Luke 10:7

My Notes

What Does Luke 10:7 Mean?

Jesus instructs the seventy: when you enter a house, stay there. Eat and drink what they provide. Because the laborer is worthy of his hire. Don't move from house to house seeking better accommodations. The worker deserves what they receive. And the provision is the assignment — not the starting point for negotiating something better.

The phrase "the labourer is worthy of his hire" (axios gar ho ergatēs tou misthou autou) establishes a principle Paul will later apply to ministerial support (1 Timothy 5:18). The person who works for the kingdom deserves to be sustained. The provision isn't charity. It's wages. The worker earned what the host provides.

"Go not from house to house" means don't upgrade. Don't seek a wealthier patron. Don't leave the modest house for the impressive one. The provision you receive first is the provision you keep. The wandering preacher who shops for better hospitality undermines the message. Stay where you landed.

Reflection Questions

• 1.Are you content with 'the first house' — the provision God arranged — or are you shopping for upgrades?
• 2.Does 'the labourer is worthy of his hire' change how you view supporting those who serve you spiritually?
• 3.How does 'go not from house to house' challenge the ministry culture of platform-seeking and patron-shopping?
• 4.Is your provision adequate — and can you receive it as 'what they give' without evaluating it against your preferences?

Devotional

Stay where you land. Eat what they give you. The worker deserves the provision. Don't shop for a better house.

Jesus gives the seventy a principle that governs every ministry relationship: the laborer is worthy of his hire. The person who does kingdom work deserves to be sustained. The provision isn't a gift. It's owed. The worker earned it. And the source of the provision — whatever house opens its door first — is the source you stay with.

"Eating and drinking such things as they give" — take what's offered. Don't request upgrades. Don't impose dietary preferences. Don't evaluate the hospitality against your expectations. They give. You eat. The provision is adequate because the one who sent you (verse 3: the Lord of the harvest) is the one who arranged it.

"Go not from house to house" — the prohibition against shopping. The ministry worker who moves from house to house is looking for a better deal — a wealthier patron, a more comfortable arrangement, a host who provides a bigger platform. Jesus says: stop. Stay where you landed. The first house is the assigned house. Moving to a better one signals that the provision wasn't enough — and that undermines the message of a God who provides sufficiently.

"The labourer is worthy" — the worthiness is established by the labor, not the laborer's résumé. You work. You're sustained. The equation is labor → provision. Not networking → upgrade. The worker's worth is built into the work itself.

Paul will quote this verse to support paying pastors and teachers (1 Timothy 5:18). The principle travels: kingdom workers deserve compensation. Not luxury. Not poverty. The hire. What the labor warrants. What the host provides. What the first house offers.

Stay where you land. Eat what they give. You're worth what the work produces. And the house that opened first is the house God chose.

Commentary

Trusted original commentary from respected historical Bible scholars and theologians.

Cross References

Related passages throughout Scripture