for I hungered, and ye gave me to eat; I thirsted, and ye gave me to drink; I was a stranger, and ye took me in;
Commentary for this verse has not been generated yet.
naked, and ye clothed me; I was ill, and ye visited me; I was in prison, and ye came to me.
The scene is the King on His throne after His return. The nations stand before Him, and He separates them like sheep from goats. The kindnesses listed here — clothing, visiting the sick, coming to a prisoner — raise two questions. Who were these sick and imprisoned people? And do such acts earn the sheep their place?
This is not the judgment of the dead. It is the King taking up His rule over the living world.
Now the "King" — a title used only here — begins the formal judgment of His throne, and all the nations must appear before it... The Lord and the apostles pressed hard the coming judgment of living people on earth, in the middle of their busy, selfish, greedy and sinful life.
A third group appears in this scene, besides the sheep and the goats.
Notice, too, that there are three groups — the sheep, the goats, and the brothers of the King. That fact alone settles how we read the whole scene. It shows clearly that this is the judgment of the living nations, after the Son of Man appears in His glory and takes His throne.
The clothing, the visit, the prison call — these were shown to people the King calls His brothers.
In the closing years of the Jewish age, a remnant of Jews will preach this Gospel. They are "brothers" of our Lord by natural descent. They will move among the nations of the world and give their startling testimony. They will preach the Gospel that announces the King and His Kingdom are near. How will the nations receive them?
The specific hardships named in this verse are not random misfortunes. They are the cost of carrying that message into a hostile world.
Those who announced the news of the coming King did so against the greatest difficulties... The people around them wanted neither God's King nor God's righteousness. So hunger and thirst, exile, nakedness and prison lay ahead of these preachers. The King identifies Himself with these servants, just as He did with another persecuted group when He stopped their persecutor, Saul of Tarsus.
The King does not say the kindness was like kindness to Him. He counts it as done to Himself. He counts neglect the same way.
The sheep make no claim to have shown any regard to the King Himself. But He takes as done to Himself everything they did for His messengers, whom He owned as His brothers. The goats, on the other hand, claim they never failed the great King. But by the same rule, the indifference they showed toward His messengers counts in the King's heart as indifference toward Him... He always thinks of His own as if they were Himself.
Because the acts listed are ordinary human kindnesses, the verse is often read as a promise that good deeds will secure a person's standing before God. Commentators warn against this reading in strong terms.
People commonly think our Lord means acts of charity — hospitals and prison work, feeding the hungry and clothing the naked through church work or charities. They think that if a person does these things and stays faithful in them, the King will approve of them in the judgment. Many a soul builds on this foundation of sand. All this is completely wrong.
So why do the kindnesses matter at all?
So everything rests on Christ, though His grace makes the most of what others might think small. Faith working by love in the one group, and complete unconcern in the other, showed plainly who was fit and who was unfit to inherit the kingdom. With all God's people, works are the evidence, faith in the Word is the instrument, Christ's work is the ground, and God's grace is the source.
Though this scene is still future, the principle already works. Onesiphorus is one example.
This godly man was not ashamed of Paul or his chain. He was in Rome, and he searched hard for him, and did not rest until he found him. The Lord used him to bring refreshment to the imprisoned Apostle... And the Lord saw this good service, and valued it as done to Himself.
- Throne — When He appears, the King judges the living nations on earth. This is not the judgment of the dead. Three groups stand in the scene, not two.
- Brothers — The hungry, naked and imprisoned ones are His messengers. They carry news of the coming kingdom into a world that wants neither Him nor His righteousness.
- Identification — He counts their prison bars as His own. He thinks of His own as if they were Himself, so coldness toward them is coldness toward Him.
- Evidence — The kindness does not buy the kingdom. Works are the evidence, faith is the instrument, Christ's work is the ground, God's grace is the source.
- Now — The principle is already live. What Onesiphorus brought to a prisoner in Rome, the Lord received as brought to Himself.
