Full text of "A plain commentary on the four Holy Gospels, intended chiefly for devotional reading"

1)/

' A

PLAIN COMMENTARY

THE FOUR HOLY GOSPELS.

INTENDED CHIEFLY FOR DEVOTIONAL READING.

IN TWO VOLS.

ASS FOR THE OLD PATHS, WHERE IS THE GOOD WAY, AND WALK THEREIN J AND YE SHALL FIND

rest for YOUR souls. — Jeremiah vi. 1G.

GRANT, LORD, THAT IN READING THY WORD, I MAY NEVER PREFER MY OWN SENTIMENTS BE-
FORE TII03E OF THE CHURCH IN THE PURELY ANCIENT TIMES OF CHRISTIANITY. Bp. Wilson.

VOLUME II.

ST. LUKE— ST. JOHN.

COMPLETE FROM THE LONDON EDITION.

PHILADELPHIA:

PUBLISHED BY HERMAN HOOKER,
S. W. CORNER CHESTNUT AND EIGHTH STREETS.

1856.

•>

PRINTED SY HENUY B ASHMEAD,
Ocorjfs Stroet o|bvo Eleventh.

. > * - 5

PREFACE.'

The question has been asked why the present is called a " Plain Commen-
tary;" and what is precisely meant by " devotional reading." If the writer
had been further called upon to explain why the quotations prefixed to his
work express veneration for antiquity, he would have been furnished with all
the heads requisite for those few introductory remarks which it has been his
desire, all along, to offer on the completion of his work.

Complaint is often made of the want of an English Commentary on Holy
Scripture ; and it is not to be denied that, in the department of Exegesis, our
Theological Literature is exceedingly deficient. But it seems to be not always
remembered by those who complain, that students of the Bible are not all in
search of exactly the same thing.

1. Thus, there are not a few readers who seem to approach the Gospels, for
instance, in a purely critical spirit. From the style of their inquiries, it would
scarcely be supposed that they were handling an inspired Work. They treat
it exactly as if it were an ordinary narrative. To be warned against some
popular mistake : to be furnished with a correct translation : to have the events
which it records, reduced to true historical order; and to understand the
allusions to manners, and natural phenomena : — such seem to be the chief
objects of their desire. Readers of this class find writers of their own mental
complexion : writers, who can be eloquent enough about the Pharisees and
Sadducees; indeed, who have much to say on the subject of Jewish antiquities
generally ; are very exact in speaking of the Hcrods ; very communicative
concerning the geography of Palestine, and the observations of modern
travellers ; but who have little to communicate besides. They seem to make
it a point of honor to be very dry on points of living interest. Their chief
concern seems to be, to be safe. On every deep doctrinal statement, they
affect at once the brevity and the ambiguity of an ancient oracle. Such
writers are singularly prone to evacuate every profounder revelation of the
Spirit, by a shallow suggestion as to its probable meaning ; or they pass it by
without a syllable of comment. Meanwhile, they compound for their silence
when they should have spoken out, by many an useless remark on what is
perfectly plain already ; many a clumsy paraphrase of statements which
require no paraphrase at all. We hear it sometimes said by readers of truer
instincts, or who have been better taught, that such Commentaries " always
tell them everything except the precise thing which they desire to know."

2. There is again another kind of Commentary which may be said to address

* [This Preface in the Oxford edition, was printed in connection with St. John's Gospel.]

hnica] ..r scil i j 1 1 1 1 . - i|

all, i i \ it.il <•! ;. It might i

• '
iiiIi'mil' tin' sycamore tree, is a far more interesting m
ito which he climbed : that everything which our
important as the dialect in which He Bald it. But, to do

I sign their labours for the^eneral r
to have pr Commentary. Whatever their

intention, their labours, (which are j et very important in their w.
liar in their character, that they may well b red t<> form a class apart.

I'hcn, there are labourers of a higher order in th<
oism 1 B ad all thin re intent on n

grami the inspired pages. A rare word, — an unique

: timi; this it is which chiefly delights many
I. [t is in ch spirit that scholars are but too prone

B ' Life. Thi y I been known I

stablished the
Verei 11. Lei it nol be thought tor an instant thai ?
Itjrhtinglj of men whose work wedelight in. Their 1.

will b y none who value the Truth. It is to th

our \ Oracles For \\ hich we pi

• may surely be declared, without fear of contradiction, that
1 I exclusively to the learned. And not

only bo, but their authors maj charged with dealing with the In.

.•■hell only, which contains the fruit. They <l> a 1 the

I. They p, t.. touch tin lift .

fact, thai fter historical criticism, and scientific
•kill, r iphii-al i:. n, and antiquarian

; heir pari the elucidation of I

the
I \\ hi '1 Si John deliv-

•1 int'i ti. , whit kind of

11 his
n in the I'm e of th I

(i|e I I l'l'i he tell thrill

1 1.

PREFACE. V

more than six hours after the Passover had been eaten by our Lord ? Not so !
It is at least very hard to believe that the Evangelist's remarks would have
been of this character. True indeed it is that neither was it perhaps altogether
necessary, in their case, that he should have discussed such questions with
them. But then, did not his Gospel require a Commentary ? If Jews required
to have their understandings opened, (e) in order that they might understand
the writings of the Old Testament, do not Christians require some enlighten-
ment in order that they may understand the writings of the New ? What kind
of remarks, then, (to repeat the question,) are we to suppose that the inspired
Evangelist St. John would have made upon his own Work ? Would he not
rather have explained to His disciples the prophetic import of our Saviour's
Miracles ? and the meaning of certain of His Discourses ? and why he had him-
self made such emphatic mention of the Water and the Blood which flowed
from the wounded side of his Lord ? and something about our Saviour's
appearances after He was risen from the dead ? In short, we are prone to
believe concerning St. John, that if he made any Commentary on his own
Gospel at all, his remarks were made in the way of Interpretation of it.

4. And this brings us naturally to the notice of that truest style of Commen-
tary which attempts to interpret the difficult places of Holy Scripture ; or, at
least, never fails to call attention to them, lie alone, in strictness, deserves
the name of a Commentator, who interprets the profounder statements of the
Spirit : who is at least suggestive, where he cannot be altogether explanatory ;
or admits that there is something in the sacred text which calls aloud for expla-
nation, even while he confesses himself unable to explain it. Such a writer
will gratefully avail himself of all subsidiary helps ; but he will endeavour to
keep steadily in view that the labours of critics and philologers are but means
to an end ; not the end itself. — It is manifest then, that we are now making
allusion to a style of Commentary entirely different from either of the former.
We are, in short, describing such a Commentary as few indeed are capable of
producing : for it demands, in the first place, entire familiarity with the writ-
ings of either Covenant ; and a large acquaintance with what our Fathers in the
faith have delivered on the subject of Holy Scripture; — requirements which,
in themselves, imply considerable learning. Next, there should be a vigorous
yet chastened imagination, corrected by a sound and impartial judgment.
There is needed besides, above all things, a holy life ; freedom from party pre-
judice ; and a submissive spirit, capable of prolonged and calm investigation.
When all these qualifications are united, very little will yet be achieved, unless
there be present a certain amount of that Theological instinct, in which it must
be confessed that the moderns are, for the most part, lamentably deficient.
Without this instinct, this attribute of a Theological mind, learning does but
encumber : imagination does but mislead : modesty, candor, even holiness
itself, must all prove unavailing.

5. There is yet another class of readers who resort to Holy Scripture neither

VI l'l.

•

health. daily

I their dailj portion. They rather om a

from a domestic quan

that the English \
i They ntent with it, i 1 Jut if it must

I their simplicity, p srhapa in tl
to lay their hand on th I . .

: id her band on the hem of Christ's garment; and they know that
virtui th to heal them. Nay, they only valne the- elncidati E

a in. tade thns to minister to edification. Tho» who,

till 1. rally driven to th< Dod Iri

re of whom we are more
king. Th j n d in a d motional Bpirit, and look for practical
or at least tiny wish I ited in dr

from it which may influence their own daily life and oonvi

fifth and a distinct kind of Commentary j will not

attempt to define any further.

ii tially

ii in their Bpirit ; the growth of a Late age and a remote country : while,
Is, conjointly, all ancient ezp
\ <' . imentary which should exhibit in perf
characters of all five, might perhaps be called compleU : but no bucI I

ritten ; nor if it c raid be written, would it be generally
aid, in the first phv , ad, in the i

it would ' adingly mi ilar would complain that

amid remarks and refl< : which he

inld complain that he was forever inter-
ions for which he had no relish. Students of the a]
ol would call everything that waa Iry, or

illow, fanciful and i r own

I would I ire rudelj I in return .

ti. hi .-hint, it i- iin|

1 • the requirem

the difficu] I

horn he ] b ; and n

• li'l he feci th
if all will hi- i
1 i Bpirit. Without by

PKEFACE. Vll

criticism, lie desired rather to exhibit the results of learned inquiry, than to
expose the process by which those results may be arrived at. He chiefly
aimed at affording unlearned readers some real insight into the Gospel : and he
called his work " a Plain Commentary," not because it pretends to make every-
thing in the Gospel plain ; nor yet because the language is always such as a
wholly uneducated person can understand : but because it contains no words of
Greek or Latin, — no allusions which are beyond the reach of an educated
person.

Next,^-to mark his intention yet more fully, — the writer ventured to add
that his Book was " intended chiefly for devotional reading." He meant
thereby, that although he wished that what he wrote might prove useful to
learned and unlearned readers, alike; to old and young, wise and simple, the
teacher and the taught ; — his notes were yet chiefly intended for those who
study the Gospel in a devotional frame of mind ; who read it in order to live
by it ; and desire, while they read, to have their attention aroused, their heart
informed, and their curiosity in some degree gratified.

It will be seen, from what has thus been offered, that the writer's design
was chiefly to exhibit the combined features of those Commentaries which be-
long to the fourth and fifth classes above described. He has already stated
that the elder expositors of Scripture seem to have all written with the same
intention ; and he likes to believe that his labours will be found to bear some
general resemblance to theirs, as well in respect of matter as manner. — As for
the manner of those writers, it was, — to avail themselves freely of existing
materials : to interweave the words of others with their own : to illustrate
Scripture by a large use of Scripture : to be concise in the discussion of tech-
nical difficulties, — to be diffuse where important doctrine was involved; or
where, in the course of the narrative, they encountered statements which could
be turned to the reader's profit. They never slumbered on Holy ground. To
detect remote allusions, — to evolve unsuspected meanings, — to vindicate the
importance of supposed trifles ; — this was all their care. They did not append
to the inspired pages a series of unconnected notes, to be referred to by the
reader, or not, at his pleasure : but rather, they discoursed upon the Gospel,
connectedly, — breaking off only to introduce the words of Inspiration ; and
proceeding again with their running comment.

As for the matter of the ancient writers, — it was, to say the truth, seldom
altogether new. Novelty, in fact, seems to have formed no distinct part of
their plan. Truth, — the handing down of Divine Truth, — was their great
object. To transmit, pure and unpolluted, the current of primitive doctrine ;
and to extend and enlarge Man's knowledge of the Divine Oracles; was the busi-
ness of each of the Fathers in turn. To the very full did they admit, (as their
writings prove,) that striking sentiment of a great modern Doctor, that " it is not
at all incredible that a Book, which has been so long in the possession of man-
kind, should contain many truths as yet undiscovered." (/) Far from being

(/) Bishop Butler.

Ylll PR]

of them i t ;ui'l original thin]

ten to the ilar in their

i i incur 1 1 rility.

nil falls, I Bight

[n th ;.: inwhile, i! irly by the general i

tbod of handling Divine Truth, that ti
and ' ' lennans, and thi

e, not timidity ; Bound 'I
training, not imbecility of \\ them — what they are. All this admits

important,
thai ire shall renture to invi ittention to the following extract

face i" his Commentary on St. Mathew: —
•• STou ask me, my dearest Busebius, to furnish you with a brief exposition
: Matthew's Gospel, which you may carry with you in your approaching
journey to Borne, — like victual for the Four pertinacity in request-

• omentary, limited in extent yet pregnant in matter,
11 1 Bure ii in I that, had you remembered the answer I mad<
would never have invited me thus to attempt in a few days to execute a task
which demands th<' I

••In the tir>t phi difficult t>» go through all the authors who

d about the Gospels. Far more difficult, secondly, is the effort of judg-
ment which L- required to m i I in each. 1
i have read, (hut it i- a great manj I hrigen's twenty-fiv<
tnmentaries "ii St. Matthew ;
in number, and his Scholia. 1 have also read the Commentary of Theophilus
of Antioch, and of Hippolitus the martyr j those of Theodoras of 11
:. i, and Didymus of Alexandria : — b

Hilary, of Victorinus, and of Fortunati d is. A.nd certain-
in ;i little, picked out of the Commentaries of such writ I well

tention. But you require me, in the Bpace of two weeks, — tov
the cl i- nt, while the winds are blowing, — to dictate : thus allow!

time for the labour of writing, of correcting, of transcribing, — especially in
If, who for three months hav< I have

. . i 1.. gun t.i walk about again. The length of time allowed me is not
nitude of the undertaking.
•• '| he i • that, laying aside all consi Icration of ancient author-

have ii" opportunity either to read or to follow, I
[itetl :i brief hi tposition ; (the thing which \<<n said you w

for most ;) into which I hat oasionally in the flow< itual

\ | portunity." . v

.H-.
The inferences which i wn from thissingli

nor ii ihlc.

I 1st,) here i one writing a short Conn 3l N l tthew, inA.D

PREFACE. ix

898, whose direct qualification for the task is found to consist in his acquaint-
ance with what six Greek and three Latin Fathers have already written on the
same subject; and he insinuates that, under ordinary circumstances, he should
have felt it his duty to study all the Commentators, before venturing to put
forth a new Commentary of his own.

2ndly, Jerome further implies that in the composition of such a Commen-
tary, his special business would have been to exhibit the cream of what others
had written. His labour would have lain rather in the judicious selection of
ancient materials, than in the invention of fresh ones.

Srdly, The writers which he enumerates flourished from about A. D. 175 to
about A. D. 370. There is therefore nothing to prevent the oldest of them,
(Theophilus, Bp. of Antioch,)(r/) from having conversed in his youth with a
man who for many years had been a disciple of St. John. That the next in
order of time, (Hippolytus,) had conversed with Irenaeus, who remembered
St. John's disciple, Polycarp, — is matter of history.

4thly, It is observable that the writers whom Jerome names were even more
widely severed in respect of locality, than in respect of date. Thus Origen
studied at Alexandria, — over the catechetical School of which famous city,
Didymus also presided. Theophilus was Bishop of Antioch in Syria : Hippo-
lytus was Bishop of Portus, near Rome; and Theodoras filled the see of his
native city, Heraclea, in Thrace. Apollinarius, again, presided over the Church
of Laodicea, in Asia Minor. Hilary, Bishop of Poictiers, is a noble represen-
tative of the teaching of the Gallican Church. Victorinus and Fortunatianus
were Africans; but the latter was also Bishop of Aquileia in Italy. Although
five of these writers therefore may be regarded as Jerome's contemporaries, it
cannot be thought that their several productions were the growth of a single
school. The reverse is the fact.

5thly, It should be observed, in the last place, that of the nine Commenta-
ries thus enumerated, only one, (that of Hilary,) and part of another, (namely,
Origen's,) are any longer known to be in existence.

We hesitate not to avow, that the general impression which we derive from
such a survey of a single instance, is highly favourable to the claims of ancient
expositions of Holy Scripture on our reverent attention. We entertain no
extravagant theory on this subject. We are well aware that the Fathers had
no authoritative Tradition, to guide them in the general work of Interpretation.
Concerning Doctrine, indeed, there was such a prevailing Tradition : concern-
ing the meaning of single texts, there was not. The Fathers are observed to
reason about the sense of Scripture exactly as we ourselves reason at the pre-
sent day : they never pretend to knowledge derived from any private source ;
and, of really difficult places, (such as abound in the Discourses of our Lord,)
there are not unfrequently to be met with as many expositions as there are

(g) The general argument will not be at all affected by the admission, — which ought perhaps
in fairness to be made, — that it has been doubted whether the work which Jerome here alludes
to was the genuine production of the Father whose name it bore.

I PB

.ually

■

thai I

trine oft] I

»ve all, th :; the

ripture which \ indi
however remotely,

the inspired Word, which can only be satisfactorily explained by supp
the r< mote type of all was th< hing of tl F< r

that the early Christians would have been bo forgetful of the
11 who had - i a the Lord, thai no trace of it, — no
much aa ttu manner of it, — should have lingered <>n for a hui I

-. down to the time wh< d < )ri-
gen, for i samp] ■': It cannoi 1"- 1 If th

erning tl in the

mane • that, at the .

or two I tristian writers of tl ad of the \<>rth.

found, with on
ry dissimilar from that of the Am -hurt

of a

i radical a disCT

We ■'.:■ u, thai aneienl guides tworthy on holj

than tl '

' i tl particular

(rriting in i ions of th'- < Ihurch, al

of tii.. jil(&) and the two G Minor, — Epiphaniiu

prus, — A i at Milan, — John Chrj

:! : \\. L7.
(' ) '

■

....
■

!
■

I r.liuiii i.f tl

Of I

PREFACE. XI

ome(^) in Palestine, — Augustine^) in Africa, — and Cyril (r) at Alexandria; —
this fact strikes ns as a phenomenon truly extraordinary. But when we further
discover that it was the practice of those early commentators to borrow largely
from their predecessors, — so that, in nine cases out of ten, the author is only
handing down to us what another author had first handed down to him ; when
we can sometimes even trace the footprints of expositors back to the very age
of the Apostles themselves, or the age which immediately succeeded theirs ; —
our surprise at their general coincidence of teaching, assumes the form of defer-
ence, and respect for their opinions. The phenomenon, we perceive, admits
of only one explanation ; and these venerable writers command at once the
homage of our hearts, and the allegiance of our understandings.

For, — let it be asked in the next place, — What claims on our respect and
attention have the moderns, as yet, established ? When the modern method
differs from the ancient, on what grounds do the moderns recommend their
conclusions to our acceptance ? The advances which have been made in
Scholarship and in Science cannot be alleged in their behalf. Precious helps
these are to investigation ; but no one will pretend they can subvert the method
of it ; any more than recent improvements in the construction of telescopes,
because they have made us acquainted with so many unsuspected wonders,
have rendered the inductive method of reasoning an effete proceeding; or
falsified the first principles of former mathematicians. How then do the
moderns handle the sacred writings ? Certainly, if we wanted to characterize
their distinctive method by a single word, irreverence would be the term which
we should apply to it. Were we invited to assign a second characteristic, it
would be shallowness : if a third, arrogance. When the Gospels are in question,
we read perpetually of the "dislocations/' the "inaccurate memories/' and the
"mistakes" of "the Synoptists." The "honesty" of supposed "imposters" is
vindicated, or the "candour" of professing "witnesses" is pointed out. (It
would never be imagined that the Gospel of Jesus Christ was the matter in
debate ! the Apostles of the Lamb, the subjects of examination !) . . . The very
origin of the Gospels has proved a fruitful source of prolonged debate, — espe-
cially among our German neighbours, who seem to have taken the "mythical
narratives" vulgarly ascribed to St. Matthew, St. Mark, St. Luke and St. John,
under their especial patronage and protection. Here, the alarming names of
Eichorn, Busching, Vogel, Amnion, Gratz, Ziegler, Weber, Bertholdt, Hug ;
Kuinoel, Gieseler, Fritzche, De Wette, Lucke, Schleiermacher, Paulus and
Strauss, represent the combatants in the internecine strife. In the words of a
great and lamented writer(s), (to whose memory the living representatives of
this motley crew must bear no particular good-will ;) — " Hypothesis here has
been knocked down by hypothesis, till the Gospels must begin to feel them-
selves in a very awkward condition. If they were not written independently.
— and that is flatly denied ; if one was not copied from another, — and that is

{p) a. d. 3G3 — 430. The date of his Commentary on St. Matthew was a.d. 398, — according
to Clinton, whose dates are here followed. (q) a. d. 3S6— 430. (r) a. d. 412—444.

(s) The Rev. Hugh James Rose.

xa PB

• ii op ; i: ::t, —

and i

our-
further ch i

exha . one its work. The last !._■ , ihiuk

neitb Gospels oor our i

r written at all.

n will be :i most valuable adjuni in other .

bow in a m tanner the march of inl

our incali iperiority I . 1 ignorant for

In til- department "t >is, the writers !'•■:

little partiality appear I objection niter

ig lit' our Lobd? They explain it at once away. I.- our atten-
tion arrest '1 by some mysterious transaction? Tin- meaning "*' it i.« forth-
with laboriously evacuated. Commentators of this modern scl at us

|j with n tements: and delight in the remark.- ami the n

which tiny term "subj But, (wh nnforton

-■I much as quite agree among thems< lv . i t" the very authen-
ticity of tin- record they profess to illustral !

and Luck.', we arc informed, "occupy a prominent pis
lars who deny the authenticity of the whole of the last chapter" . ■ .
. John's Gospel. Kuinoel and Weber, on the contrary. Hatter theme

.c proved m< torily that mi Buffi in lie

ig ile- body of the chap nil tin m>

nd since I are characterif John (!!!) and even the

mi distinguishable difference from t : f his

composition." < Bow candid and considerai urs Kuinoel and V.

to allow any weight to such a trivial cirenm the combined testimony

:i manuscript of a Gospel!) Olshausen, however, amiablj
that perhaps all that Messieurs Schott and Lucke meant was, •• that
definite p* rson, Buch as tin John, for example, "r even

inknown, was the author of the chapter." (What a satisfaction, b
. it would lie to the Church to have this benevolent si mfirmed!

! thai if tic Evangelist St. John did not write hi- own < ■
at all events that somebody else, — "somedefinil ." — kind!

1W him ' < >lshausen's 0* D private dictum, in the meantime, is that " the

i,nl\ the Dumcrous investigation*! of this subject which i

: t.) the i. :ii 1 more by inqn

i
John." I;> this i bai min

with < I the latter.) tin first half of the .1,

: nbolical inter]

Fathers. It b

claims an nd bighlj accomplished living writer of our own; • digni-

tar\ too, and eie whose writings arc held iii ma tch "a length-

PREFACE. Xlll

ened allegory" is "wholly uncongenial to the usual spirit of St. John's
Gospel/' The minuteness which Olshausen finds so "poor and meaningless,"
may be accounted for by supposing that St. John " delighted to record, or
that the inquiring disciples would not pause in their questions till they had
received, the whole account, even down to the minutest outward details. "(t) . . .
Well, (cries the perplexed student,) on this head, I may perhaps be permitted
to think for myself. Suffer me at least to believe on your authority, that St.
John wrote the last chapter of his own Gospel! — Alas, even this miserable
solace is denied. " There are not wanting," (says the oracle,) " indications that
the actual composition of it is by another hand than that of the Evangelist
himself." (And here he refers, in a note, to the aforesaid Liicke.) "But
these difficulties in the outward details of this chapter," (he continues,) " are
not incompatible with the belief that we have, if not the very words, at least
the last recollections of the beloved Disciple; taken clown, it may he, from his
month; or written immediately after his death by the Ephesian disciples; but
still substantially his own." .... Can it be necessary to point out that con-
jectures, vague and unsupported and gratuitous as these, (for reasonings they
may not, by any stretch of courtesy, be called,) are entitled neither to atten-
tion nor indulgence? Much learning the authors of them may possess;
philosophers they may be, and wits and scholars too ; but are such criticisms
worthy of Theologians? Arc these, above all, to be the guides of poor souls
hungering for the bread of life, — reaching out for a hand which may sustain
their tottering feet, and conduct them to " the well-spring of their own ever-
lasting felicity ?"(«)

Thus much, then, on the subject of ancient and modern expositors. And now,
the reasoning w«ill sufficiently appear why we have prefixed to our poor endea-
vours, two quotations expressing our own adherence to the ancients. — It only
remains to speak a little more particularly about what has been here attempted.

If, after all that has been offered in a preceding page, it should still be
objected that the present Commentary is not "plain" enough for plain readers,
the author will but say in his own defence, that he found it practically impos-
sible to say what he wanted to say in much easier language. It sounds like a
paradox, but it is obviously true, that very often, in order to explain a diffi-
culty, things must be said which a wholly unlearned person will find even
more difficult than the thing to be explained. To be rather shallow in order
to be very transparent, formed no part of the writer's plan.

(t) "Elsewhere so unusual in St. John's Gospel," — adds the writer: whether justly or not, let
the readers of St. John's Gospel declare. Consider the following places: chap. ii. 1 to 10 : vi.
3 to 14 : viii. 1 to 11 : xi. 18 to 44 : xiii. 4 to 12 : xviii. 1 to 18 : six. 17 to 42 : xx. 3 to S.

( «) It would, of course, have been easy to adduce far more flagrant instances of licentiousness,
from writers of less respectability than Olshausen, (whose work on the Gospels is full of merit,)
and the esteemed author of "Sermons and Essays on the Apostolic age," — if the present writer
had desired. What has thus been adduced is merely offered as a favourable specimen of the
language of a school, — the growing popularity of which, among our own people, no thoughtful
man can witness without anxiety and apprehension. Pushed to its extreme development, such
a method must lead inevitably to aberrations as miserable as those of Paulus and Strauss.

XIV

Aii'l j t, after a large admission of this kin<l I

. that what be baa written will 1).- found f i bumble

bad chiefly ii.

the unlettered bind
. able to decipher the amored 1 ft !• to attem]

•.'. bo oannoi read. But there
m bo, however imperfectly
will pick "in the meaning of such remarks biefly met with in

I The writer has bad many opportunities already of convincing himself

of thi ud because be has cherished the hope to tin- very last

J t . » such persons, In- ha- invariably contrived thai • le chapter

shall be comprised 'within such limit.- as t" be capable of forming a -■ ;
tract. — In parochial Bchools, — -in the hands of the teachers and the elder chil-
dren, especially, — the work will Burely be found useful! 1- it beyond the

f the better olaas of domestio servants ? of small traders, and artu
It is even thought that besid in the closet, such a work as the pre-

cially it' it In- Btudied for a few minutes beforehand, might In- made
available fur reading aloud in the family.

uething should he said concerning the sources of the present work. The

'has availed himself, in the freest manner, of whatever he ha- at any

time met with, which he thought would Berve hi- present purpose; borrowing

thing from the most modern as well a- from the nm.-t ancient sourc
from lie exc llent "Annotations" of Bishop Lonsdale and Archdeacon Bale,
iih as from the precious fragments of writers of the second century:
from Bishop Amir, i itor of Scripture second t" none in ancient

dern times;) Bishop Pearson; Dr. W. 11. Mill, and the B Wil-

liams; from Augustine, and Chrysostom, and Cyril. !

to him reasonable ami right, moreover, when he met with anything which
red to him felicitously expressed by another writer, to present th<
in that writer's actual words; not to vary the lai make

ntimenl look like hi- own. This will account tor the numerous quota*
tiou- which will be found in the ensuing pages. Hut it may he m
remind the unlearned reader that he is not to suppose, whenever the aid ^f a
tthor is thus invoked, that the Bentiment quoted is then tore pa nlinr
t author. The greal value of bui
ami Mill is rather of the opposite kind ; namely, that those men
imbued with the spirit of Patristic interpretation; had read the Pathei
1 |y, and to I purpose; that they were for ever r : the

M and the trim exposition! of < Iod'b ^ onL Refer to the comm< nl
of Augustine and Chrysostom, on laying down Andrewes or Mill, and

a hundred e .: immediately,- I

which those nen h fully or learnedly expanded, and mad.' entirely

own. But indeed it i- scarcely needful to make the i
of th ■ h »ney prool
... 'I'h.- chief value of nob writings, then. from th

PREFACE. XV

circumstance which imparts such singular importance to the writings of the
ancients themselves, — as was explained above, in the instance of Jerome:
with this memorable difference, however, — namely, that almost all those very
ancient Books have long since perished which supplied Augustine, and Chryso-
stom, and Cyril, and the rest, with their materials ; and further, that the best
of the moderns are but learners in a School where they filled professorial
chairs. Should it not, however, be cheerfully allowed that there arises at least
one important counterbalancing consideration, when an ancient exposition is
thus re-produced by a modern Doctor; namely, that the sentiment thereby
obtains the sanction of an independent mind, — trained under different influ-
ences, and furnished with all the appliances of modern learning; superior it
may be in judgment, and not unfrequently superior in power; — after having
stood the trying ordeal of at least fifteen hundred years ? — It may be stated,
in conclusion, that the writer would have availed himself far more largely of
the ample stores, ancient and modern, which he had at command, but that he
prescribed to himself the rule of brevity; in order to produce a Commentary
within moderate limits. He was thus often afraid to consult fresh authorities ;
and has always laid down his pen with regret. At the same time, the reader
will not be aware hoio much has been offered on any given subject, unless he
will be at the pains to refer, when directed, from one part of the Commentary
to another. This operation may prove troublesome; but a system of cross
references was clearly unavoidable, — unless the same statements were to be
repeated again and again in different parts of the work. The materials have
been distributed, according to the writer's best judgment; and the Commen-
tary on each chapter has been made as readable, and it is hoped as interesting,
as the narrow limits would allow.

The assistance which has been derived from living authors has been so
faithfully acknowledged in the foot-notes, that particular allusion to it is the
less necessary here; but the writer feels that he ought to acknowledge his
oral obligations to the Rev. Charles Marriott, — whose daily life and conversa-
tion has been to him a perpetual Commentary on the Gospel.

Very delightful, lastly, — (why should the writer be ashamed to confess
it ?) — has been the favourable notice which his labours have from time to
time obtained. Very encouraging have those public and private expressions
of approval been, and he is very grateful for them. Very serviceable they
have also proved : for indeed the labour of producing even a popular Com-
mentary, like the present, is excessive, — far surpassing what most persons
would suppose ; and though, in this instance, the labour has always been its
own abundant and most blessed reward, yet has the writer many a time felt
the need of a little encouragement during the countless weary days and nights
of prolonged mental activity, which he has been compelled to bestow upon his
task, — the difficulties of which he did not by any means foresee when he first
undertook it. The dread of incautiously delivering an unsound, or (God for-
bid !) an heretical opinion : the awful responsibility of having undertaken to

xvi PR]

mis >rabl
should d laining them rightly : tl

• importani at i»f s litl a, —

or lest, by j ielding I and fati

any pari of the irork in ■ slovenly manner: — all tlu- ■
felt to !■' a painful tension of the critical faculty.

•1 — < . 1 1 1 * - t i : rplexing ; :ly trivial

Dnfrequently, to be bo full of
mmon narratiy< is and '11

no ordinary amount of painstakii
i al itor. It i- a very facile proceeding t-. aay ■

-.: hard I ry laborious i to ascertain what the most jud

of tli and moderns haw Bald concerning it. Moreover, i -

the judgment calmly and dispassionately t<> i
rival inter; '

sent it tn the unlearned reader in a few plain words,
labour, j" r :i for abdut t!

and - of health ami joy ; amid tip- pressure of other dut

and parochial; and (how often !) during tl.

to Man for rest; — may well crave a little encouragement. The labour thus

! a- the work has proceeded. Wheth the

ir more interested in his trade, ae Iful at it, — or

I Gospel invites to deeper research, and will hi
tion, — he is conscious that his exposition of the last sixteen i

John, together with the fourth, are rt of bis entii

Would that the rest wen' like it ! . . . Hut in truth, tie
tary i- aH so utterly anworthj of i;- Divine Bubject, thai, even in laying down
hi- pen, and invoking a blessing on hi- labours, — the I

Spirit thi G-ospel was given ! — he d omuch a- t!.

he pardoned : that it may pi
pro luctive of mischief to cone,
Th Author would conclude by gratefully recordin

ry, fur the most part, in tin- shi Iter of a College, — a dail\

r on the bounty of one who entered into reel more than live hut
1 1 thus endeavoured, I to adopl the I

II the world Borne account of thai time ami tho
which the Providence of a gracious God, and the munincen
i plai ed within his powx r.

(i
(i, , i

A PLAIN COMMENTARY

THE FOUR HOLY GOSPELS.

ST. LUKE.

CHAPTER I.

1 The Preface of Lithe to his whole Gospel. 5 The Conception of John the Bap-
tist, 26 and of Christ. 39 The prophecy of Elizabeth, and of Mary, concerning
Christ. 57 The nativity and circumcision of John. 67 The prophecy of Zacha-
rias, both of Christ, 76 and of John.

St. Luke, who wrote bis Gospel after those of St. Matthew and St. Mark had
been published, will be found to supply many particulars of our Lord's life which
the two earlier Evangelists omit. He was divinely guided to begin his Narrative
from a much earlier period than they; and to "set forth in order" the history of
the Birth, not only of our Blessed Saviour, but of His Forerunner likewise. It has
been piously, and reasonably thought, that he derived some of his information as to
these events, (subject to the suggestions and guidance of the Holy Ghost,) from the
Virgin Mother herself. In the course of this portion of his Gospel, occur the three
Inspired Hymns which make part of our Daily Service.

St. Luke then proceeds to relate the same events, generally, as are found in St.
Matthew and St. Mark ; but always with important differences, in matters of detail.
Five consecutive chapters, however, (ch. xiii. to ch. xvii.) contain information pe-
culiar to the present Gospel.

Though not actually one of the Apostolic body, he seems to have been an eye-
witness of many of the events which he describes. (See below, the note on verse
3.) And there are places in his Gospel where he has been permitted to come won-
derfully near his Lord ; as when he describes the mysterious hour of His Agony in
the Garden : — xsii. 41 to 46.

He begins his Narrative with relating something about himself; his qualification
for the work of an Evangelist, and the purpose with which he wrote his Gospel: —
where every word is full of wonder, and even of difficulty. The Reader will also,
(it is trusted,) find that every statement may be turned to edification and delight,
as well. St. Paul relates(a) that St. Luke was a Physician of the Body. "The
Brother, whose praise is in the Gospel throughout all the Churches, j; (&) is found
to have been also a skillful Physician of the Soul.

1, 2 Forasmuch as many have taken in hand to set forth in order a
declaration of those things "which are most surely believed among us,

(a) Colossians iv. 14. (b) 2 Cor. viii. 18.

402 A I'l.AIN OOMMBHTABY [CHAP.

even them onto us, which from the beginning were

-. and in! ' the Word :

• called the "P Gospel: from which,

i .'ii many things of importance; as, iir-t. that there vras u time when, from
the re| irt cs, many narratives of our L L four

which », had been committed to writing. B erve, — their Au-

thors had ' hancP' a ta-k which they were not divinely commi

i rm. It may be inferred from what is hero said, that, to be in j
; of eye-witnesses even, » tflficient qualification to enable

a man to become an Evangelist; inasmuch as all the narratives here allud<
1 St. Luke 'li'l not so ' - tak«' in hand" i" write a GospeL The Bolt

Spibj r moved aim j — \\ hereupon it seemed good to him ;- -and he n -

med good t<» me also, having had perfect understanding of all
things from the very first, to write onto thee in order, m Qent

'J. iphilns,

rve that St I.u k<- contrasts the way in which "he had obtained his infor-
mation, with that in which tin- "many" who bad "taken in hand" t" write ;; II-
ifour Loan's Life, had obtained theirs. They wrote from tradition : St. Luke
■ ijoyed "perfect understanding of all things from the very first," — probably
The Church has indeed always inclined to the beliei that he
He of tin- £ Disciples, — whose Bending out, he al in his

tenth Chapter. That portion of Scripture is therefore appoint read on St.

Luke's Day.

4 that thon mightest know the certainty of those things, wherein
thou hast been instructed.

This, then, was the object with which this Gospel was written.
- to ha\ e bestowed all hi- labour in building up i ne • ientile heart 'n
tian faith. And Gon blessed him in the deed; for thereby the whole Church of
Ciiki-i hath I in and will be, edified for ever. Shall km sometimes disdain a nar-
row field for labour, and be discontented a( having to minister (if n asin-
1 1 1/

eophilus, whom St. Luke addresses, we know nothing: but hi- name
Beloved of Gon;" ami (<> reader! be wire of this, that if Hum art be-
1 1 ispel i- specially ad

'< There was in the days of Herod, the king of Judaea, a certain
priest named Zacharias, of the course of Abia :

David distributed the priests into twenty -four courses ;(c) when 'Mho eighl

forth "i" Abijah." (ver. in.) Zacharias was descended from one of the
priests who belonged to hi i " com

I his wife wa» of the daughters of Aaron, and In
Elisabeth.

'I o Old 1 imediately mcel us. ■■■■ rd

as '" ! ml "Mary" a- "Minam."(e)

7 Ami they were both righteous ' G d, walking in ail the

commandments and ordinances of the Lord, blai ' .had

■ l . th was barren, and they b >th \
well

'I'h n in tl ri

irihly

(r) i i broB. x.\... I

I.] ON ST. LUKE'S GOSPEL. 403

8, 9 And it came to pass, that while he executed the Priest's office
before God in the order of his course, according to the custom of the
Priest's office, his lot was to burn incense when he went into the Tem-
ple of the Lord.

10 And the whole multitude of the people were praying without, at
the time of incense.

Kefer, here, to Leviticus xvi. 17.

11 And there appeared unto him an Angel of the Lord standing on
the right side of the altar of incense.

The dawn of the Gospel takes place in the Temple of God.

Concerning the Altar of incense, see Exodus xxx. 1 to 9. It stood " before the
veil that is by the ark of the testimony." Incense was symbolical of Prayer ;
whence it is said in the Book of Revelation that the " odours" in the golden vials,
are " the prayers of Saints," — chap. v. 8. See also Revelation viii. 3, 4; and the
note on St. Matthew ii. 11 may be consulted.

We are reminded by this description of where the Angel stood, not only of the
place of Session of the Eternal Son,(/) — but also that it was on the right side of
the Holy Sepulchre that a heavenly Messenger was seen after the Resurrection of
our Lord ;[g) and on the right side of the ship that the next was lowered on the cap-
turing of the second miraculous draught of fishes. (Ji)

12, 13 And when Zacharias saw him, he was troubled, and fear fell
upon him. But the Angel said unto him, Fear not, Zacharias : for thy
prayer is heard ; and thy wife Elisabeth shall bear thee a son.

So that, informer years, Zacharias had prayed earnestly for children: but he
had long since made up his mind that God had refused his petition. The Angel
informs him that it was far otherwise.

Until this time, only two cases of conception, predicted by an Angel, are recorded
to have occurred: namely, the prediction respecting Isaac, made to Abraham ;(t)
and the prediction respecting Samson, made to Manoah's wife.(/o) See the note
on St. Luke ii. 21.

and thou shalt call his name John.

See the note on the latter part of St. Luke ii. 21.

14, 15 And thou shalt have joy and gladness ; and many shall re-
joice at his birth. For he shall be great in the sight of the Lord, and
shall drink neither wine nor strong drink : and he shall be filled with
the Holy Ghost, even from his Mother's womb.

That is to say, the vow of the Nazarite should be upon him, (as it had been upon
Samson,) (/) from the time of his birth. Concerning that vow, see Numbers vi.
2,3.

16, 17 And many of the children of Israel shall he turn to the Lord
their God. And he shall go before Him in the spirit and power of
Elias, to turn the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the disobe-
dient to the wisdom of the just ; to make ready a people prepared for
the Lord.

This is best explained by a reference to the actual prophecy of Malachi, (iv. 5, 6,)
alluded to by the Angel. " Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the
coming of the great and dreadful day of the Lord : and he shall turn the heart of
the Fathers to the Children, and the heart of the Children to their Fathers." The
Baptist came " in the Spirit and power of Elias," inasmuch as he was one who

(/) St. Mark xvi. 19 (g) St. Mark xvi. 5. (h) St. John xxi. 6.

(0 Genesis xvii. 21, &c. (k) Judges xiii. 3. (I) Judges xiii. 4, 5.

1"! A H.AIN ' OMMSB [CIIAl'.

the tint li, boldly rebu litis- suffered for the

18, L9 A ii' 1 Zacharias Baid unto the Angel, Whereby shall I know

this r for I am an old man, and my vrife well stricken in Ami

\n_'.l answering Baid onto him, I am Gabriel, that stand in the

presence of God; and am Bent to Bpeak onto thee, and to show thee

glad tidings.

An awful calm rebuke, truly ; and worthy of an Angel from Heaven.(n)

1 1 • - ih.it gpeaks i" thee is Gabriel, (thai is "the Han of God,") whose ofl

I ! in the presence of the Bfosi High. 1. \s 1 1 ■ » in the i

: behold am now Bent with heavenly tidings «/</" (heel ....

II the 1 tart, which a moment before wavered, have 1 a overcome by the

ttions which every word of the glorious Speaker awakened I

20 And, behold, thou Bhalt be dumb, and not able to Bpeak, until
the day that these things shall be performed; because thou belii

not my words, which shall be fulfilled in their Beason.

bat Zacharias received a sign, though a very different one Brom what he had
expected: and an appropriate sign i< was; for behold, tin' faculty of speech, which
he bad misused to express mistrust in God's promises, was for a fixed time with-
drawn. He became deaf moreover, as well as dumb; for, when the Baptist was to
be circumcised, we shall find thai the neighbours " mad his rather, how

be would have him called." ver. 62.
In the words actually employed by Zacharias, and the Blessed Virgin M
■<\\<A\-.( /,) there does uol Beem to be much difference; but the Speakers were
liversely affected. While her'a was the besitati >n of Faith,(q) which timidly
asked for explanation, — his was the reluctance i \f, which required)

Hence, for doubt was solved, his, punished.

21 Aii'l the people waited for Zacharias, and marvelled that he tar-
ried bo long in the Temple.

They were waiting for him to come out and bless them. " Hon was he honoured
in the ini'l~t of the people in In- coming out of the Banctuary I" — :i- it i- said by the

Siraoh. " He wrenl down, and Lifted up In- hands over the whol<
tion of the children of [srael, I L a with his lips.'

22 And when he came out, he could uot Bpeak unto them: and I
ived that he had seen a vision in the Temple: for he beck

unto them, and remained Bpeechless.

II could uol pronounce the accustomed words of Blessing. Surely it t

highly significant circumstance thatat them ml when the a 1 tidings of the

I bud been proclaimed, and an event bad been announced by which 1 1 1 • - Law
-■•. the Priesl Bhould come forth from 1 1 • « - Sanctuary "I Goo vrith dumb
lips '. < ' ider I I St. Mat! d. 13.

And it came to pass, that, as Boon as the days of his ministration
oplished, h<- departed to his own house.

24, 25 An I after th lavs his wife Elizabeth conceived, and hid

[f five months, Baying, Thus hath the Lord dealt with me in
wherein He looked on me, to take awaj my reproach anion- men.

tor the manner of the dan \ sham, — withwl

childli »unte I a reproach.

I of S a, than of

I mpar« Judo ver. '».
. 21.

I.]

on st. luke's gospel. 405

pious Matron whose history is given in the Bible :(s) but Kebekah, Rachel, Manoah's
wife, and Hannah, are all additional instances of that mysterious economy which
from the beginning had been preparing the minds of faithful men for a Birth in
"the latter days" which should be out of the course of Nature: the Birth t)f One
whose name should be called " Wonderful." Accordingly, in ver. 36, we shall find
the Angel Gabriel bringing forward this very case of Elisabeth, in order to reconcile
the Mind of the Blessed Virgin to the mysterious destiny which was in sto& for
herself.

26 An in the sixth month the Angel Gabriel was sent from God
unto a city of Galilee, named Nazareth,

No common Angel, but one of the highest order ; as was meet, at the sending
down from Heaven of the most Blessed message which had ever yet reached this
suffering Earth.

That message was to exalt Human Nature above the Cherubim, by proclaiming
the Incarnation of the Word. Yet the Archangel Gabriel hastens with love and
obedience to fulfil his embassy. "And," to quote the pious words of Bishop
Taylor, " if we were to reduce our prayers to action, and do God's will on earth as
the Angels in Heaven do it, we should promptly execute every part of the Divine
Will ; though it were to be instrumental in the exaltation of a brother above our-
selves."

27 to a virgin espoused to a man whose name was Joseph, of the
house of David ; and the virgin's name ivas Mary.

Something has been already said (in the Commentary on St. Matthew's Gospel)
concerning the Divine Economy by which it was over-ruled that Mary should have
been "espoused" to Joseph, at the time of the Annunciation; and immediately
afterwards have become his Wife. See notes on St. Matth. i. 16, 18, 24. It was
needful in this manner, at first, to shroud the mighty mystery of our Lord's Birth
from the eyes of carnal men: and (what is more) it was seen fit by this master-
piece of divine contrivance, to defeat the vigilance of the Powers of Darkness also.

Do but note with what amazing simplicity, the most wonderful event which had
happened in all the ages, is described ! This was the hour for which Creation had
groaned, ever since the Fall. The eyes of Patriarchs and Prophets had ever been
turned in wonder and adoration towards this event. Faith and Hope had supported
themselves " since the world began," in sure belief that the day for the disclosure
of the great mystery here revealed, must at last arrive. When it came, how unlike
did the manner of its coming prove, to what men had expected ! The House was
David's House indeed; yet, reduced to what a low condition! In the secrecy of
her private chamber, — to a Virgin, — dwelling in a despised city, — far from Bethle-
hem of Judasa, the scene of the promises, — the Angel Gabriel brings the wondrous
tidings which were destined to make all the ends of the Earth rejoice !

See the second note on St. Luke ii. 38.

28 And the Angel came in unto her,

The Angel came in unto her, — so that the Blessed Virgin was within when she
heard the heavenly tidings. Sarah, in like manner, was " in the tent," when she
heard the promise. (t) In connection with this subject, consider the following
texts,— St. John xi. 20 ; 1 Tim. v. 13 ; Tit. ii. 5.

and said, Hail, tJwu that art highly favoured, the Lord is with thee :
blessed art thou among women.

The Angel is instructed to bid Mary " Hail ;" that is, to bring her a message of
Peace and Jotj : whereby God revokes the sentence which He had pronounced on
our first Mother, — " In sorrow thou shalt bring forth children."(«)

29 And when she saw Mm, she was troubled at his saying, and cast
in her mind what manner of salutation this should be.

(s) See note on ver. 37. («) Genesis xviii. 9, 10. (u) Genesis iii. 16.

406 a i-i.AiN [chap.

i And the \ ■' said unto her, Ft « Dot, Mary: for thonl
found favour with < ron.

II- V. b c her name, — m if to in L show thai

bar.

31 bold, thou bd [?e in tl v th ;i

and .-halt call Hia Name JESUS.

I should not escape notice that these words arc formed exactly upon those of tho
prophet Isaiah \ii. ' 1 what follows (ver.

in the Bame prophet, namely ix. 6, 7.

2 He shall be great, and Bhall be called the Sod of tl
and ■' I- i' GrOD Bhall give onto Him the throne of Hi- Father
David.

linding ber thereby "I" many an ancienl prophecy which bad
and t< er that the Offspring of her body was to be none other than the

Cm.

38 And He Bhall reign over the house of Jacol> forever; and of His
Kingdom there Bhall be no end.
:'.l iid Mary nnto the Angel, How Bhall this be, seeing I

know not a man '.'

The Blessed Virgin clearly understood thai this promise was made I i her in hex
Virgi

35 And the Angel answered and Baid nnto her. The II
Bhall come apon thee, and the Power of the Highest Bhall oversl
: therefore also thai Holy Thing which Bhall be born of thee
! tiled the Son of < ron.

which words, il is worth observing that the Angel < to the

Virgin the mystery of the Blessed Trinity.

There was this contrast between the Old and the New Creation ; thai
in the first, Gon "spake and it was done, Be commanded and it

■ ' II- wrought Becretly and Bilently, — "coming down, 1 * as tl"' Psalmist
Bpeaks,(y) with reference to the days of Messiah, "like the rah,
ren as the drops thai water the Earth."
One of tl" 1 very earliest of the Fathers, (Ignatius, second Bishop ol '
of this, — that it was "a crying mystery wrought in 1 1 » • - -ii-
memorable saying, which the Church has never been able to t

And, behold, thy cousin Elisabeth, Bhe hath also ci i
in her old age: and this is the sixth month with her, who was called
barren.

a (the most fitting imaginable!) is given her; —
r a- in the case of Zacharias.
I B . \ - ■■ cousin." II' ace her n

the Kinsman ol I

, For with God oothing

There is an all ��� w iii. 1 1. Tl

both rcscinhled that of Sarah. See tho note on ver,

\ ! '• Behold ■'.■ I in Imaid of the Lord ; l

me according to thy word.
And the Angel departed from her.

(*)< (y) P

I.] ON ST. LUKE'S GOSPEL. 407

She submits to it, rather as a mysterious dispensation which she could not tell
how to comprehend, than glories in it as a privilege. Her answer befits the Mother
of One who was declared to be " meek and lowly ;" owning herself but the Hand-
maid of Him who was to be her Son.

Observe the wondrous contrast with what took place "in the beginning." At
the Fall of Man, that old serpent, Satan, held parley with a Woman, and deceived
her by the Spirit of Pride. In order to the Restoration of our Nature, an Arch-
angel discourses with another "Woman, and persuades her through her Humility.

And here, it may be well worth remarking (with Bishop Taylor), that "the holy
Virgin came to her great perfection and height of piety, by a few, and those,
modest and unattractive, exercises and actions. St. Paul travelled over the world ;
preached to the Gentiles and disputed against the Jews; wrote Epistles ; suffered
dangers, injuries, affronts, and persecutions to the height of wonder ; whereby he
won for himself a crown. But the holy Virgin attained perfection by the means of
a quiet and silent piety, by internal actions of love, devotion, and contemplation :
and instructs us that silent affections, the splendours of an internal devotion, the
union of love, humility, and obedience, the daily offices of prayer and praises sung
to God, acts of faith and fear, of patience and meekness of hope and reverence, re-
pentance and charity, and those graces which walk in a veil and silence ; make
great ascents to God, and as sure progress to favour and a crown, as the more
ostentatious and laborious exercises of a more public religion."

39 And Mary arose in those clays, and went into the hill country
with haste, into a city of Jucla ;

Thirty-eight cities of Judah "in the mountains," are enumerated in the Book of
Joshua (xv. 48 to 60) : but Tradition has always pointed out "Kirjath-Arba, which
is Hebron,"(2) as the dwelling-place of the venerable pair to whom Mary hastened.

40 and entered into the house of Zacharias, and saluted Elisabeth.

She seems to have taken the holy pair by surprise, through the fervent haste
with which she performed her journey. (The grace of the Holy Spirit knows
nothing of slow endeavours!) Surely the mountains of that "hill country," — the
forest, and every tree therein, — broke forth into singing, and Earth was joyful; for
the Lord had redeemed Jacob, and comforted His people. (a) "How beautiful upon
the mountains are the feet of him that bringeth good tidings !"(&)

41 And it came to pass, that, when Elisabeth heard the salutation of
Mary, the Babe leaped in her womb ; and Elisabeth was filled with the
Holy Ghost.

These holy women, meeting to compare and unite their joys, and then made pro-
phetic and inspired, must needs have discoursed like Angels ; for (as a pious Bishop
has remarked) all the faculties of Nature were turned into Grace. It is not easy to
imagine the rapture of this blessed meeting. Never, but in Heaven, was there more
joy and ecstasy !

42 And she spake out with a loud voice, and said, Blessed art thou
among women, and blessed is the Fruit of thy womb.

" Observe the " loud voice." Verily, if she had not spoken as she did, the very
stones must have cried out !

Notice also, that she repeats the Angel's salutation ; see ver. 28.

Rightly does Elisabeth call our Saviour Christ, "the fruit of thy womb:" for
she spake of One " who took Man's nature in the womb of the Blessed Virgin, of
her substance."(c)

43, 44 And whence is this to me, that the Mother of My Lord should
come to me ? For, lo, as soon as the voice of thy salutation sounded in
mine ears, the Babe leaped in my womb for joy.

(2) Joshua xv. 54. («) Isaiah xliv. 23, and xlix. 13. (5) Isaiah Hi. 7.

408 a ri.Aix OOMmHTABt [chap.

It Iri- i mm introduces things t.. wfaiofa Nature i- a

The Forerunner, yet unborn, bean testimony t" hi> yet unborn I. signifi-

c mt circumstance, sorely; as indicative of the <

re bidden from the wise and prudent, bat revealed unto B
shall behold our Savioub in like manner ooming to HU
I Baptism, Bee not i St. Matt. iii. 13.

!•"> And blesse 1 is Bhe that believed : fer there shall be a perform)
of those things which were told her from the Lobd.

I. Bfy word of this address(e) is clearly prophetical, — fbrwhieh the declai
in ver. 41 prepares na. Elisabeth sees tne whole extent of the mysl Not only

me declare the present wonder, thai Mary is the Mother of the Redeemer;
and the future issue, tnat all things Bhall I"- fulfilled which bare been foretold her;
but she is able also to declare the Btate of heart in which her kinswoman n I

the Angel Gabriel's message: Past, and Present, and Future open to her prophetic
sight

Thereupon was poured forth the Divine " Magnificat," — whose echoes yet till the
Churches of Christendom. The Hymn el" the Blessed Virgin is manifestly con-
structed upon the Bame model as that Btrain of thankfulness which Hannah gave
utterance to, on a similar occasion \(f) and with which indeed it Bhould be compared
throughout. The germ of both heavenly compositions is to be found in a yet more
ancient Song, — namely, that of Sarah, contained in Genesis xxi. 6.

4G, 17 And Mary Baid, My boo] doth magnify the L"iii>. ami my
spirit hath rejoiced in God my Savioub.

. "the fruit of the Spirit is Love, Joy, Peace."(flO
11 irve how she drops, in ber exceeding exultation, the thought of self. Her
joy is d •; in herself) but in OOD her 8A I lOUR.

For He hath regarded the low estate of His handmaiden: for,
belmhl, from henceforth all generations shall call me ble88< I.

I of her poverty, — and yet, she was verypoor; but (after the man-
ner ol [ bher) ber words have reference t" tne reproach of childl
whioh Gon had removed from her. Compare ver. 25. What a profound and ;rl"-
rious meaning 'h> the common words of rejoicing among the Mothers of [srael,(A)

assum i the lips of the Virgin Mother of oi \ i

n> oall her, — ana so, fulfill her prophecy.

