Matthew 18:10 (DRB)

Passage

See that you despise not one of these little ones: for I say to you, that their angels in heaven always see the face of my Father who is in heaven.

Nearby Context

Matthew 18:8 And if thy hand, or thy foot, scandalize thee, cut it off, and cast it from thee. It is better for thee to go into life maimed or lame, than having two hands or two feet, to be cast into everlasting fire.

Matthew 18:9 And if thy eye scandalize thee, pluck it out, and cast it from thee. It is better for thee having one eye to enter into life, than having two eyes to be cast into hell fire.

Matthew 18:10 See that you despise not one of these little ones: for I say to you, that their angels in heaven always see the face of my Father who is in heaven.

Matthew 18:11 For the Son of man is come to save that which was lost.

Matthew 18:12 What think you? If a man have an hundred sheep, and one of them should go astray: doth he not leave the ninety-nine in the mountains, and goeth to seek that which is gone astray?

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "despise", "little", "ones", "angels", "heaven", "always", "face", and "father". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "despise" and "little", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 9's "And if thy eye scandalize thee pluck..." into verse 11's "For the Son of man is come...", so "despise" and "little" belong inside that flow. In Matthew context, the local focus is Christ, faith, and discipleship.

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