Luke 12:5 (ASV)

Passage

But I will warn you whom ye shall fear: Fear him, who after he hath killed hath power to cast into hell; yea, I say unto you, Fear him.

Nearby Context

Luke 12:3 Wherefore whatsoever ye have said in the darkness shall be heard in the light; and what ye have spoken in the ear in the inner chambers shall be proclaimed upon the housetops.

Luke 12:4 And I say unto you my friends, Be not afraid of them that kill the body, and after that have no more that they can do.

Luke 12:5 But I will warn you whom ye shall fear: Fear him, who after he hath killed hath power to cast into hell; yea, I say unto you, Fear him.

Luke 12:6 Are not five sparrows sold for two pence? and not one of them is forgotten in the sight of God.

Luke 12:7 But the very hairs of your head are all numbered. Fear not: ye are of more value than many sparrows.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "warn", "shall", "fear", "after", "hath", and "killed". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "warn" and "shall", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 4's "And I say unto you my friends..." into verse 6's "Are not five sparrows sold for two...", so "warn" and "shall" belong inside that flow. In Luke context, the local focus is Christ, faith, and discipleship.

A plain takeaway is to answer the verse's own emphasis on "warn" and "shall" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.