I' 1 For He that is mighty hath done to mc great things; and holy is
II- Name.

.'.." as Bede remarks, " can alone duly magnifj I. .11

lo mighty thin

60 And Hi- Mercy is on them that fear Him from generation to
generation.

To quote the same writer, once more, — M As if she had said, Not onryy&raw hath
He that is mighty don kings; l>ut in every nation, he that Gon ii

•ted of linn."
This i- almost ;i quotation from Psalm oiii. IT.

51 Be hath shon ngthwith Bis arm; Be hath the

prond in the imagination of their hearts.

Thai I who, in the imaginations of their hearts, an proud, -He hath

red.

52, 58 lie hath pnt down the mighty from t>

(./) St Ifatth. i (/) l Bamaal U Its i".

(ii) .it.

I.]

on st. luke's gospel. 409

them of low degree. He hath filled the hungry with good things ; and
the rich He hath sent empty away.

With verses 51, 52, 53, compare the corresponding parts of Hannah's Song, —
namely, 1 Sam. ii. 4, 5, 6, 7, 8.

The following places of Scripture will also be found worth referring to, in illus-
tration of the three last verses, viz., Job v. 11 * Psalm cxiii. 7 : Ezekiel xvii. 24 :
xxi. 26.

Some of the wonders to be achieved by the Introduction of the Gospel are here
glanced at. First, is described the dethronement and casting down of the Devil,
and of all his evil host,(i) — together with the exaltation of "the poor of this world,
rich in faith," to be "heirs of the Kingdom." (k) Next, it is prophesied how they
who hunger after Eternal Life with their whole soul,(Z) shall be filled, when
Christ shall appear in glory ; Avhile they who, rejoicing in their self-righteousness,
think themselves rich, shall in the end be sent empty away.

54 He hath holpen His servant Israel, in remembrance of His Mercy ;

This verse seems intended to recall Psalm xcviii. 3.

55 as He spake to our Fathers, to Abraham and to his seed for ever.

The allusion in this verse to the last words of the prophet Micah (vii. 20) seems
unmistakable.

The Blessed Virgin speaks, of course, of the true spiritual Israel. "For," as St.
Paul explains, "they are not all Israel, which are of Israel :"(w) but " the Israel
of God"(«) are "such as are of a clean heart." (o) " They which are of Faith, the
same are the children of Abraham.' \p) And this promise is not narrowed by any
limits; but to the very end of time there shall never lack believers, — whereby Abra-
ham shall have a " seed, for ever."

It is a divine thing that the Blessed Virgin should have thus glanced back to the
beginning, from the end'; and by this allusion to God's promise made to
Abraham, (q) should have virtually admitted, and in the very highest sense, "that
there had not failed aught of any good thing which the Lord had spoken unto the
house of Israel. All had come to pass."(r)

If any do inquire how it happens that this Hymn, poured forth in expression of
the Blessed Virgin's Joy and Thankfulness, should have become a portion of the
Church's Daily Service, — let them know that it does not contain one word of exul-
tation but what every humble Christian may make his own. When the Eternal
Word was made flesh, it was not, of course, the Blessed Virgin in particular, but
mankind in general, which He designed to honour. The purpose of the Son of God,
when He honoured the Blessed Virgin so far as in, and from, her to become Man,
was to advance Human Nature by assuming it into the Unity of His Divine Person;
so that, being born of her, He might procure not only hers, but our common Salva-
tion. Every member of the great Human Family may therefore sing the "Magni-
ficat ;" and when he bears his part in that divine Anthem, should learn to make the
Blessed Virgin's raptures a private and a personal concern : — " My soul doth mag-
nify the Lord, and my Spirit rejoiceth in God my Saviour; because He did regard
the low estate of us poor mortal men, — His afflicted servants. For behold, in conse-
quence of the Incarnation of the Son of God, all generations of mankind, aye, and
every order of the Angelic Host, shall for evermore pronounce us 'Blessed:' for
the Mighty One did mighty things for us, when He united Himself to /our fallen
Nature : wherefore Holy is He ; and Blessed for evermore be His Holy Name !"

56 And Mary abode with her about three months, and returned to
her own house.

During those three months Prayer and Meditation rather than converse, was
surely the resource of this pair of holy Matrons : for unspeakable was the blessed-

(t) Compare St. Luke x. 18. [k) St. James ii. 5.

{I) Compare St. Luke xv. 16, 17, 23 (the ease of the Gentile world:) St. Matthew xv.
26, 27, &c. ( m ) Romans ix. 6.

{n\ Galat. vi. 16. (o) Psalm lxxiii. 1. (p) Galat. iii. 7.

lq) Genesis xii. 3, xvii. 7, &c. (r) Joshua xxi. 45, and xxiii. 14.

410 A PLAIN ' "MM IN ! [CHAP.

to which th lively called. And now, when

about 1 M oot informed that they ever met

•gain.

Now Elisabeth's full time- came that Bhe should 1m- de-
livered; and .-lie brought forth a Bon. And her Deighbonrs and her
consin8 heard how the Loed had showed great mercy upon her ; and

irith her. And it came to pass, that on the eighth
they cami -<• the child j and they called him Zacharias, after

the name of his father.

i; ther, "they were for calhng him," — "They wanted to call him." Compa
Matthew iii. I l".

60, 61, 62 And his Mother answered and said, Not so; hut he -hall

I [led John. Ami they said unto her, There is uone of thy kindred

that i- called by this oame. And they made Bigns to his father, how

he would have him Called.
They "made signs" to Zacharias, because lie was a well as dumb.

63, >'>! And he asked for a writing table, ami wi te, ying, His

name is John. Ami they marvelled all. Ami his mouth was 0]

immediately, ami his tongue loosed, ami he snake, and praised God.

v Unbelief had bound him, bo Faith now set him free. And, as an ancient
writer remarks, it was but reasonable that when the voice of the Word came forth,
— St -i tin i. 2 ■. -the tongui of 1 * I — Eathi r should have been Loosed liki i

. 66 Aim! fear came on all that dwelt round ahout them: and all
these sayings were noised abroad throughout till the hill country of

Judaea. And all they that heard them laid them up in their hear;--.
Baying, What manner of child shall this he! And the Hand of the
I. . n was with him.

67 Ami his father Zacharias was filled with the HOLI GrH08T, and
prophesied, saying,

'I'll.- first purpose in which lie employed tl i
have been the pouring out of that Inspired Hymn, — the " Benedictus," — which

II Church bas since adopted as a part oi ber daily utterance. Well maj she
lire..- done every word here, prophetically Bpoken, ha- reference to the
Spiritual Reign of Messiab ; and the blessings commemorated, belong not t<> the
nation oft! ■ aly, hut, in the full extent <.t' their signification, to all tl

pie Oi I

be the LOBS God of Israel; for lie hath visited and re-
II people,

bow his prophetic Bpcecfa | ho

be supposed thai the Inspired speaker had any conception of the
sublime mt rt< ry which bis words enfolded. He opened his lips to praise the ' •
Israel for harms at 1 1 - 1 "visited," — that is, "looked graciously anon," 1 1

(pie: an I wrought for them the long-promised deliverance from their enemies : hut
t the inn' nature of that deliverance, though be was diyin<

I i 14: fiev. v. 9.

69 and hath raised up an Born of Salvation for us in the
II servant 1 ' a\ id ;

or. ids in the P Uy Salvation ; w for "a horn" i

emblem— 1 rith certain animaje, it is the instrument—

I-]

on st. luke's gospel. 411

such expressions as are found in Jeremiah xlviii. 25, Psalm lxxv. 4, 10, cxii. 9, &c.
Compare 1 Sam. ii. 10, and Psalm xviii. 2 : but especially Psalm cxxxii. 17.

Note also, that here and elsewhere, Kingly power is chiefly intended ; whence
"horns" actually stand for "Kings" in the Book of Daniel, and other parts of
Scripture, (s)

70 (as He spake by the mouth of His holy Prophets, which have
been since the World began :)

For the whole volume of the Old Testament is hut one long prophecy of Christ :
" Yea, and all the Prophets, from Samuel, and those that follow after, as many as
have spoken, have likewise foretold of these days."(£)

To speak more truly, it was God, (as we learn from this place,) who spoke by
their mouth. Compare the language of Acts i. 16, and see the note on St. Matt.
i. 22. Our own Hooker has said on this subject, — " They neither spake nor wrote
any word of their own, but uttered syllable by syllable as the Spirit put it into
their mouths ; no otherwise than as the harp or the lute doth give a sound accord-
ing to the discretion of his hands that holdeth and striketh it with skill." .... It
is remarkable that the very word for a Phophet, in Hebrew, is thought by the
learned to imply one who speaks as another moves him.

This appeal to God's "holy Prophets of old," is introduced parenthetically:
verses 69 and 71 must be taken together.

71, 72 that we should be saved from our enemies, and from the hand
of all that hate us ; to perform the Mercy promised to our Fathers, and
to remember His holy covenant ;

According to the mind of the Spirit, the reference in this place is, of course, to
ghostly, not to bodily enemies. Christ, — the Horn spoken of in ver. 69, — is de-
clared, in ver. 71, to be " Salvation from our enemies,'" &c. And thereby, in the
verse which follows, it is prophetically foretold that the Lord God of Israel was
about "to show mercy to our Fathers, and to remember his holy covenant" with
them.

73, 74, 75 the oath -which He sware to our Father Abraham, that
He would grant unto us, that we being delivered out of the hand of our
enemies might serve Him without fear, in holiness and righteousness
before Him, all the days of our life.

Here, the Holt Spirit is His own interpreter. The reference is to God's great
oath to Abraham, contained in Genesis xxii. 16 to 18, — and alluded to in Hebrews
vi. 13, 14. Compare the language of Psalm cv. 8 to 10.

It seems then, that those famous words, — " I will bless thee, and .... multiply
thy seed as the stars of Heaven,"(w) — were fulfilled, in their highest sense, when it
was "granted unto" men, that is, Power teas given them,(x) to serve God in Holi-
ness and Righteousness^) all the days of their life. For consider, that this was
brought about by the out-pouring and gift of the Holy Ghost ; whereby God pro-
cured to the Father of the Faithful, in Christ, a spiritual seed, numerous as the
stars of Heaven, and as the sand which is upon the sea-shore. Compare Galatians
iii. 14.

It appears further, that the words, — " Thy seed shall possess the gate of his ene-
mies," — besides their obvious, historical sense, which was fulfilled in the days of
King David, — received their perfect fulfillment in the days of the Gospel ; when, by
our Saviour's Advent, the Human Race were "delivered out of the hand of their
enemies," — Sin and Death. See Rom. vi. 18, 22. 1 Cor. xv. 24 to 26 ; also 55 to
57. Titus ii. 14. 2 St. Peter i. 4. 1 St. John v. 4, 5.— Take notice, by the way,
that these, (which Zacharias mentions,) were the two great heads of Blessing which
Eliezer seems to have recounted to Laban and Bethuel, when they sent away
Rebekah to become Isaac's wife. See Genesis xxiv. 60.

And thus, it is declared that the entire fulfillment of all the glorious promises
which God had once made to the Fathers, was now at length about to be performed
to them; — for, as it is elsewhere said by Christ Himself, — "all," (that is, all the

(s) Daniel vii. 7, 8. Zecli. i. 18. Kevel. xiii. 1. (t) Acts iii. 24. Compare Acts x. 43.

(u) Gen. xxii. 17. (x) Compare Rev. xi. 3. (y) Compare Eph. iv. 24.

111! A PLAIH I OlOHNTABl [< I

Fathers, — I ,: iking of /Aem, — Abraham, I (ob.V'livt

Him. 1

"B • I. ird, tliat hath gii en real onto 1 1

all that He promised. Then hath

which Be promised by the hand of M"~ In snch terms oonld

the wise King of Israel express bis sense of God's Fail I and

I v. •, ill ,,'•■ find language adequate to thi

i the ends of the \\ orld ai (p)

T''> And thou, child, shalt be called the Prophet of the Highest: for
halt go before tin- face of the Lord to prepare his j

The Father turn-, in his prophetic rapture, to address his infant child ; foretelling
that he should " I"-." (for thai is the meaning of " being call '/.") " the prophet of
the Most II We have here, besides, an allusion i" Isaiah xL i

that the Gospel itself is briefly Bummed np in this inspired Hymn.

77. 78, 79 to give knowledge of Salvation unto His people by the

of their Bins, through the tender mercy of our God; whereby

the Dayspring from on high hath visited us, to give light to them that

^it in Darkness and in the shadow of Death, to guide our feet into the

way of P< ace.

•■ I' spring" is here a came of Chbisi ; whether it should be translated tho
- Ln-ri8ing,"(d) — or the "Branch," as in Zech. iii. 8. Tl
here an evident allusion t.> Isaiah i.\. 1. (quoted in St. Matth. iv. 16:) hut th<
son of the expression " the Bhadow of I >eath" w ill b< Bt appear by a comparison with
r xxiii. I: where, as Hammond beautifully points out, it is implied that the
Bunlight lingers longest on the bills, — the valleys being all the while veil
gloom, and weari j1 a funereal shadow.

v " Ami the child grew, and waxed strong in the Bpirit, and was in
the deserts till the day of his showing onto LsraeL

The former "P these two statements, we shall presently find r< peated with n
to the Messias. See eh. ii. 40. — The " deserts' here Bpoken of do not necessarily
imply Buch :i howling wilderness as that of Jordan. In Judsea every tract -t •■•
uncultivated country was called a den rt .- whether it* barren surface pn dm

thin..' hut "r I- -hakeu by tli" wind,"(< | or whether there happened t.> he "much

in the ]>laee."( /) \\ hat i> meant therefore probably, i-. that the youthful
\ rite was brought up in solitude and retirement, — remote from all the influ-
ences of the Town. There, he increased in Btature, and waxed Mr.>m_' in spirit;
and, by "enduring hardness/'fo) prepared himself for thewondro which

the good Provident fGon had designed him from his Mother's womb.

I i raiment, he wore a hairy garment ami a leathern gird)

Goo fed him with locusts; ami "satisfied" him. IV. iin .lay to day, " with honey

Ami thus, the Baptist grewtomanh I: (fori

him until he ha. 1 attained the age of thirty years ;) an Orphan, doubt-
from his earliest youth. Hut be sure that "when his Father ana his M
had forsaken him, then the Loan took him up.

Til E PB v V BR.

We beseech: Thee, Lord, poor Thy Grace intoonr heart-: that,
i hare known tin- [ncarnation of Thy Sou J Chbibt by the

if an Angel, so, His I IP on, we may It brought

the Glory "i 11 I.' mrrection ; through tb

our LORD. Amen.

M .v. 2. v

n u. Ii'.

•

II.]

ON ST. LUKE'S GOSPEL. 413

CHAPTER II.

1 Augustus taxeth all the Roman empire. 6 The nativity of Christ. 8 One Angel
relateth it to the Shepherds. 13 Many sing praises to God for it. 21 Christ is
Circumcised. 22 Mary purified. 28 Simeon and Anna p>rophesy of Christ. 40
Who increaseth in wisdom. 46 Questioneth in the Temple with the Doctors. 51
And is obedient to His parents.

1 And it came to pass in those days, that there went out a decree
from Cassar Augustus, that all the world should be taxed.

A decree for a general enrolment and numbering of names, rather than for a
Census of property, seems to be here spoken of. And the expression, "all the
world," probably does not mean all the Roman Empire, but only the whole of Pal-
estine.

2 [And this taxing was first made when Cyrenius was governor of
Syria.)

Volumes have been written on this verse of Scripture. A person named Varus
was President of Syria at the time here spoken of. Cyrenius (or Quirinus) did not
succeed to the office till about eleven years after: but, (what is remarkable,) on
coming to his Presidentship, he certainly did conduct a census. To reconcile the
statement of the Evangelist with the known history of the period, has been felt to
be a task of great difficulty.

But, it is to be observed, that St. Luke does not say that Cyrenius was President
of Syria at the time of the "taxing.'" He merely says that he was, then, governor
of the province ; and this, Cyrenius may very well have been, although the Presi-
dentship was in other hands. St. Luke's authority on a point of history is, of
course, more trustworthy than that of any uninspired writer ; and when he asserts,
(as here he seems to do,) that " the taxing" at the time of the Nativity proved the
first [of two] taxings which were made while Cyrenius governed Syria, — what diffi-
culty need we feel in accepting the blessed Writer's assurance on the subject? —
These remarks shall suffice : but the reader is referred to the note on St. Luke iii.
1 : also to the notes on St. Matthew i. 10, and St. Luke iii. 3G.

3 And all went to be taxed, every one into his own city.

This seems to imply the careful record which every Jewish family preserved of
its descent ; whereby they were enabled, on an occasion like the present, to repair
to the city from which the founder of their line had originally come.

4 And Joseph also went up from Galilee, out of the city of Naza-
reth, into Judea, unto the city of David, which is called Bethlehem ;

Bethlehem was the true " City of David:" for his father, Jesse, was of that
city. (a) It appears also from a comparison of verses 11 and 15, that the Shep-
herds knew it by that name. But Jerusalem, as the Seat of David's Royalty, was
now, almost exclusively, so called.

(because he was of the house and lineage of David :)
As St. Luke himself shows in the next chapter, — making use, it may be, of the
(a) I Sam. xvi. 1 and 4. Compare St. John yii. 42.

Ill A PLAIN COMMENTARY [CHAP.

which the Bethlehem furnished. B

cha]

5 \ ■ '• ■■ taxed with Mary hie i I with child.

I n went up to he taxed, as well Ided hushand
i' " of tic house and lin< ige I 1 1 i

ew i. 16.

6 An 1 - ' it was, that, while they were there, the days' wen
plished that Bhe Bhould be delivered.

'I " Bible may be regarded as a Book which remoree the \'il from History, and
of it. The Providence of <i<>u i- there discovered to »i~. overrul-
:: :tions of mankind, and adapting them to ends and purposes of which th>-ir
authors were little conscious. Thus, the present " taxing/' whether dictafe
1 1 » « - ambition, or the curiosity, or the avarice of the Roman Emperor, — is Bhown t<>
have furnished an occasion for drawing this holy pair from their remote home in
Nazareth of Galilee, to Bethlehem of Judaea; the village which ti

bad long before pointed out as destined to he the place of Messiah's birth.

ason of the taxing is found, moreoi er, to have corresponded exactly with the

date of the Nativity. Thus, the official return of the Bethlehei ■ 1 up

among the Roman Archives, will have become documentary evidence of the most

unquestionable kind, i serning the very foundation of the Faith. So entirely

was Augustus ministering to the Divine pleasure, while, in th ■ iperial

power, he followed the dictates of his own unfettered wilL

7 And she brought forth her first-bora Son,

■■ l ; e ause none had been born before Him. The word i

to imply that any were born after. See the first note on St Matthew i.

and wrapped Him in .-waddling clothes, and laid Earn in a manj

It bat been said,- -" No man will have cause I mplain of hi be, if

h<> remembers the Bwaddling-clothes of this Holy Child; n<>r t.> be disqui
hard bed, when he considers Jesus laid in a manger."

Since this blessed Mother, after Bhe had brought forth her first-boi
Him herself, and with her own hands deposit* at limbs inamangi

St. Luke seems clearly to imply ; — it is reasonable to infer that Hie N j was,

II inless G i ption had been, — out of the com N ure, and mira< ul

and that the holy Mother, l>y a painless birth, had experienced the reversal

wful sentence passed on our Mother Eve. — recorded in Genesis iii. L6.

at least, quite certain, — hereby wa I the calamity which <>ur

M other had brought upon the Human B Ls, by a woman, Death had

conveyed to all mankind,— so was a woman now modi Instrument

whereb) He who is our Life came into the world.

there was no room for them in the Inn.

them in the Inn !" No n om found for Him who filleth all tl
And i Do we not find room for all other tl

found t'"r Cbki

8 And there were in th< country Shep] biding m the
field, keeping watch oyer their Bock by night.

!' the invitation of these poor shepherds to Bcthlchi m, wo are taught
arc tit t-> come to CnaisT but those who are | r in spirit, d<

f guileless, simpli And \\ith reference t" th<' pastoral Office, a pious writer

ud concerning those who watch 1 1 1 < • i r H- -.k a> well by night as by day, —
"these are Shepherds who first convene with A into

the pri I

II.]

ON ST. LUKE'S GOSPEL. 415

9 And, lo, the Angel of the Lord came upon them, and the glory
of the Lord shone round about them : and they were sore afraid.

" Came upon them," here means stood suddenly before them, — as in St. Luke
xx. 1. Acts iv. 1 : xii. 7, &c.

10, 11 And the Angel said unto them, Fear not : for, behold, I
bring you good tidings of great joy, -which shall be to all people. For
unto you is born this day in the city of David, a Saviour, which is
Christ the Lord.

The first persons in the world who are apprised of the actual Advent of the Mes-
siah, are the Shepherds of Bethlehem, who keep watch over their flock by night.
A singularly honored occupation, truly ; to have numbered of old among those who
pursued it, Jacob,(6) Moses,(c) and David ;(d) all eminent types of Christ: — to
have furnished our Lord, moreover, with an appellation in which He delighted ;(e)
and an image under which He conveyed some of His most solemn and impressive
teaching 1(f)

12 And this shall be a sign unto you ; Ye shall find the Babe wrap-
ped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger.

Compare verses 7 and 16. This seems to show that on the day, or rather, on the
very night of the Nativity, this wondrous vision of Angels was vouchsafed to the
Shepherds.

13, 14 And suddenly there was with the Angel a multitude of the
Heavenly Host praising God, and saying, Glory to God in the highest,
and on Earth Peace, good will toward Men.

This, then, was the first " Christmas-Carol ;" — where Angels were the Choristers,
and Salvation was the theme, and Heaven and Earth bowed down to listen. What
a jubilant Hymn must this have been, on the redemption of the whole Human
Race, if one sinner's repentance can suffice to fill the courts of Heaven with joy !

A single glorious Angel having communicated the joyous tidings, — and so, in a
measure, prepared the minds of these simple swains for what might follow, — " a
multitude of the heavenly host"(f/) are suddenly revealed to their wondering sight ;
and the heavenly strain which follows, breaks on their ravished ears. It was the
birth-day of the New Creation, (h) A new corner-stone was being laid. Well,
therefore, may the Morning-Stars have sung together, and all the Sons of God have
shouted for joy \(i)

How much is left in Holy Scripture for the heart of man to realize ! How brief
and simple are its sublimest statements ! How calm and unadorned its most won-
derful descriptions! Consider such places as the following: — St. Matthew iv. 23,
xvii. 2: St. Mark i. 13, xvi. 19. St, Luke ii. 51, 52, x. 18, xxii. 43, xxiv. 27 and
51, &c. &c. &c. See the note on St. Matthew iii. 5, 6.

15 And it came to pass, as the Angels were gone away from
them into Heaven, the Shepherds said one to another, Let us now go
even unto Bethlehem, and see this thing which is come to pass, which
the Lord hath made known unto us.

16 And they came with haste, and found Mary, and Joseph, and the
Babe lying in a manger.

Yet, even there, as He lay, — wrapped in swaddling bands, and reclining in that

(h) Gen. xxx. 31 : xxxi. 38 — 41. Such also was the occupation of Jacob's sons ; — see Gen.
xxxvii. 13 and xlvii. 3.

(/) St. Matth. xxv. 32, 33: xviii. 12: St. Luke xv. 3—7, &c.

(g) See Daniel vii. 10. Hebrews xii. 22. Rev. v. 11, &G.

(h) See the end of the note on St. Matth. iii. 17. (i) Job xxxviii. 7.

IN A PLAIN OOMMXHTABT [CHAP.

manger, — G He filled Cn . For "the E f Man" which "<

from lira', .11," was "in Heaven."^) So Cowper, in a well-known Hymn \

■m -li, »lnii iii the nuuiger laid,
Almighty Rnler "!' thi

.
And Ailed the- morning-atari with j^y.

B ■ the remark had been made 1 150 jean tx fore, bj Cyril, Bishop of Alexandria.

In consequence of the repeated statement that cradled the Infant

Sw ioi u.(0 painters have lored t" represent Him as reclining between the ox and
the ass: and the prophecy in [aaiah i. 3, has been (somewhat fancifully, perl
connected with the urcumstan Manger," (for so it should be rendi

i facl here denote that part of the home-stead whioh w art for the

cattle; and it seems a fitting thing that tin- Becond Adam should thus bavi i
among the dumb creatures in the hour of Hi- Nativity, no leas than during the
hour "t' His Temptation. So: St. .Mark i. L3.

17 And when they had seen it, they made known abroad the saying
which was told them concerning this Child.

They could lot contain their rapture, for <'<<<u had tilled their hearts to overflow-
ing. ")Iv cup runneth over," saith the Psalmist, (m)

18, 10 And all they that heard //, wondered at those things which
was told them by the shepherds. But Mary kept all these things, and
pondered them in her heart.

The indications afforded in tin' Qospel of this Blessed Woman's character, are
lingly few. The present statement, (which is found partly t<> recur in ver. "1.

i- ..I f ill.' most remarkable, — namely, that she posse 1 "the ornament of a

meek and quiet spirit f which treasured up every intimation

brooded over tin' recollection of His many and unspeakable mercies, in the re

of her own pure ln-art.

20 And the shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all

the things that they had heard and - li was told unto them.

These "holy and humble Men of heart,"— Shepherds of Bethlehem, — -
fore tin' foremost who were chosen to do homage to the Infant Sai ioi :: : r
taking precedence even of the Royal and the Wise !(n) To " bless the I. nun." — to
*• praise Him and magnify Him Ear ever," is found to have been instinctivelv their
o, on their return.

21 And when eight days were accomplished for the cirenmcising of
: Child,

li who came to fulfill the Law,(o] submits like every other descendant of Abra-
ham t" be "circumcised on the eighth day-." "so teaching us to be strict in "ur
duties, and sparing in the right oi privilege and dispensation." "He shed* li

Id 1 now, in drops ; riving an earnest of those rivers which He did afterwards

pour out for the cleansing all I In man Nature, and extinguishing the wrath of ' I
And thereupon was bestowed that Holy Name at which "everj knee should bow,
of things in Heaven, and things in Earth, and things under the Earth."(p)

Hi- aame was called JESUS, which was bo named of tl
! li.- was oonceiyed in the womb.

i name bestowed bv God i efore the birth, is r urred

her in only four cases ; that of IshmacJ i I

of John Baptist and our Bl< ed I. nun in the V w. . Ibu-

mael was oam< I nception; Isaac and St. John, lik' S ids, were

nami i

(k) St John iii. II (0 verses 7, 12, 10. l»> P

(..) Bl Matthew v. ir.
( i.) Philippuuii U. 10. xvL 11, sad xviL

II.] ON ST. LUKE'S GOSPEL. 417

22 And when the days of her Purification according to the Law of
Moses were accomplished, they brought Him to Jerusalem, to present
Him to the Lord :

This was at the end of forty days ;(r) -whence the Feast of "the Purification of
St. Mary the Virgin," (which our Church wisely prefers to call "the Presentation
of Christ in the Temple,")(s) is celebrated on the 2d of February.

The incident which follows, occupies sixteen verses of the Gospel ; and is encom-
passed, as a great writer points out, " with a greater variety of circumstance and
detail than any other of the recorded events of our Saviour's Infancy."

23 (as it is Avritten in the Law of the Lord, Every male that openeth
the womb shall be called holy to the Lord ;)

Reference is made to Exodus xxxiv. 19.

24 and to offer a sacrifice according to that which is said in the Law
of the Lord, A pair of turtle doves, or two young pigeons.

The Blessed Mother made the offering appointed in Leviticus xii. 8 for a poor
person, unable to attain to the more costly offering which the Law prescribed to
those who could afford it, — namely, a lamb of the first year.(^)

25 And, behold, there was a man in Jerusalem, whose name was
Simeon ; and the same man ivas just and devout, waiting for the Con-
solation of Israel : and the Holy Ghost was upon him.

" The Consolation of Israel" denotes the personal Advent of our Saviour Christ,
— to which many among the Jews were at this time looking anxiously forward.
Compare the language of ver. 38. St. Mark xv. 43. St. Matth. xi. 3. St. John
i. 19, 20. St. Luke iii. 15.

26 And it was revealed unto him by the Holy Ghost, that he should
not see death, before he had seen the Lord's Christ.

Before he saiv Death, it was promised to Holy Simeon that he should see the
Lord's Anointed, — whom an Apostolic Father calls "Life in Death." This an-
nouncement to Simeon may be regarded as the earliest streak of dawn, — the first
harbinger of the coming day of the Gospel.

27, 28 And he came by the Spirit into the Temple : and when the
parents brought in the child Jesus, to do for Him after the custom of
the law, then took he Him up in his arms, and blessed God, and said,

29, 30 Lord, now lettest Thou Thy servant depart in peace, accord-
ing to Thy Word: For mine eyes have seen Thy salvation,

How like to those words of Israel to Joseph, — " Now let me die, since I have seen
thy face."(«)

Not only had Simeon's eyes " seen," but " his hands had handled :" yea, he had
embraced and circumscribed in His arms, Him that filled all the World. Simeon,
however, is bent on bearing testimony to God's faithfulness in keeping His pro-
mise: and so well satisfied is he with it, "that straightway he desires to live no
longer ; foreseeing that he should never more find comfort in any other object this
world could minister."

31, 32 which Thou hast prepared before the face of all people ; a
light to lighten the Gentiles, and the glory of Thy people Israel.

The prophetic intimation, contained in this last verse, of the scope and purpose
of Messiah's coming, (x) is what has so endeared this brief, burning Hymn of holy

(r) Leviticus xii. 2, 4. (s) See the Collect in the Book of Common Prayer.

[t) Levit. xii. 6. (») Gen. xlvi. 30.

(a:) With which compare Isaiah xliii. 6 : xlix. 6 and lx. 1-3.

418 A r i . \ I n OOMMBH I [CHAP.

II Christendom. Holy Church, by the eye of fait!
daily, in li. I Salvation which Simoon beheld with his hudily

and Bhe pours oat her thanksgiving in his own prophetic words,
\\ ited this inspired Song so often, that our Spirit birred

any longer b) i 1 - sublimity: but with what eostatio fervour must it have fl
from tli'- lip- of that favoured Servant of Goo,— .-. while In- uttered it. that

1 in his arm- tin' DesireofaU nations! — Elim whom all Creati
fur, — the [noarnate Jrhoi ah !

88 Ai.l Joseph ami His Mother marvelled at those things -which
were Bpoken of Him.

3 1 Aii'l Simeon blessed them, and said onto Mary Hi- Mother, Be-
hold this Child i- Bet for the fall and rising again of many in Israel;
and for a sign ■which shall be Bpoken against;

Christ was to prove ih icasion of fatting to as many of the Jewish nation as

should reject Him: but of rising "to beconu the Son to as many a- Bhould

"believe on His oame."(y) The prophet [saiah had declared as much, when he
said of Mi- -i mi, — •• He shall be for a Sanctuary .-" (adding in the same breath,) —
"hut for a stumbling, and for a rock of offence" *(z)

35 (yea, a sword shall pierce through thy own soul also,)

Simeon i- Mippt.sril to allude to the day of the Crncifixion; when the Mother,

El with many Borrows, was a witness of the Cross and Passion, and preoious
leath of her l'i\ im Son.(a)

that the thoughts of many hearts may be revealed.

I- ms to he implied that tin' doctrine "l' Chris than Christ Himself,

— who had been likened, on this very occasion of Hi- appearance, to ■' Refiner's

— was desti I t" prove a greal tesl of individual character ; a wondrous

means of revealing what was in tin' hearts of mankind. " For tin- preaching of the
i St. Paul, " is to them that perish foolishness ; but unto us which are

saved, it is the power of Gon."(c) So St. Peter,(d) — '• Unto you, therefore, which

believe, lb' is precious; hut unto them which be disobedient astoi

stumbling and a rock of offence; even to them which Btumble at the word, being
disobedient" v '. Paul describes the Gospel, as, " a discerner of the thought
intents of tin' heart."(e) While our Loan says plainly, — "He thai rejectetb Me,
ami reoeivetfa not My words, hath one thai judgeth him: tin- word that 1 have
spoken, the same shall judge him in the last day. \f)

86 Ami there was one Anna, a prophetess, the daughter of Phanuel,

of the tribe of A.-rr :

Paul, in like manner, declares of himself thai ho was of the tribe B
miii : ,- 1 which shows how carefully, r\ m to : i late period, indii iduals oft J
nation preserved the record of their descent. But tin- case of Ann:', i- tin' m

unary ; Bince Aser (that is "Asher") was one of the ten tribes which the K

. captive inl \ d whioh had never retun S 2

I . :. 6.

\sa- of a greal age, and had lived with an husband seven y<
her virginity; and Bhe was b Widon of about fourscore and four
/which departed nol from the Temple, but served God with
and Prayers night and day.

(v) Bt .I'hn i i i ; rUL 1 1.

iv, tin- ii-l.' mi \.

St. John U

B li. {/) Bt. John x.

{'j) I

II.] ON ST. LUKE'S GOSPEL. 419

She had been a widow for 84 yeai-s, — and was therefore upwards of a hundred
years old. Her wedded life had been of but seven years duration, and she had ever
since dedicated herself to the service of God. She was therefore one of those
"widows indeed," (as St. Paul speaks,) who are entitled to honour; and, as such,
she won for herself this glorious mention in the Book of Life. " Now, she that is
a widow indeed, and desolate, trusteth in God, and continueth in supplications and
prayers night and day." (A)

38 And she coming in that instant gave thanks likewise unto the
Lord.

"The returns of prayer, and the blessings of piety," says an old writer, "are
certain ; and though not dispensed according to our narrow expectations, yet shall
they so come, — at such times and in such measures, — as shall crown the piety, and
satisfy the desires, and reward the expectation. It was in the Temple, the same
place where she had for so many years poured out her heart to God, that God
poured forth His heart to her: sent His Sox from His bosom; and there she
received His benediction."

Contemptuous things are sometimes said of a congregation consisting of an old
man and woman, — a poor man and his wife. Yet this was the very Congregation
here assembled, — and Christ was among them !

and spake of Him to all them that looked for Redemption in Jeru-
salem.

It was thus then that the Lord, even the Messenger of the Covenant, suddenly
came to His Temple, — as the prophecy of Malachi had foretold (iii. 1.) How
secretly and silently it was done ! Consider in like manner the singular fulfillment
of Hosea xi. 1 (in St. Matthew ii. 15 ;) of Jerem. xxxi. 15 (in St. Matt. ii. 18 :) of
Isaiah xi. 1, &c. (in St. Matt. ii. 23 :) of Isaiah liii. 4 (in St. Matt, viii. 17.) Con-
sider even the unlooked for completion of Zechariah ix. 9 (in St. Matt. xxi. 5,) and
of Malachi iv. 5 (in St. Luke i. 13 to 17.) Surely these unexpected fulfillments of
ancient prophecies should make us very thoughtful. How know we but what
unfulfilled prophecy may take us equally by surprise, and find us equally unpre-
pared? See for example St. Matt. xxiv. 42, — a prophetic warning which is
repeated in xxv. 13, &c. &c.

Sec the note on St. Matthew iv. 14.

39 And when they had performed all things according to the Law of
the Lord, they returned into Galilee, to their own city Nazareth.

But first they went down into Egypt, — as St. Matthew had before explained. (i)
It is the manner of the sacred writers, when they pass over an event in silence, thus
to supply no hint of their omission.

40 And the Child grew, and waxed strong in Spirit, filled with Wis-
dom : and the Grace of God was upon Him.

See the note on ver. 52.

41 Now His parents went to Jerusalem every year at the Feast of
the Passover.

According to the requirement of the Jewish Law, — Exodus xxiii. 15, 17 : xxxiv.
18, 23. Deut, xvi. 1, 16.

42 And when He was twelve years old, they went up to Jerusalem
after the custom of the Feast.

43 And when they had fulfilled the days, as they returned, the Child
Jesus tarried behind in Jerusalem ; and Joseph and His Mother knew
not of it.

44, 45 But they, supposing Him to have been in the company, went a

(/t) 1 Tim. v. 5. (0 St. Matthew ii. 13—15.

420 A l'l.Al.V COMMBBTAB1 [CHAP,

: and they sought Him among their kinsfolk andacquain-
And when they found Him not,

I lays a pioua Bishop,) must seek Bin in I

: _r I ■ >i » » in the "!"• - 1 1 1 1 > 1 ■ - ; not ami • ment aud pursuits of worldly

I 1 '' they turned back again to Jerusalem, Beeking 1 [im. And it came
to i ass, that after three days they found Him in the ]

The? bad gone one day's journey, and bad to return: on 1 1 1 • - third day they I
Him. "

It baa been piously and beautifully suggested by the author lasl quoted, thai Joseph
and the Blessed Virgin, after u Long and fruitless Bearcb, — "aim
faint and Bickwith travel and fear, with desire and tedious expectations, at last
came in'" 1 1 1 * * Temple to pray to QodJoi conduct and success; knowing and believ-
ing assuredly thai iftbeyoould BndGon, thej Bhould not long miss to find thi

And their faith," he adds, " deceived them not ; for they sought Gon, and
found llim that was t'<>i> ami man, in the midsl ami oirole of the Doctors." ....
• in it is that uh also, if we would find Christ, must seek Him where I
t'i be found, — in His Holj Temple.

sitting in the midst of the Doctors, both hearing them, and asking
them questions.

Whereby, as the same writer bas piously remarked, He consigned thi< trul
lli~ Disciples : that they who mean to !"■ doctors, and teacb others, must first learn
of those whom Gon and public order bath Bet oi er us, in the mysteries of Religion.

47 And all that heard Him were astonished at J 1 is understanding
and answers.

This mention of " lli-< answers" proved that the learned Rabbiea were not
to question Him in turn: while the amazement which they testified at the i

re of His understanding, seems t" imply that He was induced to discourse t"
them likewise. So "filled with Wisdom," was II''. — as we read invar, l": such
"increase" bad there already been, See ver. 52.

It i* written in a certain place,—" I have more understanding than M .
for Thy testimonies are My study."(Ar)

48 Ami when they saw him, they were amazed: and Hia M
said onto Him, Son, why hast Thou thus dealt with us? behold, Thy
Father and I have Bought Thee Borrowii ,

49 And Jle said unto Them, How ia it that ye Bought Me": wist
nut that I must l>e about My Fathee's busil]

Our Bli '11. reply to II - M tiler's mournful remonstranoe is clearly

directed against the language in which that remonstrance was conveyed. She had
said,- ier and I have sought Thee." The Eternal Sow makes answer that

He had been where He ought 1 His FATHER'S I. > the words

should be translate I:) and therefore asks, Hov< it came to pass thai 1 1 n • \ had
Him? . . . Which, bj th>' way, are the first words recorded to have i
3 i iour Cbkist.

. 51 And they understood not the saying which B i\ ike unto
them. And he went down with them, and cam* ' I was

Bubji ct unto them:

r do thi* time forward, we hear n.> more of Joseph. Il> i~ thought to I
an old man ; and t" have died soon after. Observe, that be is not menl
Mark \i- 3, or in Bt J( hn ii. 12. For ■ few wordi x

#ur ii I Lh, see the note on St Luke >\. 16.

(Li P

in.] ox st. luke's gospel. 421

but His Mother kept all these sayings in her heart.

See the note on ver. 19.

52 And Jesus increased in wisdom and stature, and in favour with
God and Man.

"We are indebted to St. Luke's Gospel, for the only glimpse of the sacred person
of our Lord -with which we are favoured, from the time of the return to Nazareth,
(recorded in ver. 39,) until the period of His Baptism. "What is first said of Him,
generally, (in ver. 4£>) is found to have been equally applicable to the Baptist, at
the same time of his life. Compare chap. i. 80. But, of our Blessed Lord it is
added, that He was " filled with Wisdom ;" and it is specially noted, in the present
verse, that He increased in wisdom as He increased in stature. St. Luke also men-
tions (in ver. 51) that our Saviour lived in subjection to His reputed Parents. To
these slight intimations, must be added what is suggested, if it be not implied, by
the inquiry in St. Mark vi. 3, — "Is not this the Carpenter?" — and we have been
presented with the sum of all that has been expressly revealed concerning the early
years of the Son of Man.

THE PRAYER.

Almighty and everliving God, we humbly beseech Thy Majesty,
that, as Thy only-begotten Son was this day presented in the Temple
in substance of our flesh, so we may be presented unto Thee with pure
and clean hearts by the same Thy Son Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

CHAPTER III.

1 The preaching and baptism of John. 15 His testimony of Christ. 20 Herod im-
prisoneth John. 21 Christ baptized, receiveth testimony from Heaven. 23 The
age and genealogy of Christ, from Joseph upwards.

1, 2 Now in the fifteenth year of the reign of Tiberius Csesar, Pon-
tius Pilate being governor of Judsea, and Herod being tetrarch of Gali-
lee, and his brother Philip tetrarch of Itursea and of the region of
Trachonitis, and Lysanius the tetrarch of Abilene, Annas and Caiaphas
being the high-priests,

By all these conspiring notes of time does the Holy Evangelist guide us to the
date of John's preaching : a mighty event, truly, to be fixed by so many concurrent
circumstances. Learned men, however, in modern days, have perceived a difficulty
here, which seems never to have struck our Fathers in the Faith as any difficulty
at all. " The fifteenth year of the reign of Tiberius Caesar," dates from August,
A, D. 28, to the same month in A. D. 29. But there is good reason for fixing the

122 k l'l.AIN 00MXBHTAB1 [CHAP.

Birth of Chbist to an earli than the !.

would havi syearsofagi a< II Bapl St.]

that II "I thirty ;" ami tin- in-j.i:- V.

; what he said ; and ther tl

This certainh adifBculty: i". »r it m a very likelj thing that

ike should be here fixing the <;■ I |.i u~ m< n

oted to believe. On tl ther band, it is ten thousand times more improbable,

<>r rather i' is Bimply incredible, that thi> Blessed Writer, (to whom s i many i
beyond mortal ken were revealed,) should have (alien into a mistal icern-

the most ordinary facte in the History of his own time. What remains
then, but to Buggest that, a- St. John reckoned the hours of the day in a peculiar
manner, so St. Luke reckoned th<' regnal years of Tiberius from some unusual
l two years earlier than th<- period commonlj assigned t" the beginnii
ign? There is nothing at all improbabh in this suggestion Tl
\ jtus Caesar are variously counted from Jin different epochs, limit certainly
i> s strange thing that St. Luke Bhould have reckoned the reign of Tiberius, from
an epoch (a< Ear a~ we yet know) peculiar /<- himself. And this Bhall Buffice on a
Bubject concerning which volumes have been written.

It is humbly suggested that a few difficulties oi this class may have been .-uflVred
to find place in Holy Writ, in order to exercise the faith of persons who, while they
feel Bucn intellectual trials very keenly, are but little affected by those which im-

{"•ril the Balvation of the ordinary class of mankind. This re-mark Beems applicable,
resides, to Buch texts as St. Luke ii. 2, and ver. 36 "t the present chapter.

And does it not appear a- if the Holt Spibit would by 1 1 i i - mi ana humbli
pride, and convince as of our own ignorance? Some Heavenly doctrine is pro-
pounded; and we declare, '"It is high: I cannot attain untoit."(&) This U
able. But a plain historical t of the driest and most or

kiml- is next stated; and the result is just the Bame. It is found to defy all the
ingenuity, and all the learning, and all the experience, of all the world I . . . . B
the note on St. Matthew i. L6: especially the remarks at the end.

1 cerning the Herod and the Philip here mentioned, Bee the nol a St Mark
\i. 17. I pon the deposition of Archelaus, (their brother — mentioned in St. Mat-
thew ii. 22,) Pontius Pilate was Bent from Rome as Governor (or P
Judsea. It may be right, however, to Btate in this place, thai tl"' Philip here men-
tioned is not the Philip we read of below, in ver. l», (where Bee the note;) but an-
other brother of the Herod there mentioned. Herod [Antipas] and Philip were
sons of Herod the Great by the patra of Jerusalem.

the AVc.nl of God came unto John the son of Zacharias in the Wil-
derness.

The Bame mode ol ion is found in the Old Testament. "The Word of

me to Shemaiah,"(c] and " to Nathan." (d) v. read of "th ^

an that came unto B and " to Micah." I mpare also Jeremiah

i. •_'. I, II, I- : ii. I, &c. But the manner of these communications is oi
-rent things which belong onto the Loan our <i"i>. "(,</)

N •. if yon would know the substance of themetsagt which the Word i I
hi to the Baptist, yon may in part gather it from the subsequent Btal
ptisl himself. S St. J ol.

8, l. 5, 6 And he came into all the country about Jordan, preaching
the Baptism of Repentance for the remission of sins: as it is wi
in the book of the words of Esaiaa the Prophet, Baying, 3
one crying in the wilderm , Prepare ye the way of the L . Make
Hi- | light. Every valley shall be filled, and every mountain

and hill "hall be brought low: and the crooked shall be made strai
and the rough waj ■ shall '■■ made smooth; and all flesh shall see the
Salvation of ( Iod.

" tth. ii. 20.

(<) i LI.

(./ ) Micah i. I.

III.] ON ST. LUKE'S GOSPEL. 423

This citation from "the hook of the words of Isaiah," — xl. 3 to 5, — is, in part,
common to all the four Evangelists :(/;) hut it is given most fully hy St. Luke, — to
whose Gospel the words " Every Valley," &c, to the end, are peculiar. They are
beautifully descriptive of the progress and effects of the Gospel in the world. What
so effectually lifts up the lowly and meek, and ahases the proud: — casting down
the swelling imaginations of the heart, and every high thing which exalteth itself
against God? By this, " straight paths are made for our feet,"(t) and the rugged
way is made plain for us to walk in.

7 Then said he to the multitude that came forth to be baptized of
him, generation of vipers,

That is, " Offspring of vipers," — implying that they inherited the wickedness of
their sires. See the first note on St. Matthew xii. 34.

who hath warned you to flee from the wrath to come ?

That is, to seek, by applying to me for Baptism, to escape the righteous vengeance
of God. Wherefore he proceeds :

8 Bring forth therefore fruits worthy of Repentance,

Prove your repentance sincere, by a change of life : for " every good tree bring-
eth forth good fruit. "(k) Seethe notes on St. Matthew xii. 33, 34.

and begin not to say within yourselves, We have Abraham to our
Father : for I say unto you, That God is able of these stones to raise
up children unto Abraham.

Presume not upon God's promises made to Abraham, and to his seed: overlook-
ing the power of the Almighty to fulfill His words in more than one mysterious
way. See the note on St. Matt. iii. 9 ; and take notice that he had already called
them the " offspring" (or seed) "of vipers," — in ver. 7.

The tendency of the heart to rely on the promises of God, as if they were uncon-
ditional ; instead of conforming the life to His precepts, which really are absolute,
has been pointed out in a note on St. Luke iv. 12.

In connection with this subject, read Jeremiah vii.

9 And now also the axe is laid unto the root of the trees : every tree
therefore which bringeth not forth good fruit is hewn down, and cast
into the fire.

See the note on St. Matthew iii. 10.

10, 11 And the people asked him, saying, What shall we do then ?
He answereth and saith unto them, He that hath two coats, let him
impart to him that hath none ; and he that hath meat let him do
likewise.

This amounts to an exhortation to Brotherly Love; or, as is commonly called
in Holy Scripture, Charity. " But whoso hath this world's good, and seeth his
brother have need, and shutteth up his bowels of compassion from him — how dwcll-
eth the Love of God in him?" (I)

12, 13 Then came also publicans to be baptized, and said unto him,
Master, what shall we do ? And he said unto them, Exact no more
than that which is appointed you.

These were the tax-gatherers, or persons whose business it was to collect tribute.
The lawless rapacity of this class of officials is revealed by the reply which the Bap-
tist makes to them. Concerning the lesson taught by that reply, see the following
note.

(h) St. Matt. iii. 3 : St. Mark i. 3 : St. John i. 23. (i) Prov. iv. 26, as quoted in Heb. xii. 13.
(k) St. Matth. vii. 17 (0 St. John iii. 17.

1-1 A PLAXH "MMI.N. [CHAP.

1 1 And thi demanded of bin .'1 what

shall we do! \- 1 be Baid unto them, Do violent to no man, neither
accrue any falsely ; and be content with your wa j

This reply of the B irely supplies a sufficieni answi

those well-intentioned, but misguidi I who mainteio the nnlawfulm

bearing arms. In reply to the question — "And what shall we do?" b<
bid the nun abandon their profession ; but merely requires of them the perform-
ance of '• their duty in thai state of life to which it had pleased God to call them."

See the last no! i St Luke \ ii. '.'. The same remark applies equally t<> w ha4

to tin- publican — in ht. 13.

I b men who asked this question were probably not regular soldiery; but an
armed force, bound on one of those military expeditions which the feuds of Hi

common: and the answer they obtained shows, plainly enough,
the sins to which they were most addicted.

15, 16 And as the people were in expectation, and all men mnsedin
their hearts of John, whether he were the Christ, or not ; John an-
swered, Baying onto them all, I indeed baptize you with water; bnt One
mightier than 1 cometh, the latchet of whose shoes 1 am not worthy to
unloose; lie shall baptize you with the Holi Ghost and with fir*

II- contrasts his Baptism with that which Chbisi should hereafter bestow: not
a mere outward washing of the body with water, but an inward purifying
searching spiritual influence, like that of fire. Bnj bis words had a literal fulfill-
ment and intention also: see the note on St Matt. iii. 11.

IT whose fan is in His hand, and He will throughly purge His
floor, an«l will gather the wheat into His garner; but the chaff He will
hum with fire unquenchable.

1 make a separation between the righteous and the wicked, — even ai a winnow-
ing-fan separates the chaff from the wheat — i> the office constantly claimed to Him-
Belf, under different Bgures, by our Blessed Loan. See, for example, St Matt xiii.
30; also 47, 18. Again, sei St llatt xxv. 32, 33, — where the sheep and the
supply our Loan with ;i familiar im

Delightful it i- to discover Almighty Gon employing /'■■ gores in ti

d the New. Thus, the threshing-fl • and the fan obtain notice in

Isaiah xli. 1"), 16, -and Jerem. iv. 7, and Ii. 2 : — while the sheep and tl
found to recur in Ezek. zxxiv. 17. And what wonder? Was not the same Inspir-
ing Spirit the Divine Author of both Testaments !

Take notice, therefore, thai the Heavenly " Husbandman," (for -•■ II

by the Eternal Son in St John .w. I,) has His Vineyard and Hi- Corn-fields i ll-

m<] His herd? His wine-press, and His barns, and His threshing-floor: —

II Labourers, and Hi- Servants, and His Shepherds: -all of which, in turn, sop-

ilnn with materials for His Heavenly teaching. See the no! S Matt

iii. 12.

I-. L9, 20 And many other things in his exhortation preached he
unto the people. Bui Herod the Tetrarch, being reproved by him tor
Herodias, his brother Philip's wife, and for all the evils whicb II
had done, added yet this above all, that he shut op John in Prison.

The scei f his captivity was the castle of MachsBrus, — ■ fortress ai thi

borders of I lerod's domini

the whole narrative is an anticipation ; for, as will be seen f ipari-

9l John ii. 13 with iii. 24, the Baptisl was nol casl into prison until ■ |
snbsequenl to thi First P er. It would seem as it St Luke were anxii
exhibit the history of John at one view, and to conni th the

imprisonment in which it issued.
And probably this, which is a very favourite method with the D S it, is
■ crapling i ! h it- ultimate i

III.]

ON ST. luke's gospel. 425

qnence ; — the course pursued, with the results it eventually led to ; — (dropping
every intermediate fact, and all irrelevant circumstances;) — the Inspired Writers
forcibly remind us how He must regard our Lives and Actions and Characters, who
seeth, as well as "declareth, the end from the beginning ."{m)

Concerning the incident here alluded to, rather than described, see the notes on
St. Mark vi. 17 — 20. It shall suffice, in this place, to mention that the Herod spo-
ken of, was Herod Antipas, — son of that Herod who murdered the Holy Innocents.
His lawful wife was a daughter of Aretas, king of Petra in Arabia : Herodias, (a
grand-daughter of Herod the Great, and therefore niece to Herod Antipas,) had
married Philip, — another of her uncles ; whom she forsook in order to live in adul-
tery with the person here mentioned. The history of the Ilerods is one long his-
tory of adultery, incest, and murder.

21, 22 Now when all the people were baptized, it came to pass,
that Jesus also being baptized, and praying, the Heaven was opened,
and the Holy Ghost descended in a bodily shape like a dove upon
Him ; and a Voice came from Heaven, which said, Thou art My be-
loved Son ; in Thee I am well pleased.

St. Luke notices the Baptism of our Lord with brevity ; but he mentions two cir-
cumstances of exceeding interest and preciousness. He is the only Evangelist who
relates that our Lord was "praying," after His Baptism, when the visible descent
of the Spirit took place, — and the Voice was heard from Heaven, proclaiming His
Divine SoNship : and it is worthy of observation that our Saviour is stated to have
been in the act of prayer on all the three occasions when the same Heavenly Voice
was heard. Besides the present, see the account of the Transfiguration, — when,
" as He prayed, the fashion of His countenance was altered ;"(») and that third oc-
casion recorded by St. John, (xii. 28,) when the request of the Son was audibly
answered from Heaven.

Further, — St. Luke alone it also is, who marks with precision that the " Holy
Ghost descended in the bodily shape like a dove upon Him." But for these express
words, it might have been pretended, with some show of reason, that no bodily
form was seen ; — whereby a most instructive circumstance would have been lost.
See the note on St. Matt. iii. 16, 17.

So many remarks on this wondrous incident have been already offered in the
notes on St. Matthew's Gospel, (iii. 13 to 17,) and St. Mark, (i. 9 to 11,) that the
Reader is referred to those places for further information.