Then shall the righteous answer him saying, Lord, when saw we thee hungering, and nourished thee; or thirsting, and gave thee to drink?
The King has just named six kindnesses done to Him: food, drink, welcome, clothing, care in sickness, a visit in prison. The people He praises cannot remember a single one of them. Their reply is not modesty but genuine bewilderment: when did any of this happen?
This is not a general judgment of the dead at the end of all things. The wording settles it: nations, not the risen dead.
A careful look at our Lord's words shows that He does not speak about resurrection. He says: "When the Son of Man comes in His glory, and all the angels with Him, then He will sit on His glorious throne. Before Him will be gathered all the nations" (vv. 31, 32). The reference is therefore to His appearing and kingdom, and to His judgment of the living, not of the dead. We do not speak of "the nations" in respect of the dead: this term describes the living.
The absence of any mention of rising from the dead is itself part of the argument.
Notice especially that there is no reference to resurrection here for either "the righteous" or "the accursed." On both sides they were Gentiles living in their natural bodies, for they are expressly said to be "all the nations" when they were gathered before the glorious throne of the Son of Man.
Their question is not a formality. They are learning something at that very moment which they had never known before.
Notice what they answer: "Lord, when did we see You hungry and feed You, or thirsty and give You drink?" Could a Christian say such a thing in heaven, where we will know even as we are known? … However blessed this scene may be, it is still the Lord as Son of Man judging all nations. He blesses the righteous from among them. Up to that moment they did not know that in showing acts of love and kindness towards Christ's messengers, they had done so much towards Christ Himself. Their last lesson was the first that Paul learned on the road to Damascus. That truth startled his soul: "I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting."
The King answers by pointing to a third group in the scene — the people He calls His brothers. Kindness to them reached Him.
The sheep showed them love, care, sympathy in their sorrows. So these brothers of the King must have gone through tribulation before the King appears. The conclusion is obvious. In that day, the ground on which He will deal with the nations will be this — "How did you behave towards My messengers?" … Those who honour the message treat the messengers well. They care for them and identify themselves with them. The Lord remembers this, and counts what was done to His messengers as done to Himself.
The acts listed were not random decency. Who received the kindness matters as much as the kindness itself.
Some had shown more than kindness, self-denial, or moral excellence in any marked degree. They had shown love in various ways to the servants who preached in the King's name. Those servants preached the same truth which He had preached at the start of His public ministry. But it was faith which worked in their love. If the King and His coming kingdom had been only a myth in their eyes, they would have at least ignored His messengers as impostors.
One woman in Jericho shows the same pattern.
We may see Rahab's case as an early picture of this. She believed. At that time judgment was gathering over Jericho, a picture of the world. It is written of her, "And in the same way was not also Rahab the prostitute justified by works when she received the messengers and sent them out by another way?" She had faith and showed it by works. And so these nations believe the messengers and treat them with kindness. Grace covers them because they believed.
Many read this scene as praise for charity work in general. Commentators warn that this misses the point.
How great the confusion is among Christians about the meaning of these words! Often the interpretation given strikes at the very foundations of the gospel. People think our Lord means charitable acts: hospitals and prison work, feeding the hungry and clothing the naked through church work or charitable institutions. … If anyone does these things and is faithful in them, the King will approve of them in the judgment — and many a soul builds on this foundation of sand. All this is completely wrong. The works have an entirely different meaning.
The forgetfulness of these people is held up as the shape real service takes.
John Newton had been writing about A B C Christians, and a young clergyman wrote to him and said he had been testing himself by it and found he was in the "C" class, the highest. John Newton wrote back and said there was one thing he had forgotten to mention — namely, that those in the "C" class did not know it. … So in Matthew 25, those who pleased Him were quite unconscious of what they had done. And the principle is the same for us.
What is forgotten below is not lost above.
