THE author of this Gospel was a publican or tax gatherer, residing at Capernaum, on the western shore of the Sea of Galilee. As to his identity with the "Levi" of the second and third Gospels, and other particulars, see on Mt 9:9. Hardly anything is known of his apostolic labors. That, after preaching to his countrymen in Palestine, he went to the East, is the general testimony of antiquity; but the precise scene or scenes of his ministry cannot be determined. That he died a natural death may be concluded from the belief of the best-informed of the Fathers--that of the apostles only three, James the Greater, Peter, and Paul, suffered martyrdom. That the first Gospel was written by this apostle is the testimony of all antiquity.
For the date of this Gospel we have only internal evidence, and that far from decisive. Accordingly, opinion is much divided. That it was the first issued of all the Gospels was universally believed. Hence, although in the order of the Gospels, those by the two apostles were placed first in the oldest manuscripts of the Old Latin version, while in all the Greek manuscripts, with scarcely an exception, the order is the same as in our Bibles, the Gospel according to Matthew is in every case placed first. And as this Gospel is of all the four the one which bears the most evident marks of having been prepared and constructed with a special view to the Jews--who certainly first required a written Gospel, and would be the first to make use of it--there can be no doubt that it was issued before any of the others. That it was written before the destruction of Jerusalem is equally certain; for as HUG observes [Introduction to the New Testament, p. 316, F OSDICK'S translation], when he reports our Lord's prophecy of that awful event, on coming to the warning about "the abomination of desolation" which they should "see standing in the holy place," he interposes (contrary to his invariable practice, which is to relate without remark) a call to his readers to read intelligently--"Whoso readeth, let him understand" ( Mt 24:15) --a call to attend to the divine signal for flight which could be intended only for those who lived before the event. But how long before that event this Gospel was written is not so clear. Some internal evidences seem to imply a very early date. Since the Jewish Christians were, for five or six years, exposed to persecution from their own countrymen--until the Jews, being persecuted by the Romans, had to look to themselves--it is not likely (it is argued) that they should be left so long without some written Gospel to reassure and sustain them, and Matthew's Gospel was eminently fitted for that purpose. But the digests to which Luke refers in his Introduction (see on Lu 1:1) would be sufficient for a time, especially as the living voice of the "eye-witnesses and ministers of the Word" was yet sounding abroad. Other considerations in favor of a very early date--such as the tender way in which the author seems studiously to speak of Herod Antipas, as if still reigning, and his writing of Pilate apparently as if still in power--seem to have no foundation in fact, and cannot therefore be made the ground of reasoning as to the date of this Gospel. Its Hebraic structure and hue, though they prove, as we think, that this Gospel must have been published at a period considerably anterior to the destruction of Jerusalem, are no evidence in favor of so early a date as A.D. 37 or 38--according to some of the Fathers, and, of the moderns, TILLEMONT, T OWNSON, OWEN, B IRKS, TREGELLES. On the other hand, the date suggested by the statement of I RENÆUS [Against Heresies, 3.1], that Matthew put forth his Gospel while Peter and Paul were at Rome preaching and founding the Church--or after A.D. 60--though probably the majority of critics are in favor of it, would seem rather too late, especially as the second and third Gospels, which were doubtless published, as well as this one, before the destruction of Jerusalem, had still to be issued. Certainly, such statements as the following, "Wherefore that field is called the field of blood unto this day" ( Mt 27:8); "And this saying is commonly reported among the Jews until this day" ( Mt 28:15), bespeak a date considerably later than the events recorded. We incline, therefore, to a date intermediate between the earlier and the later dates assigned to this Gospel, without pretending to greater precision.
We have adverted to the strikingly Jewish character and coloring of this Gospel. The facts which it selects, the points to which it gives prominence, the cast of thought and phraseology, all bespeak the Jewish point of view from which it was written and to which it was directed. This has been noticed from the beginning, and is universally acknowledged. It is of the greatest consequence to the right interpretation of it; but the tendency among some even of the best of the Germans to infer, from this special design of the first Gospel, a certain laxity on the part of the Evangelist in the treatment of his facts, must be guarded against.
But by far the most interesting and important point connected with this Gospel is the language in which it was written. It is believed by a formidable number of critics that this Gospel was originally written in what is loosely called Hebrew, but more correctly Aramaic, or Syro-Chaldaic, the native tongue of the country at the time of our Lord; and that the Greek Matthew which we now possess is a translation of that work, either by the Evangelist himself or some unknown hand. The evidence on which this opinion is grounded is wholly external, but it has been deemed conclusive by GROTIUS, MICHAELIS (and his translator), MARSH, TOWNSON, CAMPBELL, OLSHAUSEN, CRESWELL, MEYER, EBRARD, LANGE, DAVIDSON, CURETON, TREGELLES, WEBSTER and WILKINSON, &c. The evidence referred to cannot be given here, but will be found, with remarks on its unsatisfactory character, in the Introduction to the Gospels prefixed to our larger Commentary, pp. 28-31.
But how stand the facts as to our Greek Gospel? We have not a tittle of historical evidence that it is a translation, either by Matthew himself or anyone else. All antiquity refers to it as the work of Matthew the publican and apostle, just as the other Gospels are ascribed to their respective authors. This Greek Gospel was from the first received by the Church as an integral part of the one quadriform Gospel. And while the Fathers often advert to the two Gospels which we have from apostles, and the two which we have from men not apostles--in order to show that as that of Mark leans so entirely on Peter, and that of Luke on Paul, these are really no less apostolical than the other two--though we attach less weight to this circumstance than they did, we cannot but think it striking that, in thus speaking, they never drop a hint that the full apostolic authority of the Greek Matthew had ever been questioned on the ground of its not being the original. Further, not a trace can be discovered in this Gospel itself of its being a translation. MICHAELIS tried to detect, and fancied that he had succeeded in detecting, one or two such. Other Germans since, and DAVIDSON and CURETON among ourselves, have made the same attempt. But the entire failure of all such attempts is now generally admitted, and candid advocates of a Hebrew original are quite ready to own that none such are to be found, and that but for external testimony no one would have imagined that the Greek was not the original. This they regard as showing how perfectly the translation has been executed; but those who know best what translating from one language into another is will be the readiest to own that this is tantamount to giving up the question. This Gospel proclaims its own originality in a number of striking points; such as its manner of quoting from the Old Testament, and its phraseology in some peculiar cases. But the close verbal coincidences of our Greek Matthew with the next two Gospels must not be quite passed over. There are but two possible ways of explaining this. Either the translator, sacrificing verbal fidelity in his version, intentionally conformed certain parts of his author's work to the second and third Gospels--in which case it can hardly be called Matthew's Gospel at all--or our Greek Matthew is itself the original.
Moved by these considerations, some advocates of a Hebrew original have adopted the theory of a double original; the external testimony, they think, requiring us to believe in a Hebrew original, while internal evidence is decisive in favor of the originality of the Greek. This theory is espoused by GUERICKS, OLSHAUSEN, THIERSCH, TOWNSON, TREGELLES, &c. But, besides that this looks too like an artificial theory, invented to solve a difficulty, it is utterly void of historical support. There is not a vestige of testimony to support it in Christian antiquity. This ought to be decisive against it.
It remains, then, that our Greek Matthew is the original of that Gospel, and that no other original ever existed. It is greatly to the credit of Dean ALFORD, that after maintaining, in the first edition of his Greek Testament the theory of a Hebrew original, he thus expresses himself in the second and subsequent editions: "On the whole, then, I find myself constrained to abandon the view maintained in my first edition, and to adopt that of a Greek original."
One argument has been adduced on the other side, on which not a little reliance has been placed; but the determination of the main question does not, in our opinion, depend upon the point which it raises. It has been very confidently affirmed that the Greek language was not sufficiently understood by the Jews of Palestine when Matthew published his Gospel to make it at all probable that he would write a Gospel, for their benefit in the first instance, in that language. Now, as this merely alleges the improbability of a Greek original, it is enough to place against it the evidence already adduced, which is positive, in favor of the sole originality of our Greek Matthew. It is indeed a question how far the Greek language was understood in Palestine at the time referred to. But we advise the reader not to be drawn into that question as essential to the settlement of the other one. It is an element in it, no doubt, but not an essential element. There are extremes on both sides of it. The old idea, that our Lord hardly ever spoke anything but Syro-Chaldaic, is now pretty nearly exploded. Many, however, will not go the length, on the other side, of HUG (in his Introduction to the New Testament, pp. 326, &c.) and ROBERTS ("Discussions of the Gospels," &c., pp. 25, &c.). For ourselves, though we believe that our Lord, in all the more public scenes of His ministry, spoke in Greek, all we think it necessary here to say is that there is no ground to believe that Greek was so little understood in Palestine as to make it improbable that Matthew would write his Gospel exclusively in that language--so improbable as to outweigh the evidence that he did so. And when we think of the number of digests or short narratives of the principal facts of our Lord's history which we know from Luke ( Lu 1:1-4) were floating about for some time before he wrote his Gospel, of which he speaks by no means disrespectfully, and nearly all of which would be in the mother tongue, we can have no doubt that the Jewish Christians and the Jews of Palestine generally would have from the first reliable written matter sufficient to supply every necessary requirement until the publican-apostle should leisurely draw up the first of the four Gospels in a language to them not a strange tongue, while to the rest of the world it was the language in which the entire quadriform Gospel was to be for all time enshrined. The following among others hold to this view of the sole originality of the Greek Matthew: ERASMUS, CALVIN, B EZA, LIGHTFOOT, W ETSTEIN, LARDNER, H UG, FRITZSCHE, C REDNER, DE W ETTE, STUART, D A COSTA, F AIRBAIRN, ROBERTS.
On two other questions regarding this Gospel it would have been desirable to say something, had not our available space been already exhausted: The characteristics, both in language and matter, by which it is distinguished from the other three, and its relation to the second and third Gospels. On the latter of these topics--whether one or more of the Evangelists made use of the materials of the other Gospels, and, if so, which of the Evangelists drew from which--the opinions are just as numerous as the possibilities of the case, every conceivable way of it having one or more who plead for it. The most popular opinion until recently--and perhaps the most popular still--is that the second Evangelist availed himself more or less of the materials of the first Gospel, and the third of the materials of both the first and second Gospels. Here we can but state our own belief, that each of the first three Evangelists wrote independently of both the others; while the fourth, familiar with the first three, wrote to supplement them, and, even where he travels along the same line, wrote quite independently of them. This judgment we express, with all deference for those who think otherwise, as the result of a close study of each of the Gospels in immediate juxtaposition and comparison with the others. On the former of the two topics noticed, the linguistic peculiarities of each of the Gospels have been handled most closely and ably by CREDNER [Einleitung (Introduction to the New Testament)], of whose results a good summary will be found in DAVIDSON'S Introduction to the New Testament. The other peculiarities of the Gospels have been most felicitously and beautifully brought out by DA COSTA in his Four Witnesses, to which we must simply refer the reader, though it contains a few things in which we cannot concur.
Mt 1:1-17. GENEALOGY OF CHRIST. ( = Lu 3:23-38).
1. The book of the generation--an expression purely Jewish;
meaning, "table of the genealogy." In
Ge 5:1 the same expression occurs in this sense. We
have here, then, the title, not of this whole Gospel of
Matthew, but only of the first seventeen verses.
of Jesus Christ--For the meaning of
these glorious words, see on Mt 1:16;
Mt 1:21. "Jesus," the name
given to our Lord at His circumcision (
Lu 2:21), was that by which He was familiarly known
while on earth. The word "Christ"--though applied
to Him as a proper name by the angel who announced His
birth to the shepherds (
Lu 2:11), and once or twice used in this sense by our
Lord Himself (
Mt 23:8, 10; Mr 9:41) --only began to be so used by
others about the very close of His earthly career (
Mt 26:68; 27:17). The full form, "Jesus
Christ," though once used by Himself in His
Intercessory Prayer (
Joh 17:3), was never used by others till after His
ascension and the formation of churches in His name. Its
use, then, in the opening words of this Gospel (and in
Mt 1:17, 18) is in the style of the late period when
our Evangelist wrote, rather than of the events he was
going to record.
the son of David, the son of
Abraham--As Abraham was the first from whose family
it was predicted that Messiah should spring (
Ge 22:18), so David was the last. To a Jewish
reader, accordingly, these behooved to be the two great
starting-points of any true genealogy of the promised
Messiah; and thus this opening verse, as it stamps the
first Gospel as one peculiarly Jewish, would at once tend
to conciliate the writer's people. From the nearest of
those two fathers came that familiar name of the promised
Messiah, "the son of David" (
Lu 20:41), which was applied to Jesus, either in devout
acknowledgment of His rightful claim to it (
Mt 9:27; 20:31), or in the way of insinuating inquiry
whether such were the case (see on Joh 4:29;
Mt 12:23).
2. Abraham begat Isaac; and Isaac begat Jacob; and Jacob begat Judas and his brethren--Only the fourth son of Jacob is here named, as it was from his loins that Messiah was to spring ( Ge 49:10).
3-6. And Judas begat Phares and Zara of Thamar; and Phares begat Esrom; and Esrom begat Aram; 4. And Aram begat Aminadab; and Aminadab begat Naasson; and Naasson begat Salmon; 5. And Salmon begat Booz of Rachab; and Booz begat Obed of Ruth; and Obed begat Jesse; 6. And Jesse begat David the king; and David the king begat Solomon of her of Urias--Four women are here introduced; two of them Gentiles by birth--Rachab and Ruth; and three of them with a blot at their names in the Old Testament--Thamar, Rachab, and Bath-sheba. This feature in the present genealogy--herein differing from that given by Luke--comes well from him who styles himself in his list of the Twelve, what none of the other lists do, "Matthew the publican"; as if thereby to hold forth, at the very outset, the unsearchable riches of that grace which could not only fetch in "them that are afar off," but teach down even to "publicans and harlots," and raise them to "sit with the princes of his people." David is here twice emphatically styled "David the king," as not only the first of that royal line from which Messiah was to descend, but the one king of all that line from which the throne that Messiah was to occupy took its name--"the throne of David." The angel Gabriel, in announcing Him to His virgin-mother, calls it "the throne of David His father," sinking all the intermediate kings of that line, as having no importance save as links to connect the first and the last king of Israel as father and son. It will be observed that Rachab is here represented as the great-grandmother of David (see Ru 4:20-22; 1Ch 2:11-15) --a thing not beyond possibility indeed, but extremely improbable, there being about four centuries between them. There can hardly be a doubt that one or two intermediate links are omitted.
7-8. And Solomon begat Roboam; and Roboam begat Abia; and Abia begat Asa; 8. And Asa begat Josaphat; and Josaphat begat Joram; and Joram begat Ozias--or Uzziah. Three kings are here omitted--Ahaziah, Joash, and Amaziah ( 1Ch 3:11, 12). Some omissions behooved to be made, to compress the whole into three fourteens ( Mt 1:17). The reason why these, rather than other names, are omitted, must be sought in religious considerations--either in the connection of those kings with the house of Ahab (as LIGHTFOOT, EBRARD, and ALFORD view it); in their slender right to be regarded as true links in the theocratic chain (as LANGE takes it); or in some similar disqualification.
11. And Josias begat Jechonias and his brethren--Jeconiah
was Josiah's grandson, being the son of Jehoiakim,
Josiah's second son (
1Ch 3:15); but Jehoiakim might well be sunk in such a
catalogue, being a mere puppet in the hands of the king of
Egypt (
2Ch 36:4). The "brethren" of Jechonias here
evidently mean his uncles--the chief of whom, Mattaniah or
Zedekiah, who came to the throne (
2Ki 24:17), is, in
2Ch 36:10, as well as here, called "his
brother."
about the time they were carried away
to Babylon--literally, "of their migration," for
the Jews avoided the word "captivity" as too
bitter a recollection, and our Evangelist studiously
respects the national feeling.
12. And after they were brought to Babylon--after the
migration of Babylon.
Jechonias begat Salathiel--So
1Ch 3:17. Nor does this contradict
Jer 22:30, "Thus saith the Lord, Write ye this man
(Coniah, or Jeconiah) childless"; for what follows
explains in what sense this was meant--"for no man of
his seed shall prosper, sitting upon the throne of
David." He was to have seed, but no
reigning child.
and Salathiel--or Shealtiel.
begat Zorobabel--So
Ezr 3:2; Ne 12:1; Hag 1:1. But it would appear from
1Ch 3:19 that Zerubbabel was Salathiel's grandson,
being the son of Pedaiah, whose name, for some reason
unknown, is omitted.
13-15. And Zorobabel begat Abiud, &c.--None of these names are found in the Old Testament; but they were doubtless taken from the public or family registers, which the Jews carefully kept, and their accuracy was never challenged.
16. And Jacob begat Joseph, the husband of Mary, of whom
was born Jesus--From this it is clear that the genealogy
here given is not that of Mary, but of Joseph; nor has this
ever been questioned. And yet it is here studiously
proclaimed that Joseph was not the natural, but only the
legal father of our Lord. His birth of a virgin was known
only to a few; but the acknowledged descent of his legal
father from David secured that the descent of Jesus Himself
from David should never be questioned. See on Mt 1:20.
who is called Christ--signifying
"anointed." It is applied in the Old Testament to
the kings (
1Sa 24:6, 10); to the priests (
Le 4:5, 16, &c.); and to the prophets (
1Ki 19:16) --these all being anointed with oil, the
symbol of the needful spiritual gifts to consecrate them to
their respective offices; and it was applied, in its most
sublime and comprehensive sense, to the promised Deliverer,
inasmuch as He was to be consecrated to an office embracing
all three by the immeasurable anointing of the Holy Ghost
(
Isa 61:1; compare
Joh 3:34).
17. So all the generations from Abraham to David are
fourteen generations; and from David until the carrying
away--or migration.
into Babylon are fourteen generations;
and from the carrying away into Babylon--the migration of
Babylon.
unto Christ are fourteen
generations--that is, the whole may be conveniently divided
into three fourteens, each embracing one marked era, and
each ending with a notable event, in the Israelitish
annals. Such artificial aids to memory were familiar to the
Jews, and much larger gaps than those here are found in
some of the Old Testament genealogies. In
Ezr 7:1-5 no fewer than six generations of the
priesthood are omitted, as will appear by comparing it with
1Ch 6:3-15. It will be observed that the last of the
three divisions of fourteen appears to contain only
thirteen distinct names, including Jesus as the last. LANGE
thinks that this was meant as a tacit hint that Mary
was to be supplied, as the thirteenth link of the last
chain, as it is impossible to conceive that the Evangelist
could have made any mistake in the matter. But there is a
simpler way of accounting for it. As the Evangelist himself
(
Mt 1:17) reckons David twice--as the last of the first
fourteen and the first of the second--so, if we reckon the
second fourteen to end with Josiah, who was coeval with the
"carrying away into captivity" (
Mt 1:11), and third to begin with Jeconiah, it will be
found that the last division, as well as the other two,
embraces fourteen names, including that of our Lord.
Mt 1:18-25. BIRTH OF CHRIST.
18. Now the birth of Jesus Christ was on this wise--or,
"thus."
When as his mother Mary was
espoused--rather, "betrothed."
to Joseph, before they came together,
she was found--discovered to be.
with child of the Holy Ghost--It was,
of course, the fact only that was discovered; the
explanation of the fact here given is the Evangelist's
own. That the Holy Ghost is a living conscious Person is
plainly implied here, and is elsewhere clearly taught (
Ac 5:3, 4, &c.): and that, in the unity of the
Godhead, He is distinct both from the Father and the Son,
is taught with equal distinctness (
Mt 28:19; 2Co 13:14). On the miraculous conception of
our Lord, see on Lu 1:35.
19. Then Joseph her husband--Compare
Mt 1:20, "Mary, thy wife." Betrothal was, in
Jewish law, valid marriage. In giving Mary up, therefore,
Joseph had to take legal steps to effect the
separation.
being a just man, and not willing to
make her a public example--to expose her (see
De 22:23, 24)
was minded to put her away
privily--that is, privately by giving her the required
writing of divorcement (
De 24:1), in presence of only two or three witnesses,
and without cause assigned, instead of having her before a
magistrate. That some communication had passed between him
and his betrothed, directly or indirectly, on the subject,
after she returned from her three months' visit to
Elizabeth, can hardly be doubted. Nor does the purpose to
divorce her necessarily imply disbelief, on Joseph's
part, of the explanation given him. Even supposing him to
have yielded to it some reverential assent--and the
Evangelist seems to convey as much, by ascribing the
proposal to screen her to the justice of his
character--he might think it altogether unsuitable and
incongruous in such circumstances to follow out the
marriage.
20. But while he thought on these things--Who would not
feel for him after receiving such intelligence, and before
receiving any light from above? As he brooded over the
matter alone, in the stillness of the night, his domestic
prospects darkened and his happiness blasted for life, his
mind slowly making itself up to the painful step, yet
planning how to do it in the way least offensive--at the
last extremity the Lord Himself interposes.
behold, the angel of the Lord appeared
to him in a dream, saying, Joseph thou son of David--This
style of address was doubtless advisedly chosen to remind
him of what all the families of David's line so early
coveted, and thus it would prepare him for the marvellous
announcement which was to follow.
fear not to take unto thee Mary thy
wife, for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy
Ghost--Though a dark cloud now overhangs this relationship,
it is unsullied still.
21. And she shall bring forth a son--Observe, it is not
said, "she shall bear thee a son," as was
said to Zacharias of his wife Elizabeth (
Lu 1:13).
and thou--as his legal father.
shalt call his name JESUS--from the
Hebrew meaning "Jehovah the Saviour"; in
Greek JESUS--to the awakened and anxious sinner
sweetest and most fragrant of all names, expressing so
melodiously and briefly His whole saving office and
work!
for he shall save--The "He"
is here emphatic--He it is that shall save; He personally,
and by personal acts (as WEBSTER and WILKINSON express
it).
his people--the lost sheep of the
house of Israel, in the first instance; for they were the
only people He then had. But, on the breaking down of the
middle wall of partition, the saved people embraced the
"redeemed unto God by His blood out of every kindred
and people and tongue and nation."
from their sins--in the most
comprehensive sense of salvation from sin (
Re 1:5; Eph 5:25-27).
22. Now all this was done, that it might be fulfilled which
was spoken of the Lord by the prophet-- (
Isa 7:14).
saying--as follows.
23. Behold, a virgin--It should be "the
virgin" meaning that particular virgin destined to
this unparalleled distinction.
shall be with child, and shall bring
forth a son, and they shall call his name Emmanuel, which,
being interpreted, is, God with us--Not that He was to have
this for a proper name (like "Jesus"), but that
He should come to be known in this character, as God
manifested in the flesh, and the living bond of holy and
most intimate fellowship between God and men from
henceforth and for ever.
24. Then Joseph, being raised from sleep--and all his
difficulties now removed.
did as the angel of the Lord had
bidden him, and took unto him his wife--With what deep and
reverential joy would this now be done on his part; and
what balm would this minister to his betrothed one, who had
till now lain under suspicions of all others the most
trying to a chaste and holy woman--suspicions, too, arising
from what, though to her an honor unparalleled, was to all
around her wholly unknown!
25. And knew her not till she had brought forth her first-born son: and he called his name JESUS--The word "till" does not necessarily imply that they lived on a different footing afterwards (as will be evident from the use of the same word in 1Sa 15:35; 2Sa 6:23; Mt 12:20); nor does the word "first-born" decide the much-disputed question, whether Mary had any children to Joseph after the birth of Christ; for, as LIGHTFOOT says, "The law, in speaking of the first-born, regarded not whether any were born after or no, but only that none were born before." (See on Mt 13:55, 56).
Mt 2:1-12. VISIT OF THE MAGI TO JERUSALEM AND BETHLEHEM.
The Wise Men Reach Jerusalem--The Sanhedrim, on Herod's Demand, Pronounce Bethlehem to Be Messiah's Predicted Birthplace ( Mt 2:1-6).
1. Now when Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea--so called
to distinguish it from another Bethlehem in the tribe of
Zebulun, near the Sea of Galilee (
Jos 19:15); called also Beth-lehem-judah, as
being in that tribe (
Jud 17:7); and Ephrath (
Ge 35:16); and combining both, Beth-lehem
Ephratah (
Mic 5:2). It lay about six miles southwest of
Jerusalem. But how came Joseph and Mary to remove thither
from Nazareth, the place of their residence? Not of their
own accord, and certainly not with the view of fulfilling
the prophecy regarding Messiah's birthplace; nay, they
stayed at Nazareth till it was almost too late for Mary to
travel with safety; nor would they have stirred from it at
all, had not an order which left them no choice forced them
to the appointed place. A high hand was in all these
movements. (See on Lu
2:1-6).
in the days of Herod the king--styled
the Great; son of Antipater, an Edomite, made king
by the Romans. Thus was "the sceptre departing from
Judah" (
Ge 49:10), a sign that Messiah was now at hand. As
Herod is known to have died in the year of Rome 750, in the
fourth year before the commencement of our Christian era,
the birth of Christ must be dated four years before the
date usually assigned to it, even if He was born within the
year of Herod's death, as it is next to certain that He
was.
there came wise men--literally,
"Magi" or "Magians," probably of the
learned class who cultivated astrology and kindred
sciences. Balaam's prophecy (
Nu 24:17), and perhaps Daniel's (
Da 9:24, &c.), might have come down to them by
tradition; but nothing definite is known of them.
from the east--but whether from
Arabia, Persia, or Mesopotamia is uncertain.
to Jerusalem--as the Jewish
metropolis.
2. Saying, Where is he that is born King of the Jews?--From
this it would seem they were not themselves Jews. (Compare
the language of the Roman governor,
Joh 18:33, and of the Roman soldiers,
Mt 27:29, with the very different language of the Jews
themselves,
Mt 27:42, &c.). The Roman historians, SUETONIUS and
T ACITUS, bear witness to an expectation, prevalent in the
East, that out of Judea should arise a sovereign of the
world.
for we have seen his star in the
east--Much has been written on the subject of this star;
but from all that is here said it is perhaps safest to
regard it as simply a luminous meteor, which appeared under
special laws and for a special purpose.
and are come to worship him--to do Him
homage, as the word signifies; the nature of that homage
depending on the circumstances of the case. That not civil
but religious homage is meant here is plain from the whole
strain of the narrative, and particularly
Mt 2:11. Doubtless these simple strangers expected all
Jerusalem to be full of its new-born King, and the time,
place, and circumstances of His birth to be familiar to
every one. Little would they think that the first
announcement of His birth would come from themselves, and
still less could they anticipate the startling, instead of
transporting, effect which it would produce--else they
would probably have sought their information regarding His
birthplace in some other quarter. But God overruled it to
draw forth a noble testimony to the predicted birthplace of
Messiah from the highest ecclesiastical authority in the
nation.
3. When Herod the king had heard these things, he was
troubled--viewing this as a danger to his own throne:
perhaps his guilty conscience also suggested other grounds
of fear.
and all Jerusalem with him--from a
dread of revolutionary commotions, and perhaps also of
Herod's rage.
4. And when he had gathered all the chief priests and
scribes of the people together--The class of the
"chief priests" included the high priest for the
time being, together with all who had previously filled
this office; for though the then head of the Aaronic family
was the only rightful high priest, the Romans removed them
at pleasure, to make way for creatures of their own. In
this class probably were included also the heads of the
four and twenty courses of the priests. The
"scribes" were at first merely transcribers of
the law and synagogue readers; afterwards interpreters of
the law, both civil and religious, and so both lawyers and
divines. The first of these classes, a proportion of the
second, and "the elders"--that is, as LIGHTFOOT
thinks, "those elders of the laity that were not of
the Levitical tribe"--constituted the supreme council
of the nation, called the Sanhedrim, the members of
which, at their full complement, numbered seventy-two. That
this was the council which Herod now convened is most
probable, from the solemnity of the occasion; for though
the elders are not mentioned, we find a similar omission
where all three were certainly meant (compare
Mt 26:59; 27:1). As MEYER says, it was all the
theologians of the nation whom Herod convened, because it
was a theological response that he wanted.
he demanded of them--as the authorized
interpreters of Scripture.
where Christ--the Messiah.
should be born--according to prophecy.
5. And they said unto him, In Bethlehem of Judea--a prompt
and involuntary testimony from the highest tribunal; which
yet at length condemned Him to die.
for thus it is written by the
prophet-- (
Mic 5:2).
6. And thou, Bethlehem, in the land of Juda--the
"in" being familiarly left out, as we say,
"London, Middlesex."
art not the least among the princes of
Judah: for out of thee shall come a Governor, &c.--This
quotation, though differing verbally, agrees substantially
with the Hebrew and the Septuagint. For says
the prophet, "Though thou be little, yet out of thee
shall come the Ruler"--this honor more than
compensating for its natural insignificance; while our
Evangelist, by a lively turn, makes him say, "Thou art
not the least: for out of thee shall come a
Governor"--this distinction lifting it from the lowest
to the highest rank. The "thousands of Juda," in
the prophet, mean the subordinate divisions of the tribe:
our Evangelist, instead of these, merely names the
"princes" or heads of these families, including
the districts which they occupied.
that shall rule--or "feed,"
as in the Margin.
my people Israel--In the Old
Testament, kings are, by a beautiful figure, styled
"shepherds" (
Eze 34:1-10, &c.). The classical writers use the
same figure. The pastoral rule of Jehovah and Messiah over
His people is a representation pervading all Scripture, and
rich in import. (See
Ps 23:1-6; Isa 40:11; Eze 37:24; Joh 10:11; Re 7:17).
That this prophecy of Micah referred to the Messiah, was
admitted by the ancient Rabbins.
The Wise Men Despatched to Bethlehem by Herod to See the Babe, and Bring Him Word, Make a Religious Offering to the Infant King, but Divinely Warned, Return Home by Another Way ( Mt 2:7-12).
7. Then Herod, when he had privily called the wise
men--Herod has so far succeeded in his murderous design: he
has tracked the spot where lies his victim, an unconscious
babe. But he has another point to fix--the date of His
birth--without which he might still miss his mark. The one
he had got from the Sanhedrim; the other he will have from
the sages; but secretly, lest his object should be
suspected and defeated. So he
inquired of them diligently--rather,
"precisely."
what time the star appeared--presuming
that this would be the best clue to the age of the child.
The unsuspecting strangers tell him all. And now he thinks
he is succeeding to a wish, and shall speedily clutch his
victim; for at so early an age as they indicate, He would
not likely have been removed from the place of His birth.
Yet he is wary. He sends them as messengers from himself,
and bids them come to him, that he may follow their
pious example.
8. And he sent them to Bethlehem, and said, Go and search
diligently--"Search out carefully."
for the young child; and when ye have
found him, bring me word again, that I may come and worship
him also--The cunning and bloody hypocrite! Yet this royal
mandate would meantime serve as a safe conduct to the
strangers.
9. When they had heard the king, they departed--But where
were ye, O Jewish ecclesiastics, ye chief priests and
scribes of the people? Ye could tell Herod where Christ
should be born, and could hear of these strangers from the
far East that the Desire of all nations had actually come;
but I do not see you trooping to Bethlehem--I find these
devout strangers journeying thither all alone. Yet God
ordered this too, lest the news should be blabbed, and
reach the tyrant's ears, before the Babe could be
placed beyond his reach. Thus are the very errors and
crimes and cold indifferences of men all overruled.
and, lo, the star, which they saw in
the east--implying apparently that it had disappeared in
the interval.
went before them, and stood over where
the young child was--Surely this could hardly be but by a
luminous meteor, and not very high.
10. When they saw the star, they rejoiced with exceeding great joy--The language is very strong, expressing exuberant transport.
11. And when they were come into the house--not the stable;
for as soon as Bethlehem was emptied of its strangers, they
would have no difficulty in finding a dwelling-house.
they saw--The received text has
"found"; but here our translators rightly depart
from it, for it has no authority.
the young child with Mary his
mother--The blessed Babe is naturally mentioned first, then
the mother; but Joseph, though doubtless present, is not
noticed, as being but the head of the house.
and fell down and worshipped
him--Clearly this was no civil homage to a petty Jewish
king, whom these star-guided strangers came so far, and
inquired so eagerly, and rejoiced with such exceeding joy,
to pay, but a lofty spiritual homage. The next clause
confirms this.
and when they had opened their
treasures they presented--rather,
"offered."
unto him gifts--This expression, used
frequently in the Old Testament of the oblations presented
to God, is in the New Testament employed seven times, and
always in a religious sense of offerings to
God. Beyond doubt, therefore, we are to understand the
presentation of these gifts by the Magi as a religious
offering.
gold, frankincense, and myrrh--Visits
were seldom paid to sovereigns without a present (
1Ki 10:2, &c.; compare
Ps 72:10, 11, 15; Isa 60:3, 6).
"Frankincense" was an aromatic used in
sacrificial offerings; "myrrh" was used in
perfuming ointments. These, with the "gold" which
they presented, seem to show that the offerers were persons
in affluent circumstances. That the gold was presented to
the infant King in token of His royalty; the frankincense
in token of His divinity, and the myrrh, of His sufferings;
or that they were designed to express His divine and human
natures; or that the prophetical, priestly, and kingly
offices of Christ are to be seen in these gifts; or that
they were the offerings of three individuals respectively,
each of them kings, the very names of whom tradition has
handed down--all these are, at the best, precarious
suppositions. But that the feelings of these devout givers
are to be seen in the richness of their gifts, and that the
gold, at least, would be highly serviceable to the parents
of the blessed Babe in their unexpected journey to Egypt
and stay there--that much at least admits of no dispute.
12. And being warned of God in a dream that they should not
return to Herod, they departed--or,
"withdrew."
to their own country another way--What
a surprise would this vision be to the sages, just as they
were preparing to carry the glad news of what they had seen
to the pious king! But the Lord knew the bloody old
tyrant better than to let him see their face again.
Mt 2:13-23. THE FLIGHT INTO EGYPT--THE MASSACRE AT BETHLEHEM--THE RETURN OF JOSEPH AND MARY WITH THE BABE, AFTER HEROD'S DEATH, AND THEIR SETTLEMENT AT NAZARETH. ( = Lu 2:39).
The Flight into Egypt ( Mt 2:13-15).
13. And when they were departed, behold, the angel of the
Lord appeareth to Joseph in a dream, saying, Arise, and
take the young child and his mother--Observe this form of
expression, repeated in
Mt 2:14 --another indirect hint that Joseph was no more
than the Child's guardian. Indeed, personally
considered, Joseph has no spiritual significance, and very
little place at all, in the Gospel history.
and flee into Egypt--which, being
near, as ALFORD says, and a Roman province independent of
Herod, and much inhabited by Jews, was an easy and
convenient refuge. Ah! blessed Saviour, on what a checkered
career hast Thou entered here below! At Thy birth there was
no room for Thee in the inn; and now all Judea is too hot
for Thee. How soon has the sword begun to pierce through
the Virgin's soul (
Lu 2:35)! How early does she taste the reception which
this mysterious Child of hers is to meet with in the world!
And whither is He sent? To "the house of
bondage?" Well, it once was that. But Egypt was a
house of refuge before it was a house of bondage, and now
it has but returned to its first use.
and be thou there until I bring thee
word; for Herod will seek the young child to destroy
him--Herod's murderous purpose was formed before the
Magi had reached Bethlehem.
14. When he arose, he took the young child and his mother by night, and departed into Egypt--doubtless the same night.
15. And was there until the death of Herod--which took
place not very long after this of a horrible disease; the
details of which will be found in JOSEPHUS
[Antiquities, 17.6.1,5,7,8].
that it might be fulfilled which was
spoken of the Lord by the prophet, saying-- (
Ho 11:1).
Out of Egypt have I called my son--Our
Evangelist here quotes directly from the Hebrew,
warily departing from the Septuagint, which renders
the words, "From Egypt have I recalled his
children," meaning Israel's children. The prophet
is reminding his people how dear Israel was to God in the
days of his youth; how Moses was bidden to say to Pharaoh,
"Thus saith the Lord, Israel is My son, My
first-born; and I say unto thee, Let My son go, that
he may serve Me; and if thou refuse to let him go, behold,
I will slay thy son, even thy first-born" (
Ex 4:22, 23); how, when Pharaoh refused, God having
slain all his first-born, "called His own son
out of Egypt," by a stroke of high-handed power and
love. Viewing the words in this light, even if our
Evangelist had not applied them to the recall from Egypt of
God's own beloved, Only-begotten Son, the application
would have been irresistibly made by all who have learnt to
pierce beneath the surface to the deeper relations which
Christ bears to His people, and both to God; and who are
accustomed to trace the analogy of God's treatment of
each respectively.
16. Then Herod, &c.--As Deborah sang of the mother of
Sisera: "She looked out at a window, and cried through
the lattice, Why is his chariot so long in coming? why
tarry the wheels of his chariots? Have they not sped?"
so Herod wonders that his messengers, with pious zeal, are
not hastening with the news that all is ready to receive
him as a worshipper. What can be keeping them? Have they
missed their way? Has any disaster befallen them? At length
his patience is exhausted. He makes his inquiries and finds
they are already far beyond his reach on their way
home.
when he saw that he was mocked--was
trifled with.
of the wise men--No, Herod, thou art
not mocked of the wise men, but of a Higher than they. He
that sitteth in the heavens doth laugh at thee; the Lord
hath thee in derision. He disappointeth the devices of the
crafty, so that their hands cannot perform their
enterprise. He taketh the wise in their own craftiness, and
the counsel of the froward is carried headlong (
Ps 2:4; Job 5:12, 13). That blessed Babe shall die
indeed, but not by thy hand. As He afterwards told that son
of thine--as cunning and as unscrupulous as thyself--when
the Pharisees warned Him to depart, for Herod would seek
to kill Him--"Go ye, and tell that fox,
Behold, I cast out devils, and I do cures to-day and
to-morrow, and the third day I shall be perfected.
Nevertheless I must walk to-day, and to-morrow, and the day
following: for it cannot be that a prophet perish out of
Jerusalem" (
Lu 13:32, 33). Bitter satire!
was exceeding wroth--To be made a fool
of is what none like, and proud kings cannot stand. Herod
burns with rage and is like a wild bull in a net. So
he
sent forth--a band of hired
murderers.
and slew all the children--male
children.
that were in Bethlehem, and in all the
coasts thereof--environs.
from two years old and under,
according to the time which he had
diligently--carefully.
inquired of the wise men--In this
ferocious step Herod was like himself--as crafty as cruel.
He takes a large sweep, not to miss his mark. He thinks
this will surely embrace his victim. And so it had, if He
had been there. But He is gone. Heaven and earth shall
sooner pass away than thou shalt have that Babe into thy
hands. Therefore, Herod, thou must be content to want Him:
to fill up the cup of thy bitter mortifications, already
full enough--until thou die not less of a broken heart than
of a loathsome and excruciating disease. Why, ask skeptics
and skeptical critics, is not this massacre, if it really
occurred, recorded by JOSEPHUS, who is minute enough in
detailing the cruelties of Herod? To this the answer is not
difficult. If we consider how small a town Bethlehem was,
it is not likely there would be many male children in it
from two years old and under; and when we think of the
number of fouler atrocities which JOSEPHUS has recorded of
him, it is unreasonable to make anything of his silence on
this.
17. Then was fulfilled that which was spoken by Jeremy the prophet, saying-- ( Jer 31:15, from which the quotation differs but verbally).
18. In Rama was there a voice heard, lamentation, and weeping, and great mourning, Rachel weeping for her children, and would not be comforted, because they are not--These words, as they stand in Jeremiah, undoubtedly relate to the Babylonish captivity. Rachel, the mother of Joseph and Benjamin, was buried in the neighborhood of Bethlehem ( Ge 35:19), where her sepulchre is still shown. She is figuratively represented as rising from the tomb and uttering a double lament for the loss of her children--first, by a bitter captivity, and now by a bloody death. And a foul deed it was. O ye mothers of Bethlehem! methinks I hear you asking why your innocent babes should be the ram caught in the thicket, while Isaac escapes. I cannot tell you, but one thing I know, that ye shall, some of you, live to see a day when that Babe of Bethlehem shall be Himself the Ram, caught in another sort of thicket, in order that your babes may escape a worse doom than they now endure. And if these babes of yours be now in glory, through the dear might of that blessed Babe, will they not deem it their honor that the tyrant's rage was exhausted upon themselves instead of their infant Lord?
19. But when Herod was dead--Miserable Herod! Thou
thoughtest thyself safe from a dreaded Rival; but it was He
only that was safe from thee; and thou hast not long
enjoyed even this fancied security. See on Mt 2:15.
behold, an angel of the Lord appeareth
in a dream to Joseph in Egypt--Our translators, somewhat
capriciously, render the same expression "the
angel of the Lord,"
Mt 1:20; 2:13; and "an angel of the
Lord," as here. As the same angel appears to have been
employed on all these high occasions--and most likely he to
whom in Luke is given the name of "Gabriel,"
Lu 1:19, 26 --perhaps it should in every instance
except the first, be rendered "the angel."
20. Saying, Arise, and take the young child and his mother,
and go into the land of Israel--not to the land of Judea,
for he was afterward expressly warned not to settle there,
nor to Galilee, for he only went thither when he found it
unsafe to settle in Judea but to "the land of
Israel," in its most general sense; meaning the Holy
Land at large--the particular province being not as yet
indicated. So Joseph and the Virgin had, like Abraham, to
"go out, not knowing whither they went," till
they should receive further direction.
for they are dead which sought the
young child's life--a common expression in most
languages where only one is meant, who here is Herod. But
the words are taken from the strikingly analogous case in
Ex 4:19, which probably suggested the plural here; and
where the command is given to Moses to return to
Egypt for the same reason that the greater than Moses was
now ordered to be brought back from it--the death of
him who sought his life. Herod died in the seventieth year
of his age, and thirty-seventh of his reign.
21. And he arose, and took the young child and his mother, and came into the land of Israel--intending, as is plain from what follows, to return to Bethlehem of Judea, there, no doubt, to rear the Infant King, as at His own royal city, until the time should come when they would expect Him to occupy Jerusalem, "the city of the Great King."
22. But when he heard that Archelaus did reign in Judea in
the room of his father Herod--Archelaus succeeded to Judea,
Samaria, and Idumea; but Augustus refused him the title of
king till it should be seen how he conducted
himself; giving him only the title of ethnarch
[JOSEPHUS, Antiquities, 17.11,4]. Above this,
however, he never rose. The people, indeed, recognized him
as his father's successor; and so it is here said that
he "reigned in the room of his father
Herod." But, after ten years' defiance of the
Jewish law and cruel tyranny, the people lodged heavy
complaints against him, and the emperor banished him to
Vienne in Gaul, reducing Judea again to a Roman province.
Then the "scepter" clean "departed from
Judah."
he was afraid to go thither--and no
wonder, for the reason just mentioned.
notwithstanding--or more simply,
"but."
being warned of God in a dream, he
turned aside--withdrew.
into the parts of Galilee--or the
Galilean parts. The whole country west of the Jordan was at
this time, as is well known, divided into three
provinces--GALILEE being the northern, JUDEA the southern,
and S AMARIA the central province. The province of Galilee
was under the jurisdiction of Herod Antipas, the brother of
Archelaus, his father having left him that and Perea, on
the east side of the Jordan, as his share of the kingdom,
with the title of tetrarch, which Augustus
confirmed. Though crafty and licentious, according to J
OSEPHUS--precisely what the Gospel history shows him to be
(see on Mr 6:14-30; Lu 13:31-35) --he was of a less
cruel disposition than Archelaus; and Nazareth being a good
way off from the seat of government, and considerably
secluded, it was safer to settle there.
23. And he came and dwelt in a city called Nazareth--a
small town in Lower Galilee, lying in the territory of the
tribe of Zebulun, and about equally distant from the
Mediterranean Sea on the west and the Sea of Galilee on the
east. Note--If, from
Lu 2:39, one would conclude that the parents of Jesus
brought Him straight back to Nazareth after His
presentation in the temple--as if there had been no visit
of the Magi, no flight to Egypt, no stay there, and no
purpose on returning to settle again at Bethlehem--one
might, from our Evangelist's way of speaking here,
equally conclude that the parents of our Lord had never
been at Nazareth until now. Did we know exactly the sources
from which the matter of each of the Gospels was drawn up,
or the mode in which these were used, this apparent
discrepancy would probably disappear at once. In neither
case is there any inaccuracy. At the same time it is
difficult, with these facts before us, to conceive that
either of these two Evangelists wrote his Gospel with that
of the other before him--though many think this a
precarious inference.
that it might be fulfilled which was
spoken by the prophets, He shall be called a
Nazarene--better, perhaps, "Nazarene." The best
explanation of the origin of this name appears to be that
which traces it to the word netzer in
Isa 11:1 --the small twig, sprout, or
sucker, which the prophet there says, "shall come
forth from the stem (or rather, 'stump') of Jesse,
the branch which should fructify from his roots." The
little town of Nazareth, mentioned neither in the Old
Testament nor in J OSEPHUS, was probably so called from its
insignificance: a weak twig in contrast to a stately tree;
and a special contempt seemed to rest upon it--"Can
any good thing come out of Nazareth?" (
Joh 1:46) --over and above the general contempt in
which all Galilee was held, from the number of Gentiles
that settled in the upper territories of it, and, in the
estimation of the Jews, debased it. Thus, in the
providential arrangement by which our Lord was brought up
at the insignificant and opprobrious town called
Nazareth, there was involved, first, a local
humiliation; next, an allusion to Isaiah's prediction
of His lowly, twig-like upspringing from the branchless,
dried-up stump of Jesse; and yet further, a standing
memorial of that humiliation which "the
prophets," in a number of the most striking
predictions, had attached to the Messiah.
Mt 3:1-12. PREACHING AND MINISTRY OF JOHN. ( = Mr 1:1-8; Lu 3:1-18).
For the proper introduction to this section, we must go to Lu 3:1, 2. Here, as BENGEL well observes, the curtain of the New Testament is, as it were, drawn up, and the greatest of all epochs of the Church commences. Even our Lord's own age is determined by it ( Lu 3:23). No such elaborate chronological precision is to be found elsewhere in the New Testament, and it comes fitly from him who claims it as the peculiar recommendation of his Gospel, that "he had traced down all things with precision from the very first" ( Mt 1:3). Here evidently commences his proper narrative.
Lu 3:1:
Now in the fifteenth year of the reign of Tiberius Cæsar--not the fifteenth from his full accession on the death of Augustus, but from the period when he was associated with him in the government of the empire, three years earlier, about the end of the year of Rome 779, or about four years before the usual reckoning.
Pontius Pilate being governor of Judea--His proper title was procurator, but with more than the usual powers of that office. After holding it for about ten years, he was summoned to Rome to answer to charges brought against him; but ere he arrived, Tiberius died (A.D. 35), and soon after miserable Pilate committed suicide.
And Herod being tetrarch of Galilee--(See on Mr 6:14).
and his brother Philip--a very different and very superior Philip to the one whose name was Herod Philip, and whose wife, Herodias, went to live with Herod Antipas (see on Mr 6:17).
tetrarch of Ituræa--lying to the northeast of Palestine, and so called from Itur or Jetur, Ishmael's son ( 1Ch 1:31), and anciently belonging to the half-tribe of Manasseh.
and of the region of Trachonitis--lying farther to the northeast, between Iturea and Damascus; a rocky district infested by robbers, and committed by Augustus to Herod the Great to keep in order.
and Lysanias the tetrarch of Abilene--still more to the northeast; so called, says ROBINSON, from Abila, eighteen miles from Damascus.Lu 3:2:
Annas and Caiaphas being the high priests--The former, though deposed, retained much of his influence, and, probably, as sagan or deputy, exercised much of the power of the high priesthood along with Caiaphas, his son-in-law ( Joh 18:13; Ac 4:6). In David's time both Zadok and Abiathar acted as high priests ( 2Sa 15:35), and it seems to have been the fixed practice to have two ( 2Ki 25:18).
the word of God came unto John the son of Zacharias in the wilderness--Such a way of speaking is never once used when speaking of Jesus, because He was Himself The Living Word; whereas to all merely creature-messengers of God, the word they spoke was a foreign element. See on Joh 3:31. We are now prepared for the opening words of Matthew.
1. In those days--of Christ's secluded life at
Nazareth, where the last chapter left Him.
came John the Baptist,
preaching--about six months before his Master.
in the wilderness of Judea--the desert
valley of the Jordan, thinly peopled and bare in pasture, a
little north of Jerusalem.
2. And saying, Repent ye--Though the word strictly denotes
a change of mind, it has respect here (and wherever
it is used in connection with salvation) primarily to that
sense of sin which leads the sinner to flee from the
wrath to come, to look for relief only from above, and
eagerly to fall in with the provided remedy.
for the kingdom of heaven is at
hand--This sublime phrase, used in none of the other
Gospels, occurs in this peculiarly Jewish Gospel nearly
thirty times; and being suggested by Daniel's grand
vision of the Son of man coming in the clouds of heaven to
the Ancient of days, to receive His investiture in a
world-wide kingdom (
Da 7:13, 14), it was fitted at once both to meet the
national expectations and to turn them into the right
channel. A kingdom for which repentance was the
proper preparation behooved to be essentially spiritual.
Deliverance from sin, the great blessing of Christ's
kingdom (
Mt 1:21), can be valued by those only to whom sin is a
burden (
Mt 9:12). John's great work, accordingly, was to
awaken this feeling and hold out the hope of a speedy and
precious remedy.
3. For this is he that was spoken of by the prophet Esaias,
saying-- (
Mt 11:3).
The voice of one crying in the
wilderness--(See on Lu 3:2);
the scene of his ministry corresponding to its rough
nature.
Prepare ye the way of the Lord, make
his paths straight--This prediction is quoted in all the
four Gospels, showing that it was regarded as a great
outstanding one, and the predicted forerunner as the
connecting link between the old and the new economies. Like
the great ones of the earth, the Prince of peace was to
have His immediate approach proclaimed and His way
prepared; and the call here--taking it generally--is a call
to put out of the way whatever would obstruct His progress
and hinder His complete triumph, whether those hindrances
were public or personal, outward or inward. In Luke (
Lu 3:5, 6) the quotation is thus continued: "Every
valley shall be filled, and every mountain and hill shall
be brought low; and the crooked shall be made straight, and
the rough ways shall be made smooth; and all flesh shall
see the salvation of God." Levelling and smoothing are
here the obvious figures whose sense is conveyed in the
first words of the proclamation--"Prepare ye the
way of the Lord." The idea is that every
obstruction shall be so removed as to reveal to the whole
world the salvation of God in Him whose name is the
"Saviour." (Compare
Ps 98:3; Isa 11:10; 49:6; 52:10; Lu 2:31, 32; Ac
13:47).
4. And the same John had his raiment of camel's
hair--woven of it.
and a leathern girdle about his
loins--the prophetic dress of Elijah (
2Ki 1:8; and see
Zec 13:4).
and his meat was locusts--the great,
well-known Eastern locust, a food of the poor (
Le 11:22).
and wild honey--made by wild bees (
1Sa 14:25, 26). This dress and diet, with the shrill
cry in the wilderness, would recall the stern days of
Elijah.
5. Then went out to him Jerusalem, and all Judea, and all the region round about Jordan--From the metropolitan center to the extremities of the Judean province the cry of this great preacher of repentance and herald of the approaching Messiah brought trooping penitents and eager expectants.
6. And were baptized of him in Jordan, confessing their sins--probably confessing aloud. This baptism was at once a public seal of their felt need of deliverance from sin, of their expectation of the coming Deliverer, and of their readiness to welcome Him when He appeared. The baptism itself startled, and was intended to startle, them. They were familiar enough with the baptism of proselytes from heathenism; but this baptism of Jews themselves was quite new and strange to them.
7. But when he saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees come
to his baptism, he said unto them--astonished at such a
spectacle.
O generation of vipers--"Viper
brood," expressing the deadly influence of both sects
alike upon the community. Mutually and entirely
antagonistic as were their religious principles and spirit,
the stern prophet charges both alike with being the
poisoners of the nation's religious principles. In
Mt 12:34; 23:33, this strong language of the Baptist is
anew applied by the faithful and true Witness to the
Pharisees specifically--the only party that had zeal enough
actively to diffuse this poison.
who hath warned you--given you the
hint, as the idea is.
to flee from the wrath to
come?--"What can have brought you hither?"
John more than suspected it was not so much their own
spiritual anxieties as the popularity of his movement that
had drawn them thither. What an expression is this,
"The wrath to come!" God's "wrath,"
in Scripture, is His righteous displeasure against sin, and
consequently against all in whose skirts sin is found,
arising out of the essential and eternal opposition of His
nature to all moral evil. This is called "the
coming wrath," not as being wholly future--for as
a merited sentence it lies on the sinner already, and its
effects, both inward and outward, are to some extent
experienced even now--but because the impenitent sinner
will not, until "the judgment of the great day,"
be concluded under it, will not have sentence publicly and
irrevocably passed upon him, will not have it discharged
upon him and experience its effects without mixture and
without hope. In this view of it, it is a wrath
wholly to come, as is implied in the noticeably
different form of the expression employed by the apostle in
1Th 1:10. Not that even true penitents came to
John's baptism with all these views of "the wrath
to come." But what he says is that this was the
real import of the step itself. In this view of it, how
striking is the word he employs to express that
step--fleeing from it--as of one who, beholding a
tide of fiery wrath rolling rapidly towards him, sees in
instant flight his only escape!
8. Bring forth therefore fruits--the true reading clearly
is "fruit";
meet for repentance--that is, such
fruit as befits a true penitent. John now being
gifted with a knowledge of the human heart, like a true
minister of righteousness and lover of souls here directs
them how to evidence and carry out their repentance,
supposing it genuine; and in the following verses warns
them of their danger in case it were not.
9. And think not to say within yourselves, We have Abraham
to our father--that pillow on which the nation so fatally
reposed, that rock on which at length it split.
for I say unto you, that God is able
of these stones to raise up children unto Abraham--that is,
"Flatter not yourselves with the fond delusion that
God stands in need of you, to make good His promise of a
seed to Abraham; for I tell you that, though you were all
to perish, God is as able to raise up a seed to Abraham out
of those stones as He was to take Abraham himself out of
the rock whence he was hewn, out of the hole of the pit
whence he was digged" (
Isa 51:1). Though the stern speaker may have pointed as
he spoke to the pebbles of the bare clay hills that lay
around (so STANLEY'S Sinai and Palestine), it
was clearly the calling of the Gentiles--at that
time stone-dead in their sins, and quite as unconscious of
it--into the room of unbelieving and disinherited Israel
that he meant thus to indicate (see
Mt 21:43; Ro 11:20, 30).
10. And now also--And even already.
the axe is laid unto--"lieth
at."
the root of the trees--as it were
ready to strike: an expressive figure of impending
judgment, only to be averted in the way next
described.
therefore every tree which bringeth
not forth good fruit is hewn down, and cast into the
fire--Language so personal and individual as this can
scarcely be understood of any national judgment like the
approaching destruction of Jerusalem, with the breaking up
of the Jewish polity and the extrusion of the chosen people
from their peculiar privileges which followed it; though
this would serve as the dark shadow, cast before, of a more
terrible retribution to come. The "fire," which
in another verse is called "unquenchable," can be
no other than that future "torment" of the
impenitent whose "smoke ascendeth up for ever and
ever," and which by the Judge Himself is styled
"everlasting punishment" (
Mt 25:46). What a strength, too, of just indignation is
in that word "cast" or "flung into the
fire!"
The third Gospel here adds the following important particulars in Lu 3:10-16.
