Matthew 10:16

“I ¹  am sending you out like sheep surrounded by wolves, ²  so be wise as serpents and innocent as doves.

Ge 3:1,13; Lu 10:3; Lu 21:15; Ac 20:29; Ro 16:18,19; Ro 16:19; 1Co 14:20; 2Co 1:12; 2Co 8:20; 2Co 11:3,14; 2Co 11:3; Eph 5:15-17; Php 2:15; Col 1:9; Col 4:5; 1Th 2:10; 1Th 5:22

¹ tn Grk “Behold I.” The Greek word ἰδού (idou) has not been translated because it has no exact English equivalent here, but adds interest and emphasis (BDAG 468 s.v. 1).

² sn This imagery of wolves is found in intertestamental Judaism; see Pss. Sol. 8:23, 30.