23 And Jesus Himself began to be about thirty years of age,

Our Lord, at this time, may have completed twenty-nine years of His earthly
life. He therefore "began to be about thirty years of age;" — which was the age of
Joseph, when he stood before Pharaoh ;(o) and of David, "when he began to
reign." (p) These were eminent types of Christ.

being (as was supposed) the Son of Joseph,

Men supposed Him to be naturally sprung from Joseph of Nazareth, — who was
indeed legally His Father, being the Blessed Virgin's wedded Husband. See the
note on St. Matt. i. 16.

The genealogy which follows, is manifestly that of Joseph ; and may have been
actually obtained by the Evangelist from the archives of the census itself.

which was the son of Heli,

But in St. Matthew's Gospel, (i. 16,) it is said, — "Jacob begat Joseph." These
two statements are reconciled by a venerable tradition derived from the descendants
of the holy family. It declares Heli to have been legally the Father of the Blessed
Virgin's husband ; — while his natural parent was Jacob. The two lines of descent,
given respectively by St. Matthew and St. Luke, converge in the persons of Mat-
than, (who is mentioned in St. Matt. i. 15 ;) and Matthat, (whose name will be
found in the next ensuing verse of the present chapter of St. Luke's Gospel.) These

(m) Isaiah xlvi. 10. (w) St. Luke ix. 29.

(o) Gen. xli. 46. Qj) 2 Sam. v. 4.

A 1'I.ain OOMMBS ; [< i.

bands of the same i i tha,) — by i

had tame: wherebj the fij naturally, — tl. legally,— 1

father of Joseph.

24, 25, 26, -~ which of Matthat, which waa (J

which v. n ..{' Melchi, which wa Janna, which

■ ph, which v.. of Y\ ■■•:■'. .-. irhich wa*

. which was th son of Naom, which was </<• Eali,

which wa of N:;::^, which was the son of Maath, which

n of Mattathiaa, which waa /A- son of Simei, which was (
.' ii, which waa the son of Juda, which wai of Joanna, which

r of Rheaa, which waa </'- son of Zorobabel,

All the eighteen names from Heli(inv< ,5 EUiesa, inclusive, art

no where but in this place. How, or in what ia "was

bal el," does nol appear. Hi- Dame i- not found in I Chron. iii. 1'.', _".- where the
children i f Zorobabel are enumerated.

which was the son Salathiel,

men! occurs in Ezra (iii. 2; v. '.'. | and in Haggai, (i. 1. 12 : ii. '2.)
M . it. it is found repeated in St. Matthew's Gospel,— i. 12, where Bee the •

But, from 1 Chron. iii. 17 to 24, it would appear that, in Btri 1 iroba-

bel was thf -mi of Pedaia, — Salathiel's brother. Naturally, tin: - tthiel

will have been his uncle; ami only legally, his parent.

The two genealogies according t • » St. Matthew and St. Luke, hawing met at this
place, — ami having both exhibited tin- L r l"n.>u- names of Salathiel ami Zorobabel
among the ancestors of our Bli I -to meet again in tb

1 1 the £ in-.

which waa the son of Neri,

was hi- actual Father, ('"in]. an- I 'lit in St. Matt. i. 12, ai. .

tin' note there.

30, 3] which waa th, son of Melchi, which wai
Addi, which was th,- son of Cosam, which was ///• son of Elmodam,
which wa- th, son of Er, which was /A, son of .!"-'■. which wa
of Bliezer, which was the son "!' Jorim, which was th, ton of .Matthat,
which was the son of Levi, which wa- th i /' of Bimeon, which \\.

f Juda, which was the *<<// of Joseph, which was tin nan,

which was ///.• son of Bliakhn, which was the son of Mi ha. which waa

n of Menan, which waa th,' son of Mattatha, which waa th, .
N ithan, which wa- //,. son of David.

N logies again converge, — ee the last note but one. The'

than" here mentioned i-. obviously, a person wholly distinct from the prophet men-

ti'.n in "J Sam. >.ii. He wa- the elder brother of Solomon, — who*<
M See 2 Sam. v. 14, ami 1 Chron. iii. '<■

■ \ which waa the t< n of Jeaae, which waa the son of ( >bed, which

l' BOOS, Which Waa tin son Of Salmon, which w.i- I

»n, which was th, son of Aminadab, which waa th. uram,

which wa- th, son of Barom, which was /A. I

tlf son of Juda, which was ,- Jacob, which wa

I , of Abraham,

'i ■-•• well-known nam' imon t>> both < ! v.

'• Abrahan

my worthies remain, "i' which onlj diffi-

culty.

III.]

ON ST. LUKE'S GOSPEL. 427

35, 36 which was the son of Thara, which was the son of Nachor,
which was the son of Saruch, which was the son of Ragau, which was
the son of Phalec, which was the son of Heber, which was the son of
Sala, which was the son of Cainan,

This insertion of the name of a second Cainan, (besides the Cainan in verse 37,)
is one of the hardest things to explain and account for, in the Holy Gospels; for
the name does not occur in Genesis xi. 12, between the names of Arphaxad and
Salah, where we should, of course, expect to find it ; nor indeed elsewhere in the
Hebrew Bible. It is found, however, in a Greek Translation of the Pentateuch,
which was made before the time of our Lord ; and which (because it was commonly
read in the Synagogues, and therefore familiarly known to the people,) the Evan-
gelists and Apostles are found to have freely used and quoted.

The humble student of the Gospels will do well to believe, on the testimony of
St. Luke, that there actually teas such a person as Cainan, — the son of Arphaxad
and father of Sala ; while, at the same time, he may cheerfully admit that, as yet,
he sees not how the fact is to be reconciled in a satisfactory manner with the par-
ticulars (of age and of descent) which Moses was divinely moved to record. It does
not, of course, prove, that when he has occasion to reason concerning the early
generations of mankind, he need in the least degree distrust the statements which
the Hebrew text supplies. The " Spirit of Truth, ; '(g) by whom Moses and St. Luke
were alike inspired, may well be deemed his sufficient guarantee on this head.

The case, after all, admits of easy illustration. Two things are indeed stated
which seem to be inconsistent ; but the same might be said, with at least equal
truth, of the assertion in St. Matthew i. 8, that " Joram begat Ozias," — and the cir-
cumstantial statement in 2 Kings xiv. 21, that Azariah (that is, Ozias or Uzziah,)
was the son of Amaziah. These two statements seem wholly incompatible, and in-
consistent ; but they are proved not to be so. Thus again, as we have already seen,
Ezra the priest and Haggai the prophet concur with St. Luke, (see above ver. 27,)
in describing Zorobabel, their contemporary, as the son of Salathiel ; and, St.
Matthew even says, " Salathiel begat Zorobabel" (i. 12) : but the same Ezra ex-
plains that Zorobabel was the son of Padaiah.(r) These statements appear to be
contradictory, but they are not really so. They only seem contradictory, at first,
because we do not at first understand them Let us remember, when difficul-
ties of this kind try us to the uttermost, (and they were doubtless intended to be a
trial,) that they are not nearly so serious as those which must have assailed the
faithful in Israel when they reasoned on the prophecies which had gone before con-
cerning the Advent of Christ. See also the note on another difficult text, — namely,
chap. ii. 2.

It will appear, therefore, that either Evangelist, in his respective genealogy, has
displayed in one particular his acquaintance with the else-unrevealed details of Old
Testament History: — St. Matthew, by recording Caleb's marriage with Rahab; —
St. Luke, by vindicating for the second Cainan a place among the ancestors of the
Messiah.

37, 38 which was the son of Arphaxad, which was the son of Sem,
which was the son of Noe, which was the son of Lamech, which was the
son of Mathusala, which was the son of Enoch, which was the son of
Jared, which was the son of Maleleel, which was the son of Cainan,
which was the son of Enos, which was the son of Seth, which was the
son of Adam, which was the so?i of God.

While St. Matthew, therefore, contents himself with deriving the descent of Mes-
siah from Abraham, — the Father of the Jewish people, (s) and the patriarch to
whom the promises were originally given ; St. Luke traces back Messiah's line to
Adam, — the Father of the whole human race. The former Evangelist Avrote his
Gospel especially for the use of his own nation : it was sufficient, therefore, that he
should show that the Saviour was "Abraham's seed."(£) But the latter Evan-
gelist, like the great Apostle whom he accompanied, addressed himself to Jew and

(q) St. John xvi. 13. (>■) 1 Chron. iii. 19. (») St. John viii. 33, 39, &c.

(t) St. Matthew i. 1, 2.

428 A PL MX COMMENTARY [CHAP.

Gentile, alike. Accordingly, be exhibits the Battovb m the promised " Seed of
the Woman," who should hereafter bruise the Serpent's bead ;| u) and in » bom all
real human family has an equal interest,— as children (by adoption) of the
same Almighty Fathxk, and heirs (by promise) of the same eternal Kingdom.

Beth was the *"u of Adam; — for Adam " begat a son in his '■im likeness, after
his image; an. I called bis nam" Seth."(a B I lidamwas I God; — for

M in the day that God created man, — mvu liken lofQom II

onoi be by accident that the number of the names in this genealogj , — first
and last,- should be exactly seventy*

THE PRAYER.

ALMIGHTY God, who hast given as Thy only-begotten SON to take our
nature upon Him, and as at this time to be born of a pure Virgin;
grant that we being regenerate, and made Thy children by Adoption
and Grace, may daily he renewed by Thy Holy Spirit; through the
same our Lord Jbbi s Christ, Who liveth and reigncth with Thee and
the same SPIRIT, ever one God, world without end. Amen.

CHAPTER IV.

Temptation and Fasting of Crribt. I". /A overcometh tin Devtt. 11 Begin-
neth to preach. L6 Thepeoph of Nazareth admire His gracious words.
in,-, Hi <, in !><■ tested of a devil. 38 Peter's mother-in-law, -1" and divers
sick persons. 11 The devUs acknowledgi Chb
preacheth through (he Cities.

1 - 1 i irking tip' Temptation of Chbist,— the greal event with which the pi
chapter commences, -the reader is referred t<> a long note at tin- beginning of St
Matthew iv. — What bas been there Baid, -hall not l"' repeated in this place.

•• Behold," Bays one "I tin' ancients, " He is among the wrestlers, who, a- I
awards the prist 1 1 i among the crowned, \\ 1 rowns the beads of the Saints.''

1 And .);-i - being full of the Boli Ghost returned from Jordan,

I . to bear in mind that the last event which obtained notia

1 ' iptism of "in- Loan in tlw river Jordan : with obvious reference t" whii
i- now described as •• bein ■■;, HOLT OHO ST. Sis Temptation fol-

■ ■ \ 1 1 ■ 1 tlni-." i liton, "shall thou be sure t" be assaulted, when thou

received the greatest enlargement from Heaven: either at the Sacrament, —
uriii P ir in any other way. Then look for an onset This arch-nirat

tin' empty ships pass, but lays wait for them when they return richest laden,
the notes on tne Last half of St Mark i. 12: also thi S M . l.

and was led bj tin' SPIRIT int.. the Wildni.

c act rnii g our Loan' conflict with ti P I '

'■ L15. (■■■) '

(,.) Sec St. Lake

IV.] ON ST. LUKE'S GOSPEL. 429

already remarked in the notes on St. Matthew, chap, iv: and something more will
he found in the note on St. Mark i. 13. This great event lies on the very thresh-
old of the sacred History in the three first Gospels ; and in each our Lord's ap-
proach to it is described in terms of the same import. " Sweet is it," says Leigh-
ton, " in all things, to he carried : not to go of ourselves any way; hut that, of each
step, it may he said, — He was led by the SPIRIT! led to be tempted, on purpose
that he might return with the glory of the victory."

"The Apostle doth fitly style our Lord Jesus 'the Captain' or Leader 'of our
Salvation. '(6) It was meet He should be made ' perfect by sufferings.'(c) He
therefore leads the way ; putting on us nothing that He hath not first encountered."

2 Being forty days tempted of the Devil.

For the space of forty days was our Blessed Lord tempted ; but the three mar-
vellous scenes which St. Matthew and St. Luke describe, belong to the last day :
and these, because they are the only part of the Temptation which concerns us,
are the only part recorded. Over all the rest, a veil of mysterious silence has been
drawn. See the first note on St. Mark i. 13.

And in those days He did eat nothing : and when they were ended,
He afterward hungered.

It has been already pointed out, (in the note on St. Matthew iv. 2,) that Moses
and Elijah had observed a similar miraculous fast, before Him. Those two mighty
personages, — who appeared together in Glory on the Mount of Transfiguration, (cZ)
— symbolize respectively the Law and the Prophets : between which, and the Gos-
pel, this forty-days fast of their great Antitype, served to show that there was an
harmonious correspondence and agreement.

And it must be obvious to remark, that in imitation of this mighty transaction,
the Church of Christ observes her Lent-fast of forty days : not straining her weak
powers therein, as if in rivalry of her Lord ; but maintaining a humble distance,
and seeking only to tread faithfully in His footsteps, — although planting a weak
and most uncertain foot.

3 And the Devil said unto Him, If Thou be the Son of God, com-
mand this stone that it be made bread.

Upon this Temptation, see the notes on St. Matthew iv. 3.

It was all his object to discover whether, in the disguise of the frail and fainting
form before him, there might be concealed the Messiah, the Desire of all nations, —
his own foretold Vanquisher. Hence, his repeated address, — "If thou be the Son
of God."

Take notice how the Devil treats those whom he is permitted to tempt. He sees
that they want Bread: he offers them a Stone!

4 And Jesus answered him, saying, It is written, That man shall
not live by bread alone, but by every word of God.

It was out of mere condescension and love towards us, that our Saviour thus
answered the Tempter : for He met his suggestion in language which any one of
ourselves might equally make use of under the like circumstances. And marvellous
it is to contemplate the wisdom which thus knew how to select out of the heavenly
Armory a weapon which should suffice at once for the mysterious requirements of
the Incarnate God, and for those of creatures weak and sinful as ourselves. The
quotation is from Deut. viii. 3.

This place of Scripture, upon our Saviour's lips, informs us that for all our
needs, — for those alike of our higher, and those of our lower nature, — "we are to
hold ourselves dependent entirely on the promised protection and providence of
God; a protection," to use the words of a great writer, "which is ever to be sought
agreeably to His revealed Word and "Will. It is a reply therefore to every infernal
suggestion that we should either despair of God's goodness, or distrust His power,
— that we should seek the satisfaction of our lower wants by unlawful or unhallowed
means, or impatiently refuse to abide the issue of our honest endeavours, — thus,

(6) Hebrews ii. 10. (c) Hebrews ii. 10. (d) St. Matth. xvii. 3.

A PLAIN COMMERTABY [<JH ,

with ili" Sw i.. i i : M • 'to ili'- Tempb r

It is obvious to notice the breadth which is thai given to that petition in the
J. Q re ub this day our daily b : S Matt. vi. 11.

On tho present verse, more will be found m the nob

5 And the Devil, taking Him up into an high mountain, showed unto
Him all the K World in ■ moment of time.

Foiled in lii- attempt to Bednce the S nd Adam by the snai

— the Enemy tries next the lure of Worldly ambition. Satan "takes" our I
"up into an high mountain," bearing llim, it maybe, through the air, :
ission of Hun with whom he bad to do. See the note on St Matthew h

Beth discovers to the [ncarnate Son a most wondrous sight, — namely, "all
th<- Kingdoms of the World," and, (as St. Matthew adds,) "the glory of th
Moreover, the better to dassle human imagination, and overset the judgmi i
performs this act of Temptation "in a moment of time:" like a warrior who collects
the force of many Btrokes into a Bingle mighty blow. All the majesty of the four
i ■ their united strength and Bplendour, — their fame and glory, — and

whatever else it is unsafe for Man to Bet his heart on, or even to behold; but which
nevertheless, he loves and longs for; — all is made to sweep before the calm gaze of
the second Adam, in unspeakable magnificence and beauty! S - more

mi the Bubjed in the note to St. Matthew i

It has been finely pointed out, by an ancient Bishop, how fitting it is that all th' 1
Kingdoms of the World, and the glory of them, Bhould be displayed "in a moment
■• For here it is not bo much the rapid gls ght which is signified,

at th< frailty of mortal power which is declared. For in a moment all this i
away; and oftentimes the glory of this World has vanisl i it has arri

-"A moment of Time ! For the Present is but a moment in

i I. :iity."

ii And the Devil Baid unto llim, All this power will I give Thcc,
and the glory of them :

That i-, — of these Kingdoms. See the place in St Matthew

for that hi delivered onto me: and to whomsoever 1 will, 1 give it.

Was this, in any respect, a true boast! Fori B reo&ydeli

Earthly Power and Glory into the hands of Satan?

Certainlj notaliogeth r; for "there is no power but of God: the powi
arc ordained of Gon."(e) Again, — Pomp, and State, and Magnificence, — G
it may !"• called, — dwells chiefly in 8 I arts. Now, Kings are t ■ I

ed: clothed with Hi- authority; and, (doubt it not 1) regarded by llim with
special favour, — as images of Himself In what limit then, 'li'l Satan

speak truly, when he saio, ''All this power and glory .... i- >l«-i, |

i the falsity of the words which follow, shall be pointed out in the
aote.
That Satan had been permitted by God t>> tak> up his abode in this pari of G
i tion, which we inhabit, — we know. The marvellous extent to which he had
usurped dominion over the bodies of men, if frequently set before oa.(f) St.
Paul liim, in cm- place, as "the Prince of the power of the Air. 'A

another, he calls him the goa,(k)—an6 our Swim b styles him

i_\ that the Earth is hie II P

°alac( :{i) that he occupied it, unci'. 1 i k < ■ a nd that he

requiri I could be spoiled. St. John (probably) says that

"the whole World lieth in the bands,' ox "under tic jh.w.t. "t' the wicked

.in I our I.' ii ; scarcely Bays less, in Acts ixvi. i N when

tu all tin-. • ie well kn b that G ts £

(a) B I. (/) St. Lake xiii IB, in p«rtlca]

ii. 2. .. I. (0 E 11

ill. '-".'. -i.

i ■ ployment !.• i i Job i. 7 1 ii. -.

C-.j l m. JuLn r,

IV.] ON ST. LUKE'S GOSPEL. 431

vants(o) in order thereby to make proof of their faithfulness ; and when it is remem-
bered that the splendours of this "World, — riches, and honour, and glory, — the very
things, remember, against which our Saviour so earnestly, and so faithfully, cau-
tions us, — are the lures with which the Enemy of souls most successfully baits his
hook; — may we not presume that we have discovered his meaning? ascertained
the limited sense in which he could dare to say that all the good things of Earth
had been delivered over to him ?

7 If Thou therefore wilt worship me, all shall be Thine.

Yes, — If CHRIST would loorship him: but not else.

The boast which goes before, was worthy of the Father of Lies ; a splendid Lie,
— yet full of weakness. "That is delivered unto me." By whom "delivered?"
Thou confessest, then, that there is a Greater One than thyself in Creation, — whose
vassal thou art ! .... And " To whomsoever I will, I give it." That is false, —
as the words which follow prove. See the note on St. Matthew iv. 9.

An old African Bishop asks, — " And dost thou, whose lot is the unquenchable
fire, dare to promise to the Lord of all, that which is His own ? Dost thou think
to have Him for thy worshipper, from dread of whom the whole Creation trembles?"
He might have added, — And dost thou offer earthly "Kingdoms," "power," and
"glory," to Him whose "is the Kingdom, and the Power, and the Glory V\p)

8 And Jesus answered and said unto him, Get thee behind Me,
Satan :

"Thus, when anything moves to debauch, and draw off the heart from God, it is
to be beat away with indignation. And thus, in all conflicts, continue fighting in
thy Lord's strength : give not over, resist still, and the Enemy shall flee, as here."

for it is written, Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and Him
only shalt thou serve.

Written — in Deuteronomy vi. 13. See the note on St. Matthew iv. 10. Our
Lord might have said to the Tempter, — Thou shalt worship Me: but then, how
would his example have availed us? He used words which, under similar circum-
stances of Temptation, might be used by the humblest of His servants. See the
note on St. Matthew iv. 7.

This Temptation was the last of the three, in actual order; and accordingly, it
stands third in St. Matthew's GospeL "Our Saviour was pleased thus to bear
many assaults," says a good man, "and thus to force and beat off the Tempter by
the Word, both for our Instruction and our Comfort: who otherwise, for Himself,
could immediately have repelled him, and sent him back at first. But indeed, 'He
pleased not Himself '(q) in anything: had an eye to us, in all He did and suffered;
and did all in reference to our advantage. O how should we love him !"

9 And he brought Him to Jerusalem, and set Him on a pinnacle of
the Temple,

See the note on St. Matthew iv. 5.

and said unto Him, If Thou be the Son of God, cast Thyself down
from hence :

The Tempter next assails our Lord on the side of Vain-glory, or Spiritual Pride.
He will find himself powerless as before against the Holy One. " The Prince of
this World cometh," said our Saviour once to His Disciples, "and hath nothing in
Me."(r) See the first note on St. Matthew iv. 6.

10, 11 for it is written, He shall give His Angels charge over Thee,
to keep Thee : and in their hands they shall bear Thee up, lest at any
time Thou dash Thy foot against a stone.

(o) Job i. 12 : ii. 6. 1 Cor. x. 13. 2 St. Peter ii. 9, &c. (p) St. Matthew vi. 13.

(2) Romans xv. 3. (»•) St. John xiv. 30.

A PLAIN COMMENTARY [(/HAP.

The De\ il can quote Scripture in rapport of his foulest purposes. It is do iuf-
■ recommendation therefore, — either of counsel, suggested from without ; or
of doubts, arising from within, — that of this thing, <>r that thing, it may be saidi
with some ihow of truth, " It is written."

B( tter, however, in ;ill Buch c How our S s \ 101 ■<-'- method. II

not the plaoe of Scripture quoted; but Be meets it with another. 1 1 « - might have
disputed the texl ing the rabtiltyof its misapplication; and condemning

the wickedness which could misquote,— (see the second note on St Matthew
in order to mislead : but He teaches at " :i more excellent waj ." "And this down-
right, Bure method," saya Leighton, " beats off the sophister with another quotation,
— clearly and plainly carrying that truth which he opposes and mm adhere to.
though thou canst not clear the Bense of an obscure Scripture, thou .-hah a
find a sufficient guard in another that i- clearer."

1:2 And Jesus answering said unto him, It is said. Thou .-halt not
tempt the LOBD thy God.

\ l that <>ur Satioub takes to Simself (as He might have done,) the awful title,
— ■• The Loan thy God." He simply quotes the command which Satan was tempts
ing Him to transgress. See the note- on St .Matthew iv. 7.

ion perceive that, whereas the Adversary quoted a Promise; (which, mor<
lie exhibited disjoined from its context, ami in a garbled form: (a) our Satioi a op-
him with ii Precept. The Promise, absolutely stated, is gratifying, because
it involves no duties. The Precept, on the contrary, points to continued obedience,
and prescribes a4ong, ami therefore painful course of virtuous action. — Thereby, a
great Lesson is unmistakably conveyed to as all. True indeed it is that God 1

mises to Hi- creatures, when attentively examined, are all found to he conditional:

equally true is it that Hi- precept- are all, a- delivered by Him, absolute :-
it the nature of blind spiritual Presumption to rely on Gods Promises, a- if n
dition were annexed to their fulfillment : to substitute Reliance for Obedience ; ami
iresent to itself God's decrees respecting Man, as absolute ami unconditional,
— rather than as dependent wholly upon the foreseen decisions "I' that human "Will

which the same Almighty Being created free to choose between g 1 and eviL

This temptation of our Sayioub therefore which, in St Luke's Gospel occupies
the thinl place, may be regarded as the great type of Religious Presumption, and
Spiritual Pride. Satan Becks to persuade the Incarnate Sos that the Dii ine support
i- absolutely certain ; is wholly unconditional, and stand- pledged to Him irrevoca-
bly Of how many proud Bonis, '.who yet fancied themselves humble and

meek, i has the aame insinuation proved the downfall] How many persons among
ourselves, at the present day, are the dupe- of a Religious Bystem which, by thus
exhibiting only a partial and distorted \ iew of the Truth, favours the same perni-
cious error, and most onscriptural view!

L3 And when the Devil had ended till the Temptation, he departed
from Him for a season.

When the Devil had ended all the Temptation, or rather " every kind of Tempta-
— (for (hat is what the Evangelist Bays,) — he '•departed" from the il
J not a- he came. He began the conflict strong; he departed from it, weak; he
assailed bis Enemy, ,/n ,• be departed from Him, bound.(ji) And this is much t"
be noted.

i n from the Holy One, Satan departed only "for a \\
in ii -t therefore always be prepared for new onsets; never supposing ourseh i •
from them, to Long as these, the days of our warfare, last Bee bowever the com-
fortable words quoted on this Bubject in the not > St Matthew iv. 11.

Luke, who will hereafter give us the fullest aocount of the Agony in thi
the only Evangelist who hints that the Tempter departed from our I
i,ut ■ the words should properly be translated,) "until

Lssaull was reserved for the close of that Mini-try which
was now about to begin. Refer to, and by all means consider, St. Luk
St. John xiv. 30 -with that bint of approaching triumph, St John xii.

(.) See the not.-

(.,) Bt i.

IV.] ON ST. LUKE'S GOSPEL. 433

31. As, in the Wilderness, by every allurement of Pleasure, — so, in the Garden,
and on the Cross, by every avenue of Pain, — -did the Devil seek to shake the second
Adam from His steadfastness. And tins also may teach us what we have to expect ;
at one time, the seductions, — at another, the threats,— of an evil World. "And
who is sufficient for these things V'(x)

14 And Jesus returned in the Power of the Spirit into Galilee :

He came "in the power of the Spirit:" for is He not the Great Captain of our
Salvation? and had He not just vanquished the Enemy of our Race? The phrase
just quoted, recalls the language of verse 1, and is said with manifest reference to
His Baptism, — when He was once more "anointed" (as St. Peter speaks,) "with
the Holy Ghost andivith power." (y) — Read verse 18; and notice how aptly the pro-
phecy and its fulfillment suit each other.

Take notice, that the occasion of this departure into Galilee is recorded in St. Mat-
thew iv. 12, and St. Mark i. 14, — where see the notes.

15 and there went out a fame of Him through all the region round
about. And He taught in their synagogues, being glorified of all.

16 And He came to Nazareth, where He had been brought up :

He is desirous to communicate the knowledge of Himself to those among whom
He had been brought up, — the inhabitants of the city in which the first twenty-nine
years of His earthly life had been passed. — Good men, in ancient days, who
delighted to find living counsel in every line of the Book of Life, suggest that Christ
thereby taught us to benefit and instruct first, our brethren, — then, to extend our
kindness to the rest of our friends.

A modern Traveller describes the scenery about the home of our Saviour as very
wonderful. Having walked to the top of the hill over Nazareth, — " Here," he says,
" quite unexpectedly, a glorious prospect opened to the view. The air was perfectly
clear and serene ; and I shall never forget the impression I received, as the
enchanting panorama burst suddenly upon me. There lay the magnificent plain of
Esdraelon ; on the left was seen the round top of Tabor over the intervening hills,
with portions of the little Hermon and Gilboa, and the opposite mountains of Sa-
maria. Then came the long line of Carmel itself. In the west, lay the Mediterra-
nean gleaming in the morning-sun : seen, first, far in the south on the left of Car-
mel ; then, interrupted by that mountain ; and again appearing on its right.
Below, on the north, was spread out another of the beautiful plains of Northern
Palestine. . .

" In the Village below, the Saviour of the World had passed His Childhood: and
there are certain features of Nature which meet our eyes now, just as they once met
His. He must often have visited the fountain near which we had pitched our tent :
His feet must frequently have wandered over the adjacent hills : and His eyes
doubtless have gazed on the splendid prospect from this very spot. Here the Prince
of Peace looked down upon the great plain where the din of battles so oft had
rolled, and the garments of the warrior been dyed in blood : and He looked out, too,
upon that Sea, over which the swift ships were to bear the tidings of His Salvation
to Nations and to Continents then unknown \"

and, as His custom was, He went into the Synagogue on the Sabbath
day, and stood up for to read.

We know, from Acts xiii. 15, that other persons were allowed to address the
people in the Synagogue, besides the Priest. From this place, we learn that other
persons might "read" publicly, also. Observe the hint in the text as to what the
"custom" of the Saviour of the World was, in the days of His humiliation.

It appears from the Acts of the Holy Apostles, that the Law(z) and the
Prophets(a) were read in the Synagogues every Sabbath-day : at the end of which,
"a word of exhortation" to the people, was delivered. See Acts xiii. 15.

17, 18, 19 And there was delivered unto Him the Book of the Pro-

(x) 2 Cor. ii. 16. (;j) Acts x. 38. See Acts iv. 27 : and compare St. Luke i. 35.

[z) Acts xv. 21. (a) Acts xiii. 27.

484 A PLAIN : LEY [chap.

And when He had opened the B ' . II found the ,
where it was written, The Spirit of the Loi He

hath anointed Me to preach the Gospel to the poor; He hath -■ al Me
il the broken hearted, to preach deliverance to the captives,
the blind, I Liberty them that are bru

tu preach the acceptable yen- of the Lord.

Our Lord, unrolling the Book of Bis Prophet, (a roll, like those which ar.
in tip - -it this day,) fixed upon the words which are found in tho
ning of tho 61st chapter; either making choice of that past • Be
ued t" preach from it: or, (what Menu more likely,) because it v.
ti"ii of Scripture appointed t" I"- read, in regular c lurae, i a that day. Jlut there
divine Providence in the matter, be sure. See above the not* 1 I.
■ that, instead of " the poor," — il is in t 1 1 * - original, " ' a beauti-
ful comment on St Matthew v. 3, a- compared with St. Luke vi. '- 1
thru i • Observe also, that instead of '* recovery of sight to the blind," thi He-
brew, (as our Bibles Bhow us,) has "tl pening of the prison to them that are

bound." A remarkable comment of the Spibii ! < lompare Psalm oxh i. 7. E . — St ■
also Acta xx\ i. L8.

20 And He closed the Book, and He gave in to the Mini

and Bat down. And the eyes of all them that were in the- Synag
fastened on Him.

How minute is all thi-. ami exactly descriptive of the scene: t! f the

B . -tin' giving it t" 1 1 1 « - Attendant it Servant,— the resuming of Hi- Beat : and
then, the fixed gaze "I' all within tip' b\ ongogue. Doubt not that then
thing unearthly in Bis manner: that Hi- Divinity flashed through the poor fleshly
garment in which it was enshrined, and "could not be hid!" — <
i ; and Be i the but note on St. Matthew vii.

-\ And He began to say unto them, This day is this Scripture ful-
fil 1 <• 1 in your i

That i-. — the Prophet Bpake in My Person, and by My Spirit, when he committed

these words to writing, more than Beven hundred yi and behold, at I i

am come into tl" - World,- I of whom Isaiah wrote; and the words which you have

Listening to, find their fulfillment at this present day, — and they are fulfilled

//( Me.— See above, the note on ver. l L

11 i have heard the Discourse which followed ! — " tho gracious words," in order
to drink the Bound <d which, Angels must have thronged the place, une

22 And all bare Him witness, and wondered at the gracious v,
which proceeded out of His mouth. And they said, Is not this Joseph's
Bon ':

They spoke as men who remembered His "manner of life from Hi- youth;" —
remember Joseph the ' larpentor, (see St. John i. I. 5 :) and the low ly maiden, "nr
I Mother, whom they looked upon as • ther with many

i of their kindred. Compare what was said on another simllai
M

It has 1 ii already pointed <>iit, (in the note on ver. 20,) that there mosl

been something wondrous heavenly in the manner "I ""r >w 101 a, t" account t"r

S frequently recur in tho Gospels. U
nil i perceive that, mi tl icasion here recorded, there was mors than

usual wonder in II* They beheld, — to all appearance, their humble

man suddenly claiming to !•<• tho subject of a well-known prophecy ! But. in

reality, it was the eternal Son, emptied of His Glory indeed, yet -till thi

mighty One, by whoso spirit the Prophets bad spoken, turning t" the written

i i // Servant's words, (words which had proceeded from //>< ' and

ime their Interpreter I How must the heart oi have

burned within bin at

iv.] on st. luke's gospel. 435

23 And He said unto them, Ye will surely say unto Me this pro-
verb, Physician, heal thyself; whatsoever we have heard done in Caper-
naum, do also here in Thy country.

Our Lord spake this, knowing the secret thoughts of his auditory. From His
word we learn that, notwithstanding the admiration and delight which His Dis-
course had occasioned, the people were reasoning within themselves as follows: —
" He has wrought wonders at Capernaum. Why does he not work them here ? Is
not this Joseph's son? Why does He not improve his own lowly condition, and
that of all his family? ' Physician, heal thyself!' We demand this thing of Thee,
as a sign ; and then, we will believe Thee."

Note however, by the way, that as yet we have heard of only one miracle which
had been wrought in Capernaum ; namely, the healing of the nobleman's son. (6)

24 And He said, Verily I say unto you, No Prophet is accepted in
his own country.

In this way, then, our Saviour answers the thoughts of his auditory. It is ob-
servable that, first, He meets the proverb which they were thinking of, with an-
other ; the tendency of theirs having been to require miracles at His hands, the
proverb which Re cites assigns the reason why He will not work any ; namely, be-
cause by no display of miraculous power could He win credit with the men of
Nazareth, among whom he had been brought up.

He appeals, next, to Holy Scripture ; and proceeds to vindicate the strict con-
formity of His present conduct with that which God had observed towards His
chosen people of old. For He shows that miracles were not vouchsafed anciently
to the persons by whom — or at the seasons in which — they might have been most
expected : but simply according to the good will and pleasure of Almighty God.

25 But I tell you of a truth, many widows were in Israel in the days
of Elias, when the heaven was shut up three years and six months,
when great famine was throughout all the land ;

Observe, by the way, that the " six months" are not noticed in the Old Testa-
ment History of the event here referred to. See 1 Kings xvii. 1, and xviii. 1. St.
James, however, — verse 17, — mentions the time with the same exactness as our
Lord.

26 but unto none of them was Elias sent, save unto Sarepta, a city
of Sidon, unto a woman that ivas a widow.

See the affecting History of Elijah and the Widow of Zarephath, in 1 Kings
xvii. 8, &c.

What awful interest, by the way, attaches to every passage in theOld Testament
thus appealed to, by our Lord ! The Finger of Him, by whose inspiring Spirit the
Bible was given, laid upon a particular History, surely invests it evermore with
special delight and wonder !

27 And many lepers were in Israel in the time of Eliseus the pro-
phet ; and none of them was cleansed, saving Naaman the Syrian.

For the history of Naaman's cure, by Elisha the prophet, see 2 Kings v.

The teaching of these two narratives, on the present occasion, was clearly this :
As Elijah was not sent to one of the widows of Israel — but to a Gentile woman,
the lone widow of Sarepta ; and as Elisha was commissioned to work no cures on
the lepers of Israel, but on a Gentile soldier — Naaman the Syrian : so should it
create no surprise in the men of Nazareth if a preference were shown to Strangers,
on the present occasion also ; if our Saviour wrought wonders in Capernaum, and
refused to work any among them.

28 And all they in the Synagogue, when they heard these things,
were filled with wrath,

(b) St. John iv. 46 to 54.

436 A PLAIN COMMENT*!? [' BAP.

Tin- wry men who bo lately " bare Him witness, and wondered at Hi- gra

■.22. Th< e filled with wrath :it the bust which the latter part

of His discourse conveyed. Such language always inflamed the Jews to max
— a- in An- xxii. 21, 22. This Jealousy bad been set forth in Prophecy,
Deuteronomy xxxii. -1 ; and was displ it Loan, in Parable, —

29 and rose up and throat Him out of tin- city: and led Him unto
the brow <>i" til'' hill whereon their city was built, that they might cast
Him down headlong.

On tin- Bouth-weet part of the town "I' Nasareth, the hill breaks "tr in a perpen-
dicular wall, — forty or fifty feet in height. Thai must have been tin' Bpot t" which
tin--.' murderers Bought t" conduct their Fellow-townsman.

How wondrous an illustration, by the way, was thus afforded to the aptni
the proverb which our Loan had just before cited against them I What evidence
could prevail with hearts which were thus evilly disposed! Sec tin
\ erse - 1.

30 But lie, passing through the midst of them, went His way ;

1 ipare the other occasions when the Holy One was obliged to d i tin- like: —
St. John \iii. 59: x. :;'.*: xii. 36. Ami notice, that we an- again reminded of the
anion of the Divine ami Human Nature, in the person of our Loan. He bad been
speaking, as Gon, in the S verses L8 i" 21. A- Man, He here Bares his

lite by ili^ r ht. Not bat what II'' must hi' thought to have Bavedhis life by mi
hut the act of escape was buman — like that which He afterward i d his

disci] S St. Matthew z. 23.

31, 02 and came down to Capernaum, a city of Galilee, and taught
them on the Sabbath days. And they wore astonished at His doctrine :

for his Word was with power.

the last note on St Matthew vii. — and observe that not only was the Sa-
viour's Word with power ; hut be proceeded to confirm it "by Bigns follov
A mighty work ensues, which is related also bj St. Mark — i. -
the i

33, 34 And in the Synagogue there was a man which had a spirit

of an unclean devil, and cried out with a loud voice, Baying, Let US

alone ;

i - aught that appears t" the contrary, the afflicted man was at 6ret a silent ami
orderly member of the congregation. At the presence of the Holy Jascs, bov
the andean spirit within him cannot contain bis trouble. The \
Cbrisi is torture to devils. See all the notes on St. Matthew viii. 29.

The Reader is referred to the notes on St. Mark i. 24, for many observati a
tin- present verse, which cannot l"- bere repeated.

wdiat have we to do with Thee, 7V/..// ,li -i - of Nazareth? art Thou
come t'> destroy as? [ know Thee who Thon art: the Boly One of
God.

I ter the Temptation of our Saviocb in the Wildera S (the chief

of the fal i the devils are found i" have known Chbist. It i

longer, " If ion of God, ' (as is irerses 3 and 0, ' at " /

who Thou art!" . . . Compare verse 11. . . . Tho tidings thai t! I oemy

had, in -•■in.- mysterious way, at last appeared, moat bave Bpread like lightning
through all thehost "t fallen S|iirii-.

'hat it i- to be supposed that they knen the ' Him with whom

they had to do; "foi told, "had they known, they would

d >1 have cru( ifii I the L G :.\ inced that, in

(• ) ' i

IV.] ON ST. LUKE'S GOSPEL. 437

sense, He was the Sox of God. Of the Reality of His Humanity, there could be
no doubt.

" JESUS of Nazareth" -was the title by which, afterwards, the Saviour of the
World became commonly called, and was best known. It is a strange thing, that
this name, (which fulfilled prophecy, and showed how effectually the mystery of the
Nativity had been hid from the ken of evil spirits,) should be so soon found in the
mouth of a devil. We have met with the appellation only once before; namely, in
St. John i. 45.

35 And Jesus rebuked him, saying, Hold thy peace, and come out
of him.

Our Lord rejects his testimony. Doubt not but what the confession in the for-
mer verse was either the cry of abject fear; or (what seems more likely) the subtle
device of Satan to terrify mankind ; to mar the progressive character of our Sa-
viour's teaching; and cast suspicion and discredit on the Truth itself. See the
note on St. Mark i. 25.

And when the devil had thrown him in the midst, he came out of him,
and hurt him not.

But by "throwing him in the midst," and " tearing him," (as St. Mark records,)
the unclean Spirit did the man all the harm he could. See the note on St. Mark
i. 26.

There may be a comfortable message to man, concealed under these repeated
notices of the violence of the Evil Spirit in the hour of its ejectment. See par-
ticularly St. Mark ix. 25 to 27. It has been remarked by a thoughtful writer, that
" something similar is evermore finding place; and Satan vexes with temptations
and with buffetings none so much as those who are in the act of being delivered
from his dominion for ever."

36 And they were all amazed, and spake among themselves, saying,
What a word is this ! for with authority and power He commancleth the
unclean spirits, and they come out.

Take notice, then, that this miracle of healing was wrought on the Sabbath-day.
An ancient bishop discourses as follows on the subject; — "The work of Divine
healing commenced on the Sabbath : Christ signifying thereby that He began
anew where the Old Creation ceased — in order that He might declare at the very
beginning that the Son of God was not under the Law, but above the Law.
Rightly, also, He began on the Sabbath, that He might show himself the Creator,
who interweaves His works one with another, and follows up that which He had
before begun. Just as a builder, determining to reconstruct a house, begins to
pull down the old one, not from the foundation, but from the top, so as to apply His
hand first to that part where He had before left off."

37 And the fame of Him went out into every place of the country
round about.

38 And He arose out of the Synagogue, and entered into Simon's
house. And Simon's wife's mother was taken with a great fever ; and
they besought Him for her.

See the note on St. Mark i. 30. — Concerning " Simon's wife's Mother," see the
note on St. Matthew viii. 14.

39 And He stood over her, and rebuked the fever ; and it left her :

"RebuJced the fever :" — just as, before, He had rebuked the unclean Spirit ;(cZ)
and as, on a later occasion, " He rebuked the winds and the sea."(e) Speaking
words to it, doubtless, — as to a subject creature. See the note on St. Matthew
viii. 9.

and immediately she arose, and ministered unto them.

[d) See verse 35. (e) St. Mark iv. 39.

L88 A PLADI COMMBNTABI [( SAP.

be made of her recovered strength, was to employ it In bar Bfaa-
ind does she nol become a pattern therein to Christians, wl
their restoration to BpirituaJ health, should employ their powers in mil

Christ, in the i their | rest members oi II • mystical t ._. .

■ \ . ■■-.
The Reader is referred to St. Mark's rather fuller account "1 this
to the uotes uj a 3t Mark i. 31.

I" \ v, when the son was setting, all they that had any sick with
divers diseases brought them onto Hint; ami lie laid His hand
v our of them, ami healed them.

See the uol i St. Mark i. •'"-!. "Observe Hi- Divi and goodm

writes Leighton, "shining forth in the miraculous cure of all disease what-

■ be tnj spiritual maladies, though never bo many and so deep
\ any came i" Sim, ami went away uncur* d."

41 Ami devils also came out of many, crying out, ami saying,
Thou art Christ the Son of God. Ami He rebuking them Buffered

them nut to Bpeak : fur they knew that He was CHBIST.
See above, the note on verse •"• I.

\- And when it was 'lay, He departed and went inl rt place:

He withdrew at this early hour into a lonely place, . —

- Mark i- careful to inform us. Bee St .Mark L

\'< and the people Bought llim. and came unto Him, and Btayed Him,
that He should not depart from them. And He said unto them, 1 must
preach the Kingdom of <'"i> to other cities also ; for therefore am I

sent.

Simon Peter, and il there, came in quest "t" their Great Benefactor. See how

Si. Mark Qotices this same circumstance :- i.

II And He preached in the >;. o agogues of Galilee.

This was our Loan's first great Ministerial Journey. How briefly described I
And should not this sn-\ circumstance induce as to dwell upon it. in thought, the
r .' The humble endeai our to do bo, w ill be rendered easier by a referen* c n>
the parallel places, namely, St. Matthew iv. 23 to 25 : and St. Mark i

The Saviour of the World might, indeed, by abiding in the same place, have
drawn all men onto Himself, — as an ancient Bishop remarks: but He 'li'l not <1"
so; because He would '_ r i\' k us an example to go about, and seek those who an
ishing; as the Shepherd, bis lost Bheep.

tii E i'i; A X i: k.

1. rd, we beseech Thee, grant Thy people grace to withstand the
temptations of the World, the Flesh, and the Devil, and ^\ i t h pure
a and minds to follow Thee the onl; G j through Jbsi - Christ
our Lord. Amen.

V.] ON ST. LUKE'S GOSPEL. 439

CHAPTER V.

I Christ teachdli the people out of Peter's ship. A In a miraculous taking of fishes,
shoiveth hoiv He will make him and his partners fishers of men. 12 Cleanseth the
Leper. 16 Prayeth in the Wilderness. 18 Healeth one sick of the palsy. 27 Call-
eth Matthew the publican. 29 Eateth with sinners, as being the Physician ofsotds.
34 Foretellcth the fastings and afflictions of the Apostles after His Ascension. 36
And likeneth faint-hearted and weak Disciples to old bottles and worn garments.

1 And it came to pass, that, as the people pressed upon Him to hear
the Word of God, He stood by the Lake of Gennesaret :

Otherwise called the "Sea of Galilee," and the "Lake of Tiberias." See the
note on St. Mark i. 16. — One of the ancients remarks, — "When the Lord had per-
formed many and various kinds of cures, the multitude began to heed neither time
nor place in their desire to be healed. The evening came, — they followed ; a lake
is before them, — they still press on."

2 and saw two ships standing by the Lake : but the fishermen were
gone out of them, and were washing their nets.

The miracle which follows, and which our Lord wrought on the occasion of the
call of Simon and Andrew, James and John, to their Apostleship, is peculiar to
the present Gospel : but the call of those Disciples is found also in St. Matthew iv.
18 to 22, and St. Mark i. 16 to 20. The accounts should, of course, be carefully
compared. The result will be, surprise to find the same incident so very diversely
narrated : but, in fact, St. Luke supplies everything which the two earlier Evan-
gelists had omitted ; and repeats scarcely anything which they had said.

See the notes on St. Matthew iv. 18.

8 And He entered into one of the ships, which was Simon's, and
prayed him that he would thrust out a little from the land. And He
sat down, and taught the people out of the ship.

A convenient position, — in which our Lord is found to have delivered the par-
rabies contained in St. Matthew xiii. See the note on St. Mark iv. 1. He entered
the Ship and was upon the Sea, in order the better to fish for the men upon the
shore : but He had His eye, specially, on the two noble pair of Brethren — whom
He had already drawn to His side indeed, but not yet called to Apostleship.

4 Now when He had left speaking, He said unto Simon, Launch out
into the deep, and let down your nets for a draught.

The Divine Speaker, " when He had left speaking," proceeded to confirm the Word
by signs following. Compare what is said in the note prefixed to St. Matthew viii.
Observe, that the Second Adam was now about to exercise " dominion over the fish
of the Sea," — which was the first grant of empire which God gave to Man.(a)
" Thou hast put all things under His feet," says the Psalmist ; (divinely applying
to the Second Adam what was originally spoken of the First:) — "the fish of the
sea, and whatsoever passeth through the paths of the sea." (b)

(a) See Genesis i. 26. (6) Psalm viii. 6, 8: quoted in Hebrews ii. 6 to 8.

440 A PLAIN ( uMMKNTARY [CHAT.

6 And Simon answering said onto Him, I I all
the night, and hare taken nothing: nevertheless, at Thy word 1 will
let down the net.

I- is written, — "Sorrow may endow for a night, but - 1 ; i in the morn-

•"-■"('•>
Compare what is Baid concerning these same Fishermen on another similar

ai. 3 and 5, when the second miraeulous draught of fishes

: and doubt not, thai on both occasions, the net \\a- lowered in i • • i- 1 < • * - 1 faith.

t! And when they had this done, they inclosed a great multitude of
fi.-h'

wered " at Chbist'b "Word r" and see the result! Obedieno
inherits a blessing.

i sider farther, the mere worldly advantage of haying Him for a guest and in-
matel The Holy One who so multiplied the store at ('ana. where Be had been
kindly entertained, — now showers down plenty upon the man from whose boat He

had 1 d teaching. The net breaks, — the Bhip sinks, — beneath the largeni

His bounty.

"Was it not so with < Ibed-Edom, in whose house the Ark (the Symbol of Hii
sence,) continued three months ?(d) Pared it not bo with the Widow of Zarep-
hath,(<) and the Shunammite,( f) — with whom Elijah and Elisha, (Hu chi sen ser-
vants,) respectively, Bojournedr Doubt not that bo it ever i-! Laban was b
for his son-in-law Jacob's -ake:(</) and Potiphar, for his servant Joseph's ;(A] while
St. Paul all the two hundred and sei enty-eix souls which -ailed with 1

A cup of cold water given, for the love of ChKIST, to the meane-t of C 11 Ki - 1 3
vants, .-hall in 00 wise lose it- reward.

and their net brake.

Contrast this with what i- Baid in St.-Tolmxxi.il. — '• and for all there v.
many, yet uxu not the net broken:" in which words of " the Disciple whom Jesus
to be a reference to the present place in St. Luke's GospeL

"Their net I the fish escaped nor. Here was a double miracle, — as

will be found pointed out in the latter part of the note 4 on St Mark i. 31.
1 1 erve the last words of St. .Matthew Lv. 21, — and Bee the note there.

7 And they beckoned unto their partners, which were in the other

ship, that they should come and help them.

'• They beckoned unto their partners :" for Andrew was in the ship, as w<
Simon, — although bis name is not mentioned.

Why did they beckon and Hot COUP An ancient writer wa- of Opinion that I

n-. d a sign, being unable to Bpeak for astonishment. See \ er. '.'. Tiny had doubt-
less never taken such a draught before.

I they came, and filled both the ships, so that they began to sink.

y part of thi< miracle i^ /'nil ,,f wonder,— -full of prophetic meaning.
entire incident may be regarded a< a parable, or a prophecy . in action : so particu-
larly i oly because every particular has a deep Bymbolio import. I

• two ships," as there were two Churches, the Gentile and the Jew i-h : pursu-

ith one mind the -ai ccupation ; and Loth, we read, were filled. A

draught of fishes was, however, only Men captured, when the Net was let down at
1 Word: —the toil of the long dark night had been fruitlet \ did it

not fare bo in the church's historj : Thi

this day the Church is rent and torn by reason of our unhappy divif reby,

:;. . bat her unit f the

21.
It. - t-> ir. (») <

... 1 :.:.

v.]

ON ST. LUKE'S GOSPEL. 441

souls within her is endangered ; and yet they are not therefore lost. The ships
moreover begin to sink ; but they sink not, — for Christ is in them.

In all these respects, this miracle is to be compared with another prophetic inci-
dent, — namely, the second miraculous draught of fishes, related by St. John in the
last chapter of his Gospel ; and having obvious reference to the final destiny of the
same Church, whose earthly progress is here depicted. On this occasion Christ
sits on the unquiet waters ; — on that, He is found, after His Resurrection, standing
on the fixed, motionless shore. Here, the net is cast on either side ; is drawn up
into the ships ; and is found to have taken fishes of every kind, — good and bad,
large and small: — there, the net is cast "on the right side;''' is drawn to land; and
is found to be " full of great fishes" only. The number of them is moreover speci-
fied, — an hundred and fifty and three ; as if in allusion to the number of God's
elect.(/c) Here, again, the net breaks ; but there, — " for all there were so many, yet
was not the net broken." Observe, lastly, that on this first occasion, it was pro-
mised to St. Peter that he should " catch men ;" that is, win Disciples, make con-
verts, to Christ. On the second, he is commanded to "feed the sheep" of God; —
that is, to tend the people already gathered into His pasture, — those who have
already become " the sheep of His hand." It is wrong, — at least it is dan-
gerous and unwise, — to indulge in fanciful expositions of Holy Scripture ; but how
so many, and such striking points of contrast can be overlooked or disregarded, it
is hard to understand. We may not be able to trace out the analogy of an incident
like the present, in perfect detail : but shall we therefore fail to follow it out as far
as we are able ? Consider whether it is likely, — or rather, whether it is credible, —
that so many minute particulars should be recorded without an object. Consider,
next, the symbolic meaning attached by the Spirit to other events, in themselves
strictly historical: as the history of Hagar and Sarah, in Galatians iv. 21 to 31.
Lastly, compare these two miracles with the parable of the draw-net in St. Matthew
xiii. 47 to 50 : and then, — dull indeed must he be, and slow of heart, who can read
the present narrative without the deepest conviction that it teems with hidden, sym-
bolic teaching of the loftiest kind. Such, at least, has been the belief of the wisest
and holiest in every age.

8 When Simon Peter saw it, he fell down at Jesus' knees, saying,
Depart from me ; for I am a sinful man, Lord.

Thus Peter, while spreading his own net for fish, is himself taken in the net which
a Greater Fisherman has spread invisibly for him.

Compare the exclamation of the Widow of Zarephath to Elijah. "What have I
to do with thee, thou man of God ? art thou come unto me to call my sin to remem-
brance ?"(T) Simon Peter, in like manner, becomes conscious of his sinfulness when
he finds himself in the presence of God. Consider that saying of holy Job : — " I
have heard of Thee by the hearing of the ear; but now mine eye seeth Thee.
Wherefore I abhor myself." [in) Consider also the following texts : — Judges vi. 22,
23 : xiii. 22. Isaiah vi. 5. Daniel x. 16, 17.

Take notice, however, that the present miracle was in a singular manner, an ap-
peal to the Disciples' Faith. Some fish they expected to catch ; even many fish, they
hoped for. But the draught was excessive, — and "their hearts burned within
them,"(?z) — and something whispered Simon Peter, " It is the Lord !"(o)

9 For he was astonished, and all that were with him, at the draught
of the fishes which they had taken :

Andrew, namely; and probably "hired servants," — as in the boat which be-
longed to the sons of Zebedee. See St. Mark i. 20, where the note may be con-
sulted.

10 and so was also James, and John, the sons of Zebedee, which
were partners with Simon.

And Jesus said unto Simon, Fear not ; from henceforth thou shalt
catch men.

(/,-) See the Burial Service : and consider Rev. vii. 4 to 8, and xiv. 1.

(l) 1 Kings xvii. 10. (in) Job xiii. 5, 6.

(«) St. Luke xxiv. 32. (o) Compare St. John xxi. 7.

11- A PLASH C0MMINTAB1 ['HAP.

Rather,— From henceforth thoushalt take in thy nei [not fishes, but] men, al
Capture them, that i-. nol for death, but/or life. Thou -halt draw men by the n< t
of the Gospel, out of 1 1 • • ■ gloomj and troubled waters of tlii- Life, into the I;
(for Ciiki-1 calls men " out of Darkness," astheaami 3
'•into Bis Marvellous Light :")fjj) where Angels shall gather the
good into ti Angels, who are already expecting their arrival on I

. M itthew xiii. 48, 49.
The prophecy here delivered, began to be fulfilled on the first Christian Day of

—whon, after St. Peter 1 serm " the same da v, there were added unto

them about thret thousand souls." (q) See then - Matthew iv. 19.

