They will also hand you over to courts, and you will be beaten in synagogues. because of Me you will stand before governors and kings, to bear witness to them and to all the Gentiles.
The Lord warns the disciples not only about general calamities, but about personal persecutions. They will stand before courts, synagogues, governors, and kings. As we see in the Acts of the Apostles (Acts 5:40–42, 24:24–25, 26:1–2), this was fulfilled in the apostles’ lives, when they were persecuted both by Jewish authorities and by Gentile rulers. Yet persecution was not only suffering, but also an opportunity for testimony. The phrase “because of Me” shows that their suffering was connected with the name of Christ. For the believer, even the judgment seat can become a pulpit of the Gospel, when he bears faithful witness about the Lord.