sense as this; that what was told the disciples by Christ, in the most private place and way, should be published by them, in the most free and open manner; (See Gill on Matthew 10:27).

And I say to you, my friends
Whom he dearly loved, and had taken into the greatest intimacy and familiarity; making known to them whatever he had heard from his Father; giving them the best instructions, the most faithful and friendly advice, and proper precautions; all which, and more, showed them to be his friends, and for whom he after laid down his life:

be not afraid of them that kill the body ;
though he would have them beware of the Pharisees, he would not have them be afraid of them; he would have them know them, and avoid their hypocrisy, and guard against it; but not fear them, or the worst they could do to them, which was to kill the body; and that they had no need to be afraid of, since at death, their souls would be immediately happy, in the enjoyment and vision of God; and their bodies would sleep in Jesus, and be raised in the resurrection morn, and be united to their souls, and be both for ever blessed:

and after that have no more that they can do ;
they have nothing more to kill, or which they can put to pain or misery; the soul is out of their reach, is an immortal spirit, and cannot be hurt or destroyed by them.

But I will forewarn you whom you 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 has killed ;
your body, as the Persic version adds; has 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:

has power to cast into hell ;
your soul, as the above version also adds; yes, to destroy both body and soul in hell, as in (See Gill on Matthew 10:28)

yes, I say unto you, fear him ;
and none else, not with a servile, but with a filial fear.