IJut ootwithstanding the prominence riven to the fisher's craft, on the pr<
and other occasions, by our Loan Himself; notwithstanding, also, it- aptn< — to re-
it object of ministerial desire, — namely, to win many souls t"
Chrisi : (for which the Bervant toils patiently and long, yet knows not what buc-
oess Hie Master will L r i \ « • 1 1 i 1 1 1 ! — the heart of Christendom has yet preferred an-
other figure, almost to the exclusion of this: pronouncing with one mouth that -In-
loves best to behold in him who has the cure of souls, an image "of the G »od Shep-
herd," — who gave His Life for the sheep ! It is the charge which Simon Pet
ceived after the second miraculous draught >>i fishes, — (to "feed the flock of
< ; "i'."(<j — His "sheep" and His "lambs," — which has thrown thi> earlier promise
and appellation into the shade. («) The Elder Coi enant, like the Gospel, n cognizes
both images. See Exekiel xxxiv. and xlvii. 9, 10.

11 And when they had brought their Bhipa to land, they forsook all,
and followed Him.

He knows nothing of Human Nature who thinks that these men for — i littlo.
when they followed Christ. Tiny forsook all they had. — all thej loved and cared

Tiny c\ i'ii forsook i

12 And it came to pass, when lie waa in a certain city, behold a
man full of leprosy: who seeing Jesi b, fell on his lace, and besought
Him, saying, Lobd, if Thou wilt, Thou canst make me clean.

The reader is referred to the notes on St. Matthew \iii. 2, and St Mark i. 40.

L3 And He put forth His hand, and touched him, Baying, 1 will: be

thou clean.

Contrast the manner of this cure with that performed on Miriam. "M »es cried
onto the Lord, saying, Heal her now, Gon, 1 beseech Thee."(0 But our Saviour
"spake, — and it was done." Contrast also the manner of Elijah's miracles: — 1
Kings xvii. 21 : xviii. 36, 37: St. James v. 17. 18, (which it is instructive to com-
pare with 1 Kin.:- wii. Land xviii. 42 to 45 :) &0.

■■ I will ;" — thai i- tin' saj ing of God, — and < Ion only ; tin' Baying of Him. w hose
Almighty Will is the cause of all things. When His servants wrought Miracles,
far different was tin' phrase they used. See Genesis xli. 16, where Joseph Bays,
"It is not in in. : OOD shall give Pharaoh an answer of peace." Compare also

Daniel ii. 30j and above all, A.CtS id- 6 and \'l.

\'id immediately the leprosy departed from him.

I of all disorders, and by man's art known I

rable, — was the t.\| f sin. To touch a leper was t>> incur pollution :(u] i

the malady wa- in itself contagious ; lut to convince men of the deep defile-
ment of that more terrible malady of the soul, "l" which Leprosj was the type.
Observe, however, that whon our Lord would cleanse one who was "full o\ lej ro-
n H ch; and it was to teach men that as Sin had no pin

(/>) ' (•/) A ' '- >'• "•

( r ) Com] ' •■ r v. 2. with Bl 17.

(«) St. I'iliiI liim-rir n) the example ol this preferem e.

m t« ban ! • i '-'l ■■

than any olluT, OB thl

.3.

v.]

ON ST. LUKE'S GOSPEL. 443

Him, so could no defilement pass upon Him either. Disease could not vex the
second Adam ; who had taken upon Himself our Human Nature, indeed, but not
our fallen Human Nature. He came into the world to "take our Infirmities and
hear our Sicknesses/' as an Evangelist,(x) — interpreting, not quoting, the words of
a Prophet, (?/) — has declared: hut He bore them like a burthen, — without participa-
tion, and without pollution; because "in Him," as in a Fountain, "was Life."(z)

See the first note on St. Mark i. 41.

" This King's Touch," says Leighton, " cures all sorts of Diseases. It did so
while He walked in a low, despised condition on Earth ; and it does so still by that
virtual Divine Power, now that He is in Heaven. And although His Glory there
is greater, His Compassion is not less than when He was here ; and His compassion
always was, and is, directed much more to souls diseased, than to bodies, as they
are better and more valuable."

14 And lie charged him to tell no man : but Go, and show thyself
to the priest, and offer for thy cleansing, according as Moses com-
manded, for a testimony unto them.

This seems to mean that when the priests had admitted the cleansing to be com-
plete, and accepted the offerings prescribed on such occasions by the Law,(«) those
offerings would remain for ever an abiding witness or testimony against them, if
they presumed still to deny the claims of Jesus of Nazareth to be the promised
Messiah.

Or it may mean that the offerings would be a testimony of our Saviour's obser-
vance of the Law.

15, 16 But so much the more went there a fame abroad of Him :
and great multitudes came together to hear, and to be healed by Him
of their infirmities. And He withdrew Himself into the Wilderness,
and prayed.

On this, an ancient Bishop remarks, — "Our Redeemer performed His Miracles
by day, and passed the night in Prayer ; hinting to perfect preachers that as they
should not entirely desert the active Life from love of contemplation, so neither
should they despise the joys of contemplation from an excess of activity ; but, in
silent thought, imbibe that which they might afterwards give back in words to their
neighbours."

17 And it came to pass on a certain day, as He was teaching, that
there were Pharisees and Doctors of the Law sitting by, which were
come out of every town of Galilee, and Judaea, and Jerusalem : and the
Power of the Lord was present to heal them.

To heal whom ? The Pharisees and Doctors of the Law ? Clearly not. The
truth is, the whole scene rose up before the Evangelist, while he wrote ; so that he
used the word "them" with reference to the many sick persons who (as he knew)
had been brought to our Saviour on this occasion, and were waiting for an oppor-
tunity of being healed. Concerning the cures which He may have now wrought on
those other persons, we hear nothing. Our attention is called, in the next and fol-
lowing verses, to the case of a poor suffering Paralytic ; who, because he came late,
was debarred the usual mode of access to the Great Physician. He doubtless
thought himself singularly unfortunate, in consequence. He little knew the blessed-
ness which awaited him : little suspected, that his obstacle was to turn out the
very occasion and instrument of God's Glory, and his own greatest good ! See the
note on St. Matthew ii. 1G ; and the second note on St. Mark v. 24 and 35.

On that expression, " the Power of the Lord was present to heal," — see chap,
vi. 19.

18 And, behold, men brought in a bed a man which was taken with

(x) St. Matth. viii. 17. {y) Isaiah liii. 4. (2) St. John i. 4.

(«) Leviticus xiv. 10, 21, 22.

444 A PLAIN OOaOfBNTABY [CHAP.

a palsy: and they Bought m ans to bring him in, and to lay /<///< b
Hun.

The Reader is referred to the notes on St. M:irk ii. ::.

L9 And when they could not find by what way they might bring him
the multitude, they went upon the I

Which was easily done, in :i country like Palestine, where there is a mmonly a
flight of rtops out id* the Bouse : and where thi lh.u-.--t.. p. | i- usual!

convenient plan, for discourse,^) for walking,
and furnished with a battlement or parai the extremil

But how exactly the four men(y) who bore the paralytic, performed the act next
described,- Bee St .Mark ii. -1,- the present writer has never seen quil ■ accounted
for : aor do recent travellers in Palestine explain it satisfactorily. There Beems t.i
have I een something peculiar in the construction of this particular house.

and let him down through the tiling with his couch into the midst
before Jesus.

Truly, "tin' Kingdom of Heaven suffereth violence, and the violent take it l>y
force."(o)

Our Countryman, Bede, Bays beautifully, — "Oftentimes, amid tin' very sweet-
nesses of secret prayer, ami. as it may be called, tin' pleasant converse with God, a
crowd "f thoughts, disturbing the clear vision of tin' mind, Bhuts out Christ from
its sight. Lei as not, then, remain in tin- lowest ground, where tlm crowds are
bustling; but aim at tlm roof of the Bouse, — that is, the Bublimityof the Holy
Scriptures, ami meditate on tin- Law of the Loan I"

20 Ami when He Baw their faith, He said unto him, Man, thy
are forgiven thee.

What is required "f persons t.. receive Forgiveness of Bins ? Rep< ntance, h hereby
they forsake sin; ami Faith, whereby they steadfastly believe tlm promu
God. — Why then was this man forgiven, Bince, by reason of his helplessness ami
infirmity. ! ive no signs .■!' either Faith or Repentanoi B

mised them both, by his four sureties, — ee St. Mark ii. 3;— which promii
as lm was able, himself was bound t<> perform.

Tin' Reader i- referred t<> tlm notes on St. .Mark Li. 3 and 5: also on St. John
v. 7.

Take notice that this man had put ap no petition \ but his palsied body told bis
need; while his action was a loud ami earnest prayer.

21 And the Scribes and the Phari ;an to reason, saying, Who
is thi- which speaketh blasphemies? Who can forgive Bins, but God
alon< .

8 . Mark ii. 7.
They wanted " an outward and visible Bign of tlm inward and spiritual

." ami our Loan was prepared to grant then all they wanted. Theirs, bow-
not tlm \\.\ii. Faith, which timidly asks for a sign; but tin- obdurate
r which resists every appeal. These men were Becreuy charging our I

with Blasphemy, and bi ring at His prudent ting up a claim m powers

spiritual ami unseen. \s hence, it follows, —

22, 28 But when Jesi 3 perceived their thoughts, he answering
onto thru). What reason ye in your hearts? Whether is easier, to
Thy .-in- be forgiven thee; or t" Bay, Rise op and walk?

That is— te otter words which le 1 r t.> otter i

(.) I ■ Hark ii. 5. (:/) Bt Matth. si. U.

v.]

on st. luke's gospel. 445

which are meant to disturb the visible course of Nature ? — Our Lord does not com-
pare the acts themselves : but the safety of claiming the power to perform them.
The Reader is referred to the notes on St. Mark's Gospel, — ii. 8 and 9.

24 But that ye may know that the Son of Man hath power upon
Earth to forgive sins, (He said unto the sick of the palsy,) I say unto
thee, Arise, and take up thy couch, and go into thine house.

Because it is easier to deliver a saying, than to perform a miracle, our Lord pro-
ceeds to exhibit a stupendous act of Almighty Power. See the notes on St. Mark
ii. 10 and 11.

25 And immediately he rose up before them, and took up that
whereon he lay, and departed to his own house, glorifying God.

"Well had it been prophesied of the days of Messiah, — " Strengthen ye the weak
hands, and confirm the feeble knees \"{h) .... See the note on St. Mark ii. 12.

" That whereon he lay :" — for it was a poor couch, or pallet, and could hardly be
called "abed." — He departed in the direction of his home; but the crowd was
excessive, — see ver. 19. The wondering assembly must therefore have fallen back,
and made way for the man : fear helping to do what amazement would hardly have
effected. For the Evangelist proceeds, —

26 And they were all amazed, and they glorified God, and were
filled with fear, saying, We have seen strange things to-day.

27, 28 And after these things He went forth, and saw a publican,
named Levi, sitting at the receipt of custom : and He said unto him,
Follow Me. And he left all, rose up, and followed Him.

The remarks which have been already made on the call of Levi, (that is, of St.
Matthew.) in St. Mark's Gospel, — chap. ii. 14, — are so entirely applicable to this
place, that the Reader may be simply referred thither.

Like St. Mark, the present Evangelist hastens on to give an account of the great
feast which St. Matthew made, long after, to his Divine Master. See the note above
referred to ; and compare the note on St. Matthew ix. 9.

29 And Levi made Him a great feast in his own house : and there
was a great company of Publicans and of others that sat down with
them.

30 But their Scribes and Pharisees murmured against His Disciples,
saying, Why do ye eat and drink with Publicans and Sinners ?

Concerning the Scribes, see the note on St. Mark iii. 22 : and concerning the
" Publicans and Sinners," see the note on St. Mark ii. 15.

31, 32 And Jesus answering said unto them, They that are whole
need not a Physician ; but they that are sick. I came not to call the
righteous, but sinners to repentance.

See the notes on St. Mark ii. 17.

" A great encouragement to siimers," writes Leighton, " but no encouragement
at all to sin. He came to call sinners ; but it was to call them to Repe?itance. If
thou bring thy sins to Jesus Christ, as thy malady and misery, to be cured of
them, and delivered from them, — it is well : but to come with them as thy beloved
darlings and delight, thinking still to retain them, and to receive Him, thou mis-
takest Him grossly, and miserably deludest thyself. The great Redemption He
wrought, was, to separate our hearts and Sin. We know Him not, if we take it
otherwise. And this says clearly, that though He hath come to us, and stretched
forth His hands long among us, — few of us are come to Him. Oh, how few have
trod on the neck of their beloved sin to come to Jesus Christ !"

(h) Isaiah xxxv. 3.

440 A n.AIN OOMMBHTABI [CHAP.

Ami they said anto Him, Why do the disci] !'rcn,

and make prayers, and likewise the disciple* of the Pharisees; but
Thine eat and drink '.'

- M i . ii. L8.

84, ;: "' And He Baid unto them, I make the children of

bride-chamber fast, while the Bridegroom i- with them? lint the
will come, when the Bridegroom shall be taken away from them,
then shall they last in those da;

The read ir lb referred to the notes on St. Mark ii 19, 20 ; and should tab- i
that these words <>t' the "Bridegroom" himself, explain why Holy Church d
her children to interrupt their Lent Fast on Sundays; and to regard all Sui
and Saints' Days in the fear, b Feasts. "The children of the Bride-chai

• fast when the Bridegi m is presented to their notice; either in BU

Person, or glorified in the persons of UN Saint-.

And He spake also a parable unto them ; No man putteth a piece
of a new garment upon nn old; if otherwise, then both the new maketh
a rent, and the piece that was taken out of the new agreeth not with
the old.

On these words, Borne remark- have been already offered in the note on St Mark
ii. 21.
Two inconveniences are specified : tie' new piece causetha rent in the old gar-

ment; ami tl Id garment disliketh the new piece. Baring thus briefly pointed

(nit tie- twofold evil which would have resulted from the course which tin' Scribes
- recommended, our Blessed Loan proceeds t" discourse of thai evil,
: in detail: showing, by two several examples, the mischief of imparl

li otrines to men who hail been brought up in an entirely difl
I II.- Bhows thi' fatal consequence of Buoh a proceeding.

:;7, 38 And no man putteth new wine into old bottl the new

will burst the bottles, and be spilled, and the bottlee .-ball perish.
But new wine must be put into new bottles; and both are preserved.

reader is again referred to tin- notes on St. Mark's Gospel — ii. 2

ng, which i- peculiar t" St Luke, mir Loan Bhows tin' reluc-
tance with which men, accustomed t<> the Ceremonial Law, would receive th
; the Kingdom.

89 No man also having drunk old wine straightway desireth new:
fur he saith, The old is better.

(fur l. Discourse maj be Baid to conclude with three Bhorl P £
tie' first words of \ erse 36. It i- worth obsen ing that Doctrim is here again com-
hut whereas, in the former instance, of hastily im-
parting new Truths to persona nut duly prepared to r> ive them, waa spoken of —

a danger w bicb arises oul "I tin' nature of tin' thing imparted : in thi- place, allu-
sion i- made to the obstach presented by tin- deceiver himself. Men, bj the very
f their constitution, prefer that which i j old to that which i- new v
natural disposition of Hi- creatures, H< • ••knew what was in Man," is
ilemn ami instructive appeal.
Thi-, therefore, furnishes another r<-:'>-"n for tie arse which our

i ■ wards hi- disciples; ami of which we h

in the Gospels. Thus, in the last da; I II ministry, he could i

onto you, but ye cannot bear them no v lie I . :

of "earthly things," and men "believed not:" how should thi lie told

them of " heavenly things 1 II< spake the ¥ the people, therefore, at all

"' if - X0

St. John x'.i. LI (it) Bt Julin iii U. (/) St. Mark Lv.

vi.] on st. luke's gospel. 447

As the Master had acted, so did the Disciple. St. Paul was careful to feed the
Christians of Corinth "with milk, and not with meat," — because he found them
" not able to bear it."(m) Towards his Hebrew converts, he was content to pursue
the like course ; remarking that " strong meat belongeth to them that are of full
age. "('0 And doubtless these hints have been set on eternal record for our guidance
in the communication of Divine Truth.

THE PRAYER.

Almighty and everlasting God, give unto us the increase of Faith,
Hope, and Charity; and, that we may obtain that which Thou dost
promise, make us to love that which Thou dost command; through
Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

CHAPTER VI,

1 Christ rcprovetli the Pharisees' blindness about tlie observation of the Sabbath, by
Scripture, Reason, and Miracle. 13 Chooseth Twelve Ajjostles. 17 Hcaleth the
diseased. 20 Preacheth to His Disciples before the people, of blessings and curses.
27 How we must love our enemies. 46 And join the obedience of good ivories to the
hearing of the Word: lest in the evil day of temptation we fall, like an house built
upon the face of the earth, ivithout any foundation.

1 And it came to pass on the second Sabbath after the first,

The particular Sabbath which St. Luke here speaks of, is not known : but it was
one which fell somewhere about the Passover season — for, (as we see,) the corn was
ripe. See the note on St. Mark ii. 23. It came to pass at such a time,

2 that He went through the corn-fields ; and His Disciples plucked
the ears of corn, and did cat, rubbing them in their hands. And cer-
tain of the Pharisees said unto them, Why do ye that which is not law-
ful to do on the Sabbath days ?

3 And Jesus answering them said,

See how kindly he takes their part — answering their enemies for them ! He is
ever thus towards those who put their trust in him: " hiding them privily by His
presence from the provoking of all men ; keeping them secretly in His Tabernacle
from the strife of tongues. "(a) He said, —

4, 5 Have ye not read so much as this, what David did, when him-

(m) 1 Cor. iii. 12. («) Heb. v. 12, 13, 14. (a) Psalm xxxi. 22.

448 A PLAIN < "MMi:.\ . [CHIP.

Belfwae an hungered, and they which were with him; hon I into

tin- Souse of < ton, and did take and tat tin- show-bread, and gave also

to them that that were with him; which it i- li"t lawful to tat bi

met Ami Be Bald unto them, that The Bon of Man is
Lord also of the Sabbath.

The read '-'1 to the i Mark i aoerning this •

•n. A few mor< II 1,.' round in the corresponding ]

Mutt! — :ii. 1 to B. A mighty miracle m

6, 7 Ami it came to pass also on another Sabbath, thai II
into the Synagogue ami taught: ami there waa a man whose right band
withered. Ami the Scribes and Pharisi bed Him, whether

he would heal on the Sabbath day; that they might find an accusation

llim.

See tii'' notes on St. .Mark iii. 1 ami -2. — St. Matthew here supplies what St. Luke
i.init-. S St. Matthew -\ii. 11 ami 12, with tin- notes thereon.

S, '• , , 10, 11 But He knew their thoughts, ami said to the man which

had the withered hand. Rise np, and Btand forth in the mid.-t. Ami

he arose and Btood forth. Then .-aid Jesus unto them, I will ask you

one thing: Is it law fid <m the Sabbath days to do good, or to do evil '.'

re life, or to destroy itf And looking round about upon them

all. He -aid unto the man. Stretch forth thy hand. And he did 80 :
and his hand was restored whole as the Other. And they were filled

with madness; and communed one with another what they might do to
It most Buffic !'•'• more to refer the reader to the notes on St. Mark iii. •"■,

12 And it came to pa-- in those day-, that He wenl out into a. moun-
tain to play: and continued all night in prayer to GOD,

Compare this remarkable disclosure with whal St. Mark says chap. i. vi
ami take notice that on that occasion, our Divine Master prepared bimself by pro-
1 Prayer for His First great Ministerial Jour the solemn

Tall of Hi- Twelve Apostles, which waa to take plan- mi the morrow — a- it U

in the next verse How are we taught hereby, in what manner to com-

any work of piety — to prepare ourselves for anj great undertak
h'.w severe a rebuke is it to our snort ami lifeless devotii as, thus to r<
who " oontinuod all night in prayer to God 1" Compari St. Matthew

\i\. -■'■. or St. Mark \ i. 16.

Bui 'li'l the Son of Qon require the aid and rapport of Prayer? This B

flatting the question is apt to mislead ns: for thereby the attention is called away
rem the i ll/' w hi.h. Hi'

I ritfa the Fathxr; and thi Himself the Source of all Spiritual

th. Bat doubtless, as the Son of Man,- as rm tVoro " made flet

for supplies of ( oar.', and obtained them in answer to Hi- pra
Oonsidi i ii.42, 14 ; and St. Matthew xxvii. 46, Womaj rlook

the entire reality of OUT LoRO'l Human Nature: never ith of

ll ' o.i, he. 1. 1, iw to -how ourselves forgetful of the Truth of Hi- Manho
we think i i His [lumanity, let us conceive of ii as of the sinless llumani
' Jl : and a e shall not err.
[fany do prefer, in the prayers of Christ, the H . to behold ■ living

■ i, and per] etunl Reproof to ourael res, His Memb For

our imitation, doubtli it part, these mysterious ternal

record. Bui our I
u|>. as well rather than for Bis otwi.

Luke It. ii.

VI.]

ON ST. LUKE'S GOSPEL. 449

13 And when it was day, He called unto Sim His Disciples : and
of them He chose Twelve, whom also he named Apostles :

"He chose :" — but in Acts x. 41, the Apostles are said to have been " chosen by
God." And, — " He called:" — but in St. John xvii. 6, 9, 12, they are said to have
been given to Him by the FATHER. Is it not true, that after Guidance has been
effectually sought by earnest Prayer to God, the work on which we are about to
engage becomes not ours, but His.

" Twelve," — for the reason mentioned in the first note on St. Mark iii. 14. These
"He ordained," (St. Mark says) "that He might send them forth to preach."(c)
Hence their title of "Apostle," — a word which denotes "One sent forth ;" and is
translated Messenger in Philippians ii. 25. — Compare Haggai i. 13, and Malachi ii. 7.

The successors of the Apostles are called Bishops ; and those titles were at first
indifferently used, as appears by a comparison of Philippians ii. 25 with 1 Timothy
iii. 1 ; but, in process of time, the term " Apostles" became restricted to the Twelve.
Let it be noted however that these great Ambassadors of Christ had a special dig-
nity of their own: — (1st.) as being immediately called by Christ Himself: — (2ndly)
as being infallibly guided: — (3rdly) as being universally charged; (that is, having a
general commission to do all things pertaining to the Ministry of Salvation, in all
places, and towards all persons:) — (4thly) as being miracidously gifted with the
skill of speaking all languages, — with the knowledge of all secrets, — with the power
of confirming their doctrine by signs and miracles, — and of imparting the like
spiritual gifts to others by the Imposition of their hands. In all these respects,
they had not, and could not have, Successors. Descent, (or, as it is called, Succes-
sion,) supplies in the present day the place of the first ; their own Writings, of the
second: a several See, of the third: Schools and Universities, of the last.

But then, besides these special and peculiar Gifts, they had a solemn Office;
namely, they were Church Governors, appointed to order and settle the affairs of
Christ's Spiritual Kingdom ; and therein, (beside the preaching of the Gospel and
baptizing, common to them with other Ministers,) to ordain a succession of the
great Governors of the Church. In this respect, (in respect of their Office, namely,)
they had, — they must needs have had, — Successors ; and to those Successors we
give the name of Bishops.

14, 15, 16 Simon, (whom He also named Peter,) and Andrew his
brother, James and John, Philip and Bartholomew, Matthew and
Thomas, James the son of Alphaeus, and Simon called Zelotes, and
Judas the brother of James, and Judas Iscariot, which also was the
traitor.

These twelve great names will be found remarked upon, at some length, in the
notes on St. Mark's Gospel, — iii. 16 to 19: whither the Reader is referred. —
" Surely," (says Leighton,) " of all that ever lived on earth, the most blessed was
this haudful and small company which our Lord chose for His constant attendants,
— to see His Divine Miracles, — to enjoy His sweetest society, — and to hear His
Divine Doctrine. What a holy flame of Love must have burned in their hearts, —
who were always so near the Sun of Righteousness \"

17 And He came down with them, and stood in the plain,

No*- "the plain," but "a plain (that is, a level) spot:" for our Lord was upon a
Mountain. What follows, is St. Luke's shorter version of the " Sermon on the
Mount," (as the Discourse in St. Matthew v. vi. and vii. is called:) and this is much
to be noted, for it reminds us that the statements in St. Matthew and St. Luke are
to be attentively compared throughout.

18, 19 and the company of His Disciples, and a great multitude of
people out of all Judaea and Jerusalem, and from the sea coast of Tyre
and Siclon, which came to hear Him, and to be healed of their diseases ;
and they that were vexed with unclean spirits: and they were healed.

450 A h.un COMMXHTAB1 [< HAP.

And the whole multitude soughl ; i Him: for there went virtue

out of Him, ami healed them all.

verse 17 tbe Reader may consult
the o : VI liew i\. - 1. 25 : and St Mark i tbe statement in ver.

I i- requested to read tbe a c r.31. The Sermon on the Mount

d up His eyes on Hi Di ciples, and said, Blessed o«
ye i r: for your's is the Kingdom of God.

w d it pointed onl that since, in St. Matthew, (t, 3,) we find
•■ B re the poor in mint," — not Povertj of Estate, but L Heart)

re the promise of a Blessing.
B ' let no one 1"' bo cruel as to rob the \ rman of his Inheritance, (as tbii

?;- promise may be called,) by Beeking thus to explain it away. "1 1 1 • • 1 < 1 it
or a most infallible rule, in Expositions of Sacred Scripture," (says Hooker,) "that
a literal construction will Btand, the furthest from the letter is commonlj the
Now, "a literal construction will Btand" hert .• — is in Btrict keeping with
our 1. I Bayings; (as, St Luke xviii. 24, 2 - thew xix.

23,24;)— and is required by what follows in yer. 24, It is nol hard to Bee how con-
Holiness is a Lowly Estate; bow many belps it affords to the pracl
i : from bow many snares it defends a man. Then only are the "p
their possessions not "blessed," when they are covetous in their dispositions: not
"rich in Faith." Bui Poverty cheerfully submitted to and patiently endu
doubtless full of Blessedness, —will certainly inherit a blessing. Consider, by all
iie-i. . li>: and St. Jane-- ii. ',, — where- there seems to be B i

th present pis 3 Iso the note i a St. Matt. \. 3.

21 Bl< ye that hunger now: for ye Bhall be filled.

llent living Writer supposes thai among the multitude addressed by oar
l. • there maj bave been many who were actually suffering Hunger, in i
qaence of their long attendance on His footsteps: and he refers to St. Mattb. xiv.

■id xv. 32. So thai the paraphrase of our Loan's words would run thi
• B ■ --•■ 1 are ye, whose Hunger and Thirst after Righteousness leads you patiently

lore bodilj Hui r, while you follow Me: for ye Bhall be filled with '
from 1 1 '/)

Blessed are ye that weep now: for ye Bhall laugh.

if Heaven," says an anoienl Bishop, "B . : the

Soint which, in human estimation, is reckoned the extre
i.hn x\i. 20 to 22. Of our Blessed Loan ii is stated twice, thai He hi
and twice, thai He thirsted ;(/") three times ii is Baid that He " wept"($r) 1:
recorded thai He mil* </.

22 Blessed are ye, when men Bhall hate you, and when they shall

yonfrom their company, and Bhall repr< t, and east out

your namo as evil, for the Bon of Man's Bake.

i ;"■ that is, from their Religious Assemblies; as in St. John ix.

--. See especially St John x\ i . 2.

• ) , the name of "C ristian."(k) v » St Matthen riv. 9.

— Si. Peter, (who heard our Loan pronounce tbe words in the text,) allu

them in hi i -t Epistle:- iv. 1 1, and 16. So also i

in \er. 7 "i bis second chapter; when his previous allusion to St L vi. 20,

(aire i . asidered.

28 B ; in that day, and leap for }^y : f Id, your

ii . :.

■

. 20.

VI.]

ON ST. LUKE'S GOSPEL. 451

reward is great in Heaven : for in the like manner did their fathers unto
the Prophets.

24 But woe unto you that are rich !

It is obvious that Poverty and Riches, in the literal sense of those words, are here
spoken of: see above, on ver. 20. And consider St. Mark x. 23, 24: and St. James
v. 1. But our Lord does not, of course, denounce "Woe" on persons simply
because they are rich, (as He denounces it on the Pharisees, in St. Matthew xxiii.
13 to 16.) Nor does He denounce looe, at all ; but rather says, " Alas! for you that
are rich :" (which is the force of " Woe" in St. Matthew xxiv. 19 ;)

for ye have received your consolation.

"For ye that, trusting in your riches, and accounting them sufficient for your
Happiness, neglect the spiritual treasures which I offer you, — may be assured that
you have received all your enjoyment in this world, and have no ground for expect-
ing any in the world to come." Verses 22 and 23 may be compared with St. Mat-
thew v. 11, 12 ; where see the notes. In connection with verse 24, recollect the
words of Abraham addressed to Lazarus, — St. Luke xvi. 25.

25 Woe unto you that are full ! for ye shall hunger.

"For ye that are full of earthly good things, are in imminent peril of not desiring
anything better. And all such shall one day find the want of both heavenly and
earthly goods."

The Parable of Lazarus is again brought to our remembrance by these solemn
sayings. Consider how the Rich Man, who had " fared sumptuously every day,"
being in torments, prayed that a drop of water might be sent to " cool his
tongue !"(&)

Woe unto you that laugh now ! for ye shall mourn and weep.

" Alas ; for as many of you as spend all your lives in careless and ungodly mirth.
For the portion of all such is the place of torment."

26 Woe unto you, when all men shall speak well of you ! for so did
their fathers to the false prophets.

Thus "AVoe" has been four times denounced, — corresponding with the four pro-
clamations of " Blessed" which preceded. What was " said to them of old time,"
— and which St. Matthew gives next, (v. 21 to 43,) — is in a great measure sup-
pressed by St. Luke : with reference however to all that he omits, he proceeds with
the word " But :"

27, 28 But I say unto you which hear, Love your enemies, do good
to them which hate you, bless them that curse you, and pray for them
which despitefully use you.

In conformity with which precept of her Lord, the Church, in her liturgy, directs
us to pray for " our enemies, persecutors and slanderers." Compare the words of
the text, with St. Matthew v. 44, and see the note there.

We are not to think that the Prophets, — as David, throughout the Book of Psalms,
— violate the spirit of this precept. Their imprecations are against GOD'S ene-
mies ; not against their own. Those awful words in Psalm cix., for instance, which
shock the carnal ear, (verses 6 to 13,) prove to have been words "which the Holt
Ghost by the mouth of David, spake concerning Judas, which ivas guide to them that
took Jesus."(7) If, therefore, David " devoteth his enemies to destruction," (as it
is said in the heading of Psalm lxix,) — he is found, throughout, to speak prophet-
ically, in the person of Christ. (m) Or again, they are his own enemies, only be-
cause they are the enemies of God, and His Church : whether " flesh and blood,"(n)
— (as when David prays to be delivered " out of the hand of the wicked, out of the

(7c) St. Luke xvi. 24. (1) Acts i. 16 : and see ver. 20.

(to) Compare verse 4 of that Psalm, with. St. John xv. 25 . — verse 9, with St. John ii. 17,
and Komans xv. 3 : — ver. 21, with St. John xix. 29 : — ver. 25, with Acts i. 20.

(n) Ephes. vi. 12.

452 a ri.u.N [c.

haml ••ft:. ! ■

11.

".1 A n • 1 unto 1 1 i in that Bmiteth tbee on thi fler

•In- other; and him that taketh away thy oloak, forbid not *
t/n/ coat also. Give to every man that asketh of thee; anil of him that
ask ih* n> not again. And ;i- ye would that men
shouM do t" you, 'i" ye alto t-. them lik<

■ 1 1., tin- 1
\. 11 ami in. Compare verse 31 with St. M itthew \ii. 12, and see the note there.

if ye 1"'-'- them which love you, what thank 1
for Binners also love those that love them. Ami if ye do good t>.
which '1" ^ r u'nl to you, what thank have ye? for sinners also
the .-line Ami if ye lend t" them of whom ye hope t" . what

thank have ye? for sinners also lend t'> Binners, to receive as much
again.

W mpared with St. Matthew v. l«',, 47, — where see the

St. Matthew, instead of"sinnera," Bays "Publicans;" concerning whom
■ oote "ii St Mark ii. L5. — "What thank have ye?" (for which St. Mat-
What reword have ye?") signifies — What favor can y<
the hands of < Ion?

35, 36 But love ye your enemies, and '1" ;_"><m1. and lend, hoping for
nothing again; and your reward Bhall be great, and ye Bhall be the
Children of the Highest: for He is kind unto the unthankful and to
the evil. Be ye therefore merciful. a- your Father also is merciful.

These i erses are illustrated by St. Matthew v. 1 1. 45 ami I s ; and should be com-
pared with them.

It will in- perceived that tin- entire contents of St. Matthew vi. are omitted in
this part of St Luke's G It 9 Luke intended to supply thi

1 1 • _r — which x '. Matthew there records, later, — when tin- Bame Divine S
i tli<' self-came sayings, or tin- like of them. This method "1' the I

jpel Treasury, and i- full of instruotioo and delight

37, 38 Judge not, ami ye Bhall nol he judged : condemn not, an
shall oot I"' condemned: forgive, ami ye Bhall he forgiven: give, ami
it Bhall he given onto you; good measure, pressed down, and Bhaken
. and running over, -hall men give into your bosom. For with
the Bame measure that ye mete withal, it shall he measured t-
tin.

i apare verses •'•7 and 38 with St. Matthew vii 1 ami 2; (where see the n
bserve how useful tin- later Gospel is in completing thi the earlier

P.nt our Lord does not say "ahali men git II -hall

c\\m i," probably signify only "shall 1"' given:" jc a St.

I imIioiI, — " shall be required." . . . Where the vest is largi

! i: 'in may lie carried in the bosom. See Psalm Ixxix. L2,

. in And He Bpake a parable unto them, Can the blind !< td
blind? shall they oot both fall into the ditch? Tie' Disciple is not

;

1 in the Disciple thai
i,-, thi M Strictly to reeembli ciple.

: ath. r. 48.

vi.] on st. luke's gospel. 453

But besides this, — No keenness of spiritual discernment can be looked for in the
blind. Whence it follows, —

41 And why beholdest thou the mote that is in thy Brother's eye,
but perceivest not the beam that is in thine own eye?

Consider the conduct of Judah, when he passed sentence on Tamar, — Genesis
xxxviii. 24: and, still more remarkably, of David, when " Nathan's parable of the
ewe lamb caused him to be his own judge."(g) How many men come under the
censure of the present passage !

Take notice in how marked a manner Sin is here (verses 39 to 42,) spoken of as
something which blinds the eye ; and blocks up the door at which Knowledge
chiefly enters. Surely an apt figure! since To see GOD, is the blessing promised
to " the pure in heart :"(r) while correct spiritual discernment is often spoken of as
the privilege of the Just.(s) Little sins are motes, — which slightly impair the fac-
ulty of vision : great sins are beams, — which entirely destroy it. lie therefore that
lives in Sin walks in Darkness. Consider the constancy of the Sacred Imagerv, by
a reference to such places as the following, — St. Matthew vi. 22, 23, (where see the
notes;) xv. 14: St, John iii. 19, 20: ix. 39 to 41 : 2 Cor. iv. 4: 2 St. Peter i. 9: 1
St. John ii. 9 and 11, &c.

42 Either how canst thou say to thy Brother, Brother, let me pull
out the mote that is in thine eye, when thou thyself beholdest not the
beam that is in thine own eye? Thou hypocrite, cast out first the beam
out of thine own eye, and then shalt thou see clearly to pull out the
mote that is in thy brother's eye.

The Reader is requested to read the remarks already offered on this verse, in the
notes on St. Matthew vii. 5. Our Lord is showing that he " is not a good man
who, although he reproves others for their faults, does bad actions himself." He
proceeds, therefore, to say, — " For there is no good tree which bringeth forth bad
fruit :' ; or, as it is here rendered, —

43, 44, 45 For a good tree bringeth not forth corrupt fruit ; neither
doth a corrupt tree bring forth good fruit. For every tree is known
by his own fruit. For of thorns men do not gather figs, nor of a bram-
ble-bush gather they grapes. A good man out of the good treasure of
his heart bringeth forth that which is good ; and an evil man out of the
evil treasure of his heart bringeth forth that which is evil : for of the
abundance of the heart his mouth speaketh.

46 And why call ye Me, Lord, Lord, and do not the things which
I say?

For if God be our absolute Lord, — we, His vassals, — He has a right to require
our service : we are bound to do what He commands. To cry, " Lord, Lord," —
and not " to do the things which He says," — is to deny, even while we confess
Him.

Concerning verses 43 and 44, see the notes on St. Matthew vii. 18 and 16. Verse
45 recurs in St. Matthew xii. 35. Compare verse 46 with St. Matthew vii. 21, —
and see the notes there.

47, 48 Whosoever cometh to Me, and heareth My sayings, and doeth
them, I will show you to whom he is like : he is like a man which built
an house, and digged deep, and laid the foundation on a rock : and
when the flood arose, the stream beat vehemently upon that house, and
could not shake it : for it was founded upon a rock.

49 But he that heareth, and doeth not, is like a man that without

(<?) 2 Sam. xii. See the heading of that Chapter.

lr) St. Matth. v. 8,— with which compare 1 St. John iii. 2, 3.

(«) St. John vii. 17- Psalm xix. 8. Ecclesiasticus xxi. 11.

45 1 A plain COMXKH i [chap.

radation built an house upon the earth ; which the stream

did br.nt vehemently, and immediately it fell ; and the ruin of that

l atwardly.

B fair to view. The differ -. in the foundation on which

I tivclv built ; — the one, piled up on tin- soft and yielding earth, '>r

rather on the shifting and unsteady sand; (which .'all-,) tho

other, based on the Bolid rook.

eding verses have 1 n disc ngth in tl

'. , — vii. 24to 27, — that it shall sull ler ) .:i.-k to the

pel. But it may be worth pointing "ut that the short cl
i ■ St. Luke, — " and digged i^ee singular illustration from what

i this day, in Palestine. A recent traveller, describing I
ne in which he Lode Nazareth, says, that the owner, " in order to lay

the foundations, had 'hi;; down to the Bolid rock,— as is usual throughout thi
m, to th depth of thirty f(
And tliu- ends the "Sermon on the .Mount:" — for a Bhort review of which, the
reader is referred to the notes on St. Matthew vii. 27. "Others m tale, M

exclaims pious Leighton, "but this Sermon, never so often read over, is always
new. Oh, how full of Divine Doctrine! Bow plain, and yet how high and excel-
lent; delighting the soul, as a bright day, — clear all along I *'ur Saviour
with that great point which all are concerned in, and all naturally someway desir-
ous to know. — tin' Doctrine of Blessedness : and tin- rest of His Disc lurse follows
nut the same argument, directing the way to Happiness in the g Parity,

THE PRAYER.

Louk we pray Thee that Thy Grace may always prevent and follow
us, and make as continually to be given to all good works ; through

i - < 'iiui-t our Lord. Amen.

I 11 A l'T V. i; V J I

1 en Faith in the (

10 Hcaleth '.11 Ra\

■ II
24 to the people what opinion II >ainst

th* J

i I! ttain-

■

1 \nw when He had ended all lli< sayingi in the audience of the

. II.- i !,•• r. d into < lapernaum.

Thi - mon in the Mount,'' eontained in the preceding Chapter.

VII.]

on st. luke's gospel. 455

The reader is referred to the note on St. Matthew viii. 1, and the beginning of the
note on verse 2.

2 And a certain Centurion's servant, who was dear unto him, was
sick, and ready to die.

The narrative which follows, is to be compared carefully, throughout, with the
corresponding narrative in St. Matthew's Gospel, — viii. 5 to 13. It will be seen,
first of all, that the notice of the love which the Roman Soldier bore towards his
Slave is peculiar to this Gospel.

The Centurion was a Proselyte to the Jewish Religion. The Religion of Heathen
Rome had failed, (as well it might!) to supply the wants of such a spirit as his.
He had been guided to embrace the purest system of all which existed in his day ;
and " the Father of Mercies and God of all comfort" (a) left him not without further
light ; but first guided him to the knowledge, and now brought him into the very
presence of Him, who is the Light Itself.

The Centurion's Servant was "ready to die;" the daughter of Jairus was just
dead: (6) the widow of Nain's Son was on the way to burial :(c) Lazarus had been
lying in the grave four days.(d) Almighty Power is no less required to dispel the
beginnings of Illness, than to raise a dead corpse to life.

3 And when he heard of Jesus, he sent unto Him the Elders of the
Jews, beseeching Him that He would come and heal his Servant.

The Roman Centurion sent Jewish Elders to Christ, probably because he con-
ceived that it would be more acceptable to Him to be addressed by persons of His
own Nation ; as well as a more respectful proceeding to approach One of such sur-
passing sanctity through the Ministers of Religion. As for coming in person, — he
stood so low in his own estimation, that he thought himself unworthy to draw near.
A further explanation why his choice may have fallen on these particular persons
is supplied by the circumstance stated in the 5th verse ; namely, because he had
himself built the Synagogue of Capernaum, in which they probably ministered.

4, 5 And when they came to Jesus, they besought Him instantly,
saying, That he was worthy for whom He should do this : For he loveth
our Nation, and he hath built us a Synagogue.

It is marvellous how much of individual character is revealed by these short Bible
narratives. Not only had the Centurion a " Faith which could move mountains,"
but a burning Love was his also. It was not to obtain his own, but his Servant's
cure, — the cure of a sick Slave, — that he had laboriously contrived this solemn em-
bassy of Jewish Elders ; and in the next verse, we shall find that he further sent to
Christ a deputation of his "friends." We scarcely need the assurance (in ver. 2)
that the Centurion loved the servant for whom he was prepared to do so much ! It
further appears that he had proved the strength of his love towards the Jewish peo-
ple by the munificent act recorded in verse 5. And these two incidents put to-
gether, remind us that the Centurion was one of those noble hearts which look out
beyond themselves, for opportunities of Liberality : or, (if you will,) one of those
consistent characters, which, in their zeal to confer a public benefit, do not over-
look the more sacred claims of their own household.

Observe, then, that here was no dead principle, but a living Faith. This man
was not one of those who delight in watching their own feelings, and in describing
and talking about them. His whole care was to act up to the light which he enjoy-
ed. He showed his Faith by his Works : and take notice, that " Faith, if it have
not Works, is dead, being alone."(e)

He was, besides, a man of most deep Humility : see the first note on verse 6; and
observe the language of that, as well as the ensuing verse.

6 Then Jesus went with them. And when He was now not far
from the house, the Centurion sent friends to Him, saying unto Him,
Lord, trouble not Thyself:

[a] 2 Cor. i. 3. (6) St. Matthew ix. 18. (c) See below, ver. 12.

(d) St. John xi. 39. (e) St. James ii. 17, 18.

456 n:\r.\uv [CHAP.

Tli ; which the Soldier sent to CnsisT, when be beheld

- "not far from the bouse.' Si N ' itthew further reveals the

fu] circumstance that the < !enturion could not endure the doubt "f what r 1 1 i ^ 1 1 1

I deputation ; but hastened forth from his <l'»>r to deliver

the message with his own lips ! .... At Brat he sent " the Elders of the J<

She "-''lit friends: at last, he came him ' \ of undesert — a

his own unworthiness, ("neither thought I myself worthy t-
•.a- what had delayed hi- personal approach bo But the

coldness of hi- Belf-diatrust thawed away at last, under the ardour of l
Zeal, and Lore: for his Faith, (which burned the brighter as the I ap-

hed his dwelling,) had l"iiu r since reminded him that he had ashed an
ry favour in requesting thai our Lord would " eotm and heal bis sen ant.
"Trouble not Thyself,' 1 he therefore says:

7 for I am not worthy thai Thou shouldest enter under my r
wherefore neither thoughl 1 myself worthy to come onto Thee: bat
Bay in a word, and my Servant shall be healed.

The Centurion desired to hear words like tlm-" which the Bame Great Physician
had addressed Borne time before t" the father of a child who lay Bick in the Bame
city, "Go thy way-, thy son 1 i \ ■ 1 1 1 . S the first note on St. Matt.

Himself a Boldier, he did but wish to hear "the word of command," i
uttered : ■ ■■ i lain as to what must be the consequence.

! 'or I also am a man set onder authority, having under me sold'
and 1 say unto one, ( i". and he goeth; and to another, Oome, and he
! i ; and to my Servant, !><> this, and he doeth it.

■ understanding of these Words, Bee the note on St. Matthew viii. 9.

The i ' • • 1 1 1 1 1 r i < • 1 1 knew that Diseases were a!!, in likr manner, subject to tin mand

of Him with whom He spoke. So indeed they are; and "so also," Bays Leighton,
" He rebukes the D F the S ul, and they are gone. Oh, if we did but be-

this, and put llitii t<> it ! For Faith doth, in a manner,' command Him, — as
He •! th all other thin

1 Centurion's Faith, with that of another Gentile Soldier, — Naaman

the 8j rian : 2 Kings \. II. 1~

9 When Jesi a heard these things, Tie marvelled at him, and turned
Him about, and said unto the people that followed Him,

In this way the Evangelists, every now and then, lift t h<> curtain slightly from

they describe. 5Tou discover, fi i these last words, what it was which

the Centurion saw "not far from the house,"— and which Induced him to leave the
chamber where his servant laya-dying: — our Saviour drew near, attended, not
only i>\ the Elders of the Jews, but also by a multitude of persons. It was, in fact,

of that mighty i ipany, which, after the Sermon on the Mount, followed

our Loan down the mountain >i<lr. See St Matthew \iii- 1.

Concern te nt that onr Swim b "marvell

St "^I :itt . viii. 10. See also St Mark iii. •">, and St Luke viii.

I%ay onto you, I have no1 found bo greal Faith, no, nol in [srael.

A R v. r, then, was the first-fruits of the Gentile world I— Q nsider that
M i ia, and David were warrior-saints in the < lent: twi I
turior C irnelius of Cicsareav Centurion,) (i)
and Prayer, in the New. And observe that onr I t t require the Centu-
rion oi ' 'k>' his calling. Th< ! ~ honourable in
■ : and " o devout Boldior"(ifc) m
- . Luke iii. I l.

(/) St Loin mi. ::.

(/.) Comp i- U. '7 sad 19.

(■') \ ■ \. i. \k) I

VII.]

ON ST. LUKE'S GOSPEL. 457

10 And they that were sent, returning to the house, found the Ser-
vant whole that had been sick.

Our Lord had said to the Centurion — " Go thy way ; and as thou hast believed,
so be it done unto thee!" This we learn from St. Matthew viii. 13. But observe,
— the Centurion did not go. He needed not " the evidence of his senses," (as the
phrase is,) that as Christ had spoken, so had it been done. He left that pitiful
method of conviction for others. " They that were sent, returned ; and found the
servant whole."

11 And it came to pass the day after,

"The day after" the healing of the Centurion's Servant; which probably took
place on, the same day as the Delivery of the Sermon on the Mount. See St. Matt,
viii. 5. Our Saviour will therefore have been journeying southward ; and when on
the confines of Galilee and Samaria, a little to the South of Mount Tabor, it will
have come to pass, —

that He went into a City called Nain ; and many of His Disciples
went with Him, and much people.

"Many of His Disciples," — "much people." It was pointed out above, (in one
of the notes on verse 9,) what multitude this was. The " Sermon on the Mount"
had been pronounced, probably, only yesterday: the concourse of persons who had
listened to it, had not therefore yet dispersed. Take notice, further, that the crowd
here described, encountered another lesser crowd, (as it is said in the next verse,)
emerging from the city-gate. It was in the presence of that vast assembly, there-
fore, that the second recorded miracle of raising the Dead took place.

The MS. Journal of a friend — recently from the Holy Land — furnishes the fol-
lowing extract. — " A few interesting spots retain names very similar to those by
which they are mentioned in Scripture. On descending the northern slope of the
little hill of Ilermon, we came to a village ; and, on incpuiring its name from one of
the natives who met us, were told it was Nein. Oh ! how the word sounded on our
ears. We knew it was Nain ; but to hear it so called by one living there, was in-
expressibly delightful .... A few poor, and for the most part roofless houses,
and a spring of clear and living water, is all that we found there.

" Here then it was that the ever Blessed One met a poor sorrowing widow, who
was following her only son to the grave. There is the road, down which no doubt
the sad and mournful company were passing. Beyond, too, may be easily traced
the path along which the Divine Saviour approached. A few graves at the lower
part of the hill still mark an ancient burying-place. . . . On this exact spot, I felt
it was, that the Lord of Life vancpiished Death Could I do other than won-
der and adore ?"

It is interesting to find that on this little village, the Christian pilgrim has had
his eye fixed from the earliest time. It was duly recognized by the Crusaders also,
when they visited the Holy Land.

Take notice how miracle is here linked on to miracle. The stupendous act of
power which follows, was wrought unsolicited — unlike the former miracle, which
was in answer to prayer. And we are thereby reminded of the mighty blessings
which many a time have overtaken ourselves, unsought — exceeding not only our
hopes, but even our very desires.

The reader will find a remark on the verse next ensuing, in the note on St. Luke
viii. 42; and in the last note on St. Matthew ix. 25. It shall be only further
pointed out in explanation of what follows, that the ancients buried their dead
outside the walls of their cities.

12 Now when He came nigh to the gate of the city, behold, there
was a dead man carried out, the only son of his mother, and she was a
widow : and much people of the city was with her.

What a picture of desolation is here given in a few words ; " A dead man — the
only son — of a widowed mother," Consider Jeremiah vi. 26: Zechariah xii. 10:
Amos viii. 10 : and the many places in Scripture where a widow's sorrow is made
the very type of grief.

458 KKHTABY [cilM-.

A I Luke

I us the Mini of her misery in a few words. The mother was a widow: with
iving children ; dot with any upon whom she might look in
; bim thai was dead. To him alone she had given suck. II'
cheerful. All thai i t.. a mother, was he

I \ ' \g m • i- said in rer. 14): "that is in the Bon

e ; just ripening into manh 1 ; just entering upon the time of marriage : the

sri,. n of hie race; the branch of successii n ; the sight of bii i the

■taffof her declining ... Doubtless, it « singularly calci

\ ; only was "much people of thecity" with her: I
it follows, —

\-\ An 1 when tin.' Lord Bai» her, He had compassion on her,

Tal ■ ■ I compassion attends the ex< Divine

power, which is to follow. See the note on St. Luke riii. 2 ,

and said onto her, Weep not.

B those words teaching us also (1"' sure) not to be BOrry, as men without |
for them "which Bleep in .Ji>r-."(0 For what was Be who Bpake, but "the Resur-
rection and the Life? (») Of whom it has been said that He shall hereafter " wij>e

away all tears '"(«)

11 And He came and touched the bier: and they that bare him
stood still.

"Life had met Death: wherefore the bier Btopped." 9 an old Arabian

I ling — " It was 1 1 • • t thus Elijah raised the widow'.- Bon — 'stretching him-

id thra ttmea:'(o) nor Elisha — when he applied mouth, eyes, and

bands, to the Bame parts of the dead:(n) i when he prayed for Tabitha.(g)

But this was Done other but '<!<'i>. who quickenetb the dead, and calletb I

- which be not, as though they were.'(r) Whence it follows," —

id, Young man, I say unto thee, Arise.

Which was also Hi- word to the daughter of Jairus : St. Mark v. 41. The youth
ing decked for burial — enclosed in do coffin, but exposed ; as is asual in the
East. Starting into life therefore, at the Divine summons, it is added, —

15 And he that was dead Bat np, and began to Bpeak. And He de-
livered him to his mother.

What words can describe such a scene as followed 1 . . . Well maj it be said oi
out Lord that " //- delivered him to his mother :"(*) for the young man had

bed, like a captive, from the hand of Death; rescued from the power of the
Grave. "The last Enemy that shall be deetroyed,"(0 already receives a death-
blow, therefore : and the Conqueror hath a riirJil to divide the Bpoil with whom
Ji ,ill.

L6 And there came a fear on all: and they glorified God, sawing,
eat Prophet is risen np among as ; ana, That < k)L bath i >
II People.

ib words are almost a <|""' ition from the Hymn called /-' 9 Luke

Take ootice that " then' came a fear on all:" traces of which feelin

le in tlie accounts of ">ir Swim u'- mira 9 Bt Luke v. 20;

8l M irk i\ . II.

17 knd this rnmonr of Him rth throughout all JndiBa, and

through >nt all the region ronnd about.

It. IS, 14 (»•) Bt John sU (» I sxt L

(r) 1 17. (•; I

VII.] ON ST. LUKE'S GOSPEL. 459

18, 19 And the disciples of John showed him of fill these things.
And John calling unto him two of his disciples sent them to Jesus,
saying, Art Thou He that should come? or look we for another?

The memorable transaction here described has been already discussed, at con-
siderable length, in the notes on St. Matthew's Gospel — xi. 3 : whither the reader
is referred. The Baptist was at this time a prisoner in Herod's castle of Machaerus.

20 When the men were come unto Him, they said, John Baptist
hath sent us unto Thee, saying, Art Thou He that should come ? or
look we for another ?

21, 22, 23 And in the same hour He cured many of their infirmities
and plagues, and of evil spirits ; and unto many that were blind He
gave sight. Then Jesus answering said unto them, Go your way, and
tell John what things ye have seen and heard; how that the blind see,
the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are
raised, to the poor the Gospel is preached. And blessed is he, whoso-
ever shall not be offended in me.

Concerning these last words, see the note on St. Matthew xi. 6.

As our Lord so often declared of men, that they should be "known by their
fruits,"{u) — so does He, in the preceding verses, and in many other places, (x) ap-
peal to his own works as the evidence of His being the Messiah.