Lu 3:10:
And the people--the multitudes.
asked him, saying, What shall we do then?--that is, to show the sincerity of our repentance.Lu 3:11:
He answereth and saith unto them, He that hath two coats, let him impart to him that hath none; and he that hath meat--provisions, victuals.
let him do likewise--This is directed against the reigning avarice and selfishness. (Compare the corresponding precepts of the Sermon on the Mount, Mt 5:40-42).Lu 3:12:
Then came also the publicans to be baptized, and said unto him, Master--Teacher.
what shall we do?--In what special way is the genuineness of our repentance to be manifested?Lu 3:13:
And he said unto them, Exact no more than that which is appointed you--This is directed against that extortion which made the publicans a byword. (See on Mt 5:46; Lu 15:1).Lu 3:14:
And the soldiers--rather, "And soldiers"--the word means "soldiers on active duty."
likewise demanded--asked.
of him, saying, And what shall we do? And he said unto them, Do violence to no man--Intimidate. The word signifies to "shake thoroughly," and refers probably to the extorting of money or other property.
neither accuse any falsely--by acting as informers vexatiously on frivolous or false pretexts.
and be content with your wages--or "rations." We may take this, say WEBSTER and WILKINSON, as a warning against mutiny, which the officers attempted to suppress by largesses and donations. And thus the "fruits" which would evidence their repentance were just resistance to the reigning sins--particularly of the class to which the penitent belonged--and the manifestation of an opposite spirit.Lu 3:15:
And as the people were in expectation--in a state of excitement, looking for something new
and all men mused in their hearts of John, whether he were the Christ, or not--rather, "whether he himself might be the Christ." The structure of this clause implies that they could hardly think it, but yet could not help asking themselves whether it might not be; showing both how successful he had been in awakening the expectation of Messiah's immediate appearing, and the high estimation and even reverence, which his own character commanded.Lu 3:16:
John answered--either to that deputation from Jerusalem, of which we read in Joh 1:19, &c., or on some other occasion, to remove impressions derogatory to his blessed Master, which he knew to be taking hold of the popular mind.
saying unto them all--in solemn protestation.
(We now return to the first Gospel.)
11. I indeed baptize you with water unto repentance--(See
on Mt 3:6);
but he that cometh after me is
mightier than I--In Mark and Luke this is more
emphatic--"But there cometh the Mightier than I"
(
Mr 1:7; Lu 3:16).
whose shoes--sandals.
I am not worthy to bear--The sandals
were tied and untied, and borne about by the meanest
servants.
he shall baptize you--the emphatic
"He": "He it is," to the exclusion of
all others, "that shall baptize you."
with the Holy Ghost--"So far from
entertaining such a thought as laying claim to the honors
of Messiahship, the meanest services I can render to that
'Mightier than I that is coming after me' are too
high an honor for me; I am but the servant, but the Master
is coming; I administer but the outward symbol of
purification; His it is, as His sole prerogative, to
dispense the inward reality." Beautiful spirit,
distinguishing this servant of Christ throughout!
and with fire--To take this as a
distinct baptism from that of the Spirit--a baptism of the
impenitent with hell-fire--is exceedingly unnatural. Yet
this was the view of ORIGEN among the Fathers; and among
moderns, of NEANDER, MEYER, DE WETTE, and LANGE. Nor is it
much better to refer it to the fire of the great day, by
which the earth and the works that are therein shall be
burned up. Clearly, as we think, it is but the fiery
character of the Spirit's operations upon the
soul--searching, consuming, refining, sublimating--as
nearly all good interpreters understand the words. And
thus, in two successive clauses, the two most familiar
emblems--water and fire--are employed to set
forth the same purifying operations of the Holy Ghost upon
the soul.
12. Whose fan--winnowing fan.
is in his hand--ready for use. This is
no other than the preaching of the Gospel, even now
beginning, the effect of which would be to separate the
solid from the spiritually worthless, as wheat, by the
winnowing fan, from the chaff. (Compare the similar
representation in
Mal 3:1-3).
and he will throughly purge his
floor--threshing-floor; that is, the visible Church.
and gather his wheat--His true-hearted
saints; so called for their solid worth (compare
Am 9:9; Lu 22:31).
into the garner--"the kingdom of
their Father," as this "garner" or
"barn" is beautifully explained by our Lord in
the parable of the wheat and the tares (
Mt 13:30, 43).
but he will burn up the chaff--empty,
worthless professors of religion, void of all solid
religious principle and character (see
Ps 1:4).
with unquenchable fire--Singular is
the strength of this apparent contradiction of figures:--to
be burnt up, but with a fire that is unquenchable; the one
expressing the utter destruction of all that
constitutes one's true life, the other the continued
consciousness of existence in that awful condition.
Luke adds the following important particulars ( Lu 3:18-20):
Lu 3:18:
And many other things in his exhortation preached he unto the people--showing that we have here but an abstract of his teaching. Besides what we read in Joh 1:29, 33, 34; 3:27-36, the incidental allusion to his having taught his disciples to pray ( Lu 11:1) --of which not a word is said elsewhere--shows how varied his teaching was.Lu 3:19:
But Herod the tetrarch, being reproved by him for Herodias his brother Philip's wife, and for all the evils which Herod had done--In this last clause we have an important fact, here only mentioned, showing how thoroughgoing was the fidelity of the Baptist to his royal hearer, and how strong must have been the workings of conscience in that slave of passion when, notwithstanding such plainness, he "did many things, and heard John gladly" ( Mr 6:20).Lu 3:20:
Added yet this above all, that he shut up John in prison--This imprisonment of John, however, did not take place for some time after this; and it is here recorded merely because the Evangelist did not intend to recur to his history till he had occasion to relate the message which he sent to Christ from his prison at Machærus ( Lu 7:18, &c.).
Mt 3:13-17. BAPTISM OF CHRIST AND DESCENT OF THE SPIRIT UPON HIM IMMEDIATELY THEREAFTER. ( = Mr 1:9-11; Lu 3:21, 22; Joh 1:31-34).
Baptism of Christ ( Mt 3:13-15).
13. Then cometh Jesus from Galilee to Jordan unto John, to be baptized of him--Moses rashly anticipated the divine call to deliver his people, and for this was fain to flee the house of bondage, and wait in obscurity for forty years more ( Ex 2:11, &c.). Not so this greater than Moses. All but thirty years had He now spent in privacy at Nazareth, gradually ripening for His public work, and calmly awaiting the time appointed of the Father. Now it had arrived; and this movement from Galilee to Jordan is the step, doubtless, of deepest interest to all heaven since that first one which brought Him into the world. Luke ( Lu 3:21) has this important addition--"Now when all the people were baptized, it came to pass, that Jesus being baptized," &c.--implying that Jesus waited till all other applicants for baptism that day had been disposed of, ere He stepped forward, that He might not seem to be merely one of the crowd. Thus, as He rode into Jerusalem upon an ass "whereon yet never man sat" ( Lu 19:30), and lay in a sepulchre "wherein was never man yet laid" ( Joh 19:41), so in His baptism, too. He would be "separate from sinners."
14. But John forbade him--rather, "was (in the act of)
hindering him," or "attempting to hinder
him."
saying, I have need to be baptized of
thee, and comest thou to me?--(How John came to recognize
Him, when he says he knew Him not, see on John 1. 31-34.) The emphasis of
this most remarkable speech lies all in the pronouns:
"What! Shall the Master come for baptism to the
servant--the sinless Saviour to a sinner?" That thus
much is in the Baptist's words will be clearly seen if
it be observed that he evidently regarded Jesus as
Himself needing no purification but rather qualified
to impart it to those who did. And do not all his other
testimonies to Christ fully bear out this sense of the
words? But it were a pity if, in the glory of this
testimony to Christ, we should miss the beautiful spirit in
which it was borne--"Lord, must I baptize
Thee? Can I bring myself to do such a
thing?"--reminding us of Peter's exclamation at
the supper table, "Lord, dost Thou wash my feet?"
while it has nothing of the false humility and presumption
which dictated Peter's next speech. "Thou shalt
never wash my feet" (
Joh 13:6, 8).
15. And Jesus answering said unto him, Suffer it to be so
now--"Let it pass for the present"; that is,
"Thou recoilest, and no wonder, for the seeming
incongruity is startling; but in the present case do as
thou art bidden."
for thus it becometh
us--"us," not in the sense of "me and
thee," or "men in general," but as in
Joh 3:11.
to fulfil all righteousness--If this
be rendered, with S CRIVENER, "every ordinance,"
or, with C AMPBELL, "every institution," the
meaning is obvious enough; and the same sense is brought
out by "all righteousness," or compliance with
everything enjoined, baptism included. Indeed, if this be
the meaning, our version perhaps best brings out the force
of the opening word "Thus." But we incline to
think that our Lord meant more than this. The import of
circumcision and of baptism seems to be radically the same.
And if our remarks on the circumcision of our Lord (see on
Lu 2:21-24) are well
founded, He would seem to have said, "Thus do I
impledge Myself to the whole righteousness of the Law--thus
symbolically do enter on and engage to fulfil it all."
Let the thoughtful reader weigh this.
Then he suffered him--with true
humility, yielding to higher authority than his own
impressions of propriety.
Descent of the Spirit upon the Baptized Redeemer ( Mt 3:16, 17).
16. And Jesus when he was baptized, went up straightway out
of the water--rather, "from the water." Mark has
"out of the water" (
Mr 1:10). "and"--adds Luke (
Lu 3:21), "while He was praying"; a grand
piece of information. Can there be a doubt about the burden
of that prayer; a prayer sent up, probably, while yet in
the water--His blessed head suffused with the baptismal
element; a prayer continued likely as He stepped out of the
stream, and again stood upon the dry ground; the work
before Him, the needed and expected Spirit to rest upon Him
for it, and the glory He would then put upon the Father
that sent Him--would not these fill His breast, and find
silent vent in such form as this?--"Lo, I come; I
delight to do Thy will, O God. Father, glorify Thy name.
Show Me a token for good. Let the Spirit of the Lord God
come upon Me, and I will preach the Gospel to the poor, and
heal the broken-hearted, and send forth judgment unto
victory." While He was yet speaking--
lo, the heavens were opened--Mark
says, sublimely, "He saw the heavens cleaving"
(
Mr 1:10).
and he saw the Spirit of God
descending--that is, He only, with the exception of His
honored servant, as he tells us himself (
Joh 1:32-34); the by-standers apparently seeing
nothing.
like a dove, and lighting upon
him--Luke says, "in a bodily shape" (
Lu 3:22); that is, the blessed Spirit, assuming the
corporeal form of a dove, descended thus upon His sacred
head. But why in this form? The Scripture use of this
emblem will be our best guide here. "My dove, my
undefiled is one," says the Song of Solomon (
So 6:9). This is chaste purity. Again, "Be ye
harmless as doves," says Christ Himself (
Mt 10:16). This is the same thing, in the form of
inoffensiveness towards men. "A conscience void of
offense toward God and toward men" (
Ac 24:16) expresses both. Further, when we read in the
Song of Solomon (
So 2:14), "O my dove, that art in the
clefts of the rocks, in the secret places of the
stairs (see
Isa 60:8), let me see thy countenance, let me hear thy
voice; for sweet is thy voice, and thy countenance is
comely"--it is shrinking modesty, meekness,
gentleness, that is thus charmingly depicted. In a
word--not to allude to the historical emblem of the dove
that flew back to the ark, bearing in its mouth the olive
leaf of peace (
Ge 8:11) --when we read (
Ps 68:13), "Ye shall be as the wings of a dove
covered with silver, and her feathers with yellow
gold," it is beauteousness that is thus held
forth. And was not such that "holy, harmless,
undefiled One," the "separate from sinners?"
"Thou art fairer than the children of men; grace is
poured into Thy lips; therefore God hath blessed Thee for
ever!" But the fourth Gospel gives us one more piece
of information here, on the authority of one who saw and
testified of it: "John bare record, saying, I saw the
Spirit descending from heaven like a dove, and IT ABODE
UPON HIM." And lest we should think that this was an
accidental thing, he adds that this last particular was
expressly given him as part of the sign by which he was to
recognize and identify Him as the Son of God: "And I
knew Him not: but He that sent me to baptize with water,
the same said unto me, Upon whom thou shalt see the Spirit
descending AND REMAINING ON HIM, the same is He which
baptizeth with the Holy Ghost. And I saw and bare record
that this is the Son of God" (
Joh 1:32-34). And when with this we compare the
predicted descent of the Spirit upon Messiah (
Isa 11:2), "And the Spirit of the Lord shall
rest upon Him," we cannot doubt that it was this
permanent and perfect resting of the Holy Ghost upon the
Son of God--now and henceforward in His official
capacity--that was here visibly manifested.
17. And lo a voice from heaven, saying, This is--Mark and
Luke give it in the direct form, "Thou art." (
Mr 1:11; Lu 3:22).
my beloved Son, in whom I am well
pleased--The verb is put in the aorist to express absolute
complacency, once and for ever felt towards Him. The
English here, at least to modern ears, is scarcely strong
enough. "I delight" comes the nearest, perhaps,
to that ineffable complacency which is manifestly
intended; and this is the rather to be preferred, as it
would immediately carry the thoughts back to that august
Messianic prophecy to which the voice from heaven plainly
alluded (
Isa 42:1), "Behold My Servant, whom I uphold; Mine
Elect, IN WHOM MY SOUL DELIGHTETH." Nor are the words
which follow to be overlooked, "I have put My Spirit
upon Him; He shall bring forth judgment to the
Gentiles." (The Septuagint perverts this, as it
does most of the Messianic predictions, interpolating the
word "Jacob," and applying it to the Jews). Was
this voice heard by the by-standers? From Matthew's
form of it, one might suppose it so designed; but it would
appear that it was not, and probably John only heard and
saw anything peculiar about that great baptism.
Accordingly, the words, "Hear ye Him," are not
added, as at the Transfiguration.
Mt 4:1-11. TEMPTATION OF CHRIST. ( = Mr 1:12, 13; Lu 4:1-13).
1. Then--an indefinite note of sequence. But Mark's
word (
Mr 1:12) fixes what we should have presumed was meant,
that it was "immediately" after His baptism; and
with this agrees the statement of Luke (
Lu 4:1).
was Jesus led up--that is, from the
low Jordan valley to some more elevated spot.
of the Spirit--that blessed Spirit
immediately before spoken of as descending upon Him at His
baptism, and abiding upon Him. Luke, connecting these two
scenes, as if the one were but the sequel of the other,
says, "Jesus, being full of the Holy Ghost, returned
from Jordan, and was led," &c. Mark's
expression has a startling sharpness about
it--"Immediately the Spirit driveth Him" (
Mr 1:12), "putteth," or "hurrieth Him
forth," or "impelleth Him." (See the same
word in
Mr 1:43; 5:40; Mt 9:25; 13:52; Joh 10:4). The thought
thus strongly expressed is the mighty constraining impulse
of the Spirit under which He went; while Matthew's more
gentle expression, "was led up," intimates how
purely voluntary on His own part this action was.
into the wilderness--probably the wild
Judean desert. The particular spot which tradition has
fixed upon has hence got the name of Quarantana or
Quarantaria, from the forty days--"an almost
perpendicular wall of rock twelve or fifteen hundred feet
above the plain" [ROBINSON, Palestine]. The
supposition of those who incline to place the temptation
amongst the mountains of Moab is, we think, very
improbable.
to be tempted--The Greek word
(peirazein) means simply to try or make proof
of; and when ascribed to God in His dealings with men, it
means, and can mean no more than this. Thus,
Ge 22:1, "It came to pass that God did tempt
Abraham," or put his faith to a severe proof. (See
De 8:2). But for the most part in Scripture the word is
used in a bad sense, and means to entice, solicit, or
provoke to sin. Hence the name here given to the wicked
one--"the tempter" (
Mt 4:3). Accordingly "to be tempted" here is
to be understood both ways. The Spirit conducted Him into
the wilderness simply to have His faith tried; but
as the agent in this trial was to be the wicked one, whose
whole object would be to seduce Him from His allegiance to
God, it was a temptation in the bad sense of the
term. The unworthy inference which some would draw from
this is energetically repelled by an apostle (
Jas 1:13-17).
of the devil--The word signifies a
slanderer--one who casts imputations upon another. Hence
that other name given him (
Re 12:10), "The accuser of the brethren, who
accuseth them before our God day and night." Mark (
Mr 1:13) says, "He was forty days tempted of
Satan," a word signifying an adversary, one
who lies in wait for, or sets himself in opposition to
another. These and other names of the same fallen spirit
point to different features in his character or operations.
What was the high design of this? First, as we judge, to
give our Lord a taste of what lay before Him in the work He
had undertaken; next, to make trial of the glorious
equipment for it which He had just received; further, to
give Him encouragement, by the victory now to be won, to go
forward spoiling principalities and powers, until at length
He should make a show of them openly, triumphing over them
in His cross: that the tempter, too, might get a taste, at
the very outset, of the new kind of material in man
which he would find he had here to deal with; finally, that
He might acquire experimental ability "to succor them
that are tempted" (
Heb 2:18). The temptation evidently embraced two
stages: the one continuing throughout the forty days'
fast; the other, at the conclusion of that period.
FIRST STAGE:
2. And when he had fasted forty days
and forty nights--Luke says "When they were quite
ended" (
Lu 4:2).
he was afterward an
hungered--evidently implying that the sensation of hunger
was unfelt during all the forty days; coming on only at
their close. So it was apparently with Moses (
Ex 34:28) and Elijah (
1Ki 19:8) for the same period. A supernatural power of
endurance was of course imparted to the body, but this
probably operated through a natural law--the absorption of
the Redeemer's Spirit in the dread conflict with the
tempter. (See on Ac 9:9). Had
we only this Gospel, we should suppose the temptation did
not begin till after this. But it is clear, from Mark's
statement, that "He was in the wilderness forty days
tempted of Satan" (
Mr 1:13), and Luke's, "being forty days
tempted of the devil" (
Lu 4:2), that there was a forty days' temptation
before the three specific temptations afterwards
recorded. And this is what we have called the First Stage.
What the precise nature and object of the forty days'
temptation were is not recorded. But two things seem plain
enough. First, the tempter had utterly failed of his
object, else it had not been renewed; and the terms in
which he opens his second attack imply as much. But
further, the tempter's whole object during the forty
days evidently was to get Him to distrust the heavenly
testimony borne to Him at His baptism as THE SON OF GOD--to
persuade Him to regard it as but a splendid illusion--and,
generally, to dislodge from His breast the consciousness of
His Sonship. With what plausibility the events of His
previous history from the beginning would be urged upon Him
in support of this temptation it is easy to imagine. And it
makes much in support of this view of the forty days'
temptation that the particulars of it are not recorded; for
how the details of such a purely internal struggle could be
recorded it is hard to see. If this be correct, how
naturally does the SECOND STAGE of the temptation open! In
Mark's brief notice of the temptation there is one
expressive particular not given either by Matthew or by
Luke--that "He was with the wild beasts" (
Mr 1:12), no doubt to add terror to solitude, and
aggravate the horrors of the whole scene.
3. And when the tempter came to him--Evidently we have here
a new scene.
he said, if thou be the Son of God,
command that these stones be made bread--rather,
"loaves," answering to "stones" in the
plural; whereas Luke, having said, "Command this
stone," in the singular, adds, "that it be made
bread," in the singular (
Lu 4:3). The sensation of hunger, unfelt during all the
forty days, seems now to have come on in all its
keenness--no doubt to open a door to the tempter, of which
he is not slow to avail himself; "Thou still clingest
to that vainglorious confidence that Thou art the Son of
God, carried away by those illusory scenes at the Jordan.
Thou wast born in a stable; but Thou art the Son of God!
hurried off to Egypt for fear of Herod's wrath; but
Thou art the Son of God! a carpenter's roof supplied
Thee with a home, and in the obscurity of a despicable town
of Galilee Thou hast spent thirty years, yet still Thou art
the Son of God! and a voice from heaven, it seems,
proclaimed it in Thine ears at the Jordan! Be it so; but
after that, surely Thy days of obscurity and trial
should have an end. Why linger for weeks in this desert,
wandering among the wild beasts and craggy rocks,
unhonored, unattended, unpitied, ready to starve for want
of the necessaries of life? Is this befitting "the Son
of God?" At the bidding of "the Son of God"
surely those stones shall all be turned into loaves, and in
a moment present an abundant repast."
4. But he answered and said, It is written-- (
De 8:3).
Man shall not live by bread
alone--more emphatically, as in the Greek, "Not
by bread alone shall man live."
but by every word that proceedeth out
of the mouth of God--Of all passages in Old Testament
Scripture, none could have been pitched upon more apposite,
perhaps not one so apposite, to our Lord's purpose.
"The Lord . . . led thee (said Moses to
Israel, at the close of their journeyings) these forty
years in the wilderness, to humble thee, and to prove thee,
to know what was in thine heart, whether thou wouldest keep
His commandments, or no. And He humbled thee, and suffered
thee to hunger, and fed thee with manna, which thou knewest
not, neither did thy fathers know; that He might make thee
know that man doth not live by bread only," &c.,
"Now, if Israel spent, not forty days, but forty years
in a waste, howling wilderness, where there were no means
of human subsistence, not starving, but divinely provided
for, on purpose to prove to every age that human support
depends not upon bread, but upon God's unfailing word
of promise and pledge of all needful providential care, am
I, distrusting this word of God, and despairing of relief,
to take the law into My own hand? True, the Son of God is
able enough to turn stones into bread: but what the Son of
God is able to do is not the present question, but what is
man's duty under want of the necessaries of
life. And as Israel's condition in the wilderness did
not justify their unbelieving murmurings and frequent
desperation, so neither would Mine warrant the exercise of
the power of the Son of God in snatching despairingly at
unwarranted relief. As man, therefore, I will await divine
supply, nothing doubting that at the fitting time it will
arrive." The second temptation in this Gospel
is in Luke's the third. That Matthew's order
is the right one will appear, we think, quite clearly in
the sequel.
5. Then the devil taketh him up--rather, "conducteth
Him."
into the holy city--so called (as in
Isa 48:2; Ne 11:1) from its being "the city of the
Great King," the seat of the temple, the metropolis of
all Jewish worship.
and setteth him on a pinnacle of the
temple--rather, "the pinnacle"--a certain
well-known projection. Whether this refers to the highest
summit of the temple, which bristled with golden spikes
[JOSEPHUS, Antiquities, 5.5,6]; or whether it refers
to another peak, on Herod's royal portico, overhanging
the ravine of Kedron, at the valley of Hinnom--an immense
tower built on the very edge of this precipice, from the
top of which dizzy height JOSEPHUS says one could not look
to the bottom [Antiquities, 15.11,5]--is not
certain; but the latter is probably meant.
6. And saith unto him, If thou be the Son of God--As this
temptation starts with the same point as the first--our
Lord's determination not to be disputed out of His
Sonship--it seems to us clear that the one came directly
after the other; and as the remaining temptation shows that
the hope of carrying that point was abandoned, and all was
staked upon a desperate venture, we think that remaining
temptation is thus shown to be the last; as will appear
still more when we come to it.
cast thyself down--"from
hence" (
Lu 4:9).
for it is written-- (
Ps 91:11, 12). "But what is this I see?"
exclaims stately BISHOP HALL. "Satan himself with a
Bible under his arm and a text in his mouth!"
Doubtless the tempter, having felt the power of God's
Word in the former temptation, was eager to try the effect
of it from his own mouth (
2Co 11:14).
He shall give his angels charge
concerning thee: and in their hands--rather, "on their
hands."
they shall bear thee up, lest at any
time thou dash thy foot against a stone--The quotation is,
precisely as it stands in the Hebrew and the
Septuagint, save that after the first clause the words,
"to keep thee in all thy ways," are here omitted.
Not a few good expositors have thought that this omission
was intentional, to conceal the fact that this would
not have been one of "His ways," that is, of
duty. But as our Lord's reply makes no allusion to
this, but seizes on the great principle involved in the
promise quoted, so when we look at the promise itself, it
is plain that the sense of it is precisely the same whether
the clause in question be inserted or not.
7. Jesus said unto him, It is written again-- (
De 6:16), as if he should say, "True, it is so
written, and on that promise I implicitly rely; but in
using it there is another Scripture which must not be
forgotten."
Thou shalt not tempt the Lord thy
God--"Preservation in danger is divinely pledged:
shall I then create danger, either to put the
promised security skeptically to the proof, or wantonly to
demand a display of it? That were 'to tempt the Lord my
God,' which, being expressly forbidden, would forfeit
the right to expect preservation."
8. Again, the devil taketh him up--"conducteth
him," as before.
into--or "unto"
an exceeding high mountain, and
showeth him all the kingdoms of the world, and the glory of
them--Luke (
Lu 4:5) adds the important clause, "in a moment of
time"; a clause which seems to furnish a key to the
true meaning. That a scene was presented to our Lord's
natural eye seems plainly expressed. But to limit this to
the most extensive scene which the natural eye could take
in, is to give a sense to the expression, "all the
kingdoms of the world," quite violent. It remains,
then, to gather from the expression, "in a moment of
time"-- which manifestly is intended to intimate some
supernatural operation--that it was permitted to the
tempter to extend preternaturally for a moment our
Lord's range of vision, and throw a "glory"
or glitter over the scene of vision: a thing not
inconsistent with the analogy of other scriptural
statements regarding the permitted operations of the wicked
one. In this case, the "exceeding height" of the
"mountain" from which this sight was beheld would
favor the effect to be produced.
9. And saith unto him, All these things will I give
thee--"and the glory of them," adds Luke (
Lu 4:6). But Matthew having already said that this was
"showed Him," did not need to repeat it here.
Luke (
Lu 4:6) adds these other very important clauses, here
omitted--"for that is," or "has been,"
"delivered unto me, and to whomsoever I will I give
it." Was this wholly false? That were not like
Satan's unusual policy, which is to insinuate his lies
under cover of some truth. What truth, then, is there here?
We answer, Is not Satan thrice called by our Lord Himself,
"the prince of this world" (
Joh 12:31; 14:30; 16:11)? Does not the apostle call him
"the god of this world" (
2Co 4:4)? And still further, is it not said that Christ
came to destroy by His death "him that hath the
power of death, that is, the devil" (
Heb 2:14)? No doubt these passages only express
men's voluntary subjection to the rule of the wicked
one while they live, and his power to surround death to
them, when it comes, with all the terrors of the wages of
sin. But as this is a real and terrible sway, so all
Scripture represents men as righteously sold under it. In
this sense he speaks what is not devoid of truth, when he
says, "All this is delivered unto me." But how
does he deliver this "to whomsoever he will?" As
employing whomsoever he pleases of his willing subjects in
keeping men under his power. In this case his offer to our
Lord was that of a deputed supremacy commensurate
with his own, though as his gift and for his
ends.
if thou wilt fall down and worship
me--This was the sole but monstrous condition. No
Scripture, it will be observed, is quoted now, because none
could be found to support so blasphemous a claim. In fact,
he has ceased now to present his temptations under the mask
of piety, and he stands out unblushingly as the rival of
God Himself in his claims on the homage of men. Despairing
of success as an angel of light, he throws off all
disguise, and with a splendid bribe solicits divine honor.
This again shows that we are now at the last of the
temptations, and that Matthew's order is the true one.
10. Then saith Jesus unto him, Get thee hence, Satan--Since
the tempter has now thrown off the mask, and stands forth
in his true character, our Lord no longer deals with him as
a pretended friend and pious counsellor, but calls him by
his right name--His knowledge of which from the outset He
had carefully concealed till now--and orders him off. This
is the final and conclusive evidence, as we think, that
Matthew's must be the right order of the temptations.
For who can well conceive of the tempter's returning to
the assault after this, in the pious character again, and
hoping still to dislodge the consciousness of His Sonship,
while our Lord must in that case be supposed to quote
Scripture to one He had called the devil to his face--thus
throwing His pearls before worse than swine?
for it is written-- (
De 6:13). Thus does our Lord part with Satan on the
rock of Scripture.
Thou shalt worship--In the
Hebrew and the Septuagint it is, "Thou
shalt fear"; but as the sense is the same, so
"worship" is here used to show emphatically that
what the tempter claimed was precisely what God had
forbidden.
the Lord thy God, and him only shalt
thou serve--The word "serve" in the second
clause, is one never used by the Septuagint of any
but religious service; and in this sense exclusively
is it used in the New Testament, as we find it here. Once
more the word "only," in the second clause--not
expressed in the Hebrew and the
Septuagint--is here added to bring out emphatically the
negative and prohibitory feature of the
command. (See
Ga 3:10 for a similar supplement of the word
"all" in a quotation from
De 27:26).
11. Then the devil leaveth him--Luke says, "And when
the devil had exhausted"--or "quite ended,"
as in
Lu 4:2 --"every (mode of) temptation, he departed
from him till a season." The definite
"season" here indicated is expressly referred to
by our Lord in
Joh 14:30 and Lu 22:52, 53.
and, behold, angels came and
ministered unto him--or supplied Him with food, as the same
expression means in
Mr 1:31 and Lu 8:3. Thus did angels to Elijah (
1Ki 19:5-8). Excellent critics think that they
ministered, not food only, but supernatural support and
cheer also. But this would be the natural effect
rather than the direct object of the visit, which
was plainly what we have expressed. And after having
refused to claim the illegitimate ministration of
angels in His behalf, oh, with what deep joy would He
accept their services when sent, unasked, at the close of
all this temptation, direct from Him whom He had so
gloriously honored! What "angels' food" would
this repast be to Him! and as He partook of it, might not a
Voice from heaven be heard again, by any who could read the
Father's mind, "Said I not well, This is my
beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased?"
Mt 4:12-25. CHRIST BEGINS HIS GALILEAN MINISTRY--CALLING OF PETER AND ANDREW, JAMES AND JOHN--HIS FIRST GALILEAN CIRCUIT. ( = Mr 1:14-20, 35-39; Lu 4:14, 15).
There is here a notable gap in the history, which but for the fourth Gospel we should never have discovered. From the former Gospels we should have been apt to draw three inferences, which from the fourth one we know to be erroneous: First, that our Lord awaited the close of John's ministry, by his arrest and imprisonment, before beginning His own; next, that there was but a brief interval between the baptism of our Lord and the imprisonment of John; and further, that our Lord not only opened His work in Galilee, but never ministered out of it, and never visited Jerusalem at all nor kept a passover till He went thither to become "our Passover, sacrificed for us." The fourth Gospel alone gives the true succession of events; not only recording those important openings of our Lord's public work which preceded the Baptist's imprisonment--extending to the end of the third chapter--but so specifying the passover which occurred during our Lord's ministry as to enable us to line off, with a large measure of certainty, the events of the first three Gospels according to the successive passovers which they embraced. EUSEBIUS, the ecclesiastical historian, who, early in the fourth century, gave much attention to this subject, in noticing these features of the Evangelical Records, says [Ecclesiastical History, 3.24] that John wrote his Gospel at the entreaty of those who knew the important materials he possessed, and filled up what is wanting in the first three Gospels. Why it was reserved for the fourth Gospel, published at so late a period, to supply such important particulars in the life of Christ, it is not easy to conjecture with any probability. It may be, that though not unacquainted with the general facts, they were not furnished with reliable details. But one thing may be affirmed with tolerable certainty, that as our Lord's teaching at Jerusalem was of a depth and grandeur scarcely so well adapted to the prevailing character of the first three Gospels, but altogether congenial to the fourth; and as the bare mention of the successive passovers, without any account of the transactions and discourses they gave rise to, would have served little purpose in the first three Gospels, there may have been no way of preserving the unity and consistency of each Gospel, so as to furnish by means of them all the precious information we get from them, save by the plan on which they are actually constructed.
Entry into Galilee ( Mt 4:12-17).
12. Now when Jesus had heard that John was cast into
prison--more simply, "was delivered up," as
recorded in
Mt 14:3-5; Mr 6:17-20; Lu 3:19, 20.
he departed--rather,
"withdrew."
into Galilee--as recorded, in its
proper place, in
Joh 4:1-3.
13. And leaving Nazareth--The prevalent opinion is that
this refers to a first visit to Nazareth after His
baptism, whose details are given by Luke (
Lu 4:16, &c.); a second visit being that
detailed by our Evangelist (
Mt 13:54-58), and by Mark (
Mr 6:1-6). But to us there seem all but insuperable
difficulties in the supposition of two visits to Nazareth
after His baptism; and on the grounds stated in
Lu 4:16, &c., we think that the one only
visit to Nazareth is that recorded by Matthew (
Mt 13:53-58), Mark (
Mr 6:1-6), and Luke (
Lu 4:14-30). But how, in that case, are we to take the
word "leaving Nazareth" here? We answer,
just as the same word is used in
Ac 21:3, "Now when we had sighted Cyprus, and
left it on the left, we sailed into Syria,"--that
is, without entering Cyprus at all, but merely
"sighting" it, as the nautical phrase is, they
steered southeast of it, leaving it on the northwest. So
here, what we understand the Evangelist to say is, that
Jesus, on His return to Galilee, did not, as might have
been expected, make Nazareth the place of His stated
residence, but, "leaving [or passing by]
Nazareth,"
he came and dwelt in Capernaum, which
is upon the seacoast--maritime Capernaum, on the northwest
shore of the Sea of Galilee; but the precise spot is
unknown. (See on Mt 11:23). Our Lord
seems to have chosen it for several reasons. Four or five
of the Twelve lived there; it had a considerable and mixed
population, securing some freedom from that intense bigotry
which even to this day characterizes all places where Jews
in large numbers dwell nearly alone; it was centrical, so
that not only on the approach of the annual festivals did
large numbers pass through it or near it, but on any
occasion multitudes could easily be collected about it; and
for crossing and recrossing the lake, which our Lord had so
often occasion to do, no place could be more convenient.
But one other high reason for the choice of Capernaum
remains to be mentioned, the only one specified by our
Evangelist.
in the borders of Zabulon and
Nephthalim--the one lying to the west of the Sea of
Galilee, the other to the north of it; but the precise
boundaries cannot now be traced out.
14. That it might be fulfilled which was spoken by Esaias
the prophet-- (
Isa 9:1, 2 or, as in Hebrew, Isaiah 8:23, and
9:1).
saying--as follows:
15. The land of Zabulon, and the land of Nephthalim,
by the way of the sea--the coast skirting the Sea of
Galilee westward--beyond Jordan--a phrase commonly meaning
eastward of Jordan; but here and in several places it means
westward of the Jordan. The word seems to have got the
general meaning of "the other side"; the nature
of the case determining which side that was.
Galilee of the Gentiles--so called
from its position, which made it the frontier between the
Holy Land and the external world. While Ephraim and Judah,
as STANLEY says, were separated from the world by the
Jordan valley on one side and the hostile Philistines on
another, the northern tribes were in the direct highway of
all the invaders from the north, in unbroken communication
with the promiscuous races who have always occupied the
heights of Lebanon, and in close and peaceful alliance with
the most commercial nation of the ancient world, the
Phœnicians. Twenty of the cities of Galilee were
actually annexed by Solomon to the adjacent kingdom of
Tyre, and formed, with their territory, the
"boundary" or "offscouring"
(Gebul or Cabul) of the two dominions--at a
later time still known by the general name of "the
boundaries (coasts or borders) of Tyre and Sidon." In
the first great transportation of the Jewish population,
Naphtali and Galilee suffered the same fate as the
trans-jordanic tribes before Ephraim or Judah had been
molested (
2Ki 15:29). In the time of the Christian era this
original disadvantage of their position was still felt; the
speech of the Galileans "bewrayed them" by its
uncouth pronunciation (
Mt 26:73); and their distance from the seats of
government and civilization at Jerusalem and Cæsarea
gave them their character for turbulence or independence,
according as it was viewed by their friends or their
enemies.
16. The people which sat in darkness saw great light; and to them which sat in the region and shadow of death light is sprung up--The prophetic strain to which these words belong commences with the seventh chapter of Isaiah, to which the sixth chapter is introductory, and goes down to the end of the twelfth chapter, which hymns the spirit of that whole strain of prophecy. It belongs to the reign of Ahaz and turns upon the combined efforts of the two neighboring kingdoms of Syria and Israel to crush Judah. In these critical circumstances Judah and her king were, by their ungodliness, provoking the Lord to sell them into the hands of their enemies. What, then, is the burden of this prophetic strain, on to the passage here quoted? First, Judah shall not, cannot perish, because IMMANUEL, the Virgin's Son, is to come forth from his loins. Next, one of the invaders shall soon perish, and the kingdoms of neither be enlarged. Further, while the Lord will be the Sanctuary of such as confide in these promises and await their fulfilment, He will drive to confusion, darkness, and despair the vast multitude of the nation who despised His oracles, and, in their anxiety and distress, betook themselves to the lying oracles of the heathen. This carries us down to the end of the eighth chapter. At the opening of the ninth chapter a sudden light is seen breaking in upon one particular part of the country, the part which was to suffer most in these wars and devastations--"the land of Zebulun, and the land of Naphtali, the way of the sea, beyond Jordan, Galilee and the Gentiles." The rest of the prophecy stretches over both the Assyrian and the Chaldean captivities and terminates in the glorious Messianic prophecy of the eleventh chapter and the choral hymn of the twelfth chapter. Well, this is the point seized on by our Evangelist. By Messiah's taking up His abode in those very regions of Galilee, and shedding His glorious light upon them, this prediction, He says, of the Evangelical prophet was now fulfilled; and if it was not thus fulfilled, we may confidently affirm it was not fulfilled in any age of the Jewish ceremony, and has received no fulfilment at all. Even the most rationalistic critics have difficulty in explaining it in any other way.
17. From that time Jesus began to preach, and to say, Repent; for the kingdom of heaven is at hand--Thus did our Lord not only take up the strain, but give forth the identical summons of His honored forerunner. Our Lord sometimes speaks of the new kingdom as already come--in His own Person and ministry; but the economy of it was only "at hand" until the blood of the cross was shed, and the Spirit on the day of Pentecost opened the fountain for sin and for uncleanness to the world at large.
Calling of Peter and Andrew James and John ( Mt 4:18-22).
18. And Jesus, walking--The word "Jesus" here
appears not to belong to the text, but to have been
introduced from those portions of it which were transcribed
to be used as church lessons; where it was naturally
introduced as a connecting word at the commencement of a
lesson.
by the Sea of Galilee, saw two
brethren, Simon called Peter and Andrew his brother,
casting a net into the sea; for they were
fishers--"called Peter" for the reason mentioned
in
Mt 16:18.
19. And he saith unto them, Follow me--rather, as the same
expression is rendered in Mark, "Come ye after
Me" (
Mr 1:17).
and I will make you fishers of
men--raising them from a lower to a higher fishing,
as David was from a lower to a higher feeding (
Ps 78:70-72).
20. And they straightway left their nets, and followed him.
21. And going on from thence, he saw other two brethren,
James the son of Zebedee, and John his brother, in a
ship--rather, "in the ship," their fishing
boat.
with Zebedee their father, mending
their nets: and he called them.
22. And they immediately left the ship and their
father--Mark adds an important clause: "They left
their father Zebedee in the ship with the hired
servants" (
Mr 1:20); showing that the family were in easy
circumstances.
and followed him--Two harmonistic
questions here arise: First, Was this the same
calling as that recorded in
Joh 1:35-42? Clearly not. For, (1) That call was given
while Jesus was yet in Judea: this, after His return to
Galilee. (2) Here, Christ calls Andrew: there, Andrew
solicits an interview with Christ. (3) Here, Andrew and
Peter are called together: there, Andrew having been
called, with an unnamed disciple, who was clearly the
beloved disciple (see on Joh
1:40), goes and fetches Peter his brother to Christ,
who then calls him. (4) Here, John is called along with
James his brother: there, John is called along with Andrew,
after having at their own request had an interview with
Jesus; no mention being made of James, whose call, if it
then took place, would not likely have been passed over by
his own brother. Thus far nearly all are agreed. But on the
next question opinion is divided: Was this the same
calling as that recorded in
Lu 5:1-11? Many able critics think so. But the
following considerations are to us decisive against it.
First here, the four are called separately, in pairs: in
Luke, all together. Next, in Luke, after a glorious
miracle: here, the one pair are casting their net, the
other are mending theirs. Further, here, our Lord had made
no public appearance in Galilee, and so had gathered none
around Him; He is walking solitary by the shores of the
lake when He accosts the two pairs of fishermen: in Luke,
the multitude are pressing upon Him, and hearing the word
of God, as He stands by the Lake of Gennesaret--a state of
things implying a somewhat advanced stage of His early
ministry, and some popular enthusiasm. Regarding these
successive callings, see on Lu
5:1.
First Galilean Circuit ( Mt 4:23-25).
23. And Jesus went about all Galilee, teaching in their
synagogues--These were houses of local worship. It cannot
be proved that they existed before the Babylonish
captivity; but as they began to be erected soon after it,
probably the idea was suggested by the religious
inconveniences to which the captives had been subjected. In
our Lord's time, the rule was to have one wherever ten
learned men or professed students of the law resided; and
they extended to Syria, Asia Minor, Greece, and most places
of the dispersion. The larger towns had several, and in
Jerusalem the number approached five hundred. In point of
officers and mode of worship, the Christian congregations
are modelled after the synagogue.
and preaching the gospel of the
kingdom--proclaiming the glad tidings of the kingdom,
and healing all manner of
sickness--every disease.
and all manner of disease among the
people--every complaint. The word means any incipient
malady causing "softness."
24. And his fame went throughout all Syria--reaching first
to the part of it adjacent to Galilee, called
Syro-Phœnicia (
Mr 7:26), and thence extending far and wide.
and they brought unto him all sick
people--all that were ailing or unwell. Those
that were taken--for this is a
distinct class, not an explanation of the
"unwell" class, as our translators understood
it.
with divers diseases and
torments--that is, acute disorders.
and those which were possessed with
devils--that were demonized or possessed with demons.
and those which were
lunatic--moon-struck.
and those that had the
palsy--paralytics, a word not naturalized when our version
was made.
and he healed them--These healings
were at once His credentials and illustrations of "the
glad tidings" which He proclaimed. After reading this
account of our Lord's first preaching tour, can we
wonder at what follows?
25. And there followed him great multitudes of people from
Galilee, and from Decapolis--a region lying to the east of
the Jordan, so called as containing ten cities, founded and
chiefly inhabited by Greek settlers.
and from Jerusalem, and from beyond
Jordan--meaning from Perea. Thus not only was all Palestine
upheaved, but all the adjacent regions. But the more
immediate object for which this is here mentioned is, to
give the reader some idea both of the vast concourse and of
the varied complexion of eager attendants upon the great
Preacher, to whom the astonishing discourse of the next
three chapters was addressed. On the importance which our
Lord Himself attached to this first preaching circuit, and
the preparation which He made for it, see on Mr 1:35-39.
SERMON ON THE MOUNT.
That this is the same Discourse as that in Lu 6:17-49 --only reported more fully by Matthew, and less fully, as well as with considerable variation, by Luke--is the opinion of many very able critics (of the Greek commentators; of CALVIN, GROTIUS, MALDONATUS--Who stands almost alone among Romish commentators; and of most moderns, as THOLUCK, MEYER, D E WETTE, T ISCHENDORF, STIER, W IESELER, ROBINSON). The prevailing opinion of these critics is that Luke's is the original form of the discourse, to which Matthew has added a number of sayings, uttered on other occasions, in order to give at one view the great outlines of our Lord's ethical teaching. But that they are two distinct discourses--the one delivered about the close of His first missionary tour, and the other after a second such tour and the solemn choice of the Twelve--is the judgment of others who have given much attention to such matters (of most Romish commentators, including ERASMUS; and among the moderns, of L ANGE, GRESWELL, B IRKS, WEBSTER and W ILKINSON. The question is left undecided by A LFORD). AUGUSTINE'S opinion--that they were both delivered on one occasion, Matthew's on the mountain, and to the disciples; Luke's in the plain, and to the promiscuous multitude--is so clumsy and artificial as hardly to deserve notice. To us the weight of argument appears to lie with those who think them two separate discourses. It seems hard to conceive that Matthew should have put this discourse before his own calling, if it was not uttered till long after, and was spoken in his own hearing as one of the newly chosen Twelve. Add to this, that Matthew introduces his discourse amidst very definite markings of time, which fix it to our Lord's first preaching tour; while that of Luke, which is expressly said to have been delivered immediately after the choice of the Twelve, could not have been spoken till long after the time noted by Matthew. It is hard, too, to see how either discourse can well be regarded as the expansion or contraction of the other. And as it is beyond dispute that our Lord repeated some of His weightier sayings in different forms, and with varied applications, it ought not to surprise us that, after the lapse of perhaps a year--when, having spent a whole night on the hill in prayer to God, and set the Twelve apart, He found Himself surrounded by crowds of people, few of whom probably had heard the Sermon on the Mount, and fewer still remembered much of it--He should go over its principal points again, with just as much sameness as to show their enduring gravity, but at the same time with that difference which shows His exhaustless fertility as the great Prophet of the Church.
Mt 5:1-16. THE BEATITUDES, AND THEIR BEARING UPON THE WORLD.
1. And seeing the multitudes--those mentioned in
Mt 4:25.
he went up into a mountain--one of the
dozen mountains which ROBINSON says there are in the
vicinity of the Sea of Galilee, any one of them answering
about equally well to the occasion. So charming is the
whole landscape that the descriptions of it, from JOSEPHUS
downwards [Wars of the Jews, 4.10,8], are apt to be
thought a little colored.
and when he was set--had sat or seated
Himself.
his disciples came unto him--already a
large circle, more or less attracted and subdued by His
preaching and miracles, in addition to the smaller band of
devoted adherents. Though the latter only answered to the
subjects of His kingdom, described in this discourse, there
were drawn from time to time into this inner circle souls
from the outer one, who, by the power of His matchless
word, were constrained to forsake their all for the Lord
Jesus.
2. And he opened his mouth--a solemn way of arousing the
reader's attention, and preparing him for something
weighty. (
Job 9:1; Ac 8:35; 10:34).
and taught them, saying--as follows.
3. Blessed--Of the two words which our translators render "blessed," the one here used points more to what is inward, and so might be rendered "happy," in a lofty sense; while the other denotes rather what comes to us from without (as Mt 25:34). But the distinction is not always clearly carried out. One Hebrew word expresses both. On these precious Beatitudes, observe that though eight in number, there are here but seven distinct features of character. The eighth one--the "persecuted for righteousness' sake"--denotes merely the possessors of the seven preceding features, on account of which it is that they are persecuted ( 2Ti 3:12). Accordingly, instead of any distinct promise to this class, we have merely a repetition of the first promise. This has been noticed by several critics, who by the sevenfold character thus set forth have rightly observed that a complete character is meant to be depicted, and by the sevenfold blessedness attached to it, a perfect blessedness is intended. Observe, again, that the language in which these Beatitudes are couched is purposely fetched from the Old Testament, to show that the new kingdom is but the old in a new form; while the characters described are but the varied forms of that spirituality which was the essence of real religion all along, but had well-nigh disappeared under corrupt teaching. Further, the things here promised, far from being mere arbitrary rewards, will be found in each case to grow out of the characters to which they are attached, and in their completed form are but the appropriate coronation of them. Once more, as "the kingdom of heaven," which is the first and the last thing here promised, has two stages--a present and a future, an initial and a consummate stage--so the fulfilment of each of these promises has two stages--a present and a future, a partial and a perfect stage.
3. Blessed are the poor in spirit--All familiar with Old
Testament phraseology know how frequently God's true
people are styled "the poor" (the
"oppressed," "afflicted,"
"miserable") or "the needy"--or both
together (as in
Ps 40:17; Isa 41:17). The explanation of this lies in
the fact that it is generally "the poor of this
world" who are "rich in faith" (
Jas 2:5; compare
2Co 6:10; Re 2:9); while it is often "the
ungodly" who "prosper in the world" (
Ps 73:12). Accordingly, in
Lu 6:20, 21, it seems to be this class--the literally
"poor" and "hungry"--that are specially
addressed. But since God's people are in so many places
styled "the poor" and "the needy," with
no evident reference to their temporal circumstances (as in
Ps 68:10; 69:29-33; 132:15; Isa 61:1; 66:2), it is
plainly a frame of mind which those terms are meant
to express. Accordingly, our translators sometimes render
such words "the humble" (
Ps 10:12, 17), "the meek" (
Ps 22:26), "the lowly" (
Pr 3:34), as having no reference to outward
circumstances. But here the explanatory words, "in
spirit," fix the sense to "those who in their
deepest consciousness realize their entire need"
(compare the Greek of
Lu 10:21; Joh 11:33; 13:21; Ac 20:22; Ro 12:11; 1Co 5:3;
Php 3:3). This self-emptying conviction, that
"before God we are void of everything," lies at
the foundation of all spiritual excellence, according to
the teaching of Scripture. Without it we are inaccessible
to the riches of Christ; with it we are in the fitting
state for receiving all spiritual supplies (
Re 3:17, 18; Mt 9:12, 13).
for theirs is the kingdom of
heaven--(See on Mt 3:2). The poor in
spirit not only shall have--they already have--the kingdom.
The very sense of their poverty is begun riches. While
others "walk in a vain show"--"in a
shadow," "an image"--in an unreal world,
taking a false view of themselves and all around them--the
poor in spirit are rich in the knowledge of their real
case. Having courage to look this in the face, and own it
guilelessly, they feel strong in the assurance that
"unto the upright there ariseth light in the
darkness" (
Ps 112:4); and soon it breaks forth as the morning. God
wants nothing from us as the price of His saving gifts; we
have but to feel our universal destitution, and cast
ourselves upon His compassion (
Job 33:27, 28; 1Jo 1:9). So the poor in spirit are
enriched with the fulness of Christ, which is the kingdom
in substance; and when He shall say to them from His great
white throne, "Come, ye blessed of My Father, inherit
the kingdom prepared for you," He will invite
them merely to the full enjoyment of an already possessed
inheritance.
4. Blessed are they that mourn: for they shall be comforted--This "mourning" must not be taken loosely for that feeling which is wrung from men under pressure of the ills of life, nor yet strictly for sorrow on account of committed sins. Evidently it is that entire feeling which the sense of our spiritual poverty begets; and so the second beatitude is but the complement of the first. The one is the intellectual, the other the emotional aspect of the same thing. It is poverty of spirit that says, "I am undone"; and it is the mourning which this causes that makes it break forth in the form of a lamentation--"Woe is me! for I am undone." Hence this class are termed "mourners in Zion," or, as we might express it, religious mourners, in sharp contrast with all other sorts ( Isa 61:1-3; 66:2). Religion, according to the Bible, is neither a set of intellectual convictions nor a bundle of emotional feelings, but a compound of both, the former giving birth to the latter. Thus closely do the first two beatitudes cohere. The mourners shall be "comforted." Even now they get beauty for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning, the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness. Sowing in tears, they reap even here in joy. Still, all present comfort, even the best, is partial, interrupted, short-lived. But the days of our mourning shall soon be ended, and then God shall wipe away all tears from our eyes. Then, in the fullest sense, shall the mourners be "comforted."
5. Blessed are the meek: for they shall inherit the earth--This promise to the meek is but a repetition of Ps 37:11; only the word which our Evangelist renders "the meek," after the Septuagint, is the same which we have found so often translated "the poor," showing how closely allied these two features of character are. It is impossible, indeed, that "the poor in spirit" and "the mourners" in Zion should not at the same time be "meek"; that is to say, persons of a lowly and gentle carriage. How fitting, at least, it is that they should be so, may be seen by the following touching appeal: "Put them in mind to be subject to principalities and powers, to obey magistrates, to be ready to every good work, to speak evil of no man, to be no brawlers, but gentle, showing all meekness unto all men: FOR WE OURSELVES WERE ONCE FOOLISH, disobedient, deceived, serving divers lusts and pleasures . . . But after that the kindness and love of God our Saviour toward man appeared: . . . according to His mercy He saved us," &c. ( Tit 3:1-7). But He who had no such affecting reasons for manifesting this beautiful carriage, said, nevertheless, of Himself, "Take My yoke upon you, and learn of Me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls" ( Mt 11:29); and the apostle besought one of the churches by "the meekness and gentleness of Christ" ( 2Co 10:1). In what esteem this is held by Him who seeth not as man seeth, we may learn from 1Pe 3:4, where the true adorning is said to be that of "a meek and quiet spirit, which in the sight of God is of great price." Towards men this disposition is the opposite of high-mindedness, and a quarrelsome and revengeful spirit; it "rather takes wrong, and suffers itself to be defrauded" ( 1Co 6:7); it "avenges not itself, but rather gives place unto wrath" ( Ro 12:19); like the meek One, "when reviled, it reviles not again; when it suffers, it threatens not: but commits itself to Him that judgeth righteously" ( 1Pe 2:19-22). "The earth" which the meek are to inherit might be rendered "the land"--bringing out the more immediate reference to Canaan as the promised land, the secure possession of which was to the Old Testament saints the evidence and manifestation of God's favor resting on them, and the ideal of all true and abiding blessedness. Even in the Psalm from which these words are taken the promise to the meek is not held forth as an arbitrary reward, but as having a kind of natural fulfilment. When they delight themselves in the Lord, He gives them the desires of their heart: when they commit their way to Him, He brings it to pass; bringing forth their righteousness as the light, and their judgment as the noonday: the little that they have, even when despoiled of their rights, is better than the riches of many wicked ( Ps 37:1-24). All things, in short, are theirs--in the possession of that favor which is life, and of those rights which belong to them as the children of God--whether the world, or life, or death, or things present, or things to come; all are theirs ( 1Co 3:21, 22); and at length, overcoming, they "inherit all things" ( Re 21:7). Thus are the meek the only rightful occupants of a foot of ground or a crust of bread here, and heirs of all coming things.
6. Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be filled--"shall be saturated." "From this verse," says THOLUCK, "the reference to the Old Testament background ceases." Surprising! On the contrary, none of these beatitudes is more manifestly dug out of the rich mine of the Old Testament. Indeed, how could any one who found in the Old Testament "the poor in spirit," and "the mourners in Zion," doubt that he would also find those same characters also craving that righteousness which they feel and mourn their want of? But what is the precise meaning of "righteousness" here? Lutheran expositors, and some of our own, seem to have a hankering after that more restricted sense of the term in which it is used with reference to the sinner's justification before God. (See Jer 23:6; Isa 45:24; Ro 4:6; 2Co 5:21). But, in so comprehensive a saying as this, it is clearly to be taken--as in Mt 5:10 also--in a much wider sense, as denoting that spiritual and entire conformity to the law of God, under the want of which the saints groan, and the possession of which constitutes the only true saintship. The Old Testament dwells much on this righteousness, as that which alone God regards with approbation ( Ps 11:7; 23:3; 106:3; Pr 12:28; 16:31; Isa 64:5, &c.). As hunger and thirst are the keenest of our appetites, our Lord, by employing this figure here, plainly means "those whose deepest cravings are after spiritual blessings." And in the Old Testament we find this craving variously expressed: "Hearken unto Me, ye that follow after righteousness, ye that seek the Lord" ( Isa 51:1); "I have waited for Thy salvation, O Lord," exclaimed dying Jacob ( Ge 49:18); "My soul," says the sweet Psalmist, "breaketh for the longing that it hath unto Thy judgments at all times" ( Ps 119:20): and in similar breathings does he give vent to his deepest longings in that and other Psalms. Well, our Lord just takes up here--this blessed frame of mind, representing it as--the surest pledge of the coveted supplies, as it is the best preparative, and indeed itself the beginning of them. "They shall be saturated," He says; they shall not only have what they so highly value and long to possess, but they shall have their fill of it. Not here, however. Even in the Old Testament this was well understood. "Deliver me," says the Psalmist, in language which, beyond all doubt, stretches beyond the present scene, "from men of the world, which have their portion in this life: as for me, I shall behold Thy face in righteousness: I shall be satisfied, when I awake, with Thy likeness" ( Ps 17:13-15). The foregoing beatitudes--the first four--represent the saints rather as conscious of their need of salvation, and acting suitably to that character, than as possessed of it. The next three are of a different kind--representing the saints as having now found salvation, and conducting themselves accordingly.
