17. "Watch out! Men will hand you over to the local courts. They will whip you in their synagogues.
18. You will be brought to governors and kings because of me. You will be witnesses to them and to those who aren't Jews.
19. "But when they arrest you, don't worry about what you will say or how you will say it. At that time you will be given the right words to say.
20. It will not be you speaking. The Spirit of your Father will be speaking through you.
21. "Brothers will hand over brothers to be killed. Fathers will hand over their children. Children will rise up against their parents and have them put to death.
22. Everyone will hate you because of me. But anyone who stands firm to the end will be saved.
23. "When people attack you in one place, escape to another. What I'm about to tell you is true. You will not finish going through the cities of Israel before the Son of Man comes.
24. "A student is not better than his teacher. A servant is not better than his master.
25. It is enough for the student to be like his teacher. And it is enough for the servant to be like his master. If the head of the house has been called Beelzebub, what can the others who live there expect?
26. "So don't be afraid of your enemies. Everything that is secret will be brought out into the open. Everything that is hidden will be uncovered.
27. What I tell you in the dark, speak in the daylight. What is whispered in your ear, shout from the rooftops.
28. Do not be afraid of those who kill the body but can't kill the soul. Instead, be afraid of the One who can destroy both soul and body in hell.
29. "Aren't two sparrows sold for only a penny? But not one of them falls to the ground without your Father knowing it.
30. He even counts every hair on your head!
31. So don't be afraid. You are worth more than many sparrows.
32. "What about someone who says in front of others that he knows me? I will also say in front of my Father who is in heaven that I know him.
33. But what about someone who says in front of others that he doesn't know me? I will say in front of my Father who is in heaven that I don't know him.
34. "Do not think that I came to bring peace to the earth. I didn't come to bring peace. I came to bring a sword.