He forgets nothing that is done for His sake, though they have no recollection of what He speaks of. Faith does what is right and thoughtful without expecting any recognition for it. As the hymn says, "Little things we had forgotten He will tell us were for Him."
- Faith first. The sheep did not earn their place by good deeds. Their kindness to the King's messengers proved they had believed His message.
- Faith hidden. Their question shows they never counted their acts as service to Christ. They showed love to His messengers and thought no more of it.
- Faith reaching. The King ties Himself to His brothers: help given to them reached Him. Paul learned the same lesson on the Damascus road.
- Faith mistaken. Reading this scene as a reward for charity work is a foundation of sand. It turns a judgment of belief into a scorecard of good causes.
- Faith rewarded. Christ forgets nothing done for His sake; the little things we no longer remember He will name as done for Him.
and when saw we thee a stranger, and took thee in; or naked, and clothed thee?
The sheep do not accept the King's praise — they cannot remember ever taking Him in or clothing Him. Their reply raises two questions: who did they help, and why does the King count it as done to Himself?
This scene is a judgment on earth, not a judgment of the dead. Two details in the text show it.
The reference is therefore to His appearing and kingdom, and to His judgment of the living, and not of the dead. We do not speak of "the nations" in respect of the dead: this term describes the living. And notice too that there are three groups — the sheep, the goats, and the brethren of the King. That fact alone settles how we read the whole scene.
The King tells them they showed kindness to "the least of these my brothers." Naming that third group explains who stood at their door, and why he needed shelter.
Who are "these my brethren?" We have had the sheep and goats — the righteous and the unrighteous Gentiles; but who are the King's brethren? Those whom the Lord will send out before He comes in the glory of the kingdom; men sent to announce that He is coming in His kingdom. The sheep showed them love, care, sympathy in their sorrows. So these brethren of the King must have gone through tribulation before the King appears. The conclusion is obvious that, in that day, the ground on which He will deal with the nations will be this — "How did you behave to My messengers?"
Feeding and clothing sound like plain decency. But the King does not reward kindness in general. He rewards kindness aimed at one group, and that aim shows what the giver believed.
What some had shown was not just kindness, self-denial, or notable moral character. It was love, shown in many ways, to the servants who preached in the King's name the same truth which He had preached at the beginning of His public ministry. But it was faith which worked in their love. If the King and His coming kingdom had only been a myth in their eyes, they would have at least ignored His messengers as impostors. They believed the message to be of God and therefore treated its preachers with kindness.
One woman did the same long before, while judgment hung over her city.
We may look at Rahab as an early foreshadowing. She believed. At that time judgment was gathering over Jericho — a picture of the world. "By faith Rahab the prostitute did not perish with those who were disobedient, because she had given a friendly welcome to the spies." She had faith and showed it by works. The preachers going about are persecuted and hated by others — suffering, hungry, some thrown into prison. And so these nations believe the messengers and treat them with kindness. Grace covers them because they believed.
Their question is not false modesty.
They had shown such kindness to poor Jewish preachers of the gospel of the kingdom, but had not thought of their deeds at all as done to the Lord Himself.
Their surprise also shows where they stand. One man learned their lesson first, and learned it the hard way.
Could a Christian say such a thing in heaven, where we will know even as we are known? But these godly Gentiles are clearly still in their natural bodies, and the Lord is teaching them even after He appears in glory. However blessed this scene may be, it is still the Lord as Son of Man judging all nations and blessing the righteous from among them. Up to that moment they did not know that their acts of love and kindness towards Christ's messengers were so much done to Christ Himself. Their last lesson was the first that Paul learned on the road to Damascus — the truth that startled his soul: "I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting."
Their forgetting is not a fault — it is how faith works.
He speaks to them of showing Him many kindnesses in times of special need. For He forgets nothing that is done for His sake, though they have no recollection of what He speaks of. Faith does the things that are right and considerate without expecting any recognition. As the hymn reads, "Little things we had forgotten He will tell us were for Him."