7. Blessed are the merciful: for they shall obtain mercy--Beautiful is the connection between this and the preceding beatitude. The one has a natural tendency to beget the other. As for the words, they seem directly fetched from Ps 18:25, "With the merciful Thou wilt show Thyself merciful." Not that our mercifulness comes absolutely first. On the contrary, our Lord Himself expressly teaches us that God's method is to awaken in us compassion towards our fellow men by His own exercise of it, in so stupendous a way and measure, towards ourselves. In the parable of the unmerciful debtor, the servant to whom his lord forgave ten thousand talents was naturally expected to exercise the small measure of the same compassion required for forgiving his fellow servant's debt of a hundred pence; and it is only when, instead of this, he relentlessly imprisoned him till he should pay it up, that his lord's indignation was roused, and he who was designed for a vessel of mercy is treated as a vessel of wrath ( Mt 18:23-35; and see Mt 5:23, 24; 6:15; Jas 2:13). "According to the view given in Scripture," says TRENCH most justly, "the Christian stands in a middle point, between a mercy received and a mercy yet needed. Sometimes the first is urged upon him as an argument for showing mercy--'forgiving one another, as Christ forgave you' ( Col 3:13; Eph 4:32): sometimes the last--'Blessed are the merciful: for they shall obtain mercy'; 'Forgive, and ye shall be forgiven' ( Lu 6:37; Jas 5:9). And thus, while he is ever to look back on the mercy received as the source and motive of the mercy which he shows, he also looks forward to the mercy which he yet needs, and which he is assured that the merciful--according to what BENGEL beautifully calls the benigna talio ('the gracious requital') of the kingdom of God--shall receive, as a new provocation to its abundant exercise." The foretastes and beginnings of this judicial recompense are richly experienced here below: its perfection is reserved for that day when, from His great white throne, the King shall say, "Come, ye blessed of My Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world; for I was an hungered, and thirsty, and a stranger, and naked, and sick, and in prison, and ye ministered unto Me." Yes, thus He acted towards us while on earth, even laying down His life for us; and He will not, He cannot disown, in the merciful, the image of Himself.
8. Blessed are the pure in heart: for they shall see God--Here, too, we are on Old Testament ground. There the difference between outward and inward purity, and the acceptableness of the latter only in the sight of God, are everywhere taught. Nor is the "vision of God" strange to the Old Testament; and though it was an understood thing that this was not possible in the present life ( Ex 33:20; and compare Job 19:26, 27; Isa 6:5), yet spiritually it was known and felt to be the privilege of the saints even here ( Ge 5:24; 6:9; 17:1; 48:15; Ps 27:4; 36:9; 63:2; Isa 38:3, 11, &c.). But oh, with what grand simplicity, brevity, and power is this great fundamental truth here expressed! And in what striking contrast would such teaching appear to that which was then current, in which exclusive attention was paid to ceremonial purification and external morality! This heart purity begins in a "heart sprinkled from an evil conscience," or a "conscience purged from dead works" ( Heb 10:22; 9:14; and see Ac 15:9); and this also is taught in the Old Testament ( Ps 32:1, 2; compare Ro 4:5-8; Isa 6:5-8). The conscience thus purged--the heart thus sprinkled--there is light within wherewith to see God. "If we say that we have fellowship with Him, and walk in darkness, we lie, and do not the truth: but if we walk in the light, as He is in the light, we have fellowship one with the other"--He with us and we with Him--"and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanseth us"--us who have this fellowship, and who, without such continual cleansing, would soon lose it again--"from all sin" ( 1Jo 1:6, 7). "Whosoever sinneth hath not seen Him, neither known Him" ( 1Jo 3:6); "He that doeth evil hath not seen God" ( 3Jo 11). The inward vision thus clarified, and the whole inner man in sympathy with God, each looks upon the other with complacency and joy, and we are "changed into the same image from glory to glory." But the full and beatific vision of God is reserved for that time to which the Psalmist stretches his views--"As for me, I shall behold Thy face in righteousness: I shall be satisfied, when I awake, with Thy likeness" ( Ps 17:15). Then shall His servants serve Him: and they shall see His face; and His name shall be in their foreheads ( Re 22:3, 4). They shall see Him as He is ( 1Jo 3:2). But, says the apostle, expressing the converse of this beatitude--"Follow holiness, without which no man shall see the Lord" ( Heb 12:14).
9. Blessed are the peacemakers--who not only study peace,
but diffuse it.
for they shall be called the children
of God--shall be called sons of God. Of all these
beatitudes this is the only one which could hardly be
expected to find its definite ground in the Old Testament;
for that most glorious character of God, the likeness of
which appears in the peacemakers, had yet to be revealed.
His glorious name, indeed--as "The Lord, the Lord God,
merciful and gracious, long-suffering, and abundant in
goodness and truth, forgiving iniquity and transgression
and sin"--had been proclaimed in a very imposing
manner (
Ex 34:6), and manifested in action with affecting
frequency and variety in the long course of the ancient
economy. And we have undeniable evidence that the saints of
that economy felt its transforming and ennobling influence
on their own character. But it was not till Christ
"made peace by the blood of the cross" that God
could manifest Himself as "the God of peace, that
brought again from the dead our Lord Jesus, that great
Shepherd of the sheep, through the blood of the everlasting
covenant" (
Heb 13:20) --could reveal Himself as "in Christ
reconciling the world unto Himself, not imputing their
trespasses unto them," and hold Himself forth in the
astonishing attitude of beseeching men to be
"reconciled to Himself" (
2Co 5:19, 20). When this reconciliation actually takes
place, and one has "peace with God through our Lord
Jesus Christ"--even "the peace of God which
passeth all understanding"--the peace-receivers become
transformed into peace-diffusers. God is thus seen
reflected in them; and by the family likeness these
peacemakers are recognized as the children of God. In now
coming to the eighth, or supplementary beatitude, it will
be seen that all that the saints are in themselves
has been already described, in seven features of character;
that number indicating completeness of delineation.
The last feature, accordingly, is a passive one,
representing the treatment that the characters already
described may expect from the world. He who shall one day
fix the destiny of all men here pronounces certain
characters "blessed"; but He ends by forewarning
them that the world's estimation and treatment of them
will be the reserve of His.
10. Blessed are they which are persecuted for
righteousness' sake, &c.--How entirely this final
beatitude has its ground in the Old Testament, is evident
from the concluding words, where the encouragement held out
to endure such persecutions consists in its being but a
continuation of what was experienced by the Old Testament
servants of God. But how, it may be asked, could such
beautiful features of character provoke persecution? To
this the following answers should suffice: "Every one
that doeth evil hateth the light, neither cometh to the
light, lest his deeds should be reproved." "The
world cannot hate you; but Me it hateth, because I testify
of it, that the works thereof are evil." "If ye
were of the world, the world would love his own: but
because ye are not of the world, but I have chosen you out
of the world, therefore the world hateth you."
"There is yet one man (said wicked Ahab to good
Jehoshaphat) by whom we may inquire of the Lord: but I hate
him; for he never prophesied good unto me, but always
evil" (
Joh 3:20; 7:7; 15:19; 2Ch 18:7). But more particularly,
the seven characters here described are all in the teeth of
the spirit of the world, insomuch that such hearers of this
discourse as breathed that spirit must have been startled,
and had their whole system of thought and action rudely
dashed. Poverty of spirit runs counter to the pride of
men's heart; a pensive disposition, in the view of
one's universal deficiencies before God, is ill
relished by the callous, indifferent, laughing,
self-satisfied world; a meek and quiet spirit, taking
wrong, is regarded as pusillanimous, and rasps against the
proud, resentful spirit of the world; that craving after
spiritual blessings rebukes but too unpleasantly the lust
of the flesh, the lust of the eye, and the pride of life;
so does a merciful spirit the hard-heartedness of the
world; purity of heart contrasts painfully with painted
hypocrisy; and the peacemaker cannot easily be endured by
the contentious, quarrelsome world. Thus does
"righteousness" come to be
"persecuted." But blessed are they who, in spite
of this, dare to be righteous.
for theirs is the kingdom of
heaven--As this was the reward promised to the poor in
spirit--the leading one of these seven beatitudes--of
course it is the proper portion of such as are persecuted
for exemplifying them.
11. Blessed are ye when men shall revile you--or abuse you
to your face, in opposition to backbiting. (See
Mr 15:32).
and persecute you, and shall say all
manner of evil against you, falsely, for my sake--Observe
this. He had before said, "for righteousness'
sake." Here He identifies Himself and His cause with
that of righteousness, binding up the cause of
righteousness in the world with the reception of Himself.
Would Moses, or David, or Isaiah, or Paul have so expressed
themselves? Never. Doubtless they suffered for
righteousness' sake. But to have called this
"their sake," would, as every one feels, have
been very unbecoming. Whereas He that speaks, being
Righteousness incarnate (see
Mr 1:24; Ac 3:14; Re 3:7), when He so speaks, speaks
only like Himself.
12. Rejoice, and be exceeding glad--"exult." In
the corresponding passage of Luke (
Lu 6:22, 23), where every indignity trying to flesh and
blood is held forth as the probable lot of such as were
faithful to Him, the word is even stronger than here:
"leap," as if He would have their inward
transport to overpower and absorb the sense of all these
affronts and sufferings; nor will anything else do
it.
for great is your reward in heaven:
for so persecuted they the prophets which were before
you:--that is, "You do but serve yourselves heirs to
their character and sufferings, and the reward will be
common."
13-16. We have here the practical application of the
foregoing principles to those disciples who sat listening
to them, and to their successors in all time. Our Lord,
though He began by pronouncing certain characters to
be blessed--without express reference to any of His
hearers--does not close the beatitudes without intimating
that such characters were in existence, and that already
they were before Him. Accordingly, from characters He comes
to persons possessing them, saying, "Blessed
are ye when men shall revile you," &c. (
Mt 5:11). And now, continuing this mode of direct
personal address, He startles those humble, unknown men by
pronouncing them the exalted benefactors of their whole
species.
Ye are the salt of the earth--to
preserve it from corruption, to season its insipidity, to
freshen and sweeten it. The value of salt for these
purposes is abundantly referred to by classical writers as
well as in Scripture; and hence its symbolical significance
in the religious offerings as well of those without as of
those within the pale of revealed religion. In Scripture,
mankind, under the unrestrained workings of their own evil
nature, are represented as entirely corrupt. Thus, before
the flood (
Ge 6:11, 12); after the flood (
Ge 8:21); in the days of David (
Ps 14:2, 3); in the days of Isaiah (
Isa 1:5, 6); and in the days of Paul (
Eph 2:1-3; see also
Job 14:4; 15:15, 16; Joh 3:6; compared with
Ro 8:8; Tit 3:2, 3). The remedy for this, says our Lord
here, is the active presence of His disciples among their
fellows. The character and principles of Christians,
brought into close contact with it, are designed to arrest
the festering corruption of humanity and season its
insipidity. But how, it may be asked, are Christians to do
this office for their fellow men, if their righteousness
only exasperate them, and recoil, in every form of
persecution, upon themselves? The answer is: That is but
the first and partial effect of their Christianity upon the
world: though the great proportion would dislike and reject
the truth, a small but noble band would receive and hold it
fast; and in the struggle that would ensue, one and another
even of the opposing party would come over to His ranks,
and at length the Gospel would carry all before it.
but if the salt have lost his
savour--"become unsavory" or "insipid";
losing its saline or salting property. The meaning is: If
that Christianity on which the health of the world depends,
does in any age, region, or individual, exist only in
name, or if it contain not those saving elements
for want of which the world languishes,
wherewith shall it be salted?--How
shall the salting qualities be restored to it? (Compare
Mr 9:50). Whether salt ever does lose its saline
property--about which there is a difference of opinion--is
a question of no moment here. The point of the case lies in
the supposition--that if it should lose it, the
consequence would be as here described. So with Christians.
The question is not: Can, or do, the saints ever totally
lose that grace which makes them a blessing to their fellow
men? But, What is to be the issue of that Christianity
which is found wanting in those elements which can alone
stay the corruption and season the tastelessness of an
all-pervading carnality? The restoration or non-restoration
of grace, or true living Christianity, to those who
have lost it, has, in our judgment, nothing at all to do
here. The question is not, If a man lose his grace, how
shall that grace be restored to him? but, Since
living Christianity is the only "salt of the
earth," if men lose that, what else can supply
its place? What follows is the appalling answer to this
question.
it is thenceforth good for nothing,
but to be cast out--a figurative expression of indignant
exclusion from the kingdom of God (compare
Mt 8:12; 22:13; Joh 6:37; 9:34).
and to be trodden under foot of
men--expressive of contempt and scorn. It is not the mere
want of a certain character, but the want of it in those
whose profession and appearance were fitted
to beget expectation of finding it.
14. Ye are the light of the world--This being the
distinctive title which our Lord appropriates to Himself
(
Joh 8:12; 9:5; and see
Joh 1:4, 9; 3:19; 12:35, 36) --a title expressly said
to be unsuitable even to the highest of all the prophets
(
Joh 1:8) --it must be applied here by our Lord to His
disciples only as they shine with His light upon the world,
in virtue of His Spirit dwelling in them, and the same mind
being in them which was also in Christ Jesus. Nor are
Christians anywhere else so called. Nay, as if to avoid the
august title which the Master has appropriated to Himself,
Christians are said to "shine"--not as
"lights," as our translators render it,
but--"as luminaries in the world" (
Php 2:15); and the Baptist is said to have been
"the burning and shining"--not "light,"
as in our translation, but "lamp" of his
day (
Joh 5:35). Let it be observed, too, that while the two
figures of salt and sunlight both express the same function
of Christians--their blessed influence on their fellow
men--they each set this forth under a different aspect.
Salt operates internally, in the mass with which it
comes in contact; the sunlight operates externally,
irradiating all that it reaches. Hence Christians are
warily styled "the salt of the
earth"--with reference to the masses of mankind
with whom they are expected to mix; but "the light of
the world"--with reference to the vast and
variegated surface which feels its fructifying and
gladdening radiance. The same distinction is observable in
the second pair of those seven parables which our Lord
spoke from the Galilean Lake--that of the "mustard
seed," which grew to be a great overshadowing tree,
answering to the sunlight which invests the world, and that
of the "leaven," which a woman took and, like the
salt, hid in three measures of meal, till the whole
was leavened (
Mt 13:31-33).
A city that is set on an hill cannot
be hid--nor can it be supposed to have been so built except
to be seen by many eyes.
15. Neither do men light a candle--or, lamp.
and put it under a bushel--a dry
measure.
but on a candlestick--rather,
"under the bushel, but on the lampstand." The
article is inserted in both cases to express the
familiarity of everyone with those household
utensils.
and it giveth light--shineth
"unto all that are in the house."
16. Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven--As nobody lights a lamp only to cover it up, but places it so conspicuously as to give light to all who need light, so Christians, being the light of the world, instead of hiding their light, are so to hold it forth before men that they may see what a life the disciples of Christ lead, and seeing this, may glorify their Father for so redeeming, transforming, and ennobling earth's sinful children, and opening to themselves the way to like redemption and transformation.
Mt 5:17-48. IDENTITY OF THESE PRINCIPLES WITH THOSE OF THE ANCIENT ECONOMY; IN CONTRAST WITH THE REIGNING TRADITIONAL TEACHING.
Exposition of Principles ( Mt 5:17-20).
17. Think not that I am come--that I came.
to destroy the law, or the
prophets--that is, "the authority and principles of
the Old Testament." (On the phrase, see
Mt 7:12; 22:40; Lu 16:16; Ac 13:15). This general way
of taking the phrase is much better than understanding
"the law" and "the prophets"
separately, and inquiring, as many good critics do, in what
sense our Lord could be supposed to meditate the subversion
of each. To the various classes of His hearers, who might
view such supposed abrogation of the law and the prophets
with very different feelings, our Lord's announcement
would, in effect, be such as this--"Ye who tremble at
the word of the Lord, fear not that I am going to
sweep the foundation from under your feet: Ye restless and
revolutionary spirits, hope not that I am going to
head any revolutionary movement: And ye who hypocritically
affect great reverence for the law and the prophets,
pretend not to find anything in My teaching derogatory
to God's living oracles."
I am not come to destroy, but to
fulfil--Not to subvert, abrogate, or annul, but to
establish the law and the prophets--to unfold them, to
embody them in living form, and to enshrine them in the
reverence, affection, and character of men, am I come.
18. For verily I say unto you--Here, for the first time,
does that august expression occur in our Lord's
recorded teaching, with which we have grown so familiar as
hardly to reflect on its full import. It is the expression
manifestly, of supreme legislative authority; and as
the subject in connection with which it is uttered is the
Moral Law, no higher claim to an authority strictly
divine could be advanced. For when we observe how
jealously Jehovah asserts it as His exclusive prerogative
to give law to men (
Le 18:1-5; 19:37; 26:1-4, 13-16, &c.), such
language as this of our Lord will appear totally
unsuitable, and indeed abhorrent, from any creature lips.
When the Baptist's words--"I say unto you"
(
Mt 3:9) --are compared with those of his Master here,
the difference of the two cases will be at once
apparent.
Till heaven and earth pass--Though
even the Old Testament announces the ultimate
"perdition of the heavens and the earth," in
contrast with the immutability of Jehovah (
Ps 102:24-27), the prevalent representation of the
heavens and the earth in Scripture, when employed as a
popular figure, is that of their stability (
Ps 119:89-91; Ec 1:4; Jer 33:25, 26). It is the
enduring stability, then, of the great truths and
principles, moral and spiritual, of the Old Testament
revelation which our Lord thus expresses.
one jot--the smallest of the
Hebrew letters.
one tittle--one of those little
strokes by which alone some of the Hebrew letters
are distinguished from others like them.
shall in no wise pass from the law,
till all be fulfilled--The meaning is that "not so
much as the smallest loss of authority or vitality shall
ever come over the law." The expression, "till
all be fulfilled," is much the same in meaning as
"it shall be had in undiminished and enduring
honor, from its greatest to its least requirements."
Again, this general way of viewing our Lord's words
here seems far preferable to that doctrinal
understanding of them which would require us to determine
the different kinds of "fulfilment" which the
moral and the ceremonial parts of it were to
have.
19. Whosoever therefore shall break--rather,
"dissolve," "annul," or "make
invalid."
one of these least commandments--an
expression equivalent to "one of the least of these
commandments."
and shall teach men so--referring to
the Pharisees and their teaching, as is plain from
Mt 5:20, but of course embracing all similar schools
and teaching in the Christian Church.
he shall be called the least in the
kingdom of heaven--As the thing spoken of is not the
practical breaking, or disobeying, of the law, but
annulling or enervating its obligation by a vicious system
of interpretation, and teaching others to do the same; so
the thing threatened is not exclusion from heaven, and
still less the lowest place in it, but a degraded and
contemptuous position in the present stage of the kingdom
of God. In other words, they shall be reduced by the
retributive providence that overtakes them, to the same
condition of dishonor to which, by their system and their
teaching, they have brought down those eternal principles
of God's law.
but whosoever shall do and teach
them--whose principles and teaching go to exalt the
authority and honor of God's law, in its lowest as well
as highest requirements.
the same shall be called great in the
kingdom of heaven--shall, by that providence which watches
over the honor of God's moral administration, be raised
to the same position of authority and honor to which they
exalt the law.
20. For I say unto you, That except your righteousness
shall exceed the righteousness of the scribes and
Pharisees--The superiority to the Pharisaic righteousness
here required is plainly in kind, not degree;
for all Scripture teaches that entrance into God's
kingdom, whether in its present or future stage, depends,
not on the degree of our excellence in anything, but solely
on our having the character itself which God demands. Our
righteousness, then--if it is to contrast with the
outward and formal righteousness of the scribes
and Pharisees--must be inward, vital, spiritual.
Some, indeed, of the scribes and Pharisees themselves might
have the very righteousness here demanded; but our Lord is
speaking, not of persons, but of the system they
represented and taught.
ye shall in no case enter into the
kingdom of heaven--If this refer, as in
Mt 5:19, rather to the earthly stage of this kingdom,
the meaning is that without a righteousness exceeding that
of the Pharisees, we cannot be members of it at all, save
in name. This was no new doctrine (
Ro 2:28, 29; 9:6; Php 3:3). But our Lord's teaching
here stretches beyond the present scene, to that
everlasting stage of the kingdom, where without
"purity of heart" none "shall see God."
The Spirituality of the True Righteousness in Contrast with That of the Scribes and Pharisees, Illustrated from the Sixth Commandment. ( Mt 5:21-26).
21. Ye have heard that it was said by them of old time--or,
as in the Margin, "to them of old time."
Which of these translations is the right one has been much
controverted. Either of them is grammatically defensible,
though the latter--"to the ancients"--is
more consistent with New Testament usage (see the
Greek of
Ro 9:12, 26; Re 6:11; 9:4); and most critics decide in
favor of it. But it is not a question of Greek only.
Nearly all who would translate "to the ancients"
take the speaker of the words quoted to be Moses in the
law; "the ancients" to be the people
to whom Moses gave the law; and the intention of our Lord
here to be to contrast His own teaching, more or less, with
that of Moses; either as opposed to it--as some go the
length of affirming--or at least as modifying, enlarging,
elevating it. But who can reasonably imagine such a thing,
just after the most solemn and emphatic proclamation of the
perpetuity of the law, and the honor and glory in which it
was to be held under the new economy? To us it seems as
plain as possible that our Lord's one object is to
contrast the traditional perversions of the law with the
true sense of it as expounded by Himself. A few of those
who assent to this still think that "to the
ancients" is the only legitimate translation of the
words; understanding that our Lord is reporting what had
been said to the ancients, not by Moses, but by the
perverters of his law. We do not object to this; but we
incline to think (with B EZA, and after him with FRITZSCHE,
OLSHAUSEN, STIER, and B LOOMFIELD) that "by the
ancients" must have been what our Lord meant here,
referring to the corrupt teachers rather than the perverted
people.
Thou shall not kill:--that is, This
being all that the law requires, whosoever has imbrued his
hands in his brother's blood, but he only, is guilty of
a breach of this commandment.
and whosoever shall kill shall be in
danger of the judgment--liable to the judgment; that is, of
the sentence of those inferior courts of judicature which
were established in all the principal towns, in compliance
with
De 16:16. Thus was this commandment reduced, from a
holy law of the heart-searching God, to a mere criminal
statute, taking cognizance only of outward actions, such as
that which we read in
Ex 21:12; Le 24:17.
22. But I say unto you--Mark the authoritative tone in
which--as Himself the Lawgiver and Judge--Christ now gives
the true sense, and explains the deep reach, of the
commandment.
That whosoever is angry with his
brother without a cause shall be in danger of the judgment;
and whosoever shall say to his brother, Raca! shall be in
danger of the council; but whosoever shall say, Thou fool!
shall be in danger of hell-fire--It is unreasonable to
deny, as ALEXANDER does, that three degrees of punishment
are here meant to be expressed, and to say that it is but a
threefold expression of one and the same thing. But Romish
expositors greatly err in taking the first two--"the
judgment" and "the council"--to refer to
degrees of temporal punishment with which lesser
sins were to be visited under the Gospel, and only the
last--"hell-fire"--to refer to the future life.
All three clearly refer to divine retribution, and
that alone, for breaches of this commandment; though this
is expressed by an allusion to Jewish tribunals. The
"judgment," as already explained, was the lowest
of these; the "council," or
"Sanhedrim,"--which sat at Jerusalem--was the
highest; while the word used for "hell-fire"
contains an allusion to the "valley of the son of
Hinnom" (
Jos 18:16). In this valley the Jews, when steeped in
idolatry, went the length of burning their children to
Molech "on the high places of Tophet"--in
consequence of which good Josiah defiled it, to prevent the
repetition of such abominations (
2Ki 23:10); and from that time forward, if we may
believe the Jewish writers, a fire was kept burning in it
to consume the carrion and all kinds of impurities that
collected about the capital. Certain it is, that while the
final punishment of the wicked is described in the Old
Testament by allusions to this valley of Tophet or Hinnom
(
Isa 30:33; 66:24), our Lord Himself describes the same
by merely quoting these terrific descriptions of the
evangelical prophet (
Mr 9:43-48). What precise degrees of unholy feeling
towards our brothers are indicated by the words
"Raca" and "fool" it would be as
useless as it is vain to inquire. Every age and every
country has its modes of expressing such things; and no
doubt our Lord seized on the then current phraseology of
unholy disrespect and contempt, merely to express and
condemn the different degrees of such feeling when brought
out in words, as He had immediately before condemned the
feeling itself. In fact, so little are we to make of mere
words, apart from the feeling which they express,
that as anger is expressly said to have been borne
by our Lord towards His enemies though mixed with
"grief for the hardness of their hearts" (
Mr 3:5), and as the apostle teaches us that there is an
anger which is not sinful (
Eph 4:26); so in the Epistle of James (
Jas 2:20) we find the words, "O vain (or, empty)
man"; and our Lord Himself applies the very word
"fools" twice in one breath to the blind guides
of the people (
Mt 23:17, 19) --although, in both cases, it is to
false reasoners rather than persons that such words are
applied. The spirit, then, of the whole statement may be
thus given: "For ages ye have been taught that the
sixth commandment, for example, is broken only by the
murderer, to pass sentence upon whom is the proper business
of the recognized tribunals. But I say unto you that it is
broken even by causeless anger, which is but hatred in the
bud, as hatred is incipient murder (
1Jo 3:15); and if by the feelings, much more by those
words in which all ill feeling, from the slightest
to the most envenomed, are wont to be cast upon a brother:
and just as there are gradations in human courts of
judicature, and in the sentences which they pronounce
according to the degrees of criminality, so will the
judicial treatment of all the breakers of this commandment
at the divine tribunal be according to their real
criminality before the heart-searching Judge." Oh,
what holy teaching is this!
23. Therefore--to apply the foregoing, and show its
paramount importance.
if thou bring thy gift to the altar,
and there rememberest that thy brother hath aught--of just
complaint "against thee."
24. Leave there thy gift before the altar, and go thy way;
first be reconciled to thy brother--The meaning evidently
is--not, "dismiss from thine own breast all ill
feeling," but "get thy brother to dismiss from
his mind all grudge against thee."
and then come and offer thy
gift--"The picture," says THOLUCK, "is drawn
from life. It transports us to the moment when the
Israelite, having brought his sacrifice to the court of the
Israelites, awaited the instant when the priest would
approach to receive it at his hands. He waits with his gift
at the rails which separate the place where he stands from
the court of the priests, into which his offering will
presently be taken, there to be slain by the priest, and by
him presented upon the altar of sacrifice." It is at
this solemn moment, when about to cast himself upon divine
mercy, and seek in his offering a seal of divine
forgiveness, that the offerer is supposed, all at once, to
remember that some brother has a just cause of complaint
against him through breach of this commandment in one or
other of the ways just indicated. What then? Is he to say,
As soon as I have offered this gift I will go straight to
my brother, and make it up with him? Nay; but before
another step is taken--even before the offering is
presented--this reconciliation is to be sought, though the
gift have to be left unoffered before the altar. The
converse of the truth here taught is very strikingly
expressed in
Mr 11:25, 26: "And when ye stand praying
(in the very act), forgive, if ye have aught (of just
complaint) against any; that your Father also which is in
heaven may forgive you your trespasses. But if ye do not
forgive, neither will your Father which is in heaven
forgive you," &c. Hence the beautiful practice of
the early Church, to see that all differences amongst
brethren and sisters in Christ were made up, in the spirit
of love, before going to the Holy Communion; and the Church
of England has a rubrical direction to this effect in her
Communion service. Certainly, if this be the highest act of
worship on earth, such reconciliation though obligatory on
all other occasions of worship--must be peculiarly so then.
25. Agree with thine adversary--thine opponent in a matter
cognizable by law.
quickly, whiles thou art in the way
with him--"to the magistrate," as in
Lu 12:58.
lest at any time--here, rather,
"lest at all," or simply "lest."
the adversary deliver thee to the
judge, and the judge--having pronounced thee in the
wrong.
deliver thee to the officer--the
official whose business it is to see the sentence carried
into effect.
26. Verily I say unto thee, Thou shalt by no means come out thence, till thou hast paid the uttermost farthing--a fractional Roman coin, to which our "farthing" answers sufficiently well. That our Lord meant here merely to give a piece of prudential advice to his hearers, to keep out of the hands of the law and its officials by settling all disputes with one another privately, is not for a moment to be supposed, though there are critics of a school low enough to suggest this. The concluding words--"Verily I say unto thee, Thou shalt by no means come out," &c.--manifestly show that though the language is drawn from human disputes and legal procedure, He is dealing with a higher than any human quarrel, a higher than any human tribunal, a higher than any human and temporal sentence. In this view of the words--in which nearly all critics worthy of the name agree--the spirit of them may be thus expressed: "In expounding the sixth commandment, I have spoken of offenses between man and man; reminding you that the offender has another party to deal with besides him whom he has wronged on earth, and assuring you that all worship offered to the Searcher of hearts by one who knows that a brother has just cause of complaint against him, and yet takes no steps to remove it, is vain: But I cannot pass from this subject without reminding you of One whose cause of complaint against you is far more deadly than any that man can have against man: and since with that Adversary you are already on the way to judgment, it will be your wisdom to make up the quarrel without delay, lest sentence of condemnation be pronounced upon you, and then will execution straightway follow, from the effects of which you shall never escape as long as any remnant of the offense remains unexpiated." It will be observed that as the principle on which we are to "agree" with this "Adversary" is not here specified, and the precise nature of the retribution that is to light upon the despisers of this warning is not to be gathered from the mere use of the word "prison"; so, the remedilessness of the punishment is not in so many words expressed, and still less is its actual cessation taught. The language on all these points is designedly general; but it may safely be said that the unending duration of future punishment--elsewhere so clearly and awfully expressed by our Lord Himself, as in Mt 5:29, 30, and Mr 9:43, 48 --is the only doctrine with which His language here quite naturally and fully accords. (Compare Mt 18:30, 34).
The Same Subject Illustrated from the Seventh Commandment ( Mt 5:27-32).
27. Ye have heard that it was said--The words
"by," or "to them of old time," in this
verse are insufficiently supported, and probably were not
in the original text.
Thou shall not commit
adultery--Interpreting this seventh, as they did the sixth
commandment, the traditional perverters of the law
restricted the breach of it to acts of criminal
intercourse between, or with, married persons exclusively.
Our Lord now dissipates such delusions.
28. But I say unto you, That whosoever looketh on a woman
to lust after her--with the intent to do so, as the same
expression is used in
Mt 6:1; or, with the full consent of his will, to feed
thereby his unholy desires.
hath committed adultery with her
already in his heart--We are not to suppose, from the word
here used--"adultery"--that our Lord means to
restrict the breach of this commandment to married persons,
or to criminal intercourse with such. The expressions,
"whosoever looketh," and "looketh
upon a woman," seem clearly to extend the range
of this commandment to all forms of impurity, and the
counsels which follow--as they most certainly were intended
for all, whether married or unmarried--seem to confirm
this. As in dealing with the sixth commandment our Lord
first expounds it, and then in the four following verses
applies His exposition (
Mt 5:21-25), so here He first expounds the seventh
commandment, and then in the four following verses applies
His exposition (
Mt 5:28-32).
29. And if thy right eye--the readier and the dearer of the
two.
offend thee--be a "trap
spring," or as in the New Testament, be "an
occasion of stumbling" to thee.
pluck it out and cast it from
thee--implying a certain indignant promptitude, heedless of
whatever cost to feeling the act may involve. Of course, it
is not the eye simply of which our Lord speaks--as
if execution were to be done upon the bodily organ--though
there have been fanatical ascetics who have both advocated
and practiced this, showing a very low apprehension of
spiritual things--but the offending eye, or the eye
considered as the occasion of sin; and consequently, only
the sinful exercise of the organ which is meant. For
as one might put out his eyes without in the least
quenching the lust to which they ministered, so, "if
thine eye be single, thy whole body shall be full of
light," and, when directed by a holy mind, becomes an
"instrument of righteousness unto God." At the
same time, just as by cutting off a hand, or plucking out
an eye, the power of acting and of seeing would be
destroyed, our Lord certainly means that we are to
strike at the root of such unholy dispositions, as well
as cut off the occasions which tend to stimulate
them.
for it is profitable for thee that one
of thy members should perish, and not that thy whole body
should be cast into hell--He who despises the warning to
cast from him, with indignant promptitude, an offending
member, will find his whole body "cast," with a
retributive promptitude of indignation, "into
hell." Sharp language, this, from the lips of Love
incarnate!
30. And if thy right hand--the organ of action, to
which the eye excites.
offend thee, cut it off, and cast it
from thee; for it is profitable, &c.--See on Mt 5:29. The repetition, in identical terms,
of such stern truths and awful lessons seems characteristic
of our Lord's manner of teaching. Compare
Mr 9:43-48.
31. It hath been said--This shortened form was perhaps
intentional, to mark a transition from the commandments of
the Decalogue to a civil enactment on the subject of
divorce, quoted from
De 24:1. The law of divorce--according to its
strictness or laxity--has so intimate a bearing upon purity
in the married life, that nothing could be more natural
than to pass from the seventh commandment to the loose
views on that subject then current.
Whosoever shall put away his wife, let
him give her a writing of divorcement--a legal check upon
reckless and tyrannical separation. The one legitimate
ground of divorce allowed by the enactment just quoted was
"some uncleanness"--in other words, conjugal
infidelity. But while one school of interpreters (that of
SHAMMAI) explained this quite correctly, as prohibiting
divorce in every case save that of adultery, another school
(that of HILLEL) stretched the expression so far as to
include everything in the wife offensive or disagreeable to
the husband--a view of the law too well fitted to minister
to caprice and depraved inclination not to find extensive
favor. And, indeed, to this day the Jews allow divorces on
the most frivolous pretexts. It was to meet this that our
Lord uttered what follows:
32. But I say unto you, That whosoever shall put away his
wife, saving for the cause of fornication, causeth her to
commit adultery--that is, drives her into it in case she
marries again.
and whosoever shall marry her that is
divorced--for anything short of conjugal infidelity.
committeth adultery--for if the
commandment is broken by the one party, it must be by the
other also. But see on Mt 19:4-9.
Whether the innocent party, after a just divorce, may
lawfully marry again, is not treated of here. The Church of
Rome says, No; but the Greek and Protestant Churches allow
it.
Same Subject Illustrated from the Third Commandment ( Mt 5:33-37).
33. Again, ye have heard that it hath been said by them of
old time, Thou shalt not forswear thyself--These are not
the precise words of
Ex 20:7; but they express all that it was currently
understood to condemn, namely, false swearing (
Le 19:12, &c.). This is plain from what
follows.
But I say unto you, Swear not at
all--That this was meant to condemn swearing of every kind
and on every occasion--as the Society of Friends and some
other ultra-moralists allege--is not for a moment to be
thought. For even Jehovah is said once and again to have
sworn by Himself; and our Lord certainly answered upon oath
to a question put to Him by the high priest; and the
apostle several times, and in the most solemn language,
takes God to witness that he spoke and wrote the truth; and
it is inconceivable that our Lord should here have quoted
the precept about not forswearing ourselves, but performing
to the Lord our oaths, only to give a precept of His own
directly in the teeth of it. Evidently, it is swearing in
common intercourse and on frivolous occasions that is here
meant. Frivolous oaths were indeed severely condemned in
the teaching of the times. But so narrow was the circle of
them that a man might swear, says LIGHTFOOT, a hundred
thousand times and yet not be guilty of vain swearing.
Hardly anything was regarded as an oath if only the name of
God were not in it; just as among ourselves, as TRENCH well
remarks, a certain lingering reverence for the name of God
leads to cutting off portions of His name, or uttering
sounds nearly resembling it, or substituting the name of
some heathen deity, in profane exclamations or
asseverations. Against all this our Lord now speaks
decisively; teaching His audience that every oath carries
an appeal to God, whether named or not.
neither by heaven; for it is God's
throne--(quoting
Isa 66:1);
35. Nor by the earth; for it is his footstool--(quoting
Isa 66:1);
neither by Jerusalem for it is the
city of the great King--(quoting
Ps 48:2).
36. Neither shalt thou swear by thy head, because thou canst not make one hair white or black--In the other oaths specified, God's name was profaned quite as really as if His name had been uttered, because it was instantly suggested by the mention of His "throne," His "footstool," His "city." But in swearing by our own head and the like, the objection lies in their being "beyond our control," and therefore profanely assumed to have a stability which they have not.
37. But let your communication--"your word," in
ordinary intercourse, be,
Yea, yea; Nay, nay--Let a simple
Yes and No suffice in affirming the truth or the
untruth of anything. (See
Jas 5:12; 2Co 1:17, 18).
for whatsoever is more than these
cometh of evil--not "of the evil one"; though an
equally correct rendering of the words, and one which some
expositors prefer. It is true that all evil in our world is
originally of the devil, that it forms a kingdom at the
head of which he sits, and that, in every manifestation of
it he has an active part. But any reference to this here
seems unnatural, and the allusion to this passage in the
Epistle of James (
Jas 5:12) seems to show that this is not the sense of
it: "Let your yea be yea; and your nay, nay; lest
ye fall into condemnation." The untruthfulness of
our corrupt nature shows itself not only in the tendency to
deviate from the strict truth, but in the disposition to
suspect others of doing the same; and as this is not
diminished, but rather aggravated, by the habit of
confirming what we say by an oath, we thus run the risk of
having all reverence for God's holy name, and even for
strict truth, destroyed in our hearts, and so "fall
into condemnation." The practice of going beyond Yes
and No in affirmations and denials--as if our word for it
were not enough, and we expected others to question
it--springs from that vicious root of untruthfulness which
is only aggravated by the very effort to clear ourselves of
the suspicion of it. And just as swearing to the truth of
what we say begets the disposition it is designed to
remove, so the love and reign of truth in the breasts of
Christ's disciples reveals itself so plainly even to
those who themselves cannot be trusted, that their simple
Yes and No come soon to be more relied on than the most
solemn asseverations of others. Thus does the grace of our
Lord Jesus Christ, like a tree cast into the bitter waters
of human corruption, heal and sweeten them.
Same Subject--Retaliation ( Mt 5:38-42). We have here the converse of the preceding lessons. They were negative: these are positive.
38. Ye have heard that it hath been said-- (
Ex 21:23-25; Le 24:19, 20; De 19:21).
An eye for an eye, and a tooth for a
tooth--that is, whatever penalty was regarded as a proper
equivalent for these. This law of retribution--designed to
take vengeance out of the hands of private persons, and
commit it to the magistrate--was abused in the opposite way
to the commandments of the Decalogue. While they were
reduced to the level of civil enactments, this judicial
regulation was held to be a warrant for taking redress into
their own hands, contrary to the injunctions of the Old
Testament itself (
Pr 20:22; 24:29).
39. But I say unto you, That ye resist not evil; but whosoever shall smite thee on thy right check, turn to him the other also--Our Lord's own meek, yet dignified bearing, when smitten rudely on the cheek ( Joh 18:22, 23), and not literally presenting the other, is the best comment on these words. It is the preparedness, after one indignity, not to invite but to submit meekly to another, without retaliation, which this strong language is meant to convey.
40. And if any man will sue thee at the law, and take away
thy coat--the inner garment; in pledge for a debt (
Ex 22:26, 27).
let him have thy cloak also--the outer
and more costly garment. This overcoat was not allowed to
be retained over night as a pledge from the poor because
they used it for a bed covering.
41. And whosoever shall compel thee to go a mile, go with him twain--an allusion, probably, to the practice of the Romans and some Eastern nations, who, when government despatches had to be forwarded, obliged the people not only to furnish horses and carriages, but to give personal attendance, often at great inconvenience, when required. But the thing here demanded is a readiness to submit to unreasonable demands of whatever kind, rather than raise quarrels, with all the evils resulting from them. What follows is a beautiful extension of this precept.
42. Give to him that asketh thee--The sense of
unreasonable asking is here implied (compare
Lu 6:30).
and from him that would borrow of thee
turn not thou away--Though the word signifies classically
"to have money lent to one on security," or
"with interest," yet as this was not the original
sense of the word, and as usury was forbidden among the
Jews (
Ex 22:25, &c.), it is doubtless simple borrowing
which our Lord here means, as indeed the whole strain of
the exhortation implies. This shows that such counsels as
"Owe no man anything" (
Ro 13:8), are not to be taken absolutely; else the
Scripture commendations of the righteous for
"lending" to his necessitous brother (
Ps 37:36; 112:5; Lu 6:37) would have no
application.
turn not thou away--a graphic
expression of unfeeling refusal to relieve a brother in
extremity.
Same Subject--Love to Enemies ( Mt 5:43-48).
43. Ye have heard that it hath been said-- (
Le 19:18).
Thou shalt love thy neighbour--To this
the corrupt teachers added,
and hate thine enemy--as if the one
were a legitimate inference from the other, instead of
being a detestable gloss, as BENGEL indignantly calls it.
LIGHTFOOT quotes some of the cursed maxims inculcated by
those traditionists regarding the proper treatment of all
Gentiles. No wonder that the Romans charged the Jews with
hatred of the human race.
44. But I say unto you, Love your enemies--The word here
used denotes moral love, as distinguished from the
other word, which expresses personal affection.
Usually, the former denotes "complacency in the
character" of the person loved; but here it denotes
the benignant, compassionate outgoings of desire for
another's good.
bless them that curse you, do good to
them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully
use you, and persecute you--The best commentary on these
matchless counsels is the bright example of Him who gave
them. (See
1Pe 2:21-24; and compare
Ro 12:20, 21; 1Co 4:12; 1Pe 3:9). But though such
precepts were never before expressed--perhaps not even
conceived--with such breadth, precision, and sharpness as
here, our Lord is here only the incomparable Interpreter of
the law in force from the beginning; and this is the only
satisfactory view of the entire strain of this discourse.
45. That ye may be the children--sons.
of your Father which is in heaven--The
meaning is, "that ye may show yourselves to be such by
resembling Him" (compare
Mt 5:9; Eph 5:1).
for he maketh his sun--"your
Father's sun." Well might BENGEL exclaim,
"Magnificent appellation!"
to rise on the evil and on the good,
and sendeth rain on the just and on the unjust--rather,
(without the article) "on evil and good, and on just
and unjust." When we find God's own procedure held
up for imitation in the law, and much more in the prophets
(
Le 19:2; 20:26; and compare
1Pe 1:15, 16), we may see that the principle of this
surprising verse was nothing new: but the form of it
certainly is that of One who spake as never man spake.
46. For if ye love them which love you, what reward have ye? do not even the publicans the same?--The publicans, as collectors of taxes due to the Roman government, were ever on this account obnoxious to the Jews, who sat uneasy under a foreign yoke, and disliked whatever brought this unpleasantly before them. But the extortion practiced by this class made them hateful to the community, who in their current speech ranked them with "harlots." Nor does our Lord scruple to speak of them as others did, which we may be sure He never would have done if it had been calumnious. The meaning, then, is, "In loving those who love you, there is no evidence of superior principle; the worst of men will do this: even a publican will go that length."
47. And if ye salute your brethren only--of the same nation
and religion with yourselves.
what do ye more than
others?--what do ye uncommon or extraordinary? that is,
wherein do ye excel?
do not even the publicans so?--The
true reading here appears to be, "Do not even the
heathens the same?" Compare
Mt 18:17, where the excommunicated person is said to be
"as an heathen man and a publican."
48. Be ye therefore--rather, "Ye shall therefore
be," or "Ye are therefore to be," as My
disciples and in My kingdom.
perfect--or complete. Manifestly, our
Lord here speaks, not of degrees of excellence, but
of the kind of excellence which was to distinguish
His disciples and characterize His kingdom. When therefore
He adds,
even as your Father which is in heaven
is perfect--He refers to that full-orbed glorious
completeness which is in the great Divine Model,
"their Father which is in heaven."
SERMON ON THE MOUNT--continued.
Mt 6:1-18. FURTHER ILLUSTRATION OF THE RIGHTEOUSNESS OF THE KINGDOM--ITS UNOSTENTATIOUSNESS.
General Caution against Ostentation in Religious Duties ( Mt 6:1).
1. Take heed that ye do not your alms--But the true reading
seems clearly to be "your righteousness." The
external authority for both readings is pretty nearly
equal; but internal evidence is decidedly in favor of
"righteousness." The subject of the second verse
being "almsgiving" that word--so like the other
in Greek--might easily be substituted for it by the
copyist: whereas the opposite would not be so likely. But
it is still more in favor of "righteousness,"
that if we so read the first verse, it then becomes a
general heading for this whole section of the discourse,
inculcating unostentatiousness in all deeds of
righteousness--Almsgiving, Prayer, and Fasting being, in
that case, but selected examples of this righteousness;
whereas, if we read, "Do not your alms,"
&c., this first verse will have no reference but to
that one point. By "righteousness," in this case,
we are to understand that same righteousness of the kingdom
of heaven, whose leading features--in opposition to
traditional perversions of it--it is the great object of
this discourse to open up: that righteousness of which the
Lord says, "Except your righteousness shall exceed the
righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, ye shall in no
case enter into the kingdom of heaven" (
Mt 5:20). To "do" this righteousness,
was an old and well-understood expression. Thus,
"Blessed is he that doeth righteousness at all
times" (
Ps 106:3). It refers to the actings of
righteousness in the life--the outgoings of the gracious
nature--of which our Lord afterwards said to His disciples,
"Herein is My Father glorified, that ye bear much
fruit; so shall ye be My disciples" (
Joh 15:8).
before men, to be seen of them--with
the view or intention of being beheld of them. See the same
expression in
Mt 5:28. True, He had required them to let their light
so shine before men that they might see their good works,
and glorify their Father which is in heaven (
Mt 5:16). But this is quite consistent with not making
a display of our righteousness for self-glorification. In
fact, the doing of the former necessarily implies our
not doing the latter.
otherwise ye have no reward of your
Father which is in heaven--When all duty is done to God--as
primarily enjoining and finally judging of it--He will take
care that it be duly recognized; but when done purely for
ostentation, God cannot own it, nor is His judgment of it
even thought of--God accepts only what is done to Himself.
So much for the general principle. Now follow three
illustrations of it.
Almsgiving ( Mt 6:2-4).
2. Therefore, when thou doest thine alms, do not sound a
trumpet before thee--The expression is to be taken
figuratively for blazoning it. Hence our expression
to "trumpet."
as the hypocrites do--This word--of
such frequent occurrence in Scripture, signifying primarily
"one who acts a part"--denotes one who either
pretends to be what he is not (as here), or
dissembles what he really is (as in
Lu 12:1, 2).
in the synagogues and in the
streets--the places of religious and secular resort.
that they may have glory of men.
Verily I say unto you--In such august expressions, it is
the Lawgiver and Judge Himself that we hear speaking to
us.
They have their reward--All they
wanted was human applause, and they have it--and with it,
all they will ever get.
3. But when thou doest alms, let not thy left hand know what thy right hand doeth--So far from making a display of it, dwell not on it even in thine own thoughts, lest it minister to spiritual pride.
4. That thine alms may be in secret, and thy Father which seeth in secret himself shall reward thee openly--The word "Himself" appears to be an unauthorized addition to the text, which the sense no doubt suggested. (See 1Ti 5:25; Ro 2:16; 1Co 4:5).
Prayer ( Mt 6:5, 6).
5. And when thou prayest, thou shalt--or, preferably,
"when ye pray ye shall."
not be as the hypocrites are: for they
love to pray standing in the synagogues and in the corners
of the streets--(See on Mt 6:2).
that they may be seen of men. Verily I
say unto you, They have, &c.--The standing
posture in prayer was the ancient practice, alike in the
Jewish and in the early Christian Church. But of course
this conspicuous posture opened the way for the
ostentatious.
6. But thou, when thou prayest, enter into thy closet--a
place of retirement.
and when thou hast shut thy door, pray
to thy Father which is in secret; and thy Father which
seeth in secret shall reward thee openly--Of course, it is
not the simple publicity of prayer which is here condemned.
It may be offered in any circumstances, however open, if
not prompted by the spirit of ostentation, but dictated by
the great ends of prayer itself. It is the retiring
character of true prayer which is here taught.
Supplementary Directions and Model Prayer ( Mt 6:7-15).
7. But when ye pray, use not vain repetitions--"Babble
not" would be a better rendering, both for the form of
the word--which in both languages is intended to imitate
the sound--and for the sense, which expresses not so much
the repetition of the same words as a senseless
multiplication of them; as appears from what follows.
as the heathen do: for they think that
they shall be heard for their much speaking--This method of
heathen devotion is still observed by Hindu and Mohammedan
devotees. With the Jews, says LIGHTFOOT, it was a maxim,
that "Every one who multiplies prayer is heard."
In the Church of Rome, not only is it carried to a
shameless extent, but, as THOLUCK justly observes, the very
prayer which our Lord gave as an antidote to vain
repetitions is the most abused to this superstitious end;
the number of times it is repeated counting for so much
more merit. Is not this just that characteristic feature of
heathen devotion which our Lord here condemns? But praying
much, and using at times the same words, is not here
condemned, and has the example of our Lord Himself in its
favor.
8. Be not ye therefore like unto them: for your Father knoweth what things ye have need of before ye ask him--and so needs not to be informed of our wants, any more than to be roused to attend to them by our incessant speaking. What a view of God is here given, in sharp contrast with the gods of the heathen! But let it be carefully noted that it is not as the general Father of mankind that our Lord says, "Your Father" knoweth what ye need before ye ask it; for it is not men, as such, that He is addressing in this discourse, but His own disciples--the poor in spirit, the mourners, the meek, hungry and thirsty souls, the merciful, the pure in heart, the peacemakers, who allow themselves to have all manner of evil said against them for the Son of man's sake--in short, the new-born children of God, who, making their Father's interests their own, are here assured that their Father, in return, makes their interests His, and needs neither to be told nor to be reminded of their wants. Yet He will have His children pray to Him, and links all His promised supplies to their petitions for them; thus encouraging us to draw near and keep near to Him, to talk and walk with Him, to open our every case to Him, and assure ourselves that thus asking we shall receive--thus seeking we shall find--thus knocking it shall be opened to us.
9. After this manner--more simply "Thus."
therefore pray ye--The "ye"
is emphatic here, in contrast with the heathen prayers.
That this matchless prayer was given not only as a
model, but as a form, might be concluded from
its very nature. Did it consist only of hints or directions
for prayer, it could only be used as a directory; but
seeing it is an actual prayer--designed, indeed, to show
how much real prayer could be compressed into the fewest
words, but still, as a prayer, only the more incomparable
for that--it is strange that there should be a doubt
whether we ought to pray that very prayer. Surely the words
with which it is introduced, in the second utterance and
varied form of it which we have in
Lu 11:2, ought to set this at rest: "When ye pray,
say, Our Father." Nevertheless, since the
second form of it varies considerably from the first, and
since no example of its actual use, or express quotation of
its phraseology, occurs in the sequel of the New Testament,
we are to guard against a superstitious use of it. How
early this began to appear in the church services, and to
what extent it was afterwards carried, is known to every
one versed in Church History. Nor has the spirit which bred
this abuse quite departed from some branches of the
Protestant Church, though the opposite and equally
condemnable extreme is to be found in other branches of it.
Model Prayer ( Mt 6:9-13). According to the Latin fathers and the Lutheran Church, the petitions of the Lord's Prayer are seven in number; according to the Greek fathers, the Reformed Church and the Westminster divines, they are only six; the two last being regarded--we think, less correctly--as one. The first three petitions have to do exclusively with God: "Thy name be hallowed"--"Thy kingdom come"--"Thy will be done." And they occur in a descending scale--from Himself down to the manifestation of Himself in His kingdom; and from His kingdom to the entire subjection of its subjects, or the complete doing of His will. The remaining four petitions have to do with OURSELVES: "Give us our daily bread"--"Forgive us our debts"--"Lead us not into temptation"--"Deliver us from evil." But these latter petitions occur in an ascending scale--from the bodily wants of every day up to our final deliverance from all evil.
Invocation:
Our Father which art in heaven--In the
former clause we express His nearness to us; in the latter,
His distance from us. (See
Ec 5:2; Isa 66:1). Holy, loving familiarity suggests
the one; awful reverence the other. In calling Him
"Father" we express a relationship we have all
known and felt surrounding us even from our infancy; but in
calling Him our Father "who art in heaven," we
contrast Him with the fathers we all have here below, and
so raise our souls to that "heaven" where He
dwells, and that Majesty and Glory which are there as in
their proper home. These first words of the Lord's
Prayer--this invocation with which it opens--what a
brightness and warmth does it throw over the whole prayer,
and into what a serene region does it introduce the praying
believer, the child of God, as he thus approaches Him! It
is true that the paternal relationship of God to His people
is by no means strange to the Old Testament. (See
De 32:6; Ps 103:13; Isa 63:16; Jer 3:4, 19; Mal 1:6;
2:10). But these are only glimpses--the "back
parts" (
Ex 33:23), if we may so say, in comparison with the
"open face" of our Father revealed in Jesus. (See
on 2Co 3:18). Nor is it too
much to say, that the view which our Lord gives, throughout
this His very first lengthened discourse, of "our
Father in heaven," beggars all that was ever taught,
even in God's own Word, or conceived before by His
saints, on this subject.
First Petition:
Hallowed be--that is, "Be held in
reverence"; regarded and treated as
holy.
thy name--God's name means
"Himself as revealed and manifested." Everywhere
in Scripture God defines and marks off the faith and love
and reverence and obedience He will have from men by the
disclosures which He makes to them of what He is; both to
shut out false conceptions of Him, and to make all their
devotion take the shape and hue of His own teaching. Too
much attention cannot be paid to this.
Second Petition:
10. Thy kingdom come--The kingdom of
God is that moral and spiritual kingdom which the God of
grace is setting up in this fallen world, whose subjects
consist of as many as have been brought into hearty
subjection to His gracious scepter, and of which His Son
Jesus is the glorious Head. In the inward reality of it,
this kingdom existed ever since there were men who
"walked with God" (
Ge 5:24), and "waited for His salvation" (
Ge 49:18); who were "continually with Him, holden
by His right hand" (
Ps 73:23), and who, even in the valley of the shadow of
death, feared no evil when He was with them (
Ps 23:4). When Messiah Himself appeared, it was, as a
visible kingdom, "at hand." His death laid the
deep foundations of it. His ascension on high,
"leading captivity captive and receiving gifts for
men, yea, for the rebellious, that the Lord God might dwell
among them," and the Pentecostal effusion of the
Spirit, by which those gifts for men descended upon the
rebellious, and the Lord God was beheld, in the persons of
thousands upon thousands, "dwelling" among
men--was a glorious "coming" of this kingdom. But
it is still to come, and this petition, "Thy kingdom
come," must not cease to ascend so long as one subject
of it remains to be brought in. But does not this prayer
stretch further forward--to "the glory to be
revealed," or that stage of the kingdom called
"the everlasting kingdom of our Lord and Saviour Jesus
Christ" (
2Pe 1:11)? Not directly, perhaps, since the petition
that follows this--"Thy will be done in earth, as it
is in heaven"--would then bring us back to this
present state of imperfection. Still, the mind refuses to
be so bounded by stages and degrees, and in the act of
praying, "Thy kingdom come," it irresistibly
stretches the wings of its faith, and longing, and joyous
expectation out to the final and glorious consummation of
the kingdom of God.