For, " in that day," (it had been foretold by the prophet,) " shall the deaf hear
the loords of the Book, and the eyes of the blind shall see out of obscurity, and out
of darkness. The meek also," (it was added,) " shall increase their joy in the Lord,
and the poor among men shall rejoice in the Holy One of Israel." (y) Accordingly,
it was now the crowning work of all, that, " to the poor the Gospel is preached."
And, as we know, they at least, " heard Him gladly "(z) Compare what St. James
says on this subject — ii. 5. That which made this feature in our Lord's ministry
so remarkable, was the contemptuous manner in which the Jewish Doctors had been
wont to treat the humbler sort of people — as appears from St. John vii. 49 : ix. 34.
By " Poverty," however, doubtless the same thing is intended, in this, as in other
places of the Gospel; namely, that condition of heart which is usually found to be-
long to persons endued with a very slender portion of this World's goods.

The reader will find more on this subject in the note on St. Matthew xi. 5.

24, 25, 26, 27, 28 And when the messengers of John were departed,
He began to speak unto the people concerning John : What went ye
out into the wilderness for to see ? A reed shaken with the wind ?
But what went ye out for to see ? A man clothed in soft raiment ?
Behold, they which are gorgeously appareled, and live delicately, are
in kings' courts. But what went ye out for to see ? A Prophet ? Yea,
I say unto you, and much more than a Prophet. This is he, of whom
it is written, Behold, I send My Messenger before Thy face, which
shall prepare Thy way before Thee. For I say unto you, Among those
that are born of women there is not a greater Prophet than John
the Baptist : but he that is least in the Kingdom of God is greater
than he.

These verses will be found to recur in St. Matthew xi. 7 to 11; where they have
been discussed at some length. The reader is therefore referred to the notes on the
earlier Gospel. Our Saviour is here reminding the people of the reverence in
which they once held the man whose inquiry had been just recited in their ears.
It was no familiar sight which had drawn so many thousands of them into the
Wilderness : no spectacle to be found in the courts of kings, which had led them

(«) St. Matth. vii. 16, 20, &c. (x) St. John v. 36 : x 25, 38 : xiv. 11 : xv. 24, &c.

(y) Isaiah xxix. 18, 19. (z) St. Mark xii. 37.

A I'i MBHTART [l II LP.

B il they had hold ■ mighty Pro] I

dor I i them tney bad actually seen: for a gi He declare!

: born of « oman.

I tice, ilia' II'- who spake the wot : I by t 1 1 . - Prophet Bfalachi — iii.

1, .(i|i. in ver. 27,) was certainly Jehovah, the Lord of II iti •'

- Matthew iii. ."., that Christ is tin I
Baptist prepared th<- was. Chhisi is therefore Jraoi \u.

And all the people that heart] Rim, and the Publicans, justified
ng baptized with the Baptism of John.

They "justified God," that is, acknowledged Hi- Jm M iy, Trath, and
i with reference n> which, as i ir Lord di
that "Wisdom is justified of all her Children." This verse and t! pecu-
liar t" St. Luke. They have I d thought by some to contain the sayii i

Chrisi : but it is more likely that these are the words of the Evangelist. Por the
historical fact here alluded to, Bee St. Luke iii. 1-.

30 But the Pharisees and Lawyers rejected the counsel of God
against themselves, being not baptized of him.

That is, — " they frustrated the Counsel of Cm. towards themselves : made His
merciful intentions and gracious purpose, manifested in the ministry of John, of no
effect, through their Pride and Obstinacy." This is ppoken only generally, how-
ever. Many of the Pharisees had come to John for Baptism,— as appears from St

Matthew iii. 7.

81, 82, 88, 84 And the Lobd said, Whereunto then shall r liken the
men "I" this generation? and to what are they like? They are like
onto children sitting in the market-place, and calling one to another,
ami saying, We have piped unto you, and ye have not danced : we have
mourned to you, and ye have not wept. For John the Baptist came
neither eating bread nor drinking wine: and ye Bay, lie hath a devil.
Son of Man is come eating and drinking; and ye Bay, Behold a
gluttonous man, and a wine-bibber, a friend of publicans and .-inn- I

Out Loan merely means thai He did not observe Buoh I - J

and imposed upon Hi- Disciples. The foul imputations to which he therel

; Himself, are discovered from no other place of Holj Scripture, besides the
present

in,— that theSAVioi r Himself was repeatedly charged with "having a devil,*'
we know from Si. John vii. 20 : \iii. 48,52: x. 20. But in this place only is it
• irded that the same thine f His Forerunner.

I observations on the tour last verses, the Reader is referred to the -

thew >.i. 16 i" 19. John Baptist i- regarded as a type of tli«- Law, which
bt men t" Christ, and prepared Hiswaj accordingly. There were nal
which neither the Severity of the Law. m>r the Graciousnesfl of the Gospel, « -< n » 1 » 1
win over. JTel had Chri II faithful children, — His true Disciples, — under
either i on. A- il follows, — (speaking od Himself, — under the as

v. .\i,) —

B • Wisdom is justified "fall Her Children.

e, on ver. 29: also, the note on St Matthew ri. 19.
'I : I further, I itice, that I I ■•• 'li'l

nd with these words. To know what He added 5 Matthew xi

: the chapter. It will be perceived thai He concluded with o . invita-

tion to all " that labour and are heavt laden: • I aitli He, " wil

i i, and fearn of M I am meek and lowly in

heart: and ye shall and rest onto your souls. Pot Mj '•'._. burr

den i- light

[")■-■"

VII.]

on st. luke's gospel. 461

The effect of this blessed address on at least one among the multitude, — will be
discovered from the narrative which follows.

36 And one of the Pharisees desired Him that He would eat with
him. And He went into the Pharisee's house, and sat down to meat.

"One of the Pharisees" — mentioned in ver. 30, perhaps. And he may have
proffered this act of Hospitality in consequence of the intimation in ver. 34, that
the Son of Man had " come eating and drinking." His name is given in ver. 40.

A memorable transaction follows, full of affecting interest and beauty; and con-
cerning which, not a little of a controversial character has been written. Some
persons have thought that the Woman who is here related to have anointed our
Lord, was Mary the Sister of Lazarus. But this is a pure assumption ; and the
conjecture is an unfair one; for there is not the least ground for supposing that
the blessed creature of whom the Saviour declared that she had "chosen that good
part which should not be taken away from her," (6) — was at any time such an one
as is here meant by " a sinner." Others have even thought that St. Luke in this
place describes the incident which took place at Bethany, and which is described
by the other three Evangelists :(c) but that is simply impossible. Our Translators,
(as the heading of the present Chapter shows,) were of opinion that "Mary Magda-
lene," who is mentioned in the beginning of the next Chapter, was the Woman
here spoken of: concerning which conjecture, (for it is no more than a conjecture,)
all that can be said is, that it is possibly correct.

37, 38 And, behold, a "Woman in the city, which was a sinner, when
she knew that Jesus sat at meat in the Pharisee's house, brought an
alabaster box of ointment, and stood at His feet behind him weeping,

To understand how this was done, it must be borne in mind that, anciently, per-
sons reclined at meals. Placed in a recumbent posture, — their feet also resting upon
the couch or sofa whereon themselves lay, — any one desirous of approaching them
closely, would perforce stand behind them ; and might easily perform the act of
Love and Humility which is next described.

and began to wash His feet with tears, and did wipe tliem with the
hairs of her head, and kissed His feet, and anointed them with the
ointment.

The singular resemblance of the present transaction to that recorded in connec-
tion with the Supper at Bethany, immediately before the Last Passover, (d) cannot
fail to strike every Reader. Let us beware, however, of inquiring concerning it,
(with the Traitor,) — "To what purpose is this waste ?"(e) but rather rejoice in the
repeated record of an incident which cannot but be full of divine teaching, and deep
signiiicancy.

It is well said by an excellent living writer, (contrasting the two incidents,) —
"what brought this Woman with the alabaster box of ointment to Jesus, was the
earnest yearning after the forgiveness of her sin ; and she, in her deep shame and
abasement of soul before Him, presumed not to approach Him nearer than to anoint
His feet only, standing the while behind. Kissing those feet with her lips, and
wiping them with the hair of her head, she realized, as it were in an outward act,
the bidding of St. Paul, — ' as ye have yielded your members servants to Unclean-
ness, and to Iniquity unto Iniquity ; even so now yield your members servants to
Righteousness unto Holiness.' "(/) She used the " long hair," which was "a glory
to her," in order to wipe her Lord's feet ; as if confessing that our best gifts " only
find their true place, when acknowledging their subjection and doing service to
Him."

39 Now when the Pharisee which had bidden Him saw it, he spake
within himself, saying, This Man, if he were a Prophet, would have

(6) St. Luke x. 42. (c) St. Matth. xxvi. 6, 7. St. Mark xiv. 3. St. John xii. 3.

(d) See the references above, in note(c). (e) St. Matthew xxvi. 8. (/) Romans vi. 19.

A PL [< HAP.

known who and what manner of woman this h tl fch Him : for

sinner."

The discernment <>f -pi: a mark of a tru P and

- •
\ •1(0 and of the Woman ot 8amaria,(Jfc) show. <'mi-i<!

, when they bad blind-folded "ur L — 9 Matthew

Pharisee was monnurini

mI against one diseased, j ea, :it the point to die, for coming to Him
for core. Little <li'l be ad?eri to the Fact that here was :i Physician Btandii
I two diseased persons: differing, however, chiefly in thit, — that th< I

was il»'- more dangerous case of the two !

Saviour proceeds forthwith t< nvince His entertainer that II

pint. — by showing bim that Be knows " what manner of man thii i» " thai

ii -i. " The Pharisee .... \f," and yet was

— for it follow! : —

10 And - T i : — t s answering Baid unto him, Simon, I have somewhat to
Bay unto thee. And he Baith, Mael m.

U, 42 There waa a certain Creditor which had two Debtors: the
one owed five hundred pence, and the other fifty. And when they
had oothing to pay, He frankly forgave them buth. Tell me therefore,
which of them will love Him in

43 Simon answered and Baid, I Buppose that /<<, to whom H<
most. And He said onto him, Thou hast rightly judged.

[n this parabli grave and learned Bishop,)—" ; and

our .I qb; and the creditor is < !m>. The Remission of < uir sins is th<- trunk

: four debts ; and for that, we arc obliged to return <>ur i . • Frankly

I is " to forgive out of mere grace and favour."

ii bad " rightly judged," — not that be who Bins most largely, will, when

en, 1"\<- the most ; but that he who most keenly feels the burden of his guilt,
— and who therefore lias the liv< will repay

with ni"t 1"\'- the Being who removes bis burden. For it has been truly p
out that be "to whom little is forgiven,** "is not necessarily he who I
little : but he who is lacking in any strong com iction of the e
Bin : ' be w In » i- unconscious of bis need of a Sai iour. The warning therefi
eomes personal, t<> Simon: reveals him t < > himself. And here, be who reads

■ 1 pages in the right spirit, will pause t" <• insider on bow many other

Lord did the like ; showed that He was yearning after a human -mil, by
the practical and personal turn which Be :_'a\<' to His Dis< I ler, for

pie, the answer which the Lawyer obtained to bis memorable question, —
who i- my neighbour ?"(/)

In this place, accordingly, our Lord goes on to apply the parable which He had
ju-t delivered, to the case of his entertainer and the sinful Woman; \\ ho even

ild appear, waa hiding her shame by bending over II ; .i-- tin an. The

rtion of fifty t" five hundred, doubtless, in the ears <>f the I'h i
the relative position in which himself and that poor creature actual raids

God. But mi the lips of the Divine Speaker, those numbers rather n
their • >/ undesert : their respective i

11. 15, l ,; Ai 1 He turned to the Woman, and said ante Bin

thou this Woman '.' I entered into thine house, tl I Me

: M feet: but she hath washed M . and

i them with the hairs <>f her head. Th : but
this worn i time I same in hath not

VII.]

on st. luke's gospel. 463

My head with oil thou didst not anoint : but this woman hath anointed
My feet with ointment.

Take notice how He is pleased thus graciously to enumerate and dwell upon every
particular of her homage. She may have thought herself unnoticed ; certainly, un-
heeded. But no expression of her love had escaped the eyes of Him with whom she
had to do !

And the next thing which strikes us, is the want of respectful consideration with
which the Saviour had evidently been treated by this Phai'isee. Water for the
feet, was, (and to this day, is,) a common oriental attention :(m) while a Salutation
with the lips,(?i) and wherewithal to anoint the head,(o) — would, (as it seems,)
have been only becoming courtesies on an occasion like the present. All these,
however easily procurable, had been withheld : whereas the feet, washed at the
fountain of tears, had been made, by this guilty woman, the object of extraordinary
honour. On them, also, (instead of on the forehead,) had she bestowed her many
kisses : and fragrant ointment, instead of common oil, had been employed to testify
the depth of her joy at His presence !

47 Wherefore I say unto thee, Her sins, which are many, are for-
given ; for she loved much : hut to whom little is forgiven, the same
loveth little.

This seems to mean, — It is clear, from her conduct, that she has been forgiven
many sins : for you see that she loves much. Whereas, he to whom little is for-
given, — that is, "to whom, according to his own views of himself, little is forgiven,
because he regards his sins as few, — the same loveth little." . . . The sentence is
certainly a hard one : but it must be explained by the light of the foregoing Para-
ble ; which shows that Forgiveness comes first, and Love follows after.

48 And He said unto her, Thy sins are forgiven.

An act of Absolution which cannot be regarded as any encouragement to fiin, yet,
as the strongest encouragement imaginable to Sinners : and so it is remarked in the
heading of the present Chapter. Here was one sunk very deep in pollution. Her
history, indeed, we know not: but we know concerning her that Sin had been her
choice, and Shame her portion, until the present hour. We know further, that in
the end, there was sincere Repentance on her side: entire Forgiveness on the part
of God. Which things are " written for our learning : that we, through patience
and comfort of the Scriptures, might have hope."(j>)

49 And they that sat at meat with Him began to say within them-
selves, Who is this that forgiveth sins also ?

Which reminds us of what had occurred in the case of the cure of the Paralytic,
— borne of four. See St. Luke v. 20, 21. See also the note on St. Mark ii. 7. They
regarded Him as a mere Man ; and, What Man, (say they,) can pretend to forgive
Sin? Take notice, therefore, that while they murmured in Unbelief, — she, in the
fullness of her Faith, came to Him as GOD, to obtain forgiveness of her sins.
Whence it follows, —

50 And He said to the Woman, Thy faith hath saved thee ; go in
Peace.

See the note on St. Mark v. 34.

Faith, then, had been the root, — and Love, (as our Lord Himself has just reminded
us,) the Flower; or rather, the Fruit: "Faith which loorketh by Love." (q) And
this corresponds with the beautiful picture of spiritual growth which St. Peter has
drawn, in the first chapter of his second Epistle, — verse 5 to 7.

Cjmpare the words which our Lord addressed to the Woman of Canaan, — St.

(m) Genesis xviii. 4: xix. 2: xxiv. 32 : xliii. 24, &c.

(n) Gen. xxix. 13 : xxxiii. 4: xlv. 15. Exodus xviii. 7. St. Matthew xxvi. 49.

(o) Ruth iii. 3. Psalm xxxiii. 5. Daniel x. 3. St. Matthew vi. 17.

(p) Romans xv. 4. (q) Galat. v. 6.

164 A PLADT OOMMHNTABT. [chap.

Matthew kv. 28 : and take notice that a* there it w.i- I ind Bumili

Penitence and Love which meet- the eye; but our Savioub, in both ■
oammends the Faith of the applicant FPii Bee only 1ht B //-, — the E

Til E I' KAY BR.

God, Who hast prepared for them that lore Thee sucli good tilings
nan's understanding; pour into our hearts Buch Loi
i . thai we, loving Thee above all things, may obtain Thy prom
which exceed all that we can desire; through Jbsua CflBisr our
Lobd. Amen.

CHAPTER VIII.

3 Wo ' I Christ, after J3i had preached

■ to place, attended with His Apostles, propoundetn the Paraou of the

r, 16 ana of the candle. -\ Declareth who are His Moth tihren. 22

uketh the t i \oJ D oils out of tht man into the herd

ectedofth Oadarenes. \'< Healeth the woman of her bloody

Daughter.

1 And it came to pass afterward, that Be went throughout every city
and village, preaching and showing the glad tidings of the Kingdom of
God: and the Twelve were with Him,

One of the ancients, who was also a Countryman of our own, remarks on this.
thai -"like the Eagle enticing its young ones to fly, our Lord, step by step, raises up
111— Disciples to heavenly things. He first of all teaches in the synagogues
performs Miracles. Next, He chooses twelve, whom He names Apostles; Heafter-
wards takes them with Him, as He preaches throughout the cities and villa
l. — He sends them forth alone, as we read in St. Matthew c. I

2 and certain Women, which had been healed of evil spirits and in-
firmities, Mary called Magdalene, out of whom went sewn devil-,

peated in St Mark. wi. '.». This Mary came I

dala, — the city menti id in St. Matthew i\ ■ 39 ; and it is probably meant that she

bad been a person ol most unholy life, in whom many evil spirits bad onoe taken
a], their habitation. Consider St Luke ti 26.

8 and Joanna the wife of Chmsa Hen ird, and S and

many others, which ministered unto Bim of their sul

These holj women enjoyed the blessed privilege of waiting on our Savi
eps, and supplying His earthly needs. Oi awithHei

mong them. Compare St Matthew .50.

VIII.]

on st. luke's gospel. 465

4 And when much people were gathered together, and were come to
Him out of every city, He spake by a Parable :

The parable of "the Sower" follows, — which is found related in all the three
Gospels. The Header is referred chiefly to the notes on the same parable in St.
Mark's Gospel, — (chap. iv. 3 to 9, and 14 to 20,) — for many remarks, which could
not he repeated in this place. See also St. Matthew's Gospel, — xiii. 1 to 9, and 18
to 23 ; and the notes there : especially the note on ver. 2.

This parable was delivered to a multitude standing on the shore, by our Saviour
as He sat in a boat on the Sea of Galilee. See the note on St. Mark iv. 1.

5 A Sower went out to sow his seed :

A familiar image, truly ; yet, how ennobled by the use which our Saviour here
makes of it !

To know how large an amount of teaching lies concealed in that word, — " seed,"
see the note on St. Mark iv. 14 : also on St. Matthew xiii. 8. Take notice further,
that as by the image of a corn of wheat, our Lord here teaches us how to live; so
does His great Apostle, from the same source, instruct us how to die. Consider 1
Corinthians xv. 35 to 49.

Observe, that the Sower goes forth to sow " his seed." Now, the Sower is our
Saviour Christ: "who receives not the word, as borrowed," (says an Arabian
Bishop,) "for He is by nature the Word of the living God." If the term be
extended to the Ministers of Christ, then let them beware how they sow any other
seed than His !

See more in the note on St. Mark iv. 3.

and as he sowed, some fell by the way side ; and it was trodden down,

The certain fate of seed cast upon the highway! Yet St. Luke alone it is, who
notices this circumstance. "We learn from the language of all the three Gospels
that the seed is less endangered by carelessness from within, than by hostility from
without. It is less the chance tread of passenger thoughts coming and going, than
the active malice of the Devil, which is to be dreaded.

One of the ancients points out that our Lord says not, — " he sowed some by the
way side ;" but that " some fell" there. For he who soweth, soweth with good
intent. It depends upon the hearer, where the seed shall fall.

6 and £he fowls of the air devoured it. And some fell upon a rock ;
and as soon as it was sprung up, it withered away, because it lacked
moisture.

" An unchanged, unsoftened heart, like an evil soil, disappoints the fruit. Though
sown by a weak hand, yea, possibly a foul one, yet, if received into a clean and
honest heart, it will fructify much."

The way-side is interpreted to mean a heart trodden and hardened by the continual
passage of evil thoughts. The rock denotes the hardness of self-ivill: a nature un-
subdued, unyielding, unbroken.

Venerable Bede observes, that " the moisture at the root of the seed is the same
as what is called in another parable the oil, to trim the lamps of the Virgins ;(a)
that is, Love and steadfastness in Virtue."

See more in the note on St. Mark iv. 6.

7 And some fell among thorns ; and the thorns sprang up with it,
and choked it.

The seed did not fall so much among thorns that were full grown, as in ground
where the roots of these had not been carefully weeded out. Hence, as a thought-
ful modern writer continues, " they grew together, — only the thorns overtopped the
good seed : shut them out from the air and light ; and drew away the moisture
which should have nourished them It is not here, as in the first case, that

(a) St. Matth. xxv. 3, 5, 8.

466 a I'LAiN [chap.

\\ ' husbandry."

more in tl - N ' urk i\ . 7.

r fell od g 1 ground, and sprang up, and bare fruit an

hundred!

•• \\ bene* then i ; the difl ' from the ime t.> all.

rer, neither ; for though these be 'li\ era, and of different abilities,

{• depends little or nothing on that. Indeed, he ia the fittest to preach \
dmselfmost 1 i W ♦ • hie message; and eomee forth, not only with a handful
t ..ml, but with store of it in hi- heart, — the word dwelling .richly in Aim .(6)
, i the Beed he bows, being this Word "I Life, depends not on his qualifications in
any kind; either of common gift*, or special grace. People mistake tl
and it is a carnal conceit to hang on the advantages of the Minister, or to eye that
much." .... The words are Archbishop Leighton's.

■• \ hundredfold!" Such inci Thus it

with Isaac when I"- Bowed in the land of the Philistines, "and the Loan I '
him," — i- we read in Genesis xxvi. 12.
more in the note on St. Mark i

And when He had said these things, He Dried, He that hath eai
hear, let him hear.

9 Ami Hi- I 1 iples asked Him, saving, What might this Parable
be?

■ remarks will be found "n wh St Mark iv. !

1 i which tli red.

10 And He said, Onto you it is given to know the mysteries of the
Kingdom of < »od :

bthew xiii. 11 : and observe what follows in tl,
with the notes thereon.

but to others in Parables: tl they might d

ing they might not understand.

Observe tin < ■ igned for this in St. Matthew nil 13. St. Luke omits tin"

ktion from [saiahwhioh is found in St Matthew xiii, 11. 15, and St Mark
iv. 12.

11 Now the Parable is this: The Seed is the Word of God.

12 Those by the way Bide we they that hear; then cometh the
Devil, and taketh away the Word out of their hearts, lest they should
believe and 1"' Bave I.

I icerning this portion of the Divine exposition of the P S er, the

I to what has been already i ffered in the not - '•'■ ^- 1-1

and 15.

1 8 They on the rock are they, which, when they hear, the

word with joy; and these have do root, which for a while believe, and
in time of temptation fall away.

irtsl" exclaims pious Leighton, " How shallow, shallow, are the
impr • Divine things upon you I i never further than the up-

"iir hearts. Sfou have but few deep thoughts of Goo, and ■ ■!
■■lei the things of the world to oome. All are but slight and km
glai

• it deep. It springs m indeed, but any thing blasts and
withers it. There is little room in - m . It tria

(/.) c

VIII.]

ON ST. LUKE'S GOSPEL. 467

cuiion without, or of temptation within, this sudden spring-seed can stand before
neither."

See more in the note on St. Mark iv. 16, 17.

14 And that which fell among thorns are they, which, when they
have heard, go forth, and are choked with cares and riches and plea-
sures of this life, and bring no fruit to perfection.

This parable, as St. Luke gives it, abounds in singular touches which are pecu-
liar to his Gospel. See the notes on verse 15. In this place, it will be seen that
he alone preserves the statement that characters of a certain class, " when they have
heard, go forth, and are choked with cares," &c. The expression seems to indicate
the restlessness of such characters; as contrasted with "the patient abiding of the
meek."

What a lively picture is here presented to us of those thickening cares, which at
first interfere with growth in Holiness, — and at last, unless they be cut away,
destroy the spiritual life altogether !

Some hearts, then, are a highway ; some, a rock ; some, thorny ground. By such
terms, at least, the reception which men give to the Word, when, like seed, it is
sown in their ears, — may be fitly represented. " Take heed, therefore, how ye
7iear,"(c) saith the Spirit. And, verily, it cannot be so easy a matter to hear
aright ! . . . . See more in the note on St. Mark iv. 19.

15 But that on the good ground are they, which in an honest and
good heart, having heard the Word, keep it,

" In an honest and good heart:" the words are found only in the present Gospel,
and are highly expressive of the character which becomes fruitful in good works.
As for captious inquiries concerning Human Goodness, we know indeed that " there
is none good but one, that is God :'\d) and yet Scripture, Reason, and Experience,
convince us that some natures afford a better soil for the growth of Spiritual seed,
than others.

St. Luke also alone it is who says that these persons " keep" the Word : that is,
they hold it fast. Our Lord declares of such that they shall " never see Death."(e)
In the language of our Advent Collect, they "inwardly digest" the Word; and by
patience and comfort of it, they " embrace, and ever hold fast the blessed Hope of
Everlasting Life."(/)

See more in the note on St. Mark iv. 20.

and bring forth fruit with patience.

" With patience :" — a memorable word! There must be "patient continuance in
well-doing :"(g) perseverance unto the end. Consider the places referred to on the
subject of the great Christian grace of Patience, in the note on St. Matthew iv. 7.

" 'He that hath ears to hear,' as our Saviour closes, 'let him hear.' The Lord
apply our hearts to this work ; and though discouragements should arise without,
or within, and little present fruit appear, but corruption is rather stronger and
greater, yet, watch and pray. Wait on ; it shall be better. This fruit is to be
brought forth ' with patience.' And this Seed, this Word, the Lord calls by that
very name, the ' Word of His Patience.' (Ji) Keep it, hide it in thy heart, and in due
time it shall spring up. And this Patience shall be but for a little while. The day
of Harvest is at hand, when all who have been in any measure fruitful in Grace,
shall be gathered into Glory."

16 No man, when he hath lighted a Candle, covereth it with a ves-
sel, or putteth it under a bed ; but setteth it on a Candlestick, that
they which enter in may see the light.

" Having spoken of the effect of the Word upon the hearers, He now tells His
Disciples what they must do as teachers of the Word." See the note on St. Mark
iv. 21, and on St. Matthew v. 15.

(/) Collect for the Second Sunday in Advent. (g) Romans ii. 7. (h) Rev. iii. 10.

4»N A I'l.AIN MlV [CHAP.

17. 1" ! ret, that Bhall not be made m anil -her

au;i thing hid, that snail not be known and • 1 heed

then ye heir: for whosoever hath, to him Bhall be given ;

whi •• t hath not, from him Bhall be taken even that which he

Ctll tO hi

" ii a- ye hear." In St. Mark iv. 24, it i [ye hear." .... "Even that

which — ia peculiar to this Gospel. The phrase marks the un-

reality ofthepo neglected; and may be compared, or rather, conti

with the language of Si Luke \\i. 12.

19 Thru came to Him His Mother and Hie Brethren, and could not
come at llim for the pi

1 cerning the " Brethren of our Loan," Bee the note on St. Matthew xiii. 55.
ll might; must the crowd have been to have occasioned such an incident as this!

20, 1\ And it was told Him by certain which said. Thy Mother and
Thy Brethren Btand without, desiring to Bee Thee. And Be answered
and Baid onto them. My Mother and My Brethren are these which hear

the Word of I rOD, and do it.

This was surely Baid for the comfort of as many as should i le after: and it i-

well worthy <>f remark how our Blessed In ki>. in countless way-, contrived that
"as many as are afar <>fV."(V)~ even we, at this distant 'la_\. — bould l"- made to
feel thai adi antages of the highest order arc ours ; \>v\\ i leges, equal n> anj which

enjoyed by Kin-men and Disciples in the Days of the Son of Man

:ur in St. Mark Q — -Hi. 31 to 35 ; where see the i

22 Now it came to pass on b certain day. that He went into a .-hip
with Hia Disciples: and Be said anto them, Let aa go over unto the
other Bide of the Lake. And they launched forth.

This was done, as St. Matthew relates, (viii. 18,) "when Jssus bbw great multi-
tudes about Him." The blessed company were about to cr — over from th< I
in side of the Lak<\ in the direction "i" Decapolis.

28 But as they Bailed he fell asleep:

I ih was a memorable ty] f CHaiST: and we read of /"'/» also, that in the

midst of the mighty Btorm, "he was fast asleep."(&)

\ .. our Sw [oub Blept : as <;<>!>. Be stilled the storm. In some Buch man-
ner we are often reminded at once, of the Divine and Human nature of mir Loan.
Thus, immediately after cleansing the leperj He is related to bare " withdrawn
U elf into the Wilderness, and prayed: ll) when Heperformed the stupendous
niir.c I pernaum, on the Centurions servant, He is Baid to have "mar-

i and when He was about to call Laxarus out of the grave, it is

the notes on St Mark iii. 5: vii.34: St Luke iv. 30: \ii. 13.

and there came down a .storm of wind on the lake; and tl
filled with n'lit, /•, and were in jeopardy.

rm of wind." This is what happens in the case of moun-
ts i i . take phv e to tlii- daj on I 8< •• the

i. k i. 16.

i' I And they came to Him, and awoke Him, M I

we perish. Then Be arose! and rebuked the Wind and the raging of
the Water: and they ceaat !. and there was I calm.

f*J .1 (/• - 1(3.

i. (n) .<i. John at

viii.] on st. luke's gospel. 469

Our Lord rebuked both the Wind and the Sea ;(o) accordingly, the one ceased,
the other grew calm. First, the Wind was silenced ; then, the Sea : because that
was a cause, this, an effect. Even from so minute a circumstance as this, one may
gather a lesson !

" The floods have lifted up, Lord, the floods have lifted up their voice, the
floods have lifted up their waves. The Lord on high is mightier than the noise of
many waters : yea, than the mighty waves of the sea."( J>)

25 And He said unto them, Where is your Faith ? And they being
afraid wondered, saying one to another, What manner of Man is this !
for He commandeth even the winds and water, and they obey Him.

They forgot that this was He of whom the Psalmist had said, " Thy way is in
the sea, and Thy path in the great waters, and Thy footsteps are not known !"(2)

26 And they arrived at the country of the Gadarenes, which is over
against Galilee.

Our Lord had now reached the Eastern shore of the Lake. We are about to be-
hold Him performing a mighty act, illustrative of the very purpose of His coming:
for, "For this purpose the Son of God was manifested, that He might destroy the
works of the Devil." '(r)

27 And when He went forth to land, there met Him out of the City
a certain man,

So St. Mark says,(s) but we learn from St. Matthew viii. 28, that there were two
persons : of whom it seems that one was so exceedingly fierce, and proved so very
conspicuous, that St. Mark and St. Luke have confined themselves to his history.

which had Devils long time, and wore no clothes, neither abode in
any house, but in the tombs.

Concerning this, see the last note on the second half of St. Matthew viii. 28.

28 When he saw Jesus, he cried out, and fell down before Him, and
with a loud voice said, What have I to do with Thee, Jesus, thou Son
of God Most High ? I beseech Thee, torment me not.

The very presence of Christ is torture to the evil Spirits. Compare what hap-
pened in the synagogue of Capernaum, St. Luke iv. 33, 34 : and note the behaviour
of the deaf and dumb Spirit when "he saw Christ." (t) This reminds us that
Heaven toould not be Heaven to the unholy.

29 ( For He had commanded the unclean spirit to come out of the
man.

It is called an "unclean spirit." Is it possible that such possession was the re-
sult of sensual indulgence and unclean living? that unbridled lust laid men open
to these incursions of the Powers of Darkness ? See the notes on St. Mark v. 1.

For oftentimes it had caught him : and he was kept bound with
chains and in fetters ; and he brake the bands, and was driven of the
Devil into the wilderness.)

This is even more particularly described by St. Mark v. 4, 5. — The result of this
violence is mentioned by St. Matthew, namely, " that no man might pass by that
way."[u)

30 And Jesus asked him, saying, What is thy name ? And he said,
Legion : because many devils were entered into him.

(o) St. Mark iv. 39. (p) Psalm xciii. 3, 4. (q) Psalm Ixxvii. 19.

(r) 1 St. John iii. 8. (s) St, Mark v. 2. (t) St. Mark ix. 20.

(j<) St. Matthew viii. 28.

470 A 1'I.AIN < "MMi:.VT\KY [CHAP.

■• I ■ only "t numbers, bul • ugth,

tri«-.| courage i distinction "I' rank-, and unity "l" purpose. A- there vu " a mul-
titude of thi also there were more then "twelve Ugt
\ -(.'/) ready t>> do the bidding of Che [ocarnati S Satan's

. <-r niiiitai \ resource* alao. Himself" tb< P I the devils :" (s) un-

der him, " Principalities and P< and other rank- of inferior spirits -. which

liferent degre i depending perhaps on their different d<

of vriekedi Our Lobd describee the Enemj ng man armed, and

"/■."(</) Hence, the Christian, who has I irith him,

furnished with " weapons of warfare,"(e) also ; "the whole armour
:" girdle, ami breast-plate, — hield, ami helmet, and twotd.(J
:e xi. 22.
The reader i- referred to the notes on St. fiiatthew xiL I

31 Ami they besought Him that He would nut command them to go

out into the Deep.

Rather, into the " bottomless pit;" for the word here used is "tin' ooj
which probably in tin- place denotes the pit of Hell.

i the Divine beheld (in the Spirit) "an Angel aedown from Heaven,

having tin- key >A' the bottomless pit ami a greal chain in his band. And be laid
hold on the Dragon, that old Serpent, which i- the Devil, and Satan; ami bound
liim a thousand years, ami casl him into the bottomless pit, and sel a seal upon him

that he should deceive tin- nations n rr.";./< Tin-.- are mysterious words,

which we cannot presume to explain : hut, taken in connection with the text, they
seem to imply that tin' bottomless pit is reserved for the A| ' i; ami

that it was the prayer of this Legion of Spirits that Christ would not anticipate
their sentence, bj sending them thither "before the time."(A) Compare St Jude,

82 And there waa there an herd of many Bwine feeding on the moun-
tain: and they besought Him that IK' would Buffer them to enter into
them.

the notes on St. Mark v. 12.

33 Ami lie Buffered them. Then went the devils out of the man,
ami cut. rnl into the swine : ami the herd ran violently down a
place into thr Lake, and were choked.

the note on St. Mark v. L3.

84, 85 When they thai fed them saw what was done, they Bed, and

ami told it in the fit y ami in the country. Then they wenl out

what was done; and came to Jbsus, and found the man, out of

whom the devils were departed, Bitting at the feet of Jbsus, clothed,

and in In- right mind; and they were afraid.

ice, then, how complete tin- recovery bad been; that he who, an h<>nr

;ul been a frantic dei dae, was alread i int.. a meek disciple of

the Lava. All this is implied by the statement, thai hi ■ >'u-

for thi- was the attitude of a Disciple. I
1 the instructions of the x ' 5 .2

St. Luk '. Acts xxii. ■'•. I si \ iii. 1 : eh . I

1 . \ 1 1 1 . . . 1 .

' which saw U t..hl them by what means he that
i 'if tin- devils was healed. Then the whole multitude "f the

(,) St. Lake IL {<>)

■
(/) '■!!■• h vi.lt I (w Rev. u. i t

VIII.] ON ST. LUKE'S GOSPEL. 471

country of the Gadarenes round about besought Him to depart from
them ;

They forgot that they had been delivered from a scourge which had rendered it
unsafe for any man " to pass by that way."(i) They overlooked the blessing which
had befallen two(/c) of their own most afflicted citizens ; whereby they had been
restored to their families and to themselves. Above all, they gave no heed to the
actual presence of Curist their Saviour. They could think only of the swine that
had been lost. They were confounded at the amazing history they had heard ; and
wished for nothing so much as the departure of One who had, in reality, shown
llimself their Friend, and greatest Benefactor.

How hard it is to recognize the Hand of God in anything which interrupts our
present enjoyment ; brings us loss; and, in any way, interferes with our worldly
prosperity ! We overlook the actual blessings which mingle with the most afflict-
ing dispensation. We do not consider how near we may have been brought, by
chastisement, to the sacred person of our Lord. We simply are impatient and
afraid. We desire nothing so much as to be as, and what, we were.

for they were taken with great fear : and He went up into a Ship,
and returned back again.

He took them at their word. He granted their prayer : yet, surely, in wrath, or
in sorrow, rather than in mercy ! See the note on St. Matthew vii. 8.

38 Now the man out of whom the devils were departed, besought
Him that he might be with Him ;

See the notes on St. Mark v. 18.

39 but Jesus sent him away, saying, Return to thine own house, and
show how great things God hath done unto thee.

Sometimes our Lord invited men to follow Him, and they resisted His invita-
tion.^) Here, when one expressed a wish to follow, he is not allowed to do so. — In
like manner, the Saviour sometimes enjoined silence on those whom He healed. (»i)
Here, He commands the very opposite course . . . Doubtless, He makes trial of
each in a peculiar way ; has different demands for different persons ; and shows to
every one the path which will conduct him most safely to the Land of Everlasting
Rest. See the note on St. Matthew xi. 5, and on St. Mark v. 19.

And he went his way, and published throughout the whole city how
great things Jesus had done unto him.

40 And it came to pass, that, when Jesus was returned, the people
gladly received Him : for they were all waiting for Him.

He beheld them, as He approached the Western shore of the Lake, drawn up to
receive Him. Compare St. Mark v. 21, and the note there.

41 And, behold, there came a man named Jairus, and he was a Ruler
of the Synagogue :

The Reader is referred to the notes on St. Mark v. 22.

42 and he fell down at Jesus' feet, and besought Him that He
would come into his house: for he had one only Daughter, about twelve
years of age, and she lay a dying.

"One only Daughter." — So, at Nain, and after the Transfiguration, it was an only
Son :(».) and at Bethany, an only Brother. The Great Physician knows who stand
in the greatest need !

(i) St. Matthew viii. 2S. (k) See above, the first note on verse 27.

(0 St. Luke ix. 59 : xviii. 22. (m) St. Matt. viii. 4 : ix. 30 : xii. 16. St. Luke viii. 56.

00 St. Luke vii. 12, and St. Luke ix. 38.

472 A I'l.AlX OOMMBHTAM [CHAP.

I". Bui u He went, the people thronged Him. And i Woman

having ao issue of bl I twelvi . which had Bpent all her living

npon physicians, neither could be healed of a

i e " the Physician"(o) does not ad - 14 i, in this place, )(p) —

1 corning the "■ rds of the text

1 \ came behind //////. and touched the border of 1 1 i .- garment: and
immediately her issue of blood Btanched.

" The garment of Christ," says an ancient writer, "repre ented the mystery of
ll I probable thai be meant thereby to imply, thai "he that

will be saved" " must believe rightly the Incarnation of our Lobd Jksd8 Chrisi
Bee the notes on St. Mark \ . ~~ .

< Learning " the border of His Garment," see the note on St Matthew \iii. ^".

45 And Jesus Baid, Who touched Me?

\ • .. igh He needed the information; for this was He who Baid to Na-

thanael, — "Before that Philip called thee, when thou wast under tl
//'"."(') • • . Compare the language of Elisha to Gehaxi, — 2 Kings v. 26. — Seethe
not i the latter pari of St Mark v. 30.

This was notan encouraging reception, as men speak. Consider the following
:— St Matthew iv. 23to"26: and St John -i. 1

46 When all denied, Peter and they that were with Him

M ister, the multitude 1 1 1 r« • t . _- Thee, and press Thee, and Bayest Thou,
Who touched Me? And di.-i b Baid, Somebody hath touched Me: for
1 peiceive that virtue is gone out of Me.

The poor woman had approached His Sacred garments as men are said to touch
relics; with a blind faith in their mysterious virtue and efficacy. Even Ihit
obtained a blessing; for it was — Faith. But Christ would not bo be touched. He
will have us know that the Fountain of grace is the living Goo, — who beholdeth all
things in Heaven and Earth ; and who claims of His rational c: oable

worship.

D but think how full, to overflowing, must bavel n the II nee of clay whi

the Savioi r of the World i idea to make Hi- habitation ; that the virtue of

III livinity, — like the precious ointment on Aaron's head, — -hen hi have thus
down to the very -kin- of His clothing !(*) Consider St John v. 26.

Compare St Luke vi. L9j and see the notes on St Mark v. 31, 32,

17 And when the woman saw that Bhe was not hid, Bhe came trem-
bling; and falling down before Bun, Bhe declared unto Him before all

the | pie for what cause Bhe had touched Him, and how she was healed

immediately.

Take notice, that in this miracle the oure came first This was vouchsafed
help and encouragement ; that bo, the open confession which the Sai roi s
and which must tollov v i- \iii. 37, — might prove the easier. — It is further

iving been a miracle within a miracle; -and onoi wherein Christ
ight without a w ord, or sign.

18 And lie -aid onto her. Daughter, be ofg 1 comfort: thy Faith

hath made thee whole : go in peace.

Our Loan bad used the selfsame term of address, in the former ■
"woman which ter:" — vii. 50. Faith is the hand which la a the

.. II. (;■;

Jobs L i-. (•) P

viii.] on st. luke's gospel. 473

49 While He yet spake, there cometh one from the Ruler of the
Synagogue's home, saying to him, Thy Daughter is dead ; trouble not
the Master.

For the fatigue to which our Blessed Saviour was being exposed must have been
apparent to all. See the note on St. Mark v. 24.

To raise the dead seemed impossible. Such a wonder had been recorded once of
Elijah, (t) twice of Elisha.(») But how could such a thing be expected on the
present occasion ? When the damsel drew her parting breath, the last ray of Hope
became extinct also.

50 But when Jesus heard it, He answered him, saying, Fear not :
believe only, and she shall be made whole.

And had not our Lord supplied him with a mighty ground of confidence by the
miracle which He had wrought on the way ? The note on St. Mark v. 36 may be
referred to.

51, 52 And when He came into the house, He suffered no man to go
in, save Peter, and James, and John, and the father and the mother of
the maiden. And all wept, and bewailed her : but He said, Weep not,
she is not dead, but sleepeth.

In the eyes of " the Father of Spirits" she did but sleep ; did but wait till He,
(who is the Resurrection and the Life,) should come to waken her.
See the notes on St. Mark v. 37, 38, 39.

53, 54 And they laughed Him to scorn, knowing that she was dead.
And He put them all out,

The scorner is not suffered to be a witness of Christ's miracles. Thus our Lord
illustrated one of His own sayings, by His own example. See St. Matthew vii. 6.

Elijah in like manner, (x) and Elisha,(y) are found to have been even alone when
they raised the dead.

55 and took her by the hand, and called, saying, Maid, arise. And
her spirit came again, and she arose straightway :

The first few words of verse 55 are found also in 1 Kings xvii. 22. The Reader
is referred to the notes on St. Mark v. 40, 41, 42.

and He commanded to give her meat.

The King of Heaven and Earth, cares, therefore, for the meal of a little child ! —
See the notes on St. Mark v. 43.

56 And her parents were astonished : but He charged them that they
should tell no man what was done.

The three examples above specified, (z) were so many confirmations under the
Law, of a Resurrection to Life after Death ; and we have three to equal them under
the Gospel. (a) One, we have been already considering. Another took place at
Nain. " Thus Christ raised the dead in the chamber, and in the street; from the
bed, and from the bier :" and, not content with this, He proceeded to the grave of
Lazarus. — These three miracles under the Gospel were so many proofs, and preludes,
of the Last and General Resurrection.

The present miracle seems to have been attended with some features of exceeding
solemnity, for three only of the Apostles were deemed worthy to behold it, — the
same three who were the chosen witnesses of Christ's greatest Glory, (b) as well as

(t) 1 Kings xvii. 22. («) 2 Kings iv. 35. and xiii. 21.

(.i) 1 Kings xvii. 19, — compared with ver. 23. (y) 2 Kings iv. 33.

[z) In the note on ver. 49. («) Concerning which, see the note on St. Matth. ix. 25.

(6) St. Matthew xvii. 1, 2.

IT 1 A 1'i [MSHTAR1 [<1IA1 V .

1 imiliation T1 e injunction t" "tell no man wfa :■• ." IB

folly explained by the temper of min<l of the assembled company, recorded in

THE PRAYER.

snoirrs God, with Whom do live the spirits of them that depart
hence in the Lord, and with Whom the Boula of the faithful, after they
are delivered from the burden of the flesh, are in joy and felicity; we
I ch Thee, that it may please Thee, of Thy gracious \:<«> di
shortly to accomplish the number of Thine elect, and to hasten Thy

lom ; that we, with all those thai arc departed in the true faith of
Thy Holy Name, may have our perfect consummation and bliss, both in
body and soul, in Thy eternal and everlasting Glory; through Jbstjs
Christ our Lord. Amen.

CHAPTER IX.

I Ch to work miracles . and to preach. 7 //

1 b 17 Cbkist Jeedethfivt thousand. 18 Enquireth what opinion Iht world

had of Him: foretelleth His Passion. 23 P >seth to all ih> /nitt'
jniii Transfiguration. 37 //■ healetn tin lunatic. 48 Again

truri, 'ili //< l'i eiplt ■ i Hit Pa Hon. 46 Commendeth Humility. b\ l!i<l<l<th
them to show mildness towards all, without desin ■;< ; would foU

Him, but upon conditions.

1 Then He called His twelve Disciples together,- and gave them
i r and authority over all devils, and to cure d

St. Luke is Bpeaking of the Twelve Apostles, whose names be gave in chap. vL
14 to 16. Concerning the several catalogues of the Apostles, see the i

ii. 1 '• : and, for some remarks on each "f those greal Saints, the Reader is
referred to the Commentary on St. .Mark iii. 16 to 19.

2 \ii.l He sent them to preach the Kingdom of God, and to heal
ick.

II I .... flutteretb over her young, spreadeth abroad her

•Ii thorn, benrcth them on her win i bad the I with

II \ "• time that they should make their first Minis!
Journey alone ; md II I- to deliver to them His pari I

mission. Concerning the four ensuing verses, enough has been already offered in
the i ! N l ■■ . 1 to 15, to which the Reader dingly here

referred.

(•] D ll.

IX.] ON ST. LUKE'S GOSPEL. 475

3, 4, 5 And He said unto them, Take nothing for your journey,
neither staves, nor scrip, neither bread, neither money; neither have
two coats apiece. And whatsoever house ye enter into, there abide,
and thence depart. And whosoever will not .receive you, when ye go
out of that city, shake off the very dust from your feet for a testimony
against them.

6 And they departed, and went through the towns, preaching the
Gospel, and healing every where.

St. Mark, — vi. 12, 13, — relates this incident in a very interesting manner ; but
we must refer to St. Matthew's narrative if we would understand the words which
follow. The last-named Evangelist relates that "when Jesus had made an end of
commanding His Twelve Disciples, He departed thence to teach and to preach in
their cities. "(b) In other words, He took His third Great Ministerial Journey, and
He took it alone.

7, 8 Now Herod the Tetrarch heard of all that was done by Him :
and he was perplexed, because that it was said of some, that John was
risen from the dead; and of some, that Elias had appeared; and of
others, that one of the old Prophets was risen again.

" John" was said to have " risen from the dead;" because the Baptist had been
killed and was buried: "Elias," to have "appeared," — for Elijah was translated,
and had never seen death. Elijah, we know, was expected to appear before the
Advent of Christ. Hence the inquiry in St. John i. 21, and in St. Matthew xvii.
11 : — hence also the suspicion which we shall find expressed lower down, in verse
19: — and hence the scoff of the populace as our Saviour hung upon the Cross, —
"Let be, let us see whether Elias will come to save Him. "(c)

9 And Herod said, John have I beheaded : but who is this, of whom
I hear such things ? And he desired to see Him.

With which remarkable words St. Luke dismisses one of the most striking and
instructive histories in the Bible. He will be found, in an earlier part of his Gos-
pel, (namely, in chap. iii. 19, 20,) to have narrated the imprisonment of the Baptist.
In this place therefore he passes over what St. Matthew, (d) and especially St.
Mark,(e) have described so much in detail.

From the combined narrative of the three Evangelists we obtain a striking picture
of tbe downward progress of one who has entered on a career of crime. At first,
sensible of the beauty of Holiness, though recommended by its very sternest
preacher, and conscious of the power and authority with which John spoke, Herod
had not only gladly listened, but even largely obeyed him. Next, influenced by a
criminal passion, he shuts up the Saint in prison. Even so, however, he is careful
to secure the personal safety of his captive ; and he makes provision that the disci-
ples of John may have free access to their Master. At last "when a convenient day
was come," Herod is found capable of giving orders that the Baptist should be put
to death. He would surely have recoiled with horror, could he but have seen the
end from the beginning !

A tortured conscience is the consequence ; and the murderer can discern nothing
less than the Baptist restored to life in the wondrous histories which at this time
reached him concerning our Lord. "And he desired to see Him." But it was
the curiosity not of Faith, but of Unbelief; of a heart hardening, if not already
hardened, against holy impressions. The report of our Saviour's heavenly Dis-
courses, — His Acts of Love, — His Miracles of Mercy, — wrought none of those
blessed effects on Herod, which they produced on guileless and innocent hearts.
He longed to see Christ, "because he had heard many things of him; and lie
hoped to have seen some miracle done by Him."(f) His interview with the Saviour
accordingly set the seal upon his iniquity ; and became the means of handing down

(6) St. Matth. xi. 1. ( c ) St. Matth. xxvii. 49. (d) St. Matth. xiv. 3 to 12.

(e) St. Mark vi. 17 to 29. (/) St. Luke xxiii. 8.

176 A PLAID COMMEHTAU [CHAP.

hi- Dame to the Latest age of the Church, in connection with that ol I Pilate,

us the murderer of " the Prince of L\£e.''(g)

The Reader who desires more on this subject, maj 1"' referred t" I d St

Matthew xiv. 1 to 1": and on St Mark \i.'l7 I

10 And the A.] sties, when they turned, told Him all that

tiny had done. And lie took them, and went aside privately into a
rt place belonging to the oity called Bethsaida.

This will l"' found more particularly related in St. Mark's Gospel, — chap. ■

e tin' note. Travellers describe suoh "a desert place,"— thai i-. a
tract of uncultivated ground, at the north-eastern extremity ol the Laki
far from which Btood Bethsaida-Julias.

11, 1J Ami the people, when they knew if, followed Sim: and He
ed them, and -pake unto them of the Kingdom of God, and

healed them that had need of healing. Ami when the day began to
wear away, then eame the Twelve, and said unto Him, Send the multi-
tude away, that they may L r o into the towns and country round about,
and lodge, and get victuals: for we are here in a desert plaee.

The Reader is again referred to the notes on St. Mark's Gospel, — vi,
The second Evangelist will be found, a- before, to be more lull and particular in
this place than either St. Matthew or St. Luke.

Did ■ • • • t the Disciples, in effect doubt their Lord's power, when they mad
request here recorded? " Sea, the\ Bpake against God. They said, Can God fur-
nish a table in the wilderness? Behold," He hath done many mighty works:
! e bread also, or provide flesh for Bis people V'(h)

13, 14 But He said unto them, < >i\ f ye them to cat. And they said,
ive no more hut five loaves and ; ; except we should go

and buy meat for all this people. For they were about live thooi I
men.

is ever the Divine requirement: so Blender, and (as it often seems) so
wholly inadequate, the human means of satisfying it! Yet will Goo assuredly
enable Bis servants t<i perform whatever lie in- Himself commanded, if there be
hut obedience ami a willing mind,— the fruit "I Faith.

The Reader i- referred to the notes on St Matthew xiv. 17. — St. Mark \i. •"■7. —
and St. John \i. ."> to 1".

And He -aid to His Disciples, Make them sit 'down by fifties in a
Company.

\ to St Mark, they were distributed in groups of fifty ami of a hundred

;-■. "in which subordinate circumstance," remark- a thoughtful writer. M we

behold Hi- wisdom, who i- the Loan ami Lover of order. Thus all confusion was

avoided. There was no danger that the weaker, the women and the children,

should bo passed over ; while the stronger and ruder anduly put themselvt

The Apostles were thus able to pass easily up and down among the multi-
tude; and to minister in orderh succession to the needs "t every part"
Take notice, here, how our Lord aondescends t" minute detail* : making them a
s direction. Many suoh intimations of the Divine Method occur
in tiie Book ol I >und in the Sermon on the Mount St Mattl

6, where see tb I of thievery Miracle supplies anotb

. i. .lm \i. L2. A remark which was made at the en. I cf the Commentary on St.
M irk \ . also, here presents it-elf.

L5 And tln-y 'lid - •. and made them all sit down.

The ancients, who gathered wisdom from every word of Seriptnre, point oul that

.. ::. t>>' i

IX.]

on st. luke's gospel. 477

these men were made to sit down before the supply of food appeared ; in order to
teach us that, with God, "things which be not" are "as though they were."(i)

Refer here to the first note on St. Matthew xiv. 19 ; and the note on St. Mark
vi. 40.

16 Then He took the five loaves and two fishes, and looking up to
Heaven, He blessed them, and brake, and gave to the Disciples to set
before the multitude.

Thus, after He had suffered the multitude to feel the pang of hunger, He waited
till His Apostles applied to Him concerning their relief; — then, He took the bread
at their hands ; — next, He restored it, fraught with the power of miraculous increase,
back to the Apostles again : and all, in order that they might have the fullest testi-
mony concerning what was done, and continue the more mindful of it .... A
marvellous miracle, truly ! Very different from instantaneous groicth, was the
phenomenon it revealed ; for, by growth, we mean an unfolding, and progress to
maturity, (whether slow or sudden,) according to a certain law: but here was
growth without progress : or rather, increase without development.

The act of taking the bread into His hands, seems to have been one of weighty
import ; for it is distinctly noticed by all the four Evangelists. (&) By three of
them, also, the looking up to Heaven is recorded. The reader is referred to the
second note on St. Matthew xiv. 19 ; and to the notes on St. Mark vi. 41.

17 And they did eat, and were all filled : and there was taken up of
fragments that remained to them twelve baskets.

See the notes on St. Matthew xiv. 20, and on St. Mark vi. 42, 43, 44.

