10:41a

Whoever receives a prophet: As in the previous verse, the word receives refers to giving hospitality to someone. It refers to taking a person into one’s house and caring for him by feeding him or helping him as he needs it.

In this verse, Jesus is expanding his teaching about receiving people into one’s home. Here it includes prophets. In 10:41c, he expands it further to include righteous people who are serving Christ.

Here are some other ways to translate this clause:

The person who receives/takes a prophet ⌊into his house⌋
-or-
The person who welcomes a prophet (God’s Word)

prophet: A prophet is a person who speaks on behalf of God.

The word prophet also occurs in 1:22 and 8:17a. You should translate it here as you did there. See also prophet in the Glossary for further information.

because he is a prophet: The Greek phrase that the Berean Standard Bible translates as because he is a prophet is literally “in the name of a prophet” (as in the NET Bible). This phrase indicates that the person knew that he was a prophet and therefore gladly received him.

Here are some other ways to translate this phrase:

as a prophet (God’s Word)
-or-
because that person is a prophet (Contemporary English Version)
-or-
because he knows/recognizes that he is a messenger of God

10:41b

will receive a prophet’s reward: The word reward refers to wages or a gift given for worthy behavior. God gives a reward to prophets for serving him. God will also give the same reward to the person who welcomes a prophet.

Here are some other ways to translate this:

will be given the same reward as a prophet (Contemporary English Version)
-or-
the reward that he will receive is the same reward that a prophet will receive

10:41c–d

and whoever receives a righteous man: A righteous man is a person who lives by God’s standards. He constantly does what is right and good in God’s sight.

This word also occurs in 9:13c.

Here are some other ways to translate this clause:

And whoever welcomes a good man because he is good (Good News Translation)
-or-
anyone who welcomes a holy man (Jerusalem Bible)
-or-
the person who welcomes a person who obeys God’s law
-or-
He who gives hospitality to a person who does what is right

In some languages there may be an idiom to describe this. For example:

If you welcome a person who follows a straight path

-or-

He who welcomes a good/straight person

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