Bible Strands
Matthew 10:9
Do not take along any gold or silver or copper in your belts.
Berean Standard Bible
Follow its threads on the canvas →
Study note
Setting — Jesus speaks to the twelve disciples as he commissions them for a specific missionary journey. He issues this command immediately after outlining their healing ministry and before detailing other travel restrictions.
The words — The Greek κτήσησθε (ktēsēsthe) literally means "may take along" or "acquire," while χαλκὸν (chalkon) specifies copper or bronze coinage. These terms restrict the prohibition to tangible, circulating currency rather than general possessions.
The thread — This prohibition appears in Luke 9:3 and Luke 22:35, where Jesus recalls the initial mission and later contrasts it with a changed circumstance. Mark 6:8 records the same command, though it permits a staff.
Why it lands — The text commands the reader to leave financial preparation behind while carrying out the assigned work. It requires relying on the provision of others rather than securing personal wealth.
Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.
The Greek words
King James Version
Provide neither gold, nor silver, nor brass in your purses,
Cross-references
- Luke 22:35 Then Jesus asked them, “When I sent you out without purse or bag or sandals, did you lack anything?” “Nothing,” they answered.
- Luke 9:3 “Take nothing for the journey,” He told them, “no staff, no bag, no bread, no money, no second tunic.
- Mark 6:8 He instructed them to take nothing but a staff for the journey—no bread, no bag, no money in their belts—
- Luke 10:4 Carry no purse or bag or sandals. Do not greet anyone along the road.
- 1 Corinthians 9:7 Who serves as a soldier at his own expense? Who plants a vineyard and does not eat of its fruit? Who tends a flock and does not drink of its milk?