There remained " twelve baskets/' because, in conformity with our Lord's in-
junction, the Twelve Apostles gathered up the fragments that remained.(Z) Take
notice that to eat, and to "leave thereof," was a sure sign that there had been
abundance, (m)

He who reads the Gospel with attention, will be amazed to notice in how many
respects, and on how many occasions, the Incarnate Son was engaged in acts
strictly symbolical of, or rather closely corresponding with, what had been " in the
beginning ;" thereby indirectly proclaiming His Divine power and GoDhead. Be-
sides the five loaves, we here behold Him " blessing" the " two fishes," and so feed-
ing many thousands of persons. And what is this but the act of Him who, on the
fifth day, " blessed them, saying, Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the waters in the
seas ?"(«) .... The same verse proceeds — "And let the fowl multiply in the
Earth:" reminding us, that, besides bread from Heaven, the same Almighty hand
had rained upon His people in the wilderness " feathered foivls," " as thick as
dust."(o)

St. Luke having thus brought his narrative down to the eve of the third Pass-
over, omits several incidents, (which are nevertheless set down in due order by St.
Matthew and St. Mark;) Q5) resuming his history with the account of a transaction
which took place, also on the eastern side of the Jordan, in the course of the follow-
ing year. The method is surely a very marvellous one. Who would suspect that
between the 17th and 18th verses of this Gospel so many great events had been
omitted ; and that the transition is suddenly made to the neighbourhood of Cassarea
Philippi, whither our Lord had conducted his Twelve Apostles?

The reader who would study this part of the sacred narrative with advantage, is
referred to St. Matthew xvi. 1 to 12, or St. Mark viii. 10 to 26 ; where he is re-
quested to read the notes.

18 And it came to pass, as He was alone praying, His Disciples
were with Him : and He asked them, saying, Whom say the people
that I am ?

St. Mark declares that our Saviour made this inquiry " by the way ;"(q) so that

(i) Romans iv. 17. (k) St. Matt, xiv. 19 : St. Mark vi. 41 : St. Luke ix. 16 : St. John vi. 11.

(I) St. John vi. 12. (»i) Consider Ruth ii. 14, 18, and 2 Kings iv. 43, 44.

(n) Gen. i. 22. (o) Psalm lxxviii. 25, 28.

(j>) St. Matthew xiv. 22 to xvi. 12, and St, Mark vi. 45 to viii. 26. (q) St. Mark viii. 21.

\~^ A PLAIN OOMMBXTABT [CHAP.

there mighl ntradiction here. But, as an s ber gravely

This can onlj be s difficulty to him ,■</ /"/ th*

... I I iipan v were now in the Deighbourho ■ ! of the citj

I (afterwards Dan,) near the sources of the Jordan ; having journeyed t li it !.■•!•

from Bethsaida-Julias. In answer to our Loan's inquiry —

L9, 20, 21, 22 They answering said, John the Baptist; bat some
E -; and others >•'//, that one of the old prophets i- risen Bgain. Se
unto them, Hut whom say \c that I ami Peter answering Baid,
G i'. Ami Be Btraitly charged them, and commanded
them in tell no man that thing; Baying, the Son "1" Man most Buffer
many things, ami be rejectee of the Elders ami Ohief Priests and
Scribes, and be slain, and be raised the third day.

i corning this important portion of Scripture, — the Confession, namely, of St.
and tin' wondrous promise whiob it immediately drew from the Saviouk of the
World — so much has been already aaid, that it Bhall suffice in this place t<> refer the
reader to the notes on St. Matthew's Gospel — ivi. L8 t" 21 ; ami on St. Mark \iii.
'l~, to 31. St. Luke, wliu omits tin' promise to St. Peter, omits also tin 1 rebuke
which be addressed to Ohbjst, a- veil a- the terrible rebuke which was addn
to him in turn: alter which the Evangelist adds —

28 Ami Ho Baid loihem all. If any man will come after Mo. Let him
deny himself, ami take up his cross daily, ami follow Mo.

connection of this verse with what pi ould never bave been bubi

from the present I but (as already hinted) from the two earlier Gospelt

found that St Peter, immediately after hearing the prophecy of his Divin< M
Buffering — I li- approaching Passion and I >eatb — " Took Him, and began m rebuke
!Iim."(V) Therejon it was that our Loan spake the words here recorded; words,
which will be perceived to contains cover! allusion to the maimer of His own death.
it. Peter bad said, "Beit tar from Thee, Loan: this -hall not be unto
Thee" — ur Savioi r makes answer, — "So far removed -hall this he from the fact,
that it' any one "f yourselves i- willing t" come after .Me. ami become Mj Disciple,
let him know thai he must -hare My Humiliation: must deny himself, as I have
also done: must take np hi-fi-'.-- daily, and follow Me." . . . The Cross to be
borne "daily" i- a remarkable addition of the present Evangelist. The meaning
of the phrase will he best understood by those t" w lean some " thorn in the t!e-h,"( v )
grief— hath been allotted as their constant portion.
And this leads one to remark on the difference between " self-denial" and "
ing the Cross." The Brst is a man'- own act, and requires the Btrenui >
will: tin' Becond implies patient submission to the will of another.

24, -■"', 2 i For whosoever will save his life .-hall lose it: but»wl

will lose his life for My Bake, the same -hall save it. for what is

a man advantaged, if he gain the whole World, ami lose himself, or he

For whosoever shall he ashamed of Me ami of My v.

of ] 1 iiit hall the Son of Man he a.-hanie.l, when lie shall come in Hi-
own Glory, and in His Fathbb's, and of the holy Angels.

i Confession of Faith," says Bish "in

who c tnanded it, ami i- glorified bj it : in respect of oursi

— who shall he rewarded for it; ami in respect of our brethren- who ara edified
afirmed f
Ciiki-i "will appear," says Patrick, "not only in ' His own glory,' but 'in the
f His 1 i there were something mere than lie hath already

II i: t Hand ; that is, Qe will c me from thence to judge the quick
and the dead to appi it a^ the supreme Lord and Governor ol the W orld, to whom
Men and Ai This then is a thing still behind;

and there : ■'. i this high

which II'' hath not yet put on."

(r).- (•) t Oor. mi. f.

IX.]

ON ST. LUKE'S GOSPEL. 479

Take notice that our Lord will come in the glory " of the Holy Angels" also.
They will be present " to bear witness how much they, by the mission of God, have
administered to the Salvation of Mankind."

27 But I tell you of a truth, there be some standing here, which shall
not taste of death, till they see the Kingdom of God.

This is expressed differently by St. Matthew and St. Mark. The former says —
"till they see the Son of Man coming in His Kingdom:"(2) the latter — "till they
have seen the Kingdom of God come with power. "(») We must explain this, the
shortest statement of all, by those fuller ones: and it will appear that some great
event is here alluded to, which certain of the Twelve were to witness before they
died; and which might be described as Christ's coming with power in His own
and His Father's Kingdom. This has been thought by some learned men to be
the Destruction of Jerusalem, which took place about forty years later; but there
can be little doubt, (as already explained in the note on St. Matthew xvi. 28,) that
the allusion is to the Transfiguration — an event which immediately follows, in all
the three Gospels. "(x)

The connection of the mysterious announcement in verse 27, with what goes be-
fore, has been already pointed out in the note on St. Matthew xvi. 27. The begin-
ning of Christ's Glorious Kingdom had been already set up: not visibly, indeed,
(for "the Kingdom of God cometh not with observation ;")(?/) nor was its hidden
brightness such as mortal eyes could behold, and live. But it had really begun —
begun here on earth; and in its true nature it was glorious. " The Glory which
Thou gavest Me," said our Lord, praying to the Father, " I have given them: that
they may be one, even as We are One."(z) On which an excellent living writer
remarks — " It follows that ' the Glory of the Only-Begotten of the Father' belongs
also, in its degree, to the Church on Earth — to the Church in its days of waiting,
of warfare, and of trial."(a) The great Apostle proclaims no less when he declares
that " the brightness of the Law which shone on Moses' face was no brightness at
all in comparison of the Glory of the Lord, which shone upon every baptized Corin-
thian." For, contrasting the privileges of every Christian man with those of the
Lawgiver of Israel, (6) he says — "We all, with unveiled face, reflecting like mir-
rors the glory of the Lord, are being transfigured into the same likeness" — that is,
"into Christ's image: going on from Glory to Glory ;"(c) — that is, from one de-
gree of glory to another. From the Glory of Baptism to the Glory 'of Salvation :
' from the Glory of Faith' (as one of the Ancients expresses it,) ' to the Glory of
sight :' from the dim Glory of Regeneration, to the ' Exceeding and Eternal weight
of Glory'(rf) of the Resurrection."

Of those glories therefore which will be hereafter beheld by every eye, the Son
of Man is about to give His three most highly favoured Disciples a blessed fore-
taste and eai-nest; for He was willing, says an Ancient Father, "to assure their
very sight, and to show what kind of Glory that is wherewith He is to come, so far
as it was possible for them to learn." They were to behold " the Kingdom of God,"
not as it seems to mortal eyes, but in its true nature, and as it appears in GOD'S
sight. Christ himself they were also to behold at the same time: not meanly clad,
and " marred" in countenance, as to common eyes He appeared during the days of
His Humiliation; but with shining raiment, " white as the Light," and a face that
" did shine as the Sun." They beheld Him, in short, as it is promised that the
just shall behold Him when he shall finally appear, (e) — namely, " as He is.'\f)

28 And it came to pass about an eight days after these sayings, He
took Peter and John and James, and went up into a mountain to pray.

(f) St. Matt. xvi. 28. («) St. Mark ix. 1.

(x) St. Matth. xvii. 1 : St. Mark ix. 2 : and St. Luke ix. 28.

\y) St. Luke xvii. 20 (z) St. John xvii. 22.

(«) Rev. George Moberly — in a valuable Sermon, called "The Transfiguration of Chris-
tians." (b) Exodus xxxiv. 34.

(c) 2 Cor. iii. 18 : the true meaning of which Scripture, it is believed, is given above. The
same doctrine may be established from Colos. i. 27 : 1 Thess. ii. 12: and 2 St. Peter i. 3. See
Rom. viii. 30: ix. 23 : xv. 7. 1 Cor. ii. 7. 2 Cor. iv. 4, 6. Ephes. i. 18. Col. i. 27. 2 Thess.
ii. 14. Heb. ii. 10. 1 St. Peter iv. 14: v. 10. (d) 2 Cor. iv. 17.

(e) Does not St. Peter allude to the Transfiguration in his First Epistle — v. 1.

(/) St. John iii. 2.

480 A l'LAIN [CHAP.

What mountain tl.' i ol known. Traditi r ' Tabor in

I of tli»- Transfiguration ; bat tl n h.r sup-

that "ur Sw 101 r had yel left the Eastern side of the Jordan. It i- worth
ling that :ill three Evangelists who hare described this great Trans
in mentioning that it t>">k place exactly one week after the former
It wonld seem as if, having selected the highly fan S - of Zebedi

P f the whole body of tin- Apostles, our Bavioi r t"..k them apart, —

ind t'i have done on another great with Him while He

prayed : conducted them up an adjoining mountain; and there occupied Himself in
■ious prayer. It may have been tin- Evening of the Daj ; and deep slumber
i the other occasion alludi found to I

\ tics. They were "heavy with Bleep," as the preei I • !i-t relal

tly they awoke, and beheld their i *i \ i n«- Blaster lemn inter-

course with the I' \i hi i:.

29 Ami as He prayed, the fashion of Ili^ countenance waa altered,
and ffifl raiment was white and glistering.

This was done "ashe prayed:" which reminds as that ai His Baptism ah
and it» the Garden, (A) He prayed previously to the coming forth of the glori

the unseen World " Prayer," Bays a good man, "is the Kej to Divini

teries, to the discerning of Christ in the Law and the Prophets. Bj Praj

i ither glory; and become changed ; and hold oommunion with Him who is
invisible.

" The fashion ofHis Countenana was aU< ed," StM

Mark's phrase, "H was transfigured before them :"(/) for the change which ]
upon the form and features of the Son of Man is the circumstance from which the
entire Event derives it- nam' "The Transfiguration." What was the aatu
this cl not been revealed. St. Matthew indeed says that "His Face did

shine as the Sun :"(tn) but more than that Beams to be implied by 1 1 » < - statemi
the text. W •• are reminded rather of St. Paul's repeated assurance that a •
will pass upon ns. — (and doubtless upon our forma and features, no less than upon
the constitution of our mortal bodies,) — ai our Resurrection from Death.(n
Mark'- -tat. nnnt that our Lord, after Hi- Resurrection, appeared to two of His
Disciples "in another form," (p) is also brought to our remembrance : and the be-
lief i- that while the three Apostles who witnessed the Transfiguration of
th<' Son of Man remained fully aware that it was He whom they beheld, and

other, (h>r ind 1 UN features remained the same,) yel that the fori I uture

( llory with whicfa He waa novi revealed to their mortal eyes, conveyed to His Divine
Countenance also a foretaste of the mighty Change which was t.. pass upon it
alter: that St. John beheld Him now, in short, as afterward- by Revelation 1

held Him, — " His Head and Hair, white as wool, as white as snow ; and Hi- I

as a flame of fire; and His Feet, like unto Bne brass, as if they burned in a fur-
.... and His Countenanci — as the Sun shineth in his slrength."(p) An
old Writer remarks thai "in His Transfiguration, we have a most exact pattern of
our Resurrection." But this .statement probably falls short of th" Truth. There
have been as close an exhibition as human eyes oould bear of the
I He will come in the Day of Judgment, —thai is, "in the Glory of His

I r with the EIolj Angela:"(g) a partial revelation of that Glory in whioh
i II the brightness of the Sun. "(r)

The raiment which became * l white and glistering," Si M rl expresses it,

" shin ling \\ hite a- snow : bo a- no fuller I'll Earth '-an white th' '.i.

in, lees than tie- dazzling lustre ol the Face, is an attribute of glorious \ i-it«.rs from
the other World : an attribute derived doubtless frokn their nean Him "who

only hath Immortality, dwelling in the Light which no man can approach unl
Thus, of tl hi. relied awa\ tie' stone from th.- I! y S

el. in- 1 thai 'H countenance was like lightning, and His raiment whit*

i. ■::.
"
(., 2.

PhlL iii. 21 « . John iii. :'. B r. iv.

(«) .<t. Murk. i\

IX.]

ON ST. LUKE'S GOSPEL. 481

snow."(«) "The Spouse in the Canticles," remarks pious Bishop Andrewes,
" being asked concerning her Beloved's colours, saith of Him, ' My Beloved is white
and red.'(x) 'White' of Himself, as when He was transfigured on the Mount.
How comes the 'red' then? Not of Himself, but for us. That is our natural
colour : for we are polluted in our own blood ;Q/) red is the colour of sin. (2) He,
in Mount Golgotha, like unto us ; that wo, in Mount Tabor, might be like unto
Him !"

30 And, behold, there talked with Him two men, which were Moses
and Elias :

As our Saviour was attended by two when He visited Abraham at Mamre:(a)
as two Angels guarded His Sepulchre, when He had risen ;(b) and two were His
Messengers to the Eleven, at the time of His Ascension ;(c) so, at His Transfigura-
tion, " behold, there talked with Him two men, which were Moses and Elias:"

31 who appeared in glory, and spake of His decease which He should
accomplish at Jerusalem.

Every part of this wondrous narrative is exceedingly important and striking.
Moses and Elijah, (as if to represent the Law and the Prophets, and to show the
consent of the Gospel with both,) "appear in glory:" an attribute, as already re-
marked, of Beings from the unseen World. And they are seen "talking with
Jesus,"— as St. Matthew and St. Mark relates. (d) How remarkable a statement!
These two mighty Saints, who by Faith had seen the Day of Christ afar off, and
had been made glad thereby, — Moses and Elijah, are selected out of the whole
"goodly company" which had gone before, thus to "talk" with the Saviour of the
World ; and to behold, not so much His Glory as His Humiliation. joy unspeak-
able, no less than privilege beyond all price ! How does it exceed our powers, rea-
soning as living men, even to conceive the amount of their blessedness ! How may
the types and shadows of the Law be presumed to have fled away before their
brightening spiritual vision : the allegorical parts of true History,(e) to have teemed
with hidden meanings : the dark places of Prophecy, to have grown bright and ob-
vious ! But the Sacred Narrative, as usual, is severely brief. It does but

inform us that the approaching Sacrifice of Christ's Death formed the subject of
this discourse ; leaving us to infer from the word which St. Luke here employs, how
" His decease which He should accomplish at Jerusalem" may have been conversed
about by these mysterious Speakers. " His Exodus" is the expression of the Evan-
gelist ; a hint which a pious Writer has thus expanded : — " May we not imagine the
Deliverer of Israel addressed by the World's Redeemer in some such words as
these, — ' By thy hand I did once vouchsafe to bring forth My people from the afflict-
ing bondage of Egypt ; but lo, I am about to turn the multitude of the Gentiles from
the Power of Satan unto God. Of old time, I made a path through the Red Sea
for My redeemed ones to pass over ; but I am about to make a more wonderful way
through the waves of Death, whereby to guide them. Yea, though the floods shall
compass Me about, yet shall My Life be brought up from corruption. Thou re-
memberest how the chariots and horsemen of Phai-aoh, and the mighty host of
Egypt, were seen overthrown in the midst of the Sea when the morning appeared :
but I am about to triumph over principalities and powers, and overwhelm them in
the Lake of Fire. Thou didst lead My people through the Wilderness, and gavest
them the Law which had ' the shadow of good things to come ;' but now will I My-
self be their Guide, and write a new Law in their hearts, (f) and teach them to wor-
ship Me in Spirit and in Truth. Thou indeed didst bring Israel to the borders of
the Promised Land ; but Jam Israel's true Shepherd, and they who follow Me shall
pass even from Death unto Life.' "(g)

(n) St. Matth. xxviii. 3. Compare St. Luke xxiv. 4. (x) Song of Solomon v. 10.

(y) Lam. iv. 14. Ezek. xvi. 6. (2) Isaiah i. 18. (a) Gen. xviii. 2.

(b) St. Luke xxiv. 4. (c) Acts i. 10.

Id) St. Matt. xvii. 3, and St. Mark ix. 4. (e) Alluding to Gal. iv. 21 to 31.

(f) Heb. viii. 10. See Jer. xxxi. 31 to 33.

(</) Altered from Bishop Home. — If the Reader is offended at this, or any other attempt in
these pages, to supply the omissions of Scripture, he is welcome to reject them. They are
always hazardous attempts, and are never put forth without great hesitation. It is thought,
however, that they may sometimes be found useful.

182 A PLATA COMMBWTAB? [( HAP.

82, 88 Bn! Peter and they that were with him were heavy with
deep: and when they were awake, they saw His Glory, and the two

men thai »1 I with Him. And it came to pass, as they departed

from Him, Peter Baid onto Jba :'■ r as to be h

B thai the three Apostles « 1 1 * 1 noi awake till this mysterious transaction
ended. T ind< i d they aroused themselves ; and it was to behold ^ u«Ii a specta-
ele as men will not h">k upon until they awake to the gL ries of the Everlasting
Horning. " Perhaps they were oppressed with Bleep," (says an Ancient rather.)
" that alter their rest they mighl behold the Resurrection. Terrified and i
ished at the Bight,(A) (as may well have been the case,) only one of their iiuimI.it is
found to have ventured to break the solemn Bilence: moved thereto, as it would
appear, by the departure of the Heavenly \ isitants, vi bom be would gladly ha'
tained. Simon Peter, foremost on every occasion in Bpeecb or acta !- :

and let as make three tabernacles; one for Thee, and one for Moses,
and one' for ESlias: not knowing what he said.

It baa ' ii excellently remarked thai "although St Peter knew nut what be

Baid, yet the solemn record of his words intimates that they were not to fall to the
ground, but were spoken divinely. "(0
"If." (says Venerable Bede,) " the society of hut two Saint* a moment

with their Loan in glory could confer such a degri f delight that St. Peter wished

j their departure even by doing them service, bow great a happiness will it
enjoy the vision of Gk>D, amid choirs of Angels, for ever 1" — See more, on these
words of St. Peter, in the note on St. .Matthew wii. 1.

84 W'Kile he thus spake, there came a cloud, and overshadowed them:
and they feared as they entered into the cloud.

r r this was He of whom it was Baid, "Behold, He cometh with cloud
Take notice that this was uol a oloud whieh while it overshadows, darkens the face
of the sk j ; laa it was " a bright cloud ;"(£) the token of the Divine Presence
a oloud whose very shadow was glor ir, in a certain place, calls this oloud

'• the Excellent Giory."(n)

85 And there came a Voice out of the cloud, Baying, This is My

: hear Him.

St. Matthev* adds, -"And when the Disciples heard it. they fell on their
and were sore afraid. AndJESi a came and touched them, and Baid, Arise, a

not afraid.'

86 And when the v/oice was past, Jesus was found alone.

Refer hi to the note* on St. Matthew x\ ii. EL

All this, then, took place a1 night. <hi the nexl morning, St. Matthew relates
that ••;>- thoy came down from the Mountai charged them, saying, Tell

the ■ man until the Son of Man be risen again from the deaa."(p) It

foil m

And they kepi it close, and told no man in the any of tl

things which they had seen.

ning one with another what the rising I'mm the dead should mean. "(7)
l qow how the conversation of this blessed Companj proceeded, as thej came
down "thollolj Mount," the reader mi the two earlier G

1 to -h"\\ thai a night had been passed on the Mountain, and that it

n>>u the follow inn daj i

(A) Si. Murk Is (1) Ber. I. Willi l: 1 L 7.

(/) SU M I. xl. 84, 86. 1 Kings 1 ... 10, 1 L

17. (■-) St Miitlli. xtII. I .

(/.) " ' '•' 17) St. Murk i.\. 1"

(,) - Krii. 10 to 18, and 8L Mark is LI to 18 s— where sw the 1

ix.] on st. luke's gospel. 483

37 And it came to pass, that on the next clay, when they were come
down from the hill, much people met Him.

St. Luke does not explain that they came "running to Him," drawn by the
heavenly lustre which had not yet quite faded away from His Divine Features ! —
Concerning this, see the note on St. Mark ix. 15. Indeed, the Gospel of St. Mark
is so full and particular on the subject of the lunatic child, that it should be con-
tinually referred to by him who desires to be reminded of all the details of the stu-
pendous miracle which follows. (s)

38 And, behold, a man of the company cried out, saying, Master, I
beseech Thee, look upon my son : for he is mine only child.

"Mine only child:" — how powerful a plea! ... So was the daughter of Jairus,
whom our Saviour raised from the bed of Death, an only Daughter ;(f) and the
Widow of Nain's son, whom He raised on the way to Burial, an only son.(u) Laza-
rus, too, — who had lain four days in the grave, — was an only Brother. Such things
are written for the special consolation of mourners ; whose tears are all noted by
God, and who lays upon none a heavier burden than He will also enable them to
bear. Nay, He has relief in store for those who need it most, as these examples
were doubtless meant to teach us.

39, 40 And, lo, a Spirit taketh him, and he suddenly crieth out ; and
it teareth him that he foameth again, and bruising him, hardly departeth
from him. And I besought Thy Disciples to cast him out ; and they
could not.

41, 42 And Jesus answering said, faithless and perverse genera-
tion, how long shall I be with you, and suffer you ? Bring thy Son
hither. And as he was yet a coming, the Devil threw him down, and
tare him. And Jesus rebuked the unclean Spirit, and healed the child ;
and delivered him again to his Father.

These verses have been already the subject of ample comment in the notes on St.
Mark ix. 18, 19, 20 ; and 25, 26, 27.

43, 44, 45 And they were all amazed at the mighty power of God.
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 into the hands of men. But they
understood not this saying, and it was hid from them, that they per-
ceived it not : and they feared to ask Him of that saying.

From a comparison of this, with St. Matthew and St. Mark's account of the same
conversation, it will appear that the saying which the Disciples "understood not,"
and " feared to ask of," was a further prophecy which our Lord now delivered ;
namely, that the Jews should " kill Him," and that on the third day He should
"be raised again. "(x)

The Reader -will find some remarks on the foregoing verses in the notes on St.
Mark's Gospel. (y) St. Luke is briefest, St. Mark fullest of all, in this place ; so that
the latter should be constantly referred to, down to verse 50 of the present Chapter.
It will be seen that the Blessed Company were passing through Galilee, privately,
at the time that our Lord delivered these sayings to the Twelve, (z) — They finally
reached Capernaum, which was the scene of the following incident.(a)

46 Then there arose a reasoning among them, which of them should
be greatest.

(s) St. Mark ix. 14 to 29. (t) St, Luke viii. 42. («) St, Luke vii. 12.

(x) St Matth. xvii. 23. Compare St. Mark ix. 31. \y) St. Mark ix. 31, 32.

\z) St. Matth. xvii. 22 : St. Mark ix. 30.
(«) St. Matth. xvii. 24, and St. Mark ix. 33.

484 A PLAIX COMMENTARY [CHAP.

\ ■ Tney disputed " whioh of themsi "(P)

IT. 18 Aiil Jesus, perceiving the thought of their heart, took a
ohild, and jet him by Elim, and said unto them, Whosoever shall re<
this child in My Name receiveth Me: and whosoever BhaU receive Me
i iveth Him that sent Me: for He that is least among you all, the
e -li:ill be great.

'I' iii- entire incident, related far more in detail both by Si Matthew and St Mark,
has i n already l'ul I v remarked upon elsewhere.(c)

And John answered and said, Master, we saw one casting cut
Devils in Thy Name; and we forbad him, because befolloweth not with
us. And Jbsua said unto him, Forbid him not: for he that is not

against us is for us.

1 loerning this incident also, which Beeme to have beer an interrnption <■(' the
divine discourse on the part of St. John, Bee the notes on St. Mark'- Gospel.(d) The
earlier Evangelists will be found to relate how the Discourse proceeded, after "ur
Saviour had replied to the beloved Disciple. St. Luke here breaks off the narra-
tive, — to introduce an incident of somewhat similar character, but which beloi
an altogether subsequent period.

51, 52 And it came to pass, when the time was come that II<' Bhould
be received up. He steadfastly set His Face to go to Jerusalem, and sent
messengers before His Pace; and they went, and entered into a Village
of the Samaritans, to make ready for Him.

The time alluded to is that Bolemn season, a few months before the last Passover,
when our Savioub is found to have made the circuit of Samaria. The time had then

o (or rather, was approaching to its fulfillment,) " that Be should I

op" into Heaven; and accordingly Be Bel Hit face like a tlint(.) to repair to the
scene of lli> approaching Bufferings. The messengi ra which Jlo sent '
additional solemnity to lli> act.

68 An 1 they did not receive Him, because His Face was as though
He would go to Jerusalem.

The enmity between the Jews and Samaritans was excessh e, — as many a pat
in the Gospel reminds u-.i/) and as the presenl place sufficiently shows,
mity was considerably aggravated at the Season of the great Jewish festivals ;

i M'luu; Gerizim, but at Jerusalem, the whole nation testified their determina-
tion to woi hip. Oar Loan even " sends messengers before His face," openly " to
make ready" for Hi- approach. This explains why they "'li.! not receive Him.*'

• I \ dwheo His Disciples James and John wwthia they said, Lord,

wilt Thou that Wc immmaml lire t<> r.»me down from lli-awn, ami OOn-

sume them, even as ESlias did '."

They allude to the repeated aot of Elijah, on a well-known occasion, when Abs
K I son! soldiers to apprehend bim.(gr) Their inquiry gives a lively

d of the sense t li<-\ entertained of their Loao't importance, u well as of their
own burning seal and jealousy on His behalf.

But He turned} and rebuked them, ami said, STe knoi not
what manner of Bpiril ye are "f. For the Sun of Man i me to

men's lives, but to save th m.

it)i«- langu hi xiii. 24.

1 ihe
• ten.

[satah L7. (/) .St. Juhu iv. 9: \.

X.] ON ST. LUKE'S GOSPEL. 485

And they went to another village.

57, 58 And it came to pass, that, as they went in the way, a certain
man said unto Him, Lord, I will follow Thee whithersoever Thou
goest. And Jesus said unto him, Foxes have holes, and birds of the
air have nests ; but the Son of Man hath not where to lay His head.

59, 60 And He said unto another, Follow Me. But he said, Lord,
suffer me first to go and bury my Father. Jesus said unto him, Let
the dead bury their dead : but go thou and preach the Kingdom of God.

It is surprising to discover that both these incidents are related in succession by
St. Matthew, as having occurred on quite a distinct occasion. The Reader is there-
fore referred to the remarks which he will find in the earlier Gospel. (li)

61, 62 And another also said, Lord, I will follow Thee ; but let me
first go bid them farewell, which are at home at my house. And Jesus
said unto him, No man, having put his hand to the plough, and looking
back, is fit for the Kingdom of God.

In the proverbial saying thus employed by our Lord, there seems to be an allu-
sion to the call of Elisha, — "who was ploughing with twelve yoke of oxen before him,
and ho with the twelfth/' when " Elijah passed by him, and cast his mantle upon
him." Whereupon " he left the oxen, and ran after Elijah, and said, Let me, I pray
thee, kiss my Father and my Mother, and then I will follow thee."0')

Our Saviour's answer implies that he who enters into the service of the Great
"Husbandman,"^-) and undertakes to " preach the Kingdom of God,"(Z) must not
look wistfully back to that Woidd which he professes to have renounced and
forsaken. His hand is upon the plough ; and his eyes should look straight forward.
He should give his whole heart to his master's work.

CHAPTER X.

1 Christ sendetli out at once Seventy Disciples to icork miracles, and to preach. 17
Admonisheth them to be humble, and wherein to rejoice. 21 Thanlccili His Father
for his grace. 23 Magnifieth the happy estate of Mis Church. 25 Teacheth the
lawyer how to attain eternal Life, and to take every one for his neighbour that
needeth his mercy. 41 Reprehendeth Martha, and commendeth Mary her sister.

" After these things" — that is, after making the circuit of Samaria — our Sa-
viour, journeying towards Jerusalem, proceeded to make the circuit of Galilee
also. Preparatory to this, He is found to have sent forth seventy disciples to pre-
pare His way. This sending forth of the Seventy, which is recorded by St. Luke
alone, (who is thought to have been one of their number,) («) occupies the first six-
teen verses of the present chapter. The parting charge which they received resem-
bles in many respects, and forcibly recalls, the charge which our Lord had already

Qi\ St. Matthew viii. 19 to 22. (i) 1 Kings xix. 19, 20.

(k) See the note on St. Luke iii. 17. (I) See above, ver. 60.

(a) See the note on St. Luke i. 3.

■\»'\ a ri.AiN C0MMBH1 [CHAP.

th( in forth. ' ' it will be

rved that lie -• at Hi- An. " bj two and 1 1

1 \ things the Loed appointed otl

them t\\<> and n^ before Hie face into every city and place, whither
He himself would c

the number of the Twelve I
of the Patriarchs, bo '1" I 5 D recall the numb '

who were called up into Mount Sinai to behold the wondroua \ ii-i- i ad to

.■1 drink in 11; u DO 1 1 i > > I"- D the

i ■■ An outline of the presenl ordinance," remarks oi e ol the Fat!

the words of Moses ; who, at the command of Goo, oh renty

upon whom Goo poured out Hi- Spirit. "(') How i "in^

in connection with the mission of the 7V-. In and thi

found in the Books of Moses, that at Elim the childr aofl rael found"!
md three-score and ten palm trees ?"(<Q

2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7 Therefore Baid He unto them, The harvest truly is
great, but the labourers art few: pray ye therefore the Lord of the
harvest, that he would send forth labourers into His harvi Go your
ways: behold, I Bend you forth as lambs among wolves. Carry neither
purse, nor scrip, nor Bhoes: and Balute no man by the way. And into
whatsoever house ye enter, first Bay, Peace ; - to this house. And if
m of peace 1"' there, your peace Bhall rest upon it: if not, it Bhall
turn to you again. And in the same house remain, eating and drink-
ing such things as they give : for the labourer is worthy hire.
1 1 aot from house to bout

ill be perceived thai tli<' same words which "ur Lord addresses n> the Sei enty,
re found in Hi- charge to the Twelve, in St. Matthew ix. 37, 38 : where
\ 3, in like- manner, recurs in St. Matthew x. 16: where also the
raited. The injunction in ver. I i- found in St. Matthew .x. 9, 1",
with which compe i v N l • .8,9, S . Luke ix. 3.
The language of verses 5 and 6 is more full than in the corresponding |
the Twelv< St N l itth< n 12, L3, wl •

and helps to explain the concise r rd of the earlier Evangelist v"erse7

bfa St Matthew x. 11. — where the I tarv may I

i to.

8, !», 10, 11,12 And into whatsi ater, and they receive

you, eat Buch thingf u are Bel before you: and heal the sioh that are
therein, and Bay unto them. The Kingdom of God is come nigh unto
But into whats* i ater, and they r<

I into the streets of the same, and say, Even the very dust
. which cleaveth on us, we do wipe off against you: not-
tanding be yc Bure of this, that the Kingdom of I •

B il I uty unto you, that it shall be more tolerable in that
day : a, than for that t- i t v .

I • • and torriJ Day of the 1 ■ bich

in ntous import, is often spok< a " the

I rcc last verses with St Matthew x. 1 I. 15— «i

the note th( re. S< also the note on St Mark \ i. 11.

18, II. 1 6 Woe unto thee, Chorasin I woe unto tin ida! for

if the mighty work bad been done in Tyre and Bidon which hi

11. (r) Cyril. :

\t) A . I 'li.. - .

X.] ON ST. LUKE'S GOSPEL. 487

done in you, they had a great while ago repented, sitting in sackcloth
and ashes. But it shall be more tolerable for Tyre and Sidon at the
Judgment, than for you. And thou, Capernaum, which art exalted to
Heaven, shall be thrust down to Hell.

The reader is requested to refer to the notes on St. Matthew xi. 21, 22, 24, (where
the same language is found,) for some observations on this striking passage. The
precious assurance contained in the verse which follows, (/) will be found already
remarked upon in the Commentary on St. Matthew x. 40, where it recurs.

16 He that heareth you heareth Me ; and he that despiseth you de-
spiseth Me ; and he that despiseth Me despiseth Him that sent Me.

Before proceeding to read the ensuing portion of the History, we are to remem-
ber that an interval must have elapsed: whether short or long, cannot be declared
with certainty. The Seventy had had time, at least, to make the discovery that
the powers of the unseen world were subject to them, through the prevailing Name
of Him who had sent them forth.

17 And the Seventy returned again with joy, saying, Lord, even the
devils are subject unto us through Thy Name.

" They seemed indeed to rejoice rather that they were made workers of miracles,
than that they had become ministers of preaching."(</) Accordingly, in ver. 20,
our Lord reminds them of the much higher ground of rejoicing which was theirs.
But first, He replies to their address.

18 And He said unto them, I beheld Satan as lightning fall from
Heaven.

A very striking saying, surely; and (to speak in the manner of men) one which
conveys a notion of exceeding grandeur concerning the sudden and utter fall which
Satan had sustained by the coming of Christ. It has been thought, indeed, that
the fall of the Angels "which kept not their first estate,"^-) is alluded to in the
words before us. But when it is remembered that Capernaum is said(i') to have
been "exalted to Heaven," (which can only mean in respect of its mighty privi-
leges,) and especially when it is considered that, at the time of our Lord's Advent,
Satan had usurped dominion to a surprising extent over the souls and bodies of
men — of which dominion, (as already observed,) he had now been most unexpect-
edly, as well as most completely, despoiled ; it seems more reasonable to suppose
that by this vivid comparison our Saviour did but intend to convey the sudden and
amazing overthrow which His great enemy had sustained at his hands — an over-
throw which had been shared by the rest of the evil angels, as their subjection to
the Seventy clearly proved. To the All-seeing Eye of the Incarnate Son, the down-
fall of Satan was a thing which might be gazed upon. Accordingly, He says, — " I
beheld Satan as lightning fall from Heaven." The expression, (which was doubt-
less intended to recall the language of Isaiah, with reference to Lucifer,) (k) further
derives awful interest from the name by which St. Paul denotes the chief of the
fallen angels — namely, " the Prince of th& Poiver of the Air."(l)

Our Lord proceeds to confirm the powers which he had already conveyed to the
Seventy ; supplying at the same time a marvellous hint of some secret connection
subsisting between Evil Spirits and the noxious part of the Animal Creation.

19 Behold, I give unto you power to tread on serpents and scorpions,
and over all the power of the Enemy : and nothing shall by any means
hurt you.

Consider how serpents and scorpions are ever connected in Holy Scripture with
what is noxious to man.(m) Remember also, the parting promise of our Saviour
Christ to his Church.(«)

(/) Verse 16. (r/) Cyril. (A) St. Jude verse 6.

(i) In verse 15. (/<•) Isaiah xiv. 12. (I) Ephes. ii. 2.

(m) Genesis iii. 1. Rev. xii. 9. : xx. 2. Numbers xxi. 6. Acts xxviii. 8. Psalm xci. 13.
Rev. ix. 3 to 10, &c. (») St. Mark xvi. 18.

488 A PLAIN' COMMENTARY [CHAP.

20 Notwithstanding in tliis rejoice not, that the spirits an
unto yon ; bnt rather rejoice, because your names are written in Eeaven.

I ■ rorbidden to rejoice at finding the powers of Satan subject onto

i ; but a higher ground of rejoicing i- pointed out
\'. en Gregorj the Great Bent Augustine the ni"iik into Britain, A. D
plant Christianity afresh in these islands,) he reminded him of 1 1 1 1 -- text, :t n<l cau-
n-t being too much elated by any bucccsi with which God mi^'lit
have blessed his ondeavours; bidding him keep nis eye turned inwardly, in Btrict
samination. ••Ami." Baid he, "if ere*, thou rememberest haying offended
against thj Creator, in word or deed, be thou mindful to call the same constantly
id; that go the me mory of thine offence may keep down the proud swelling
hts of thine heart whatever signs thou mayest have been enabled to per-
form, consider them leas as gifts made t<> thyself than to them, fox whose Bakes the
pow er w;i- conferred upon thee."
•■ Names written in Heaven," and the like mode of Bpeeoh, is uol unusual with
Spirit. So He Bpeaks by Moses, in the Law:(n) by l>a\i<l in the Psalms :(o)
His Prophets [saiah(r) and Daniel :(*) by His apostles Si Paul(<) and St.
John:(u) ana bo, on manj occasions, (as in this place,) Bpeaks the Ancient of Days
in I [is i>u n person. (a?)

There is an obvious conr stion between what goes before and what fol
"Our Lord knew thai through the operation of the Holt Spirit, which He had
given to His ApoBtles, many would l»' brought over t'> the fluth;"(y) and the
prospect is here declared to have filled UN human bou! with mysterious joy: as it
follows —

21, 22 In that hour Ji 31 a rejoiced in Spirit, an<l said, I thank 1
Father, Lord of Heaven and Earth, thai thou hast hid these things
from the wise and prudent, and hast revealed them unto bah

Father: for bo it seemed good in thy Bight. All things are de-
livered to file of My Father: and no man knoweth who the Son is,
but the Father; and who the Father is, but the Son, andAe to whom
the Son will reveal Him.

■ ■ two verses have been already met with, although in quite a different oon«
nection, in St. Matthew's Gospel, — whither the reader is referred for some remarks
concerning them. («) The Son of Man here rejoices not that the mysteries of the
G ! were Aid from any: bul thai what bad been bid from the proud had
revealed to the humble, — to those child-like hearts which areei er found in Christ's
littl '

_ ; '>. _' 1 And He turned Him unto BKs Disciples, and Baid privately,

ed are the eyes which see the things that ye Bee: for 1 tell you,

that many prophets and kings have desired to see those things which

I have ool Been them; and to hear those things which ye

hear, and have not heard tkt m.

ing are those words, whioh are ftcici (a) found on the lips of Christ.

Himself, — "the Desire of all Nations 1"(6) . . . He,— " unto whom all hearts are

open, all desires known, and from whom do secrets are hid," was full) aware of

nil those passionate yearnings which had been fell bj His ancient Prophets, "unto

ealc<l thai no( unto themselves, but unto tu, they did mini

1 iirisi indced.(c) but only afar off, and \ ery darkly : of which,
therefore, they " inquired and Hcnrched diligently:" for, • Si Peter informs us
in a in -' precioufl pn«*ag»\) tlioy earnestly desired to know " what, or what man-
ner of time tht l qrisi which was in them <li<l signify, when it te

Is. 18, and Bt John r. 30. i

(o) I'-aln. Ixii [uUfa It. :i. Ds dL 1.

(() I'l.il. w. .. II l:. r. tiiL Bi avU

(v) Cyril. (••) E

.. mil IB, i ;. ..

X.] ON ST. LUKE'S GOSPEL. 489

beforehand the sufferings of Christ, and the glory that shall follow." (t?) ....
" Wherefore, they are not to be heard, which feign that the old Fathers did look
only for transitory promises." (e)

It is easy to discover a connection between what goes before, and what follows,
in verse 25. Our Lord has been speaking of the names " written in Heaven." It
follows, accordingly, —

25 And, behold, a certain Lawyer stood up, and tempted Him, say-
ing, Master, what shall I do to inherit eternal life ?

The same question was afterwards addressed to our Lord by " a certain Rul-
er ;"(_/") and in reply, He rehearsed to him the precepts of the Second Table. At
a yet later period of His Ministry, a Scribe or Lawyer inquired, " Which is the great
commandment in the Law ?" Our Lord made answer in the words which will be
presently found in verse 27.(#)

26, 27 He said unto him, What is written in the Law? how readest
thou ? And he answering said, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God
with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy strength, and
■with all thy mind ; and thy neighbour as thyself.

This Scribe or Lawyer quotes from Deuteronomy vi. 4, 5, and Leviticus six. 18.
The first impression, on reading his reply, is, that he must have been an unusually
attentive Student of the Books of Moses, to pick out for himself such a summary
of their entire teaching; but from the circumstance already noticed, — namely, that
our Saviour, on a certain occasion, used the same blended quotations, — it may be
thought that this had become an approved method, in the Jewish Schools, of de-
claring the essence of the Law.

28 And He said unto him, Thou hast answered right : this do, and
thou shalt live.

" That is to say, — Fulfill My Commandments, keep thyself upright and perfect
in them according to My will ; then thou shalt live and not die. Eternal Life is
promised with this condition. But such is the frailty of man since the Fall ; such
his weakness and imbecility, that he cannot walk uprightly in God's Command-
ments ; but daily and hourly falls from his bounden duty, offending the Lord his
God divers ways."(A) All this, however, the Lawyer understood not. Still less
did he suppose that in the parable which he was about to hear, the helplessness of
human nature was, in effect, set before him ; that lie was, in truth, the man who
fell among thieves, and that the good Samaritan was none other than the Blessed
Speaker Himself ! . . . It follows:

29 But he, willing to justify himself, said unto Jesus, And who is
my neighbour ?

30 And Jesus answering said, A certain man went down from Jeru-
salem to Jericho, and fell among thieves, which stripped him of his rai-
ment, and wounded him, and departed, leaving him half dead.

The Traveller in this Parable, who "went," (or rather, "was going") down from
Jerusalem, had to traverse the wild, rocky road which leads to Jericho, and which
preserves to this day its ancient dangerous character, as well as its ancient glopflfci;
aspect, — being, in some places, a savage mountain pass, well fitted for deeds tff
violence, such as our Lord here describes.

31, 32 And by chance there came down a certain Priest that way :
and when he saw him, he passed by on the other side. And likewise a
Levite, when he was at the place, came and looked on him, and passed
by on the other side.

{d) 1 St. Peter i. 10 to 12. (e) Article vii.

(f) St. Matthew xix. 16,— St. Mark x. 17,— St. Luke xviii. 18.
(</) St. Matth. xxii. 35, 40. St. Mark xii. 28 to 31,— where see the notes.
(h) Second Homily of the Passion.

190 A PLADS OOMMIB ; [CHAP.

X upon the misery which they yet did not

rounded man wa- doubtless a Ji
nation, therefore; and tlm~. in the highesl ntitled t" some display ■ .t" :u-t i\ ••

And vet thej as if Ute Lei ite had

.1 of bis way, in ordi upon the wounded Traveller.

Bui a certain Samaritan, as he journeyed, came when
i when he Baw him, he had oompassion on him, and went to
him, and bound up his wounds, pouring in oil and wine, and Bet him on
his own beast and brought him to an inn, and took care of him. And
on the morrow when he departed, he took out twopence, :m<l gave them
t" the host, and said onto him, Take care of him ; and we thou

Bpendest more, when 1 come again, I will repay thee.

bould 1 bserved thai oil this tenderness toward

! from a Samaritan. He belonged to a people with whom t 1
dealings ;(<) whose name was a very bye-word of reproach and infami
who were regarded by them a~ aliens and Btrangers,(Z] — almoet reckoned with the
very beathen.(m) On such an one, therefore, the bleeding Traveller had no claim
whatever. A reason might, <>n the contrary, have been easily invented by tl
maritan for passing on, and leaving him to his fate.

But this man had studied in a better Bchool than the great bulk of either nation.

found t<> have left no effort untried t" mitigate the wounded man's Bufferings.

alike of the danger and fatigue, he conveys him to an Inn, — Bparee from

his Blender Bupply of money, as much as the stranger can require for two days,(n) —

im t" the '-arc of the host, and departs with a loving injunction ana a

rous promise.

Which now of these three thinkest thou, was neighbour unto him
that fell among the thieves '.'

The obvi >us answer would 1><\ — "The Samaritan:" but it Boems ;>< it' the Law-
ild nut bring himself to admit that a member of that h I
nation was entitled to Buoh praise. H< ol tht oaninthe

Parable, r,\~-. id: —

•'IT And he said, IK- thai I mercy on him. Then said J]

unto him, < i<>, niiil «lo thou lik( i

bt, — "Go, and show thou [mercy] likewise." La reading which words, (and
they are the conclusion of the whole matter,) we cannot but 1"' Btruck with the re-
markable turn which our I by thi.s time given tothi
course. In the beginning, the Lawyer bad asked to be informed who was his
Which class of persons ought he to regard as standing to him in
thai relation? Instead oi 2 the man's curiosity in this respect, our
i latcd to him a Parable, which sets before bis <\ es a touching picture of
humanity on the part of the Samaritan towards a Jew. Now, that tl
man .• "neighbour" by the Priest or the Levite; but that
1 led, ami rightly, by the Samaritan, is < •! >\ i> 'U>. The lesson d<
from the Partible oj our Lord Himself, is not, I

i for our neighbour."(< ) N< tiling of the kin.'
*Jcl#' - !• drawing IV. m tin- Lawvcr a !'n r uduii.».»ion that, of tin-

!."Hi"l with the wounded man, the "neiyhbi

the conversation bj proposing th< - witan,

— the actire benevolence which he displa Is on enemy, — i

for im 11

I lie attention is divorted from considering who
idod instead to the exercise of 1 part

of the Bible, t ■ boo! the ■< I to inform

ling.

[n] ... w. 'J.

X.]

ON ST. LUKE'S GOSPEL. 491

Such a lesson, then, of Love and Mercy, — and nothing more, — must the parable
of " The Good Samaritan" have conveyed to the Lawyer to whom it was addressed.
Well would it be for us, indeed, were we careful to profit by this, its practical teach-
ing. " But indeed there are very few of us who have yet learned to exert them-
selves as they might do for the relief of the general misery and destitution which
they cannot but see about them. The "World is full of it ; but is not full of that
Heavenly Compassion which it was meant to call forth." (p) It is however the
high privilege of the Christian who studies the written record of his Lord's Dis-
courses, to see a prophetic meaning beneath the veil of the letter ; and however ex-
quisite, however sufficient, the literal sense of the words spoken, it is not to be
doubted that he only can be said to profit duly by the divine narrative, who has
been guided to a part, at least, of its mystical meaning also.

Human Nature, therefore, is the " man" in this parable : — Human Nature, which
having forsaken the seat of Innocence and Holiness, — (the "Dwelling of Peace,"
as the name Jerusalem is explained to mean,) — is going down to the city of the
curse. (g) The Enemy of our souls, (who "was a murderer from the beginning," (r)
and his evil angels, are those murderous ones under whose power our Nature is
represented as having fallen. Stripped of that robe of Original Righteousnesses)
by the loss of which our First Parents became aware that they were "naked,"(<) —
and grievously wounded besides, in the most vital part, — tchat but a state almost of
Death was ours when the Law came to us, and passed us by ? It looked upon Man
indeed, (as the Priest and the Levite in the Parable looked upon the wounded Tra-
veller;) but the Law, having looked, could do no more than "pass by on the other
side :" for a law had not as yet been given, "which could give Life."(«)

It was reserved for Christ,(x) (the good Samaritan of the Parable,) to look upon
us, and to feel compassion :(y) to draw near, (as He did by "the mystery of His
Holy Incarnation :") — to heal the wounds of our Nature with the blessed medicine
of His Word and Sacraments, (2) — (that "oil and wine" wherewith the great
Physician " binds up that which was broken, and strengthens that which was
sick :"(«)) — "for our sakes to become poor, that we through His poverty might be
rich,"(6) — (which was aptly represented when the Traveller set the wounded man on
his own beast, and was content to perform the weary journey by his side, on foot:)
— to convey Man, thus rescued from Death, to the Church, — (that Inn provided for
the reception of all " strangers and pilgrims," travelling towards "a better country,
that is, an heavenly :")(c) — and there to "take care of him." .... All this, it was
reserved for Christ (the Good Samaritan) to perform for Man.

Indeed, " it was natural and proper, in answer to the question ' And who is my
neighbour ?' that our Lord should speak of one whom the Jew would not acknow-
ledge as his neighbour ; and should represent such an one as doing, towards a Jew,
something like what He was doing Himself towards the Jews, and towards man-
kind. In fact, our blessed Lord, though Himself a Jew, and of the Royal Tribe and
Family, was an 'alien to His Mother's children.' (d) He was called a Samaritan,
and treated like an alien and an enemy by His own people the Children of the
Jewish Church, in which He had vouchsafed to be born."(e)

"Behold," (said our Blessed Lord,) "I do cures to-day and to-morrow, and the
third day I shall be perfected.'^/ - ) Accordingly, it is said in the parable that " on
the morrow, when He departed, He took out two pence, and gave them to the host,
and said unto him, Take care of him ;" — (that is, Continue to deal with the objects
of My Love as /have dealt with them :)(//) "and whatsoever thou spendest more,
when I come again, I will repay thee." And what is this, but a mysterious hint,
first, — that Christ, at His departing, bequeathed to His Church great gifts, (and
chiefly the Two Sacraments,) — gifts and graces which were to be exercised for the
relief of sick souls, until His coming again? Next, — that when He "shall come

(p) Rev. C. Marriott. (q) See Joshua vi. 26. (r) St. John viii. 44.

(s) The reader is requested to consider the following places of Scripture : — St. Luke xv. 22 :
2 Cor. v. 3: Gal. iii. 27: Rev. iii. 17, 18: xvi. 15: six. 8.

(t) Genesis iii. 7. (u) Consider Gal. iii. 21. (x) See Rom. viii. 3.

(y) Consider the following texts :— St. Matth. ix. 36: xiv. 14: xv. 32: xx. 34. St. Mark i.
41 : v. 19 : ix. 22. St. Luke vii. 13. Also consider St. Matth. xviii. 27, 33: and St. Luke xv.
20, — remembering who is there spoken of.

(2) Rev. xxii. 2. (a) Ezek. xxxiv. 16. Comp. Is. lxi. 1.

(b) 2 Cor. viii. 9. (c) Heb. xi. 13 and 16. (d) Ps. Ixix. 8.

(e) Rev. C. Marriott. (/) St. Luke xiii. 32.

(</) See the last words of ver. 34. Consider St. John xxi. 15, 16, 17.

I9S A PLAIN CMMKNTAKY [OHAF.

judge both the ']ui>k and d<
graciously allow what Lore and Zeal have done in Bis bl< . lm will

giye it 1 1 i -. mighty sanction aim; and, (in the language of the Parable,
it?

\- ;, and high] Live incident follows : "A servants

I S 101 a, — tne oreatnre her C» ■ r. Bni if anj ihonld Bay,

■ l. wed are they who hare been thought worthy t" receive Christ into their
houses," grieve not thou: for Be says, "Inasmuch as ye have done it unto the
• ti; se Mj brethren, ye have done it onto Me.' "(a)

38 Now it came to pass, as they went, that He entered into a cer-
tain village: ami a certain woman named Martha received Him into

her hi

This in n^t have beenal " Bethany, — the town of Mary and her sister Martha. "(<)

On tl ther occasion when our Loan is Baid to have been entertained at Bethany,

it was "in the house of Simon the leper" that "they made Bim ;i supper."(Jfc)
Bere, the h( use was Martha's.

39, 40 And she had a sister called Mary, which also sat at Jesus'
and heard His Word. Bnt Martha was encumbered about much
serving,

Id the language of God's ancient people, disciples were said to " Bit at th<
of their Teachers. (2) Thus, St. Paul was brought an "at the feet of Gamaliel.
But the phrase doubtless represents what \\a~ the habitual posture of the
Consider what is said of the demoniac ofGadare, in St. Luke \iii. 35. — The "
ing" alluded to,(n] implies attendance at the table.

'I'!p' character of these !•• reappears on the other occasion already alluded

t", when they again come before us. It is there recorded thai "Martha served:"
but of Mary, thai she "anointed the feet of Jasi i, and wiped Bis feet with her
her hair."(o)

Very ex] the language of the original in thi< place. St. Paul may be
thoughi to have alluded to tl otire incident when he declared, in similar lan-
guage, that it was the object of bis precepts to the other sex, — "thai they might
attend upon th Loan without While Mary was thus blessedly

engaged, Martha "came suddenly upon" she Teacher and Bis disciple, —

and came to Him, and said, Loud, dost Thou not care that my
ter hath left me to serve alone? bid her therefore that she help me.

1 by tin' way, the smallness of the household, and the very humble nature

of what is passing. She who provides the entertainment, has to prepare it liko-
wise; and he must prepare it alone I ?et, who is the guest? The Loan of Hea-
rth! .... Bow should proud hearts bow down before suoh a spectacle,
and forgot tlnir pride! Poverty Burely inherits a blessing I
•• sfary c >mmii - her cause to the .lnii : j' ," remarks an ancient Father, fg) " an 1 1
Bow many examples there are in the Gospel, <'f Chum
thn^ taking ///-■ part of them who trust their cause to Hun .'(/■)

II. 12 And .Ii: i - answered and said unto her, Martha. Martha,

thou Ml careful and troubled about many things: but one thing is
needful: and Mary hath chosen that good part, which shall not be
taken away from her.

