Synthetic Parallelism

Jesus says that believers should not be afraid of suffering because the future holds a Judgment Day. God will requite His people for their suffering and in turn punish their enemies. The injustices of this world will disappear, and Jesus can confidently encourage his followers by saying, “Do not be afraid.” Jesus describes the coming judgment as a time when all the secrets of individual lives will be disclosed. The sins people commit with impunity, thinking they are hidden, will be revealed (Mt 10:26, cf. Lk 12:3). In Matthew 10:26, Jesus describes this judgment using synthetic parallelism: Do not be afraid of them, for… there is nothing concealed that will not be disclosed; [there is nothing] hidden that will not be made known.

Figure 7. Matthew 10:26 Synthetic Parallel Structure

Structurally, “concealed” (kekalymmenon) is in a clear synonymous position with “hidden” (krypton), while “disclosed” (apokalyphthēsetai) is synonymous with “made known” (gnōsthēsetai).

Kekalymmenon means “veiled” or “hidden,” where krypton means “hidden.” The parallelism indicates that no clear distinction can be drawn between the two meanings of the words. Kekalymmenon and krypton are broad enough to

In a hypothetical example given by Paul, the whole church comes together and every believer present speaks in tongues. Then unbelievers come in and think that those Christians are insane. Yet if unbelievers come in and every Christian is prophesying, then those unbelievers will be convicted by the Holy Spirit and “the secrets of their hearts are laid bare. So, they will fall down and worship God, exclaiming, ‘God is really among you!’” (1 Cor 14:24-25). In this verse, it is the Holy Spirit that exposes the sin that is held in secret by an unbeliever. That is, “the man’s [unbelieving] conscience is exposed and quickened” by the Holy