<p>25:35&nbsp;<em>For I was hungry and you gave me to eat</em>- The Lord was hungry (21:18; Lk. 6:3), wanting to be satiated by fruit on the fig tree, the repentance of Israel.</p><p><em>I was thirsty&nbsp;and you gave me drink</em>- The Lord was thirsty, and satiated by the food and drink of the Samaritan woman's interest in the Gospel (Jn. 4:13,14). She 'gave Him to drink' (Jn. 4:7); the same words are used here. And He thirsted on the cross (Jn. 19:28) and was 'given to drink'- the same words are used (Mk. 15:36). Hunger, thirst, prison and nakedness are all part of the sufferings of Gospel preachers (1 Cor. 4:11; 2 Cor. 11:27). It may be that Matthew is making this connection because he sought to remind his converts of the need to support the itinerant preachers who were going around reciting the Gospel of Matthew at his time. Further, the spread of the Gospel worldwide is one of the preconditions for the Lord's return, according to the preceding Olivet prophecy. And the point is being made that those who do this are to be supported.</p><p>The Lord&rsquo;s focus on the positive is shown by the way He quotes Job 22:7 in the parable of the sheep and goats: &ldquo;Thou hast not given water to the weary to drink, and thou hast withholden bread from the hungry&rdquo;. These words are part of Eliphaz&rsquo;s erroneous allegations against Job- for Job was a perfect man, and not guilty on these counts. Yet the Lord extracts elements of truth from those wrong words, rather than just contemptuously ignoring them. Likewise Job 22:25 speaks of God being our &ldquo;treasure&hellip; our precious silver&rdquo; (RV). Surely the Lord had this in mind when saying that our treasure must be laid up &ldquo;in heaven&rdquo;, i.e. with God (for He often uses &lsquo;Heaven&rsquo; for &lsquo;God&rsquo;). And James follows suite by approvingly quoting Job 22:29 about the lifting up of the humble (James 4:6).</p><p><em>A stranger I was a stranger and you welcomed me</em>- The Lord was buried in the place of &quot;strangers&quot; (27:7 s.w.); He was treated as a Gentile especially in His death on the cross. &quot;Welcomed&quot; is the same word translated &quot;gathered&quot; in :32. As they gathered Him, so He now gathers them.&nbsp;</p>