among the Jews (23:34), and here that later usage is anticipated. After all, in the light of the principle of v. 40, if Jesus is a prophet so also are those he sends. And so it is in that capacity, with all its connotations of speaking with a direct authority from God, that people are expected to receive Jesus’ messengers⁸—“in the name of” a prophet implies recognition of the category to which the person belongs (see n. 2 above). The “prophet’s reward” probably means either the sort of reward a prophet can give (perhaps thinking of the blessings conferred on those who welcomed prophets in the OT: 1 Kgs 17:8–24; 2 Kgs 4:8–37) or a reward on a scale appropriate to those who welcome a prophet—there is in effect little difference. It is less likely in this context to mean the reward which a prophet receives, since it is not the prophet but the welcomer who is to receive it, though it may be possible to take it as indicating that “to receive such a servant is to put oneself in the position of receiving the same reward as the person received.” (Hagner, 1.296) “Righteous person” is a less specific designation than “prophet,” and may indicate here no more than that the disciples are recognized by their welcomers as good people rather than bad, but in the OT the term “righteous” is often used specifically for the people of God over against “the wicked” who oppose him. In 13:17; 23:29 “prophets” and “righteous people” will again be paired as a way of speaking of the godly, there with reference to the period before Jesus’ coming.¹ For the prominence of the theme of “reward” in Matthew see on 5:12. The term
is no more specific here than there, but here the section on rewards follows the
saying about finding true life (v. 39), so that it is natural to read the reward in
that light. In 25:31–46 the reward for those who have helped Jesus’ “little
brothers” and so helped him (in ways reminiscent of the cup of water given here
to the “little ones” in v. 42) is spelled out as “the kingdom prepared for you from
the foundation of the world,” and as “eternal life” in contrast with the “eternal
fire” reserved for those who have turned the “little brothers” away. In the light of
that parallel passage the stakes are very high in relation to how Jesus’
representatives are received.