The Meaning of Matthew 10:42 Explained

Matthew 10:42

KJV: And whosoever shall give to drink unto one of these little ones a cup of cold water only in the name of a disciple, verily I say unto you, he shall in no wise lose his reward.

YLT: and whoever may give to drink to one of these little ones a cup of cold water only in the name of a disciple, verily I say to you, he may not lose his reward.'

Darby: And whosoever shall give to drink to one of these little ones a cup of cold water only, in the name of a disciple, verily I say unto you, he shall in no wise lose his reward.

ASV: And whosoever shall give to drink unto one of these little ones a cup of cold water only, in the name of a disciple, verily I say unto you he shall in no wise lose his reward.

Discover Matthew 10:42

CONTEXT: What is the Context of Matthew 10:42?

MEANING: What does Matthew 10:42 Mean?

WORDS: What do the individual words in Matthew 10:42 mean?

RELATIONS: What do the major concepts mean in Matthew 10:42?

What is the context of Matthew 10:42?

KJV Reverse Interlinear

And  whosoever  shall give to drink  unto one  of these  little ones  a cup  of cold  [water] only  in  the name  of a disciple,  verily  I say  unto you,  he shall in no wise  lose  his  reward. 

What does Matthew 10:42 Mean?

Verse Meaning

The "little ones" in view of the context probably refer to the persecuted disciples who remain faithful to the Lord. Anyone who assists one of them by giving him or her even a cup of refreshing cold water will receive a reward from God. That person can even give the cup of cold water in the name of a follower of Jesus, not in the name of Jesus Himself. The point is that no act of kindness for one of Jesus" suffering disciples will pass without God"s reward.
"Keep in mind that the theme of this last section is discipleship, not sonship. We become the children of God through faith in Christ; we are disciples as we faithfully follow Him and obey His will. Sonship does not change, but discipleship does change as we walk with Christ. There is great need today for faithful disciples, believers who will learn from Christ and live for Him." [1]
This Mission Discourse (ch10) is instruction for Jesus" disciples in view of their ministry to call people to prepare for the kingdom. Jesus gave the12Apostles specific direction about where they should go and to whom they should minister. However, He broadened His instruction in view of mounting opposition to give guidance to disciples who would succeed the Twelve. Their ministry was essentially the same as that of the apostles. Jesus did not reveal here that Israel"s rejection of Him would result in a long gap between His first and second advents. That gap is irrelevant to the instruction and its meaning. Christian disciples today need to do essentially what the Twelve were to do but to a different audience and region ( Matthew 28:19-20). Jesus explained those changes after His firm rejection by the Jews.

Context Summary

Matthew 10:34-42 - Receiving Christ's Representatives
In Jesus Christ we acquire a new affinity, stronger than that of family ties. When we enter into the family of God we belong to all His children. They are our brethren and sisters in the most intimate sense. See Matthew 12:48-50. The new love that floods our nature does not make us less but more tender and sympathetic toward our own kith and kin; but if we are compelled to choose, then we must stand with the children of God, though it should rend us from the old happy family life in which we were nurtured.
As to the closing paragraph, may we not illustrate it thus? When the widow who sustained Elijah at Zarephath entered Paradise, she found herself standing amid the great prophets of Israel. When she asked the attendant angel whether there was not some mistake, he replied, "Certainly not. In treating the prophet as you did, you proved yourself to be of the same spirit and temper as he; and it is but right that you should share in the prophet's reward."
For Review Questions, see the e-Sword Book Comments. [source]

Chapter Summary: Matthew 10

1  Jesus sends out his apostles, enabling them with power to do miracles;
5  giving them their charge, teaches them;
16  comforts them against persecutions;
40  and promises a blessing to those who receive them

What do the individual words in Matthew 10:42 mean?

And whoever - shall give to drink one the little ones of these a cup of cold [water] only in [the] name of a disciple truly I say to you no not shall he lose the reward of him
καὶ ὃς ἂν ποτίσῃ ἕνα τῶν μικρῶν τούτων ποτήριον ψυχροῦ μόνον εἰς ὄνομα μαθητοῦ ἀμὴν λέγω ὑμῖν οὐ μὴ ἀπολέσῃ τὸν μισθὸν αὐτοῦ

ὃς  whoever 
Parse: Personal / Relative Pronoun, Nominative Masculine Singular
Root: ὅς 
Sense: who, which, what, that.
ἂν  - 
Parse: Particle
Root: ἄν  
Sense: has no exact English equivalent, see definitions under AV.
ποτίσῃ  shall  give  to  drink 
Parse: Verb, Aorist Subjunctive Active, 3rd Person Singular
Root: ποτίζω  
Sense: to give to drink, to furnish drink.
ἕνα  one 
Parse: Adjective, Accusative Masculine Singular
Root: εἷς  
Sense: one.
μικρῶν  little  ones 
Parse: Adjective, Genitive Masculine Plural
Root: μικρός  
Sense: small, little.
τούτων  of  these 
Parse: Demonstrative Pronoun, Genitive Masculine Plural
Root: οὗτος  
Sense: this.
ποτήριον  a  cup 
Parse: Noun, Accusative Neuter Singular
Root: ποτήριον  
Sense: a cup, a drinking vessel.
ψυχροῦ  of  cold  [water] 
Parse: Adjective, Genitive Neuter Singular
Root: ψυχρός  
Sense: cold, cool.
μόνον  only 
Parse: Adverb
Root: μόνον  
Sense: only, alone, but.
εἰς  in  [the] 
Parse: Preposition
Root: εἰς  
Sense: into, unto, to, towards, for, among.
ὄνομα  name 
Parse: Noun, Accusative Neuter Singular
Root: ὄνομα  
Sense: name: univ.
μαθητοῦ  of  a  disciple 
Parse: Noun, Genitive Masculine Singular
Root: μαθητής  
Sense: a learner, pupil, disciple.
ἀμὴν  truly 
Parse: Hebrew Word
Root: ἀμήν  
Sense: firm.
λέγω  I  say 
Parse: Verb, Present Indicative Active, 1st Person Singular
Root: λέγω 
Sense: to say, to speak.
ὑμῖν  to  you 
Parse: Personal / Possessive Pronoun, Dative 2nd Person Plural
Root: σύ  
Sense: you.
οὐ  no 
Parse: Adverb
Root: οὐ  
Sense: no, not; in direct questions expecting an affirmative answer.
ἀπολέσῃ  shall  he  lose 
Parse: Verb, Aorist Subjunctive Active, 3rd Person Singular
Root: ἀπόλλυμι  
Sense: to destroy.
μισθὸν  reward 
Parse: Noun, Accusative Masculine Singular
Root: μισθός  
Sense: dues paid for work.
αὐτοῦ  of  him 
Parse: Personal / Possessive Pronoun, Genitive Masculine 3rd Person Singular
Root: αὐτός  
Sense: himself, herself, themselves, itself.

What are the major concepts related to Matthew 10:42?

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