- Living, not dead. Christ judges the nations alive on earth when He appears. The third group in the scene — the King's brethren — settles how we read it.
- The stranger had a name. The hungry, homeless visitor was one of the King's messengers. He carried news of the coming kingdom, and suffered for it.
- The welcome was the evidence. Nobody shelters a messenger he thinks is a fraud. Taking him in showed faith in the King who sent him, as Rahab's welcome of the spies did.
- The surprise was real. They never linked the coat they gave to the Christ now on the throne. He counts kindness to His own as kindness to Himself.
- He keeps the record. Faith acts without expecting credit. The small things the doer forgot are the ones the King names back to him.
and when saw we thee ill, or in prison, and came to thee?
The King has just listed six kindnesses shown to Him, and the righteous cannot place a single one of them. Their surprise raises two questions: who is on trial here, and why do the accepted not remember the deeds that mark them out?
The scene is often read as the last judgment of everyone who has ever lived. Commentators point instead to a detail in the text. Besides the sheep and the goats, the passage names a third group — the King's brethren.
Could anybody show me a single passage about a general resurrection? There is no such thought in Scripture. You get Matthew 25 quoted for it, that the goats and sheep represent the two classes; but He has come in His glory down here. He is not sitting on the great white throne: before this heaven and earth flee away. Here He is come and sits on His throne. When He does come and sits there, He gathers all the Gentiles, the nations, to judge them. It is the judgment of the living. You have three sets of people, not two; and you have nothing of resurrection. You have sheep, goats, and brethren.
The kindnesses in this question went to people in real trouble. That points to who these brethren were and what they went through.
We have had the sheep and goats — the righteous and the unrighteous Gentiles. But who are the King's brethren? They are the men the Lord will send out before He comes in the glory of the kingdom, sent to announce that He is coming in His kingdom. The sheep showed them love — care — sympathy in their sorrows. So these brethren of the King must have gone through tribulation before the King appears. The conclusion is obvious. In that day, He will deal with the nations on this ground — "How did you behave to My messengers?"
The righteous are not being modest. They truly do not know, and one writer asks whether anyone in heaven could speak like this.
Could a Christian say such a thing in heaven, where we shall know even as we are known? … However blessed this scene may be, it is still the Lord as Son of Man judging all nations and blessing the righteous from among them. Up to that moment they did not know that their acts of love and kindness towards Christ's messengers were done towards Christ Himself. Their last lesson was the first that Paul learned on the road to Damascus — the truth that startled his soul: "I am Jesus whom you are persecuting."
If the sheep did not know they were serving Christ, what made their kindness count? One writer answers: how they treated the messengers showed what they thought of the One they represented.
God knows the true state of every heart quite apart from works. Yet public judgment is always according to works, since works show plainly and without fail what that state is. So everyone watching can see that God's judgments are right. These messengers, whom the King calls "My brethren," had gone out as His representatives. People treated them according to the view they took of the Son of Man whom they represented. Those who believed in Him stood with His messengers and cared for them in their rejection and suffering. Those who did not believe in Him paid them no attention at all. Those who had faith declared it by their works. Those who had no faith equally declared it by their works.
One writer applies their unawareness to service today.
In Matthew 25, those who pleased Him were quite unconscious of what they had done. And the principle is the same for us.
What the doers forget, He keeps.
He speaks to them of showing Him many kindnesses in times of special need. For He forgets nothing that is done for His sake, though they have no recollection of what He speaks of. Faith does what is right and considerate without expecting any recognition for it.
- Three, not two. Sheep, goats and "these My brethren" stand before a throne set up on earth. This scene says nothing about resurrection.
- The brethren. They are messengers sent out ahead of the King. Their hunger, sickness and prison show they passed through tribulation.
- The test. How the nations treated those messengers decides the case. It showed what they thought of the King who sent them.
- The evidence. Works are not merit; they are the visible proof of faith or unbelief, so that everyone can see the judgment is right.
