Verse-by-Verse Bible Commentary

Adam Clarke Commentary

But there shall not a hair of your head perish - A proverbial expression for, Ye shall not suffer any essential injury. Every genuine Christian shall escape when this desolation comes upon the Jewish state.

John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible

But there shall not art hair of your head perish. That is, without the will of God, as in Matthew 10:29 or not one shall perish, but what shall be restored again: or the sense is, that though they should be betrayed by their friends, and hated, and persecuted, and imprisoned by their enemies, yet they should be no losers in the main; all things should work together for their good; and though even they should be put to death, yet that would be to their advantage, since instead of a temporal, troublesome life, they should enjoy an eternal and happy one: for this cannot be understood of entire preservation from all corporeal damages and hurt; seeing it is, before declared, that they should be put into prisons, and some of them put to death; nor of their preservation at the destruction of Jerusalem, for none of them was living at that time, but the Apostle John, and he was not in those parts.

Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible

perish — He had just said (Luke 21:16) they should be put to death; showing that this precious promise is far above immunity from mere bodily harm, and furnishing a key to the right interpretation of the ninety-first Psalm, and such like. Matthew adds the following (Matthew 24:12): “And because iniquity shall abound, the love of many,” the many or, the most - the generality of professed disciples - “shall wax cold.” But he that endureth to the end shall be saved. Sad illustrations of the effect of abounding iniquity in cooling the love of faithful disciples we have in the Epistle of James, written about this period referred to, and too frequently ever since (Hebrews 10:38, Hebrews 10:39; Revelation 2:10). “And this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness, and then shall the end come” (Matthew 24:14). God never sends judgment without previous warning; and there can be no doubt that the Jews, already dispersed over most known countries, had nearly all heard the Gospel “as a witness,” before the end of the Jewish state. The same principle was repeated and will repeat itself to the end.

Wesley's Explanatory Notes

But there shall not an hair of your head perish.

Not a hair of your head — A proverbial expression, shall perish - Without the special providence of God. And then, not before the time, nor without A full reward.

The Fourfold Gospel

And not a hair of your head shall perish¹.

1. And not a hair of your head shall perish. The previous verses show that this promise is spiritual. The destruction of a saint's body would work no real injury to him.

Abbott's Illustrated New Testament

Nothing really valuable to them should be lost or destroyed; but, amidst all these trials and dangers, their ultimate welfare and happiness were perfectly secure.

John Trapp Complete Commentary

15 For I will give you a mouth and wisdom, which all your adversaries shall not be able to gainsay nor resist.

16 And ye shall be betrayed both by parents, and brethren, and kinsfolks, and friends; and some of you shall they cause to be put to death.

17 And ye shall be hated of all men for my name’s sake.

18 But there shall not an hair of your head perish.

Ver. 18. See Matthew 10:30; {See Trapp on "Matthew 10:30"} See also for explication, 1 Samuel 14:45; 2 Samuel 14:11; Acts 27:34.

Thomas Coke Commentary on the Holy Bible

Luke 21:18. There shall not an hair of your head perish.— A proverbial expression, denoting an absolute safety. Our Lord had foretold but just before, Luke 21:16 that several of them should be put to death; he must therefore here intend to assure them, that when they came, on the whole, to balance their accounts, they should find that they had not been losers in any the least instance; but that whatever damage they had sustained, it should be amply made up, and they at length placed in a state of entire security. See 1 Samuel 14:45. 2 Samuel 14:11. 1 Kings 1:52 and Acts 27:3

Greek Testament Critical Exegetical Commentary

18.] Not literally, but really true; not corporeally, but in that real and only life which the disciple of Christ possesses.

Johann Albrecht Bengel's Gnomon of the New Testament

Luke 21:18. θρὶξ, an hair) A proverbial expression.— οὐ μὴ ἀπόληται, shall not perish) namely, without the special providence of God,—without its reward,—before its time. Most of the apostles, or at least some of them, lived beyond the destruction of Jerusalem.

Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible

It is a proverbial speech, signifying that they should have no hurt or damage by any thing which their enemies should do against them. When at the last you come to cast up your accounts, you shall find you have lost nothing, and your enemies shall also find that they have gained nothing.

