Matthew 23:34-36
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Jesus declares that he will send more messengers – prophets, wise men, and scribes – but that they will face the same violent opposition the previous ones did. This highlights that the hostility isn't just against the past, but a persistent pattern God sends into the midst of their rejection.
Therefore I send you prophets and wise men and scribes, some of whom you will kill and crucify, and some you will flog in your synagogues and persecute from town to town, so that on you may come all the righteous blood shed on earth, from the blood of righteous Abel to the blood of Zechariah the son of Barachiah, whom you murdered between the sanctuary and the altar. Truly, I say to you, all these things will come upon this generation.
English Standard Version (ESV)
Jesus has just delivered a series of woes against the scribes and Pharisees, exposing their hypocrisy and condemning them for their ancestors' persecution of prophets. He declares that they are "children of those who murdered the prophets" and will therefore "fill up the measure of your fathers." This verse is Jesus' response to that condemnation, revealing that God will continue to send messengers of truth, but the generation he is addressing will persecute them as well, thus sealing their own doom.
Jesus declares he is sending more messengers, but predicts they will face the same violent opposition as the prophets of old. Why does this cycle of rejection seem to repeat itself?
In Matthew 23:34, Jesus announces that he will send "prophets, and wise men, and scribes" to the people. This might sound like a promise of new guidance and wisdom. However, the immediate follow-up is chilling: "some of whom you will kill and crucify, and some you will flog... and persecute."
This isn't just a random prediction; it's a statement about a deep, destructive pattern. The religious leaders Jesus is addressing have built tombs for past prophets while actively persecuting those sent by God in their own time. They claim to honor the past while rejecting the present truth. Jesus highlights this hypocrisy, showing that the same spirit of defiance that led their ancestors to kill God's messengers is alive and well within them.
This cycle of rejection isn't unique to that generation. History, both biblical and secular, shows a recurring tendency for those in power, or those comfortable in their ways, to resist new truths and the messengers who bring them, especially when those truths challenge their established norms and authority.
Despite the predicted violence, Jesus frames this sending of messengers not as a failure, but as God's ongoing, determined effort to reach people. How can we see God's persistent love even in the face of rejection?
The verse, though stark in its prediction of persecution, is rooted in God's relentless pursuit of humanity. Jesus says, " send you..." – the initiative comes from Him. This isn't about sending people to their doom, but about God continuing to offer His truth and His presence, even when He knows it will be met with violence.
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This action reveals a profound aspect of God's character: His enduring love and patience. He doesn't give up on people easily. He sends prophets, wise men, and scribes – a progression of God's messengers and revelation. This persistent sending, even to those who have demonstrated a pattern of hostility, underscores His deep desire for reconciliation and His unwillingness to let humanity remain lost.
This persistent love is also seen in Jesus' lament over Jerusalem in Luke 13:34: "how often would I have gathered your children together... and you would not!" The sending of messengers, even to face death, is an act of love, a final, desperate plea before judgment falls. It’s God saying, "I'm still reaching out, even now, even to you."
Understand the original words
prophētas · Greek Noun
A spokesperson for God, inspired by the Holy Spirit to declare God's truth, warn of judgment, or announce future events.
apokteneite · Greek Verb
To act as an executioner or to kill unjustly; often used in the Gospels to describe the rejection and murder of God's messengers.
mastigōsete · Greek Verb
To whip or beat with a scourge; a severe form of punishment used in historical Jewish and Roman judicial contexts.
diōxete · Greek Verb
To harass, mistreat, or pursue someone due to their faith or testimony, particularly those representing God’s righteousness.
dikaiou · Greek Adjective
One who lives in conformity to God’s will, justified by faith, and whose life bears the fruit of divine truth.
naou · Greek Noun
The innermost part of the temple, the holy place representing the dwelling of God’s presence among His people.
thysiastēriou · Greek Noun
The place of sacrifice where atonement is made; symbolically, it represents the meeting point between a holy God and sinful humanity.
genea · Greek Noun
The period of time or the contemporary group of people to whom a specific prophetic message or judgment applies.