Third Petition:
Thy will be done in earth, as it is in
heaven--or, as the same words are rendered in Luke,
"as in heaven, so upon earth" (
Lu 11:2) --as cheerfully, as constantly,
as perfectly. But some will ask, Will this ever be?
We answer, If the "new heavens and new earth" are
to be just our present material system purified by fire and
transfigured, of course it will. But we incline to think
that the aspiration which we are taught in this beautiful
petition to breathe forth has no direct reference to any
such organic fulfilment, and is only the spontaneous
and resistless longing of the renewed soul--put into
words--to see the whole inhabited earth in entire
conformity to the will of God. It asks not if ever it shall
be--or if ever it can be--in order to pray this prayer. It
must have its holy yearnings breathed forth, and
this is just the bold yet simple expression of them. Nor is
the Old Testament without prayers which come very near to
this (
Ps 7:9; 67:1-7; 72:19, &c.).
Fourth Petition:
11. Give us this day our daily
bread--The compound word here rendered "daily"
occurs nowhere else, either in classical or sacred
Greek, and so must be interpreted by the analogy of its
component parts. But on this critics are divided. To those
who would understand it to mean, "Give us this day the
bread of to-morrow"--as if the sense thus slid into
that of Luke "Give us day by day" (
Lu 11:2, (as BENGEL, MEYER, &c.) it may be answered
that the sense thus brought out is scarcely intelligible,
if not something less; that the expression "bread of
to-morrow" is not at all the same as bread "from
day to day," and that, so understood, it would seem to
contradict
Mt 6:34. The great majority of the best critics (taking
the word to be compounded of ousia,
"substance," or "being")
understand by it the "staff of life," the
bread of subsistence, and so the sense will be,
"Give us this day the bread which this day's
necessities require." In this case, the rendering of
our authorized version (after the Vulgate, LUTHER
and some of the best modern critics)--"our daily
bread"--is, in sense, accurate enough. (See
Pr 30:8). Among commentators, there was early shown an
inclination to understand this as a prayer for the heavenly
bread, or spiritual nourishment; and in this they have been
followed by many superior expositors, even down to our own
times. But as this is quite unnatural, so it deprives the
Christian of one of the sweetest of his privileges--to cast
his bodily wants in this short prayer, by one simple
petition, upon his heavenly Father. No doubt the spiritual
mind will, from "the meat that perisheth,"
naturally rise in thought to "that meat which endureth
to everlasting life." But let it be enough that the
petition about bodily wants irresistibly suggests a
higher petition; and let us not rob ourselves--out of a
morbid spirituality--of our one petition in this prayer for
that bodily provision which the immediate sequel of this
discourse shows that our heavenly Father has so much at
heart. In limiting our petitions, however, to provision
for the day, what a spirit of childlike dependence does
the Lord both demand and beget!
Fifth Petition:
12. And forgive us our debts--A
vitally important view of sin, this--as an offense against
God demanding reparation to His dishonored claims upon our
absolute subjection. As the debtor in the creditor's
hand, so is the sinner in the hands of God. This idea of
sin had indeed come up before in this discourse--in the
warning to agree with our adversary quickly, in case of
sentence being passed upon us, adjudging us to payment of
the last farthing, and to imprisonment till then (
Mt 5:25, 26). And it comes up once and again in our
Lord's subsequent teaching--as in the parable of the
creditor and his two debtors (
Lu 7:41, 42, &c.), and in the parable of the
unmerciful debtor (
Mt 18:23, &c.). But by embodying it in this brief
model of acceptable prayer, and as the first of three
petitions more or less bearing upon sin, our Lord teaches
us, in the most emphatic manner conceivable, to regard this
view of sin as the primary and fundamental one. Answering
to this is the "forgiveness" which it directs us
to seek--not the removal from our own hearts of the stain
of sin, nor yet the removal of our just dread of God's
anger, or of unworthy suspicions of His love, which is all
that some tell us we have to care about--but the removal
from God's own mind of His displeasure against us on
account of sin, or, to retain the figure, the wiping or
crossing out from His "book of remembrance" of
all entries against us on this account.
as we forgive our debtors--the same
view of sin as before; only now transferred to the region
of offenses given and received between man and man. After
what has been said on
Mt 5:7, it will not be thought that our Lord here
teaches that our exercise of forgiveness towards our
offending fellow men absolutely precedes and is the proper
ground of God's forgiveness of us. His whole teaching,
indeed--as of all Scripture--is the reverse of this. But as
no one can reasonably imagine himself to be the object of
divine forgiveness who is deliberately and habitually
unforgiving towards his fellow men, so it is a beautiful
provision to make our right to ask and expect daily
forgiveness of our daily shortcomings and our final
absolution and acquittal at the great day of admission into
the kingdom, dependent upon our consciousness of a
forgiving disposition towards our fellows, and our
preparedness to protest before the Searcher of hearts that
we do actually forgive them. (See
Mr 11:25, 26). God sees His own image reflected in His
forgiving children; but to ask God for what we ourselves
refuse to men, is to insult Him. So much stress does our
Lord put upon this, that immediately after the close of
this prayer, it is the one point in it which He comes back
upon (
Mt 6:14, 15), for the purpose of solemnly assuring us
that the divine procedure in this matter of forgiveness
will be exactly what our own is.
Sixth Petition:
13. And lead us not into
temptation--He who honestly seeks and has the assurance of,
forgiveness for past sin, will strive to avoid committing
it for the future. But conscious that "when we would
do good evil is present with us," we are taught to
offer this sixth petition, which comes naturally close upon
the preceding, and flows, indeed, instinctively from it in
the hearts of all earnest Christians. There is some
difficulty in the form of the petition, as it is certain
that God does bring His people--as He did Abraham, and
Christ Himself--into circumstances both fitted and designed
to try them, or test the strength of their faith. Some meet
this by regarding the petition as simply an humble
expression of self-distrust and instinctive shrinking from
danger; but this seems too weak. Others take it as a prayer
against yielding to temptation, and so equivalent to a
prayer for support and deliverance when we are tempted; but
this seems to go beyond the precise thing intended. We
incline to take it as a prayer against being drawn
or sucked, of our own will, into temptation, to
which the word here used seems to lend some
countenance--"Introduce us not." This view, while
it does not put into our mouths a prayer against being
tempted--which is more than the divine procedure would seem
to warrant--does not, on the other hand, change the sense
of the petition into one for support under
temptation, which the words will hardly bear; but it gives
us a subject for prayer, in regard to temptation, most
definite, and of all others most needful. It was
precisely this which Peter needed to ask, but did not ask,
when--of his own accord, and in spite of difficulties--he
pressed for entrance into the palace hall of the high
priest, and where, once sucked into the scene and
atmosphere of temptation, he fell so foully. And if so,
does it not seem pretty clear that this was exactly what
our Lord meant His disciples to pray against when He said
in the garden--"Watch and pray, that ye enter not
into temptation"? (
Mt 26:41).
Seventh Petition:
But deliver us from evil--We can see
no good reason for regarding this as but the second half of
the sixth petition. With far better ground might the second
and third petitions be regarded as one. The "but"
connecting the two petitions is an insufficient reason for
regarding them as one, though enough to show that the one
thought naturally follows close upon the other. As the
expression "from evil" may be equally well
rendered "from the evil one," a number or
superior critics think the devil is intended, especially
from its following close upon the subject of
"temptation." But the comprehensive character of
these brief petitions, and the place which this one
occupies, as that on which all our desires die away, seems
to us against so contracted a view of it. Nor can there be
a reasonable doubt that the apostle, in some of the last
sentences which he penned before he was brought forth to
suffer for his Lord, alludes to this very petition in the
language of calm assurance--"And the Lord shall
deliver me from every evil work (compare the Greek
of the two passages), and will preserve me unto his
heavenly kingdom" (
2Ti 4:18). The final petition, then, is only rightly
grasped when regarded as a prayer for deliverance from all
evil of whatever kind--not only from sin, but from all its
consequences--fully and finally. Fitly, then, are our
prayers ended with this. For what can we desire which this
does not carry with it?
For thine is the kingdom, and the
power, and the glory, for ever. Amen--If any reliance is to
be placed on external evidence, this doxology, we think,
can hardly be considered part of the original text. It is
wanting in all the most ancient manuscripts; it is wanting
in the Old Latin version and in the Vulgate:
the former mounting up to about the middle of the second
century, and the latter being a revision of it in the
fourth century by JEROME, a most reverential and
conservative as well as able and impartial critic. As might
be expected from this, it is passed by in silence by the
earliest Latin fathers; but even the Greek commentators,
when expounding this prayer, pass by the doxology. On the
other hand, it is found in a majority of manuscripts,
though not the oldest; it is found in all the Syriac
versions, even the Peschito--dating probably as
early as the second century--although this version lacks
the "Amen," which the doxology, if genuine, could
hardly have wanted; it is found in the Sahidic or
Thebaic version made for the Christians of Upper
Egypt, possibly as early as the Old Latin; and it is
found in perhaps most of the later versions. On a review of
the evidence, the strong probability, we think, is that it
was no part of the original text.
14. For if ye forgive men, &c.--See on Mt 6:12.
15. But if ye forgive not, &c.--See on Mt 6:12.
Fasting ( Mt 6:16-18). Having concluded His supplementary directions on the subject of prayer with this Divine Pattern, our Lord now returns to the subject of Unostentatiousness in our deeds of righteousness, in order to give one more illustration of it, in the matter of fasting.
16. Moreover, when ye fast--referring, probably, to private
and voluntary fasting, which was to be regulated by each
individual for himself; though in spirit it would apply to
any fast.
be not, as the hypocrites, of a sad
countenance: for they disfigure their faces--literally,
"make unseen"; very well rendered
"disfigure." They went about with a slovenly
appearance, and ashes sprinkled on their head.
that they may appear unto men to
fast--It was not the deed, but reputation for
the deed which they sought; and with this view those
hypocrites multiplied their fasts. And are the exhausting
fasts of the Church of Rome, and of Romanizing Protestants,
free from this taint?
Verily I say unto you, They have their
reward.
17. But thou, when thou fastest, anoint thine head, and wash thy face--as the Jews did, except when mourning ( Da 10:3); so that the meaning is, "Appear as usual"--appear so as to attract no notice.
18. That thou appear not unto men to fast, but unto thy Father which is in secret: and thy Father, which seeth in secret, shall reward thee openly--The "openly" seems evidently a later addition to the text of this verse from Mt 6:4, 7, though of course the idea is implied.
Mt 6:19-34. CONCLUDING ILLUSTRATIONS OF THE RIGHTEOUSNESS OF THE KINGDOM--HEAVENLY-MINDEDNESS AND FILIAL CONFIDENCE.
19. Lay not up for ourselves treasures upon earth--hoard
not.
where moth--a
"clothes-moth." Eastern treasures, consisting
partly in costly dresses stored up (
Job 27:16), were liable to be consumed by moths (
Job 13:28; Isa 50:9; 51:8). In
Jas 5:2 there is an evident reference to our Lord's
words here.
and rust--any "eating into"
or "consuming"; here, probably, "wear and
tear."
doth corrupt--cause to disappear. By
this reference to moth and rust our Lord would teach how
perishable are such earthly treasures.
and where thieves break through and
steal--Treasures these, how precarious!
20. But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven--The
language in Luke (
Lu 12:33) is very bold--"Sell that ye have, and
give alms; provide yourselves bags which wax not old, a
treasure in the heavens that faileth not,"
&c.
where neither moth nor rust doth
corrupt, and where thieves do not break through nor
steal--Treasures these, imperishable and
unassailable! (Compare
Col 3:2).
21. For where your treasure is--that which ye value
most.
there will your heart be
also--"Thy treasure--thy heart" is probably the
true reading here: "your," in
Lu 12:34, from which it seems to have come in here.
Obvious though this maxim be, by what multitudes who
profess to bow to the teaching of Christ is it practically
disregarded! "What a man loves," says L UTHER,
quoted by THOLUCK, "that is his God. For he carries it
in his heart, he goes about with it night and day, he
sleeps and wakes with it; be it what it may--wealth or
pelf, pleasure or renown." But because "laying
up" is not in itself sinful, nay, in some cases
enjoined (
2Co 12:14), and honest industry and sagacious
enterprise are usually rewarded with prosperity, many
flatter themselves that all is right between them and God,
while their closest attention, anxiety, zeal, and time are
exhausted upon these earthly pursuits. To put this right,
our Lord adds what follows, in which there is profound
practical wisdom.
22. The light--rather, "the lamp."
of the body is the eye: if therefore
thine eye be single--simple, clear. As applied to the
outward eye, this means general soundness; particularly,
not looking two ways. Here, as also in classical Greek, it
is used figuratively to denote the simplicity of the
mind's eye, singleness of purpose, looking right at its
object, as opposed to having two ends in view. (See
Pr 4:25-27).
thy whole body shall be full of
light--illuminated. As with the bodily vision, the man who
looks with a good, sound eye, walks in light, seeing every
object clear; so a simple and persistent purpose to serve
and please God in everything will make the whole character
consistent and bright.
23. But if thine eye be evil--distempered, or, as we should
say, If we have got a bad eye.
thy whole body shall be full of
darkness--darkened. As a vitiated eye, or an eye that looks
not straight and full at its object, sees nothing as it is,
so a mind and heart divided between heaven and earth is all
dark.
If therefore the light that is in thee
be darkness, how great is that darkness!--As the conscience
is the regulative faculty, and a man's inward purpose,
scope, aim in life, determines his character--if these be
not simple and heavenward, but distorted and double, what
must all the other faculties and principles of our nature
be which take their direction and character from these, and
what must the whole man and the whole life be but a mass of
darkness? In Luke (
Lu 11:36) the converse of this statement very
strikingly expresses what pure, beautiful, broad
perceptions the clarity of the inward eye imparts:
"If thy whole body therefore be full of light, having
no part dark, the whole shall be full of light, as when the
bright shining of a candle doth give thee light." But
now for the application of this.
24. No man can serve--The word means to "belong wholly
and be entirely under command to."
two masters: for either he will hate
the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the
one, and despise the other--Even if the two masters be of
one character and have but one object, the servant must
take law from one or the other: though he may do what
is agreeable to both, he cannot, in the nature of the
thing, be servant to more than one. Much less if, as
in the present case, their interests are quite different,
and even conflicting. In this case, if our affections be in
the service of the one--if we "love the one"--we
must of necessity "hate the other"; if we
determine resolutely to "hold to the one," we
must at the same time disregard, and (if he insist on his
claims upon us) even "despise the other."
Ye cannot serve God and mammon--The
word "mamon"--better written with one
m--is a foreign one, whose precise derivation cannot
certainly be determined, though the most probable one gives
it the sense of "what one trusts in." Here, there
can be no doubt it is used for riches, considered as
an idol master, or god of the heart. The service of this
god and the true God together is here, with a kind of
indignant curtness, pronounced impossible. But since the
teaching of the preceding verses might seem to endanger our
falling short of what is requisite for the present life,
and so being left destitute, our Lord now comes to speak to
that point.
25. Therefore I say unto you, Take no thought--"Be not
solicitous." The English word "thought,"
when our version was made, expressed this idea of
"solicitude," "anxious concern"--as may
be seen in any old English classic; and in the same sense
it is used in
1Sa 9:5, &c. But this sense of the word has now
nearly gone out, and so the mere English reader is apt to
be perplexed. Thought or forethought, for temporal
things--in the sense of reflection, consideration--is
required alike by Scripture and common sense. It is that
anxious solicitude, that oppressive care, which springs
from unbelieving doubts and misgivings, which alone is here
condemned. (See
Php 4:6).
for your life, what ye shall eat, or
what ye shall drink; nor yet for your body, what ye shall
put on--In Luke (
Lu 12:29) our Lord adds, "neither be ye
unsettled"--not "of doubtful mind," as in
our version. When "careful (or 'full of care')
about nothing," but committing all in prayer and
supplication with thanksgiving unto God, the apostle
assures us that "the peace of God, which passeth all
understanding, shall keep our hearts and minds in Christ
Jesus" (
Php 4:6, 7); that is, shall guard both our feelings and
our thoughts from undue agitation, and keep them in a holy
calm. But when we commit our whole temporal condition to
the wit of our own minds, we get into that
"unsettled" state against which our Lord exhorts
His disciples.
Is not the life more than
meat--food.
and the body than raiment?--If God,
then, gives and keeps up the greater--the life, the
body--will He withhold the less, food to sustain life and
raiment to clothe the body?
26. Behold the fowls of the air--in
Mt 6:28, "observe well," and in
Lu 12:24, "consider"--so as to learn wisdom
from them.
for they sow not, neither do they
reap, nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father
feedeth them. Are ye not much better than they?--nobler in
yourselves and dearer to God. The argument here is from the
greater to the less; but how rich in detail! The brute
creation--void of reason--are incapable of sowing, reaping,
and storing: yet your heavenly Father suffers them not
helplessly to perish, but sustains them without any of
those processes. Will He see, then, His own children using
all the means which reason dictates for procuring the
things needful for the body--looking up to Himself at every
step--and yet leave them to starve?
27. Which of you, by taking thought--anxious
solicitude.
can add one cubit unto his
stature?--"Stature" can hardly be the thing
intended here: first, because the subject is the
prolongation of life, by the supply of its necessaries
of food and clothing: and next, because no one would dream
of adding a cubit--or a foot and a half--to his stature,
while in the corresponding passage in Luke (
Lu 12:25, 26) the thing intended is represented as
"that thing which is least." But if we
take the word in its primary sense of
"age" (for "stature" is but a
secondary sense) the idea will be this, "Which of you,
however anxiously you vex yourselves about it, can add so
much as a step to the length of your life's
journey?" To compare the length of life to measures of
this nature is not foreign to the language of Scripture
(compare
Ps 39:5; 2Ti 4:7, &c.). So understood, the meaning
is clear and the connection natural. In this the best
critics now agree.
28. And why take ye thought for raiment? Consider--observe
well.
the lilies of the field, how they
grow: they toil not--as men, planting and preparing the
flax.
neither do they spin--as women.
29. And yet I say unto you, That even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these--What incomparable teaching!--best left in its own transparent clearness and rich simplicity.
30. Wherefore, if God so clothe the grass--the
"herbage."
of the field, which to-day is, and
to-morrow is cast into the oven--wild flowers cut with the
grass, withering by the heat, and used for fuel. (See
Jas 1:11).
shall He not much more clothe you, O
ye of little faith?--The argument here is something fresh.
Gorgeous as is the array of the flowers that deck the
fields, surpassing all artificial human grandeur, it is for
but a brief moment; you are ravished with it to-day, and
to-morrow it is gone; your own hands have seized and cast
it into the oven: Shall, then, God's children, so dear
to Him, and instinct with a life that cannot die, be left
naked? He does not say, Shall they not be more beauteously
arrayed? but, Shall He not much more clothe them?
that being all He will have them regard as secured to them
(compare
Heb 13:5). The expression, "Little-faithed
ones," which our Lord applies once and again to His
disciples (
Mt 8:26; 14:31; 16:8), can hardly be regarded as
rebuking any actual manifestations of unbelief at that
early period, and before such an audience. It is His way of
gently chiding the spirit of unbelief, so natural
even to the best, who are surrounded by a world of sense,
and of kindling a generous desire to shake it off.
31. Therefore take no thought--solicitude.
saying, What shall we eat? or, What
shall we drink? or, Wherewithal shall we be clothed?
32. (For after all these things do the Gentiles
seek)--rather, "pursue." Knowing nothing
definitely beyond the present life to kindle their
aspirations and engage their supreme attention, the heathen
naturally pursue present objects as their chief, their only
good. To what an elevation above these does Jesus here lift
His disciples!
for your heavenly Father knoweth that
ye have need of all these things--How precious this word!
Food and raiment are pronounced needful to God's
children; and He who could say, "No man knoweth the
Father but the Son, and he to whomsoever the Son will
reveal Him" (
Mt 11:27), says with an authority which none but
Himself could claim, "Your heavenly Father
knoweth that ye have need of all these things."
Will not that suffice you, O ye needy ones of the household
of faith?
33. But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you--This is the great summing up. Strictly speaking, it has to do only with the subject of the present section--the right state of the heart with reference to heavenly and earthly things; but being couched in the form of a brief general directory, it is so comprehensive in its grasp as to embrace the whole subject of this discourse. And, as if to make this the more evident, the two keynotes of this great sermon seem purposely struck in it--"the KINGDOM" and "the RIGHTEOUSNESS" of the kingdom--as the grand objects, in the supreme pursuit of which all things needful for the present life will be added to us. The precise sense of every word in this golden verse should be carefully weighed. "The kingdom of God" is the primary subject of the Sermon on the Mount--that kingdom which the God of heaven is erecting in this fallen world, within which are all the spiritually recovered and inwardly subject portion of the family of Adam, under Messiah as its Divine Head and King. "The righteousness thereof" is the character of all such, so amply described and variously illustrated in the foregoing portions of this discourse. The "seeking" of these is the making them the object of supreme choice and pursuit; and the seeking of them "first" is the seeking of them before and above all else. The "all these things" which shall in that case be added to us are just the "all these things" which the last words of Mt 6:32 assured us "our heavenly Father knoweth that we have need of"; that is, all we require for the present life. And when our Lord says they shall be "added," it is implied, as a matter of course, that the seekers of the kingdom and its righteousness shall have these as their proper and primary portion: the rest being their gracious reward for not seeking them. (See an illustration of the principle of this in 2Ch 1:11, 12). What follows is but a reduction of this great general direction into a practical and ready form for daily use.
34. Take therefore no thought--anxious care.
for the morrow: for the morrow shall
take thought for the things of itself--(or, according to
other authorities, "for itself")--shall have its
own causes of anxiety.
Sufficient unto the day is the evil
thereof--An admirable practical maxim, and better rendered
in our version than in almost any other, not excepting the
preceding English ones. Every day brings its own cares; and
to anticipate is only to double them.
SERMON ON THE MOUNT--concluded.
Mt 7:1-12. MISCELLANEOUS SUPPLEMENTARY COUNSELS.
That these verses are entirely supplementary is the simplest and most natural view of them. All attempts to make out any evident connection with the immediately preceding context are, in our judgment, forced. But, though supplementary, these counsels are far from being of subordinate importance. On the contrary, they involve some of the most delicate and vital duties of the Christian life. In the vivid form in which they are here presented, perhaps they could not have been introduced with the same effect under any of the foregoing heads; but they spring out of the same great principles, and are but other forms and manifestations of the same evangelical "righteousness."
Censorious Judgment ( Mt 7:1-5).
1. Judge not, that ye be not judged--To "judge" here does not exactly mean to pronounce condemnatory judgment, nor does it refer to simple judging at all, whether favorable or the reverse. The context makes it clear that the thing here condemned is that disposition to look unfavorably on the character and actions of others, which leads invariably to the pronouncing of rash, unjust, and unlovely judgments upon them. No doubt it is the judgments so pronounced which are here spoken of; but what our Lord aims at is the spirit out of which they spring. Provided we eschew this unlovely spirit, we are not only warranted to sit in judgment upon a brother's character and actions, but in the exercise of a necessary discrimination are often constrained to do so for our own guidance. It is the violation of the law of love involved in the exercise of a censorious disposition which alone is here condemned. And the argument against it--"that ye be not judged"--confirms this: "that your own character and actions be not pronounced upon with the like severity"; that is, at the great day.
2. For with what judgments ye judge, ye shall be judged:
and with what measure ye mete--whatever standard of
judgment ye apply to others.
it shall be measured to you
again--This proverbial maxim is used by our Lord in other
connections--as in
Mr 4:24, and with a slightly different application in
Lu 6:38 --as a great principle in the divine
administration. Unkind judgment of others will be
judicially returned upon ourselves, in the day when God
shall judge the secrets of men by Jesus Christ. But, as in
many other cases under the divine administration, such
harsh judgment gets self-punished even here. For people
shrink from contact with those who systematically deal out
harsh judgment upon others--naturally concluding that they
themselves may be the next victims--and feel impelled in
self-defense, when exposed to it, to roll back upon the
assailant his own censures.
3. And why beholdest thou the mote--"splinter,"
here very well rendered "mote," denoting any
small fault.
that is in thy brother's eye, but
considerest not the beam that is in thine own
eye?--denoting the much greater fault which we overlook in
ourselves.
4. Or how wilt thou say to thy brother, Let me pull out the mote out of thine eye; and, behold, a beam is in thine own eye?
5. Thou hypocrite--"Hypocrite."
first cast out the beam out of thine
own eye; and then shalt thou see clearly to cast out the
mote out of thy brother's eye--Our Lord uses a most
hyperbolical, but not unfamiliar figure, to express the
monstrous inconsistency of this conduct. The
"hypocrisy" which, not without indignation, He
charges it with, consists in the pretense of a zealous and
compassionate charity, which cannot possibly be real in one
who suffers worse faults to lie uncorrected in himself. He
only is fit to be a reprover of others who jealously and
severely judges himself. Such persons will not only be slow
to undertake the office of censor on their neighbors, but,
when constrained in faithfulness to deal with them, will
make it evident that they do it with reluctance and
not satisfaction, with moderation and not
exaggeration, with love and not harshness.
Prostitution of Holy Things ( Mt 7:6). The opposite extreme to that of censoriousness is here condemned--want of discrimination of character.
6. Give not that which is holy unto the dogs--savage or
snarling haters of truth and righteousness.
neither cast ye your pearls before
swine--the impure or coarse, who are incapable of
appreciating the priceless jewels of Christianity. In the
East, dogs are wilder and more gregarious, and, feeding on
carrion and garbage, are coarser and fiercer than the same
animals in the West. Dogs and swine, besides being
ceremonially unclean, were peculiarly repulsive to the
Jews, and indeed to the ancients generally.
lest they trample them under their
feet--as swine do.
and turn again and rend you--as dogs
do. Religion is brought into contempt, and its professors
insulted, when it is forced upon those who cannot value it
and will not have it. But while the indiscriminately
zealous have need of this caution, let us be on our guard
against too readily setting our neighbors down as dogs and
swine, and excusing ourselves from endeavoring to do them
good on this poor plea.
Prayer ( Mt 7:7-11). Enough, one might think, had been said on this subject in Mt 6:5-15. But the difficulty of the foregoing duties seems to have recalled the subject, and this gives it quite a new turn. "How shall we ever be able to carry out such precepts as these, of tender, holy, yet discriminating love?" might the humble disciple inquire. "Go to God with it," is our Lord's reply; but He expresses this with a fulness which leaves nothing to be desired, urging now not only confidence, but importunity in prayer.
7. Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you--Though there seems evidently a climax here, expressive of more and more importunity, yet each of these terms used presents what we desire of God in a different light. We ask for what we wish; we seek for what we miss; we knock for that from which we feel ourselves shut out. Answering to this threefold representation is the triple assurance of success to our believing efforts. "But ah!" might some humble disciple say, "I cannot persuade myself that I have any interest with God." To meet this, our Lord repeats the triple assurance He had just given, but in such a form as to silence every such complaint.
8. For every one that asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth; and to him that knocketh it shall be opened--Of course, it is presumed that he asks aright--that is, in faith--and with an honest purpose to make use of what he receives. "If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God. But let him ask in faith, nothing wavering (undecided whether to be altogether on the Lord's side). For he that wavereth is like a wave of the sea driven with the wind and tossed. For let not that man think that he shall receive any thing of the Lord" ( Jas 1:5-7). Hence, "Ye ask, and receive not, because ye ask amiss, that ye may consume it upon your lusts" ( Jas 4:3).
9. Or what man is there of you, whom if his son ask
bread--a loaf.
will he give him a stone?--round and
smooth like such a loaf or cake as was much in use, but
only to mock him.
10. Or if he ask a fish, will he give him a serpent?--like it, indeed, but only to sting him.
11. If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children, how much more shall your Father which is in heaven give good things to them that ask him!--Bad as our fallen nature is, the father in us is not extinguished. What a heart, then, must the Father of all fathers have towards His pleading children! In the corresponding passage in Luke (see on Lu 11:13), instead of "good things," our Lord asks whether He will not much more give the Holy Spirit to them that ask Him. At this early stage of His ministry, and before such an audience, He seems to avoid such sharp doctrinal teaching as was more accordant with His plan at the riper stage indicated in Luke, and in addressing His own disciples exclusively.
Golden Rule ( Mt 7:12).
12. Therefore--to say all in one word.
all things whatsoever ye would that
men should do to you, do ye even so to them--the same thing
and in the same way.
for this is the law and the
prophets--"This is the substance of all relative duty;
all Scripture in a nutshell." Incomparable summary!
How well called "the royal law!" (
Jas 2:8; compare
Ro 13:9). It is true that similar maxims are found
floating in the writings of the cultivated Greeks and
Romans, and naturally enough in the Rabbinical writings.
But so expressed as it is here--in immediate connection
with, and as the sum of such duties as has been just
enjoined, and such principles as had been before taught--it
is to be found nowhere else. And the best commentary upon
this fact is, that never till our Lord came down thus to
teach did men effectually and widely exemplify it in their
practice. The precise sense of the maxim is best referred
to common sense. It is not, of course, what--in our
wayward, capricious, gasping moods--we should wish
that men would do to us, that we are to hold ourselves
bound to do to them; but only what--in the exercise of an
impartial judgment, and putting ourselves in their
place--we consider it reasonable that they should do to us,
that we are to do to them.
Mt 7:13-29. CONCLUSION AND EFFECT OF THE SERMON ON THE MOUNT.
We have here the application of the whole preceding discourse.
Conclusion of the Sermon on the Mount ( Mt 7:13-27). "The righteousness of the kingdom," so amply described, both in principle and in detail, would be seen to involve self-sacrifice at every step. Multitudes would never face this. But it must be faced, else the consequences will be fatal. This would divide all within the sound of these truths into two classes: the many, who will follow the path of ease and self-indulgence--end where it might; and the few, who, bent on eternal safety above everything else, take the way that leads to it--at whatever cost. This gives occasion to the two opening verses of this application.
13. Enter ye in at the strait gate--as if hardly wide
enough to admit one at all. This expresses the difficulty
of the first right step in religion, involving, as it does,
a triumph over all our natural inclinations. Hence the
still stronger expression in Luke (
Lu 13:24), "Strive to enter in at the strait
gate."
for wide is the gate--easily
entered.
and broad is the way--easily
trodden.
that leadeth to destruction, and--thus
lured "many there be which go in thereat."
14. Because strait is the gate, and narrow is the way,
which leadeth unto life--In other words, the whole course
is as difficult as the first step; and (so it comes to pass
that).
few there be that find it--The
recommendation of the broad way is the ease with which it
is trodden and the abundance of company to be found in it.
It is sailing with a fair wind and a favorable tide. The
natural inclinations are not crossed, and fears of the
issue, if not easily hushed, are in the long run
effectually subdued. The one disadvantage of this course is
its end--it "leadeth to destruction." The great
Teacher says it, and says it as "One having
authority." To the supposed injustice or harshness of
this He never once adverts. He leaves it to be inferred
that such a course righteously, naturally, necessarily so
ends. But whether men see this or no, here He lays down the
law of the kingdom, and leaves it with us. As to the other
way, the disadvantage of it lies in its narrowness and
solicitude. Its very first step involves a revolution in
all our purposes and plans for life, and a surrender of all
that is dear to natural inclination, while all that follows
is but a repetition of the first great act of
self-sacrifice. No wonder, then, that few find and few are
found in it. But it has one advantage--it "leadeth
unto life." Some critics take "the gate"
here, not for the first, but the last step in religion;
since gates seldom open into roads, but roads usually
terminate in a gate, leading straight to a mansion. But as
this would make our Lord's words to have a very
inverted and unnatural form as they stand, it is better,
with the majority of critics, to view them as we have done.
But since such teaching would be as unpopular as the way
itself, our Lord next forewarns His hearers that preachers
of smooth things--the true heirs and representatives of the
false prophets of old--would be rife enough in the new
kingdom.
15. Beware--But beware.
of false prophets--that is, of
teachers coming as authorized expounders of the mind of God
and guides to heaven. (See
Ac 20:29, 30; 2Pe 2:1, 2).
which come to you in sheep's
clothing--with a bland, gentle, plausible exterior;
persuading you that the gate is not strait nor the way
narrow, and that to teach so is illiberal and
bigoted--precisely what the old prophets did (
Eze 13:1-10, 22).
but inwardly they are ravening
wolves--bent on devouring the flock for their own ends (
2Co 11:2, 3, 13-15).
16. Ye shall know them by their fruits--not their
doctrines--as many of the elder interpreters and some later
ones explain it--for that corresponds to the tree itself;
but the practical effect of their teaching, which is the
proper fruit of the tree.
Do men gather grapes of thorns--any
kind of prickly plant.
or figs of thistles?--a three-pronged
variety. The general sense is obvious--Every tree bears its
own fruit.
17. Even so every good tree bringeth forth good fruit: but a corrupt tree bringeth forth evil fruit.
18. A good tree cannot bring forth evil fruit, neither can a corrupt tree bring forth good fruit--Obvious as is the truth here expressed in different forms--that the heart determines and is the only proper interpreter of the actions of our life--no one who knows how the Church of Rome makes a merit of actions, quite apart from the motives that prompt them, and how the same tendency manifests itself from time to time even among Protestant Christians, can think it too obvious to be insisted on by the teachers of divine truth. Here follows a wholesome digression.
19. Every tree that bringeth not forth good fruit is hewn down, and cast into the fire--(See on Mt 3:10).
20. Wherefore by their fruits ye shall know them--that is, But the point I now press is not so much the end of such, as the means of detecting them; and this, as already said, is their fruits. The hypocrisy of teachers now leads to a solemn warning against religious hypocrisy in general.
21. Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord--the
reduplication of the title "Lord" denoting zeal
in according it to Christ (see
Mr 14:45). Yet our Lord claims and expects this of all
His disciples, as when He washed their feet: "Ye call
me Master and Lord: and ye say well; for so I am" (
Joh 13:13).
shall enter into the kingdom of
heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in
heaven--that will which it had been the great object of
this discourse to set forth. Yet our Lord says warily, not
"the will of your Father," but "of
My Father"; thus claiming a relationship to His
Father with which His disciples might not intermeddle, and
which He never lets down. And He so speaks here to give
authority to His asseverations. But now He rises higher
still--not formally announcing Himself as the Judge,
but intimating what men will say to Him, and He to them,
when He sits as their final judge.
22. Many will say to me in that day--What day? It is
emphatically unnamed. But it is the day to which He had
just referred, when men shall "enter" or not
enter "into the kingdom of heaven." (See a
similar way of speaking of "that day" in
2Ti 1:12; 4:8).
Lord, Lord--The reiteration denotes
surprise. "What, Lord? How is this? Are we to
be disowned?"
have we not prophesied--or,
"publicly taught." As one of the special gifts of
the Spirit in the early Church, it has the sense of
"inspired and authoritative teaching," and is
ranked next to the apostleship. (See
1Co 12:28; Eph 4:11). In this sense it is used here, as
appears from what follows.
in thy name--or, "to thy
name," and so in the two following
clauses--"having reference to Thy name as the sole
power in which we did it."
and in thy name have cast out devils?
and in thy name done many wonderful works--or, miracles.
These are selected as three examples of the highest
services rendered to the Christian cause, and through the
power of Christ's own name, invoked for that purpose;
He Himself, too, responding to the call. And the threefold
repetition of the question, each time in the same form,
expresses in the liveliest manner the astonishment of the
speakers at the view now taken of them.
23. And then will I profess unto them--or, openly
proclaim--tearing off the mask.
I never knew you--What they
claimed--intimacy with Christ--is just what He repudiates,
and with a certain scornful dignity. "Our acquaintance
was not broken off--there never was any."
depart from me--(Compare
Mt 25:41). The connection here gives these words an
awful significance. They claimed intimacy with Christ, and
in the corresponding passage,
Lu 13:26, are represented as having gone out and in
with Him on familiar terms. "So much the worse for
you," He replies: "I bore with that long enough;
but now--begone!"
ye that work iniquity--not "that
wrought iniquity"; for they are represented as
fresh from the scenes and acts of it as they stand before
the Judge. (See on the almost identical, but even more
vivid and awful, description of the scene in
Lu 13:24-27). That the apostle alludes to these very
words in
2Ti 2:19 there can hardly be any
doubt--"Nevertheless the foundation of God standeth
sure, having this seal, The Lord knoweth them that
are His. And, Let every one that nameth the name of
Christ depart from iniquity."
24. Therefore--to bring this discourse to a close.
whosoever heareth these sayings of
mine, and doeth them--see
Jas 1:22, which seems a plain allusion to these words;
also
Lu 11:28; Ro 2:13; 1Jo 3:7.
I will liken him unto a wise man--a
shrewd, prudent, provident man.
which built his house upon a rock--the
rock of true discipleship, or genuine subjection to Christ.
25. And the rain descended--from above.
and the floods came--from below.
and the winds blew--sweeping
across.
and beat upon that house--thus from
every direction.
and it fell not; for it was founded
upon a rock--See
1Jo 2:17.
26. And every one that heareth these sayings of mine--in
the attitude of discipleship.
and doeth them not, shall be likened
unto a foolish man, which built his house upon the
sand--denoting a loose foundation--that of an empty
profession and mere external services.
27. And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the
winds blew, and beat upon that house--struck against that
house;
and it fell: and great was the fall of
it--terrible the ruin! How lively must this imagery have
been to an audience accustomed to the fierceness of an
Eastern tempest, and the suddenness and completeness with
which it sweeps everything unsteady before it!
Effect of the Sermon on the Mount ( Mt 7:28, 29).
28. And it came to pass, when Jesus had ended these sayings, the people were astonished at his doctrine--rather, "His teaching," for the reference is to the manner of it quite as much as the matter, or rather more so.
29. For he taught them as one having authority--The
word "one," which our translators have here
inserted, only weakens the statement.
and not as the scribes--The
consciousness of divine authority, as Lawgiver, Expounder
and Judge, so beamed through His teaching, that the
scribes' teaching could not but appear drivelling in
such a light.
Mt 8:1-4. HEALING OF A LEPER. ( = Mr 1:40-45; Lu 5:12-16).
The time of this miracle seems too definitely fixed here to admit of our placing it where it stands in Mark and Luke, in whose Gospels no such precise note of time is given.
1. When he was come down from the mountain, great multitudes followed him.
2. And, behold, there came a leper--"a man full of
leprosy," says
Lu 5:12. Much has been written on this disease of
leprosy, but certain points remain still doubtful. All that
needs be said here is that it was a cutaneous disease, of a
loathsome, diffusive, and, there is reason to believe, when
thoroughly pronounced, incurable character; that though in
its distinctive features it is still found in several
countries--as Arabia, Egypt, and South Africa--it
prevailed, in the form of what is called white leprosy, to
an unusual extent, and from a very early period, among the
Hebrews; and that it thus furnished to the whole nation a
familiar and affecting symbol of SIN, considered as (1)
loathsome, (2) spreading, (3) incurable.
And while the ceremonial ordinances for detection and
cleansing prescribed in this case by the law of Moses (
Le 13:1-14:57) held forth a coming remedy "for sin
and for uncleanness" (
Ps 51:7; 2Ki 5:1, 7, 10, 13, 14), the numerous cases of
leprosy with which our Lord came in contact, and the
glorious cures of them which He wrought, were a fitting
manifestation of the work which He came to accomplish. In
this view, it deserves to be noticed that the first of our
Lord's miracles of healing recorded by Matthew is this
cure of a leper.
and worshipped him--in what sense we
shall presently see. Mark says (
Mr 1:40), he came, "beseeching and kneeling to
Him," and Luke says (
Lu 5:12), "he fell on his face."
saying, Lord, if thou wilt, thou canst
make me clean--As this is the only cure of leprosy recorded
by all the three first Evangelists, it was probably the
first case of the kind; and if so, this leper's faith
in the power of Christ must have been formed in him by what
he had heard of His other cures. And how striking a faith
is it! He does not say he believed Him able, but
with a brevity expressive of a confidence that knew no
doubt, he says simply, "Thou canst." But of
Christ's willingness to heal him he was not so sure. It
needed more knowledge of Jesus than he could be supposed to
have to assure him of that. But one thing he was sure of,
that He had but to "will" it. This shows with
what "worship" of Christ this leper fell on his
face before Him. Clear theological knowledge of the Person
of Christ was not then possessed even by those who were
most with Him and nearest to Him. Much less could full
insight into all that we know of the Only-begotten of the
Father be expected of this leper. But he who at that moment
felt and owned that to heal an incurable disease needed but
the fiat of the Person who stood before him, had
assuredly that very faith in the germ which now casts its
crown before Him that loved us, and would at any time die
for His blessed name.
3. And Jesus--or "He," according to another
reading,--"moved with compassion," says Mark (
Mr 1:41); a precious addition.
put forth his hand, and touched
him--Such a touch occasioned ceremonial defilement (
Le 5:3); even as the leper's coming near enough for
contact was against the Levitical regulations (
Le 13:46). But as the man's faith told him there
would be no case for such regulations if the cure he hoped
to experience should be accomplished, so He who had healing
in His wings transcended all such statutes.
saying, I will; be thou clean--How
majestic those two words! By not assuring the man of His
power to heal him, He delightfully sets His seal to
the man's previous confession of that power; and by
assuring him of the one thing of which he had any doubt,
and for which he waited--His will to do it--He makes
a claim as divine as the cure which immediately followed
it.
And immediately his leprosy was
cleansed--Mark, more emphatic, says (
Mr 1:42), "And as soon as He had spoken,
immediately the leprosy departed from him, and he was
cleansed"--as perfectly as instantaneously. What a
contrast this to modern pretended cures!
4. And Jesus--"straitly charged him, and forthwith
sent him away" (
Mr 1:43), and
saith unto him, See thou tell no
man--A hard condition this would seem to a grateful heart,
whose natural language, in such a case, is "Come,
hear, all ye that fear God, and I will declare what He hath
done for my soul" (
Ps 66:16). We shall presently see the reason for
it.
but go thy way, show thyself to the
priest, and offer the gift that Moses commanded-- (
Le 14:1-57).
for a testimony unto them--a palpable
witness that the Great Healer had indeed come, and that
"God had visited His people." What the sequel
was, our Evangelist Matthew does not say; but Mark thus
gives it (
Mr 1:45): "But he went out, and began to publish
it much, and to blaze abroad the matter, insomuch that
Jesus could no more openly enter into the city, but was
without in desert places: and they came to Him from every
quarter." Thus--by an over-zealous, though most
natural and not very culpable, infringement of the
injunction to keep the matter quiet--was our Lord, to some
extent, thwarted in His movements. As His whole course was
sublimely noiseless (
Mt 12:19), so we find Him repeatedly taking steps to
prevent matters prematurely coming to a crisis with Him.
(But see on Mr 5:19, 20).
"And He withdrew Himself," adds Luke (
Lu 5:16), "into the wilderness, and prayed";
retreating from the popular excitement into the secret
place of the Most High, and thus coming forth as dew upon
the mown grass, and as showers that water the earth (
Ps 72:6). And this is the secret both of strength and
of sweetness in the servants and followers of Christ in
every age.
Mt 8:5-13. HEALING OF THE CENTURION'S SERVANT. ( = Lu 7:1-10).
This incident belongs to a later stage. For the exposition, see on Lu 7:1-10.
Mt 8:14-17. HEALING OF PETER'S MOTHER-IN-LAW AND MANY OTHERS. ( = Mr 1:29-34; Lu 4:38-41).
For the exposition, see on Mr 1:29-34.
Mt 8:18-22. INCIDENTS ILLUSTRATIVE OF DISCIPLESHIP. ( = Lu 9:57-62).
The incidents here are two: in the corresponding passage of Luke they are three. Here they are introduced before the mission of the Twelve: in Luke, when our Lord was making preparation for His final journey to Jerusalem. But to conclude from this, as some good critics do (as BENGEL, ELLICOTT, &c.) that one of these incidents at least occurred twice--which led to the mention of the others at the two different times--is too artificial. Taking them, then, as one set of occurrences, the question arises. Are they recorded by Matthew or by Luke in their proper place? NEANDER, SCHLEIERMACHER, and OLSHAUSEN adhere to Luke's order; while MEYER, DE WETTE, and LANGE prefer that of Matthew. Probably the first incident is here in its right place. But as the command, in the second incident, to preach the kingdom of God, would scarcely have been given at so early a period, it is likely that it and the third incident have their true place in Luke. Taking these three incidents up here then we have,
I. The Rash or Precipitate Disciple ( Mt 8:19, 20).
19. And a certain scribe came, and said unto him, Master, I will follow thee whithersoever thou goest.
20. And Jesus saith unto him, The foxes have holes, and the birds of the air have nests; but the Son of man hath not where to lay his head--Few as there were of the scribes who attached themselves to Jesus, it would appear, from his calling Him Teacher, that this one was a "disciple" in that looser sense of the word in which it is applied to the crowds who flocked after Him, with more or less conviction that His claims were well founded. But from the answer which he received we are led to infer that there was more of transient emotion--of temporary impulse--than of intelligent principle in the speech. The preaching of Christ had riveted and charmed him; his heart had swelled; his enthusiasm had been kindled; and in this state of mind he will go anywhere with Him, and feels impelled to tell Him so. "Wilt thou?" replies the Lord Jesus. "Knowest thou whom thou art pledging thyself to follow, and whither haply He may lead thee? No warm home, no downy pillow has He for thee: He has them not for Himself. The foxes are not without their holes, nor do the birds of the air lack their nests; but the Son of man has to depend on the hospitality of others, and borrow the pillow whereon He lays His head." How affecting is this reply! And yet He rejects not this man's offer, nor refuses him the liberty to follow Him. Only He will have him know what he is doing, and "count the cost." He will have him weigh well the real nature and the strength of his attachment, whether it be such as will abide in the day of trial. If so, he will be right welcome, for Christ puts none away. But it seems too plain that in this case that had not been done. And so we have called this the Rash or Precipitate Disciple.
II. The Procrastinating or Entangled Disciple ( Mt 8:21, 22).
As this is more fully given in Luke (
Lu 9:59), we must take both together. "And He said
unto another of His disciples, Follow Me. But he
said,"
Lord, suffer me first to go and bury
my father. But Jesus said unto him, Follow me; and let the
dead bury their dead--or, as more definitely in Luke,
"Let the dead bury their dead: but go thou and preach
the kingdom of God" (
Lu 9:60). This disciple did not, like the former,
volunteer his services, but is called by the Lord Jesus,
not only to follow, but to preach Him. And he is quite
willing; only he is not ready just yet. "Lord, I
will; but"--"There is a difficulty in the way
just now; but that once removed, I am Thine." What now
is this difficulty? Was his father actually dead--lying a
corpse--having only to be buried? Impossible. As it was the
practice, as noticed on
Lu 7:12, to bury on the day of death, it is not very
likely that this disciple would have been here at all if
his father had just breathed his last; nor would the Lord,
if He was there, have hindered him discharging the last
duties of a son to a father. No doubt it was the common
case of a son having a frail or aged father, not likely to
live long, whose head he thinks it his duty to see under
the ground ere he goes abroad. "This aged father of
mine will soon be removed; and if I might but delay till I
see him decently interred, I should then be free to preach
the kingdom of God wherever duty might call me." This
view of the case will explain the curt reply, "Let the
dead bury their dead: but go thou and preach the kingdom of
God." Like all the other paradoxical sayings of our
Lord, the key to it is the different senses--a higher and a
lower--in which the same word "dead" is used:
There are two kingdoms of God in existence upon earth; the
kingdom of nature, and the kingdom of grace: To the one
kingdom all the children of this world, even the most
ungodly, are fully alive; to the other, only the children
of light: The reigning irreligion consists not in
indifference to the common humanities of social life, but
to things spiritual and eternal: Fear not, therefore, that
your father will in your absence be neglected, and that
when he breathes his last there will not be relatives and
friends ready enough to do to him the last offices of
kindness. Your wish to discharge these yourself is natural,
and to be allowed to do it a privilege not lightly to be
foregone. But the kingdom of God lies now all neglected and
needy: Its more exalted character few discern; to its
paramount claims few are alive: and to "preach"
it fewer still are qualified and called: But thou art: The
Lord therefore hath need of thee: Leave, then, those claims
of nature, high though they be, to those who are dead to
the still higher claims of the kingdom of grace, which God
is now erecting upon earth--Let the dead bury their dead;
but go thou and preach the kingdom of God. And so have we
here the genuine, but Procrastinating or Entangled
Disciple.
The next case is recorded only by Luke:
III. The Irresolute or Wavering Disciple ( Lu 9:61, 62).
Lu 9:61:
And another also said, Lord, I will follow thee; but let me first go bid them farewell which are at home at my house.Lu 9:62:
And Jesus said unto him, No man, having put his hand to the plough, and looking back, is fit for the kingdom of God. But for the very different replies given, we should hardly have discerned the difference between this and the second case: the one man called, indeed, and the other volunteering, as did the first; but both seemingly alike willing, and only having a difficulty in their way just at that moment. But, by help of what is said respectively to each, we perceive the great difference between the two cases. From the warning given against "looking back," it is evident that this man's discipleship was not yet thorough, his separation from the world not entire. It is not a case of going back, but of looking back; and as there is here a manifest reference to the case of "Lot's wife" ( Ge 19:26; and see on Lu 17:32), we see that it is not actual return to the world that we have here to deal with, but a reluctance to break with it. The figure of putting one's hand to the plough and looking back is an exceedingly vivid one, and to an agricultural people most impressive. As ploughing requires an eye intent on the furrow to be made, and is marred the instant one turns about, so will they come short of salvation who prosecute the work of God with a distracted attention, a divided heart. The reference may be chiefly to ministers; but the application at least is general. As the image seems plainly to have been suggested by the case of Elijah and Elisha, a difficulty may be raised, requiring a moment's attention. When Elijah cast his mantle about Elisha, which the youth quite understood to mean appointing him his successor, he was ploughing with twelve yoke of oxen, the last pair held by himself. Leaving his oxen, he ran after the prophet, and said, "Let me, I pray thee, kiss my father and my mother, and [then] I will follow thee." Was this said in the same spirit with the same speech uttered by our disciple? Let us see. "And Elijah said unto him, Go back again: for what have I done to thee." Commentators take this to mean that Elijah had really done nothing to hinder him from going on with all his ordinary duties. But to us it seems clear that Elijah's intention was to try what manner of spirit the youth was of:--"Kiss thy father and mother? And why not? By all means, go home and stay with them; for what have I done to thee? I did but throw a mantle about thee; but what of that?" If this was his meaning, Elisha thoroughly apprehended and nobly met it. "He returned back from him, and took a yoke of oxen, and slew them, and boiled their flesh with the instruments of the oxen (the wood of his ploughing implements), and gave unto the people, and they did eat: then he arose, and went after Elijah, and ministered unto him" ( 1Ki 19:19-21). We know not if even his father and mother had time to be called to this hasty feast. But this much is plain, that, though in affluent circumstances, he gave up his lower calling, with all its prospects, for the higher and at that time perilous, office to which he was called. What now is the bearing of these two cases? Did Elisha do wrong in bidding them farewell with whom he was associated in his early calling? Or, if not, would this disciple have done wrong if he had done the same thing, and in the same spirit, with Elisha? Clearly not. Elisha's doing it proved that he could with safety do it; and our Lord's warning is not against bidding them farewell which were at home at his house, but against the probable fatal consequences of that step; lest the embraces of earthly relationship should prove too strong for him, and he should never return to follow Christ. Accordingly, we have called this the Irresolute or Wavering Disciple.
Mt 8:23-27. JESUS CROSSING THE SEA OF GALILEE, MIRACULOUSLY STILLS A TEMPEST. ( = Mr 4:35-41; Lu 8:22-25).
For the exposition, see on Mr 4:35-41.
Mt 8:28-34. JESUS HEALS THE GERGESENE DEMONIACS. ( = Mr 5:1-20; Lu 8:26-39).
For the exposition, see on Mr 5:1-20.
Mt 9:1-8. HEALING OF A PARALYTIC. ( = Mr 2:1-12; Lu 5:17-26).
This incident appears to follow next in order of time to the cure of the leper ( Mt 8:1-4). For the exposition, see on Mr 2:1-12.
Mt 9:9-13. MATTHEW'S CALL AND FEAST. ( = Mr 2:14-17; Lu 5:27-32).
The Call of Matthew ( Mt 9:9).
9. And as Jesus passed forth from thence--that is, from the
scene of the paralytic's cure in Capernaum, towards the
shore of the Sea of Galilee, on which that town lay. Mark,
as usual, pictures the scene more in detail, thus (
Mr 2:13): "And He went forth again by the seaside;
and all the multitude resorted unto Him, and He taught
them"--or, "kept teaching them." "And
as He passed by"
he saw a man, named Matthew--the
writer of this precious Gospel, who here, with singular
modesty and brevity, relates the story of his own calling.
In Mark and Luke he is called Levi, which seems to
have been his family name. In their lists of the twelve
apostles, however, Mark and Luke give him the name of
Matthew, which seems to have been the name by which he was
known as a disciple. While he himself sinks his family
name, he is careful not to sink his occupation, the
obnoxious associations with which he would place over
against the grace that called him from it, and made him an
apostle. (See on Mt 10:3). Mark alone
tells us (
Mr 2:14) that he was "the son of
Alphæus"--the same, probably, with the father of
James the Less. From this and other considerations it is
pretty certain that he must at least have heard of our Lord
before this meeting. Unnecessary doubts, even from an early
period, have been raised about the identity of Levi and
Matthew. No capable jury, with the evidence before them
which we have in the Gospels, would hesitate in giving a
unanimous verdict of identity.
sitting at the receipt of custom--as a
publican, which Luke (
Lu 5:27) calls him. It means the place of receipt, the
toll house or booth in which the collector sat. Being in
this case by the seaside, it might be the ferry tax for the
transit of persons and goods across the lake, which he
collected. (See on Mt 5:46).
and he saith unto him, Follow
me--Witching words these, from the lips of Him who never
employed them without giving them resistless efficacy in
the hearts of those they were spoken to.
And he--"left all" (
Lu 5:28), "arose and followed him."
The Feast ( Mt 9:10-13).
10. And it came to pass, as Jesus sat at meat in the
house--The modesty of our Evangelist signally appears here.
Luke says (
Lu 5:29) that "Levi made Him a great
feast," or "reception," while Matthew
merely says, "He sat at meat"; and Mark and Luke
say that it was in Levi's "own house," while
Matthew merely says, "He sat at meat in the
house." Whether this feast was made now, or not
till afterwards, is a point of some importance in the order
of events, and not agreed among harmonists. The probability
is that it did not take place till a considerable time
afterwards. For Matthew, who ought surely to know what took
place while his Lord was speaking at his own table, tells
us that the visit of Jairus, the ruler of the synagogue,
occurred at that moment (
Mt 9:18). But we know from Mark and Luke that this
visit of Jairus did not take place till after our
Lord's return, at a later period from the country of
the Gadarenes. (See
Mr 5:21, &c., and Lu 8:40, &c.). We conclude,
therefore, that the feast was not made in the novelty of
his discipleship, but after Matthew had had time to be
somewhat established in the faith; when returning to
Capernaum, his compassion for old friends, of his own
calling and character, led him to gather them together that
they might have an opportunity of hearing the gracious
words which proceeded out of His Master's mouth, if
haply they might experience a like change.
behold, many publicans and
sinners--Luke says, "a great company" (
Lu 5:29)
came and sat down with him and his
disciples--In all such cases the word rendered
"sat" is "reclined," in allusion to the
ancient mode of lying on couches at meals.