Alexander MacLaren's Expositions of Holy Scripture

и волос Ср. ст. 16. Это было не обещанием сохранить их физическую жизнь, а гарантией, что они не будут терпеть вечных лишений. Сам Бог суверенно оберегает Своих. См. пояснения к Ин. 10:28, 29.

Justin Edwards' Family Bible New Testament

Not a hair-perish; you shall suffer no real harm, though you die for my sake. Compare Romans 8:28-39; 1 Corinthians 3:21-23; 1 Peter 3:13. However great the wickedness of men, and however active their opposition to the people of God, they shall not in the end be able to injure them. His people should therefore be calm and quiet, as well as active and persevering in their labors for the promotion of his cause, trusting in him for whatever they need.

Whedon's Commentary on the Bible

18.Shall not a hair’ perish—Although their lives should be taken, (Luke 21:16,) yet not a drop of their blood should be shed in vain; not a hair should fail of its effect or go for naught.

 

Peter Pett's Commentary on the Bible

“And not a hair of your head will perish.”

But Jesus’ final guarantee to His own was that not a hair of their heads would perish (compare Luke 12:7; Acts 27:34). This was not intended to be taken literally, indeed could not be, for the number of our hairs is not fixed, and when we lose them they perish. The saying was probably proverbial. The point was that at the resurrection every hair would still be in place, even though they had been burned or had been ground to powder or had decayed in the grave. Eternally they were totally secure. That is why they did not need to fear those who could only kill the body (Luke 12:4), but could not prevent every hair from surviving. This is confirmed by the next verse which also has in mind eternity.

Expository Notes of Dr. Thomas Constable

Jesus promised that He would keep them safe. This probably means that no harm would befall them without the Father"s permission ( Luke 21:16; cf. Acts 27:34). [Note: Geldenhuys, p527; Morris, p298; Lenski, p1017.] Some interpreters believe it refers to their spiritual safety. [Note: E.g, Plummer, p480; Marshall, The Gospel . . ., p769; A. T. Robertson, Word Pictures in the New Testament, 2:259; H. A. Ironside, Addresses on the Gospel of Luke, 2:619; Liefeld, " Luke," p1021; and G. Campbell Morgan, The Gospel According to Luke, p237.] However physical safety seems to be in view throughout the passage.

Schaff's Popular Commentary on the New Testament

Luke 21:18. And not a hair of your head shall perish. Some would add: ‘as long as you are needed for the service of Christ;’ others refer it to the safety of the mass of Christians at the time of the destruction of Jerusalem. But the fact that Luke 21:16 points to the death of some makes a reference to the spiritual life more probable. The seeming difficulty led to an early omission of the verse.

The Expositor's Greek Testament

Luke 21:18_{, , etc., a hair of your head shall not perish =} Matthew 10:30_{, where it is said: “your hairs are all numbered”. What! even in the case of those who die? Yes, Jesus would have His apostles live in this faith whatever betide; an optimistic creed, necessary to a heroic life.}

 

 

George Haydock's Catholic Bible Commentary

A hair of your head, &c. A hair shall not perish from the head of the disciples of Christ; because not only their most heroic actions, and their public confessions of his name, but even their passing thoughts shall be crowned with adequate rewards. (Ven. Bede)

E.W. Bullinger's Companion Bible Notes

not = by no means. Greek ou me. App-105.

hair, &c. Compare Matthew 10:30.

Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers

(18) There shall not an hair of your head perish.—The promise does not meet us in this form in the parallel passages of the two other Gospels. A like promise meets us in Matthew 10:30, Luke 12:7. The very same phrase occurs, however, almost as if it were a quotation from this Gospel, in St. Paul’s address to the sailors, in Acts 27:34.

Treasury of Scripture Knowledge

But there shall not an hair of your head perish.

12:7; 1 Samuel 14:45; 25:29; 2 Samuel 14:11; Matthew 10:30; Acts 27:34

Reciprocal: 1 Kings 1:52 - there shall;  Proverbs 3:25 - neither;  Daniel 3:27 - nor was;  Luke 10:19 - and nothing;  Luke 21:9 - when;  Acts 18:10 - and no