Matthew 10:29-30
Are not two sparrows sold for a farthing? And one of them shall not fall on the ground without your Father,
But the very hairs of your head are all numbered..
Fear ye not therefore, ye are of more value than many sparrows.
CONTEXT
In Matthew 10 the LORD Jesus is preparing his disciples to go out into the world as His ambassadors. As we approach out passage about the sparrows He is warning them of threats against their lives and how they should respond. Matthew 10:28 begins with “fear not”. The story of the sparrows explains why.
WHAT THE WORLD VALUES
I am a collector.As a boy I collected bottle caps, then stamps and coins. As I aged I began to collect other things like books. The value of collector items can change in a moment. Things you think are valuable can become worthless overnight.
We live in a currency driven society. After the civil ware, Southern currency was instantly worthless. Wikipedia has a mind boggling list of modern obsolete currencies. A few years ago, the Bahamas called in all pennies. If you kept them past the last day to exchange them at the bank, they became obsolete and have no monetary value.
A recent article was posted about a couple that invested thousands of dollars in Beanie Babies. Those toys and many other collectible toys are now virtually worthless.
My sister collects dolls. We went to a doll show with her and found that vintage dolls that have any great value are rare. It was sad to see collectors selling their vintage dolls, some a century in age, with a sign that says, “never played with.” Still, they did not hold their value.
I thought that my space stamps collected in the 1960s might be valuable. The fact is that so many people collected them and so many were produced, they are worth less than if they had been modern “forever stamps.” They are worth more than face value, but not much.
When an economy fails, collectibles become worthless and necessities like food and fuel become valuable.
While silver and gold may be the last currency to lose value, the Scriptures declare that they too will perish
(1 Peter 1:7, 18).
TRUE VALUE
A good measure of true value is what someone is willing to pay for it. The 2026 Coin Red Book may say that your wheat pennies may be worth a dime or more, but the local buyer will buy them at two cents each.
SPARROWS
One of the first questions that I asked was, “Why would anyone buy a sparrow?” When I was a boy I raised chickens and sold eggs. There were advertisements in publications like the Boy Scout magazine “Boy’s Life” that encouraged folks to raise quail. They made it look easy and profitable. My brothers and neighbors hunted wild quail. It would take a few birds to make a decent sandwich. Commercial quail are a little bigger.
Sparrows were used for two purposes by the very poor. First, they were used a food. Like the quail, there is not much meat on them, but it provides some protein. Second, they could be presented to the LORD as an offering if the worshiper was too poor for a larger animal.
Matthew places the price at two for a farthing. Luke places the price at five for two farthings.
Jesus most likely handled silver, bronze and gold coins, both local and from the neighboring regions – Jewish, Greek, Roman, Syrian, Nabatean, Egyptian, all present in Judea at the time.
There are four coins directly linked with Jesus in the New Testament: Phoenician shekel and half-shekel, Jewish Hasmonean lepton, and Roman denarius.
Coin Value Comparision (sources are not consistent)
Widows Mite: Greek lepton or mite (Mark 12:42)
Farthing: Greek assaarion / Roman as = cost of two sparrows (Matthew 10:29)
Note: Some sources suggest 2 lepton – 1 assarion (farthing)
The confusion is that both lepton and assarion are translanted “farthing”
The Roman quadrans is 1/4 of an as /assarion (Grk) or about 1 lepton (Matthew 5:26)
One denarius equals sixty-four farthings (as/assarion): the wage for a full day labor.
The point is that it Jesus is referring to a coin of low value.
Coins Jesus Knew Coins of the Greek and Roman World
The coin in Matthew 10 is traslated “cent” or “farthing.” The Greek word in this verse is assarion. One denarius equaled sixty-four assarion.
Matthew 20:1-16 records the story of the Laborers in the Vineyard. The master offered them one denarius for a full day of service. The KJV uses the word “penny”, but do not be confused that with modern currency. It is sixty-four assarion (see above).
If you compare this to the current minimum wage in Florida ($14/hour), the cost of these two sparrows would be roughly $1.75, less than a 20 ounce cola at 7-Eleven.
The widow’s mite (actually two lepta) was significant for a few reasons. First, it was all she had to live on. That is less than $2 in today’s purchasing power. Second, it was enough to purchase the smallest sacrifice (two sparrows) to present to the LORD.
Perhaps by now you get the point. Sparrows were not of great value.
WHY SPARROWS?
The LORD uses sparrows, the least valuable thing, to contrast with a single strand of our hair. The Cleveland clinic estimates that the average head of hair contains 80,000 to 150,000 strands. If we split that down the middle, the hairs on an average head are valued at about 230 sparrows, whom are valuable enough to the LORD that He knows when a single one falls.
The lesson in Matthew 10 is that the LORD values us very dearly.
Just how valuable are we to the LORD?
WHAT THE LORD VALUES
God sent His Son to seek and to save those that are lost. (Luke 19:10)
Matthew 18:10-14 The shepherd leaves behind his flock to find one lost sheep.
He rejoices. Luke adds (Luke 15:7) that there is rejoicing in Heaven over one sinner that repents.
God gave His Son (John 3:16-17)
John 10:11 records the words of the LORD Jesus, “I am the good shepherd, the good shepherd gives his life for the sheep.”
God “gave” rather than “sent”; emphasizing the idea of sacrifice (Vincent)
Who killed Jesus?
Was it by the command of Pilate (Mark 15:15)Was it the Roman Soldiers following the command of Pilate? (Mark 15:24)Was it the people (Acts 2:36)
Was it by the knowledge of G-d?
Hebrews 9:26 Symbolically: He suffered since the foundation. but NOW!
Revelation 13:8 Slain from the foundation.
The promise to Eve regarding the “seed of the woman”
Genesis 3:15 The son will be bruised.
Isaiah 53:10 The LORD was pleased to bruise Him.
Zechariah 13:7 “Awake, O sword, against My Shepherd”
John 10:17-18 I lay down my life so that I may take it again!
2 Corinthians 5:21 “He made Him to be sin for us”
RESPONSES TO THE GOSPEL
The rest of this chapter records how people will respond to the gospel message.
Matthew 10:32-33
Whosoever therefore shall confess me before men, him will I confess also before my Father which is in heaven.
But whosoever shall deny me before men, him will I also deny before my Father which is in heaven.
There are simply two responses.
Receive Christ or Deny Christ.
John 14:6
Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.
THE COST OF DISCIPLESHIP
The rest of this chapter details the cost (and reward) of discipleship.
There are some difficult sayings in this section.
Matthew 10:36 warns of conflict when there is a divided home regarding the gospel.
Coming to Christ is not easy.
His call is to take up your cross and follow Him.
You are so valuable to Him!
Is He valuable to you?