11. And when the Pharisees--"and scribes," add
Mark and Luke (
Mr 2:6; Lu 5:21).
saw it, they
said--"murmured" or "muttered," says
Luke (
Lu 5:30).
unto his disciples--not venturing to
put their question to Jesus Himself.
Why eateth your Master with publicans
and sinners?--(See on Lu
15:2).
12. But when Jesus heard that, he said unto them--to
the Pharisees and scribes; addressing Himself to them,
though they had shrunk from addressing Him.
They that be whole need not a
physician, but they that are sick--that is, "Ye deem
yourselves whole; My mission, therefore, is not to you: The
physician's business is with the sick; therefore eat I
with publicans and sinners." Oh, what myriads of
broken hearts, of sin-sick souls, have been bound up by
this matchless saying!
13. But go ye and learn what that meaneth-- (
Ho 6:6),
I will have mercy, and not
sacrifice--that is, the one rather than the other.
"Sacrifice," the chief part of the ceremonial
law, is here put for a religion of literal adherence to
mere rules; while "mercy" expresses such
compassion for the fallen as seeks to lift them up. The
duty of keeping aloof from the polluted, in the sense of
"having no fellowship with the unfruitful works of
darkness," is obvious enough; but to understand this
as prohibiting such intercourse with them as is necessary
to their recovery, is to abuse it. This was what these
pharisaical religionists did, and this is what our Lord
here exposes.
for I am not come to call the
righteous, but sinners to repentance--The italicized
words are of doubtful authority here, and more than
doubtful authority in
Mr 2:17; but in
Lu 5:32 they are undisputed. We have here just the
former statement stripped of its figure. "The
righteous" are the whole; "sinners," the
sick. When Christ "called" the latter, as He did
Matthew, and probably some of those publicans and sinners
whom he had invited to meet Him, it was to heal them of
their spiritual maladies, or save their souls: "The
righteous," like those miserable self-satisfied
Pharisees, "He sent empty away."
Mt 9:14-17. DISCOURSE ON FASTING.
See on Lu 5:33-39.
Mt 9:18-26. THE WOMAN WITH THE ISSUE OF BLOOD HEALED.--THE DAUGHTER OF JAIRUS RAISED TO LIFE. ( = Lu 8:40-56; Mr 5:21-43).
For the exposition, see on Mr 5:21-43.
Mt 9:27-34. TWO BLIND MEN AND A DUMB DEMONIAC HEALED.
These two miracles are recorded by Matthew alone.
Two Blind Men Healed ( Mt 9:27-31).
27. And when Jesus departed thence, two blind men followed
him--hearing, doubtless, as in a later case is expressed,
"that Jesus passed by" (
Mt 20:30).
crying, and saying, Thou son of David,
have mercy on us--It is remarkable that in the only other
recorded case in which the blind applied to Jesus for their
sight, and obtained it, they addressed Him, over and over
again, by this one Messianic title, so well
known--"Son of David" (
Mt 20:30). Can there be a doubt that their faith
fastened on such great Messianic promises as this,
"Then the eyes of the blind shall be opened,"
&c. (
Isa 35:5)? and if so, this appeal to Him, as the
Consolation of Israel, to do His predicted office, would
fall with great weight upon the ears of Jesus.
28. And when he was come into the house--To try their faith
and patience, He seems to have made them no answer.
But
the blind men came to Him--which, no
doubt, was what He desired.
and Jesus saith unto them, Believe ye
that I am able to do this? they said unto him, Yea,
Lord--Doubtless our Lord's design was not only to put
their faith to the test by this question, but to deepen it,
to raise their expectation of a cure, and so prepare them
to receive it; and the cordial acknowledgment, so
touchingly simple, which they immediately made to Him of
His power to heal them, shows how entirely that object was
gained.
29. Then touched he their eyes, saying, According to your faith be it unto you--not, Receive a cure proportioned to your faith, but, Receive this cure as granted to your faith. Thus would they carry about with them, in their restored vision, a gracious seal of the faith which drew it from their compassionate Lord.
30. And their eyes were opened: and Jesus straitly charged them--The expression is very strong, denoting great earnestness.
31. But they, when they were departed, spread abroad his fame in all that country--(See on Mt 8:4).
A Dumb Demoniac Healed ( Mt 9:32-34).
32. As they went out, behold, they brought to him a dumb man possessed with a devil--"demonized." The dumbness was not natural, but was the effect of the possession.
33. And when the devil--demon.
was cast out, the dumb spake--The
particulars in this case are not given; the object being
simply to record the instantaneous restoration of the
natural faculties on the removal of the malignant
oppression of them, the form which the popular astonishment
took, and the very different effect of it upon another
class.
and the multitudes marvelled, saying,
It was never so seen in Israel--referring, probably, not to
this case only, but to all those miraculous displays of
healing power which seemed to promise a new era in the
history of Israel. Probably they meant by this language to
indicate, as far as they thought it safe to do so, their
inclination to regard Him as the promised Messiah.
34. But the Pharisees said, He casteth out devils through the prince of the devils--"the demons through the prince of the demons." This seems to be the first muttering of a theory of such miracles which soon became a fixed mode of calumniating them--a theory which would be ridiculous if it were not melancholy as an outburst of the darkest malignity. (See on Mt 12:24, &c.).
Mt 9:35-10:5. THIRD GALILEAN CIRCUIT--MISSION OF THE TWELVE APOSTLES.
As the Mission of the Twelve supposes the previous choice of them--of which our Evangelist gives no account, and which did not take place till a later stage of our Lord's public life--it is introduced here out of its proper place, which is after what is recorded in Lu 6:12-19.
Third Galilean Circuit ( Mt 9:35) --and probably the last.
35. And Jesus went about all the cities and villages, teaching in their synagogues, and preaching the gospel of the kingdom, and healing every sickness and every disease among the people--The italicized words are of more than doubtful authority here, and were probably introduced here from Mt 4:23. The language here is so identical with that used in describing the first circuit ( Mt 4:23), that we may presume the work done on both occasions was much the same. It was just a further preparation of the soil, and a fresh sowing of the precious seed. (See on Mt 4:23). To these fruitful journeyings of the Redeemer, "with healing in His wings," Peter no doubt alludes, when, in his address to the household of Cornelius, he spoke of "How God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Ghost and with power: who went about doing good, and healing all that were oppressed of the devil: for God was with Him" ( Ac 10:38).
Jesus Compassionating the Multitudes, Asks Prayer for Help ( Mt 9:36-38). He had now returned from His preaching and healing circuit, and the result, as at the close of the first one, was the gathering of a vast and motley multitude around Him. After a whole night spent in prayer, He had called His more immediate disciples, and from them had solemnly chosen the twelve; then, coming down from the mountain, on which this was transacted, to the multitudes that waited for Him below, He had addressed to them--as we take it--that discourse which bears so strong a resemblance to the Sermon on the Mount that many critics take it to be the same. (See on Lu 6:12-49; and Mt 5:1, Introductory Remarks). Soon after this, it should seem, the multitudes still hanging on Him, Jesus is touched with their wretched and helpless condition, and acts as is now to be described.
36. But when he saw the multitudes, he was moved with
compassion on them, because they fainted--This reading,
however, has hardly any authority at all. The true reading
doubtless is, "were harassed."
and were scattered abroad--rather,
"lying about," "abandoned," or
"neglected."
as sheep, having no shepherd--their
pitiable condition as wearied under bodily fatigue, a vast
disorganized mass, being but a faint picture of their
wretchedness as the victims of pharisaic guidance; their
souls uncared for, yet drawn after and hanging upon Him.
This moved the Redeemer's compassion.
37. Then saith he unto his disciples, The harvest truly is
plenteous--His eye doubtless rested immediately on the
Jewish field, but this he saw widening into the vast field
of "the world" (
Mt 13:38), teeming with souls having to be gathered to
Him.
but the labourers--men divinely
qualified and called to gather them in--"are
few."
38. Pray ye therefore the Lord of the harvest--the great
Lord and Proprietor of all. Compare
Joh 15:1, "I am the true vine, and My Father is
the husbandman."
that he will send forth labourers into
his harvest--The word properly means "thrust
forth"; but this emphatic sense disappears in some
places, as in
Mt 9:25, and Joh 10:4 --"When He putteth
forth His own sheep." (See on Mt
4:1).
Mt 10:1-5. MISSION OF THE TWELVE APOSTLES. ( = Mr 6:7-13; Lu 9:1-6).
The last three verses of the ninth chapter form the proper introduction to the Mission of the Twelve, as is evident from the remarkable fact that the Mission of the Seventy was prefaced by the very same words. (See on Lu 10:2).
1. And when he had called unto him his twelve disciples, he
gave them power--The word signifies both "power,"
and "authority" or "right." Even if it
were not evident that here both ideas are included, we find
both words expressly used in the parallel passage of Luke
(
Lu 9:1) --"He gave them power and
authority"--in other words, He both qualified
and authorized them.
against--or "over."
2. Now the names of the twelve apostles are these--The
other Evangelists enumerate the twelve in immediate
connection with their appointment (
Mr 3:13-19; Lu 6:13-16). But our Evangelist, not
intending to record the appointment, but only the Mission
of the Twelve, gives their names here. And as in the Acts
(
Ac 1:13) we have a list of the Eleven who met daily in
the upper room with the other disciples after their
Master's ascension until the day of Pentecost, we have
four catalogues in all for comparison.
The first, Simon, who is called
Peter--(See on Joh
1:42).
and Andrew his brother; James the
son of Zebedee, and John his brother--named after
James, as the younger of the two.
3. Philip and Bartholomew--That this person is the same
with "Nathanael of Cana in Galilee" is justly
concluded for the three following reasons: First, because
Bartholomew is not so properly an individual's name as
a family surname; next, because not only in this list, but
in Mark's and Luke's (
Mr 3:18; Lu 6:14), he follows the name of
"Philip," who was the instrument of bringing
Nathanael first to Jesus (
Joh 1:45); and again, when our Lord, after His
resurrection, appeared at the Sea of Tiberias,
"Nathanael of Cana in Galilee" is mentioned along
with six others, all of them apostles, as being present (
Joh 21:2).
Matthew the publican--In none of the
four lists of the Twelve is this apostle so branded but in
his own, as if he would have all to know how deep a debtor
he had been to his Lord. (See on Mt 1:3,
5, 6; 9:9).
James the son of Alphaeus--the same
person apparently who is called Cleopas or
Clopas (
Lu 24:18; Joh 19:25); and, as he was the husband of
Mary, sister to the Virgin, James the Less must have been
our Lord's cousin.
and Lebbaeus, whose surname was
Thaddaeus--the same, without doubt, as "Judas the
brother of James," mentioned in both the lists of Luke
(
Lu 6:16; Ac 1:13), while no one of the name of Lebbaeus
or Thaddaeus is so. It is he who in John (
Joh 14:22) is sweetly called "Judas, not
Iscariot." That he was the author of the Catholic
Epistle of "Jude," and not "the Lord's
brother" (
Mt 13:55), unless these be the same, is most likely.
4. Simon the Canaanite--rather "Kananite," but
better still, "the Zealot," as he is called in
Lu 6:15, where the original term should not have been
retained as in our version ("Simon, called
Zelotes"), but rendered "Simon, called the
Zealot." The word "Kananite" is just the
Aramaic, or Syro-Chaldaic, term for
"Zealot." Probably before his acquaintance with
Jesus, he belonged to the sect of the Zealots, who bound
themselves, as a sort of voluntary ecclesiastical police,
to see that the law was not broken with impunity.
and Judas Iscariot--that is, Judas of
Kerioth, a town of Judah (
Jos 15:25); so called to distinguish him from
"Judas the brother of James" (
Lu 6:16).
who also betrayed him--a note of
infamy attached to his name in all the catalogues of the
Twelve.
Mt 10:5-42. THE TWELVE RECEIVE THEIR INSTRUCTIONS.
This directory divides itself into three distinct parts. The first part ( Mt 10:5-15) contains directions for the brief and temporary mission on which they were now going forth, with respect to the places they were to go to, the works they were to do, the message they were to bear, and the manner in which they were to conduct themselves. The second part ( Mt 10:16-23) contains directions of no such limited and temporary nature, but opens out into the permanent exercise of the Gospel ministry. The third part ( Mt 10:24-42) is of wider application still, reaching not only to the ministry of the Gospel in every age, but to the service of Christ in the widest sense. It is a strong confirmation of this threefold division, that each part closes with the words, "VERILY I SAY UNTO YOU" ( Mt 10:15, 23, 42).
Directions for the Present Mission ( Mt 10:5-15).
5. These twelve Jesus sent forth, and commanded them, saying, Go not into the way of the Gentiles, and into any city of the Samaritans enter ye not--The Samaritans were Gentiles by blood; but being the descendants of those whom the king of Assyria had transported from the East to supply the place of the ten tribes carried captive, they had adopted the religion of the Jews, though with admixtures of their own: and, as the nearest neighbors of the Jews, they occupied a place intermediate between them and the Gentiles. Accordingly, when this prohibition was to be taken off, on the effusion of the Spirit at Pentecost, the apostles were told that they should be Christ's witnesses first "in Jerusalem, and in all Judea," then "in Samaria," and lastly, "unto the uttermost part of the earth" ( Ac 1:8).
6. But go rather to the lost sheep of the house of Israel--Until Christ's death, which broke down the middle wall of partition ( Eph 2:14), the Gospel commission was to the Jews only, who, though the visible people of God, were "lost sheep," not merely in the sense which all sinners are ( Isa 53:6; 1Pe 2:25; compare with Lu 19:10), but as abandoned and left to wander from the right way by faithless shepherds ( Jer 50:6, 17; Eze 34:2-6, &c.).
7. And as ye go, preach, saying, The kingdom of heaven is at hand--(See on Mt 3:2).
8. Heal the sick, cleanse the lepers, raise the
dead, cast out devils--(The italicized
clause--"raise the dead"--is wanting in
many manuscripts). Here we have the first communication of
supernatural power by Christ Himself to His followers--thus
anticipating the gifts of Pentecost. And right royally does
He dispense it.
freely ye have received, freely
give--Divine saying, divinely said! (Compare
De 15:10, 11; Ac 3:6) --an apple of gold in a setting
of silver (
Pr 25:11). It reminds us of that other golden saying of
our Lord, rescued from oblivion by Paul, "It is more
blessed to give than to receive" (
Ac 20:35). Who can estimate what the world owes to such
sayings, and with what beautiful foliage and rich fruit
such seeds have covered, and will yet cover, this earth!
9. Provide neither gold, nor silver, nor brass in your purses--"for" your purses; literally, "your belts," in which they kept their money.
10. Nor scrip for your journey--the bag used by travellers
for holding provisions.
neither two coats--or tunics, worn
next the skin. The meaning is, Take no change of dress, no
additional articles.
neither shoes--that is, change of
them.
nor yet staves--The received text here
has "a staff," but our version follows another
reading, "staves," which is found in the received
text of Luke (
Lu 9:3). The true reading, however, evidently is
"a staff"--meaning, that they were not to procure
even that much expressly for this missionary journey, but
to go with what they had. No doubt it was the
misunderstanding of this that gave rise to the reading
"staves" in so many manuscripts Even if this
reading were genuine, it could not mean "more than
one"; for who, as ALFORD well asks, would think of
taking a spare staff?
for the workman is worthy of his
meat--his "food" or "maintenance"; a
principle which, being universally recognized in secular
affairs, is here authoritatively applied to the services of
the Lord's workmen, and by Paul repeatedly and
touchingly employed in his appeals to the churches (
Ro 15:27; 1Co 9:11; Ga 6:6), and once as
"scripture" (
1Ti 5:18).
11. And into whatsoever city or town--town or
village.
ye shall enter
inquire--carefully.
who in it is worthy--or
"meet" to entertain such messengers; not in point
of rank, of course, but of congenial disposition.
and there abide till ye go thence--not
shifting about, as if discontented, but returning the
welcome given with a courteous, contented, accommodating
disposition.
12. And when ye come into an house--or "the
house," but it means not the worthy house, but the
house ye first enter, to try if it be worthy.
salute it--show it the usual
civilities.
13. And if the house be worthy--showing this by giving you
a welcome.
let your peace come upon it--This is
best explained by the injunction to the Seventy, "And
into whatsoever house ye enter, first say, Peace be to this
house" (
Lu 10:5). This was the ancient salutation of the East,
and it prevails to this day. But from the lips of Christ
and His messengers, it means something far higher, both in
the gift and the giving of it, than in the current
salutation. (See on Joh
14:27).
but if it be not worthy, let your
peace return to you--If your peace finds a shut, instead of
an open, door in the heart of any household, take it back
to yourselves, who know how to value it; and it will taste
the sweeter to you for having been offered, even though
rejected.
14. And whosoever shall not receive you, nor hear your
words, when ye depart out of that house or city--for
possibly a whole town might not furnish one
"worthy."
shake off the dust of your
feet--"for a testimony against them," as Mark and
Luke add (
Mr 6:11; Lu 10:11). By this symbolical action they
vividly shook themselves from all connection with
such, and all responsibility for the guilt of
rejecting them and their message. Such symbolical actions
were common in ancient times, even among others than the
Jews, as strikingly appears in Pilate (
Mt 27:24). And even to this day it prevails in the
East.
15. Verily I say unto you, It shall be more tolerable--more
bearable.
for Sodom and Gomorrah in the day of
judgment, than for that city--Those Cities of the Plain,
which were given to the flames for their loathsome
impurities, shall be treated as less criminal, we are here
taught, than those places which, though morally
respectable, reject the Gospel message and affront those
that bear it.
Directions for the Future and Permanent Exercise of the Christian Ministry ( Mt 10:16-23).
16. Behold, I send you forth--The "I" here is
emphatic, holding up Himself as the Fountain of the Gospel
ministry, as He is also the Great Burden of it.
as sheep--defenseless.
in the midst of wolves--ready to make
a prey of you (
Joh 10:12). To be left exposed, as sheep to wolves,
would have been startling enough; but that the sheep should
be sent among the wolves would sound strange indeed.
No wonder this announcement begins with the exclamation,
"Behold."
be ye therefore wise as serpents, and
harmless as doves--Wonderful combination this! Alone, the
wisdom of the serpent is mere cunning, and the harmlessness
of the dove little better than weakness: but in
combination, the wisdom of the serpent would save them from
unnecessary exposure to danger; the harmlessness of the
dove, from sinful expedients to escape it. In the apostolic
age of Christianity, how harmoniously were these qualities
displayed! Instead of the fanatical thirst for martyrdom,
to which a later age gave birth, there was a manly
combination of unflinching zeal and calm discretion, before
which nothing was able to stand.
17. But beware of men; for they will deliver you up to the
councils--the local courts, used here for civil magistrates
in general.
and they will scourge you in their
synagogues--By this is meant persecution at the hands of
the ecclesiastics.
18. And ye shall be brought before governors--provincial
rulers.
and kings--the highest
tribunals.
for my sake, for a testimony against
them--rather, "to them," in order to bear
testimony to the truth and its glorious effects.
and the Gentiles--"to the
Gentiles"; a hint that their message would not long be
confined to the lost sheep of the house of Israel. The Acts
of the Apostles are the best commentary on these warnings.
19. But when they deliver you up, take no thought--be not
solicitous or anxious. (See on Mt
6:25).
how or what ye shall speak--that is,
either in what manner ye shall make your defense, or
of what matter it shall consist.
for it shall be given you in that same
hour what ye shall speak--(See
Ex 4:12; Jer 1:7).
20. For it is not ye that speak, but the Spirit of your Father which speaketh in you--How remarkably this has been verified, the whole history of persecution thrillingly proclaims--from the Acts of the Apostles to the latest martyrology.
21. And the brother shall deliver up the brother to death, and the father the child: and the children shall rise up against their parents, and cause them to be put to death--for example, by lodging information against them with the authorities. The deep and virulent hostility of the old nature and life to the new--as of Belial to Christ--was to issue in awful wrenches of the dearest ties; and the disciples, in the prospect of their cause and themselves being launched upon society, are here prepared for the worst.
22. And ye shall be hated of all men for my name's
sake--The universality of this hatred would make it evident
to them, that since it would not be owing to any temporary
excitement, local virulence, or personal prejudice, on the
part of their enemies, so no amount of discretion on their
part, consistent with entire fidelity to the truth, would
avail to stifle that enmity--though it might soften its
violence, and in some cases avert the outward
manifestations of it.
but he that endureth to the end shall
be saved--a great saying, repeated, in connection with
similar warnings, in the prophecy of the destruction of
Jerusalem (
Mt 24:13); and often reiterated by the apostle as a
warning against "drawing back unto perdition" (
Heb 3:6, 13; 6:4-6; 10:23, 26-29, 38, 39, &c.). As
"drawing back unto perdition" is merely the
palpable evidence of the want of "root" from the
first in the Christian profession (
Lu 8:13), so "enduring to the end" is just
the proper evidence of its reality and solidity.
23. But when they persecute you in this city, flee ye into
another--"into the other." This, though
applicable to all time, and exemplified by our Lord Himself
once and again, had special reference to the brief
opportunities which Israel was to have of "knowing the
time of His visitations."
for verily I say unto you--what will
startle you, but at the same time show you the solemnity of
your mission, and the need of economizing the time for
it.
Ye shall not have gone over--Ye shall
in nowise have completed.
the cities of Israel, till the Son of
man be come--To understand this--as LANGE and others do--in
the first instance, of Christ's own peregrinations, as
if He had said, "Waste not your time upon hostile
places, for I Myself will be after you ere your work be
over"--seems almost trifling. "The coming of the
Son of man" has a fixed doctrinal sense, here
referring immediately to the crisis of Israel's history
as the visible kingdom of God, when Christ was to come and
judge it; when "the wrath would come upon it to the
uttermost"; and when, on the ruins of Jerusalem and
the old economy, He would establish His own kingdom. This,
in the uniform language of Scripture, is more immediately
"the coming of the Son of man," "the day of
vengeance of our God" (
Mt 16:28; 24:27, 34; compare with
Heb 10:25; Jas 5:7-9) --but only as being such a lively
anticipation of His second coming for vengeance and
deliverance. So understood, it is parallel with
Mt 24:14 (on which see).
Directions for the Service of Christ in Its Widest Sense ( Mt 10:24-42).
24. The disciple is not above his master--teacher.
nor the servant above his
lord--another maxim which our Lord repeats in various
connections (
Lu 6:40; Joh 13:16; 15:20).
25. It is enough for the disciple that he be as his master,
and the servant as his lord. If they have called the master
of the house Beelzebub--All the Greek manuscripts,
write "Beelzebul," which undoubtedly is the right
form of this word. The other reading came in no doubt from
the Old Testament "Baalzebub," the god of Ekron
(
2Ki 1:2), which it was designed to express. As all
idolatry was regarded as devil worship (
Le 17:7; De 32:17; Ps 106:37; 1Co 10:20), so there
seems to have been something peculiarly satanic about the
worship of this hateful god, which caused his name to be a
synonym of Satan. Though we nowhere read that our Lord was
actually called "Beelzebul," He was charged with
being in league with Satan under that hateful name (
Mt 12:24, 26), and more than once Himself was charged
with "having a devil" or "demon" (
Mr 3:30; Joh 7:20; 8:48). Here it is used to denote the
most opprobrious language which could be applied by one to
another.
how much more shall they call them of
his household--"the inmates." Three relations in
which Christ stands to His people are here mentioned: He is
their Teacher--they His disciples; He is their Lord--they
His servants; He is the Master of the household--they its
inmates. In all these relations, He says here, He and they
are so bound up together that they cannot look to fare
better than He, and should think it enough if they fare no
worse.
26. Fear them not therefore: for there is nothing covered, that shall not be revealed; and hid, that shall not be known--that is, There is no use, and no need, of concealing anything; right and wrong, truth and error, are about to come into open and deadly collision; and the day is coming when all hidden things shall be disclosed, everything seen as it is, and every one have his due ( 1Co 4:5).
27. What I tell you in darkness--in the privacy of a
teaching for which men are not yet ripe.
that speak ye in the light--for when
ye go forth all will be ready.
and what ye hear in the ear, that
preach ye upon the housetops--Give free and fearless
utterance to all that I have taught you while yet with you.
Objection: But this may cost us our life?
Answer: It may, but there their power ends:
28. And fear not them which kill the body, but are not able
to kill the soul--In
Lu 12:4, "and after that have no more that they
can do."
but rather fear him--In Luke (
Lu 12:5) this is peculiarly solemn, "I will
forewarn you whom ye shall fear," even Him
which is able to destroy both soul and
body in hell--A decisive proof this that there is a hell
for the body as well as the soul in the eternal world; in
other words, that the torment that awaits the lost will
have elements of suffering adapted to the material
as well as the spiritual part of our nature, both of which,
we are assured, will exist for ever. In the corresponding
warning contained in Luke (
Lu 12:4), Jesus calls His disciples "My
friends," as if He had felt that such sufferings
constituted a bond of peculiar tenderness between Him and
them.
29. Are not two sparrows sold for a farthing?--In Luke (
Lu 12:6) it is "five sparrows for two
farthings"; so that, if the purchaser took two
farthings' worth, he got one in addition--of such small
value were they.
and one of them shall not fall on the
ground--exhausted or killed
without your Father--"Not one of
them is forgotten before God," as it is in Luke (
Lu 12:6).
30. But the very hairs of your head are all numbered--See Lu 21:18 (and compare for the language 1Sa 14:45; Ac 27:34).
31. Fear ye not therefore, ye are of more value than many sparrows--Was ever language of such simplicity felt to carry such weight as this does? But here lies much of the charm and power of our Lord's teaching.
32. Whosoever therefore shall confess me before
men--despising the shame.
him will I confess also before my
Father which is in heaven--I will not be ashamed of him,
but will own him before the most august of all assemblies.
33. But whosoever shall deny me before men, him will I also deny before my Father which is in heaven--before that same assembly: "He shall have from Me his own treatment of Me on the earth." (But see on Mt 16:27).
34. Think not that I am come to send peace on earth: I came not to send peace, but a sword--strife, discord, conflict; deadly opposition between eternally hostile principles, penetrating into and rending asunder the dearest ties.
35. For I am come to set a man at variance against his father, and the daughter against her mother, and the daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law--(See on Lu 12:51-53).
36. And a man's foes shall be they of his own household--This saying, which is quoted, as is the whole verse, from Mic 7:6, is but an extension of the Psalmist's complaint ( Ps 41:9; 55:12-14), which had its most affecting illustration in the treason of Judas against our Lord Himself ( Joh 13:18; Mt 26:48-50). Hence would arise the necessity of a choice between Christ and the nearest relations, which would put them to the severest test.
37. He that loveth father or mother more than me, is not worthy of me; and he that loveth son or daughter more than me, is not worthy of me--(Compare De 33:9). As the preference of the one would, in the case supposed, necessitate the abandonment of the other, our Lord here, with a sublime, yet awful self-respect, asserts His own claims to supreme affection.
38. And he that taketh not his cross, and followeth after me, is not worthy of me--a saying which our Lord once and again emphatically reiterates ( Mt 16:24; Lu 9:23; 14:27). We have become so accustomed to this expression--"taking up one's cross"--in the sense of "being prepared for trials in general for Christ's sake," that we are apt to lose sight of its primary and proper sense here--"a preparedness to go forth even to crucifixion," as when our Lord had to bear His own cross on His way to Calvary--a saying the more remarkable as our Lord had not as yet given a hint that He would die this death, nor was crucifixion a Jewish mode of capital punishment.
39. He that findeth his life shall lose it: and he that loseth his life for my sake shall find it--another of those pregnant sayings which our Lord so often reiterates ( Mt 16:25; Lu 17:33; Joh 12:25). The pith of such paradoxical maxims depends on the double sense attached to the word "life"--a lower and a higher, the natural and the spiritual, the temporal and eternal. An entire sacrifice of the lower, with all its relationships and interests--or, a willingness to make it which is the same thing--is indispensable to the preservation of the higher life; and he who cannot bring himself to surrender the one for the sake of the other shall eventually lose both.
40. He that receiveth you--entertaineth you,
receiveth me; and he that receiveth
me, receiveth him that sent me--As the treatment which an
ambassador receives is understood and regarded as
expressing the light in which he that sends him is viewed,
so, says our Lord here, "Your authority is Mine, as
Mine is My Father's."
41. He that receiveth a prophet--one divinely commissioned
to deliver a message from heaven. Predicting future events
was no necessary part of a prophet's office, especially
as the word is used in the New Testament.
in the name of a prophet--for his
office's sake and love to his master. (See
2Ki 4:9 and see on 2Ki
4:10).
shall receive a prophet's
reward--What an encouragement to those who are not
prophets! (See
Joh 3:5-8).
and he that receiveth a righteous man
in the name of a righteous man--from sympathy with his
character and esteem for himself as such
shall receive a righteous man's
reward--for he must himself have the seed of righteousness
who has any real sympathy with it and complacency in him
who possesses it.
42. And whosoever shall give to drink unto one of these
little ones--Beautiful epithet! Originally taken from
Zec 13:7. The reference is to their lowliness in
spirit, their littleness in the eyes of an undiscerning
world, while high in Heaven's esteem.
a cup of cold water only--meaning, the
smallest service.
in the name of a disciple--or, as it
is in Mark (
Mr 9:41), because ye are Christ's: from love to Me,
and to him from his connection with Me.
verily I say unto you, he shall in no
wise lose his reward--There is here a descending
climax--"a prophet," "a righteous man,"
"a little one"; signifying that however low we
come down in our services to those that are Christ's,
all that is done for His sake, and that bears the stamp of
love to His blessed name, shall be divinely appreciated and
owned and rewarded.
Mt 11:1-19. THE IMPRISONED BAPTIST'S MESSAGE TO HIS MASTER--THE REPLY, AND DISCOURSE, ON THE DEPARTURE OF THE MESSENGERS, REGARDING JOHN AND HIS MISSION. ( = Lu 7:18-35).
1. And it came to pass, when Jesus had made an end of
commanding his twelve disciple--rather, "the twelve
disciples,"
he departed thence to teach and to
preach in their cities--This was scarcely a fourth
circuit--if we may judge from the less formal way in which
it was expressed--but, perhaps, a set of visits paid to
certain places, either not reached at all before, or too
rapidly passed through, in order to fill up the time till
the return of the Twelve. As to their labors, nothing is
said of them by our Evangelist. But Luke (
Lu 9:6) says, "They departed, and went through,
the towns," or "villages," "preaching
the Gospel, and healing everywhere." Mark (
Mr 6:12, 13), as usual, is more explicit: "And
they went out, and preached that men should repent. And
they cast out many devils (demons) and anointed with oil
many that were sick, and healed them." Though this
"anointing with oil" was not mentioned in our
Lord's instructions--at least in any of the records of
them--we know it to have been practiced long after this in
the apostolic Church (see
Jas 5:14, and compare
Mr 6:12, 13) --not medicinally, but as a sign of
the healing virtue which was communicated by their hands,
and a symbol of something still more precious. It was
unction, indeed, but, as B ENGEL remarks, it was
something very different from what Romanists call
extreme unction. He adds, what is very probable, that
they do not appear to have carried the oil about with them,
but, as the Jews used oil as a medicine, to have employed
it just as they found it with the sick, in their own higher
way.
2. Now when John had heard in the prison--For the account
of this imprisonment, see on Mr
6:17-20.
the works of Christ, he sent,
&c.--On the whole passage, see on Lu 7:18-35.
Mt 11:20-30. OUTBURST OF FEELING SUGGESTED TO THE MIND OF JESUS BY THE RESULT OF HIS LABORS IN GALILEE.
The connection of this with what goes before it and the similarity of its tone make it evident, we think, that it was delivered on the same occasion, and that it is but a new and more comprehensive series of reflections in the same strain.
20. Then began he to upbraid the cities wherein most of his mighty works were done, because they repented not.
21. Woe unto thee, Chorazin!--not elsewhere mentioned, but
it must have lain near Capernaum.
woe unto thee,
Bethsaida--"fishing-house," a fishing station--on
the western side of the Sea of Galilee, and to the north of
Capernaum; the birthplace of three of the apostles--the
brothers Andrew and Peter, and Philip. These two cities
appear to be singled out to denote the whole region in
which they lay--a region favored with the Redeemer's
presence, teaching, and works above every other.
for if the mighty works--the
miracles
which were done in you had been done
in Tyre and Sidon--ancient and celebrated commercial
cities, on the northeastern shores of the Mediterranean
Sea, lying north of Palestine, and the latter the
northernmost. As their wealth and prosperity engendered
luxury and its concomitant evils--irreligion and moral
degeneracy--their overthrow was repeatedly foretold in
ancient prophecy, and once and again fulfilled by
victorious enemies. Yet they were rebuilt, and at this time
were in a flourishing condition.
they would have repented long ago in
sackcloth and ashes--remarkable language, showing that they
had done less violence to conscience, and so, in God's
sight, were less criminal than the region here spoken of.
22. But I say unto you, It shall be more tolerable for Tyre and Sidon at the day of judgment, than for you--more endurable.
23. And thou, Capernaum--(See on Mt
4:13).
which art exalted unto heaven--Not
even of Chorazin and Bethsaida is this said. For since at
Capernaum Jesus had His stated abode during the whole
period of His public life which He spent in Galilee, it was
the most favored spot upon earth, the most exalted
in privilege.
shall be brought down to hell: for if
the mighty works, which have been done in thee, had been
done in Sodom--destroyed for its pollutions.
it would have remained until this
day--having done no such violence to conscience, and so
incurred unspeakably less guilt.
24. But I say unto you, That it shall be more tolerable for the land of Sodom in the day of judgment, than for thee--"It has been indeed," says Dr. STANLEY, "more tolerable, in one sense, in the day of its earthly judgment, for the land of Sodom than for Capernaum; for the name, and perhaps even the remains of Sodom are still to be found on the shores of the Dead Sea; while that of Capernaum has, on the Lake of Gennesareth, been utterly lost." But the judgment of which our Lord here speaks is still future; a judgment not on material cities, but their responsible inhabitants--a judgment final and irretrievable.
25. At that time Jesus answered and said--We are not to
understand by this, that the previous discourse had been
concluded, and that this is a record only of something said
about the same period. For the connection is most close,
and the word "answered"--which, when there is no
one to answer, refers to something just before said, or
rising in the mind of the speaker in consequence of
something said--confirms this. What Jesus here
"answered" evidently was the melancholy results
of His ministry, lamented over in the foregoing verses. It
is as if He had said, "Yes; but there is a brighter
side to the picture; even in those who have rejected the
message of eternal life, it is the pride of their own
hearts only which has blinded them, and the glory of the
truth does but the more appear in their inability to
receive it. Nor have all rejected it even here; souls
thirsting for salvation have drawn water with joy from the
wells of salvation; the weary have found rest; the hungry
have been filled with good things, while the rich have been
sent empty away."
I thank thee--rather, "I assent
to thee." But this is not strong enough. The idea of
"full" or "cordial" concurrence
is conveyed by the preposition. The thing expressed is
adoring acquiescence, holy satisfaction with that law of
the divine procedure about to be mentioned. And as, when He
afterwards uttered the same words, He "exulted in
spirit" (see on Lu
10:21), probably He did the same now, though not
recorded.
O Father, Lord of heaven and earth--He
so styles His Father here, to signify that from Him of
right emanates all such high arrangements.
because thou hast hid these
things--the knowledge of these saving truths.
from the wise and prudent--The former
of these terms points to the men who pride themselves upon
their speculative or philosophical attainments; the latter
to the men of worldly shrewdness--the clever, the
sharp-witted, the men of affairs. The distinction is a
natural one, and was well understood. (See
1Co 1:19, &c.). But why had the Father hid from
such the things that belonged to their peace, and why did
Jesus so emphatically set His seal to this arrangement?
Because it is not for the offending and revolted to speak
or to speculate, but to listen to Him from whom we have
broken loose, that we may learn whether there be any
recovery for us at all; and if there be, on what
principles--of what nature--to what ends. To bring our own
"wisdom and prudence" to such questions is
impertinent and presumptuous; and if the truth regarding
them, or the glory of it, be "hid" from us, it is
but a fitting retribution, to which all the right-minded
will set their seal along with Jesus.
hast revealed them unto babes--to
babe-like men; men of unassuming docility, men who,
conscious that they know nothing, and have no right to sit
in judgment on the things that belong to their peace,
determine simply to "hear what God the Lord will
speak." Such are well called "babes." (See
Heb 5:13; 1Co 13:11; 14:20, &c.).
26. Even so, Father; for so it seemed good--the emphatic
and chosen term for expressing any object of divine
complacency; whether Christ Himself (see on Mt 3:17), or God's gracious eternal
arrangements (see on Php
2:13).
in thy sight--This is just a sublime
echo of the foregoing words; as if Jesus, when He uttered
them, had paused to reflect on it, and as if the glory of
it--not so much in the light of its own reasonableness as
of God's absolute will that so it should be--had filled
His soul.
27. All things are delivered unto me of my Father--He does
not say, They are revealed--as to one who knew them
not, and was an entire stranger to them save as they were
discovered to Him--but, They are "delivered
over," or "committed," to Me of My Father;
meaning the whole administration of the kingdom of grace.
So in
Joh 3:35, "The Father loveth the Son, and hath
given all things into His hand" (see on Joh 3:35). But though the "all
things" in both these passages refer properly to the
kingdom of grace, they of course include all things
necessary to the full execution of that trust--that is,
unlimited power. (So
Mt 28:18; Joh 17:2; Eph 1:22).
and no man knoweth the Son, but the
Father; neither knoweth any man the Father, save the Son,
and he to whomsoever the Son will--willeth
to reveal him--What a saying is this,
that "the Father and the Son are mutually and
exclusively known to each other!" A higher claim to
equality with the Father cannot be conceived. Either, then,
we have here one of the revolting assumptions ever uttered,
or the proper divinity of Christ should to Christians be
beyond dispute. "But, alas for me!" may some
burdened soul, sighing for relief, here exclaim. If it be
thus with us, what can any poor creature do but lie down in
passive despair, unless he could dare to hope that
he may be one of the favored class "to whom the
Son is willing to reveal the Father." But nay. This
testimony to the sovereignty of that gracious
"will," on which alone men's salvation
depends, is designed but to reveal the source and enhance
the glory of it when once imparted--not to paralyze or shut
the soul up in despair. Hear, accordingly, what follows:
28. Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest--Incomparable, ravishing sounds these--if ever such were heard in this weary, groaning world! What gentleness, what sweetness is there in the very style of the invitation--"Hither to Me"; and in the words, "All ye that toil and are burdened," the universal wretchedness of man is depicted, on both its sides--the active and the passive forms of it.
29. Take my yoke upon you--the yoke of subjection to
Jesus.
and learn of me; for I am meek and
lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls--As
Christ's willingness to empty Himself to the uttermost
of His Father's requirements was the spring of
ineffable repose to His own Spirit, so in the same track
does He invite all to follow Him, with the assurance of the
same experience.
30. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light--Matchless paradox, even among the paradoxically couched maxims in which our Lord delights! That rest which the soul experiences when once safe under Christ's wing makes all yokes easy, all burdens light.
Mt 12:1-8. PLUCKING CORN EARS ON THE SABBATH DAY. ( = Mr 2:23-28; Lu 6:1-5).
The season of the year when this occurred is determined by the event itself. Ripe corn ears are found in the fields only just before harvest. The barley harvest seems clearly intended here, at the close of our March and beginning of our April. It coincided with the Passover season, as the wheat harvest with Pentecost. But in Luke ( Lu 6:1) we have a still more definite note of time, if we could be certain of the meaning of the peculiar term which he employs to express it. "It came to pass (he says) on the sabbath, which was the first-second," for that is the proper rendering of the word, and not "the second sabbath after the first," as in our version. Of the various conjectures what this may mean, that of S CALIGER is the most approved, and, as we think, the freest from difficulty, namely, the first sabbath after the second day of the Passover; that is, the first of the seven sabbaths which were to be reckoned from the second day of the Passover, which was itself a sabbath, until the next feast, the feast of Pentecost ( Le 23:15, 16; De 16:9, 10) In this case, the day meant by the Evangelist is the first of those seven sabbaths intervening between Passover and Pentecost. And if we are right in regarding the "feast" mentioned in Joh 5:1 as a Passover, and consequently the second during our Lord's public ministry (see on Joh 5:1), this plucking of the ears of corn must have occurred immediately after the scene and the discourse recorded in Joh 5:19-47, which, doubtless, would induce our Lord to hasten His departure for the north, to avoid the wrath of the Pharisees, which He had kindled at Jerusalem. Here, accordingly, we find Him in the fields--on His way probably to Galilee.
1. At that time Jesus went on the sabbath day through the
corn--"the cornfields" (
Mr 2:23; Lu 6:1).
and his disciples were an
hungered--not as one may be before his regular meals; but
evidently from shortness of provisions: for Jesus defends
their plucking the corn-ears and eating them on the plea of
necessity.
and began to pluck the ears of corn,
and to eat--"rubbing them in their hands" (
Lu 6:1).
2. But when the Pharisees saw it, they said unto him, Behold, thy disciples do that which is not lawful to do upon the sabbath day--The act itself was expressly permitted ( De 23:25). But as being "servile work," which was prohibited on the sabbath day, it was regarded as sinful.
3. But he said unto them, Have ye not read--or, as Mark (
Mr 2:25) has it, "Have ye never read."
what David did when he was an
hungered, and they that were with him-- (
1Sa 21:1-6)
4. How he entered into the house of God, and did eat the showbread, which was not lawful for him to eat, neither for them which were with him, but only for the priests?--No example could be more apposite than this. The man after God's own heart, of whom the Jews ever boasted, when suffering in God's cause and straitened for provisions, asked and obtained from the high priest what, according to the law, it was illegal for anyone save the priests to touch. Mark ( Mr 2:26) says this occurred "in the days of Abiathar the high priest." But this means not during his high priesthood--for it was under that of his father Ahimelech--but simply, in his time. Ahimelech was soon succeeded by Abiathar, whose connection with David, and prominence during his reign, may account for his name, rather than his father's, being here introduced. Yet there is not a little confusion in what is said of these priests in different parts of the Old Testament. Thus he is called both the son of the father of Ahimelech ( 1Sa 22:20; 2Sa 8:17); and Ahimelech is called Ahiah ( 1Sa 14:3), and Abimelech ( 1Ch 18:16).
5. Or have ye not read in the law, how that on the sabbath
days the priests in the temple profane the sabbath--by
doing "servile work."
and are blameless?--The double
offerings required on the sabbath day (
Nu 28:9) could not be presented, and the new-baked
showbread (
Le 24:5; 1Ch 9:32) could not be prepared and presented
every sabbath morning, without a good deal of servile work
on the part of the priests; not to speak of circumcision,
which, when the child's eighth day happened to fall on
a sabbath, had to be performed by the priests on that day.
(See on Joh 7:22, 23).
6. But I say unto you, That in this place is one greater than the temple--or rather, according to the reading which is best supported, "something greater." The argument stands thus: "The ordinary rules for the observance of the sabbath give way before the requirements of the temple; but there are rights here before which the temple itself must give way." Thus indirectly, but not the less decidedly, does our Lord put in His own claims to consideration in this question--claims to be presently put in even more nakedly.
7. But if ye had known what this meaneth, I will have
mercy, and not sacrifice-- (
Ho 6:6; Mic 6:6-8, &c.). See on
Mt 9:13.
ye would not have condemned the
guiltless--that is, Had ye understood the great principle
of all religion, which the Scripture everywhere
recognizes--that ceremonial observances must give way
before moral duties, and particularly the necessities of
nature--ye would have refrained from these captious
complaints against men who in this matter are blameless.
But our Lord added a specific application of this great
principle to the law of the sabbath, preserved only in
Mark: "And he said unto them, the sabbath was made for
man, and not man for the sabbath" (
Mr 2:27). A glorious and far-reaching maxim, alike for
the permanent establishment of the sabbath and the true
freedom of its observance.
8. For the Son of man is Lord even of the sabbath day--In what sense now is the Son of man Lord of the sabbath day? Not surely to abolish it--that surely were a strange lordship, especially just after saying that it was made or instituted for MAN--but to own it, to interpret it, to preside over it, and to ennoble it, by merging it in the "Lord's Day" ( Re 1:10), breathing into it an air of liberty and love necessarily unknown before, and thus making it the nearest resemblance to the eternal sabbatism.
Mt 12:9-21. THE HEALING OF A WITHERED HAND ON THE SABBATH DAY AND RETIREMENT OF JESUS TO AVOID DANGER. ( = Mr 3:1-12; Lu 6:6-11).
Healing of a Withered Hand ( Mt 12:9-14).
9. And when he was departed thence--but "on another
sabbath" (
Lu 6:6).
he went into their
synagogue--"and taught." He had now, no doubt,
arrived in Galilee; but this, it would appear, did not
occur at Capernaum, for after it was over, He
"withdrew Himelf," it is said "to the
sea" (
Mr 3:7), whereas Capernaum was at the sea.
And, behold, there was a man which had
his hand withered--disabled by paralysis (as in
1Ki 13:4). It was his right hand, as Luke (
Lu 6:6) graphically notes.
And they asked him, saying, Is it
lawful to heal on the sabbath days? that they might accuse
him--Mark and Luke (
Mr 3:2; Lu 6:7) say they "watched Him whether He
would heal on the sabbath day." They were now come to
the length of dogging His steps, to collect materials for a
charge of impiety against Him. It is probable that it was
to their thoughts rather than their words that Jesus
addressed Himself in what follows.
11. And he said unto them, What man shall there be among you that shall have one sheep, and if it fall into a pit on the sabbath day, will he not lay hold on it, and lift it out?
12. How much then is a man better than a sheep?--Resistless appeal! "A righteous man regardeth the life of his beast" ( Pr 12:10), and would instinctively rescue it from death or suffering on the sabbath day; how much more his nobler fellow man! But the reasoning, as given in the other two Gospels, is singularly striking: "But He knew their thoughts, and said to the man which had the withered hand, Rise up, and stand forth in the midst. And he arose and stood forth. Then said Jesus unto them, I will ask you one thing: Is it lawful on the sabbath days to do good, or to do evil? to save life or to destroy it?" ( Lu 6:8, 9), or as in Mark ( Mr 3:4), "to kill?" He thus shuts them up to this startling alternative: "Not to do good, when it is in the power of our hand to do it, is to do evil; not to save life, when we can, is to kill"--and must the letter of the sabbath rest be kept at this expense? This unexpected thrust shut their mouths. By this great ethical principle our Lord, we see, held Himself bound, as man. But here we must turn to Mark, whose graphic details make the second Gospel so exceedingly precious. "When He had looked round about on them with anger, being grieved for the hardness of their hearts, He saith unto the man" ( Mr 3:5). This is one of the very few passages in the Gospel history which reveal our Lord's feelings. How holy this anger was appears from the "grief" which mingled with it at "the hardness of their hearts."
13. Then saith he to the man, Stretch forth thine hand. And
he stretched it forth--the power to obey going forth with
the word of command.
and it was restored whole, like as the
other--The poor man, having faith in this wonderful
Healer--which no doubt the whole scene would singularly
help to strengthen--disregarded the proud and venomous
Pharisees, and thus gloriously put them to shame.
14. Then the Pharisees went out, and held a council against him, how they might destroy him--This is the first explicit mention of their murderous designs against our Lord. Luke ( Lu 6:11) says, "they were filled with madness, and communed one with another what they might do to Jesus." But their doubt was not, whether to get rid of Him, but how to compass it. Mark ( Mr 3:6), as usual, is more definite: "The Pharisees went forth, and straightway took counsel with the Herodians against Him, how they might destroy Him." These Herodians were supporters of Herod's dynasty, created by Cæsar--a political rather than religious party. The Pharisees regarded them as untrue to their religion and country. But here we see them combining together against Christ as a common enemy. So on a subsequent occasion ( Mt 22:15, 16).
Jesus Retires to Avoid Danger ( Mt 12:15-21).
15. But when Jesus knew it, he withdrew himself from
thence--whither, our Evangelist says not; but Mark (
Mr 3:7) says "it was to the sea"--to
some distance, no doubt, from the scene of the miracle, the
madness, and the plotting just recorded.
and great multitudes followed him, and
he healed them all--Mark gives the following interesting
details: "A great multitude from Galilee followed Him,
and from Judea and from Jerusalem, and from Idumea, and
from beyond Jordan; and they about Tyre and Sidon, a great
multitude, when they had heard what great things He did,
came unto Him. And He spake to His disciples, that a small
ship"--or "wherry"--"should wait on Him
because of the multitude, lest they should throng Him. For
He had healed many; insomuch that they pressed upon Him for
to touch Him, as many as had plagues. And unclean spirits,
when they saw Him, fell down before Him, and cried, saying,
Thou art the Son of God. And He straitly charged them that
they should not make Him known" (
Mr 3:7-12). How glorious this extorted homage to the
Son of God! But as this was not the time, so neither were
they the fitting preachers, as B ENGEL says. (See on Mr 1:25, and compare
Jas 2:19). Coming back now to our Evangelist: after
saying, "He healed them all," he continues:
16. And charged them--the healed.
that they should not make him
known--(See on Mt 8:4).
17. That it might be fulfilled which was spoken by Esaias the prophet, saying-- ( Isa 42:1).
18. Behold my servant, whom I have chosen; my beloved, in whom my soul is well pleased: I will put my Spirit upon him, and he shall show judgment to the Gentiles.
19. He shall not strive nor cry; neither shall any man hear his voice in the streets.
20. A bruised reed shall he not break, and smoking flax shall he not quench, till he send forth judgment unto victory--"unto truth," says the Hebrew original, and the Septuagint also. But our Evangelist merely seizes the spirit, instead of the letter of the prediction in this point. The grandeur and completeness of Messiah's victories would prove, it seems, not more wonderful than the unobtrusive noiselessness with which they were to be achieved. And whereas one rough touch will break a bruised reed, and quench the flickering, smoking flax, His it should be, with matchless tenderness, love, and skill, to lift up the meek, to strengthen the weak hands and confirm the feeble knees, to comfort all that mourn, to say to them that are of a fearful heart, Be strong, fear not.
21. And in his name shall the Gentiles trust--Part of His present audience were Gentiles--from Tyre and Sidon--first-fruits of the great Gentile harvest contemplated in the prophecy.
Mt 12:22-37. A BLIND AND DUMB DEMONIAC HEALED AND REPLY TO THE MALIGNANT EXPLANATION PUT UPON IT. ( = Mr 3:20-30; Lu 11:14-23).
The precise time of this section is uncertain. Judging from the statements with which Mark introduces it, we should conclude that it was when our Lord's popularity was approaching its zenith, and so before the feeding of the five thousand. But, on the other hand, the advanced state of the charges brought against our Lord, and the plainness of His warnings and denunciations in reply, seem to favor the later period at which Luke introduces it. "And the multitude," says Mark ( Mr 3:20, 21), "cometh together again," referring back to the immense gathering which Mark had before recorded ( Mr 2:2) --"so that they could not so much as eat bread. And when His friends"--or rather, "relatives," as appears from Mt 12:31, and see on Mt 12:46 --"heard of it, they went out to lay hold on Him; for they said, He is beside Himself." Compare 2Co 5:13, "For whether we be beside ourselves, it is to God."
22. Then was brought unto him one possessed with a
devil--"a demonized person."
blind and dumb, and he healed him,
insomuch that the blind and the dumb both spake and saw.
23. And all the people were amazed, and said, Is not this the son of David?--The form of the interrogative requires this to be rendered, "Is this the Son of David?" And as questions put in this form (in Greek) suppose doubt, and expect rather a negative answer, the meaning is, "Can it possibly be?"--the people thus indicating their secret impression that this must be He; yet saving themselves from the wrath of the ecclesiastics, which a direct assertion of it would have brought upon them. (On a similar question, see on Joh 4:29; and on the phrase, "Son of David," see on Mt 9:27).
24. But when the Pharisees heard it--Mark (
Mr 3:22) says, "the scribes which came down from
Jerusalem"; so that this had been a hostile party of
the ecclesiastics, who had come all the way from Jerusalem
to collect materials for a charge against Him. (See on Mt 12:14).
they said, This fellow--an expression
of contempt.
doth not cast out devils, but by
Beelzebub--rather, "Beelzebul" (see on Mt 10:25).
the prince of the devils--Two things
are here implied--first, that the bitterest enemies of our
Lord were unable to deny the reality of His miracles; and
next, that they believed in an organized infernal
kingdom of evil, under one chief. This belief would be
of small consequence, had not our Lord set His seal to it;
but this He immediately does. Stung by the unsophisticated
testimony of "all the people," they had no way of
holding out against His claims but by the desperate shift
of ascribing His miracles to Satan.
25. And Jesus knew their thoughts--"called them"
(
Mr 3:23).
and said unto them, Every kingdom
divided against itself is brought to desolation; and every
city or house divided against itself shall not
stand--"house," that is, "household"
26. And if Satan cast out Satan, he is divided against himself; how shall then his kingdom stand?--The argument here is irresistible. "No organized society can stand--whether kingdom, city, or household--when turned against itself; such intestine war is suicidal: But the works I do are destructive of Satan's kingdom: That I should be in league with Satan, therefore, is incredible and absurd."
27. And if I by Beelzebub cast out devils, by whom do your children--"your sons," meaning here the "disciples" or pupils of the Pharisees, who were so termed after the familiar language of the Old Testament in speaking of the sons of the prophets ( 1Ki 20:35; 2Ki 2:3, &c.). Our Lord here seems to admit that such works were wrought by them; in which case the Pharisees stood self-condemned, as expressed in Luke ( Lu 11:19), "Therefore shall they be your judges."
28. But if I cast out devils by the Spirit of God--In Luke
(
Lu 11:20) it is, "with (or 'by') the
finger of God." This latter expression is just a
figurative way of representing the power of God,
while the former tells us the living Personal Agent
was made use of by the Lord Jesus in every exercise of that
power.
then--"no doubt" (
Lu 11:20).
the kingdom of God is come unto
you--rather "upon you," as the same expression is
rendered in Luke (
Lu 11:20): --that is, "If this expulsion of Satan
is, and can be, by no other than the Spirit of God, then is
his Destroyer already in the midst of you, and that kingdom
which is destined to supplant his is already rising on its
ruins."
29. Or else how can one enter into a strong man's
house--or rather, "the strong man's
house."
and spoil his goods, except he first
bind the strong man? and then he will spoil his house.
30. He that is not with me is against me; and he that gathereth not with me scattereth abroad--On this important parable, in connection with the corresponding one ( Mt 12:43-45), see on Lu 11:21-26.
31. Wherefore I say unto you, All manner of sin and
blasphemy shall be forgiven unto men--The word
"blasphemy" properly signifies
"detraction," or "slander." In the New
Testament it is applied, as it is here, to vituperation
directed against God as well as against men; and in this
sense it is to be understood as an aggravated form of sin.
Well, says our Lord, all sin--whether in its ordinary or
its more aggravated forms--shall find forgiveness with God.
Accordingly, in Mark (
Mr 3:28) the language is still stronger: "All sin
shall be forgiven unto the sons of men, and blasphemies
wherewith soever they shall blaspheme." There is no
sin whatever, it seems, of which it may be said, "That
is not a pardonable sin." This glorious assurance is
not to be limited by what follows; but, on the contrary,
what follows is to be explained by this.
but the blasphemy against the Holy
Ghost shall not be forgiven unto men.