Jesus' words in Matthew 23:34 reveal a recurring pattern of rejection and persecution throughout salvation history, from the Old Testament prophets to His own apostles, highlighting humanity's persistent struggle against divine truth.
c. 30 AD— this verse
Jesus' Public Ministry
Jesus travels and teaches throughout Judea, gathering disciples and confronting religious leaders. This marks the beginning of the 'sending' of prophets, wise men, and scribes.
c. 33 AD
Crucifixion of Jesus
Jesus is arrested, tried, and crucified in Jerusalem. This event is the ultimate rejection of God's messenger and foreshadows future persecutions.
c. 35 AD
Stephen's Martyrdom
Stephen, one of Jesus' early followers, is stoned to death for preaching about Jesus, fulfilling Jesus' prophecy about some being killed.
c. 44 AD
James' Execution
James, brother of John and an apostle, is put to death by the sword on the orders of King Herod Agrippa I, illustrating the persecution faced by Jesus' messengers.
c. 60-62 AD
Paul's Imprisonment and Ministry
The Apostle Paul, a key 'scribe' and 'wise man' of the early church, faces imprisonment and persecution as he continues to spread the gospel from city to city.
70 AD
Destruction of Jerusalem
The Roman army destroys Jerusalem and its Temple, fulfilling Jesus' prophecy of desolation upon the city that rejected God's messengers.
This passage describes Stephen, a prophet-like figure, being stoned to death, illustrating the kind of violent persecution Jesus predicted his followers would face.
2 Chronicles 24:20-22This Old Testament account details the stoning of Zechariah, the son of Jehoiada, in the temple courts, directly fulfilling Jesus' reference to righteous blood shed between the temple and the altar.
Luke 11:49This parallel passage explicitly states 'Therefore said the wisdom of God,' directly linking Jesus' words about sending messengers to a divine declaration, emphasizing the authoritative nature of his pronouncements.
Matthew 10:16-17Here, Jesus directly warns his disciples that they will be handed over to councils and scourged, paralleling the persecution and suffering described in Matthew 23:34.
Jeremiah 2:30The prophet Jeremiah recounts God's consistent sending of messengers who were struck down, mirroring the pattern Jesus describes of repeated rejection and violence against God's spokesmen.
calvinMatthew 23:29-39: "Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! because ye build the tombs of the prophets, and garnish the sepulchres of the righteous,"
- Woe to you scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for you build the sepulchers of the prophets and embellish the monuments of the righteous, 30. And say, If we had been in the days of our fathers, we would not have been their associates in the blood of the prophets. 31. Thus you testify against yourselves, that you are the children of thos…
henryMatthew 23:34-39: "Wherefore, behold, I send unto you prophets, and wise men, and scribes: and some of them ye shall kill and crucify; and some of them shall ye scourge in your synagogues, and persecute them from city to city:"
23:34-39 Our Lord declares the miseries the inhabitants of Jerusalem were about to bring upon themselves, but he does not notice the sufferings he was to undergo. A hen gathering her chickens under her wings, is an apt emblem of the Saviour's tender love to those who tru…
Jesus declares that he will send more messengers – prophets, wise men, and scribes – but that they will face the same violent opposition the previous ones did. This highlights that the hostility isn't just against the past, but a persistent pattern God sends into the midst of their rejection.
Jesus has just delivered a series of woes against the scribes and Pharisees, exposing their hypocrisy and condemning them for their ancestors' persecution of prophets. He declares that they are "children of those who murdered the prophets" and will therefore "fill up the measure of your fathers." This verse is Jesus' response to that condemnation, revealing that God will continue to send messengers of truth, but the generation he is addressing will persecute them as well, thus sealing their own doom.
Jesus has just delivered a series of woes against the scribes and Pharisees, exposing their hypocrisy and condemning them for their ancestors' persecution of prophets. He declares that they are "children of those who murdered the prophets" and will therefore "fill up the measure of your fathers." This verse is Jesus' response to that condemnation, revealing that God will continue to send messengers of truth, but the generation he is addressing will persecute them as well, thus sealing their own doom.
"Therefore I send you prophets and wise men and scribes, some of whom you will kill and crucify, and some you will flog in your synagogues and persecute from town to town, so that on you may come all the righteous blood shed on earth, from…" — Jesus declares that he will send more messengers – prophets, wise men, and scribes – but that they will face the same violent opposition the previous ones did. This highlights that the hostility isn'…
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Last reviewed October 2026
