Commentary on Matthew 10:23

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Matthew 10:23 is one of those verses that once disturbed me, and I know it disturbs others. At first glance, it makes Jesus look like a false prophet. Was He saying He would return in the rapture or the second coming while His disciples were still alive and had not even finished preaching in Judea and Samaria? Here is the verse, "When they persecute you in this city, flee to another. For assuredly, I say to you, you will not have gone through the cities of Israel before the Son of Man comes." What did Jesus mean in that verse? At its simplest, it could mean He would overtake them on the road before they finished their preaching. However, the phrase, "before the Son of Man comes," hints at a bigger meaning than "I'll catch up with you later." There have been a lot of different views from commentators, and I have included Matthew Poole's Commentary on this verse below, but I personally believe we have an answer in Acts 1:4-8 and 9-11. 

"And being assembled together with them, He commanded them not to depart from Jerusalem, but to wait for the Promise of the Father, “which,” He said, “you have heard from Me; for John truly baptized with water, but you shall be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now.” Therefore, when they had come together, they asked Him, saying, “Lord, will You at this time restore the kingdom to Israel?” And He said to them, “It is not for you to know times or seasons which the Father has put in His own authority. But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.” 

We see the resurrected Lord in verse 8. He has conquered death and has been among His disciples teaching them for 40 days. We also see in the verse that they had not yet gone into all Judea and Samaria, so that is something yet future, but we also see that they have witnessed the resurrection of the Lord and His return to them after death. Now they are witnessing His ascension and have learned from an angel that His return would be in the same manner:

Verses 9-11, "Now when He had spoken these things, while they watched, He was taken up, and a cloud received Him out of their sight. And while they looked steadfastly toward heaven as He went up, behold, two men stood by them in white apparel, who also said, “Men of Galilee, why do you stand gazing up into heaven? This same Jesus, who was taken up from you into heaven, will so come in like manner as you saw Him go into heaven.”

In Matthew 10, Jesus is sending the disciples to the Jewish people to preach that the Kingdom of Heaven is near. They were joined with Jesus again before they had gone throughout all the cities. They would not return to their task of preaching in all of Jerusalem until after the resurrection and Pentecost. In the opening verses of Acts, we see that not only has the Son of Man come back from the dead, and they have witnessed it, they have witnessed what the return of Christ will look like. In effect, they have seen the return of Jesus in His ascension. However, they have not yet received the Holy Spirit, and they cannot commence their teaching of the full gospel until that time. It will be different this time, though. Matthew 10 was prior to the crucifixion and resurrection and the full revealing of the gospel. I think the prediction of Matthew 10:23 resumes or commences in Acts 1:4-11, and is finalized in the outpouring of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost. That is when the disciples began their preaching about the death and resurrection of the Son of Man, which they had witnessed. That is when they began to preach the full Gospel. 

I think one problem that arises with Matthew 10:23 is that most people assume it is talking about Christ's return in the rapture or in His return to earth at the Second Coming. It cannot be speaking about those things because Jesus said in Matthew 24:36 that He did not know that day nor hour -- only the Father did. Yet, in Matthew 10:23, He knew something about the timing of the events He was telling His disciples about. That is why I do not think it points to the rapture or the second coming but to the events in the first and second chapters of Acts. 

After Pentecost, the disciples immediately began preaching -- (the persecution Jesus predicted began immediately as well). There is also the fact that Jesus said this gospel would be preached to all nations, and that is still happening and it's been nearly 2,000 years. There may be some hair splitting here. There are still people today who have never heard the gospel. Far too many. According to the ministry Faith Comes by Hearing, there are 7,141 languages spoken all over the world, but the Bible has only been translated into approximately 3,000 languages. However, 70% of the world's population live in oral communities, and as many as 50 to 98% of them are functionally illiterate. They would not be able to read the Bible in their own language even if they had one. That is why Faith Comes by Hearing is producing audio Bible in as many of the earth's languages as possible, and their goal is to have audio Bible's in all languages by 2033. I wish all Christians would support this ministry because the most important thing we have to offer is the Word of God. The testimonies at the site are profound and speak to the power and life-changing impact of God's Word.

I want everyone to be able to hear or read the Bible in their own language. However, this prophecy does not say all languages will have Bibles. It says the gospel will be preached in all nations before the end comes, and it has been. But if this prophecy somehow includes languages and Bibles, and not just nations hearing the gospel message, then even it is not fulfilled yet. Jesus' disciples were told they would go to the end of the world as witnesses, and Jesus' disciples are still doing that. Will we finish all of our tasks before He returns? I don't think so. But all nations have heard the gospel, even if not all people within those nations have.  

Here is Matthew Poole's Commentary on Matthew 10:23.

"Till the Son of man be come. There is a wonderful variety of interpreters’ senses of this text, founded upon the various comings of Christ mentioned in holy writ. He was already come in the flesh, so as it, speaking of a time to come, could not be meant of that: nor can it be understood of his second coming to judgment, for they have gone through the cities of Israel long ago. Christ is therefore said in Scripture to come, when he appeareth in some great work of providence, whether of judgment or mercy. This makes some interpret it of the destruction of Jerusalem; in which sense some think the coming of Christ is mentioned, Matthew 24:1-51. Some, of the resurrection of Christ, from whence they say Christ’s epocha commenced. Others understand it of the effusion of the Spirit in the day of Pentecost; this they ground on John 14:17,18, where they think Christ’s coming, promised John 14:18, is the coming of the Spirit, promised John 14:17. Undoubtedly, in the general, our Saviour means, till the time be accomplished when you must leave preaching to the Jews and go to the Gentiles, and my kingdom shall be further extended than it is at present; which dispensation of God may for aught I know be called the coming of Christ, being an eminent act of God’s providence, by which Christ was more showed to the world, and his kingdom further extended."