32. And whosoever speaketh a word against the Son of man, it shall be forgiven him: but whosoever speaketh against the Holy Ghost, it shall not be forgiven him, neither in this world, neither in the world to come--In Mark the language is awfully strong, "hath never forgiveness, but is in danger of eternal damnation" ( Mr 3:20)--or rather, according to what appears to be the preferable though very unusual reading, "in danger of eternal guilt"--a guilt which he will underlie for ever. Mark has the important addition ( Mr 3:30), "Because they said, He hath an unclean spirit." (See on Mt 10:25). What, then, is this sin against the Holy Ghost--the unpardonable sin? One thing is clear: Its unpardonableness cannot arise from anything in the nature of sin itself; for that would be a naked contradiction to the emphatic declaration of Mt 12:31, that all manner of sin is pardonable. And what is this but the fundamental truth of the Gospel? (See Ac 13:38, 39; Ro 3:22, 24; 1Jo 1:7, &c.). Then, again when it is said ( Mt 12:32), that to speak against or blaspheme the Son of man is pardonable, but the blasphemy against the Holy Ghost is not pardonable, it is not to be conceived that this arises from any greater sanctity in the one blessed Person than the other. These remarks so narrow the question that the true sense of our Lord's words seem to disclose themselves at once. It is a contrast between slandering "the Son of man" in His veiled condition and unfinished work--which might be done "ignorantly, in unbelief" ( 1Ti 1:13), and slandering the same blessed Person after the blaze of glory which the Holy Ghost was soon to throw around His claims, and in the full knowledge of all that. This would be to slander Him with eyes open, or to do it "presumptuously." To blaspheme Christ in the former condition--when even the apostles stumbled at many things--left them still open to conviction on fuller light: but to blaspheme Him in the latter condition would be to hate the light the clearer it became, and resolutely to shut it out; which, of course, precludes salvation. (See on Heb 10:26-29). The Pharisees had not as yet done this; but in charging Jesus with being in league with hell they were displaying beforehand a malignant determination to shut their eyes to all evidence, and so, bordering upon, and in spirit committing, the unpardonable sin.
33. Either make the tree good, &c.
34. O generation of vipers--(See on Mt
3:7).
how can ye, being evil, speak good
things? for out of the abundance of the heart the mouth
speaketh--a principle obvious enough, yet of deepest
significance and vast application. In
Lu 6:45 we find it uttered as part of the discourse
delivered after the choice of the apostles.
35. A good man, out of the good treasure of the heart,
bringeth forth good things--or, "putteth forth good
things":
and an evil man, out of the evil
treasure, bringeth forth evil things--or "putteth
forth evil things." The word "putteth"
indicates the spontaneity of what comes from the heart; for
it is out of the abundance of the heart that the mouth
speaketh. We have here a new application of a former saying
(see on Mt 7:16-20). Here, the
sentiment is, "There are but two kingdoms, interests,
parties--with the proper workings of each: If I promote the
one, I cannot belong to the other; but they that set
themselves in wilful opposition to the kingdom of light
openly proclaim to what other kingdom they belong. As for
you, in what ye have now uttered, ye have but revealed the
venomous malignity of your hearts."
36. But I say unto you, That every idle word that men shall speak, they shall give account thereof in the day of judgment--They might say, "It was nothing: we meant no evil; we merely threw out a supposition, as one way of accounting for the miracle we witnessed; if it will not stand, let it go; why make so much of it, and bear down with such severity for it?" Jesus replies, "It was not nothing, and at the great day will not be treated as nothing: Words, as the index of the heart, however idle they may seem, will be taken account of, whether good or bad, in estimating character in the day of judgment."
Mt 12:38-50. A SIGN DEMANDED AND THE REPLY--HIS MOTHER AND BRETHREN SEEK TO SPEAK WITH HIM, AND THE ANSWER. ( = Lu 11:16, 24-36; Mr 3:31-35; Lu 8:19-21).
A Sign Demanded, and the Reply ( Mt 12:38-45).
The occasion of this section was manifestly the same with that of the preceding.
38. Then certain of the scribes and of the Pharisees
answered, saying, Master--"Teacher," equivalent
to "Rabbi."
we would see a sign from thee--"a
sign from heaven" (
Lu 11:16); something of an immediate and decisive
nature, to show, not that His miracles were
real--that they seemed willing to concede--but that
they were from above, not from beneath. These were not the
same class with those who charged Him with being in league
with Satan (as we see from
Lu 11:15, 16); but as the spirit of both was similar,
the tone of severe rebuke is continued.
39. But he answered and said unto them--"when the
people were gathered thick together" (
Lu 11:29).
an evil and adulterous
generation--This latter expression is best explained by
Jer 3:20, "Surely as a wife treacherously
departeth from her husband, so have ye dealt treacherously
with Me, O house of Israel, saith the Lord." For this
was the relationship in which He stood to the
covenant-people--"I am married unto you" (
Jer 3:14).
seeketh after a sign--In the eye of
Jesus this class were but the spokesmen of their
generation, the exponents of the reigning spirit of
unbelief.
and there shall no sign be given to
it, but the sign of the prophet Jonas.
40. For as Jonas was--"a sign unto the Ninevites, so
shall also the Son of man be to this generation" (
Lu 11:30). For as Jonas was
three days and three nights in the
whale's belly-- (
Jon 1:17).
so shall the Son of man be three days
and three nights in the heart of the earth--This was the
second public announcement of His resurrection three days
after His death. (For the first, see
Joh 2:19). Jonah's case was analogous to this, as
being a signal judgment of God; reversed in three days; and
followed by a glorious mission to the Gentiles. The
expression "in the heart of the earth," suggested
by the expression of Jonah with respect to the sea
(2:3, in the Septuagint), means simply the
grave, but this considered as the most emphatic expression
of real and total entombment. The period during which He
was to lie in the grave is here expressed in round numbers,
according to the Jewish way of speaking, which was to
regard any part of a day, however small, included within a
period of days, as a full day. (See
1Sa 30:12, 13; Es 4:16; 5:1; Mt 27:63, 64, &c.).
41. The men of Nineveh shall rise in judgment with this generation, &c.--The Ninevites, though heathens, repented at a man's preaching; while they, God's covenant-people, repented not at the preaching of the Son of God--whose supreme dignity is rather implied here than expressed.
42. The queen of the south shall rise up in the judgment with this generation, &c.--The queen of Sheba (a tract in Arabia, near the shores of the Red Sea) came from a remote country, "south" of Judea, to hear the wisdom of a mere man, though a gifted one, and was transported with wonder at what she saw and heard ( 1Ki 10:1-9). They, when a Greater than Solomon had come to them, despised and rejected, slighted and slandered Him.
43-45. When the unclean spirit is gone out of a man, &c.--On this important parable, in connection with the corresponding one ( Mt 12:29) see on Lu 11:21-26.
A charming little incident, given only in Lu 11:27, 28, seems to have its proper place here.
Lu 11:27:
And it came to pass, as He spake these things, a certain woman of the company--out of the crowd.
lifted up her voice and said unto Him, Blessed is the womb that bare Thee, and the paps which Thou hast sucked--With true womanly feeling she envies the mother of such a wonderful Teacher. And a higher and better than she had said as much before her (see on Lu 1:28). How does our Lord, then, treat it? He is far from condemning it. He only holds up as "blessed rather" another class: Lu 11:28:
But he said, Yea rather, blessed are they that hear the word of God, and keep it--in other words, the humblest real saint of God. How utterly alien is this sentiment from the teaching of the Church of Rome, which would doubtless excommunicate any one of its members that dared to talk in such a strain!
His Mother and Brethren Seek to Speak with Him and the Answer ( Mt 12:46-50).
46. While he yet talked to the people, behold, his mother
and his brethren--(See on Mt 13:55,
56).
stood without, desiring to speak with
him--"and could not come at Him for the press"
(
Lu 8:19). For what purpose these came, we learn from
Mr 3:20, 21. In His zeal and ardor He seemed
indifferent both to food and repose, and "they went to
lay hold of Him" as one "beside Himself."
Mark (
Mr 3:32) says graphically, "And the multitude sat
about Him"--or "around Him."
47. Then one said unto him, Behold, thy mother and thy brethren stand without, desiring to speak with thee, &c.--Absorbed in the awful warnings He was pouring forth, He felt this to be an unseasonable interruption, fitted to dissipate the impression made upon the large audience--such an interruption as duty to the nearest relatives did not require Him to give way to. But instead of a direct rebuke, He seizes on the incident to convey a sublime lesson, expressed in a style of inimitable condescension.
49. And he stretched forth his hand toward his
disciples--How graphic is this! It is the language
evidently of an eye-witness.
and said, Behold my mother and my
brethren!
50. For whosoever shall do the will of my Father which is in heaven, the same is my brother, and sister, and mother--that is, "There stand here the members of a family transcending and surviving this of earth: Filial subjection to the will of My Father in heaven is the indissoluble bond of union between Me and all its members; and whosoever enters this hallowed circle becomes to Me brother, and sister, and mother!"
Mt 13:1-52. JESUS TEACHES BY PARABLES. ( = Mr 4:1-34; Lu 8:4-18; 13:18-20).
Introduction ( Mt 13:1-3).
1. The same day went Jesus out of the house, and sat by the seaside.
2. And great multitudes were gathered together unto him, so
that he went into a ship--the article in the received text
lacks authority
and sat; and the whole multitude stood
on the shore--How graphic this picture!--no doubt from the
pen of an eye-witness, himself impressed with the scene. It
was "the same day" on which the foregoing solemn
discourse was delivered, when His kindred thought Him
"beside Himself" for His indifference to food and
repose--that same day retiring to the seashore of Galilee;
and there seating Himself, perhaps for coolness and rest,
the crowds again flock around Him, and He is fain to push
off from them, in the boat usually kept in readiness for
Him; yet only to begin, without waiting to rest, a new
course of teaching by parables to the eager multitudes that
lined the shore. To the parables of our Lord there is
nothing in all language to be compared, for simplicity,
grace, fulness, and variety of spiritual teaching. They are
adapted to all classes and stages of advancement, being
understood by each according to the measure of his
spiritual capacity.
3. And he spake many things unto them in parables, saying, &c.--These parables are SEVEN in number; and it is not a little remarkable that while this is the sacred number, the first FOUR of them were spoken to the mixed multitude, while the remaining THREE were spoken to the Twelve in private--these divisions, four and three, being themselves notable in the symbolical arithmetic of Scripture. Another thing remarkable in the structure of these parables is, that while the first of the Seven--that of the Sower--is of the nature of an Introduction to the whole, the remaining Six consist of three pairs--the Second and Seventh, the Third and Fourth, and the Fifth and Sixth, corresponding to each other; each pair setting forth the same general truths, but with a certain diversity of aspect. All this can hardly be accidental.
First Parable: THE SOWER ( Mt 13:3-9, 18-23).
This parable may be entitled, THE EFFECT OF THE WORD DEPENDENT ON THE STATE OF THE HEART. For the exposition of this parable, see on Mr 4:1-9, 14-20.
Reason for Teaching in Parables ( Mt 13:10-17).
10. And the disciples came, and said unto him--"they
that were with Him, when they were alone" (
Mr 4:10).
Why speakest thou to them in
parables?--Though before this He had couched some things in
the parabolic form, for more vivid illustration, it would
appear that He now, for the first time, formally employed
this method of teaching.
11. He answered and said unto them, Because it is given
unto you to know the mysteries of the kingdom of
heaven--The word "mysteries" in Scripture is not
used in its classical sense--of religious secrets, nor yet
of things incomprehensible, or in their own nature
difficult to be understood--but in the sense of things of
purely divine revelation, and, usually, things darkly
announced under the ancient economy, and during all that
period darkly understood, but fully published under the
Gospel (
1Co 2:6-10; Eph 3:3-6, 8, 9). "The mysteries of
the kingdom of heaven," then, mean those glorious
Gospel truths which at that time only the more advanced
disciples could appreciate, and they but partially.
but to them it is not given--(See on
Mt 11:25). Parables serve the double
purpose of revealing and concealing;
presenting "the mysteries of the kingdom" to
those who know and relish them, though in never so small a
degree, in a new and attractive light; but to those who are
insensible to spiritual things yielding only, as so many
tales, some temporary entertainment.
12. For whosoever hath--that is, keeps; as a thing which he
values.
to him shall be given, and he shall
have more abundance--He will be rewarded by an increase of
what he so much prizes.
but whosoever hath not--who lets this
go or lie unused, as a thing on which he sets no
value.
from him shall be taken away even that
he hath--or as it is in Luke (
Lu 8:18), "what he seemeth to have," or,
thinketh he hath. This is a principle of immense
importance, and, like other weighty sayings, appears to
have been uttered by our Lord on more than one occasion,
and in different connections. (See on Mt
25:9). As a great ethical principle, we see it in
operation everywhere, under the general law of
habit; in virtue of which moral principles become
stronger by exercise, while by disuse, or the exercise of
their contraries, they wax weaker, and at length expire.
The same principle reigns in the intellectual world, and
even in the animal--if not in the vegetable also--as the
facts of physiology sufficiently prove. Here, however, it
is viewed as a divine ordination, as a judicial retribution
in continual operation under the divine administration.
13. Therefore speak I to them in parables--which our Lord,
be it observed, did not begin to do till His miracles were
malignantly ascribed to Satan.
because they seeing, see not--They
"saw," for the light shone on them as never light
shone before; but they "saw not," for they closed
their eyes.
and hearing, they hear not; neither do
they understand--They "heard," for He taught them
who "spake as never man spake"; but they
"heard not," for they took nothing in,
apprehending not the soul-penetrating, life-giving words
addressed to them. In Mark and Luke (
Mr 4:12; Lu 8:10), what is here expressed as a human
fact is represented as the fulfilment of a divine
purpose--"that seeing they may see, and not
perceive," &c. The explanation of this lies in the
statement of the foregoing verse--that, by a fixed law of
the divine administration, the duty men voluntarily refuse
to do, and in point of fact do not do, they at length
become morally incapable of doing.
14. And in them is fulfilled--rather, "is
fulfilling," or "is receiving its
fulfilment."
the prophecy of Esaias, which saith--
(
Isa 6:9, 10 --here quoted according to the
Septuagint).
By hearing ye shall hear, and shall
not understand, &c.--They were thus judicially sealed
up under the darkness and obduracy which they deliberately
preferred to the light and healing which Jesus brought nigh
to them.
16. But blessed are your eyes, for they see; and your cars, for they hear--that is, "Happy ye, whose eyes and ears, voluntarily and gladly opened, are drinking in the light divine."
17. For verily I say unto you, That many prophets and
righteous men have desired--rather,
"coveted."
to see those things which ye see, and
have not seen them; and to hear those things which ye hear,
and have not heard them--Not only were the disciples
blessed above the blinded just spoken of, but favored above
the most honored and the best that lived under the old
economy, who had but glimpses of the things of the new
kingdom, just sufficient to kindle in them desires not to
be fulfilled to any in their day. In
Lu 10:23, 24, where the same saying is repeated on the
return of the Seventy--the words, instead of "many
prophets and righteous men," are "many prophets
and kings"; for several of the Old Testament
saints were kings.
Second and Seventh Parables or First Pair:
THE WHEAT AND THE TARES, and THE GOOD AND BAD FISH ( Mt 13:24-30, 36-43, 47-50).
The subject of both these parables--which teach the same truth, with a slight diversity of aspect--is:
THE MIXED CHARACTER OF THE KINGDOM IN ITS PRESENT STATE, AND THE FINAL ABSOLUTE SEPARATION OF THE TWO CLASSES.
The Tares and the Wheat ( Mt 13:24-30, 36-43).
24, 36-38. Another parable put he forth unto them, saying, The kingdom of heaven is likened unto a man which sowed good seed in his field--Happily for us, these exquisite parables are, with like charming simplicity and clearness, expounded to us by the Great Preacher Himself. Accordingly, we pass to: Mt 13:36-38. See on Mt 13:36; Mt 13:38
25, 38, 39. But while men slept, his enemy came and sowed tares among the wheat, and went his way--(See on Mt 13:38, 39).
26. But when the blade was sprung up, and brought forth fruit, then appeared the tares also--the growth in both cases running parallel, as antagonistic principles are seen to do.
27. So the servants of the householder came--that is,
Christ's ministers.
and said unto him, Sir, didst not thou
sow good seed in thy field? from whence then hath it
tares?--This well expresses the surprise, disappointment,
and anxiety of Christ's faithful servants and people at
the discovery of "false brethren" among the
members of the Church.
28. He said unto them, An enemy hath done this--Kind words
these from a good Husbandman, honorably clearing His
faithful servants of the wrong done to his field.
The servants said unto him, Wilt thou
then that we go and gather them up?--Compare with this the
question of James and John (
Lu 9:54), "Lord, wilt Thou that we command fire to
come down from heaven and consume" those Samaritans?
In this kind of zeal there is usually a large mixture of
carnal heat. (See
Jas 1:20).
29. But he said, Nay--"It will be done in due time,
but not now, nor is it your business."
lest, while ye gather up the tares, ye
root up also the wheat with them--Nothing could more
clearly or forcibly teach the difficulty of distinguishing
the two classes, and the high probability that in the
attempt to do so these will be confounded.
30, 39. Let both grow together--that is, in the visible
Church.
until the harvest--till the one have
ripened for full salvation, the other for destruction. (See
on Mt 13:39).
and in the time of harvest I will say
to the reapers--(See on Mt
13:39).
Gather ye together first the tares,
and bind them in bundles to burn them--"in the
fire" (
Mt 13:40).
but gather the wheat into my
barn--Christ, as the Judge, will separate the two classes
(as in
Mt 25:32). It will be observed that the tares are
burned before the wheat is housed; in the exposition
of the parable (
Mt 13:41, 43) the same order is observed: and the same
in
Mt 25:46 --as if, in some literal sense, "with
thine eyes shalt thou behold and see the reward of the
wicked" (
Ps 91:8).
Third and Fourth Parables or Second Pair:
THE MUSTARD SEED and THE LEAVEN ( Mt 13:31-33).
The subject of both these parables, as of the first pair, is the same, but under a slight diversity of aspect, namely--
THE GROWTH OF THE KINGDOM FROM THE SMALLEST BEGINNINGS TO ULTIMATE UNIVERSALITY.
The Mustard Seed ( Mt 13:31, 32).
31. Another parable put he forth unto them, saying, The kingdom of heaven is like to a grain of mustard seed, which a man took, and sowed in his field;
32. Which indeed is the least of all seeds--not absolutely,
but popularly and proverbially, as in
Lu 17:6, "If ye had faith as a grain of mustard
seed," that is, "never so little
faith."
but when it is grown, it is the
greatest among herbs--not absolutely, but in relation to
the small size of the seed, and in warm latitudes
proverbially great.
and becometh a tree, so that the birds
of the air come and lodge in the branches thereof--This is
added, no doubt, to express the amplitude of the
tree. But as this seed has a hot, fiery vigor, gives out
its best virtues when bruised, and is grateful to the taste
of birds, which are accordingly attracted to its branches
both for shelter and food, is it straining the parable,
asks TRENCH, to suppose that, besides the wonderful
growth of His kingdom, our Lord selected this seed to
illustrate further the shelter, repose and
blessedness it is destined to afford to the nations of
the world?
The Leaven ( Mt 13:33).
33. Another parable spake he unto them; The kingdom of heaven is like unto leaven, which a woman took and hid in three measures of meal, till the whole was leavened--This parable, while it teaches the same general truth as the foregoing one, holds forth, perhaps, rather the inward growth of the kingdom, while "the Mustard Seed" seems to point chiefly to the outward. It being a woman's work to knead, it seems a refinement to say that "the woman" here represents the Church, as the instrument of depositing the leaven. Nor does it yield much satisfaction to understand the "three measures of meal" of that threefold division of our nature into "spirit, soul, and body," alluded to in 1Th 5:23, or of the threefold partition of the world among the three sons of Noah ( Ge 10:32), as some do. It yields more real satisfaction to see in this brief parable just the all-penetrating and assimilating quality of the Gospel, by virtue of which it will yet mould all institutions and tribes of men, and exhibit over the whole earth one "kingdom of our Lord and of His Christ."
34. All these things spake Jesus unto the multitude in parables; and without a parable spake he not unto them--that is, on this occasion; refraining not only from all naked discourse, but even from all interpretation of these parables to the mixed multitude.
35. That it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the
prophet, saying-- (
Ps 78:2, nearly as in the Septuagint).
I will open my mouth in parables,
&c.--Though the Psalm seems to contain only a summary
of Israelitish history, the Psalmist himself calls
it "a parable," and "dark sayings from of
old"--as containing, underneath the history,
truths for all time, not fully brought to light till the
Gospel day.
36-38. Then Jesus sent the multitude away, and went into the house: and his disciples came unto him, saying, Declare unto us the parable of the tares of the field, &c.--In the parable of the Sower, "the seed is the word of God" ( Lu 8:11). But here that word has been received into the heart, and has converted him that received it into a new creature, a "child of the kingdom," according to that saying of James ( Jas 1:18), "Of His own will begat He us with the word of truth, that we should be a kind of first-fruits of His creatures." It is worthy of notice that this vast field of the world is here said to be Christ's own--"His field," says the parable. (See Ps 2:8).
38. The tares are the children of the wicked one--As this sowing could only be "while men slept," no blame seems intended, and certainly none is charged upon "the servants"; it is probably just the dress of the parable.
39. The enemy that sowed them is the devil--emphatically
"His enemy" (
Mt 13:25). (See
Ge 3:15; 1Jo 3:8). By "tares" is meant, not
what in our husbandry is so called, but some noxious plant,
probably darnel. "The tares are the children of
the wicked one"; and by their being sown "among
the wheat" is meant their being deposited within the
territory of the visible Church. As they resemble the
children of the kingdom, so they are produced, it seems, by
a similar process of "sowing"--the seeds of evil
being scattered and lodging in the soil of those hearts
upon which falls the seed of the world. The enemy, after
sowing his "tares," "went his way"--his
dark work soon done, but taking time to develop its true
character.
The harvest is the end of the
world--the period of Christ's second coming, and of the
judicial separation of the righteous and the wicked. Till
then, no attempt is to be made to effect such separation.
But to stretch this so far as to justify allowing openly
scandalous persons to remain in the communion of the
Church, is to wrest the teaching of this parable to other
than its proper design, and go in the teeth of apostolic
injunctions (
1Co 5:1-13).
And the reapers are the angels--But
whose angels are they? "The Son of man shall send
forth His angels" (
Mt 13:41). Compare
1Pe 3:22, "Who is gone into heaven, and is on the
right hand of God; angels and authorities and powers being
made subject unto him."
41. The Son of man shall send forth his angels, and they
shall gather out of his kingdom--to which they never really
belonged. They usurped their place and name and outward
privileges; but "the ungodly shall not stand in the
judgment, nor sinners [abide] in the congregation of the
righteous" (
Ps 1:5).
all things that offend--all those who
have proved a stumbling-block to others
and them which do iniquity--The former
class, as the worst, are mentioned first.
42. And shall cast them into a furnace of fire--rather,
"the furnace of fire":
there shall be wailing and gnashing of
teeth--What terrific strength of language--the
"casting" or "flinging" expressive of
indignation, abhorrence, contempt (compare
Ps 9:17; Da 12:2): "the furnace of fire"
denoting the fierceness of the torment: the
"wailing" signifying the anguish this causes;
while the "gnashing of teeth" is a graphic way of
expressing the despair in which its remedilessness issues
(see
Mt 8:12)!
43. Then shall the righteous shine forth as the sun in the
kingdom of their Father--as if they had been under a cloud
during the present association with ungodly pretenders to
their character, and claimants of their privileges, and
obstructors of their course.
Who hath ears to hear, let him
hear--(See
Mr 4:9).
Fifth and Sixth Parables or Third Pair: THE HIDDEN TREASURE and THE PEARL OF GREAT PRICE ( Mt 13:44-46).
The subject of this last pair, as of the two former, is the same, but also under a slight diversity of aspect: namely--
THE PRICELESS VALUE OF THE BLESSINGS OF THE KINGDOM. And while the one parable represents the Kingdom as "found without seeking," the other holds forth the Kingdom as "sought and found."
The Hidden Treasure ( Mt 13:44).
44. Again, the kingdom of heaven is like unto treasure hid
in a field--no uncommon thing in unsettled and
half-civilized countries, even now as well as in ancient
times, when there was no other way of securing it from the
rapacity of neighbors or marauders. (
Jer 41:8; Job 3:21; Pr 2:4).
the which when a man hath found--that
is, unexpectedly found.
he hideth, and for joy thereof--on
perceiving what a treasure he had lighted on, surpassing
the worth of all he possessed.
goeth and selleth all that he hath,
and buyeth that field--in which case, by Jewish law, the
treasure would become his own.
The Pearl of Great Price ( Mt 13:45, 46).
45. Again, the kingdom of heaven is like unto a merchantman, seeking goodly pearls.
46. Who, when he had found one pearl of great price, went and sold all that he had, and bought it--The one pearl of great price, instead of being found by accident, as in the former case, is found by one whose business it is to seek for such, and who finds it just in the way of searching for such treasures. But in both cases the surpassing value of the treasure is alike recognized, and in both all is parted with for it.
The Good and Bad Fish ( Mt 13:47-50).
The object of this brief parable is the same as that of the Tares and Wheat. But as its details are fewer, so its teaching is less rich and varied.
47. Again, the kingdom of heaven is like unto a net, that was cast into the sea, and gathered of every kind--The word here rendered "net" signifies a large drag-net, which draws everything after it, suffering nothing to escape, as distinguished from a casting-net ( Mr 1:16, 18). The far-reaching efficacy of the Gospel is thus denoted. This Gospel net "gathered of every kind," meaning every variety of character.
48. Which, when it was full, they drew to shore--for the
separation will not be made till the number of the elect is
accomplished.
and sat down--expressing the
deliberateness with which the judicial separation will at
length be made.
and gathered the good into vessels,
but cast the bad away--literally, "the rotten,"
but here meaning, "the foul" or
"worthless" fish: corresponding to the
"tares" of the other parable.
49. So shall it be at the end of the world, &c.--(See on Mt 13:42). We have said that each of these two parables holds forth the same truth under a slight diversity of aspect. What is that diversity? First, the bad, in the former parable, are represented as vile seed sown among the wheat by the enemy of souls; in the latter, as foul fish drawn forth out of the great sea of human beings by the Gospel net itself. Both are important truths--that the Gospel draws within its pale, and into the communion of the visible Church, multitudes who are Christians only in name; and that the injury thus done to the Church on earth is to be traced to the wicked one. But further, while the former parable gives chief prominence to the present mixture of good and bad, in the latter, the prominence is given to the future separation of the two classes.
51. Jesus saith unto them--that is, to the Twelve. He had
spoken the first four in the hearing of the mixed
multitude: the last three He reserved till, on the
dismissal of the mixed audience, He and the Twelve were
alone (
Mt 13:36, &c.).
Have ye understood all these things?
They say unto him, Yea, Lord.
52. Then said he unto them, Therefore--or as we should say,
"Well, then."
every scribe--or Christian teacher:
here so called from that well-known class among the Jews.
(See
Mt 23:34).
which is instructed unto the kingdom
of heaven--himself taught in the mysteries of the Gospel
which he has to teach to others.
is like unto a man that is an
householder which bringeth forth--"turneth" or
"dealeth out."
out of his treasure--his store of
divine truth.
things new and old--old truths in ever
new forms, aspects, applications, and with ever new
illustrations.
Mt 13:53-58. HOW JESUS WAS REGARDED BY HIS RELATIVES. ( = Mr 6:1-6; Lu 4:16-30).
53. And it came to pass, that, when Jesus had finished these parables, he departed thence.
54. And when he was come into his own country--that is,
Nazareth; as is plain from
Mr 6:1. See on Joh
4:43, where also the same phrase occurs. This,
according to the majority of Harmonists, was the
second of two visits which our Lord paid to
Nazareth during His public ministry; but in our view it was
His first and only visit to it. See on Mt 4:13; and for the reasons, see
Lu 4:16-30.
Whence hath this man this wisdom, and
these mighty works?--"these miracles." These
surely are not like the questions of people who had asked
precisely the same questions before, who from astonishment
had proceeded to rage, and in their rage had hurried Him
out of the synagogue, and away to the brow of the hill
whereon their city was built, to thrust Him down headlong,
and who had been foiled even in that object by His passing
through the midst of them, and going His way. But see on Lu 4:16, &c.
55. Is not this the carpenter's son?--In Mark (
Mr 6:3) the question is, "Is not this the
carpenter?" In all likelihood, our Lord, during His
stay under the roof of His earthly parents, wrought along
with His legal father.
is not his mother called
Mary?--"Do we not know all about His parentage? Has He
not grown up in the midst of us? Are not all His relatives
our own townsfolk? Whence, then, such wisdom and such
miracles?" These particulars of our Lord's
human history constitute the most valuable testimony,
first, to His true and real humanity--for they prove that
during all His first thirty years His townsmen had
discovered nothing about Him different from other men;
secondly, to the divine character of His mission--for these
Nazarenes proclaim both the unparalleled character of His
teaching and the reality and glory of His miracles, as
transcending human ability; and thirdly, to His wonderful
humility and self-denial--in that when He was such as they
now saw Him to be, He yet never gave any indications of it
for thirty years, because "His hour was not yet
come."
And his brethren, James, and Joses,
and Simon, and Judas?
56. And his sisters, are they not all with us? Whence then hath this man all these things? An exceedingly difficult question here arises--What were these "brethren" and "sisters" to Jesus? Were they, First, His full brothers and sisters? or, Secondly, Were they His step-brothers and step-sisters, children of Joseph by a former marriage? or, Thirdly, Were they cousins, according to a common way of speaking among the Jews respecting persons of collateral descent? On this subject an immense deal has been written, nor are opinions yet by any means agreed. For the second opinion there is no ground but a vague tradition, arising probably from the wish for some such explanation. The first opinion undoubtedly suits the text best in all the places where the parties are certainly referred to ( Mt 12:46; and its parallels, Mr 3:31; Lu 8:19; our present passage, and its parallels, Mr 6:3; Joh 2:12; 7:3, 5, 10; Ac 1:14). But, in addition to other objections, many of the best interpreters, thinking it in the last degree improbable that our Lord, when hanging on the cross, would have committed His mother to John if He had had full brothers of His own then alive, prefer the third opinion; although, on the other hand, it is not to be doubted that our Lord might have good reasons for entrusting the guardianship of His doubly widowed mother to the beloved disciple in preference even to full brothers of His own. Thus dubiously we prefer to leave this vexed question, encompassed as it is with difficulties. As to the names here mentioned, the first of them, "JAMES," is afterwards called "the Lord's brother" (see on Ga 1:19), but is perhaps not to be confounded with "James the son of Alphæus," one of the Twelve, though many think their identity beyond dispute. This question also is one of considerable difficulty, and not without importance; since the James who occupies so prominent a place in the Church of Jerusalem, in the latter part of the Acts, was apparently the apostle, but is by many regarded as "the Lord's brother," while others think their identity best suits all the statements. The second of those here named, "J OSES" (or Joseph), must not be confounded with "Joseph called Barsabas, who was surnamed Justus" ( Ac 1:23); and the third here named, "SIMON," is not to be confounded with Simon the Kananite or Zealot (see on Mt 10:4). These three are nowhere else mentioned in the New Testament. The fourth and last-named, "JUDAS," can hardly be identical with the apostle of that name--though the brothers of both were of the name of "James"--nor (unless the two be identical, was this Judas) with the author of the catholic Epistle so called.
58. And he did not many mighty works there, because of their unbelief--"save that He laid His hands on a few sick folk, and healed them" ( Mr 6:5). See on Lu 4:16-30.
Mt 14:1-12. HEROD THINKS JESUS A RESURRECTION OF THE MURDERED BAPTIST--ACCOUNT OF HIS IMPRISONMENT AND DEATH. ( = Mr 6:14-29; Lu 9:7-9).
The time of this alarm of Herod Antipas appears to have been during the mission of the Twelve, and shortly after the Baptist--who had been in prison for probably more than a year--had been cruelly put to death.
Herod's Theory of the Works of Christ ( Mt 14:1, 2).
1. At that time Herod the tetrarch--Herod Antipas, one of
the three sons of Herod the Great, and own brother of
Archelaus (
Mt 2:22), who ruled as ethnarch over Galilee and
Perea.
heard of the fame of Jesus--"for
His name was spread abroad" (
Mr 6:14).
2. And said unto his servants--his counsellors or
court-ministers.
This is John the Baptist: he is risen
from the dead, &c.--The murdered prophet haunted his
guilty breast like a specter and seemed to him alive again
and clothed with unearthly powers in the person of Jesus.
Account of the Baptist's Imprisonment and Death ( Mt 14:3-12). For the exposition of this portion, see on Mr 6:17-29.
Mt 14:12-21. HEARING OF THE BAPTIST'S DEATH, JESUS CROSSES THE LAKE WITH TWELVE, AND MIRACULOUSLY FEEDS FIVE THOUSAND. ( = Mr 6:30-44; Lu 9:10-17; Joh 6:1-14).
For the exposition of this section--one of the very few where all the four Evangelists run parallel--see on Mr 6:30-44.
Mt 14:22-26. JESUS CROSSES TO THE WESTERN SIDE OF THE LAKE WALKING ON THE SEA--INCIDENTS ON LANDING. ( = Mr 6:45; Joh 6:15-24).
For the exposition, see on Joh 6:15-24.
28. And Peter answered him and said, Lord, if it is thou, bid me come to thee on the water--(Also see on Mr 6:50.)
29. And he said, Come. And when Peter had come down out of the boat. he walked on the water, to go to Jesus--(Also see on Mr 6:50.)
30. But when he saw the wind boisterous, he was afraid; and beginning to sink, he cried, saying, Lord, save me--(Also see on Mr 6:50.)
31. And immediately Jesus stretched forth his hand, and caught him, and said to him, O thou of little faith, why didst thou doubt?--(Also see on Mr 6:50.)
32. And when they had come into the boat, the wind ceased--(Also see on Mr 6:50.)
Mt 15:1-20. DISCOURSE ON CEREMONIAL POLLUTION. ( = Mr 7:1, 23).
The time of this section was after that Passover which was nigh at hand when our Lord fed the five thousand ( Joh 6:4) --the third Passover, as we take it, since His public ministry began, but which He did not keep at Jerusalem for the reason mentioned in Joh 7:1.
1. Then came to Jesus scribes and Pharisees, which were of
Jerusalem--or "from Jerusalem." Mark (
Mr 7:1) says they "came from" it: a
deputation probably sent from the capital expressly to
watch Him. As He had not come to them at the last Passover,
which they had reckoned on, they now come to Him.
"And," says Mark (
Mr 7:2, 3), "when they saw some of His disciples
eat bread with defiled, that is to say, with unwashen
hands"--hands not ceremonially cleansed by
washing--"they found fault. For the Pharisees, and all
the Jews, except they wash their hands
oft"--literally, "in" or "with the
fist"; that is, probably washing the one hand by the
use of the other--though some understand it, with our
version, in the sense of "diligently,"
"sedulously"--"eat not, holding the
tradition of the elders"; acting religiously according
to the custom handed down to them. "And when they come
from the market" (
Mr 7:4) --"And after market": after any
common business, or attending a court of justice, where the
Jews, as WEBSTER and W ILKINSON remark, after their
subjection to the Romans, were especially exposed to
intercourse and contact with heathens--"except they
wash, they eat not. And many other things there be, which
they have received to hold, as the washing of cups and
pots, brazen vessels and tables"--rather,
"couches," such as were used at meals, which
probably were merely sprinkled for ceremonial
purposes. "Then the Pharisees and scribes asked
Him,"
saying--as follows:
2. Why do thy disciples transgress the tradition of the elders? for they wash not their hands when they eat bread.
3. But he answered and said unto them, Why do ye also transgress the commandment of God by your tradition?--The charge is retorted with startling power: "The tradition they transgress is but man's, and is itself the occasion of heavy transgression, undermining the authority of God's law."
4. For God commanded, saying, Honour thy father and
mother-- (
De 5:16).
and, He that curseth father or mother,
let him die the death-- (
Ex 21:17).
5. But ye say, Whosoever shall say to his father or his
mother, It is a gift--or simply, "A gift!" In
Mark (
Mr 7:11), it is, "Corban!" that is,
"An oblation!" meaning, any unbloody offering or
gift dedicated to sacred uses.
by whatsoever thou mightest be
profited by me;
6. And honour not his father or his mother, he shall be
free--that is, It is true, father--mother--that by
giving to thee this, which I now present, thou mightest be
profited by me; but I have gifted it to pious uses, and
therefore, at whatever cost to thee, I am not now at
liberty to alienate any portion of it. "And," it
is added in Mark (
Mr 7:12), "ye suffer him no more to do aught for
his father or his mother." To dedicate property to God
is indeed lawful and laudable, but not at the expense of
filial duty.
Thus have ye made the commandment of
God of none effect--cancelled or nullified it "by your
tradition."
7. Ye hypocrites, well did Esaias prophesy of you, saying-- ( Isa 29:13).
8. This people draweth nigh unto me with their mouth, &c.--By putting the commandments of men on a level with the divine requirements, their whole worship was rendered vain--a principle of deep moment in the service of God. "For," it is added in Mr 7:8, "laying aside the commandment of God, ye hold the tradition of men, as the washing of pots and cups; and many other such like things ye do." The drivelling nature of their multitudinous observances is here pointedly exposed, in contrast with the manly observance of "the commandment of God"; and when our Lord says, "Many other such like things ye do," it is implied that He had but given a specimen of the hideous treatment which the divine law received, and the grasping disposition which, under the mask of piety, was manifested by the ecclesiastics of that day.
10. And he called the multitude, and said unto them--The
foregoing dialogue, though in the people's hearing, was
between Jesus and the pharisaic cavillers, whose object was
to disparage Him with the people. But Jesus, having put
them down, turns to the multitude, who at this time were
prepared to drink in everything He said, and with admirable
plainness, strength, and brevity, lays down the great
principle of real pollution, by which a world of bondage
and uneasiness of conscience would be dissipated in a
moment, and the sense of sin be reserved for deviations
from the holy and eternal law of God.
Hear and understand:
11. Not that which goeth into the mouth defileth a man; but that which cometh out of the mouth, this defileth a man--This is expressed even more emphatically in Mark ( Mr 7:15, 16), and it is there added, "If any man have ears to hear, let him hear." As in Mt 13:9, this so oft-repeated saying seems designed to call attention to the fundamental and universal character of the truth it refers to.
12. Then came his disciples, and said unto him, Knowest thou that the Pharisees were offended, after they heard this saying?--They had given vent to their irritation, and perhaps threats, not to our Lord Himself, from whom they seem to have slunk away, but to some of the disciples, who report it to their Master.
13. But he answered and said, Every plant, which my heavenly Father hath not planted, shall be rooted up--They are offended, are they? Heed it not: their corrupt teaching is already doomed: the garden of the Lord upon earth, too long cumbered with their presence, shall yet be purged of them and their accursed system: yea, and whatsoever is not of the planting of My heavenly Father, the great Husbandman ( Joh 15:1), shall share the same fate.
14. Let them alone: they be blind leaders of the blind. And if the blind lead the blind, both shall fall into the ditch--Striking expression of the ruinous effects of erroneous teaching!
15. Then answered Peter and said unto him, Declare unto us this parable--"when He was entered into the house from the people," says Mark ( Mr 7:17).
16. And Jesus said, Are ye also yet without understanding?--Slowness of spiritual apprehension in His genuine disciples grieves the Saviour: from others He expects no better ( Mt 13:11).
17, 18. Do not ye yet understand that whatsoever entereth in at the mouth, &c.--Familiar though these sayings have now become, what freedom from bondage to outward things do they proclaim, on the one hand; and on the other, how searching is the truth which they express--that nothing which enters from without can really defile us; and that only the evil that is in the heart, that is allowed to stir there, to rise up in thought and affection, and to flow forth in voluntary action, really defiles a man!
19. For out of the heart proceed evil thoughts--"evil
reasonings"; referring here more immediately to those
corrupt reasonings which had stealthily introduced and
gradually reared up that hideous fabric of tradition which
at length practically nullified the unchangeable principles
of the moral law. But the statement is far broader than
this; namely that the first shape which the evil that is in
the heart takes, when it begins actively to stir, is that
of "considerations" or "reasonings" on
certain suggested actions.
murders, adulteries, fornications,
thefts, false witness, blasphemies--detractions, whether
directed against God or man; here the reference seems to be
to the latter. Mark (
Mr 7:22) adds, "covetousnesses"--or desires
after more; "wickednesses"--here meaning,
perhaps, malignities of various forms; "deceit,
lasciviousness"--meaning, excess or enormity of any
kind, though by later writers restricted to lewdness;
"an evil eye"--meaning, all looks or glances of
envy, jealousy, or ill will towards a neighbor;
"pride, foolishness"--in the Old Testament sense
of "folly"; that is, criminal senselessness, the
folly of the heart. How appalling is this black
catalogue!
20. These are the things which defile a man: but to eat with unwashen hands defileth not a man--Thus does our Lord sum up this whole searching discourse.
Mt 15:21-28. THE WOMAN OF CANAAN AND HER DAUGHTER.
For the exposition, see on Mr 7:24-30.
23. But he answered her not a word. And his disciples came and besought him, saying, Send her away; for she crieth after us--(Also see on Mr 7:26.)
24. But he answered and said, I am not sent but to the lost sheep of the house of Israel--(Also see on Mr 7:26.)
25. Then came she and worshipped him, saying, Lord, help me--(Also see on Mr 7:26.)
Mt 15:29-39. MIRACLES OF HEALING--FOUR THOUSAND MIRACULOUSLY FED.
For the exposition, see on Mr 7:31; Mr 8:10.
Mt 16:1-12. A SIGN FROM HEAVEN SOUGHT AND REFUSED--CAUTION AGAINST THE LEAVEN OF THE PHARISEES AND SADDUCEES.
For the exposition, see on Mr 8:11-21.
Mt 16:13-28. PETER'S NOBLE CONFESSION OF CHRIST AND THE BENEDICTION PRONOUNCED UPON HIM--CHRIST'S FIRST EXPLICIT ANNOUNCEMENT OF HIS APPROACHING SUFFERINGS, DEATH, AND RESURRECTION--HIS REBUKE OF PETER AND WARNING TO ALL THE TWELVE. ( = Mr 8:27; 9:1; Lu 9:18-27).
The time of this section--which is beyond doubt, and will presently be mentioned--is of immense importance, and throws a touching interest around the incidents which it records.
Peter's Confession, and the Benediction Pronounced upon Him. ( Mt 16:13-20).
13. When Jesus came into the coasts--"the parts,"
that is, the territory or region. In Mark (
Mr 8:27) it is "the towns" or
"villages."
of Cæsarea Philippi--It lay at
the foot of Mount Lebanon, near the sources of the Jordan,
in the territory of Dan, and at the northeast extremity of
Palestine. It was originally called Panium (from a
cavern in its neighborhood dedicated to the god Pan)
and Paneas. Philip, the tetrarch, the only good son
of Herod the Great, in whose dominions Paneas lay, having
beautified and enlarged it, changed its name to
Cæsarea, in honor of the Roman emperor, and added
Philippi after his own name, to distinguish it from
the other Cæsarea (
Ac 10:1) on the northeast coast of the Mediterranean
Sea. [J OSEPHUS, Antiquities, 15.10,3; 18.2,1]. This
quiet and distant retreat Jesus appears to have sought with
the view of talking over with the Twelve the fruit of His
past labors, and breaking to them for the first time the
sad intelligence of His approaching death.
he asked his disciples--"by the
way," says Mark (
Mr 8:27), and "as He was alone praying," says
Luke (
Lu 9:18).
saying, Whom--or more grammatically,
"Who"
do men say that I the Son of man
am?--(or, "that the Son of man is"--the recent
editors omitting here the me of Mark and Luke [
Mr 8:27; Lu 9:18]; though the evidence seems pretty
nearly balanced)--that is, "What are the views
generally entertained of Me, the Son of man, after going up
and down among them so long?" He had now closed the
first great stage of His ministry, and was just entering on
the last dark one. His spirit, burdened, sought relief in
retirement, not only from the multitude, but even for a
season from the Twelve. He retreated into "the secret
place of the Most High," pouring out His soul "in
supplications and prayers, with strong crying and
tears" (
Heb 5:7). On rejoining His disciples, and as they were
pursuing their quiet journey, He asked them this question.
14. And they said, Some say that thou art John the
Baptist--risen from the dead. So that Herod Antipas was not
singular in his surmise (
Mt 14:1, 2).
some, Elias--(Compare
Mr 6:15).
and others, Jeremias--Was this theory
suggested by a supposed resemblance between the "Man
of Sorrows" and "the weeping prophet?"
or one of the prophets--or, as Luke
(
Lu 9:8) expresses it, "that one of the old
prophets is risen again." In another report of the
popular opinions which Mark (
Mr 6:15) gives us, it is thus expressed, "That it
is a prophet [or], as one of the prophets": in other
words, That He was a prophetical person, resembling those
of old.
15. He saith unto them, But whom--rather,
"who."
say ye that I am?--He had never put
this question before, but the crisis He was reaching made
it fitting that He should now have it from them. We may
suppose this to be one of those moments of which the
prophet says, in His name, "Then I said, I have
labored in vain; I have spent my strength for naught, and
in vain" (
Isa 49:4): Lo, these three years I come seeking fruit
on this fig tree; and what is it? As the result of all, I
am taken for John the Baptist, for Elias, for Jeremias, for
one of the prophets. Yet some there are that have beheld My
glory, the glory as of the Only-begotten of the Father, and
I shall hear their voice, for it is sweet.
16. And Simon Peter answered and said, Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God--He does not say, "Scribes and Pharisees, rulers and people, are all perplexed; and shall we, unlettered fishermen, presume to decide?" But feeling the light of his Master's glory shining in his soul, he breaks forth--not in a tame, prosaic acknowledgment, "I believe that Thou art," &c.--but in the language of adoration--such as one uses in worship, "THOU ART THE CHRIST, THE SON OF THE LIVING GOD!" He first owns Him the promised Messiah (see on Mt 1:16); then he rises higher, echoing the voice from heaven--"This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased"; and in the important addition--"Son of the LIVING G OD"--he recognizes the essential and eternal life of God as in this His Son--though doubtless without that distinct perception afterwards vouchsafed.
17. And Jesus answered and said unto him, Blessed art
thou--Though it is not to be doubted that Peter, in this
noble testimony to Christ, only expressed the conviction of
all the Twelve, yet since he alone seems to have had clear
enough apprehensions to put that conviction in proper and
suitable words, and courage enough to speak them out, and
readiness enough to do this at the right time--so he only,
of all the Twelve, seems to have met the present want, and
communicated to the saddened soul of the Redeemer at the
critical moment that balm which was needed to cheer and
refresh it. Nor is Jesus above giving indication of the
deep satisfaction which this speech yielded Him, and
hastening to respond to it by a signal acknowledgment of
Peter in return.
Simon Bar-jona--or, "son of
Jona" (
Joh 1:42), or "Jonas" (
Joh 21:15). This name, denoting his humble fleshly
extraction, seems to have been purposely here mentioned, to
contrast the more vividly with the spiritual elevation to
which divine illumination had raised him.
for flesh and blood hath not revealed
it unto thee--"This is not the fruit of human
teaching."
but my Father which is in heaven--In
speaking of God, Jesus, it is to be observed, never calls
Him, "our Father" (see on Joh 20:17), but either "your
Father"--when He would encourage His timid believing
ones with the assurance that He was theirs, and teach
themselves to call Him so--or, as here, "My
Father," to signify some peculiar action or aspect of
Him as "the God and Father of our Lord Jesus
Christ."
18. And I say also unto thee--that is, "As thou hast
borne such testimony to Me, even so in return do I to
thee."
That thou art Peter--At his first
calling, this new name was announced to him as an honor
afterwards to be conferred on him (
Joh 1:43). Now he gets it, with an explanation of what
it was meant to convey.
and upon this rock--As
"Peter" and "Rock" are one word in the
dialect familiarly spoken by our Lord--the Aramaic
or Syro-Chaldaic, which was the mother tongue of the
country--this exalted play upon the word can be
fully seen only in languages which have one word for both.
Even in the Greek it is imperfectly represented. In
French, as WEBSTER and WILKINSON remark, it is perfect,
Pierre--pierre.
I will build my Church--not on the man
Simon Bar-jona; but on him as the heavenly-taught confessor
of a faith. "My Church," says our Lord, calling
the Church HIS OWN; a magnificent expression regarding
Himself, remarks BENGEL--nowhere else occurring in the
Gospels.
and the gates of hell--"of
Hades," or, the unseen world; meaning, the gates of
Death: in other words, "It shall never perish."
Some explain it of "the assaults of the powers of
darkness"; but though that expresses a glorious truth,
probably the former is the sense here.
19. And I will give unto thee the keys of the kingdom of
heaven--the kingdom of God about to be set up on
earth
and whatsoever thou shalt bind on
earth shall be bound in heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt
loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven--Whatever this
mean, it was soon expressly extended to all the
apostles (
Mt 18:18); so that the claim of supreme authority in
the Church, made for Peter by the Church of Rome, and then
arrogated to themselves by the popes as the legitimate
successors of St. Peter, is baseless and impudent. As first
in confessing Christ, Peter got this commission before the
rest; and with these "keys," on the day of
Pentecost, he first "opened the door of faith" to
the Jews, and then, in the person of Cornelius, he
was honored to do the same to the Gentiles. Hence,
in the lists of the apostles, Peter is always first named.
See on Mt 18:18. One thing is clear,
that not in all the New Testament is there the vestige of
any authority either claimed or exercised by Peter, or
conceded to him, above the rest of the apostles--a thing
conclusive against the Romish claims in behalf of that
apostle.
20. Then charged he his disciples that they should tell no man that he was Jesus the Christ--Now that He had been so explicit, they might naturally think the time come for giving it out openly; but here they are told it had not.
Announcement of His Approaching Death and Rebuke of Peter ( Mt 16:21-28).
The occasion here is evidently the same.
21. From that time forth began Jesus to show unto his
disciples--that is, with an explicitness and
frequency He had never observed before.
how that he must go unto Jerusalem and
suffer many things--"and be rejected," (
Mr 8:31; Lu 9:22).
of the elders and chief priests and
scribes--not as before, merely by not receiving Him, but by
formal deeds.
and be killed, and be raised again the
third day--Mark (
Mr 8:32) adds, that "He spake that saying
openly"--"explicitly," or "without
disguise."
22. Then Peter took him--aside, apart from the rest;
presuming on the distinction just conferred on him; showing
how unexpected and distasteful to them all
was the announcement.
and began to rebuke
him--affectionately, yet with a certain generous
indignation, to chide Him.
saying, Be it far from thee: this
shall not be unto thee--that is, "If I can help
it": the same spirit that prompted him in the garden
to draw the sword in His behalf (
Joh 18:10).
23. But he turned, and said--in the hearing of the rest;
for Mark (
Mr 8:33) expressly says, "When He had turned about
and looked on His disciples, He rebuked Peter";
perceiving that he had but boldly uttered what others felt,
and that the check was needed by them also.
Get thee behind me, Satan--the same
words as He had addressed to the Tempter (
Lu 4:8); for He felt in it a satanic lure, a whisper
from hell, to move Him from His purpose to suffer. So He
shook off the Serpent, then coiling around Him, and
"felt no harm" (
Ac 28:5). How quickly has the "rock" turned
to a devil! The fruit of divine teaching the Lord delighted
to honor in Peter; but the mouthpiece of hell, which he had
in a moment of forgetfulness become, the Lord shook off
with horror.
thou art an offence--a
stumbling-block.
unto me--"Thou playest the
Tempter, casting a stumbling-block in My way to the Cross.
Could it succeed, where wert thou? and how should the
Serpent's head be bruised?"
for thou savourest not--thou thinkest
not.
the things that be of God, but those
that be of men--"Thou art carried away by human views
of the way of setting up Messiah's kingdom, quite
contrary to those of God." This was kindly said, not
to take off the sharp edge of the rebuke, but to explain
and justify it, as it was evident Peter knew not what was
in the bosom of his rash speech.
24. Then said Jesus unto his disciples--Mark (
Mr 8:34) says, "When He had called the people unto
Him, with His disciples also, He said unto
them"--turning the rebuke of one into a warning to
all.
If any man will come after me, let him
deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me.
25. For whosoever will save--is minded to save, or bent on
saving.
his life shall lose it, and whosoever
will lose his life for my sake shall find it--(See on Mt 10:38,39). "A suffering and
dying Messiah liketh you ill; but what if His servants
shall meet the same fate? They may not; but who follows Me
must be prepared for the worst."
26. For what is a man profited, if he shall gain the whole
world, and lose his own soul--or forfeit his own
soul?
or what shall a man give in exchange
for his soul?--Instead of these weighty words, which we
find in
Mr 8:36 also, it is thus expressed in
Lu 9:25: "If he gain the whole world, and lose
himself, or be cast away," or better, "If he gain
the whole world, and destroy or forfeit himself." How
awful is the stake as here set forth! If a man makes the
present world--in its various forms of riches, honors,
pleasures, and such like--the object of supreme pursuit, be
it that he gains the world; yet along with it he forfeits
his own soul. Not that any ever did, or ever will gain the
whole world--a very small portion of it, indeed, falls to
the lot of the most successful of the world's
votaries--but to make the extravagant concession, that by
giving himself entirely up to it, a man gains the whole
world; yet, setting over against this gain the forfeiture
of his soul--necessarily following the surrender of his
whole heart to the world--what is he profited? But, if not
the whole world, yet possibly something else may be
conceived as an equivalent for the soul. Well, what is
it?--"Or what shall a man give in exchange for his
soul?" Thus, in language the weightiest, because the
simplest, does our Lord shut up His hearers, and all who
shall read these words to the end of the world, to the
priceless value to every man of his own soul. In Mark and
Luke (
Mr 8:38; Lu 9:26) the following words are added:
"Whosoever therefore shall be ashamed of Me and of My
words [shall be ashamed of belonging to Me, and ashamed of
My Gospel] in this adulterous and sinful generation"
(see on Mt 12:39), "of him
shall the Son of man be ashamed when He cometh in the glory
of His Father, with the holy angels." He will render
back to that man his own treatment, disowning him before
the most august of all assemblies, and putting him to
"shame and everlasting contempt"
(
Da 12:2). "O shame," exclaims BENGEL,
"to be put to shame before God, Christ, and
angels!" The sense of shame is founded on our
love of reputation, which causes instinctive
aversion to what is fitted to lower it, and was given us as
a preservative from all that is properly shameful.
To be lost to shame is to be nearly past hope. (
Zep 3:5; Jer 6:15; 3:3). But when Christ and "His
words" are unpopular, the same instinctive desire to
stand well with others begets that temptation to be
ashamed of Him which only the expulsive power of a higher
affection can effectually counteract.
27. For the Son of man shall come in the glory of his
Father with his angels--in the splendor of His Father's
authority and with all His angelic ministers, ready to
execute His pleasure.
and then he shall reward, &c.
28. Verily I say unto you, There be some standing
here--"some of those standing here."
which shall not taste of death, fill
they see the Son of man coming in his kingdom--or, as in
Mark (
Mr 9:1), "till they see the kingdom of God come
with power"; or, as in Luke (
Lu 9:27), more simply still, "till they see the
kingdom of God." The reference, beyond doubt, is to
the firm establishment and victorious progress, in the
lifetime of some then present, of that new kingdom of
Christ, which was destined to work the greatest of all
changes on this earth, and be the grand pledge of His final
coming in glory.