;:■

10, (•) st. Joan xi- L

rod with St. Jobs xii. 1
(/) D ("') A

! ■ hen.

3 i i ■ (./) Augustine.

(/•)'■' M " ' :i~i'lcr

irgiu', nu'l x. 1 I.

X.]

on st. luke's gospel. 493

Mary had chosen one thing: Martha was troubled about many. The double
repetition of her name is a note of special earnestness. (s)

He reads the Gospel to little purpose -who finds here nothing beyond the account
of two sisters, — one engrossed with worldly business, the other devoted to Religion ;
of whom one incurs rebuke, and the other commendation. Martha is a great saint,
no less than her sister ; and St. John's record is express, that " Jesus loved
Martha." (t) She is here engaged in the active service of Christ; and doubtless
had chosen for herself a very blessed portion when she determined to minister to
the human wants of her Lord. Behold, He has journeyed, and is weary, and
"hath not where to lay His head."(«) She has invited Him to her dwelling, and
He has come to bless " her house " with His presence. Shall she not exert herself
in an hour like this ? and by the pains she takes to entertain Him well, seek to
testify the largeness of her gratitude, and love, and joy? If Hospitality be ever
honourable,^) how much more on an occasion like the present !

Not until she seeks to draw her sister away from Christ, therefore, is a syllable
addressed to her in the way of reproof. The act of hospitality which so occupies
her, cannot but be most acceptable in the eyes of her Divine guest : who says not
that she has chosen a bad part ; but only that Mary has chosen a better.

" Why better?" asks Augustine ; " Because it shall not be taken away from her.
From thee, the burden of business shall one time be taken away ; for when thou
comest into the heavenly country, thou wilt find no stranger to receive with hospi-
tality. But for thy good it shall be taken away ; that what is better may be given
thee. Trouble shall be taken away, that rest may be given thee. But in the mean-
time thou art yet at sea ; thy sister is in port."

These words prepare us for another remark of the same great writer ; namely,
that Martha was occupied, as the Church of Christ is occupied here below, — in the
active service of Christ : Mary, as the same Church will be engaged hereafter in
Heaven, — in devout adoration of His perfections. — Our Fathers in the Faith de-
lighted in taking a somewhat similar view of the entire transaction, — when they
pointed out that these two sisters respectively symbolize the active and the con-
templative side of the religious life : both excellent, — yet the contemplative the
more excellent of the two ; for it is " that good part, which shall not be taken
away," — but rather endure throughout the ages of Eternity, and become perfected
by the presence of Him who is its object.(y) The practical life has its own honours
and its own rewards. Those who pursue it, are only then to be checked when they
would cast blame on the conduct of such as have chosen the Word of God for their
study, (2) and Christ Himself for their portion. (a)

THE PRAYER.

Almighty God, who alone canst order the unruly wills and affec-
tions of sinful men ; Grant unto Thy people, that they may love the
thing which Thou commandest, and desire that which Thou dost pro-
mise ; that so, among the sundry and manifold changes of the world,
our hearts may surely there be fixed, where true joys are to be found ;
through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

(s) Compare St. Luke xxii. 31. (t) St. John xi. 5.

(m) St. Matth. viii. 20, and St. Luke ix. 58.

fee) Romans xii. 13. 1 Tim. iii. 2. Titus i. 8. Heb. xiii. 2. 1 St. Peter iv. 9.

hj) Compare St. John xvi. 22. (z) Ps. cxix. 18, 21, 51, 72, 97, 103, 105, 127, 162, &c.

(a) Ps. xvi. 5: lxxiii. 26: cxix. 57: cxlii. 5, &c.

404 A PLAIN O.'MMLXTAllY [CHAP.

CHAPTEB XI

v to pray, and thai instantly. 11 .*
11//. ting "Hi >i dumb devil, rebuketh the blasphem
! who are blessed, 29 Ih to ///-• /■

,i \tvoard show of holiness in tht Pharisi . §

1 And it came to pass, that as He was praying in a certain place,
when He ceased, one of 111- Disciples said onto Him, Lord, teach u.s
to pray, as John also taught his DiscipL

It was usual, among the Jews, for Masters to give their Scholars a Form "f
r. St. John Baptist had given hie Disciples euoh a Form, — which would have
been preserved to tin- day, had it concerned us to know what it was.

2 And He Baid onto them, When ye pray, Bay,

The Prayer which follows, had been already delivered by our Saviour I
I in. hi .in the Mount: then, unasked; now, in compliance with

the request of a Disciple. See St Matthew's Gospel, \i. 9 to L3, — and tin- notes
there. This repeated delivery of the Loan's Prayer, reminds us of ill" two-fold
deliver] of Hi I nmandments.(a) \ ignificant, Burely, is the circumstance

that i tyer was delivered on both occasions. Will may the Church nmko

such frequent use "lit in her Daily Servi

Our PaTHEB

Wi-ar^ not taught M. Pather," but " Our Father ; M partly, to remind

us of our Brotherh / in Christ, — partly, to remind us pf the duty of Common

l'ras er. To Bay " My Father," was the peculiar prerogative of the Only-Begotten
Sow. v S J bn v. 18 ; and the note which immediately I re it.

is "our Father," because 1 1<- is out Creator :(6) because ' w'-r.

uiir life is sustained; bj Hi- Providence all our wants are supplii
lastly, we are His adopted Children by Faith in Christ -Ii si -

Which art in Heaven,

rds, at the very beginning of the Loan's Prayer, arc intended, (like t ho
Bommons, "Lift up your beart rry our thought! from Earth to Heaven;

aii 1 to remind us whore out conversation, as "the Sons of Gon,"(e) should be.

1 1 Uowed be Thy Name.

petition of the Loan 1 bj the form it assui

behalf of Alxiohti Goo: but, in reality, it isonlj a supplication i

tC N irhich is thrice Uoly,) may be saneti-

•

I i when, '"'tli in ourselves and others, thai Holj Name is hall* ■ • \\\\\

tlic fulfillment of the petition whioh stands in 1 1 1 . - second plan

Thy Kingdom come.

B petition, "the Church militant herein Earth" anticipato

II o," which St. John beard, triumphantly " saying,

(,.) Bm Dent ix. L0, u I i l. lb) - U 11.

(■ij i;.,i. i. (<) Bt John i. u i i. 1

XI.]

ON ST. LUKE'S GOSPEL. 495

of this World are become the Kingdoms of our Lord, and of His Christ ; and He
shall reign for ever and e\ev."(f)

But it is, in effect, a prayer for growth in Grace ; for the increase of Holiness,
both in ourselves and others : " for, behold, the Kingdom of God is within you."(fiO
The Kingdom, moreover, has been visibly set up on Earth : and " no doubt is come
upon us .(h) but as the Blind see not the Light, (in which they nevertheless " live,
and move, and have their being,") so may it be with ourselves ! We have need
continually to pray that God would bring us sensibly to the Knowledge of His
Kingdom: and convince us of its "coming."

Thy Will be done, as in Heaven, so in Earth.

If men sought to do God's Will ou Earth, as constantly and faithfully as the holy
Angels do His Will in Heaven, — (for they alway " do His commandments, hearken-
ing unto the voice of His Word,"(i) — ) the coming of His Kingdom would be de-
layed no longer. Faithfully to do His Will, is indeed to make Heaven begin here
on Earth. Heartily to will what He willeth, is the nearest imaginable approach to
perfection.

The three former petitions are expressive of our solicitude for God's Glory. On
our parts, they are petitions for grace " to worship Him, serve Him, and obey Him
as we ought to do." The four which follow, have Man for their subject: and in
them, we severally enumerate, and pray for the supply of, our own greatest needs.

3 Give us day by day our daily bread.

By which words, we "pray unto God that He will send us all things that be
needful both for our souls and bodies." Thus, besides being a prayer for food and
raiment, — (with which possessions, we are reminded that we ought to be content ;(k)
arid/or which, we are warned against being over careful ;)(Z) — this petition has an
obvious reference to the " true Bread which came down from Heaven :" even to
" the strengthening and refreshing of our souls by the Body and Blood of CHRIST."
" For," as our Lord Himself speaks, " My Flesh is Meat indeed, and My Blood is
Drink indeed."(»0 And this is, of course, the loftiest meaning of the prayer.

Yet more generally, — for our Lord's use of Deut. viii. 3, (concerning which, see
the note on St. Luke iv. 4,) forbids any such limited application of that place of
Scripture ; — we are hereby taught to place our entire dependence, to repose all our
hopes and anxieties, on God : to refer all our needs, to commit all our schemes, as
well as to resign the issue of every thing we undertake, to the disposition of His
good Providence.

Lastly, to do the Will of GOD the FATHER— as we learn from St. John iv. 32
and 3d, is to "have meat to eat" which the World knows not of. That is, spiritual
strength and sustenance is derived to the Church from this source. Moreover, —
" It is written, Man shall not live by Bread alone, but by every Word that pro-
ceedeth out of the mouth of GoD."(n) There is therefore an allusion here to the
commands and sanctions contained in the Book of Life ; concerning which, the
Christian prays that he may iind therein his daily strength and sustentation.

And thus, although it would seem that, in this petition, our Blessed Lord, out of
His great compassion toward our infirmities, had simply given the foremost place
to a supplication in behalf of the temporal wants of His creatures, — it will be felt
that even here, abundant provision has been made for the more spiritually minded;
enabling them to lift up their hearts above this earthly scene ; and to feel, with the
Psalmist, even while they use the language of mere bodily craving ; — "My soul
thirsteth for Thee: my ilesh longeth for Thee!"(o) "My flesh and my heart
faileth : but GOD is the strength of my heart, and my portion for ever."(^)

4 And forgive us our Sins ; for we also forgive every one that is
indebted to us.

On this petition, and the memorable plea on which it rests, see the note in St.
Matthew's Gospel, — vi. 12 : also the note on verses 14 and 15 of the same chapter.

(/) Revel, xi. 15. {g) St. Luke xvii. 21.

(A) St. Luke xi. 20; and St. Matth. xii. 28. (\) Psalm ciii. 20.

\k) 1 Tim. vi. 8. (1) St. Matth. vi. 24 to 34. \m) St. John vi. 55.

(») St. Matthew iv. 4, — where our Lord quotes Deut. viii. 3.

(o) Ps. lxiii. 1. Compare Psalm lxxxiv. 2. (p) Psalm lxxiii. 26.

40G A l'l.AIX COMMEHTABY [chap.

I • duty of forgiveness of Injuriea, our Lord delivered " ft Parable of

King that t< ■< 'k account of his Servants; and punished him who showed do
r to his fell NVe learn also from St. Matthew's Gospel, that tl B

I to the present petition immediately after the former delivery of
tin- Loan's Prayer:(r) and He i- n St. Mark to have used exactly similar

uii- this great duty, mi a tsion.(s)

And lead us not into Temptation.

\\ .• are hereby reminded of the comfortable truth that the I ry baa no

power, even to tempt us, — unless God permit him. Minn the Eternal Son was led
int. i the Wilderness to !"■ tempted by tin- Devil, He \\:i- Led /<v the Spirit.(/) All
our Pear, and all our Devotion, ought therefore t" !"• add] '••in.

\ nnection may be perceived between this petition, and the last Th
prayed to !"■ forgiven for onr pasl transgressions. 7/'/-. we pray I I from

th'- commission of more.

the note on this petition in St. Matthew vi. 13; where the difference is pointed
out between (>>■: I Umcy, and Satan'- Solicitation to Sin, — which,

in the language of Scripture, are alike called "Temptation."

But deliver us from Evil.

This may well be the concluding petition of the Lo
tiii-*-*— cry to the Creator for final deliverance tram all that stands in the way of his
Eternal Salvation: Evil, — whether from without, or from within. That deliverance
from the Evil One is implied, cannot, "i' course, be doubted; ami probably this is
the thing chiefly meant: in illustration of which hint, the Reader i- particularly
referred t" the notes on St. Luke iv. 6. lint more than that, if possible, i- meant
by these words. They are a prayer that <m>i< would deliver us, \i St Paul Bpeaks,
"from this body "l' death."(u) By such Language, (in the words of tin' Bame
\ h:.) showing that " wi: ourselves groan within ourselves; waiting fur the
Adoption, t" wit, the Redemption of the l!>"ly."(x)

This petition, which is the largest in extent, of any, may be r - summing

up, and comprehending, all our desires. It enables the Christian, into whatever

tribulation !"• may happen t" be cast, to rent tin' fullness of his grief; ami. in the

jible words, t" pray to God for effectual deliverance, — in Time and in

ty.

When our Lord first delivered His pattern Prayer, He added a few words >■•
ing the duty "t I is of Injuries.! y i < m this occasion, He delii ers a Parable

enforcing ■ rather importunity in prayer. It U as it' the Divine

Speaker bad said,— "You a-k me for a form of words. It is well. Learn, how-
ever, that that form must l"' poured forth beartilv : a- tin' expression of the

b individual heart. Nor suppose, because your requests are not immediately
granted, that therefore they will be denied altogether. Hearken t" a ] ai

\ml He Baid onto them, Which of you shall have a friend, ami
shall go unto him at midnight,

',"/' i- that I "At midnight 1 will rise to give thanks unto Tl

saitb the Psalm w e l< arn from this place, that < Iod i- t" he addressed with

midnight prayers, as well as midnight praises ; ami tin- example of Paul and S

the -aim- thin::.

ami -ay onto him, Friend, lend mi' thr<

Th' is for /•' orning tin' meaning of which term,

< oaider, in connection w it!, • • -. the

if \>T. 1 1 ; ami see tin- QOt6 th-

r«) 8U Mark v. Bphes.lv. .'!2: OolosS. iii. 1 \\\iii.

(") '
.11.

XL]

ON ST. LUKE'S GOSPEL. 497

But why " three loaves V It seems reasonable on more accounts than one, to
compare this place with Genesis xviii. G.

6 for a friend of mine in his journey is come to me, and I have no-
thing to set before him ?

The type, it may be presumed, of a sudden requirement — an unexpected want.
Thus, in Nathan's " parable of the Ewe Lamb," the supposed occasion when the
Rich man spared to take of his own flock and of his own herd, was when " there
came a traveller unto the rich man."(5) ... Or does the present parable perhaps
exhibit the efficacy of intercessory prayer ?

An ancient bishop beautifully puts the case of a stranger seeking Divine Know-
ledge, a reason, at the hands of one who has it not to give. " Not having wherewith
to satisfy his hunger, you are compelled to seek in the Lord's Book: for perhaps
what he asks is contained there, but obscure. You are not permitted to ask St.
Paul himself, or St. Peter, or any Prophet; for all that family is now resting with
their Lord ; and the ignorance of the world is very great — that is, it is midnight ;
and your friend is urgent from hunger, and not contented with a simple faith.
Must he then be abandoned ? Go to the Lord himself, with whom the family is
sleeping ; ' Knock and Pray/ If He delays to give, it is because he wishes that
you should the more earnestly desire what is delayed ; lest, by being given at once,
it should grow common."

Take notice, in passing, of the very humble sphere of life from which our Lord
draws his illustration. It is because — " To the poor the Gospel is preached." (c)
Well might the Psalmist exclaim, " Who is like unto the Lord, our God, who
dwelleth on high; who humbleth himself to behold the things that are in Heaven
and in the Earth !"(c7)

7 And he from within shall answer and say, Trouble me not : the
door is now shut, and my children are with me in bed : I cannot rise
and give thee.

Rather — " My children, as well as myself, are gone to rest." He says, " Trouble
me not," and delays, only to kindle the greater desire — to occasion redoubled earn-
estness. See the note on the next verse.

An ancient Father refers all this, to these latter days, when there is " a famine
of the Word; and those who once dealt the Gospel throughout the world, as it were
Bread, are now in their secret rest with the Lord." Doubtless the Saints are God's
" children ;"(e) and " the dead in Christ," — those " which sleep in Jes\js,"(/) —
may well be spoken of as "in their beds."(#) "Let the Saints be joyful with
glory," says the Psalmist, " Let them rejoice in their beds."(h)

Consider, how it is only when " an open door"(?') is set before us, that we can
hope for access to God. Hence our Saviour Christ calls himself " the dooi%"(7i;) —
because He presents our petitions ; and because, offered in His most Holy Name,
they become prevailing.(Z) Hence, too, such expressions as we meet with in Acts
xiv. 27 : 1 Cor. xvi. 9 : 2 Cor. ii. 12 : and Coloss. iv. 3. — Take notice that " the
door" is more than "shut;" it i3 (in the original) "locked:" and so in St. Matthew
vi. 6. The thoughtful reader will recollect a short but striking clause in St. Mat-
thew xxv. 10.

8 I say unto you, Though he will not rise and give him, because he
is his Friend, yet because of his importunity he will rise and give him
as many as he needeth.

Whether "three" or more.

What a marvellous lesson is here set before us — even by the very Being who
answereth Prayer ! He may see fit to delay granting our petitions : but He would
have us persevere; and He will grant them in the end. " The Kingdom of Heaven
suffereth violence; and the violent take it by force."(m) The present warning is

(h) 2 Samuel xii. 4. (c) St. Luke vii. 22. (d) Psalm cxiii. 6.

(f ) 1 St. John iii. 1, 2, &c. (/) 1 Thess. iv. 14, 16.

(</) Compare Job xvii. 13 Isaiah lvii. 2. 2 Chron. xvi. 14. (7() Psalm cxlix. 5.
(i) Rev. iii. 8. (fc) St. John x. 9. (I) St. John xiv. 13: xv. 16 : xvi. 23.

(»0 St. Matthew xi. 12.

198 A l'l.AlN C0MMBHTAB1 [CHAP.

bj no means singular and solitary. Our Lord caused two blind men, on a 01

. after him, and follow bim into the bouse:(n) tin- t w . . blind
men at Jericho, I not, in like manner, until after they had called upon

Him b ■ as to incur 1 1 i • - displeasure of the multitude :(o) l>ut above all. t<> the Woman

"answering ber not a word," in replji to her prol
and f >on repulsing her when at last she came and worshipped.(o)

And what other lesson than one of earnestness in Prayer, is taught us I

ing with an Angel until the breaking of the lid, " I will not

Thou bless me \ml He Baid ... A- a Prince bast thou

■ and with men, and hast prevailed \ml He blessed him

there." (5) Whence his name, " Israel :" that i GOD.

rve, that the friend's compliance is not from friendship, but in conseqn
of the other's importunity; or rather " shamelessnees," — for bo it d the

original: bo that the argument Btrictly resembles that in the parable of "Tl
jub< Judge ;" or rather of " The importunate Widow :" which was spoken " to this
end, that men ought always to pray and not to faint." I osider, by all m
St. Luke x\ iii. 1 to B.

Now, •• < rOD i- Lo\ e."(«) More »i er, " Behold, He that keepeth Israel shall neither
Blumber nor b1( Consider therefore with how much greater certainty of

e -hall kimrk at // I " He would not bo encourage at to ask

were He not willing to bestow. He is more willing to give than we to re<
There is no overcoming of reluctance here; the reluctance, on the contrary, i.- all
our own.

Speaker pr eds t" add a few words without any parable:

• in a Bgure, but ]>l:iiul\ . "

9 Airi 1 Bay unto you, A-!., and it shall I yon; seek, and ye
shall find : knock, and it shall be opened unto you.

This, four following verses, (ver. 9 to ver. 13,) recur, with Borne Bmall

1. in our Lord's Sermon on tin- Mount — St. Matthew \ii. 7 tu
11: where the reader is requested to consult the not< 1 "ask," — to "seek," —
to " k; ■ in t" imply different degrees of earnest]

10 For 1 vi ry one that asketh receiveth; and he thateeeketh findeth;
and to him that knocketh it .-hall be opened.

■■ !;■ eiveth," — not perhaps the very thing he asked for; but "that which is

lient for him; and therefore a l"//>r thing than he knew how t<> a-k.

He " findeth"— something : a treasure, doubtless; though perhaps not the very

tiling besought. And "the door" is " opened," — whereby he may •••_'" in and

mit, ami fiml pasture."(u) Sec the note "ii St. Matthew \ii. 8.

1 1 If a Sod shall ask bread of any of you that is a Father, will ho
give him a .-tunc': or it' In- 'is/,- a fish, will he for a fish give him a
serpent ?

The conn ctl n of this with what goes before is obvious. Notice in the prayer

' the petition for ll Bread ;" &nd thi of the mid-

u hat has been already written

On Sr. Matthew \ii. 9.

12, 18 « »r it' be shall ask an egg, will he offer him a Bcorpioi If
en, being evil, know how - unto your children:

much more .-hall your Heavenly Patheb give tb 1.
them thai ask I tim '.'

as in the " Sermon on t'.
ii. I 11 . 11: whrro hoc the n L similar argument to that used above,

is here repeat* I. There, it wn . — 1 1 a common Friend, to escape molestation ;

(„ •:

1. («) 1 St. John h

XL]

ON ST. LUKE'S GOSPEL. 499

If a human Father, because bound by natural ties, grants the favour required of
him — how much more shall He who never sleepeth,(x) and whose Mercy is over
all His works :(y) how much more shall thy Heavenly Father, "grant thee thy
heart's desire, and fulfill all thy mind l"(z)

14 And He was casting out a devil, and it was dumb. And it came
to pass, when the devil was gone out, the dumb spake ; and the people
wondered.

Compare the account of this miracle in St. Matthew's Gospel — xii. 22, 23; where
see the notes.

15 But some of them said, He casteth out devils through Beelzebub
the chief the devils.

The reader is referred to the note on St. Matthew xii. 24. Also, to a long note
on St. Mark iii. 22.

1 6 And others, tempting Sim, sought of Him a sign from Heaven.

"This pretended desire of a sign less equivocal, — a sign from Heaven, such as
Moses exhibited before the Israelites,(a) — could only proceed from minds corrupted,
as were those of the Pharisees, by the dangerous habit of trifling with the divine
Oracles; and making that accurate knowledge they possessed of the external means
of Salvation, a mere instrument of pride and worldly advancement. Compare St.
Matthew xii. 38, and the note there.

17, 18, 19 But He, knowing their thoughts, said unto them, Every
Kingdom divided against itself is brought to desolation ; and a House
divided against a House falleth. If Satan also be divided against him-
self, how shall his Kingdom stand ? because ye say that I cast out
devils through Beelzebub. And if I by Beelzebub cast out devils, by
, whom do your sons cast them out ? therefore shall they be your judges.

The reader is referred to all the notes on St. Matthew xii. 25, 26, 27 — where the
three preceding verses will be found discussed at some length. Some remarks on
the two first, (verses 17 and 18,) will be also found in the Commentary on St.
Mark iii. 2G.

20 But if I with the Finger of God cast out devils, no doubt the
Kingdom of God is come upon you.

In St. Matthew xii. 28, instead of " The Finger of God," it is " The Spirit of
God :' ; a most precious circumstance, since we are thereby reminded of the meaning
of the former phrase when it occurs in Scripture.

But why is the Spirit of God, spoken of as His Finger? Probably, first, because
that little member possesses such wondrous activity, and is mainly employed in all
the operations cf the hands : wherefore, when the Magicians of Pharaoh would
ascribe a miracle to the power of God's Spirit, they exclaim "This in the Finger of
God."(6) — To the finger, again, chiefly belong all works of Creative energy and
skill : wherefore, the Heavens, (concerning which it is said in the Book of Job,
"By His Spirit He hath garnished" them,)(c) are described in Psalm viii. 3, as
" the work of His Fingers.^ — Next, it may be because with this member words are
consigned to writing : whence the Ten Commandments on two tables of stone, are
said to have been "written with the Finger of God ;"(rf) with manifest reference to
which, St. Paul speaks of an Epistle written " with the Spirit of the living God ;
not in tables of stone, but in fleshy tables of the heart." (e) — We speak of the Bible,
in like manner, as written with the Finger of God ; by which we do but mean that
it is inspired throughout by God's Holy Spirit. Consider Daniel v. 5, which de-

[x) Psalm cxxi. 3, 4. (y) Psalm cxlv. 9. (z) Psalm xx. 4.

(a) Exodus xvi. 4, 15; referred to in Psalm lxxviii. 24, and in St. John vi. 30 to 32.

(b) Exodus viii. 19. (c) Job xxvi. 13.
(d) Exodus xxxi. 13: Deut. ix. 10. (e) 2 Cor. iii. 3.

500 A H..UN OOMMBNTAEI [CHAP.

rthjinger trail;

the part of the hand read in rem 24,) i

in. -m! it, on :i certain occasion, the I' W d Kimseli

and irif/i / ronnd."(/)

r " ribnted to I 2 ■ f <i"i>. tl

farther to be an allusion to the eajn and despatch with which He perl
rks.
But I " • red to the a some ren

npon the present \ ex

21, 22 W 1 1 » - 1 1 :i Strong Man armed keepeth his palace, I - are

in p< ace : '"it when a Stronger than he .-hull come anon him. and over-
im, lie taketh from him all his armour wherein lie trusted, and
divideth his spoils.

; Eimself is thai "S -one of •■■

in the Old Testament was (Sawtson. Be is a Warrior. Consider the follow-
ing places of Scripture, — Psalm xl\ . ."., and 5, [with which compare Rev. \ i. --. also
xix. 15 and 21 ;j Ephi 'salm lxviiii. 18 :) Coloss. ii. 1"' : 1 < lor. xv.

To "divide spoils" is the act of i iotorioue Boldiei Numb. xxxi.

27: Joshua xxii. 8: 30: I Samuel xxz. 24: P txviii. 12: Isaiah

xxxiii. 23. Eveu tbfu it had been foretold of Christ Eimself that He slum].:

the note on St. Matthew xii. 29 : St. Mark iii. 27, and t there

referred t". The Reader is also referred to the note on St. Luke viii. 30.
"All hi> armour:" rather, "his • (/') — " "

'.-" — how much of dismay and disappoint ealed in those few v

He that ia not with Me is against Me; and he that gatherethnot
with Mi th.

The Reader is referred to th St .Matthew xii.

24, 25 When the unclean Spirit ' out of a man, he walketh

through dry plao and finding none, he Baith, I will

return unto my house whence 1 came "tit. And wl >meth, he

findeth ii Bwept and garnished.

aderful words will be found remarfe
M itthew xii. 43.

26 Then goeth he, ami taketh to him .-even other spirits more wi<
than himself:

it' answering to the sevenfold graces of the 1l<>iv Spirit, by which the
faithful Christian is confirmed and Bealed." See 1 1 1 ■ - Eymn in the Ordlnatii
vice, beginning "Come Eoli Oho ir the following pis

. i. I : iii. 1 : IV. 5 : v. 6. Co I li \i. "J.

I e before us, "that most B0I3 inhabitant I

I thrust aws
1 . in connection with 1 1 1 i - . St. John r. 14

in, and dwell there: and tl f that man ia

hi the t'..

! ■ the A]

that is, such as " w I, and have

'■ "t tin- li ft, nnd were made part I have

have
fallen ! ■ true it u that G ever to the truly

I : > liii. 12.
I Ii. (*) 1 (/) U ! to 6.

xi.] on st. luke's gospel. 501

repenting Sinner. But who will give Repentance itself to him who has put it far
from him, — when the Holy Spirit, the only Author and Giver of Repentance, is
grieved, and provoked to become an Enemy? What if every feeling on which con-
trition can he fastened has ceased to exist, — and every breath of devout affection
has stopped, — and baptismal grace has been abused, and wasted, and lost, — and the
Blood of the Covenant, wherewith the man was sanctified, hath become to him as an
unholy thing, and a lasting despite is done to " the Spirit of Grace ?"(■/«)

The entire contents of the present verse will be found remarked upon, at great
length, in the note on St. Matthew xii. 45, — to which the Reader is referred.

27, 28 And it came to pass, as He spake these things, a certain
Woman of the company lifted up her voice and said unto Him, Blessed
is the womb that bare Thee, and the paps which Thou hast sucked.
But He said, Yea rather, blessed are they that hear the Word of God,
and keep it.

The reader is referred to the note on St. Luke viii. 21. — It is obvious to remark
on these words that nothing derogatory to the unspeakable honour of the Blessed
Virgin Mary was intended. The very thought were ridiculous. An Archangel
from Heaven had proclaimed her blessedness. The Holy Spirit, (by her own lips,)
had pronounced her blessed eternally. («) That no Woman since the Creation was
ever so honoured, — nor, till the end of the World will be, — is too evident to require
asserting. In the words of grave Bishop Pearson, — "We cannot bear too reverend
a regard unto " the Mother of our Lord," so long as we give her not that worship
which is due unto the Lord Himself."

And yet, he must be blind indeed who sees not in such passages as the present, —
St Luke viii. 20, 21, — St. Matth. xii. 48 to 50, — the clear condemnation of all those
who would unduly exalt our Lord's Mother. (o) There are parts of the Church
where the Blessed Virgin is even worshipped ; and that, openly. But the blasphe-
mous practice is of only modern date ; and could never have arisen where the Word
of God was held in due honour.

29 And when the people were gathered thick together, He began
to say,

In reply to the Pharisees, who had said, — " Master, we would see a sign from
Thee." See St. Matthew xii. 38, and the note there.

30 This is an evil generation : they seek a sign ; and there shall no
sign be given it, but the sign of Jonas the Prophet. For as Jonas was
a sign unto the Ninevites, so shall also the Son of Man be to this
generation.

Take notice, that one of the unrecorded facts in Old Testament History is here
revealed to us, from the lips of Christ Himself.

31, 32 The Queen of the South shall rise up in the Judgment with
the men of this generation, and condemn them : for she came from the
utmost parts of the Earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon ; and, behold,
a Greater than Solomon is here. The men of Nineveh shall rise up in
the Judgment with this generation, and shall condemn it : for they
repented at the preaching of Jonas ; and, behold, a Greater than Jonas
is here.

The Reader will find this entire passage fully remarked upon in the notes on St.
Matthew xii. 39, 40, 41, 42. It is very easy to point out one of the meanings of the
words which follow : easy also, to invent some connection with what goes before.
But how hard is it to declare with certainty what the Spirit intended! ... It seems
as if our Lord were here proclaiming the openness of His teaching ; and declaring

(m) Hebrews x. 29. («) St. Luke i. 28 and 48. (o) St. Luke i. 43.

•;i:ntaky [> B

that. jusl .1- openly should III— Church, (the " Candlestick,"
in- Htm, to the end: for He says: —

man, when he hath lighted :i candle, putteth it in
ither under a bushel; bat on :i candlestick, that they which

in may see the 1 i lt 1 1 1 .

Almost the same words are found in the ■• Sermon on the Mount." 5 ■■ note
r.15. They also recur (in quite a differ tion in St. Mark

it. 21, where Bee the note. In what follows, oar Lord Beems to declare that
" whether men should be enlightened by II ■ Doctrine, or not, would depend upon
the Btate of their own minds ; according as they Bhould be clear from pi
dark' tmd -." See below, i d rer. 3G; and consider St. •' hn \. II.

34 The light of the body is the eye: therefore when thii
single, thy whole body is also full of light; but when thine ey< is evil,
thy body also ia full of darkness.

rds als scurred in the "Sermon on the Blount," ami will befoui

cussed in the notes on St. .Matthew \i. •_'•_', '!'■',.

35, 36 'fake heed therefore that the light which is in thee be not
darkness. If thy whole body therefore be full of light, having no part
dark, the whole Bhall be full of light, as when the bright Bhining
candle doth lt'm *-• thee light.

"Wl !v. is to hr applied to the soul. Ti If,

i, .I- of the singleness of thy heart, thy whole mind be enlightened, there
will be Light all around thee, to direct thee in all thy ways/'

:;7. 38 And ae Be spake, a certain Pharisee besought Him to dine

with him: ami lie- went in, and .-at down to meat. Ami when the Ph*>

Baw it, he marvelled that lie hail not first washed before dinner.
i is given in St. Mark vii. ;; and 1.

Ami the Lord Baid unto him, Now do ye Pharisees make dean
the outside of the cup ami the platl

— "but within, they are full of extortion and ae careful

litis ate a fair outside, —

ki lint your inward part is full of ravening ami wickedness. )'•

fools, did not He that made that which IS without make that whieh is
within a!

Thu ri ■ ■ Divini Tradition those outward cl which

p and platter. Inn you do not consider that I
the out inward part alto ; anil must require purity in

-N.iil a- \m II a- i:..il\ 7 " Behold, Thou desirest Truth ,
the Psalmist " Blake me « clean i OG ■!."

" B • i ■' i alms of such things as ye 1 1, behold, all

thin/ \mu.

This should b< translated, "Bui rath.-r bestow in aim- the thin-- whiel
cun and the platter: (corresponding with r
1 ike in. 1 1 •,, ,|, because the l*hai I of Rav-

1 »u the doctrine her.- taught, consider the following
- ripture: Isaiah kiii. 7. Daniel W. 27. v ' Luke ui. 33. And

pan- ti -• \] tttheW xxiii

(;.) St. Mntthcv.

XI.] ON ST. LUKE'S GOSPEL. 503

Take notice, that Woe is nest three times denounced on the Pharisees, — verses
42, 43 and 44 : and as often on the Lawyers, verses 46, 47 and 52.

42 But woe unto you. Pharisees ! for ye tithe mint and rue and all
manner of herbs, and pass over Judgment and the Love of God : these
ought ye to have done, and not to leave the other undone.

That is, — And yet not to leave the other undone. See the note on St. Matthew
xxiii. 23.

The Pharisees did give tithe to God, even of " all manner of herbs/' — which the
Law did not require : but as they gave it, it was not Alms. Consider St. Matthew
vi. 1 to 4, and the notes there.

43 Woe unto you, Pharisees ! for ye l$ve the uppermost seats in the
synagogues, and greetings in the markets.

Our Lord reproached them for their pride and ambition in these respects, on
another occasion. Compare St. Matthew xxiii. 6, which answers to St. Mark xii.
38, 39 : St. Luke xx. 4G.

■44 Woe unto you, Scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites ! for ye are as
graves which appear not, and the men that walk over them are not
aware of them.

This should be compared with St. Matthew xxiii. 27 : but the sense of the two
places is different. There, the Pharisees are compared to " whited sepulchres,"
and are reproached for their inward impurity, combined with a fair exterior. Here,
the skill with which they succeeded in hiding their internal corruption, — so that
men suspected not the pollution with which they were iu contact, (q) — is the subject
of rebuke. See the note on the last half of St. Matthew viii. 28.

45 Then answered one of the Lawyers, and said unto Him, Master,
thus saying, Thou reproachest us also.

Our countryman Bede remarks on this, — " In what a grievous state is that con-
science, which, hearing the Word of God, thinks it a reproach against itself; and,
in the account of the punishment of the wicked, perceives its own condemnation!"
Take notice, that when our Lord couples the " Scribes" with the " Pharisees," one
of the Lawyers speaks. The reason may be gathered from the note on St. Mark
iii. 22, which see. The learned do not know whether there was any difference
between a Lawyer and a Scribe ; but they suggest that the former may have ex-
pounded the Law privately, in Schools : the latter, publicly, in the Synagogues.

The three Woes denounced against the Lawyers follow, — as was pointed out in
the note which immediately precedes verse 42.

46 And He said, Woe unto you also, ye Lawyers ! for ye lade men
with burdens grievous to be borne, and ye yourselves touch not the
burdens with one of your fingers.

To " lade men with burdens," in the language of Scripture, is, so to interpret
the Law that its fulfillment shall prove intolerable. Thus, St. Peter describes the
Circumcision of Christians, as "a yoke upon the neck of the Disciples :"(>') and, in the
Decree of the Council of Jerusalem, it is said to have " seemed good to the Holt
Ghost, and to us, to lay upon you no greater burden than these necessary things." (s)
These false Teachers, as our Lord elsewhere declares, "said, but did not:"(J) or,
as it is here expressed, " touched not the burdens with one of their fingers." See
on St. Matthew xxiii. 4.

47 Woe unto you ! for ye build the sepulchres of the Prophets, and
your Fathers killed them.

(q) See Numbers six. 16. (r) Acts xv. 10. (s) Acts xv. 28.

(t) St. Matthew xxiii. 3.

A ri.Al.v 0OMMBHTAB1 [< HAP.

: them for building the Sepul-
chres of tfa P it Bar their A St. Matthew

xxiii. .

48 Truly ye bear witness that ye allow th« fyour Fath< .

■r, — •• Thcri ' y ye bear \
Banting thereto ;"

for they indeed killed them, and ye build their scpulchri

For, by bnilding the Sepulchre* of the Prophi pub-

■ the guilt of those who Blew them; while, by bui with the

graves of the murdered men, ye are perceived hv Him who seeth in Becret, to in-

e disposition of those, their murderers. Ihe whi
be compared with St. Matthew xxiii^ where the language is more full ; —

and Bee the notes there. Vet, wno thai reads all that ever was written in explana-

;' the words of Chbist, feels not that there .still rein thing to i

plained? that it is iu</- ed " the i ©*' to which he has been listening, "and

not of a Man.'" . . . He proceeds: —

49 Therefore also said the Wisdom of God,

In St. Matthew xxiiL 34, instead of " The Wisdom of Gon," it is simply *' L w
Chbist therefore is, — (as St. Paul says that He i-.) — "the Wisdom of God."(u)
This niti-t be because in Him "are hid all the treasures of Wisdom and Know-
ledge."^) Accordingly, by this name of W" i - 1 .. . m is the Eternal Sou discoursed of
throughout the Book oi l'i Consider particularly, Proverbs iii. 19: viii. 22

50, 51 I will send then Prophets and Apostles, and some of them

they .-hall .-lay and persecute : thai the blood of all the Prophets, which

::ed from the foundation of the World, may be required of this

ition ; from the hlood of Ahel unto the blood of Zacharias, which

d between the Altar and the Temple: verily I say unto you, It
shall he required of this generation.

The IN this with St. Matthew x.v.

and.

52 Woe unto you, Lawyers! for ye have taken away the key of
Bjiowledge; ye entered not in yourselves, and them that were entering

in ye hindered.

recurs, though in a somewhat different form, in St. Matthew uriii. 13, —
where see the note. "Tie' Key of Knowledge,"— because it was their busini
unlock the hard Scripture: in token of which, it was usual to present

them \veli a key, on appointing them to their office. Concerning ti

tie- 1 . ".:':. •_■_'.

"I And i 1! aid these things unto them, the : and the

Phari in to urge Kim vehemently, and to provoke Sim to speak

of many things: laying wail for Him and Becking to catch something
. that they might accuse I tim.

Him with que their mam f which w<

nplo in St. Matthew i a "r-

1 in.)
i even with

1 1 horn it h:i I !, — " l'nll

i. 21. ti. .*?. (y) I

XII.] ON ST. LUKE'S GOSPEL. 505

THE PRAYER.

Merciful God, who hast made all men, and hatest nothing that
Thou hast made, nor wouldest the death of a sinner, but rather that he
should be converted and live ; have mercy upon all Jews, Turks, Infi-
dels, and Heretics, and take from them all ignorance, hardness of heart,
and contempt of Thy Word ; and so fetch them home, Blessed Lord,
to Thy flock, that they may be saved among the remnant of the true
Israelites, and be made one fold under one Shepherd, Jesus Christ
our Lord, who liveth and reigneth with Thee and the Holy Spirit,
one God, World without end. Amen.

CHAPTER XII.

1 Christ preaclietli to His Disciples to avoid hypocrisy, and fearfidness in publish-
ing His doctrine. 13 Warneth the people to beware of covetousness, by the parable
of the rich man who set up greater barns. 22 We must not be over careful of earth-
ly things, 31 but seek the Kingdom of God, 33 give alms, 36 be ready at a knock to
open to our Lord whensoever He cometh. 41 Christ's ministers are to see to their
charge, 49 and look for persecution. 54 The people must take this time of grace,
58 because it is a fearful thing to die without reconciliation.

1 In the mean time, when there were gathered together an innumer-
able multitude of people, insomuch that they trode one upon another,
He began to say unto His Disciples first of all, Beware ye of the leaven
of the Pharisees, which is hypocrisy.

Take notice of the immense concourse of persons thus hinted at, in whose pre-
sence our Blessed Lord denounced the wickedness of the most powerful of the Jew-
ish sects. The striking saying here recorded, (which will be found remarked upon
in the notes on St. Mark viii. 15, and St. Matth. xvi. 6,) is discovered to have been
employed by Him on more than one occasion. The reason of the warning, as it
seems, follows :

2 For there is nothing covered, that shall not be revealed ; neither
hid, that shall not be known.

This striking saying, like the last, is found to have been of repeated occurrence.(a)
It has been commented upon in the note on St. Matthew x. 20, — which is the first
of eight verses closely resembling the second, and seven following verses, of the
present chapter. The entire passage, although very like the present, occurs in
quite a different connection in the earlier Gospel ; being part of the Charge which
our Lord delivered to the Twelve.

(«) Namely, St. Matth. x. 26, St. Mark iv. 22 (which is St. Luke viii. 17,) and here.

A PLAIN COMMBHTABY [CHAP.

( . that the attentive Btudent of ti

on making inch a :'-■ • •. instead of thinking himself at libert <l at

once to what follows, will reel it inriiiiiln-iittipi.il him to pause rather, and t- . in-

quire humbly and carefully into the nature of the strange circumstai e him.

e it certainly is, that ofthi mpose the

t chapter, no less than 35 should | tve been delivet

and not in —iii j_r 1 * * verses either, bul a ten

\ at a time.

// must have a very unworthy notion of the dignity ■■! who can make

light of ;i fact like this. There have been found persons, indeed, capable "I sup-

ftliat the later Evangelists made an unskillful use of tie- materials pr<
or them by those who wrote first. Some have even thoughl that they - ,w traces
of error in these Dii ine narratives. Far be from us Buch miserable delusions ! "0
in_\ -.ml. oome not thou into their secrel !" Rather, let as be well persuaded that
over and above the advantage to be derived from every past I, con-

sidered in and by itself, there i- a further use provided by it- repetition; 'li-
able, however, only by him who will diligently seek f'<>r it by minute comparison,

ding watchfulness, and patient thought. Consider whether these may i
-"ine n|' the ••hiil treasures" nf which the Spirit speaks in I'm v. ii. 4, — ami which,
t" !"• found, mu-t In' "sought" ami "searched for."(6)

And it may be pointed out, while we are on this rabject, first) that although a
given expression may seem to be -imply n peated on two distinct occasions, j
closer inspection, it will be often found that there are minute hut important dif-
ferences between the first and second wording of the place ; whereby it i-, in fact,
made new. 'I'lin- St Lake xii. *_' t" 9 might he thought to be quite tin- same
.Matth. x. 26 to 33; and yet the two passages are lull of -mall, hut striking < 1 i t -
ferenci St Luke \ii. 2 ami St. Matth. \. 26 will be found noticed below. U< m-
pare furthi r Si I xii. •"■ with St. .Matth. x. 27. Next the great depth and full-

of the Divine sayings i- forcibly suggested, a- well as the variety of their

intention, when we make the discovery that words in substance the -aim', are found

in'-- t" recur in a wholly different connection. Thus, although the saying in

ike xii. - i- the -aim- which i- found in St. .Matth. x. 26, ami again in St. Mark

iv. 22,(e) — how diverse does it- purpose Beem in those places ! In St Luke, it fol-
i warning against hypocrisy: in St. Matthew, a warning against fear. I
the openness of the Gospel-message seems tn he chiefly declared.
Ami then, lastly, when two passages appear to 1"' in all respects similar, a- St.
Luke xii. 22 t" :;i, and St Matth. \i. 25 to 33, it i- Burely, in itself, a oircomsl
full of edification thai tin- Hoi \ Spirit should have seen lit thus to inform us that
our Swim a repeated the -elf- -a me teaching on two distinct occasions; and a
in the self-same words. I- one, this will l"- fell to be a rebuke of such curiosity
as was indulged by those polite heathens who " spent their time in nothing else,
luit either t" t'-ll or to hear tome m to thing."{d) While to others, it will seem an
indication of the peculiar weight ami importance which beloi tain of the

Him, "in win 'in an- bid all the treasures of Wisdom ami Knowledge

Therefore whatsoever ye haw Bpoken in darkness -hall be 1
in tlie light : ami that which ye have Bpoken in the car in closets shall
he proclaimed upon the hoi

pel, so here, an exhortation not to fear Man bul
Kor thin, tin- presence of the Pharisees may be th pplj a suf-

ficient Take notice that tie I r addresses the multitude

H. " frionds,"(flO — " My friends."

1. 5 \n'l I Bay nntu you My Friends, Be nut afraid of then that kill

the : 1 after that ha\e no mOTO that tiny can do. But 1 an i 1 1

Forewarn you whom ye -hall Fear: Fear Sim, which after lie hath
killed hath ] i-i into Hell ; yi >. I ;• '• I . r Ilim.

(/.) .- -• i ' . ir.

rti.21.

(/') I (;/ • ' :. 18.

XII.] ON ST. LUKE'S GOSPEL. 507

"Three times we are commanded to fear, and only one reason is given, but suf-
ficient for a thousand fears, — the power of Him who is able eternally to punish
lis," {h)

6, 7 Are not five sparrows sold for two farthings, and not one of them
is forgotten before God ? But even the very hairs of your heard are
all numbered. Fear not therefore : ye are of more value than many
sparrows.

8, 9 Also I say unto you, Whosoever shall confess Me before men,
him shall the Son of Man also confess before the angels of God : but
he that denieth Me before men shall be denied before the angels of
God.

Words very like those contained in these seven verses, as already pointed out, are
found in St. Matth. x. 27 to 33, — whither the reader is referred for several remarks
concerning them. His attention is called, in the meantime, to the suggestions
which have been offered above, in the long note which precedes verse 3. He will
perceive that verses 2 and 3 are to be r*ead in close connection with the warning at
the end of verse 1.

10 And whosoever shall speak a word against the Son of Man, it
shall be forgiven him : but unto him that blasphemeth against the
Holy Ghost, it shall not be forgiven.

Words very like the present also, our Lord is found to have used on quite a dif-
ferent occasion. The reader is referred to the Commentary on St. Mark iii. 28, 29,
30, and on St. Matth. xii. 32.

11, 12 And when they bring you unto the synagogues and unto
magistrates, and powers, take ye no thought how or what thing ye shall
answer, or what ye shall say : for the Holy Ghost shall teach you in
the same hour what ye ought to say.

These words, like the preceding, recur in our Lord's Commission to the Twelve,
— where some remarks will be found concerning them.(i) The same saying is also
met with in St. Mark xiii. 11, — in quite a different connection. Lastly, it will be
found almost to recur in chap. xxi. 14, 15 of the present Gospel, where see the note.
Sayings of repeated occurrence, like these, are surely entitled to particular attention
at our hands !

In this place, verses 11, 12 evidently continue the words of caution and encour-
agement which are found in verse 4 to 7 : while verses 8 to 10, (which go together,)
arise naturally out of what went before.

An unseasonable interruption follows, which introduces a parable peculiar to St.
Luke's Gospel.

13 And one of the company said unto Him, Master, speak to my
brother that he divide the inheritance with me.

If the reader will refer to the three places referred to, in the preceding note, he
will perceive that they are immediately followed by a prophecy concerning the
treatment which one Brother was to experience at the hand of another.(A-) Now,
since nothing which our Lord is related to have said on the present occasion can
have suggested the interruption of "one of the Company," here recorded, — may it
not be suspected that He went on now to deliver the same prophetic intimation as
on other occasions, and that it was this which in some way suggested the request
before us ?

14 And He said unto him, Man, who made Me a judge or a divider
over you ?

(70 Bp. Pearson. (t) See the note on St. Matth. x. 19, 20.

(k) St. Matth. x. 21: St. Mark xiii. 12 : St. Luke xxi. 16.

508 A PLAIN OOMMEHTABT [OHAP.

1- are moulded on those whieb are found
in Exodus ii. 14: "and/ was, by anticipation, assuming his office as the

er of a temporal kingdom; which Christ disclaims, because His Kin
•i of this world."(/) < "r. He may be understood to saj . — I will not be Liable
h objections from men, as were then ungratefully made againai M
' Who in i le thoe a prince and a judge ovei oi .'

"B ■ i n hrothors," Bays Ambrose, " no judge should intervene, but natural
affection should be the umpire to divide the mheritanoe. And yet, Eternal Life,
not riches, in the inheritance which men should wait for
point out tin root from which this request had sprung; and to warn His hi
-t it.

15 And lie said unto them, Take heed, and beware of covetoosm
for a man's life consisteth not in the abundance of the things which he
th.

That is, — " A man's life does not depend upon his possessions, however abundant
they may be." .... Sere then, we baveaapther of those man) warnings against
the sin of Judas, which are found in the Gospel. This will be found pointed out
elsewhere ;(n) but it deservt - to be repeated.

L6, IT. 18 And H<' spake a Parable unto them, Baying, The ground
of a certain rich man brought forth plentifully: and he thought within
himself, Baying, What .'-hall I do, because I have do room where to be-
stow my fruits? And he said. This will I do: I will pull down my
barns, and build greater; and there will I bestow all my fruits and my
Is.

This \\a> a miserable Bcheme, indeed I Be has "no room where to bestow bis
fruits." " The Author and Giver of all good things," (" sending rain on the just
and "ii the unjust,"X°] ' |:1> s " blessed aim, that he is even perplexed and encum-
bered with the largeness of the Divine Bounty. "What shall I do?" he asks.
Was it do! time to think of giving to him that needeth ?(p) Would not the empty

Stomachs of the | r have auppfied him \vith "barns large enough?" — as i

1 1 1 < - ancients Btrikingly a-k>. But the case of hii poor neighbour enters not at all
into his thoughts. He is engrossed with gn about him

barns —my fruil da.

L9 And I will say to my soul, Soul, thou hast mu laid up

for many years; take thine case, eat, drink, and be merry.

In Greek, it is, — "many \s 1- for many years: rest, eat, drink, '"• Si

calls hi- i issiona his "goods," observe. Such were the "good things ** which

Abraham in the Parable reminds the rich man that be bad "received in his life
time."(c) Basil remarks of this man thai "he \\a- permitted toddiben
thing, and to manifest his purpose, in ordeT that he might receive a sentence such
as his inclinations deserved. As he had "thought within himself, saying?'

unscl of Goo towards him is represented by \% hut " God said unto him. As
lows : —

20 Bul i id unto him, Thorn fool, thi night thy bouI shall be

required of th

i ry word b ible. What folly must bo his, whom G If ad-

. . . . in;, 1 1 of " Tby -""I shall !"• required of thee," in the
,. thy soul of thee." Either way, the sense is ob-
mystorious hint thrown out I

ni to the in

WilUsi Ban lUian.

)„) •■ " ill. rL l •.

XII.] ON ST. LUKE'S GOSPEL. 509

the surrender of that life which he counted on enjoying for " many years." (s) More-
over, it is in the stillness and darkness of the night that he will receive the unwel-
come summons . . . . " Then," (asks the same Divine Speaker,) —

then whose shall those things be, which thou hast provided ?

Not thine, surely : " nor can anything he called ours which we cannot take away
with us."(0

21 So is he that layeth up treasure for himself, and is not rich to-
ward God.

Consider St. Matthew vi. 19 to 21, and the notes on the place, as a commentary
on these words. See also, 1 Tim. vi. 17 to 19. The blessed Speaker turns His dis-
course next to the Disciples.

22, 23, 24 And He said unto His Disciples, Therefore I say unto
you, Take no thought for your life, what ye shall eat ; neither for the
body, what ye shall put on. The life is more than meat, and the body
is more than raiment. Consider the ravens ; for they neither sow nor
reap ; which neither have storehouse nor barn ; and God feecleth them :
how much more are ye better than the fowls ?

25, 26 And which of you with taking thought can add to his stature
one cubit ? If ye then be not able to do that thing which is least, why
take ye thought for the rest ?

27, 28 Consider the lilies how they grow : they toil not, they spin
not ; and yet I say unto you, that Solomon in all his glory was not
arrayed like one of these. If then God so clothe the grass, which is
to-day in the field, and to-morrow is cast into the oven; how much
more will He clothe you, ye of little faith ?

29, 30, 31 And seek not ye what ye shall eat, or what ye shall drink,
neither be ye of doubtful mind. For all these things do the nations of
the world seek after : and your Father knoweth that ye have need of
these things. But rather seek ye the Kingdom of God ; and all these
things shall be added unto you.

These ten verses are found, with slight verbal differences in our Lord's " Sei'mon
on the Mount." (u) The circumstance has been already pointed out, and com-
mented upon at some length, in the note on verse 2 of the present chapter. See
particularly towards the end of the note.

As, in the Old Testament, men are sent to the ant for a lesson of wisdom,(x) so
in the New are they sent to the ravens for a lesson of reliance on God.(//) " Doubt-
fid mind," in ver. 29, means "distracted," "over-anxious."

Take notice that, in ver. 30, it is not said "God knoweth," — but "your Father
knoweth."

32 Fear not, little flock ; for it is your Father's good pleasure to
give you the Kingdom.

The Good Shepherd calls His flock " little," — partly, perhaps, because though
"many be called, few are chosen." Partly, because "the poor in spirit," to whom
belongs "the Kingdom of Heaven,"(z) are as "little ones" in His sight.(«)

33, 34 Sell that ye have, and give alms; provide yourselves bags
which wax not old, a treasure in the Heavens that faileth not, where

(s) Compare the sense of "they" in St. Matthew xiii. 48, 49, and St. Mark ix. 44, and St.
Luke xvi. 9. Consider also that mysterious " he " in Deut. xxxiv. 6.

(t) Ambrose. (m) St. Matth. vi. 25 to 33. (x) Prov. vi. G.

(y) Compare Job xxxviii. 41 : Ps. cxlvii. 9. (z) St. Matth. v. 2.

(o) Consider St. Matth. x. 42, and the note there. See 1 Cor. i. 26.