- The surprise. The accepted cannot recall one kindness. That is the point: faith serves without keeping score, and He forgets nothing done for His sake.
And the King answering shall say to them, Verily, I say to you, Inasmuch as ye have done it to one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it to me.
The King has taken His throne, the nations stand before Him, and He has just given His verdict — now He gives His reason. It is startling: He counts kindness shown to poor, suffering people as kindness done to Himself — so who are these "brothers" whose treatment decides everything?
One writer says the common reading of this scene gets it wrong. The sorting of sheep and goats belongs to the living, not the dead:
It is commonly supposed that the judgment spoken of in this chapter is the last judgment — the general judgment. This is a mistake. It is the judgment of the nations living on the earth, and not of the dead. There is no question of resurrection here. It is the judgment of the nations… People think it is the judgment of the dead because of this sentence: "And these will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life." But that only means the judgment of the living will be final, just as the judgment of the dead is final.
Many assume the sheep are all the saved and the goats all the lost. But the verse names a third group:
Almost everyone in the Christian world believes that "the sheep" stand for all God's people, from the beginning of time to the end. They believe "the goats" stand for all the wicked, from first to last. But if that is so, what are we to make of the third party referred to here, under the title of "these My brethren"? The King addresses both the sheep and the goats about this third class. Indeed, the very ground of judgment is the treatment of the King's brethren. It would be an obvious absurdity to say the sheep were themselves the people referred to. If that were so, the wording would be quite different. Instead of "as you did it to one of the least of these My brothers," we would hear the King say, "as you did it to one another."
Darby identifies the brothers as Jewish messengers who will carry the message of the coming kingdom to the nations.
The "brethren," I have no doubt, will be the remnant who will have preached the gospel of the kingdom among the Gentiles. The welcome given to those messengers decides the outcome for those who now appear in judgment. Just as surely, I believe they are Jews who will carry this testimony, and whom Jesus calls His brethren at that time.
A meal sounds too small to settle anyone's eternity. But see what it cost the giver, and what it showed:
The pressure against His messengers will be enormous. If any receive them well, it will be from faith. I grant that the measure of their faith is small. They do not yet know that honouring His brothers is honouring Him.
This is why an open judgment can proceed on deeds without making deeds the source of blessing:
The true state of every heart is known to God quite apart from works. Yet public judgment always goes by works. Works show exactly what that state is. So everyone can see that God judges rightly… Those who had faith declared it by their works. Those who had no faith equally declared it by their works.
The sheep are surprised by the King's praise. They do not remember feeding Him:
They were, up to that moment, ignorant that in showing acts of love and kindness toward Christ's messengers, so much was done toward Christ Himself. Their last lesson was the first one Paul learned on the road to Damascus. The words that shook him were these: "I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting." The Lord taught Paul that to persecute His people on earth is to persecute Christ in heaven. They and Christ are one.
The scene is still future, but the truth behind it works now:
Those who would strike a blow at Christ today strike at His saints. Those who would serve Christ today care for and serve His saints. What is done to even the least of His brethren, He will accept as done to Himself… Real devotion to Christ shows itself in service to His cause and His people, far more than in warm words.
And nothing is too small to be filed away:
We know this verse applies to others, not to us, but the principle still holds for everyone. The act here is done in secret. Where the heart is moved by love for Christ to show even the smallest kindness, the Lord will not forget it.
- Throne — Here the King judges the living nations, not the dead. The outcome is eternal, and that is what makes it final.
- Three — Sheep, goats, and "My brothers" are three separate groups. How people treat the brothers decides the other two.
- Test — Food, water, shelter, clothing, and prison visits came under heavy pressure. They were not simple charity. They were faith at work when turning away would have been safer.
- Me — The King takes every act as done to Himself. That is the truth that stopped Paul on the road: to touch His people is to touch Him.
- Memory — The righteous had forgotten what they did; He had not. The smallest kindness done for love of Christ is never lost.