Mt 17:1-13. JESUS IS TRANSFIGURED--CONVERSATION ABOUT ELIAS. ( = Mr 9:2-13; Lu 9:28-36).
For the exposition, see on Lu 9:28-36.
Mt 17:14-23. HEALING OF A DEMONIAC BOY--SECOND EXPLICIT ANNOUNCEMENT BY OUR LORD OF HIS APPROACHING DEATH AND RESURRECTION. ( = Mr 9:14-32; Lu 9:37-45).
The time of this section is sufficiently denoted by the events which all the narratives show to have immediately preceded it--the first explicit announcement of His death, and the transfiguration--both being between His third and His fourth and last Passover.
Healing of the Demoniac and Lunatic Boy ( Mt 17:14-21).
For the exposition of this portion, see on Mr 9:14-32.
Second Announcement of His Death ( Mt 17:22, 23).
22. And while they abode in Galilee, Jesus said unto
them--Mark (
Mr 9:30), as usual, is very precise here: "And
they departed thence"--that is, from the scene of the
last miracle--"and passed through Galilee; and He
would not that any man should know it." So this was
not a preaching, but a private, journey through Galilee.
Indeed, His public ministry in Galilee was now all but
concluded. Though He sent out the Seventy after this to
preach and heal, He Himself was little more in public
there, and He was soon to bid it a final adieu. Till this
hour arrived, He was chiefly occupied with the Twelve,
preparing them for the coming events.
The Son of man shall be betrayed into
the hands of men . . . And they were exceeding
sorry--Though the shock would not be so great as at the
first announcement (
Mt 16:21, 22), their "sorrow" would not be
the less, but probably the greater, the deeper the
intelligence went down into their hearts, and a new wave
dashing upon them by this repetition of the heavy tidings.
Accordingly, Luke (
Lu 9:43, 44), connecting it with the scene of the
miracle just recorded, and the teaching which arose out of
it--or possibly with all His recent teaching--says our Lord
forewarned the Twelve that they would soon stand in need of
all that teaching: "But while they wondered every one
at all things which Jesus did, He said unto His disciples,
Let these sayings sink down into your ears; for the Son of
man shall be delivered," &c.: "Be not carried
off your feet by the grandeur you have lately seen in Me,
but remember what I have told you, and now tell you again,
that that Sun in whose beams ye now rejoice is soon to set
in midnight gloom." Remarkable is the antithesis in
those words of our Lord preserved in all the three
narratives--"The son of man shall be betrayed
into the hands of men." Luke adds (
Lu 9:45) that "they understood not this saying,
and it was hid from them, that they perceived it
not"--for the plainest statements, when they encounter
long-continued and obstinate prejudices, are seen through a
distorting and dulling medium--"and were afraid to ask
Him"; deterred partly by the air of lofty sadness with
which doubtless these sayings were uttered, and on which
they would be reluctant to break in, and partly by the fear
of laying themselves open to rebuke for their shallowness
and timidity. How artless is all this!
Mt 17:24-27. THE TRIBUTE MONEY.
The time of this section is evidently in immediate succession to that of the preceding one. The brief but most pregnant incident which it records is given by Matthew alone--for whom, no doubt, it would have a peculiar interest, from its relation to his own town and his own familiar lake.
24. And when they were come to Capernaum, they that
received tribute money--the double drachma; a sum equal to
two Attic drachmas, and corresponding to the Jewish
"half-shekel," payable, towards the maintenance
of the temple and its services, by every male Jew of twenty
years old and upward. For the origin of this annual tax,
see
Ex 30:13, 14; 2Ch 24:6, 9. Thus, it will be observed,
it was not a civil, but an ecclesiastical tax. The tax
mentioned in
Mt 17:25 was a civil one. The whole teaching of this
very remarkable scene depends upon this distinction.
came to Peter--at whose house Jesus
probably resided while at Capernaum. This explains several
things in the narrative.
and said, Doth not your master pay
tribute?--The question seems to imply that the payment of
this tax was voluntary, but expected; or
what, in modern phrase, would be called a "voluntary
assessment."
25. He saith, yes--that is, "To be sure He does";
as if eager to remove even the suspicion of the contrary.
If Peter knew--as surely he did--that there was at this
time no money in the bag, this reply must be regarded as a
great act of faith in his Master.
And when he was come into the
house--Peter's.
Jesus prevented him--anticipated him;
according to the old sense of the word
"prevent."
saying, What thinkest thou,
Simon?--using his family name for familiarity.
of whom do the kings of the earth take
custom--meaning custom on goods exported or imported.
or tribute--meaning the poll-tax,
payable to the Romans by everyone whose name was in the
census. This, therefore, it will be observed, was strictly
a civil tax.
of their own children, or of
strangers--This cannot mean "foreigners," from
whom sovereigns certainly do not raise taxes, but those who
are not of their own family, that is, their subjects.
26. Peter saith unto him, Of strangers--"of those not
their children."
Jesus saith unto him, Then are the
children free--By "the children" our Lord cannot
here mean Himself and the Twelve together, in some loose
sense of their near relationship to God as their common
Father. For besides that our Lord never once mixes Himself
up with His disciples in speaking of their relation to God,
but ever studiously keeps His relation and theirs apart
(see, for example, on the last words of this chapter)--this
would be to teach the right of believers to exemption from
the dues required for sacred services, in the teeth of all
that Paul teaches and that He Himself indicates throughout.
He can refer here, then, only to Himself; using the word
"children" evidently in order to express the
general principle observed by sovereigns, who do not draw
taxes from their own children, and thus convey the truth
respecting His own exemption the more strikingly:--namely,
"If the sovereign's own family be exempt, you know
the inference in My case"; or to express it more
nakedly than Jesus thought needful and fitting: "This
is a tax for upholding My Father's House. As His Son,
then, that tax is not due by Me--I AM FREE."
27. Notwithstanding, lest we should offend--stumble.
them--all ignorant as they are of My
relation to the Lord of the Temple, and should misconstrue
a claim to exemption into indifference to His honor who
dwells in it.
go thou to the sea--Capernaum, it will
be remembered, lay on the Sea of Galilee.
and cast an hook, and take up the fish
that first cometh up; and when thou hast opened his mouth,
thou shall find a piece of money--a stater. So it should
have been rendered, and not indefinitely, as in our
version, for the coin was an Attic silver coin equal to two
of the afore-mentioned "didrachms" of half a
shekel's value, and so, was the exact sum required for
both. Accordingly, the Lord adds,
that take, and give unto them for me
and thee--literally, "instead of Me and thee";
perhaps because the payment was a redemption of the
person paid for (
Ex 30:12) --in which view Jesus certainly was
"free." If the house was Peter's, this will
account for payment being provided on this occasion, not
for all the Twelve, but only for him and His Lord. Observe,
our Lord does not say "for us," but "for Me
and thee"; thus distinguishing the Exempted One and
His non-exempted disciple.
Mt 18:1-9. STRIFE AMONG THE TWELVE WHO SHOULD BE GREATEST IN THE KINGDOM OF HEAVEN, WITH RELATIVE TEACHING. ( = Mr 9:33-50; Lu 9:46-50).
For the exposition, see on Mr 9:33-50.
Mt 18:10-35. FURTHER TEACHING ON THE SAME SUBJECT, INCLUDING THE PARABLE OF THE UNMERCIFUL DEBTOR.
Same Subject ( Mt 18:10-20).
10. Take heed that ye despise--stumble.
not one of these little ones; for I
say unto you, That in heaven their angels do always behold
the face of my Father which is in heaven--A difficult
verse; but perhaps the following may be more than an
illustration:--Among men, those who nurse and rear the
royal children, however humble in themselves, are allowed
free entrance with their charge, and a degree of
familiarity which even the highest state ministers dare not
assume. Probably our Lord means that, in virtue of their
charge over His disciples (
Heb 1:13; Joh 1:51), the angels have errands to
the throne, a welcome there, and a dear
familiarity in dealing with "His Father which is
in heaven," which on their own matters they could not
assume.
11. For the Son of man is come to save that which was lost--or "is lost." A golden saying, once and again repeated in different forms. Here the connection seems to be, "Since the whole object and errand of the Son of man into the world is to save the lost, take heed lest, by causing offenses, ye lose the saved." That this is the idea intended we may gather from Mt 18:14.
12, 13. How think ye? If a man have an hundred sheep, and one of them be gone astray, &c.--This is another of those pregnant sayings which our Lord uttered more than once. See on the delightful parable of the lost sheep in Lu 15:4-7. Only the object there is to show what the good Shepherd will do, when even one of His sheep is lost, to find it; here the object is to show, when found, how reluctant He is to lose it. Accordingly, it is added,
14. Even so it is not the will of your Father which is in heaven that one of these little ones should perish--How, then, can He but visit for those "offenses" which endanger the souls of these little ones?
15. Moreover, if thy brother shall trespass against thee, go and tell him his fault between thee and him alone: if he shall hear thee, thou hast gained thy brother, &c.--Probably our Lord had reference still to the late dispute, Who should be the greatest? After the rebuke--so gentle and captivating, yet so dignified and divine--under which they would doubtless be smarting, perhaps each would be saying, It was not I that began it, it was not I that threw out unworthy and irritating insinuations against my brethren. Be it so, says our Lord; but as such things will often arise, I will direct you how to proceed. First, Neither harbor a grudge against your offending brother, nor break forth upon him in presence of the unbelieving; but take him aside, show him his fault, and if he own and make reparation for it, you have done more service to him than even justice to yourself. Next, If this fail, take two or three to witness how just your complaint is, and how brotherly your spirit in dealing with him. Again, If this fail, bring him before the Church or congregation to which both belong. Lastly, If even this fail, regard him as no longer a brother Christian, but as one "without"--as the Jews did Gentiles and publicans.
18. Verily I say unto you, Whatsoever ye shall bind on earth shall be bound in heaven; and whatsoever ye shall loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven--Here, what had been granted but a short time before to Peter only (see on Mt 16:19) is plainly extended to all the Twelve; so that whatever it means, it means nothing peculiar to Peter, far less to his pretended successors at Rome. It has to do with admission to and rejection from the membership of the Church. But see on Joh 20:23.
19. Again I say unto you, That if two of you shall agree on earth as touching anything that they shall ask, it shall be done for them of my Father which is in heaven.
20. For where two or three are gathered together in my
name--or "unto my name."
there am I in the midst of them--On
this passage--so full of sublime encouragement to Christian
union in action and prayer--observe, first, the connection
in which it stands. Our Lord had been speaking of church
meetings before which the obstinate perversity of a brother
was in the last resort to be brought, and whose decision
was to be final--such honor does the Lord of the Church put
upon its lawful assemblies. But not these assemblies only
does He deign to countenance and honor. For even two
uniting to bring any matter before Him shall find that they
are not alone, for My Father is with them, says Jesus.
Next, observe the premium here put upon union in
prayer. As this cannot exist with fewer than two, so by
letting it down so low as that number, He gives the utmost
conceivable encouragement to union in this exercise. But
what kind of union? Not an agreement merely to pray in
concert, but to pray for some definite thing.
"As touching anything which they shall ask," says
our Lord--anything they shall agree to ask in concert. At
the same time, it is plain He had certain things at that
moment in His eye, as most fitting and needful subjects for
such concerted prayer. The Twelve had been "falling
out by the way" about the miserable question of
precedence in their Master's kingdom, and this, as it
stirred their corruptions, had given rise--or at least was
in danger of giving rise--to "offenses" perilous
to their souls. The Lord Himself had been directing them
how to deal with one another about such matters. "But
now shows He unto them a more excellent way." Let them
bring all such matters--yea, and everything whatsoever by
which either their own loving relationship to each other,
or the good of His kingdom at large, might be affected--to
their Father in heaven; and if they be but agreed in
petitioning Him about that thing, it shall be done for them
of His Father which is in heaven. But further, it is not
merely union in prayer for the same thing--for that might
be with very jarring ideas of the thing to be desired--but
it is to symphonious prayer, the prayer by kindred spirits,
members of one family, servants of one Lord, constrained by
the same love, fighting under one banner, cheered by
assurances of the same victory; a living and loving union,
whose voice in the divine ear is as the sound of many
waters. Accordingly, what they ask "on
earth" is done for them, says Jesus, "of My
Father which is in heaven." Not for nothing
does He say, "of MY FATHER"--not "YOUR
FATHER"; as is evident from what follows: "For
where two or three are gathered together unto My
name"--the "My" is emphatic,
"there am I in the midst of them." As His
name would prove a spell to draw together many clusters of
His dear disciples, so if there should be but two or three,
that will attract Himself down into the midst of them; and
related as He is to both the parties, the petitioners and
the Petitioned--to the one on earth by the tie of His
assumed flesh, and to the other in heaven by the tie of His
eternal Spirit--their symphonious prayers on earth would
thrill upward through Him to heaven, be carried by Him into
the holiest of all, and so reach the Throne. Thus will He
be the living Conductor of the prayer upward, and the
answer downward.
Parable of the Unmerciful Debtor ( Mt 18:21-35).
21. Then came Peter to him, and said, Lord, how oft shall
my brother sin against me, and I forgive him?--In the
recent dispute, Peter had probably been an object of
special envy, and his forwardness in continually answering
for all the rest would likely be cast up to him--and if so,
probably by Judas--notwithstanding his Master's
commendations. And as such insinuations were perhaps made
once and again, he wished to know how often and how long he
was to stand it.
till seven times?--This being the
sacred and complete number, perhaps his meaning was, Is
there to be a limit at which the needful forbearance will
be full?
22. Jesus saith unto him, I say not unto thee, Until seven times; but, Until seventy times seven--that is, so long as it shall be needed and sought: you are never to come to the point of refusing forgiveness sincerely asked. (See on Lu 17:3, 4).
23. Therefore--"with reference to this
matter."
is the kingdom of heaven likened unto
a certain king, which would take account of his
servants--or, would scrutinize the accounts of his revenue
collectors.
24. And when he had begun to reckon, one was brought unto him, which owed him ten thousand talents--If Attic talents are here meant, 10,000 of them would amount to above a million and a half sterling; if Jewish talents, to a much larger sum.
25. But forasmuch as he had not to pay, his lord commanded him to be sold, and his wife and children, and all that he had, and payment to be made--(See 2Ki 4:1; Ne 5:8; Le 25:39).
26. The servant therefore fell down, and worshipped him--or
did humble obeisance to him.
saying, Lord, have patience with me,
and I will pay thee all--This was just an acknowledgment of
the justice of the claim made against him, and a piteous
imploration of mercy.
27. Then the lord of that servant was moved with compassion, and loosed him, and forgave him the debt--Payment being hopeless, the master is first moved with compassion; next, liberates his debtor from prison; and then cancels the debt freely.
28. But the same servant went out, and found one of his
fellow servants--Mark the difference here. The first case
is that of master and servant; in this case, both are on a
footing of equality. (See
Mt 18:33, below.)
which owed him an hundred pence--If
Jewish money is intended, this debt was to the other less
than one to a million.
and he laid hands on him, and took him
by the throat--he seized and throttled him.
saying, Pay me that thou owest--Mark
the mercilessness even of the tone.
29. And his fellow servant fell down at his feet, and besought him, saying, Have patience with me, and I will pay thee all--The same attitude, and the same words which drew compassion from his master, are here employed towards himself by his fellow servant.
30. And he would not; but went and cast him into prison, till he should pay the debt, &c.--Jesus here vividly conveys the intolerable injustice and impudence which even the servants saw in this act on the part of one so recently laid under the heaviest obligation to their common master.
32, 33. Then his lord, after that he had called him, said unto him, O thou wicked servant, &c.--Before bringing down his vengeance upon him, he calmly points out to him how shamefully unreasonable and heartless his conduct was; which would give the punishment inflicted on him a double sting.
34. And his lord was wroth, and delivered him to the
tormentors--more than jailers; denoting the severity
of the treatment which he thought such a case
demanded.
till he should pay all that was due
unto him.
35. So likewise--in this spirit, or on this
principle.
shall my heavenly Father do also unto
you, if ye from your hearts forgive not every one his
brother their trespasses.
Mt 19:1-12. FINAL DEPARTURE FROM GALILEE--DIVORCE. ( = Mr 10:1-12; Lu 9:51).
Farewell to Galilee ( Mt 19:1, 2).
1. And it came to pass, that when Jesus had finished these
sayings, he departed from Galilee--This marks a very solemn
period in our Lord's public ministry. So slightly is it
touched here, and in the corresponding passage of Mark (
Mr 10:1), that few readers probably note it as the
Redeemer's Farewell to Galilee, which however it
was. See on the sublime statement of Luke (
Lu 9:51), which relates to the same transition stage in
the progress of our Lord's work.
and came into the coasts--or,
boundaries
of Judea beyond Jordan--that is, to
the further, or east side of the Jordan, into Perea, the
dominions of Herod Antipas. But though one might conclude
from our Evangelist that our Lord went straight from the
one region to the other, we know from the other Gospels
that a considerable time elapsed between the departure from
the one and the arrival at the other, during which many of
the most important events in our Lord's public life
occurred--probably a large part of what is recorded in
Lu 9:51, onward to Lu 18:15, and part of
Joh 7:2-11:54.
2. And great multitudes followed him; and he healed them there--Mark says further ( Mr 10:1), that "as He was wont, He taught them there." What we now have on the subject of divorce is some of that teaching.
Divorce ( Mt 19:3-12).
3. Is it lawful for a man to put away his wife for every cause?--Two rival schools (as we saw on Mt 5:31) were divided on this question--a delicate one, as D E WETTE pertinently remarks, in the dominions of Herod Antipas.
4. And he answered and said unto them, Have ye not read, that he which made them at the beginning made them male and female--or better, perhaps, "He that made them made them from the beginning a male and a female."
5. And said, For this cause--to follow out this divine
appointment.
shall a man leave father and mother,
and shall cleave to his wife: and they twain shall be one
flesh?--Jesus here sends them back to the original
constitution of man as one pair, a male and a female; to
their marriage, as such, by divine appointment; and to the
purpose of God, expressed by the sacred historian, that in
all time one man and one woman should by marriage become
one flesh--so to continue as long as both are in the flesh.
This being God's constitution, let not
man break it up by causeless divorces.
7. They say unto him, Why did Moses then command to give a writing of divorcement, and to put her away?
8. He saith unto them, Moses--as a civil lawgiver.
because of--or "having respect
to."
the hardness of your hearts--looking
to your low moral state, and your inability to endure the
strictness of the original law.
suffered you to put away your
wives--tolerated a relaxation of the strictness of the
marriage bond--not as approving of it, but to prevent still
greater evils.
But from the beginning it was not
so--This is repeated, in order to impress upon His audience
the temporary and purely civil character of this Mosaic
relaxation.
9. And I say unto you, Whosoever shall put away his wife, except, &c.--See on Mt 5:32.
10. His disciples say unto him, If the case of the man be so with his wife, it is not good to marry--that is, "In this view of marriage, surely it must prove a snare rather than a blessing, and had better be avoided altogether."
11. But he said unto them, All men cannot receive this saying, save they to whom it is given--that is, "That the unmarried state is better, is a saying not for everyone, and indeed only for such as it is divinely intended for." But who are these? they would naturally ask; and this our Lord proceeds to tell them in three particulars.
12. For there are some eunuchs which were so born from
their mother's womb--persons constitutionally either
incapable of or indisposed to marriage.
and there are some eunuchs which were
made eunuchs of men--persons rendered incapable by
others.
and there be eunuchs which have made
themselves eunuchs for the kingdom of heaven's
sake--persons who, to do God's work better,
deliberately choose this state. Such was Paul (
1Co 7:7).
He that is able to receive it, let him
receive it--"He who feels this to be his proper
vocation, let him embrace it"; which, of course, is as
much as to say--"he only." Thus, all are left
free in this matter.
Mt 19:13-15. LITTLE CHILDREN BROUGHT TO CHRIST. ( = Mr 10:13-16; Lu 18:15-17).
For the exposition, see on Lu 18:15-17.
Mt 19:16-30. THE RICH YOUNG RULER. ( = Mr 10:17-31; Lu 18:18-30).
For the exposition, see on Lu 18:18-30.
Mt 20:1-16. PARABLE OF THE LABORERS IN THE VINEYARD.
This parable, recorded only by Matthew, is closely connected with the end of the nineteenth chapter, being spoken with reference to Peter's question as to how it should fare with those who, like himself, had left all for Christ. It is designed to show that while they would be richly rewarded, a certain equity would still be observed towards later converts and workmen in His service.
1. For the kingdom of heaven is like unto a man that is an householder, &c.--The figure of a vineyard, to represent the rearing of souls for heaven, the culture required and provided for that purpose, and the care and pains which God takes in that whole matter, is familiar to every reader of the Bible. ( Ps 80:8-16; Isa 5:1-7; Jer 2:21; Lu 20:9-16; Joh 15:1-8). At vintage time, as WEBSTER and WILKINSON remark, labor was scarce, and masters were obliged to be early in the market to secure it. Perhaps the pressing nature of the work of the Gospel, and the comparative paucity of laborers, may be incidentally suggested, Mt 9:37, 38. The "laborers," as in Mt 9:38, are first, the official servants of the Church, but after them and along with them all the servants of Christ, whom He has laid under the weightiest obligation to work in His service.
2. And when he had agreed with the labourers for a penny--a
usual day's hire.
he sent them into his vineyard.
3. And he went out about the third hour--about nine
o'clock, or after a fourth of the working day had
expired: the day of twelve hours was reckoned from six to
six.
and saw others standing idle in the
market place--unemployed.
4. And said unto them, Go ye also into the vineyard; and
whatsoever is right--just, equitable, in proportion to
their time.
I will give you. And they went their
way.
5. Again he went out about the sixth and ninth hour--about
noon, and about three o'clock in the afternoon.
and did likewise--hiring and sending
into his vineyard fresh laborers each time.
6. And about the eleventh hour--but one hour before the
close of the working day; a most unusual hour both for
offering and engaging
and found others standing idle, and
saith, Why stand ye here all the day idle?--Of course they
had not been there, or not been disposed to offer
themselves at the proper time; but as they were now
willing, and the day was not over, and "yet there was
room," they also are engaged, and on similar terms
with all the rest.
8. So when even was come--that is, the reckoning time
between masters and laborers (see
De 24:15); pointing to the day of final account.
the lord of the vineyard saith unto
his steward--answering to Christ Himself, represented
"as a Son over His own house" (
Heb 3:6; see
Mt 11:27; Joh 3:35; 5:27).
Call the labourers and give them their
hire, beginning from the last unto the first--Remarkable
direction this--last hired, first paid.
9. And when they came that were hired about the eleventh hour, they received every man a penny--a full day's wages.
10. But when the first came, they supposed that they should have received more--This is that calculating, mercenary spirit which had peeped out--though perhaps very slightly--in Peter's question ( Mt 19:27), and which this parable was designed once for all to put down among the servants of Christ.
11. And when they had received it, they murmured against the goodman of the house--rather, "the householder," the word being the same as in Mt 20:1.
12. Saying, These last have wrought but one hour, and thou
hast made them equal unto us, which have borne the burden
and heat--the burning heat.
of the day--who have wrought not only
longer but during a more trying period of the day.
13. But he answered one of them--doubtless the spokesman of
the complaining party.
and said, Friend, I do thee no wrong:
didst not thou agree with me for a penny? &c.
15. Is it not lawful for me to do what I will with mine own? Is thine eye evil, because I am good?--that is, "You appeal to justice, and by that your mouth is shut; for the sum you agreed for is paid you. Your case being disposed of, with the terms I make with other laborers you have nothing to do; and to grudge the benevolence shown to others, when by your own admission you have been honorably dealt with, is both unworthy envy of your neighbor, and discontent with the goodness that engaged and rewarded you in his service at all."
16. So the last shall be first, and the first last--that
is, "Take heed lest by indulging the spirit of these
murmurers at the penny given to the last hired, ye miss
your own penny, though first in the vineyard; while the
consciousness of having come in so late may inspire these
last with such a humble frame, and such admiration of the
grace that has hired and rewarded them at all, as will put
them into the foremost place in the end."
for many be called, but few
chosen--This is another of our Lord's terse and
pregnant sayings, more than once uttered in different
connections. (See
Mt 19:30; 22:14). The "calling" of which the
New Testament almost invariably speaks is what divines call
effectual calling, carrying with it a supernatural
operation on the will to secure its consent. But that
cannot be the meaning of it here; the "called"
being emphatically distinguished from the
"chosen." It can only mean here the
"invited." And so the sense is, Many receive the
invitations of the Gospel whom God has never "chosen
to salvation through sanctification of the Spirit and
belief of the truth" (
2Th 2:13). But what, it may be asked, has this to do
with the subject of our parable? Probably this--to teach us
that men who have wrought in Christ's service all their
days may, by the spirit which they manifest at the last,
make it too evident that, as between God and their own
souls, they never were chosen workmen at all.
Mt 20:17-28. THIRD EXPLICIT ANNOUNCEMENT OF HIS APPROACHING SUFFERINGS, DEATH, AND RESURRECTION--THE AMBITIOUS REQUEST OF JAMES AND JOHN, AND THE REPLY. ( = Mr 10:32-45; Lu 18:31-34).
For the exposition, see on Mr 10:32-45.
Mt 20:29-34. TWO BLIND MEN HEALED. ( = Mr 10:46-52; Lu 18:35-43).
For the exposition, see on Lu 18:35-43.
Mt 21:1-9. CHRIST'S TRIUMPHAL ENTRY INTO JERUSALEM ON THE FIRST DAY OF THE WEEK. ( = Mr 11:1-11; Lu 19:29-40; Joh 12:12-19).
For the exposition of this majestic scene--recorded, as will be seen, by all the Evangelists--see on Lu 19:29-40.
Mt 21:10-22. STIR ABOUT HIM IN THE CITY--SECOND CLEANSING OF THE TEMPLE, AND MIRACLES THERE--GLORIOUS VINDICATION OF THE CHILDREN'S TESTIMONY--THE BARREN FIG TREE CURSED, WITH LESSONS FROM IT. ( = Mr 11:11-26; Lu 19:45-48).
For the exposition, see on Lu 19:45-48; and Mr 11:12-26.
Mt 21:23-46. THE AUTHORITY OF JESUS QUESTIONED AND THE REPLY--THE PARABLES OF THE TWO SONS, AND OF THE WICKED HUSBANDMAN. ( = Mr 11:27-12:12; Lu 20:1-19).
Now commences, as ALFORD remarks, that series of parables and discourses of our Lord with His enemies, in which He develops, more completely than ever before, His hostility to their hypocrisy and iniquity: and so they are stirred up to compass His death.
The Authority of Jesus Questioned, and the Reply ( Mt 21:23-27).
23. By what authority doest thou these things!--referring
particularly to the expulsion of the buyers and sellers
from the temple,
and who gave thee this authority?
24. And Jesus answered and said unto them, I also will ask you one thing, &c.
25. The baptism of John--meaning his whole mission and
ministry, of which baptism was the proper character.
whence was it? from heaven, or of
men?--What wisdom there was in this way of meeting their
question will best appear by their reply.
If we shall say, From heaven; he will
say unto us, Why did ye not then believe him?--"Why
did ye not believe the testimony which he bore to Me, as
the promised and expected Messiah?" for that was the
burden of John's whole testimony.
26. But if we shall say, Of men; we fear the
people--rather, "the multitude." In Luke (
Lu 20:6) it is, "all the people will stone
us"--"stone us to death."
for all hold John as a
prophet--Crooked, cringing hypocrites! No wonder Jesus gave
you no answer.
27. And they answered Jesus, and said, We cannot
tell--Evidently their difficulty was, how to answer, so as
neither to shake their determination to reject the claims
of Christ nor damage their reputation with the people. For
the truth itself they cared nothing whatever.
Neither tell I you by what authority I
do these things--What composure and dignity of wisdom does
our Lord here display, as He turns their question upon
themselves, and, while revealing His knowledge of their
hypocrisy, closes their mouths! Taking advantage of the
surprise, silence, and awe produced by this reply, our Lord
followed it up immediately by the two following parables.
Parable of the Two Sons ( Mt 21:28-32).
28. But what think ye? A certain man had two sons; and he came to the first and said, Son, go work to-day in my vineyard--for true religion is a practical thing, a "bringing forth fruit unto God."
29. He answered and said, I will not--TRENCH notices the rudeness of this answer, and the total absence of any attempt to excuse such disobedience, both characteristic; representing careless, reckless sinners resisting God to His face.
30. And he came to the second, and said likewise. And he
answered and said, I go, sir--"I, sir."
The emphatic "I," here, denotes the
self-righteous complacency which says, "God, I thank
thee that I am not as other men" (
Lu 18:11).
and went not--He did not
"afterward repent" and refuse to go; for there
was here no intention to go. It is the class that
"say and do not" (
Mt 23:3) --a falseness more abominable to God, says
STIER, than any "I will not."
31. Whether of them twain did the will of his Father? They
say unto him, The first--Now comes the application.
Jesus saith unto them, Verily I say
unto you, That the publicans and the harlots go--or,
"are going"; even now entering, while ye hold
back.
into the kingdom of God before
you--The publicans and the harlots were the first son, who,
when told to work in the Lord's vineyard, said, I will
not; but afterwards repented and went. Their early life was
a flat and flagrant refusal to do what they were commanded;
it was one continued rebellion against the authority of
God. The chief priests and the elders of the people, with
whom our Lord was now speaking, were the second son, who
said, I go, sir, but went not. They were early called, and
all their life long professed obedience to God, but never
rendered it; their life was one of continued disobedience.
32. For John came unto you in the way of
righteousness--that is, calling you to repentance; as Noah
is styled "a preacher of righteousness" (
2Pe 2:5), when like the Baptist he warned the old world
to "flee from the wrath to come."
and ye believed him not--They did not
reject him; nay, they "were willing for a season to
rejoice in his light" (
Joh 5:35); but they would not receive his testimony to
Jesus.
but the publicans and the harlots
believed him--Of the publicans this is twice expressly
recorded,
Lu 3:12; 7:29. Of the harlots, then, the same may be
taken for granted, though the fact is not expressly
recorded. These outcasts gladly believed the testimony of
John to the coming Saviour, and so hastened to Jesus when
He came. See
Lu 7:37; 15:1, &c.
and ye, when ye had seen it, repented
not afterward, that ye might believe him--Instead of being
"provoked to jealousy" by their example, ye have
seen them flocking to the Saviour and getting to heaven,
unmoved.
Parable of the Wicked Husbandmen ( Mt 21:33-46).
33. Hear another parable: There was a certain householder,
which planted a vineyard--(See on Lu 13:6).
and hedged it round about, and digged
a winepress in it, and built a tower--These details are
taken, as is the basis of the parable itself, from that
beautiful parable of
Isa 5:1-7, in order to fix down the application and
sustain it by Old Testament authority.
and let it out to husbandmen--These
are just the ordinary spiritual guides of the people, under
whose care and culture the fruits of righteousness are
expected to spring up.
and went into a far country--"for
a long time" (
Lu 20:9), leaving the vineyard to the laws of the
spiritual husbandry during the whole time of the Jewish
economy. On this phraseology, see on Mr 4:26.
34. And when the time of the fruit drew near, he sent his
servants to the husbandmen--By these "servants"
are meant the prophets and other extraordinary messengers,
raised up from time to time. See on Mt
23:37.
that they might receive the fruits of
it--Again see on Lu 13:6.
35. And the husbandmen took his servants, and beat one--see
Jer 37:15; 38:6.
and killed another--see
Jer 26:20-23.
and stoned another--see
2Ch 24:21. Compare with this whole verse
Mt 23:37, where our Lord reiterates these charges in
the most melting strain.
36. Again, he sent other servants more than the first; and they did unto them likewise--see 2Ki 17:13; 2Ch 36:16, 18; Ne 9:26.
37. But last of all he sent unto them his son, saying, They will reverence my son--In Mark ( Mr 12:6) this is most touchingly expressed: "Having yet therefore one son, His well-beloved, He sent Him also last unto them, saying, They will reverence My Son." Luke's version of it too ( Lu 20:13) is striking: "Then said the lord of the vineyard, What shall I do? I will send My beloved Son: it may be they will reverence Him when they see Him." Who does not see that our Lord here severs Himself, by the sharpest line of demarcation, from all merely human messengers, and claims for Himself Sonship in its loftiest sense? (Compare Heb 3:3-6). The expression, "It may be they will reverence My Son," is designed to teach the almost unimaginable guilt of not reverentially welcoming God's Son.
38. But when the husbandmen saw the son, they said among
themselves--Compare
Ge 37:18-20; Joh 11:47-53.
This is the heir--Sublime expression
this of the great truth, that God's inheritance was
destined for, and in due time is to come into the
possession of, His own Son in our nature (
Heb 1:2).
come, let us kill him, and let us
seize on his inheritance--that so, from mere
servants, we may become lords. This is the deep
aim of the depraved heart; this is emphatically "the
root of all evil."
39. And they caught him, and cast him out of the
vineyard--compare
Heb 13:11-13 ("without the gate--without the
camp");
1Ki 21:13; Joh 19:17.
and slew him.
40. When the lord therefore of the vineyard cometh--This
represents "the settling time," which, in the
case of the Jewish ecclesiastics, was that judicial trial
of the nation and its leaders which issued in the
destruction of their whole state.
what will he do unto those husbandmen?
41. They say unto him, He will miserably destroy those
wicked men--an emphatic alliteration not easily conveyed in
English: "He will badly destroy those bad men,"
or "miserably destroy those miserable men," is
something like it.
and will let out his vineyard unto
other husbandmen, which shall render him the fruits in
their seasons--If this answer was given by the Pharisees,
to whom our Lord addressed the parable, they thus
unwittingly pronounced their own condemnation: as did David
to Nathan the prophet (
2Sa 12:5-7), and Simon the Pharisee to our Lord (
Lu 7:43, &c.). But if it was given, as the two
other Evangelists agree in representing it, by our Lord
Himself, and the explicitness of the answer would seem to
favor that supposition, then we can better explain the
exclamation of the Pharisees which followed it, in
Luke's report (
Lu 20:16) --"And when they heard it, they said,
God forbid"--His whole meaning now bursting upon them.
42. Jesus saith unto them. Did ye never read in the
scriptures-- (
Ps 118:22, 23).
The stone which the builders rejected,
&c.--A bright Messianic prophecy, which reappears in
various forms (
Isa 28:16, &c.), and was made glorious use of by
Peter before the Sanhedrim (
Ac 4:11). He recurs to it in his first epistle (
1Pe 2:4-6).
43. Therefore say I unto you, The kingdom of God--God's
visible Kingdom, or Church, upon earth, which up to this
time stood in the seed of Abraham.
shall be taken from you, and given to
a nation bringing forth the fruits thereof--that is, the
great evangelical community of the faithful, which, after
the extrusion of the Jewish nation, would consist chiefly
of Gentiles, until "all Israel should be saved"
(
Ro 11:25, 26). This vastly important statement is given
by Matthew only.
44. And whosoever shall fall on this stone shall be broken: but on whomsoever it shall fall, it will grind him to powder--The Kingdom of God is here a Temple, in the erection of which a certain stone, rejected as unsuitable by the spiritual builders, is, by the great Lord of the House, made the keystone of the whole. On that Stone the builders were now "falling" and being "broken" ( Isa 8:15). They were sustaining great spiritual hurt; but soon that Stone should "fall upon them" and "grind them to powder" ( Da 2:34, 35; Zec 12:2) --in their corporate capacity, in the tremendous destruction of Jerusalem, but personally, as unbelievers, in a more awful sense still.
45. And when the chief priests and Pharisees had heard his
parables--referring to that of the Two Sons and this one of
the Wicked Husbandmen.
they perceived that he spake of them.
46. But when they sought to lay hands on him--which Luke
(
Lu 20:19) says they did "the same hour,"
hardly able to restrain their rage.
they feared the multitude--rather,
"the multitudes."
because they took him for a
prophet--just as they feared to say John's baptism was
of men, because the masses took him for a prophet (
Mt 21:26). Miserable creatures! So, for this time,
"they left Him and went their way" (
Mr 12:12).
Mt 22:1-14. PARABLE OF THE MARRIAGE OF THE KING'S SON.
This is a different parable from that of the Great Supper, in Lu 14:15, &c., and is recorded by Matthew alone.
2. The kingdom of heaven is like unto a certain king, which made a marriage for his son--"In this parable," as TRENCH admirably remarks, "we see how the Lord is revealing Himself in ever clearer light as the central Person of the kingdom, giving here a far plainer hint than in the last parable of the nobility of His descent. There He was indeed the Son, the only and beloved one ( Mr 12:6), of the Householder; but here His race is royal, and He appears as Himself at once the King and the King's Son ( Ps 72:1). The last was a parable of the Old Testament history; and Christ is rather the last and greatest of the line of its prophets and teachers than the founder of a new kingdom. In that, God appears demanding something from men; in this, a parable of grace, God appears more as giving something to them. Thus, as often, the two complete each other: this taking up the matter where the other left it." The "marriage" of Jehovah to His people Israel was familiar to Jewish ears; and in Ps 45:1-17 this marriage is seen consummated in the Person of Messiah "THE KING," Himself addressed as "GOD" and yet as anointed by "HIS GOD" with the oil of gladness above His fellows. These apparent contradictions (see on Lu 20:41-44) are resolved in this parable; and Jesus, in claiming to be this King's Son, serves Himself Heir to all that the prophets and sweet singers of Israel held forth as to Jehovah's ineffably near and endearing union to His people. But observe carefully, that THE BRIDE does not come into view in this parable; its design being to teach certain truths under the figure of guests at a wedding feast, and the want of a wedding garment, which would not have harmonized with the introduction of the Bride.
3. and sent forth his servants--representing all preachers
of the Gospel.
to call them that were bidden--here
meaning the Jews, who were "bidden," from the
first choice of them onwards through every summons
addressed to them by the prophets to hold themselves in
readiness for the appearing of their King.
to the wedding--or the marriage
festivities, when the preparations were all
concluded.
and they would not come--as the issue
of the whole ministry of the Baptist, our Lord Himself, and
His apostles thereafter, too sadly showed.
4. my oxen and my fatlings are killed, and all things are ready; come unto the marriage--This points to those Gospel calls after Christ's death, resurrection, ascension, and effusion of the Spirit, to which the parable could not directly allude, but when only it could be said, with strict propriety, "that all things were ready." Compare 1Co 5:7, 8, "Christ our Passover is sacrificed for us; therefore, let us keep the feast"; also Joh 6:51, "I am the living bread which came down from heaven: if any man eat of this bread, he shall live for ever: and the bread which I will give is My flesh, which I will give for the life of the world."
5. But they made light of it, and went their ways, one to his farm, another to his merchandise:
6. And the remnant took his servants, and entreated them
spitefully--insulted them.
and slew them--These are two different
classes of unbelievers: the one simply indifferent;
the other absolutely hostile--the one, contemptuous
scorners; the other, bitter persecutors.
7. But when the king--the Great God, who is the Father of
our Lord Jesus Christ.
heard thereof, he was wroth--at the
affront put both on His Son, and on Himself who had deigned
to invite them.
and he sent forth his armies--The
Romans are here styled God's armies, just as the
Assyrian is styled "the rod of His anger" (
Isa 10:5), as being the executors of His judicial
vengeance.
and destroyed those murderers--and in
what vast numbers did they do it!
and burned up their city--Ah!
Jerusalem, once "the city of the Great King" (
Ps 48:2), and even up almost to this time (
Mt 5:35); but now it is "their
city"--just as our Lord, a day or two after this, said
of the temple, where God had so long dwelt, "Behold
your house is left unto you desolate" (
Mt 23:38)! Compare
Lu 19:43, 44.
8. The wedding is ready, but they which were bidden were not worthy--for how should those be deemed worthy to sit down at His table who had affronted Him by their treatment of His gracious invitation?
9. Go ye therefore into the highways--the great outlets and
thoroughfares, whether of town or country, where human
beings are to be found.
and as many as ye shall find, bid to
the marriage--that is, just as they are.
10. So those servants went out into the highways, and gathered together all as many as they found, both bad and good--that is, without making any distinction between open sinners and the morally correct. The Gospel call fetched in Jews, Samaritans, and outlying heathen alike. Thus far the parable answers to that of "the Great Supper" ( Lu 14:16, &c.). But the distinguishing feature of our parable is what follows:
11. And when the king came in to see the guests--Solemn
expression this, of that omniscient inspection of every
professed disciple of the Lord Jesus from age to age,
in virtue of which his true character will hereafter be
judicially proclaimed!
he saw there a man--This shows that it
is the judgment of individuals which is intended in
this latter part of the parable: the first part represents
rather national judgment.
which had not on a wedding
garment--The language here is drawn from the following
remarkable passage in
Zep 1:7, 8: --"Hold thy peace at the presence of
the Lord God; for the day of the Lord is at hand: for the
Lord hath prepared a sacrifice, He hath bid His guests. And
it shall come to pass in the day of the Lord's
sacrifice, that I will punish the princes, and the
king's children, and all such as are clothed with
strange apparel." The custom in the East of presenting
festival garments (see
Ge 45:22; 2Ki 5:22), even though nor clearly proved, Is
certainly presupposed here. It undoubtedly means something
which they bring not of their own--for how could they have
any such dress who were gathered in from the highways
indiscriminately?--but which they receive as their
appropriate dress. And what can that be but what is meant
by "putting on the Lord Jesus," as "THE LORD
OUR RIGHTEOUSNESS?" (See
Ps 45:13, 14). Nor could such language be strange to
those in whose ears had so long resounded those words of
prophetic joy: "I will greatly rejoice in the Lord, my
soul shall be joyful in my God; for He hath clothed me with
the garments of salvation, He hath covered me with the robe
of righteousness, as a bridegroom decketh himself with
ornaments, and as a bride adorneth herself with her
jewels" (
Isa 61:10).
12. Friend, how camest thou in hither, not having a wedding garment? And he was speechless--being self-condemned.
13. Then said the king to the servants--the angelic
ministers of divine vengeance (as in
Mt 13:41).
Bind him hand and foot--putting it out
of his power to resist.
and take him away, and cast him into
outer darkness--So
Mt 8:12; 25:30. The expression is emphatic--"the
darkness which is outside." To be
"outside" at all--or, in the language of
Re 22:15, to be "without" the heavenly
city, excluded from its joyous nuptials and gladsome
festivities--is sad enough of itself, without anything
else. But to find themselves not only excluded from the
brightness and glory and joy and felicity of the kingdom
above, but thrust into a region of "darkness,"
with all its horrors, this is the dismal retribution here
announced, that awaits the unworthy at the great day.
there--in that region and
condition.
shall be weeping and gnashing of
teeth. See on Mt 13:42.
14. For many are called, but few are chosen--So Mt 19:30. See on Mt 20:16.
Mt 22:15-40. ENTANGLING QUESTIONS ABOUT TRIBUTE, THE RESURRECTION, AND THE GREAT COMMANDMENT, WITH THE REPLIES. ( = Mr 12:13-34; Lu 20:20-40).
For the exposition, see on Mr 12:13-34.
Mt 22:41-46. CHRIST BAFFLES THE PHARISEES BY A QUESTION ABOUT DAVID AND MESSIAH. ( = Mr 12:35-37; Lu 20:41-44).
For the exposition, see on Mr 12:35-37.
Mt 23:1-39. DENUNCIATION OF THE SCRIBES AND PHARISEES--LAMENTATION OVER JERUSALEM, AND FAREWELL TO THE TEMPLE. ( = Mr 12:38-40; Lu 20:45-47).
For this long and terrible discourse we are indebted, with the exception of a few verses in Mark and Luke, to Matthew alone. But as it is only an extended repetition of denunciations uttered not long before at the table of a Pharisee, and recorded by Luke ( Lu 11:37-54), we may take both together in the exposition.
Denunciation of the Scribes and Pharisees ( Mt 23:1-36).
The first twelve verses were addressed more immediately to the disciples, the rest to the scribes and Pharisees.
1. Then spake Jesus to the multitude--to the multitudes, "and to his disciples."
2. Saying, The scribes and the Pharisees sit--The Jewish
teachers stood to read, but sat to expound
the Scriptures, as will be seen by comparing
Lu 4:16 with Lu 4:20.
in Moses' seat--that is, as
interpreters of the law given by Moses.
3. All therefore--that is, all which, as sitting in that
seat and teaching out of that law.
they bid you observe, that observe and
do--The word "therefore" is thus, it will be
seen, of great importance, as limiting those injunctions
which He would have them obey to what they fetched from the
law itself. In requiring implicit obedience to such
injunctions, He would have them to recognize the authority
with which they taught over and above the obligations of
the law itself--an important principle truly; but He who
denounced the traditions of such teachers (
Mt 15:3) cannot have meant here to throw His shield
over these. It is remarked by WEBSTER and WILKINSON that
the warning to beware of the scribes is given by
Mark and Luke (
Mr 12:38; Lu 20:46) without any qualification: the
charge to respect and obey them being
reported by Matthew alone, indicating for whom this Gospel
was especially written, and the writer's desire to
conciliate the Jews.
4. For they bind heavy burdens and grievous to be borne,
and lay them on men's shoulders; but they themselves
will not move them--"touch them not" (
Lu 11:46).
with one of their fingers--referring
not so much to the irksomeness of the legal rites, though
they were irksome enough (
Ac 15:10), as to the heartless rigor with which they
were enforced, and by men of shameless inconsistency.
5. But all their works they do for to be seen of
men--Whatever good they do, or zeal they show, has but one
motive--human applause.
they make broad their
phylacteries--strips of parchment with Scripture-texts on
them, worn on the forehead, arm, and side, in time of
prayer.
and enlarge the borders of their
garments--fringes of their upper garments (
Nu 15:37-40).
6. And love the uppermost rooms at feasts--The word
"room" is now obsolete in the sense here
intended. It should be "the uppermost place,"
that is, the place of highest honor.
and the chief seats in the synagogues.
See on Lu 14:7, 8.
7. And greetings in the markets, and to be called of men, Rabbi, Rabbi--It is the spirit rather than the letter of this that must be pressed; though the violation of the letter, springing from spiritual pride, has done incalculable evil in the Church of Christ. The reiteration of the word "Rabbi" shows how it tickled the ear and fed the spiritual pride of those ecclesiastics.
8. But be not ye called Rabbi; for one is your Master--your Guide, your Teacher.
9. And call no man your father upon the earth: for one is your Father, which is in heaven, &c.--To construe these injunctions into a condemnation of every title by which Church rulers may be distinguished from the flock which they rule, is virtually to condemn that rule itself; and accordingly the same persons do both--but against the whole strain of the New Testament and sound Christian judgment. But when we have guarded ourselves against these extremes, let us see to it that we retain the full spirit of this warning against that itch for ecclesiastical superiority which has been the bane and the scandal of Christ's ministers in every age. (On the use of the word "Christ" here, see on Mt 1:1).
11. But he that is greatest among you shall be your servant--This plainly means, "shall show that he is so by becoming your servant"; as in Mt 20:27, compared with Mr 10:44.
12. And whosoever shall exalt himself shall be abased--See on Lu 18:14. What follows was addressed more immediately to the scribes and Pharisees.
13. But woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye shut up the kingdom of heaven against men--Here they are charged with shutting heaven against men: in Lu 11:52 they are charged with what was worse, taking away the key--"the key of knowledge"--which means, not the key to open knowledge, but knowledge as the only key to open heaven. A right knowledge of God's revealed word is eternal life, as our Lord says ( Joh 17:3; 5:39); but this they took away from the people, substituting for it their wretched traditions.
14. Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye devour widows' houses, &c.--Taking advantage of the helpless condition and confiding character of "widows," they contrived to obtain possession of their property, while by their "long prayers" they made them believe they were raised far above "filthy lucre." So much "the greater damnation" awaits them. What a lifelike description of the Romish clergy, the true successors of those scribes!
15. Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye
compass sea and land to make one proselyte--from
heathenism. We have evidence of this in JOSEPHUS.
and when he is made, ye make him
twofold more the child of hell than yourselves--condemned,
for the hypocrisy he would learn to practice, both by the
religion he left and that he embraced.
16. Woe unto you, ye blind guides--Striking expression this
of the ruinous effects of erroneous teaching. Our Lord,
here and in some following verses, condemns the subtle
distinctions they made as to the sanctity of
oaths--distinctions invented only to promote their own
avaricious purposes.
which say, Whosoever shall swear by
the temple, it is nothing--He has incurred no debt.
but whosoever shall swear by the gold
of the temple--meaning not the gold that adorned the temple
itself, but the Corban, set apart for sacred uses
(see on Mt 15:5).
he is a debtor!--that is, it is no
longer his own, even though the necessities of the parent
might require it. We know who the successors of these men
are.
but whosoever sweareth by the gift
that is upon it, he is guilty--It should have been
rendered, "he is a debtor," as in
Mt 23:16.
19. Ye fools, and blind! for whether is greater, the gift, or the altar that sanctifieth the gift?--(See Ex 29:37).
20-22. Whoso therefore shall swear by the altar, &c.--See on Mt 5:33-37.
23. Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye
pay tithe of mint and anise--rather, "dill," as
in Margin.
and cummin--In Luke (
Lu 11:42) it is "and rue, and all manner of
herbs." They grounded this practice on
Le 27:30, which they interpreted rigidly. Our Lord
purposely names the most trifling products of the earth as
examples of what they punctiliously exacted the tenth
of.
and have omitted the weightier matters
of the law, judgment, mercy, and faith--In Luke (
Lu 11:42) it is "judgment, mercy, and the love of
God"--the expression being probably varied by our Lord
Himself on the two different occasions. In both His
reference is to
Mic 6:6-8, where the prophet makes all acceptable
religion to consist of three elements--"doing justly,
loving mercy, and walking humbly with our God"; which
third element presupposes and comprehends both the
"faith" of Matthew and the "love" of
Luke. See on Mr 12:29; Mr 12:32, 33. The same
tendency to merge greater duties in less besets even the
children of God; but it is the characteristic of
hypocrites.
these ought ye to have done, and not
to leave the other undone--There is no need for one set of
duties to jostle out another; but it is to be carefully
noted that of the greater duties our Lord says,
"Ye ought to have done" them, while of the
lesser He merely says, "Ye ought not to leave them
undone."
24. Ye blind guides, which strain at a gnat--The proper
rendering--as in the older English translations, and
perhaps our own as it came from the translators'
hands--evidently is, "strain out." It was the
custom, says TRENCH, of the stricter Jews to strain their
wine, vinegar, and other potables through linen or gauze,
lest unawares they should drink down some little unclean
insect therein and thus transgress (
Le 11:20, 23, 41, 42) --just as the Buddhists do now in
Ceylon and Hindustan--and to this custom of theirs our Lord
here refers.
and swallow a camel--the largest
animal the Jews knew, as the "gnat" was the
smallest; both were by the law unclean.
25. within they are full of extortion--In Luke ( Lu 11:39) the same word is rendered "ravening," that is, "rapacity."
26. Thou blind Pharisee, cleanse first that which is within the cup and platter, that the outside of them may be clean also--In Luke ( Lu 11:40) it is, "Ye fools, did not He that made that which is without make that which is within also?"--"He to whom belongs the outer life, and of right demands its subjection to Himself, is the inner man less His?" A remarkable example this of our Lord's power of drawing the most striking illustrations of great truths from the most familiar objects and incidents in life. To these words, recorded by Luke, He adds the following, involving a principle of immense value: "But rather give alms of such things as ye have, and behold, all things are clean unto you" ( Lu 11:41). As the greed of these hypocrites was one of the most prominent features of their character ( Lu 16:14), our Lord bids them exemplify the opposite character, and then their outside, ruled by this, would be beautiful in the eye of God, and their meals would be eaten with clean hands, though much fouled with the business of this everyday world. (See Ec 9:7).
27. Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye
are like whited sepulchres--or, whitewashed sepulchres.
(Compare
Ac 23:3). The process of whitewashing the sepulchres,
as L IGHTFOOT says, was performed on a certain day every
year, not for ceremonial cleansing, but, as the following
words seem rather to imply, to beautify them.
which indeed appear beautiful outward,
but are within full of dead men's bones, and of all
uncleanness--What a powerful way of conveying the charge,
that with all their fair show their hearts were full of
corruption! (Compare
Ps 5:9; Ro 3:13). But our Lord, stripping off the
figure, next holds up their iniquity in naked colors.
Wherefore ye be witnesses unto
yourselves, that ye are the children of them which killed
the prophets--that is, "ye be witnesses that ye have
inherited, and voluntarily served yourselves heirs to, the
truth-hating, prophet-killing, spirit of your
fathers." Out of pretended respect and honor, they
repaired and beautified the sepulchres of the prophets, and
with whining hypocrisy said, "If we had been in their
days, how differently should we have treated these
prophets?" While all the time they were witnesses to
themselves that they were the children of them that killed
the prophets, convicting themselves daily of as exact a
resemblance in spirit and character to the very classes
over whose deeds they pretended to mourn, as child to
parent. In
Lu 11:44 our Lord gives another turn to this figure of
a grave: "Ye are as graves which appear not, and the
men that walk over them are not aware of them." As one
might unconsciously walk over a grave concealed from view,
and thus contract ceremonial defilement, so the plausible
exterior of the Pharisees kept people from perceiving the
pollution they contracted from coming in contact with such
corrupt characters.
33. Ye serpents, ye generation of vipers, how can ye escape the damnation of hell?--In thus, at the end of His ministry, recalling the words of the Baptist at the outset of his, our Lord would seem to intimate that the only difference between their condemnation now and then was, that now they were ripe for their doom, which they were not then.
34. Wherefore, behold, I send unto you prophets, and wise
men, and scribes--The I here is emphatic: "I am
sending," that is, "am about to send." In
Lu 11:49 the variation is remarkable: "Therefore
also, said the wisdom of God, I will send them,"
&c. What precisely is meant by "the wisdom of
God" here, is somewhat difficult to determine. To us
it appears to be simply an announcement of a purpose of the
Divine Wisdom, in the high style of ancient prophecy, to
send a last set of messengers whom the people would reject,
and rejecting, would fill up the cup of their iniquity.
But, whereas in Luke it is "I, the Wisdom of God, will
send them," in Matthew it is "I, Jesus, am
sending them"; language only befitting the one sender
of all the prophets, the Lord God of Israel now in the
flesh. They are evidently evangelical messengers, but
called by the familiar Jewish names of "prophets, wise
men, and scribes," whose counterparts were the
inspired and gifted servants of the Lord Jesus; for in Luke
(
Lu 11:49) it is "prophets and
apostles."
unto the blood of Zacharias son of
Barachias, whom ye slew between the temple and the
altar--As there is no record of any fresh murder answering
to this description, probably the allusion is not to any
recent murder, but to
2Ch 24:20-22, as the last recorded and most
suitable case for illustration. And as Zacharias' last
words were, "The Lord require it," so they
are here warned that of that generation it should be
required.
36. Verily I say unto you, All these things shall come upon this generation--As it was only in the last generation of them that "the iniquity of the Amorites was full" ( Ge 15:16), and then the abominations of ages were at once completely and awfully avenged, so the iniquity of Israel was allowed to accumulate from age to age till in that generation it came to the full, and the whole collected vengeance of heaven broke at once over its devoted head. In the first French Revolution the same awful principle was exemplified, and Christendom has not done with it yet.
Lamentation over Jerusalem, and Farewell to the Temple ( Mt 23:37-39).
