18:10 {4} Take heed that ye despise not one of these little ones; for I say unto you, That in heaven their angels do always behold the face of my Father which is in heaven.
(4) The weaker that a man is, the greater care we ought to have for his salvation, as God teaches us by his own example.
18:10 Despise not one of these little ones. Not merely one of the children, but those saints whom the world regards as insignificant and unimportant. To despise is, literally, to look down upon, and hence, to neglect. This forbids all caste in the church.
In heaven their angels do always behold the face of my Father. The doctrine of guardian angels is emphatically taught in the Scriptures. See 1Ki 19:5-8 Ps 91:11 Heb 1:13 Ac 27:23. Who can afford to despise the children who have representatives right at the throne of God?
18:10 See that ye despise not one of these little ones - As if they were beneath your notice. Be careful to receive and not to offend, the very weakest believer in Christ: for as inconsiderable as some of these may appear to thee, the very angels of God have a peculiar charge over them: even those of the highest order, who continually appear at the throne of the Most High. To behold the face of God seems to signify the waiting near his throne; and to be an allusion to the office of chief ministers in earthly courts, who daily converse with their princes.
18:7-14 Considering the cunning and malice of Satan, and the weakness and depravity of men's hearts, it is not possible but that there should be offences. God permits them for wise and holy ends, that those who are sincere, and those who are not, may be made known. Being told before, that there will be seducers, tempters, persecutors, and bad examples, let us stand on our guard. We must, as far as lawfully we may, part with what we cannot keep without being entangled by it in sin. The outward occasions of sin must be avoided. If we live after the flesh, we must die. If we, through the Spirit, mortify the deeds of the body, we shall live. Christ came into the world to save souls, and he will reckon severely with those who hinder the progress of others who are setting their faces heavenward. And shall any of us refuse attention to those whom the Son of God came to seek and to save? A father takes care of all his children, but is particularly tender of the little ones.