37. O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, thou that killest the prophets, and stonest them which are sent unto thee, &c.--How ineffably grand and melting is this apostrophe! It is the very heart of God pouring itself forth through human flesh and speech. It is this incarnation of the innermost life and love of Deity, pleading with men, bleeding for them, and ascending only to open His arms to them and win them back by the power of this story of matchless love, that has conquered the world, that will yet "draw all men unto Him," and beautify and ennoble Humanity itself! "Jerusalem" here does not mean the mere city or its inhabitants; nor is it to be viewed merely as the metropolis of the nation, but as the center of their religious life--"the city of their solemnities, whither the tribes went up, to give thanks unto the name of the Lord"; and at this moment it was full of them. It is the whole family of God, then, which is here apostrophized by a name dear to every Jew, recalling to him all that was distinctive and precious in his religion. The intense feeling that sought vent in this utterance comes out first in the redoubling of the opening word--"Jerusalem, Jerusalem!" but, next, in the picture of it which He draws--"that killest the prophets, and stonest them which are sent unto thee!"--not content with spurning God's messages of mercy, that canst not suffer even the messengers to live! When He adds, "How often would I have gathered thee!" He refers surely to something beyond the six or seven times that He visited and taught in Jerusalem while on earth. No doubt it points to "the prophets," whom they "killed," to "them that were sent unto her," whom they "stoned." But whom would He have gathered so often? "Thee," truth-hating, mercy-spurning, prophet-killing Jerusalem--how often would I have gathered thee! Compare with this that affecting clause in the great ministerial commission, "that repentance and remission of sins should be preached in His name among all nations, beginning at Jerusalem!" ( Lu 24:47). What encouragement to the heartbroken at their own long-continued and obstinate rebellion! But we have not yet got at the whole heart of this outburst. I would have gathered thee, He says, "even as a hen gathereth her chickens under her wings." Was ever imagery so homely invested with such grace and such sublimity as this, at our Lord's touch? And yet how exquisite the figure itself--of protection, rest, warmth, and all manner of conscious well-being in those poor, defenseless, dependent little creatures, as they creep under and feel themselves overshadowed by the capacious and kindly wing of the mother bird! If, wandering beyond hearing of her peculiar call, they are overtaken by a storm or attacked by an enemy, what can they do but in the one case droop and die, and in the other submit to be torn in pieces? But if they can reach in time their place of safety, under the mother's wing, in vain will any enemy try to drag them thence. For rising into strength, kindling into fury, and forgetting herself entirely in her young, she will let the last drop of her blood be shed out and perish in defense of her precious charge, rather than yield them to an enemy's talons. How significant all this of what Jesus is and does for men! Under His great Mediatorial wing would He have "gathered" Israel. For the figure, see De 32:10-12; Ru 2:12; Ps 17:8; 36:7; 61:4; 63:7; 91:4; Isa 31:5; Mal 4:2. The ancient rabbins had a beautiful expression for proselytes from the heathen--that they had "come under the wings of the Shekinah." For this last word, see on Mt 23:38. But what was the result of all this tender and mighty love? The answer is, "And ye would not." O mysterious word! mysterious the resistance of such patient Love--mysterious the liberty of self-undoing! The awful dignity of the will, as here expressed, might make the ears to tingle.
38. Behold, your house--the temple, beyond all doubt; but
their house now, not the Lord's. See on
Mt 22:7.
is left unto you desolate--deserted,
that is, of its Divine Inhabitant. But who is that? Hear
the next words:
39. For I say unto you--and these were His last
words to the impenitent nation, see on Mr 13:1, opening remarks.
Ye shall not see me henceforth--What?
Does Jesus mean that He was Himself the Lord of the temple,
and that it became "deserted" when HE finally
left it? It is even so. Now is thy fate sealed, O
Jerusalem, for the glory is departed from thee! That glory,
once visible in the holy of holies, over the mercy seat,
when on the day of atonement the blood of typical expiation
was sprinkled on it and in front of it--called by the Jews
the Shekinah, or the Dwelling, as being the
visible pavilion of Jehovah--that glory, which Isaiah (
Isa 6:1-13) saw in vision, the beloved disciple says
was the glory of Christ (
Joh 12:41). Though it was never visible in the second
temple, Haggai foretold that "the glory of that
latter house should be greater than of the former"
(
Hag 2:9) because "the Lord whom they sought was
suddenly to come to His temple" (
Mal 3:1), not in a mere bright cloud, but enshrined in
living humanity! Yet brief as well as "sudden"
was the manifestation to be: for the words He was now
uttering were to be HIS VERY LAST within its
precincts.
till ye shall say, Blessed is he that
cometh in the name of the Lord--that is, till those
"Hosannas to the Son of David" with which the
multitude had welcomed Him into the city--instead of
"sore displeasing the chief priests and scribes"
(
Mt 21:15) --should break forth from the whole nation,
as their glad acclaim to their once pierced, but now
acknowledged, Messiah. That such a time will come is clear
from
Zec 12:10; Ro 11:26; 2Co 3:15, 16, &c. In what
sense they shall then "see Him" may be gathered
from
Zec 2:10-13; Eze 37:23-28; 39:28, 29, &c.
Mt 24:1-51. CHRIST'S PROPHECY OF THE DESTRUCTION OF JERUSALEM, AND WARNINGS SUGGESTED BY IT TO PREPARE FOR HIS SECOND COMING. ( = Mr 13:1-37; Lu 21:5-36).
For the exposition, see on Mr 13:1-37.
Mt 25:1-13. PARABLE OF THE TEN VIRGINS.
This and the following parable are in Matthew alone.
1. Then--at the time referred to at the close of the
preceding chapter, the time of the Lord's Second Coming
to reward His faithful servants and take vengeance on the
faithless. Then
shall the kingdom of heaven be likened
unto ten virgins, which took their lamps, and went forth to
meet the bridegroom--This supplies a key to the parable,
whose object is, in the main, the same as that of the last
parable--to illustrate the vigilant and expectant
attitude of faith, in respect of which believers are
described as "they that look for Him" (
Heb 9:28), and "love His appearing" (
2Ti 4:8). In the last parable it was that of servants
waiting for their absent Lord; in this it is that of virgin
attendants on a Bride, whose duty it was to go forth at
night with lamps, and be ready on the appearance of the
Bridegroom to conduct the Bride to his house, and go in
with him to the marriage. This entire and beautiful change
of figure brings out the lesson of the former parable in
quite a new light. But let it be observed that, just as in
the parable of the Marriage Supper (
Lu 14:15-24), so in this--the Bride does not
come into view at all in this parable; the Virgins
and the Bridegroom holding forth all the intended
instruction: nor could believers be represented both as
Bride and Bridal Attendants without incongruity.
2. And five of them were wise, and five were foolish--They are not distinguished into good and bad, as TRENCH observes, but into "wise" and "foolish"--just as in Mt 7:25-27 those who reared their house for eternity are distinguished into "wise" and "foolish builders"; because in both cases a certain degree of goodwill towards the truth is assumed. To make anything of the equal number of both classes would, we think, be precarious, save to warn us how large a portion of those who, up to the last, so nearly resemble those that love Christ's appearing will be disowned by Him when He comes.
3. They that were foolish took their lamps, and took no oil with them:
4. But the wise took oil in their vessels with their lamps--What are these "lamps" and this "oil"? Many answers have been given. But since the foolish as well as the wise took their lamps and went forth with them to meet the Bridegroom, these lighted lamps and this advance a certain way in company with the wise, must denote that Christian profession which is common to all who bear the Christian name; while the insufficiency of this without something else, of which they never possessed themselves, shows that "the foolish" mean those who, with all that is common to them with real Christians, lack the essential preparation for meeting Christ. Then, since the wisdom of "the wise" consisted in their taking with their lamps a supply of oil in their vessels, keeping their lamps burning till the Bridegroom came, and so fitting them to go in with Him to the marriage, this supply of oil must mean that inward reality of grace which alone will stand when He appears whose eyes are as a flame of fire. But this is too general; for it cannot be for nothing that this inward grace is here set forth by the familiar symbol of oil, by which the Spirit of all grace is so constantly represented in Scripture. Beyond all doubt, this was what was symbolized by that precious anointing oil with which Aaron and his sons were consecrated to the priestly office ( Ex 30:23-25, 30); by "the oil of gladness above His fellows" with which Messiah was to be anointed ( Ps 45:7; Heb 1:9), even as it is expressly said, that "God giveth not the Spirit by measure unto Him" ( Joh 3:34); and by the bowl full of golden oil, in Zechariah's vision, which, receiving its supplies from the two olive trees on either side of it, poured it through seven golden pipes into the golden lamp-stand to keep it continually burning bright ( Zec 4:1-14) --for the prophet is expressly told that it was to proclaim the great truth, "Not by might, nor by power, but by MY SPIRIT, saith the Lord of hosts [shall this temple be built]. Who art thou, O great mountain [of opposition to this issue]? Before Zerubbabel thou shalt become a plain [or, be swept out of the way], and he shall bring forth the head stone [of the temple], with shoutings [crying], GRACE, G RACE unto it." This supply of oil, then, representing that inward grace which distinguishes the wise, must denote, more particularly, that "supply of the Spirit of Jesus Christ," which, as it is the source of the new spiritual life at the first, is the secret of its enduring character. Everything short of this may be possessed by "the foolish"; while it is the possession of this that makes "the wise" to be "ready" when the Bridegroom appears, and fit to "go in with Him to the marriage." Just so in the parable of the Sower, the stony-ground hearers, "having no deepness of earth" and "no root in themselves" Mt 13:5; Mr 4:17), though they spring up and get even into ear, never ripen, while they in the good ground bear the precious grain.
5. While the bridegroom tarried--So in
Mt 24:48, "My Lord delayeth His coming"; and
so Peter says sublimely of the ascended Saviour, "Whom
the heaven must receive until the times of restitution of
all things" (
Ac 3:21, and compare
Lu 19:11, 12). Christ "tarries," among other
reasons, to try the faith and patience of His people.
they all slumbered and slept--the wise
as well as the foolish. The world "slumbered"
signifies, simply, "nodded," or, "became
drowsy"; while the world "slept" is the
usual word for lying down to sleep, denoting two stages of
spiritual declension--first, that half-involuntary lethargy
or drowsiness which is apt to steal over one who falls into
inactivity; and then a conscious, deliberate yielding to
it, after a little vain resistance. Such was the state
alike of the wise and the foolish virgins, even till the
cry of the Bridegroom's approach awoke them. So
likewise in the parable of the Importunate Widow:
"When the Son of man cometh, shall He find faith on
the earth?" (
Lu 18:8).
6. And at midnight--that is, the time when the Bridegroom
will be least expected; for "the day of the Lord so
cometh as a thief in the night" (
1Th 5:2).
there was a cry made, Behold, the
Bridegroom cometh; go ye out to meet him--that is, Be ready
to welcome Him.
7. Then all those virgins arose, and trimmed their lamps--the foolish virgins as well as the wise. How very long do both parties seem the same--almost to the moment of decision! Looking at the mere form of the parable, it is evident that the folly of "the foolish" consisted not in having no oil at all; for they must have had oil enough in their lamps to keep them burning up to this moment: their folly consisted in not making provision against its exhaustion, by taking with their lamp an oil-vessel wherewith to replenish their lamp from time to time, and so have it burning until the Bridegroom should come. Are we, then--with some even superior expositors--to conclude that the foolish virgins must represent true Christians as well as do the wise, since only true Christians have the Spirit, and that the difference between the two classes consists only in the one having the necessary watchfulness which the other wants? Certainly not. Since the parable was designed to hold forth the prepared and the unprepared to meet Christ at His coming, and how the unprepared might, up to the very last, be confounded with the prepared--the structure of the parable behooved to accommodate itself to this, by making the lamps of the foolish to burn, as well as those of the wise, up to a certain point of time, and only then to discover their inability to burn on for want of a fresh supply of oil. But this is evidently just a structural device; and the real difference between the two classes who profess to love the Lord's appearing is a radical one--the possession by the one class of an enduring principle of spiritual life, and the want of it by the other.
8. And the foolish said unto the wise, Give us of your oil; for our lamps are gone out--rather, as in the Margin, "are going out"; for oil will not light an extinguished lamp, though it will keep a burning one from going out. Ah! now at length they have discovered not only their own folly, but the wisdom of the other class, and they do homage to it. They did not perhaps despise them before, but they thought them righteous overmuch; now they are forced, with bitter mortification, to wish they were like them.
9. But the wise answered, Not so; lest there be not
enough for us and you--The words "Not so," it
will be seen, are not in the original, where the reply is
very elliptical--"In case there be not enough for us
and you." A truly wise answer this. "And what,
then, if we shall share it with you? Why, both will be
undone."
but go ye rather to them that sell,
and buy for yourselves--Here again it would be straining
the parable beyond its legitimate design to make it teach
that men may get salvation even after they are supposed and
required to have it already gotten. It is merely a friendly
way of reminding them of the proper way of obtaining the
needed and precious article, with a certain reflection on
them for having it now to seek. Also, when the parable
speaks of "selling" and "buying" that
valuable article, it means simply, "Go, get it in the
only legitimate way." And yet the word "buy"
is significant; for we are elsewhere bidden, "buy wine
and milk without money and without price," and
"buy of Christ gold tried in the fire," &c.
(
Isa 55:1; Re 3:18). Now, since what we pay the demanded
price for becomes thereby our own property, the
salvation which we thus take gratuitously at God's
hands, being bought in His own sense of that word, becomes
ours thereby in inalienable possession. (Compare for the
language,
Pr 23:23; Mt 13:44).
10. And while they went to buy, the Bridegroom came; and they that were ready went in with him to the marriage: and the door was shut--They are sensible of their past folly; they have taken good advice: they are in the act of getting what alone they lacked: a very little more, and they also are ready. But the Bridegroom comes; the ready are admitted; "the door is shut," and they are undone. How graphic and appalling this picture of one almost saved--but lost!
11. Afterward came also the other virgins, saying, Lord, Lord, open to us--In Mt 7:22 this reiteration of the name was an exclamation rather of surprise; here it is a piteous cry of urgency, bordering on despair. Ah! now at length their eyes are wide open, and they realize all the consequences of their past folly.
12. But he answered and said, Verily I say unto you, I know you not--The attempt to establish a difference between "I know you not" here, and "I never knew you" in Mt 7:23 --as if this were gentler, and so implied a milder fate, reserved for "the foolish" of this parable--is to be resisted, though advocated by such critics as OLSHAUSEN, S TIER, and ALFORD. Besides being inconsistent with the general tenor of such language, and particularly the solemn moral of the whole ( Mt 25:13), it is a kind of criticism which tampers with some of the most awful warnings regarding the future. If it be asked why unworthy guests were admitted to the marriage of the King's Son, in a former parable, and the foolish virgins are excluded in this one, we may answer, in the admirable words of GERHARD, quoted by T RENCH, that those festivities are celebrated in this life, in the Church militant; these at the last day, in the Church triumphant; to those, even they are admitted who are not adorned with the wedding garment; but to these, only they to whom it is granted to be arrayed in fine linen clean and white, which is the righteousness of saints ( Re 19:8); to those, men are called by the trumpet of the Gospel; to these by the trumpet of the Archangel; to those, who enters may go out from them, or be cast out; who is once introduced to these never goes out, nor is cast out, from them any more: wherefore it is said, "The door is shut."
13. Watch therefore; for ye know neither the day nor the hour wherein the Son of man cometh--This, the moral or practical lesson of the whole parable, needs no comment.
Mt 25:14-30. PARABLE OF THE TALENTS.
This parable, while closely resembling it, is yet a different one from that of THE POUNDS, in Lu 19:11-27; though CALVIN, OLSHAUSEN, MEYER, and others identify them--but not DE WETTE and NEANDER. For the difference between the two parables, see the opening remarks on that of The Pounds. While, as TRENCH observes with his usual felicity, "the virgins were represented as waiting for their Lord, we have the servants working for Him; there the inward spiritual life of the faithful was described; here his external activity. It is not, therefore, without good reason that they appear in their actual order--that of the Virgins first, and of the Talents following--since it is the sole condition of a profitable outward activity for the kingdom of God, that the life of God be diligently maintained within the heart."
14. For the kingdom of heaven is as a man--The
ellipsis is better supplied by our translators in the
corresponding passage of Mark (
Mr 13:34), "[For the Son of man is] as a
man," &c.,
travelling into a far country--or more
simply, "going abroad." The idea of long
"tarrying" is certainly implied here, since it is
expressed in
Mt 25:19.
who called his own servants, and
delivered unto them his goods--Between master and slaves
this was not uncommon in ancient times. Christ's
"servants" here mean all who, by their Christian
profession, stand in the relation to Him of entire
subjection. His "goods" mean all their gifts and
endowments, whether original or acquired, natural or
spiritual. As all that slaves have belongs to their master,
so Christ has a claim to everything which belongs to His
people, everything which, may be turned to good, and He
demands its appropriation to His service, or, viewing it
otherwise, they first offer it up to Him; as being
"not their own, but bought with a price" (
1Co 6:19, 20), and He "delivers it to them"
again to be put to use in His service.
15. And unto one he gave five talents, to another two, and
to another one--While the proportion of gifts is
different in each, the same fidelity is required of
all, and equally rewarded. And thus there is perfect
equity.
to every man according to his several
ability--his natural capacity as enlisted in Christ's
service, and his opportunities in providence for employing
the gifts bestowed on him.
and straightway took his
journey--Compare
Mt 21:33, where the same departure is ascribed to God,
after setting up the ancient economy. In both cases, it
denotes the leaving of men to the action of all those
spiritual laws and influences of Heaven under which they
have been graciously placed for their own salvation and the
advancement of their Lord's kingdom.
16. Then he that had received the five talents went and
traded with the same--expressive of the activity which he
put forth and the labor he bestowed.
and made them other five talents.
17. And likewise he that had received two he also gained other two--each doubling what he received, and therefore both equally faithful.
18. But he that had received one went and digged in the earth, and hid his lord's money--not misspending, but simply making no use of it. Nay, his action seems that of one anxious that the gift should not be misused or lost, but ready to be returned, just as he got it.
19. After a long time the lord of those servants cometh and reckoneth with them--That any one--within the lifetime of the apostles at least--with such words before them, should think that Jesus had given any reason to expect His Second Appearing within that period, would seem strange, did we not know the tendency of enthusiastic, ill-regulated love of His appearing ever to take this turn.
20. Lord, thou deliveredst unto me five talents; behold, I have gained besides them five talents more--How beautifully does this illustrate what the beloved disciple says of "boldness in the day of judgment," and his desire that "when He shall appear we may have confidence, and not be ashamed before Him at His coming!" ( 1Jo 4:17; 2:28).
21. His lord said unto him, Well done--a single word, not
of bare satisfaction, but of warm and delighted
commendation. And from what Lips!
thou hast been faithful over a few
things, I will make thee ruler over many things, &c.
22. He also that had received two talents came
. . . good and faithful servant: thou hast been
faithful over a few things, I will make thee ruler over
many things--Both are commended in the same terms, and
the reward of both is precisely the same. (See on Mt 25:15). Observe also the contrasts:
"Thou hast been faithful as a servant; now be a
ruler--thou hast been entrusted with a
few things; now have dominion over many
things."
enter thou into the joy of thy
lord--thy Lord's own joy. (See
Joh 15:11; Heb 12:2).
24. Then he which had received the one talent came and
said, Lord, I knew thee that thou art an hard man--harsh.
The word in Luke (
Lu 19:21) is "austere."
reaping where thou hast not sown, and
gathering where thou hast not strawed--The sense is
obvious: "I knew thou wast one whom it was impossible
to serve, one whom nothing would please: exacting what was
impracticable, and dissatisfied with what was
attainable." Thus do men secretly think of God as a
hard Master, and virtually throw on Him the blame of their
fruitlessness.
25. And I was afraid--of making matters worse by meddling
with it at all.
and went and hid thy talent in the
earth--This depicts the conduct of all those who shut up
their gifts from the active service of Christ, without
actually prostituting them to unworthy uses. Fitly,
therefore, may it, at least, comprehend those, to whom
TRENCH refers, who, in the early Church, pleaded that they
had enough to do with their own souls, and were afraid of
losing them in trying to save others; and so, instead of
being the salt of the earth, thought rather of keeping
their own saltness by withdrawing sometimes into caves and
wildernesses, from all those active ministries of love by
which they might have served their brethren.
Thou wicked and slothful
servant--"Wicked" or "bad" means
"falsehearted," as opposed to the others, who are
emphatically styled "good servants." The
addition of "slothful" is to mark the precise
nature of his wickedness: it consisted, it seems, not in
his doing anything against, but simply nothing
for his master.
Thou knewest that I reap where I sowed
not, and gather where I have not strawed--He takes the
servant's own account of his demands, as expressing
graphically enough, not the hardness which he had
basely imputed to him, but simply his demand of a
profitable return for the gift entrusted.
27. thou oughtest therefore to have put my money to the
exchangers--the bankers.
and then at my coming I should have
received mine own with usury--interest.
29. For unto every one that hath shall be given, &c.--See on Mt 13:12.
30. And cast ye--cast ye out.
the unprofitable servant--the useless
servant, that does his Master no service.
into outer darkness--the darkness
which is outside. On this expression see on Mt 22:13.
there shall be weeping and gnashing of
teeth--See on Mt 13:42.
Mt 25:31-46. THE LAST JUDGMENT.
The close connection between this sublime scene--peculiar to Matthew--and the two preceding parables is too obvious to need pointing out.
31. When the Son of man shall come in his glory--His
personal glory.
and all the holy angels with him--See
De 33:2; Da 7:9, 10; Jude 14; with Heb 1:6; 1Pe
3:22.
then shall he sit upon the throne of
his glory--the glory of His judicial authority.
32. And before him shall be gathered all nations--or,
"all the nations." That this should be understood
to mean the heathen nations, or all except
believers in Christ, will seem amazing to any simple
reader. Yet this is the exposition of OLSHAUSEN, STIER,
KEIL, ALFORD (though latterly with some diffidence), and of
a number, though not all, of those who hold that Christ
will come the second time before the millennium, and that
the saints will be caught up to meet Him in the air before
His appearing. Their chief argument is, the impossibility
of any that ever knew the Lord Jesus wondering, at the
Judgment Day, that they should be thought to have done--or
left undone--anything "unto Christ." To that we
shall advert when we come to it. But here we may just say,
that if this scene does not describe a personal, public,
final judgment on men, according to the treatment they have
given to Christ--and consequently men within the Christian
pale--we shall have to consider again whether our
Lord's teaching on the greatest themes of human
interest does indeed possess that incomparable simplicity
and transparency of meaning which, by universal consent,
has been ascribed to it. If it be said, But how can this be
the general judgment, if only those within the Christian
pale be embraced by it?--we answer, What is here described,
as it certainly does not meet the case of all the family of
Adam, is of course so far not general. But we have
no right to conclude that the whole "judgment of the
great day" will be limited to the point of view here
presented. Other explanations will come up in the course of
our exposition.
and he shall separate them--now for
the first time; the two classes having been mingled all
along up to this awful moment.
as a shepherd divideth his sheep from
the goats--(See
Eze 34:17).
33. And he shall set the sheep on his right hand--the side
of honor (
1Ki 2:19; Ps 45:9; 110:1, &c.).
but the goats on the left--the side
consequently of dishonor.
34. Then shall the King--Magnificent title, here for the
first and only time, save in parabolical language, given to
Himself by the Lord Jesus, and that on the eve of His
deepest humiliation! It is to intimate that in then
addressing the heirs of the kingdom, He will put on all
His regal majesty.
say unto them on his right hand,
Come--the same sweet word with which He had so long invited
all the weary and heavy laden to come unto Him for rest.
Now it is addressed exclusively to such as have come
and found rest. It is still, "Come," and to
"rest" too; but to rest in a higher style, and in
another region.
ye blessed of my Father, inherit the
kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the
world--The whole story of this their blessedness is given
by the apostle, in words which seem but an expression of
these: "Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord
Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us with all spiritual
blessings in heavenly places in Christ; according as He
hath chosen us in Him before the foundation of the world,
that we should be holy and without blame before Him in
love." They were chosen from everlasting to the
possession and enjoyment of all spiritual blessings in
Christ, and so chosen in order to be holy and blameless in
love. This is the holy love whose practical manifestations
the King is about to recount in detail; and thus we see
that their whole life of love to Christ is the fruit of an
eternal purpose of love to them in Christ.
35. For I was an hungered . . . thirsty . . . a stranger, &c.
36. Naked . . . sick . . . prison, and ye came unto me.
37-39. Then shall the righteous answer him, &c.
40. And the King shall answer and say unto them, Verily I say unto you, &c.--Astonishing dialogue this between the King, from the Throne of His glory, and His wondering people! "I was an hungered, and ye gave Me meat," &c.--"Not we," they reply. "We never did that, Lord: We were born out of due time, and enjoyed not the privilege of ministering unto Thee." "But ye did it to these My brethren, now beside you, when cast upon your love." "Truth, Lord, but was that doing it to Thee? Thy name was indeed dear to us, and we thought it a great honor to suffer shame for it. When among the destitute and distressed we discerned any of the household of faith, we will not deny that our hearts leapt within us at the discovery, and when their knock came to our dwelling, 'our bowels were moved,' as though 'our Beloved Himself had put in His hand by the hole of the door.' Sweet was the fellowship we had with them, as if we had 'entertained angels unawares'; all difference between giver and receiver somehow melted away under the beams of that love of Thine which knit us together; nay, rather, as they left us with gratitude for our poor givings, we seemed the debtors--not they. But, Lord, were we all that time in company with Thee? . . . Yes, that scene was all with Me," replies the King--"Me in the disguise of My poor ones. The door shut against Me by others was opened by you--'Ye took Me in.' Apprehended and imprisoned by the enemies of the truth, ye whom the truth had made free sought Me out diligently and found Me; visiting Me in My lonely cell at the risk of your own lives, and cheering My solitude; ye gave Me a coat, for I shivered; and then I felt warm. With cups of cold water ye moistened My parched lips; when famished with hunger ye supplied Me with crusts, and my spirit revived--/YE DID IT UNTO M E.'" What thoughts crowd upon us as we listen to such a description of the scenes of the Last Judgment! And in the light of this view of the heavenly dialogue, how bald and wretched, not to say unscriptural, is that view of it to which we referred at the outset, which makes it a dialogue between Christ and heathens who never heard of His name, and of course never felt any stirrings of His love in their hearts! To us it seems a poor, superficial objection to the Christian view of this scene, that Christians could never be supposed to ask such questions as the "blessed of Christ's Father" are made to ask here. If there were any difficulty in explaining this, the difficulty of the other view is such as to make it, at least, insufferable. But there is no real difficulty. The surprise expressed is not at their being told that they acted from love to Christ, but that Christ Himself was the Personal Object of all their deeds: that they found Him hungry, and supplied Him with food: that they brought water to Him, and slaked His thirst; that seeing Him naked and shivering, they put warm clothing upon Him, paid Him visits when lying in prison for the truth, and sat by His bedside when laid down with sickness. This is the astonishing interpretation which Jesus says "the King" will give to them of their own actions here below. And will any Christian reply, "How could this astonish them? Does not every Christian know that He does these very things, when He does them at all, just as they are here represented?" Nay, rather, is it conceivable that they should not be astonished, and almost doubt their own ears, to hear such an account of their own actions upon earth from the lips of the Judge? And remember, that Judge has come in His glory, and now sits upon the throne of His glory, and all the holy angels are with Him; and that it is from those glorified Lips that the words come forth, "Ye did all this unto ME." Oh, can we imagine such a word addressed to ourselves, and then fancy ourselves replying, "Of course we did--To whom else did we anything? It must be others than we that are addressed, who never knew, in all their good deeds, what they were about?" Rather, can we imagine ourselves not overpowered with astonishment, and scarcely able to credit the testimony borne to us by the King?
41.Then shall he say also unto them on the left hand, Depart from me, ye cursed, &c.--As for you on the left hand, ye did nothing for Me. I came to you also, but ye knew Me not: ye had neither warm affections nor kind deeds to bestow upon Me: I was as one despised in your eyes." "In our eyes, Lord? We never saw Thee before, and never, sure, behaved we so to Thee." "But thus ye treated these little ones that believe in Me and now stand on My right hand. In the disguise of these poor members of Mine I came soliciting your pity, but ye shut up your bowels of compassion from Me: I asked relief, but ye had none to give Me. Take back therefore your own coldness, your own contemptuous distance: Ye bid Me away from your presence, and now I bid you from Mine--Depart from Me, ye cursed!"
46. And these shall go away--these "cursed" ones.
Sentence, it should seem, was first pronounced--in
the hearing of the wicked--upon the righteous, who
thereupon sit as assessors in the judgment upon the wicked
(
1Co 6:2); but sentence is first executed, it
should seem, upon the wicked, in the sight of the
righteous--whose glory will thus not be beheld by the
wicked, while their descent into "their own
place" will be witnessed by the righteous, as B ENGEL
notes.
into everlasting punishment--or, as in
Mt 25:41, "everlasting fire, prepared for the
devil and his angels." Compare
Mt 13:42; 2Th 1:9, &c. This is said to be
"prepared for the devil and his angels," because
they were "first in transgression." But both have
one doom, because one unholy character.
but the righteous into life
eternal--that is, "life everlasting." The word in
both clauses, being in the original the same, should have
been the same in the translation also. Thus the decisions
of this awful day will be final, irreversible, unending.
Mt 26:1-16. CHRIST'S FINAL ANNOUNCEMENT OF HIS DEATH, AS NOW WITHIN TWO DAYS, AND THE SIMULTANEOUS CONSPIRACY OF THE JEWISH AUTHORITIES TO COMPASS IT--THE ANOINTING AT BETHANY--JUDAS AGREES WITH THE CHIEF PRIESTS TO BETRAY HIS LORD. ( = Mr 14:1-11; Lu 22:1-6; Joh 12:1-11).
For the exposition, see on Mr 14:1-11.
Mt 26:17-30. PREPARATION FOR AND LAST CELEBRATION OF THE PASSOVER ANNOUNCEMENT OF THE TRAITOR, AND INSTITUTION OF THE SUPPER. ( = Mr 14:12-26; Lu 22:7-23; Joh 13:1-3, 10, 11, 18-30).
For the exposition, see on Lu 22:7-23.
Mt 26:31-35. THE DESERTION OF JESUS BY HIS DISCIPLES, AND THE DENIAL OF PETER FORETOLD. ( = Mr 14:27-31; Lu 22:31-38; Joh 13:36-38).
For the exposition, see on Lu 22:31-38.
Mt 26:36-46. THE AGONY IN THE GARDEN. ( = Mr 14:32-42; Lu 22:39-46).
For the exposition, see on Lu 22:39-46.
Mt 26:47-56. BETRAYAL AND APPREHENSION OF JESUS--FLIGHT OF HIS DISCIPLES. ( = Mr 14:43-52; Lu 22:47-54; Joh 18:1-12).
For the exposition, see on Joh 18:1-12.
Mt 26:57-75. JESUS ARRAIGNED BEFORE THE SANHEDRIM CONDEMNED TO DIE, AND SHAMEFULLY ENTREATED--THE DENIAL OF PETER. ( = Mr 14:53-72; Lu 22:54-71; Joh 18:13-18, 24-27).
For the exposition, see on Mr 14:53-72.
Mt 27:1-10. JESUS LED AWAY TO PILATE--REMORSE AND SUICIDE OF JUDAS. ( = Mr 15:1; Lu 23:1; Joh 18:28).
Jesus Led Away to Pilate ( Mt 27:1, 2).
For the exposition of this portion, see on Joh 18:28, &c.
Remorse and Suicide of Judas ( Mt 27:3-10).
This portion is peculiar to Matthew. On the progress of guilt in the traitor, see on Mr 14:1-11; Joh 13:21-30.
3. Then Judas, which had betrayed him, when he saw that he
was condemned--The condemnation, even though not
unexpected, might well fill him with horror. But perhaps
this unhappy man expected, that, while he got the bribe,
the Lord would miraculously escape, as He had once and
again done before, out of His enemies' power: and if
so, his remorse would come upon him with all the greater
keenness.
repented himself--but, as the issue
too sadly showed, it was "the sorrow of the world,
which worketh death" (
2Co 7:10).
and brought again the thirty pieces of
silver to the chief priests and elders--A remarkable
illustration of the power of an awakened conscience. A
short time before, the promise of this sordid pelf was
temptation enough to his covetous heart to outweigh the
most overwhelming obligations of duty and love; now, the
possession of it so lashes him that he cannot use it,
cannot even keep it!
4. Saying, I have sinned in that I have betrayed the
innocent blood--What a testimony this to Jesus! Judas had
been with Him in all circumstances for three years; his
post, as treasurer to Him and the Twelve (
Joh 12:6), gave him peculiar opportunity of watching
the spirit, disposition, and habits of his Master; while
his covetous nature and thievish practices would incline
him to dark and suspicious, rather than frank and generous,
interpretations of all that He said and did. If, then, he
could have fastened on one questionable feature in all that
he had so long witnessed, we may be sure that no such
speech as this would ever have escaped his lips, nor would
he have been so stung with remorse as not to be able to
keep the money and survive his crime.
And they said, What is that to us? see
thou to that--"Guilty or innocent is nothing to us: We
have Him now--begone!" Was ever speech more hellish
uttered?
5. And he cast down the pieces of silver--The sarcastic,
diabolical reply which he had got, in place of the sympathy
which perhaps he expected, would deepen his remorse into an
agony.
in the temple--the temple proper,
commonly called "the sanctuary," or "the
holy place," into which only the priests might enter.
How is this to be explained? Perhaps he flung the money in
after them. But thus were fulfilled the words of the
prophet--"I cast them to the potter in the house of
the Lord" (
Zec 11:13).
and departed, and went and hanged
himself--For the details, see on Ac 1:18.
6. And the chief priests took the silver pieces, and said,
It is not lawful for to put them into the
treasury--"the Corban," or chest
containing the money dedicated to sacred purposes (see on
Mt 15:5).
because it is the price of blood--How
scrupulous now! But those punctilious scruples made them
unconsciously fulfil the Scripture.
9. Then was fulfilled that which was spoken by Jeremy the prophet, saying-- ( Zec 11:12, 13). Never was a complicated prophecy, otherwise hopelessly dark, more marvellously fulfilled. Various conjectures have been formed to account for Matthew's ascribing to Jeremiah a prophecy found in the book of Zechariah. But since with this book he was plainly familiar, having quoted one of its most remarkable prophecies of Christ but a few chapters before ( Mt 21:4, 5), the question is one more of critical interest than real importance. Perhaps the true explanation is the following, from L IGHTFOOT: "Jeremiah of old had the first place among the prophets, and hereby he comes to be mentioned above all the rest in Mt 16:14; because he stood first in the volume of the prophets (as he proves from the learned DAVID KIMCHI) therefore he is first named. When, therefore, Matthew produceth a text of Zechariah under the name of Jeremy, he only cites the words of the volume of the prophets under his name who stood first in the volume of the prophets. Of which sort is that also of our Saviour ( Lu 24:41), 'All things must be fulfilled which are written of Me in the Law, and the Prophets, and the Psalms,' or the Book of Hagiographa, in which the Psalms were placed first."
Mt 27:11-26. JESUS AGAIN BEFORE PILATE--HE SEEKS TO RELEASE HIM BUT AT LENGTH DELIVERS HIM TO BE CRUCIFIED. ( = Mr 15:1-15; Lu 23:1-25; Joh 18:28-40).
For the exposition, see on Lu 23:1-25; Joh 18:28-40.
Mt 27:27-33. JESUS SCORNFULLY AND CRUELLY ENTREATED OF THE SOLDIERS, IS LED AWAY TO BE CRUCIFIED. ( = Mr 15:16-22; Lu 23:26-31; Joh 19:2, 17).
For the exposition, see on Mr 15:16-22.
Mt 27:34-50. CRUCIFIXION AND DEATH OF THE LORD JESUS. ( = Mr 15:25-37; Lu 23:33-46; Joh 19:18-30).
For the exposition, see on Joh 19:18-30.
Mt 27:51-66. SIGNS AND CIRCUMSTANCES FOLLOWING THE DEATH OF THE LORD JESUS--HE IS TAKEN DOWN FROM THE CROSS, AND BURIED--THE SEPULCHRE IS GUARDED. ( = Mr 15:38-47; Lu 23:47-56; Joh 19:31-42).
The Veil Rent ( Mt 27:51).
51. And, behold, the veil of the temple was rent in twain from the top to the bottom--This was the thick and gorgeously wrought veil which was hung between the "holy place" and the "holiest of all," shutting out all access to the presence of God as manifested "from above the mercy seat and from between the cherubim"--"the Holy Ghost this signifying, that the way into the holiest of all was not yet made manifest" ( Heb 9:8). Into this holiest of all none might enter, not even the high priest, save once a year, on the great day of atonement, and then only with the blood of atonement in his hands, which he sprinkled "upon and before the mercy seat seven times" ( Le 16:14) --to signify that access for sinners to a holy God is only through atoning blood. But as they had only the blood of bulls and of goats, which could not take away sins ( Heb 10:4), during all the long ages that preceded the death of Christ the thick veil remained; the blood of bulls and of goats continued to be shed and sprinkled; and once a year access to God through an atoning sacrifice was vouchsafed--in a picture, or rather, was dramatically represented, in those symbolical actions--nothing more. But now, the one atoning Sacrifice being provided in the precious blood of Christ, access to this holy God could no longer be denied; and so the moment the Victim expired on the altar, that thick veil which for so many ages had been the dread symbol of separation between God and guilty men was, without a hand touching it, mysteriously "rent in twain from top to bottom"--"the Holy Ghost this signifying, that the way into the holiest of all was NOW made manifest!" How emphatic the statement, from top to bottom; as if to say, Come boldly now to the Throne of Grace; the veil is clean gone; the mercy seat stands open to the gaze of sinners, and the way to it is sprinkled with the blood of Him--"who through the eternal Spirit hath offered Himself without spot to God!" Before, it was death to go in, now it is death to stay out. See more on this glorious subject on Heb 10. 19-22.
An Earthquake--The Rocks Rent--The Graves Opened, that the Saints Which Slept in Them Might Come Forth after Their Lord's Resurrection ( Mt 27:51-53).
51. and the earth did quake--From what follows it would
seem that this earthquake was local, having for its object
the rending of the rocks and the opening of the
graves.
and the rocks rent--"were
rent"--the physical creation thus sublimely
proclaiming, at the bidding of its Maker, the
concussion which at that moment was taking place in the
moral world at the most critical moment of its history.
Extraordinary rents and fissures have been observed in the
rocks near this spot.
52. And the graves were opened; and many bodies of the
saints which slept arose--These sleeping saints (see on 1Th 4:14) were Old Testament
believers, who--according to the usual punctuation in our
version--were quickened into resurrection life at the
moment of their Lord's death, but lay in their graves
till His resurrection, when they came forth. But it is far
more natural, as we think, and consonant with other
Scriptures, to understand that only the graves were opened,
probably by the earthquake, at our Lord's death, and
this only in preparation for the subsequent exit of those
who slept in them, when the Spirit of life should enter
into them from their risen Lord, and along with Him they
should come forth, trophies of His victory over the grave.
Thus, in the opening of the graves at the moment of the
Redeemer's expiring, there was a glorious symbolical
proclamation that the death which had just taken place had
"swallowed up death in victory"; and whereas the
saints that slept in them were awakened only by their risen
Lord, to accompany Him out of the tomb, it was fitting that
"the Prince of Life . . . should be the
First that should rise from the dead" (
Ac 26:23; 1Co 15:20, 23; Col 1:18; Re 1:5).
and went into the holy city--that city
where He, in virtue of whose resurrection they were now
alive, had been condemned.
and appeared unto many--that there
might be undeniable evidence of their own resurrection
first, and through it of their Lord's. Thus, while it
was not deemed fitting that He Himself should appear again
in Jerusalem, save to the disciples, provision was made
that the fact of His resurrection should be left in no
doubt. It must be observed, however, that the resurrection
of these sleeping saints was not like those of the widow of
Nain's son, of Jairus' daughter, of Lazarus, and of
the man who "revived and stood upon his feet," on
his dead body touching the bones of Elisha (
2Ki 13:21) --which were mere temporary recallings of
the departed spirit to the mortal body, to be
followed by a final departure of it "till the trumpet
shall sound." But this was a resurrection once for
all, to life everlasting; and so there is no room to
doubt that they went to glory with their Lord, as bright
trophies of His victory over death.
The Centurion's Testimony ( Mt 27:54).
54. Now when the centurion--the military superintendent of
the execution.
and they that were with him watching
Jesus, saw the earthquake--or felt it and witnessed its
effects.
and those things that were
done--reflecting upon the entire transaction.
they feared greatly--convinced of the
presence of a Divine Hand.
saying, Truly this was the Son of
God--There cannot be a reasonable doubt that this
expression was used in the Jewish sense, and that it points
to the claim which Jesus made to be the Son of God, and on
which His condemnation expressly turned. The meaning, then,
clearly is that He must have been what He professed to be;
in other words, that He was no impostor. There was no
medium between those two. See, on the similar testimony of
the penitent thief--"This man hath done nothing
amiss"--Luke 23. 41.
The Galilean Women ( Mt 27:55, 56).
55. And many women were there beholding afar off, which
followed Jesus--The sense here would be better brought out
by the use of the pluperfect, "which had followed
Jesus."
from Galilee, ministering unto him--As
these dear women had ministered to Him during His glorious
missionary tours in Galilee (see on Lu 8:1-3), so from this statement it
should seem that they accompanied him and ministered to His
wants from Galilee on His final journey to
Jerusalem.
56. Among which was Mary Magdalene--(See on Lu 8:2).
and Mary the mother of James and
Joses--the wife of Cleophas, or rather Clopas, and sister
of the Virgin (
Joh 19:25). See on Mt
13:55,56.
and the mother of Zebedee's
children--that is, Salome: compare
Mr 15:40. All this about the women is mentioned for the
sake of what is afterwards to be related of their
purchasing spices to anoint their Lord's body.
The Taking Down from the Cross and the Burial ( Mt 27:57-60).
For the exposition of this portion, see on Joh 19:38-42.
The Women Mark the Sacred Spot that They Might Recognize It on Coming Thither to Anoint the Body ( Mt 27:61).
61. And there was Mary Magdalene, and the other
Mary--"the mother of James and Joses," mentioned
before (
Mt 27:56).
sitting over against the
sepulchre--(See on Mr 16:1).
The Sepulchre Guarded ( Mt 27:62-66).
62. Now the next day, that followed the day of the preparation--that is, after six o'clock of our Saturday evening. The crucifixion took place on the Friday and all was not over till shortly before sunset, when the Jewish sabbath commenced; and "that sabbath day was an high day" ( Joh 19:31), being the first day of the feast of unleavened bread. That day being over at six on Saturday evening, they hastened to take their measures.
63. Saying, Sir, we remember that that deceiver--Never,
remarks BENGEL, will you find the heads of the people
calling Jesus by His own name. And yet here there is
betrayed a certain uneasiness, which one almost fancies
they only tried to stifle in their own minds, as well as
crush in Pilate's, in case he should have any lurking
suspicion that he had done wrong in yielding to them.
said, while he was yet
alive--Important testimony this, from the lips of His
bitterest enemies, to the reality of Christ's
death; the corner-stone of the whole Christian
religion.
After three days--which, according to
the customary Jewish way of reckoning, need signify no more
than "after the commencement of the third
day."
I will rise again--"I rise,"
in the present tense, thus reporting not only the
fact that this prediction of His had reached their
ears, but that they understood Him to look forward
confidently to its occurring on the very day named.
64. Command therefore that the sepulchre be made sure--by a
Roman guard.
until the third day--after which, if
He still lay in the grave, the imposture of His claims
would be manifest to all.
and say unto the people, he is risen
from the dead--Did they really fear this?
so the last error shall be worse than
the first--the imposture of His pretended resurrection
worse than that of His pretended Messiahship.
65. Pilate said unto them, Ye have a watch--The guards had
already acted under orders of the Sanhedrim, with
Pilate's consent; but probably they were not clear
about employing them as a night watch without Pilate's
express authority.
go your way, make it as sure as ye
can--as ye know how, or in the way ye deem securest. Though
there may be no irony in this speech, it evidently
insinuated that if the event should be contrary to
their wish, it would not be for want of sufficient human
appliances to prevent it.
66. So they went, and made the sepulchre sure, sealing the
stone--which Mark (
Mr 16:4) says was "very great."
and setting a watch--to guard it. What
more could man do? But while they are trying to prevent the
resurrection of the Prince of Life, God makes use of their
precautions for His own ends. Their stone-covered,
seal-secured sepulchre shall preserve the sleeping dust of
the Son of God free from all indignities, in undisturbed,
sublime repose; while their watch shall be His guard of
honor until the angels shall come to take their place.
Mt 28:1-15. GLORIOUS ANGELIC ANNOUNCEMENT ON THE FIRST DAY OF THE WEEK, THAT CHRIST IS RISEN--HIS APPEARANCE TO THE WOMEN--THE GUARDS BRIBED TO GIVE A FALSE ACCOUNT OF THE RESURRECTION. ( = Mr 16:1-8; Lu 24:1-8; Joh 20:1).
The Resurrection Announced to the Women ( Mt 28:1-8).
1. In the end of the sabbath, as it began to dawn--after
the Sabbath, as it grew toward daylight.
toward the first day of the week--Luke
(
Lu 24:1) has it, "very early in the
morning"--properly, "at the first appearance of
daybreak"; and corresponding with this, John (
Joh 20:1) says, "when it was yet dark." See
on Mr 16:2. Not an hour, it
would seem, was lost by those dear lovers of the Lord
Jesus.
came Mary Magdalene, and the other
Mary--"the mother of James and Joses" (see on Mt 27:56; Mt
27:61).
to see the sepulchre--with a view to
the anointing of the body, for which they had made all
their preparations. (See on Mr
16:1, 2).
And, behold, there was--that is, there
had been, before the arrival of the women.
a great earthquake; for the angel of
the Lord descended from heaven, &c.--And this was the
state of things when the women drew near. Some judicious
critics think all this was transacted while the women were
approaching; but the view we have given, which is the
prevalent one, seems the more natural. All this august
preparation--recorded by Matthew alone--bespoke the
grandeur of the exit which was to follow. The angel sat
upon the huge stone, to overawe, with the lightning-luster
that darted from him, the Roman guard, and do honor to his
rising Lord.
3. His countenance--appearance.
was like lightning, and his raiment
white as snow--the one expressing the glory, the
other the purity of the celestial abode from which
he came.
4. And for fear of him the keepers did shake, and became as dead men--Is the sepulchre "sure" now, O ye chief priests? He that sitteth in the heavens doth laugh at you.
5. And the angel answered and said unto the women, Fear not
ye--The "ye" here is emphatic, to contrast their
case with that of the guards. "Let those puny
creatures, sent to keep the Living One among the dead, for
fear of Me shake and become as dead men (
Mt 28:4); but ye that have come hither on another
errand, fear not ye."
for I know that ye seek Jesus, which
was crucified--Jesus the Crucified.
6. He is not here; for he is risen, as he said--See on Lu 24:5-7.
Come--as in
Mt 11:28.
see the place where the Lord
lay--Charming invitation! "Come, see the spot where
the Lord of glory lay: now it is an empty grave: He lies
not here, but He lay there. Come, feast your eyes on
it!" But see on Joh
20:12.
7. And go quickly, and tell his disciples--For a precious
addition to this, see on Mr
16:7.
that he is risen from the dead; and,
behold, he goeth before you into Galilee--to which those
women belonged (
Mt 27:55).
there shall ye see him--This must
refer to those more public manifestations of Himself to
large numbers of disciples at once, which He vouchsafed
only in Galilee; for individually He was seen of some of
those very women almost immediately after this (
Mt 28:9, 10).
Lo, I have told you--Behold, ye have
this word from the world of light!
8. And they departed quickly--Mark (
Mr 16:8) says "they fled."
from the sepulchre with fear and great
joy--How natural this combination of feelings! See on a
similar statement of
Mr 16:11.
and did run to bring his disciples
word--"Neither said they anything to any man [by the
way]; for they were afraid" (
Mr 16:8).
Appearance to the Women ( Mt 28:9, 10).
This appearance is recorded only by Matthew.
9. And as they went to tell his disciples, behold, Jesus
met them, saying, All hail!--the usual salute, but from the
lips of Jesus bearing a higher signification.
And they came and held him by the
feet--How truly womanly!
10. Then said Jesus unto them, Be not afraid--What dear
associations would these familiar words--now uttered in a
higher style, but by the same Lips--bring rushing back to
their recollection!
go tell my brethren that they go into
Galilee, and there shall they see me--The brethren here
meant must have been His brethren after the flesh (compare
Mt 13:55); for His brethren in the higher sense (see on
Joh 20:17) had several
meetings with Him at Jerusalem before He went to
Galilee, which they would have missed if they had been the
persons ordered to Galilee to meet Him.
The Guards Bribed ( Mt 28:11-15).
The whole of this important portion is peculiar to Matthew.
11. Now when they were going--while the women were on their
way to deliver to His brethren the message of their risen
Lord.
some of the watch came into the city,
and showed unto the chief priests all the things that were
done--Simple, unsophisticated soldiers! How could ye
imagine that such a tale as ye had to tell would not at
once commend itself to your scared employers? Had they
doubted this for a moment, would they have ventured to go
near them, knowing it was death to a Roman soldier to be
proved asleep when on guard? and of course that was the
only other explanation of the case.
12. And when they were assembled with the elders--But
Joseph at least was absent: Gamaliel probably also; and
perhaps others.
and had taken counsel, they gave large
money unto the soldiers--It would need a good deal; but the
whole case of the Jewish authorities was now at stake. With
what contempt must these soldiers have regarded the Jewish
ecclesiastics!
13. Saying, Say ye, His disciples came by night, and stole him away while we slept--which, as we have observed, was a capital offense for soldiers on guard.
14. And if this come to the governor's ears--rather,
"If this come before the governor"; that is, not
in the way of mere report, but for judicial
investigation.
we will persuade him, and secure
you--The "we" and the "you" are
emphatic here--"we shall [take care to] persuade him
and keep you from trouble," or "save you
harmless." The grammatical form of this clause implies
that the thing supposed was expected to happen. The meaning
then is, "If this come before the governor--as it
likely will--we shall see to it that," &c. The
"persuasion" of Pilate meant, doubtless, quieting
him by a bribe, which we know otherwise he was by no means
above taking (like Felix afterwards,
Ac 24:26).
15. So they took the money, and did as they were
taught--thus consenting to brand themselves with
infamy.
and this saying is commonly reported
among the Jews until this day--to the date of the
publication of this Gospel. The wonder is that so clumsy
and incredible a story lasted so long. But those who are
resolved not to come to the light will catch at
straws. JUSTIN MARTYR, who flourished about A.D. 170, says,
in his Dialogue with Trypho the Jew, that the Jews
dispersed the story by means of special messengers sent to
every country.
Mt 28:16-20. JESUS MEETS WITH THE DISCIPLES ON A MOUNTAIN IN GALILEE AND GIVES FORTH THE GREAT COMMISSION.
16. Then the eleven disciples went away into Galilee--but
certainly not before the second week after the
resurrection, and probably somewhat later.
into a mountain where Jesus had
appointed them--It should have been rendered "the
mountain," meaning some certain mountain which He had
named to them--probably the night before He suffered, when
He said, "After I am risen, I will go before you into
Galilee" (
Mt 26:32; Mr 14:28). What it was can only be
conjectured; but of the two between which opinions are
divided--the Mount of the Beatitudes or Mount Tabor--the
former is much the more probable, from its nearness to the
Sea of Tiberias, where last before this the Narrative tells
us that He met and dined with seven of them. (
Joh 21:1, &c.). That the interview here recorded
was the same as that referred to in one place only--
1Co 15:6 --when "He was seen of above five hundred
brethren at once; of whom the greater part remained unto
that day, though some were fallen asleep," is now the
opinion of the ablest students of the evangelical history.
Nothing can account for such a number as five hundred
assembling at one spot but the expectation of some promised
manifestation of their risen Lord: and the promise before
His resurrection, twice repeated after it, best explains
this immense gathering.
17. And when they saw him, they worshipped him; but some doubted--certainly none of "the Eleven," after what took place at previous interviews in Jerusalem. But if the five hundred were now present, we may well believe this of some of them.
19. Go ye therefore, and teach all nations--rather,
"make disciples of all nations"; for
"teaching," in the more usual sense of that word,
comes in afterwards, and is expressed by a different
term.
baptizing them in the name of the
Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost--It should
be, "into the name"; as in
1Co 10:2, "And were all baptized unto (or rather
'into') Moses"; and
Ga 3:27, "For as many of you as have been baptized
into Christ."
20. Teaching them--This is teaching in the more usual sense
of the term; or instructing the converted and baptized
disciples.
to observe all things whatsoever I
have commanded you: and, lo, I--The "I" here is
emphatic. It is enough that I
am with you alway--"all the
days"; that is, till making converts, baptizing, and
building them up by Christian instruction, shall be no
more.
even unto the end of the world.
Amen--This glorious Commission embraces two primary
departments, the Missionary and the Pastoral,
with two sublime and comprehensive Encouragements to
undertake and go through with them.
First, The MISSIONARY department ( Mt 28:18): "Go, make disciples of all nations." In the corresponding passage of Mark ( Mr 16:15) it is, "Go ye into all the world, and preach the Gospel to every creature." The only difference is, that in this passage the sphere, in its world-wide compass and its universality of objects, is more fully and definitely expressed; while in the former the great aim and certain result is delightfully expressed in the command to "make disciples of all nations." "Go, conquer the world for Me; carry the glad tidings into all lands and to every ear, and deem not this work at an end till all nations shall have embraced the Gospel and enrolled themselves My disciples." Now, Was all this meant to be done by the Eleven men nearest to Him of the multitude then crowding around the risen Redeemer? Impossible. Was it to be done even in their lifetime? Surely not. In that little band Jesus virtually addressed Himself to all who, in every age, should take up from them the same work. Before the eyes of the Church's risen Head were spread out, in those Eleven men, all His servants of every age; and one and all of them received His commission at that moment. Well, what next? Set the seal of visible discipleship upon the converts, by "baptizing them into the name," that is, into the whole fulness of the grace "of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost," as belonging to them who believe. (See on 2Co 13:14). This done, the Missionary department of your work, which in its own nature is temporary, must merge in another, which is permanent. This is
Second, The PASTORAL department (
Mt 28:20): "Teach them"--teach these baptized
members of the Church visible--"to observe all things
whatsoever I have commanded you," My apostles, during
the three years ye have been with Me.
What must have been the feelings which
such a Commission awakened? "WE who have scarce
conquered our own misgivings--we, fishermen of Galilee,
with no letters, no means, no influence over the humblest
creature, conquer the world for Thee, Lord? Nay, Lord, do
not mock us." "I mock you not, nor send you a
warfare on your own charges. For"--Here we are brought
to
Third, The ENCOURAGEMENTS to undertake and go through with this work. These are two; one in the van, the other in the rear of the Commission itself.
First Encouragement: "All power in heaven"--the whole power of Heaven's love and wisdom and strength, "and all power in earth"--power over all persons, all passions, all principles, all movements--to bend them to this one high object, the evangelization of the world: All this "is given unto Me." as the risen Lord of all, to be by Me placed at your command--"Go ye therefore." But there remains a
Second Encouragement: "And lo! I am with you all the days"--not only to perpetuity, but without one day's interruption, "even to the end of the world," The "Amen" is of doubtful genuineness in this place. If, however, it belongs to the text, it is the Evangelist's own closing word.