510 A PLAIN C"MMi:XTAKY [CHAP.

do thief approacheth, neither moth corrupteth. For where your I
there will your heart be al

I 9 to A] ' . ing in the < rospel are ma

This duty occupies a prominent im~iti.ni m tn< - n the Mount(o)

and sell that thou hast, and give to the | r, and thou Bhalt have treasure in

1 1 1 11," was what our Loan required of Che rich young Ruler, c) — " Bag" here
means " purse."

Tin- tv. • < inny lie usefully compared with St Matthew vi. 1

and :J1 ; where several remarks -will be found which apply entirely to the

i - ohservahlc tliai in St. Matthew's Gospel, as well as in this place,
our I. on to speak of " Light."— -The four verses \\ bich follow are th(

jul which is read at the Ordination of Deadens. In their actual form, they are
peculiar to St. Luke's Gospel: but St Matthew gives us instead the Parable
and foolish Virgin-. (</)

35 Let your loins be girded about, and your lights burning;

The loins led about" for activity, — and the lamp is kept " bnrnin \

him who expects another's return. 'J'lir mystical meaning of the passage seems
therefore to be that nun Bhould 1"' prompt and e orking out their own

Salvation, — always ready to do the work ofthe Loan; and further that they Bhould
Bet a bright example, — the inner life being sustained by the influence of God's Holy
Spirit. For consider what follows the exhortation, "Let your Light Bhine
men,"— namely, "thai they may sa your good u>orks."(e)

•• But if a man has l">th of these, whosoever he be, nothing remains for him but
that be Bhould place hi- whole expectation on the Coming of the RxoxiMxa. ]

IS :i- M<<1, "( /")

and ye _ a like onto men that wait l'<>v their lord, when he

will return from the wedding ; that when he cometh and knocketh, they
may open unto him immediately.

1 bbisi returns to all from the heavenly Wedding at the end of the World,

r Himself Ilia Bride, the Church: bo each individual He comes,

(amis Mi' Mi 'iily before a man at the hour "I' Death. "(g) He " knocketh,"

oess ; and those who are watching for their Loan are found to

ie door. "Even so, come Loan *Ji8us,"(A) say they. And these are blessed ; as

. —

87 Blessed are those servants, whom the lord when he cometh shall
find watching: rerily I Bay unto you, that he Bhall gird himself, and
make them to sit down to meat, and will come forth and Berve them.

I i will "gird Himself," as one whoserveth. He will "make them sit down, " —
for i Aril 1 he the land of Everlasting Rest

li i- V ri ten in aii' , — " Behold, I stand at the door ami knock : if any

man hear My voice, and open the door, I will come in to him ami will sup with him.

a in St Lu e's Go pel and in the B
the Life to come are Likened to a Feast, where th

id thirst after i nes* "(it) " shall hanger aore neither

i i. ut '• be fillea."

And if he Bhall come in the second watch, or come in the third

b, and find them bo, Messed are those Berrai

. l" And this know, tli.it if the goodman of the house had known
what hour the thief would come, he would have »
suffered hia house to be broken through. Be ye therefore ready also:
for the Son of Man cometh at an hour when ye think not.

- M Mattfc. xi.\. 21. "' th. \\\. 1 ■

10.
i. 20.
(/.•) St. Mutth. ■ (I) l;

XII.] ON ST. LUKE'S GOSPEL. 511

"For yourselves know perfectly," writes St. Paul to the Thessalonians, "that
the Day of the Lord so cometh as a thief in the night."(m) St. Peter in like manner
says, — "the Day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night." This latter allu-
sion to the present (or St. Matthew's parallel )(ji) passage is of peculiar interest,
since the saying recorded in ver. 41 shows that the man who made it was deeply
impressed by the entire discourse to which we also are permitted here to listen.

41 Then Peter said unto Him, Lord, speakest Thou this parable
unto us, or even to all ?

42, 43, 44, 45, 46 And the Lord said, Who then is that faithful
and wise steward, whom his Lord shall make ruler over His House-
hold, to give them their portion of meat in due season ? Blessed is that
servant, whom his Lord when he cometh shall find so doing. Of a
truth I say unto you, that He will make him ruler over all that He
hath. But if that servant say in his heart, My Lord delayetli His
coming ; and shall begin to beat the men-servants and maidens, and to
eat and drink, and to be drunken ; the Lord of that servant will come
in a day when he looketh not for Him, and at an hour when he is not
aware, and will cut him in sunder, and will appoint him his portion
■with the unbelievers.

There is some doubt among learned men, about the meaning of " cut him asun-
der," here and in St. Matthew, (o) The margin suggests " cut him off," — that is,
sever or sunder him from his office. Others remark that a double or deceitful man
is fairly punished if he be " cut in twain." Perhaps the true meaning is, " will
terribly scourge ;" — a sense which is supported by the words which follow, and
which are an allusion to the law contained in Deut. xxv. 2.

47, 48 And that servant, which knew his. Lord's will, and prepared
not himself, neither did according to His will, shall be beaten with many
stripes. But he that knew not, and did commit things worthy of
stripes, shall be beaten with few stripes. For unto whomsoever much
is given, of him shall be much required : and to whoni men have com-
mitted much, of him they will ask the more.

On a comparison of what precedes, (ver. 39 to 46,) with the place in St. Mat-
thew's Gospel, where, on a subsequent occasion, similar words are found to have
been used, (chap. xxiv. 43 to 51,) the difficulty of the passage becomes apparent.
It would be safer to pass by in silence language the true force of which we seem to
understand so imperfectly. But the reader will expect a few words of comment.

It seems then that St. Peter, who (with the rest of the Apostles) had been atten-
tively drinking in every word of our Lord's discourse, on perceiving that the para-
bolic language of verses 35 to 38 had ceased, inquired (in ver. 41) on behalf of his
fellow-Apostles, whether the warning which those verses contain had been ad-
dressed to themselves specially, or whether it was of general application? To this
question, however, our Lord returns no direct answer. He proceeds with what He
was before saying, and does not seem so much to ask in turn, as to exclaim, — How
rare are the qualities required in that servant whom his lord sets as a steward over
his household ! Blessed is the man who proves faithful to such a trust; and misera-
ble he who is found to abuse it !

Thus, St. Peter's question, though not formally answered, was virtually replied
to: for it is manifest that what St. Paul said of himself, (with reference perhaps to
this very place,) might with at least equal truth have been asserted by Simon Peter
and the rest of the Twelve, of themselves : " Let a man so account of us as of . . .
stewards of the mysteries of GoD."('p) A famous ancient Bishop remarks accord-
ingly, that " although unwearied watchfulness is required of all men, yet does

(m) 1 Thess. v. 2. («) St. Matth. xxiv. 43, 44. (o) St. Matth. xxiv. 51.

(p) 1 Cor. iv. 1, — and see the next verse. See also Titus i. 7. Consider further whether there
is not an allusion to St. Luke xii. 42 and 4S in 1 St. Peter iv. 10.

512 A 1'I.AIN r.»MMi:.NTAUY [CHAP.

i ially the ■

thisl by the faithful and wise servant Bel over the Household, to

whom is entrusted the care of providing for the people committed to him. "(7)
i Is to show,] nil are stewards in their degree:

d with five talents, and some with two; but ou bai
talent It is remarkable that the Parable i f " the Talents" follows,
pel, chap. xxv. That is, — all men know something of their
Divine Master's will, — though some know less, some d I corresponding

v. ill I-- the penalty incurred by the disobedient E . ver. 17 a

to be the g< aeral purport of n hat is bere deln ered. The entire dis-
i- remarkable, as usual, for its bearing. Simon Peter seems to ask

whether the singular biessedm fthe Bervanl whom his Lord shall findwat

applies to the chief Pastor alone, or to the Book at large '.' II" is reminded in reply

that unto chief Pastors most is commitU d ; but he i> also warned that " unto w bom-

■ much is given, of him -hall much !"• required: and to whom men have com-

1 much, oinim they will ask the more. M (r) This Beems to be the force ofver.

17. 18.

la conclusion, the n ader is earnestly implored not to accept the olun
tion that St Luke is here stringing together Bayings of our Lord which w< i
livered on different occasions, but which have no actual connection. J'" not men,
when they say such things, "therefore err because they know not the Scripture-;,
neither tne Povt ." Doubtless on this i cession our Savioub said all that

Be is on this occasion recorded to have Baid; and at the close of Hi- Mini-try,
when Bayings very like these recur,(s) doubtless He delivered sayings very like these
over again.

I', i i.i • notice that when, Bitting on the Mount of Olives, "ur Savioi r rej
in the audience of St Peter, the very words which arc here found from ver.

. /' ler's question in Mr. 41, — •" Lord, speakestThon
this parable onto us, or even to all?") the Blessed Speaker, as if with reference to
the occasion we arc now considering, adds the very answer which St Peter had once
wished for, which the Apostle i presumed to ask, — "And what I toy unto

you, I say unto all, Watch."(f)

ms to be a change of Bubjeot in what follows next.

49 I am come to sciul fire ou the earth; and what will I, if il
already kindled ■

•• Aid what will I :" (thai is, ••'What is My desire T") "Would that it
ilready kindled 1" .... It seems to be here declared that the consequi
Ohri r's Coming into the world would beto kindle the fire of persecution,
I •■ . ) " but I »i\ ision."

I thai St. Peter, the attentive hearer of this discourse, after
alluding i" Christ's speedy coming to Judgment (u) and men's dut] !s A J ')

■ 1 in his Epistle to speak of "tin: fiery trial" which was to try the
ChgWiV'O/)

ijO I'm I have a Baptism to be baptized with: and how am 1 Strait*
<l till ii be accomplished !

II ; that Baptism of Blood which was in reserve for Him, and to which
1 o alluded when addressing the sons of Zebedee. He 1 oks forward t" that
tremendous hour with eagernei the anticipation fill His human soul with

! aed," in this place, compare PhiL i.

Suppose ye that I am oome to give peace on earth 1 I
tell yon, Nay: but rather division: for from henceforth there Bhall be

ition Ben
i 1 1 ci t.. pram

-i. Luka m .

(») •'••mi . ud 7 "itli \it.

i\ . In n nli \,r. 13 ud

(v ) ' "' ^ ,r - ''■' to • L I'-

ll) St. Matth. x

XII.] ON ST. LUKE'S GOSPEL. 513

five in one house divided, three against two, and two against three.
The father shall be divided against the son, and the son against the
father ; the mother against the daughter, and the daughter against the
mother ; the mother-in-law against her daughter-in-law, and the daughter-
in-law against her mother-in-law.

See above, on ver. 49 ; and compare this place with St. Matth. x. 33 to 36, —
where the note should be consulted. The prophet Micah, who is there actually
quoted, is here very clearly referred to. (a) It has been ingeniously pointed out(6)
that only five persons are mentioned in ver. 53, — since the "mother" and the
" mother-in-law" are one and the same person.

The Blessed Speaker is found next to turn His Discourse to the people.

54, 55, 56 And He said also to the people, When ye see a cloud rise
out of the west, straightway" ye say, There cometh a shower ; and so it
is. And when ye see the south wind blow, ye say, There will be heat ;
and it cometh to pass. Ye hypocrites, ye can discern the face of the
sky and of the earth ; but how is it that ye do not discern this Time ?

He reminds them of the skill and shrewdness with which they were enabled to
foretell natural phenomena ;(c) and declares that it required no greater discernment
to recognize His Advent, which the Prophets by so many signs had foretold. He
said the same thing to the Pharisees and Sadducees, when they came desiring of
Him " a sign from Heaven. "(cZ) But, (as He declared on another occasion,) "the
children of this World are in their generation wiser than the children of Light." (e)

He proceeds to show them that they might learn wisdom in so vital a matter even
from the prudence with which they conducted themselves in the concerns of daily
life :—

57 Yea, and why even of yourselves judge ye not what is right?

That is, "what is right to be done," — " the right thing to do." A saying follows
which we have already met with at the end of the Sermon on the Mount ;(/) and
which was there introduced in order to enforce the duty of speedy reconciliation
with one's neighbour. Here, the injunction is clearly of ; a different tendency ; and
the remark which was offered above, on verse 2, again presents itself. In the
original, what follows is connected with what went before.

58, 59 When thou goest with thine adversary to the magistrate, as
thou art in the way, give diligence that thou mayest be delivered from
him ; lest he hale thee to the judge, and the judge deliver thee to the
officer, and the officer cast thee into prison. I tell thee, thou shalt not
depart thence, till thou hast paid the very last mite.

Our Saviour seems to say, — in a merely temporal manner, you are careful to
act thus prudently. While the Day of Mercy yet lasts, should you not discover the
like anxiety to avail yourselves of it ? through Me, to obtain deliverance from the
wrath of God, before it be too late ?

(a) Micah vii. 6. (5) By Ambrose.

f c) Compare St. Matth.. xvi. 2, 3 : xxiv. 32 : St. John iv. 34.

\d) See St. Matth. xvi. 1 to 3, and the last part of the note on the latter verse.

(e) St. Luke xvi. 8. (/) See St. Matth. v. 25, 26, and the note.

•"1 I A PLAIN OOMMBNTABY [<JHAP.

(' II A PTEB XIII.

1 Chbj the CfalUa

6 Tin- t'riiitli ss fig-tree may not stand. 11 /A healeththe crooked woman. L8
'/ working of the Word in the hearts of Jlis chosen, by the
parablt of the grain of Mustard-seed, art >. -\ Exhorteth to enter in at

the strait gate, ol And reproveth Herod and J

I There were present at that season some that tohl Him of the
Galilssans, -whose blood Pilate had mingled with their sacrifici ,

Where our Blessed Lord was, when these tidings were brought to Sim, does not
appear: neither is the event known to which allusion is here made. Bui it a
very well with what we elsewhere read of the merciless disposition of Pilate, t hut
he Bhould have butchered certain Galilssans, (whether followers "i - Judas of Gali-
lee,^) or not,) while they were in the ven act of doing sacrifice at Jerusalem; so
thai the hideous spectacle was presented of human blood mingling with that uf
'• bulls and goats/' and polluting the Holy Place.

i >i 1 1- S w tot a's reply to the persons who brought Him 1 1 1 1 — = report, discloses what
was the Becret thought of their hearts. They had put their own interpretation on
; icurrence, and made up their minds that it was God's just punishment for
Sin.(o)

2, 8 And Jesi b an aid onto them, Suppose ye that these

Galilasans were sinners above all the Galilseans, because they Buffered
<\\<-\i things? 1 tell you, Nay: bat, except ye repent, ye Bhall all like-
wise perish.

II ■ S wiiii b does ii"! Bay that the calamity which had overtaken these Galil

w;i~ not a punishment for Sin. He "contests aot about that; but rather Beems to
agree to them bo far, and draws that warning out of it. He only corrects the aud-
it it Beems they were in, in thrusting it too far off from themselves, and throw-
too heavy u|niii them that sacrificed." (c) Doubtless, the connection between
nd Suffering is of the closest kind ; bul it is not in Man's power to trace that
q in every particular instance ; nor can he soaroelj ever pretend to do so,
without presumption. Our Loan proceeds, —

1 Or those eighteen, upon whom the tower in Siloam fell, and slew
them, think ye that they were Burners above all men that dwelt in
J usalem?

all in. n," for the word is not the same a-> in ver

I is a rcmarkabl implying that men are debtors to fuflll I

i The woi i have been used with reference to the two concluding

og chapter.^)

either the ouse "r tho

i in St. Lake utli. i-'-
lb) < hi. I. ton.

. . . : xviii.

- . LuU rlL 21.

XIII.]

on st. luke's gospel. 515

5 I tell you, Nay: but, except ye repent, ye shall all likewise
perish.

The people whom our Saviour was addressing had described to Him a calamity
where Man was the immediate agent. He reminds them of another fatal event of
recent occurrence, which they would have called an accident — namely, the unex-
pected falling of a tower in Jerusalem, (somewhere near the Pool of Siloam,(a)
probably,) whereby eighteen lives were lost. " Shall there be evil in the city," asks
the Prophet, "and the Lord hath not done it?"(&) Both events, alike, had pro-
ceeded from God. He asks them therefore if they supposed that this also was a
proof of greater wickedness in those eighteen " above all men that dwelt in Jeru-
salem?" " I tell you, Nay;" He repeats. And thereby He reproves as many of
ourselves as are guilty of hasty judgments concerning our neighbours, and rashly
presume to interpret the misfortunes which befall others.

Leighton well says — "Be it a judgment: be the persons great sinners in a sinful
course : yet they are not always the greatest of all because they suiFer, and others
escape. God is to be adored, who useth his own freedom in this — He does injustice
to none, yet chooses them whom He will make examples of His justice, and whom
He will let pass ; and gives not account of this to any. Some, less wicked, have
been made examples to them who were niuch more wicked than they. . . . Why
am not I made an example to others, as well as so many have been made examples
to me? Now, let me fall down at His feet, and beg of Him that as He hath not made
me an example of justice all this while, He may now make me an example of mercy
and free grace to all that shall look on me."

And in this beautiful spirit, doubtless, Holy Scripture shoidd always be read, —
namely, as having a direct personal teaching : thus shall we escape the censure
which our Lord in this very place bestows on the disposition which prefers barren
speculation about Divine things to the living practice of them.(c) And yet the
historical and national bearing of our Saviour's words, in this and the 5th verse,
is very striking. Except the Jews repented, He here prophesies to them that they
should all perish, — (not, "likewise," in the common sense of the word, but,) — "in
like manner." And so it signally came to pass ; for Josephus relates that, at the
destruction of Jerusalem, multitudes of the inhabitants were crushed beneath its
ruins ; while numbers were slain in the very act of sacrificing within the Temple.

"Except ye repent, ye shall all likewise perish." Repentance then, was the end
of the preaching of the Great Shepherd and Bishop of Souls :(d) and on this text,
doubtless, should we ever preach not only to others, but to ourselves. For, as pious
Leighton reminds us, " the far more dismal perishing of unrepenting sinners, is
that death which lies unseen on the other side of the death which we see and are so
afraid to look on. Oh, saw we the other, this would appear nothing : that would
be the only terrible thing. And how terrible soever, it is the unfailing attendant
on impenitence. These, God hath linked together ; and [no creature can sever
them, — continuance in sin, and perishing ; Repentance and Life. It is Faith in-
deed that lays hold on our pardon, and life in Christ, and by that we are justified
and saved ; yet, so as this is still true, that there is no Life without Repentance."

The connection of the parable which follows with what goes before, is of the
closest kind. "All" should perish like those Galileans, and like these eighteen,
except they repented. To what then were they indebted for their actual preserva-
tion ? To nothing but the long-sufiering patience of Almighty God. This is
accordingly set forth in the parable of "the barren fig-tree;" which enforces the
same doctrine of B-epentance, upon the motive of God's Forbearance.

6 He spake also this parable ; A certain man had a fig-tree planted
in his vineyard ; and he came and sought fruit thereon, and found none.

Elsewhere, "the Vineyard of the Lord of Hosts is the House of Israel ;"(e) but
it is not so here. Among the nations of the earth, (the "Vineyard" here spoken
of,) Almighty God, (the " certain man" in the parable,) had the Jewish people, for
"His pleasant plant," — or, as it is here said, His "fig-tree." The fruit of good

(«) Nehern. iii. 15. St. John ix. 7, 11. Compare Is. viii. 6. (6) Amos iii. 6.

(d) Consider the following places : St. Matth. iv. 17 : ix. 13. St. Mark i. 15. (e) Is. v. 7.

518 A PLAIB OOMMBHTABY [OHAP.

. 11.' had : >. for manj rain. (a) He had

: Whereupon, He requiree of - 't : of Ilia Vineyard," that this

be at onoe removed. As it fi U

7 Then id be onto the d fhis vineyard, Behold, these three

1 c me seeking Bruit on tl ad find none: cat it down;

why cambereth it the ground '.'

I; ther, " Why doth it even," — "Why doth it imber the ground?"

i the original, something more than "cumber" i- implied. Gi
I brings out the meaning very well when he remarks that wherever the un-

fruitful man is placed, " he there denies to another the opportunity of workii

What is even better worth our notice,- We have here lusapici
i merciful manner of dealing with 1 1 i -^ creatures. Per I - had the
owner of this Vineyard come Becking fruit of ;i barren tree which grew within it.
'■Tin- axe i< laid to the root of tl"' tree,"(6) in warning, before the fatal blow is
Buffered to fall. Fur, (aa an anoient writer remarks,) God does not bring punish-
silently ox Bccretly; but, by Hi- threatenings, first proclaims them to
hand, — thus inviting the Binner to repentance.(c) "Let us not then Btrike sud-
denly," (-ays another,) " but oi err e by gentleness ; Lest we out down tin 1 G _

i-till able to bear fruit, which the care of a skillful dresser \\ill perhaps restore."(d)

N'l-xt, the Intercession of the Eternal S before as, — pleading with tiik

Fatheb in la-half i>f tin- sinful race. Not, he it observed,) in order that

they may be Bpared in their barrel I: but that time m

allowed them wherein to become fruitful.

B, 9 And he answering said onto him, Loed, lei it alone tliis year
also, till I shall 'li_ r about it. and dung it: and it* it bear fruit, well:
and if not, then after that thou Bhalt cut it down.

1 this is the end of the Parable. Ev< •■• means and appliance was to be used;
■ — uing of the snil in which the i and a Bupply of that which is

found t" be most congenial to the life of plants, and ha- tl I rendering

them productive. God is found to have thus dealt with Hit thus

He offers large i ie, — He multiplies oppor-

tunities. \\ hat i- all the remainder of the Gospel, from this place onward, hut the
y of < me who ha'l -aid in behalf "f tie- Jewish nation, Lo . let it alone
this year also, till 1 -hall dig about it. ami duns it .'" Tie- object of]
Hi- parables, and His miracles, was to break the stubborn soil;— Hit
[•shedding \vas intended to bring forth a plenfa
This then, i- at once a Prophecy and a Parable, — a Prophecy, which found typical
fulfillment in the cursing of the barren fig-tree :(e) actual fulfillment in the destruc-
I i-alein, ami final overthrow of the Jewish nation.

The "1>\ ions interpi the P

God came seeking fruit of His chosen people, and found
— it i !'■ to taki; the "three years" of the parable literally : especially

third vi'nr of our Loan's Mini-try had also just come to a dose. "The
Hi S incyard," who pleads for prolonged patience and meroy, (saying
"Let it year also !") as alread; I aaisi llim-elf, — wl

■ in the midst of the fourth year of M Mb istry.
B Parable has clearly a personal application II as a national

I , to lead an unprofitable life ; to r<

. in maul I, in ohl . putting forth much leafy promise, but \

'- this but to stand uke a barren fig-trco in tl I
than "cumber the ground." Hi- pr<
' mischief. In the meantime, I rer liveth to make ii

e merciful v who plead and during

Dins to make the man fruitful. I

(/.) St. Mutth. II

\\ iii. 21. . (>/) G 7.uin.

(/; • !.. 111. 10. (A) 11

xiii.] on st. luke's gospel. 517

of individuals is obvious. Pharaoh, Balaam, Saul, Herod, Judas, — no less than
the Old World, Sodom, Nineveh, Jerusalem, — every individual, however obdurate,
has his warnings, and his prolonged season of probation ; during which, the alter-
native is still admitted as possible, — "If he bear fruit" . . for the door of repent-
ance is left open to all.

10 And He was teaching in one of the synagogues on the Sabbath.
Consider the places referred to at foot.(.s)

11 And, behold, there was a woman which had a spirit of infirmity
eighteen years, and was bowed together, and could in no wise lift up
herself.

She therefore aptly represented the condition of those who have become so bowed
down by sin or sorrow that they look not up to Heaven, but fix all their grovelling
regards on Earth. St. Luke says that she " had a spirit of infirmity." What this
means we should not have known, but for our Lord's express statement that she
was one whom Satan had bound.

12, 13 And when Jesus saw her, He called her to Sim, and said
unto her, Woman, thou art loosed from thine infirmity. And He laid
His hands upon her : and immediately she was made straight, and glo-
rified God.

This then seems to have been one of those miracles of healing which were
wrought without solicitation. But the very presence of such a sufferer, in the
Synagogue, was a prayer. It may even be suspected, from the words of the Ruler
which follow, that this afflicted creature had "come" purposely "to be healed."

Our Saviour seems to have proclaimed her release from captivity, first ; and then
to have removed the physical consequences of the chain by which she had been so
long held. It does not appear that He spoke, and laid His Divine hands upon her,
at one and the same time.

14 And the Ruler of the synagogue answered with indignation, be-
cause that Jesus had healed on the Sabbath day ; and said unto the
people, There are six days in which men ought to work : in them there-
fore come and be healed, and not on the Sabbath day.

He addresses the people, — not CHRIST. Hypocrite as he was, the Ruler did
not dare to look the Holy One in the face while he brought forward a complaint
which, though spoken to them, was evidently levelled against Him. " He preferred
that this woman should, like a beast, look upon the earth, rather than that Christ
should be magnified."^)

15, 16 The Lord then answered him, and said, Thou hypocrite,
doth not each one of you on the Sabbath loose his ox or his ass from
the stall, and lead him away to watering? and ought not this woman,
being a daughter of Abraham, whom Satan hath bound, lo, these eigh-
teen years, be loosed from this bond on the Sabbath day ?

Our Saviour, though hitherto carefully shunned by the other, begins by address-
ing him. But after one withering word, He turns to the people, and makes them
the umpires between Himself and the Ruler of the Synagogue. Every word of
His Discourse is here emphatic. If any of you (He says,) are at liberty on the Sab-
bath day to loose certain of the brute creation, as an ox or ass which yourselves
had bound, and to lead these away to watering, an act requiring time and trouble,
— ought not this woman, being not only a creature made in the image of God, but
also one who enjoys that proudest of titles, "« daughter of Abraham," [u) — ought
not she, who has been bound by the Enemy of Man, not for a few hours only, but

(s) S. Luke iv. 16. St. Matth. iv. 23: xiii. 54. St. Mark i. 21. St. John vi. 59 : iii. 20, &c.
(0 Cyril. (u) St. Matth. iii. 9: St. Luke xix. 9: St. John viii. 33, 39: Acts xiii. 26.

518 .\ W. UN COMMINTARI [OHAP.

i .''fit of release which bad been
ird from tl L , andatouoh of these Elands, inamomi
time?

bow plainly it i- here Btated that this woman's infirmity was th<

-who kepi her bound, as a prisoner. The same thing is implied of dis-

rally, in many other plac* St Matthew \. I. A Cor,

xii. 7. 1 St. John iii. 8: and it may be worth pointing out that thewords translated

jhl i" the blind," [in St Luke i\. IB,) are, in the Hebrew, "open-

■ prison to them that art bound." (x) Take notice that our Saviour had 'first

bound the strong man;" and now was He "spoiling his house."(y)

IT A'.l wheo He had Baid these things, all His adversari
ashamed: ami all the people rejoiced for all the glorious things that
were done by Him.

From which it is found thai the Ruler of the Synagogue b a alone in

his wickedness ; but (like Judas [scariot when he complained of the waste of the
as ointment) (•) bad carried others along with him, in his hypocrisy.

Tl e foregoing miracle Bhould be compared with thai performed on the withered
hand, in St. Matthew xii. 9 to L3, — as well as with thai on the dropsy, in St Luke
xi\. 2 to 6. All three miracles were wroughl on the Sabbath day : but in thi> in-
stance, and that which St Matthew records, the cure was effected in the Sym
itself.

to Bhow "the powerful working of the Word in the he i
11 . by the Parable of the drain of Mustard Seed, and of Leaven,

1 . L9 Then said He, Onto what is the Kingdom of God like ? and
wherennto Bhall I resemble it? It is like a grain of mustard
which a man took, and cast into bis garden : and it grew, and waxed a
great tree; and the fowls of the air lodged in the branches of it.

This parable recurs in the Gospels of St. Matthew and St. Mark, — where it has

[ready so fully considered in the notes, that it shall suffice on the presenl oo-

t ■ refer the reader thither. (A) Bui it is worthy of remark thai the grain of

irding to St. Matthew, "a Man took and Bowed in His

ime Man hen is Baid to have casl into " ' for who can fail

to call to mind thai of Christ Himself it is n rded that "in the place where He

rucified there was a Garden, and in the Harden a new Sepulchre:" and that
laid they JESUS /"(c) Was not (his the true germ of thai Kingdom which,

ill beginning, has be< le bo supremely great? " Excepl a corn of

■ fall into the ground and die," - lid He or Himself " it abideth alone: but if
it die, it bringeth forth much iVnit ."(«/) There is n ithing new in this remark.
1 i eat made it almost L300 years ago ; and Ambrose l! |I(I years before

him.

21 Ami again He said, Wherennto shall 1 liken the Kingdom of
1 I li is like leaven, which a woman took and hid in three mea-
meal, till the whole wai leavened.

le which i- ah i a prophecy 1 It is here forel Id that in the end, the
1 ' ball |>i'e\ ail oi er all obstacles ; imparting to all Bociety it- own

ennobling nature, and conforming whatever it encounters, to itself, — And whal is
true' .- here true of individual "The Gospel" says Hammond,

re1 invisible inline i the hearts of men,— to change them and

'hem, and all the actions that flow from them. — that it i- fitly resembled to
1 roughly with the whole, thai although it appearoth nol in any

part visibly, . pari hath a tincture from it."

The \'-rv interesting one, that tl I '

balal Jt Matth. zii. S9. < I ■ 20.

■ U inli. \\\ i

..
(o) .. il, u. (d) St John xii. :m. Consider 1 <

XIII.] ON ST. LUKE'S GOSPEL. 519

corded together, were delivered by our Blessed Lord in the same order, and almost
in the same words, more than a year before, to the multitudes assembled on the
shore of the Sea of Galilee. For the knowledge of this fact, we are indebted to the
first of the four Gospels. The present Parable has been already met with in St.
Matthew xiii. 33, — whither the reader is referred for several remarks upon it.

22, 23 And He went through the cities and villages, teaching, and
journeying towards Jerusalem. Then said one unto Him, Lord, are
there few that be saved ?

"Who may this " one" have been ? Was it one of the Apostles ? And what led
him to ask the question ? Did it grow naturally out of some unrecorded discourse
which our Lord had been delivering? It is impossible to offer more than a conjec-
ture in reply to these inquiries. But it is reasonable to suspect that it was one of
the Twelve, — such an one as St. Peter ; for observe, our Lord was on a journey ;
and the question having been put by one, the answer is made to several.

On one occasion our Saviour had said, " Many are called, but few are chosen :"(e)
and on another, — "Few there be that find" the strait gate and narrow way "that
leadeth unto Life.'X/*) But He says not so on the present occasion: —

24 And He said unto them, Strive to enter in at the strait gate :

Consider on how many occasions our Saviour answered in this manner, ques-
tions of the kind here recorded, — if thai may be called answering, which does not
give the information desired, and which is not addressed to the person who asked
the question. Inquiries purely speculative, and which are simply the growth of
carnal curiosity, are always discouraged : and the attention is guided instead to the
practice of piety and virtue. (g)

Our Lord here uses a stronger word than "strive." "Agonize," He says, (7<) — a
term indicative of the greatness of the effort, (more literally, of the struggle,) re-
quired. Blessed be God, however, that this very expression, denoting the earnest-
ness required in those who would obtain an entrance into Life, shows also that

Salvation is within the reach of all " The strait gate" recalls the solemn

doctrine concerning the avenues of Life and Destruction, respectively, which are
discoursed of in the Sermon on the Mount.(i)

It is piously remarked by Leighton, — "What bustle is there made, by sea and
land, for scraps of this earth ; and Heaven alone is so cheap in our eyes, as if it
were worth no diligence, scarce even a serious thought ! Surely, either Heaven is
but a fancy, or the world is mad." .... For this, then, men must toil, —

for many, I say unto you, will seek to enter in, and shall not be able.

Take notice that their " seeking" will be like that of the foolish Virgins, — of the
Rich man in torments, — of Esau, when it was too late, " earnestly seeking" that
blessing(^) which he had before, by his own deliberate act, forfeited.

25, 26, 27 When once the Master of the House is risen up, and hath
shut to the door, and ye begin to stand without, and to knock at the
door, saying, Lord, Lord, open unto us ; and He shall answer and say
unto you, I know you not whence ye are : then shall ye begin to say,
We have eaten and drunk in Thy presence, and Thou hast taught in
our streets. But He shall say, I tell you, I know you not whence ye
are ; depart from Me, all ye workers of iniquity.

This is a terrible prophecy, truly ; and its most alarming feature seems to be the
hint conveyed of the self-delusion in which some men will be found to have lived —
and died.(^) Not only will they plead passionately for admission into that blissful

(e) St. Matth. xxii. 14. (/) St. Matth. vii. 14.

(g) See the latter part of the note on St. Matth. vii. 5. See also St. Luke x. 29, 36: xii. 42 :
Acts i. 7, &c. (70 St. Paul uses the same word, — Col. i. 29.

(0 St. Matth. vii. 13, 14, — where see the notes. Consider St. John x. 9.

(k) Hebrews xii. 17. Observe, it was " the blessing" which he " sought," — not " place of
repentance." (I) See the latter part of the note on St. Matth. vii. 23.

A PLAIN - OOMMBNTABY [CHAP.

whither the Saints will have already entered,(m) but they will remonstrate
with "the Master of the B nd remind Sim of all their past privilej

; tting thai these have bat in c r eas ed the measure of their iruilt !

•• \\ .• have eaten and drunk in Thy presence," they will Bay, — " as the Lsrm

who partook of the sacrifices j or, as they with whom Chbisi lived; . who

Imitted to His Sacraments: for in all tb ' fulfilled which was

•ed of the Seventy Elders, — namely, that 'they saw God, and did eat and

drink ;' ")(") but they will be reminded that " he that eateth and drinketb onwor-

tliilv. eateth and drinketh damnation to himself.'' (o) .... "Thou hast taught in

our Btreets," they will say: bul they will be reminded that "noi i of the

law are just before God, but 1A the law shall be justifi ks if i-<

written, — "Be ye doers bf the Word, and uot hearers only, deceiving your own

.... No Bplendor of outward advantages,— neither the daily walk to

G n - . i ■ Sacraments received, nor Sermons listened to, — will be of any

avail in and by themseh ee.

Take notice tlr.it, iii contrast with the scene here described,— ("the door" hope-
lessly closed) — •• the Blaster of the House" deaf to entree teeming our pre-
Day of Grace it is more than once said, — "knock, and it shall be opened unto
Nay more, — -Christ saitb of Himself, "behold I stand :it the door and

knock. It any man hear My voice, and open the d •. I will come in to him."(r)

He now invites as freely to receive Himself, — who will then refuse to receive

( in those Bolemn words of denial, — " / know //< noi v. hence ye are," tl.

on St. Matth. xxv. L2. The resemblance of the entire passage to two verses in
"the Sermon on the Mount,"(«) is very striking. Scarcely less remarkable are the
of difference. Tier,, the warning Beemed chiefly addressed to the teachers
of religion, — here, to the taught.

28, 29 There shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth, when ye shall
Abraham, and Isaac, and Jacob, and all the prophets, in the King-
dom of God, and jou yourselves thrust out. And they shall come from
the Bast, and from the West, and from the North, and/rowi the South,

and .-hall Bit down in the Kingdom of God.

These remarkable expressions should In 1 compared with the language which our
Loan i- found t" have need after the healing of the Centurion's servant, in St

iii. 11, 12,— where the notes may he referred to."(<) The admission of the
Gentiles to the Kingdom i clearly foretold. Observe the mysterious bint

here oonveyed that it will be an aggravation of tin' misery of 1 1 1 • — « • whoi
finally rejects, A< behold others in the enjoyment of tin' bliss from which they will
be tli' i ccluded.(u) And notice, by tin' way, the Love which declares, (in

28 and elsewhere,) the acceptance of many; hut ha- no where Bet on i
tin' final rejection of more than one.{x)

30 And, behold, there are last which shall be first, and there are

Which .-hall he last.

This saying, which occurs three times in the Gospel, ha- l n already made the

rabject "i remark in a long note on St. Matthew xix. 30, — to which the reader i*
refen

81 Tli'' same day there came certain of the Phari tag unto

Him, <■ at, and depart hence: for Herod will Kill T!

R kill Thi i." This must ha\ e happened - an ■

lee, '•:• in the district east of the Jordan, calk I I terod's dominion

led ii" further. That there were many of the sect of the Pharisees in that

i. wo know from chap. \ . 17.
It has been thought thai the crafty kin^, ("that t I ■• styles him in

(n) Williams, quoUo it.

('/) S ■' (0 1

r. JL
. I... (it) I

XIII.]

on st. luke's gospel. 521

the next verse,) himself sent these messengers to our Saviour in order to induce
Him to withdraw from a neighbourhood where His presence must perforce have
been a source of disquiet to the man who had murdered the Baptist, and who was
now living in open adultery with his brother's wife. For this purpose, though him-
self a Sadducee,(y) Herod is thought to have availed himself of the services of some
of the opposite sect, in order to convey to our Lord a feigned tale of the danger
that awaited Him, if He remained where He was.

But others have supposed, with perhaps more of reason, that the whole was a
mere device of the Pharisees to procure our Lord's prompt withdrawal towards Je-
rusalem, — where snares were laid against His Life ;(z) and that when He said in
reply, " Tell this fox,"(a) he aimed his message, in reality, as much at the crafty
speaker, as at the King.

32 And He said unto them, 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.

There is some difficulty here ; but perhaps the obvious sense of the passage, as it
stands in our translation, is the true one. Our Lord gives His pretended friends to
understand that the duration of His Ministry is fixed, and settled, — and that the
season of His Death, in like manner, is determined in God's deep counsels ; not to
be hastened or delayed by any act on the part either of Herod or of themselves.
The period of His Ministry is noticed, after the Hebrew method, — as for " to-day
and to-morrow :"(&) on "the third day," He will "be perfected," — that is, will
finish His course,(c) and fulfill His work,(cZ) and receive His complete reward.
Three days are thus specified, — perhaps in order to intimate a definite predeter-
mined period. " But our Lord's answer is doubtless for our instruction under simi-
lar circumstances ; teaching us that times and seasons are with God. It is ours to
do our duty, and leave the event with Him."(e) He proceeds, —

33 Nevertheless I must walk to-day, and to-morrow, and the day
following : for it cannot be that a prophet perish out of Jerusalem.

That is, " ' Nevertheless I must indeed depart home' as ye counsel Me, while the
time appointed for My Ministry — [' to-day and to-morrow, and the day-following' — ]
continues, and go on My way to Jerusalem ; for that City is the place where the
prophets of God must perish.' The word here translated ' walk,' is the same with
that translated 'depart,' in verse Sl."(f) Away from Jerusalem, (our Saviour
says,) is no danger. There is the seat of iniquity. All type and prophecy requires
that I, the great Prophet, should suffer where all My goodly fellowship of Prophets
have suffered before Me. (g) . . . . The pathetic lamentation which follows, grows
naturally out of our Lord's recent mention of the City.

34, 35 Jerusalem, Jerusalem, which killest the prophets, and
stonest them that are sent unto thee ; how often would I have gathered
thy children together, as a hen doth gather her brood under her wings,
and ye would not ! Behold, your house is left unto you desolate : and
verily I say unto you, Ye shall not see Me, until the time come when
ye shall say, Blessed is He that cometh in the Name of the Lord.

The self-same words are heard from our Lord's lips on a quite different occasion,
— namely, some months later, when He was crossing the threshold of the Temple,
and leaving it for the last time. He repeats the name of the city twice, to denote
earnestness and affection. (Ji) So much has been already offered concerning this
affecting address, that it shall suffice to refer the reader to the notes on St. Matthew
xxiii. 37 to 39. It has been thought indeed, by some of the very greatest writers,

(,y) See the note on St. Mark viii. 19. (si) St. John vii. 25. (a) So in the original.

(b) Compare Hos. vi. 2. Lonsdale and Hale supply the following valuable references to the
margin of the Bible : — Gen. xxxi. 2. Exod. iv. 10. Deut. xix. 6. Josh. iii. 4. 1 Sam. xix.
7. 1 Chron. xi. 2. (c) Compare Phil. iii. 12. Also Acts xx. 24

(d) See St. John iv. 34: v. 36 : xvii. 4. (e) Williams.

(/) Bp. Lonsdale and Archd. Hale. (g) Consider St. Luke ix. 51.

(h) So Chrysostom. Consider St. Luke x. 41, and the note there.

A PLAIN COMMBNTABT [CHAP.

that our ! a only one occasion ; and that

the address out <>f it- proper place*
monstrous, supposition !

THE PEAYEE.

<i id, whose never-failing providence ordercth all things both in
heaven and earth; We humbly Thee to put away from i

hurtful things, and to give as those things which be profitable for us;

through Jesus Christ our Lord. Anien.

C II A I'T E B XIV

2 1 ■ Sabbath. 7 Teacheth I lity. 12 Zl

Under the parable the <

God, /.•'

vlll ' II I •

i ' Uh ! \me they n volt I

unpi " thai hath i.ist hit ea

I r will l I that in this part of the Gospel the hostility of the Phari

prominently before as. Their crafty address was d iticed at tli<> <■!
chap, xiii/") Pharisees are found hanging aboul our Saviour'

and they are found to be -till among Bis hearers, when He delivers the

! 3teward," in chap, xvi.(c) Here, ;i Pharisee of note, (he

ii "a Ruler,") myites tl I -and many of

mi' hostile seel are present. 1 i ) Al! this should be m deed, for a reason which

will be found suggested below, in the note on ver. 7. We are reminded of those

otli>r when our Loan was entertained by a Phari* I when the

the pari "i' the hosl was anything bul s 'l<--in- to show hospitality.

. i ■ut words of reproof are to tx I Brom the lips i I

1. j A ][>■ went into th< the

■ Pharis< I bread <»n the Babbath day, that they wal :

Him. And, behold, there was ;i certain man before Him which had the
dro]

tc) i ii.

(/) - ill that t U

XIV.]

ON ST. LUKE'S GOSPEL. 523

That is, "the Lawyers and Pharisees" — (mentioned in ver. 3) — " watched Him,"
as they are related to have done on a former occasion,^) to see whether He would
heal this person on the Sabbath day. Indeed, our Blessed Lord, on more than one
occasion had made choice of the Sabbath for performing His works of Mercy :(h)
and this was done in order to show the true meaning of the Divine Institution, and
to teach men that certain works are a fulfillment, not a violation, of the Law. From
works of Love, God never rests; but "worketh hitherto," as our Saviour Himself
declares. (/) The miracle which follows seems to have happened the instant He en-
tered "the House of one of the chief Pharisees:" for we saw in ver. 1, that "it
came to pass as He went into the House." It is reasonable to believe that the drop-
sical man spoken of as standing "before" Christ, had so stationed himself in
faith. (A;) But the supposition is no less probable that it was the result of malicious
contrivance on the part of our Lord's hypocritical entertainer, or some of his guests,
that one so urgently in need of the Great Physician's help was present on this occa-
sion at all. — Let it be remembered that Dropsy was one of the diseases accounted
incurable.

3 And Jesus answering spake unto the lawyers and Pharisees, say-
ing, Is it lawful to heal on the Sabbath clay?

He answered to their wicked thoughts, — as on so many other occasions. (/) Once
before, in the synagogue, when " there was a man" present " which had his hand
withered," "they" had "asked Him, saying, Is it lawful to heal on the Sabbath
days? that they might accuse Him."(m) The same question they now hear
addressed to themselves.

4 And they held their peace. And He took him, and healed him, and
let him go ;

" Took hold o/"him," rather: that is to say, Christ laid His Almighty Hands upon
the afflicted man, and so healed him, — "letting him go," or rather "dismissing
him," afterwards ; by which expression, it is implied that He took leave of the man
with a solemn form of blessing. — Our attention is called from the object of Christ's
mercy to the Pharisees whom He had just put to silence:

5 and answered them, saying, Which of you shall have an ass or an
ox fallen into a pit, and will not straightway pull him out on the Sab-
bath day ?

Again He "answers them," although they have "held their peace."" That is
because their minds were full of fierce rebellious thoughts ; and thoughts are words
in the ears of Him with whom we have to do.(»)

It is impossible to forget that, in the former chapter, we met with an instance very
closely resembling the present, — (the healing, namely, of " the crooked woman,")(o)
— as well in respect of the general course of the narrative, as of the reasoning
whereby our Lord defended His gracious act. On both occasions, a severe bodily
ailment was remedied, and both cures were wrought upon a Sunday. Ox and ass
on both occasions supplied the Divine Speaker with an argument ; and on both oc-
casions His enemies were confounded and put to silence. The form of argument is
moreover the same, — contrasting the worth of the creatures ; the severity of their
respective misfortunes ; and the amount of labour involved by the effort to relieve
them. But the most striking parallel is supplied by the cure of the withered hand
in the synagogue, to which allusion has already been made ; for there our Lord

(g) St. Luke vi. 8. See also the note on St. Mark. iii. 2.

(h) Thus, in St. Mark i. 21 to 26, we have the casting out of an unclean spirit : — in St. Matth.
xii. 9 to 13, compared with St. Luke vi. 6 to 11, the healing of the withered hand : — in St. Luke
xiii. 10 to 17, the woman with a spirit of infirmity; and all these occurred in the synagogue
itself. The gift of sight to the man horn blind, (St. John ix. 14,) and the present miracle per-
formed on one who had the dropsy, also took place on the Sabbath.

(;') St. John v. 17. [k) Compare what was said on chap. xiii. 13.

(I) For example, St. Luke vi. 8. (m) St. Matth. xii. 10.

(n) The ancient Prayer at the beginning of our Communion Service runs very strikingly in
the original: — "unto whom all hearts be open, all desires speak."
(o) See the heading of chap. xiii.

524 4 PLAIN* COMMENTARY [( HAP.

t the Pharisee's house, — "What man shall there be among
yon, that -hull have one sheep, and if it fall into a pit on the Sabbath day, will he
ii"t lay bold "ii it, and lift it out? How much then is :i man better than a sheep!
v. it is lawful for a man to do well "ii the Sabbath day."(j>)

• '. And they could not answer Him again to these things.

remark may be worth the making that the recorded discourses of cur I.
often meet with the issue bere described : that is, they b

1 lilence. This deserves attention ; because it must be allowed that

the arguments of the Divine Speaker are often unexpected an J extraordinary ; while
tin • v may be sometimes thought even to admit of refutation, oral least to afford to

phole for escape. Theinferenct ithered from th<

ment, (in this or any other place,) that the men whom he addressed "cou]
answer Him again to these things," — is, however, obvious. We perceive that I! -
arguments were felt /" /» unanswerable, — or they would have been answered :(g)
! r II" i- represented as engaged in controversy with the most learned of the nation.
It will be found therefore that the recorded discourses of our Sai ioi b

rdinary interest and value, beyond what might at first be suspected. —
Perhaps, baa the blessed Speaker been addressing the men of our own <1.
would have sometimes reasoned differently. It may. at Least, be Buspected tl at Si
would have Bilenced ".with arguments the force of which we ahould have more
readily felt and admitted. But He was reasoningwith the learned Jewish Doctors.
Min-h of the traditional meaning of Holy Scripture, they certainly retained; and
He was therefore able t'> meet them on common ground,— appeal t<» their
familiar teaching, — adopt their own method, — and -lay them with their "« d we
Can we doubt moreover that those weapons, that method, and that teaehii
; - // c a Li < uded to employ them, wire divine! Thus, it may well I"- bus]
that the Law contained in Bxod. xxiii. •">, and Dent. xxii. -1. was here alluded to by
our Loan : and that the spiritual intention of that precept was present to the mind
of all who heard. "Doth God take care of oxen T" [as the great Apostle exclaims;)
"or Baith He |not| it altogether for our own sakes? /' ■', thi$

' ' I. ipj o ■ I to have reached ertainment.

It follows : —

7 And He pnt forth a Parable to those which were bidden, when He
marked bow they chose out the chief rooms;

n. what follow- i- a parabl , The v.
vious meaning, doubtless; but there Lies beneath them a deeper Lesson : and in
to draw attentii n to this, the Evangelist calls our Loan's discourse " a parable."

It is evident, by the way, that the present entertainment was do ordinary meal, —
for here were nrany guests assembled,-— who had all been bidden, (that i-. formally

'• in\ ited,") — and they appear to have I n persons of importance j for we find that

I rivalry among them fox the chief places at table. Doubtless, if our

I. narks which follow appear bo us unduly harsh or unseasonable, it is a

• ■ utterly mistaken in our conception of the circumstances and the
1 ider is referred to some remarks which wen ■ the com-

ment of the present chapter; where it was suggested that the hostility of all
iblcd, to the Divine Being who had been invited to partake of the festivity,
affords a clue 1 oi II Langi v seem to hear One who is ELim-

itting in the Lowest room, tunes on the oouoh furthest rei

of honour, —

8 saying onto them, When thou art bidden of a to a we i I

way, the nature of the "parable" which our Loan i- delivering.
The present is no wedding-entertainment Why then this allusion to a wedding?
D to imply tl I tly speaking of the " marriage" which "

The OOOUM " • iii- 1 to 5

(r) 1 1".

XIV.]

on st. luke's gospel. 525

tain King made for His Sox,(s) — "the Marriage of the Lamb."(^) At this wed-
ding then, —

9, 10 sit not down in the highest room : lest a more honourable man
than thou be bidden of him : and he that bade thee and him come and
and say to thee, Give this man place ; and thou begin with shame to
take the lowest room. But when thou art bidden, go and sit down in
the lowest room ; that when he that bade thee cometh, he may say unto
thee, Friend, go up higher. Then shalt thou have worship in the
presence of them that sit at meat with thee.

Our Lord's words do more than recall, — they are even a quotation from the Book
of Proverbs : " Put not forth thyself in the presence of the King, and stand not in
the place of great men ; for better it is that it be said unto thee, Come up hither,
than that thou shouldest be put lower in the presence of the Prince whom thine eyes
have seen."(») " This shows that the proverbial teaching of the Old Testa-
ment, in like manner with that of the New, contains parables of Evangelical Wis-
dom, wherein more is intended than meets the outward ear."(x')

But what is the present Parable? The Christian Church is the "wedding," and
the guests are we. All are bidden who are Christians. How then do we behave?
Do we covet high places for ourselves ? do we desire to take precedence of our fel-
low-men, — those guests who sit down with us in God's visible Kingdom, here on
earth, — presuming upon our wealth or influence, birth or station? If so, we have
here our warning. At the end of the World, the Bridegroom will come in to see
the guests,(?/) and then verily will it be found that "there are last which shall be
first, and there are first which shall be last."(2) It will no longer be possible for
the base man to lord it over his humbler brother, nor for the meek man, overlooked,
to occupy the lowest seat. The standard of honour and merit will be entirely
changed the instant the Bridegroom enters. "He that bade thee and him" alike,
will feel Himself aggrieved if ambition and self-conceit have at all been the cause
why the guests are so misplaced at His Table. He will come to the less honourable
who occupies the higher seat, and bringing forward the virtuous brother of low
degree, will say to the former, " give this man place." Shame will be the portion
of him who shall then begin to occupy, as his abiding portion, (a) the lowest room:
just as he will enjoy great honour, to whom, in the presence of admiring men and
angels, those blessed words shall be spoken, "Friend, go up higher!" .... This
will be the man who in his lifetime chose Christ for his pattern, and was content
daily to tread in the footsteps of the Crucified. These are the meek ones of the
earth. They are found in every class of society, in every calling, doubtless ; in the
most exalted, as well as in the very humblest of all : yet surely if we were to go in
search of such, we should seek them among the despised and afflicted, — among the
very poor!

Consider how, both in the Old and New Testaments, it is intimated that Shame
wiU befall the wicked in the Day of Judgment,(&) — shame, at detection and expo-
sure before all. In the Book of Proverbs, a striking hint is given that it will be a
terrible thing in that hour " to be put lower in the presence of the prince, lohom
their eyes have seen."(c) Here, the wonder and indignation of our fellow-men is
the thing appealed to. And "the great Proverb of the Gospel "(d) follows: —

11 For whosoever exalteth himself shall be abased: and he that
humbleth himself shall be exalted.

Enough has been offered concerning these memorable words in other parts of the
Commentary, to which it must suffice to refer the Reader, (e)

12 Then said He also to him that bade Him, When thou makest a
dinner or a supper, call not thy friends, nor thy brethren, neither thy

(*) St. Matth. xxii. 2. (t) Kev. xix. 9. (?<) Prov. xxv. 6, 7.

(x) Williams. {tj) St. Matth. xxii. 11. {z) St. Luke xiii. 30.

(a) That is the meaning of " taking the lowest room," in ver. 9.

(b) Dan.xii. 2. (c) Prov. xxv. T : and see Job xlii. 5. (d) Williams.
(e) See the note on the latter part of St. Luke xviii. 14: also on St Matthew xxiii. 12.

A PLAIN COMMENTARY [CHAP.

kinsmen, nor thy rich neighbours; lest they also bid thee again, and a
reeompence be made thee.

• wlii.li U i ght after, is the very thing w< bt to

■bun and dread. St. Lukevi. 32 to 35. [( Bui to

point ont that "ur Loan does not here prohibit hospitality to " rich neighbours ;"

but, (ace inline to Bis well-known method on other occasions, f) He declares who

ertained. Hospitality towards "friends, brethren," and the

i: it is even one of the graces of tl Javiour

ant ■ as "a more excellent way:" as it follows, —

1'.. 1 ! Bat when thou makcst a feast, call the poor, the maimed, the
lame, the blind : and thou Bhalt be blessed ; for they cannot recomj
thee : for thon shalt bo recompensed at the llesurrection of the j

: y, and bait, and lamp, and blind, have not the means to mal
return; but thon Bhalt be blessed, for a return shall be made thee al the Resurrec-
tion of the Just. "Come ye blessed of My Father," (will then be said by th< S
of Man to as many as " have done it unto one of the least of these His Brethren,")
"inherit the Kingdom prepared for you from the beginning of the World : fori
was an hungred, and Me meat: I was thirsty, and ye gave Me dru

* (as it ie said in another place,) 1 appoint onto you a Kingdom

that ye may eat and drink at My Table."(i)

1") And when one of them that sat at meat with Him heard :
things, In: -aid unto Him, Blessed M he that shall cat bread in the

lorn of < !

1 r*6 lips, this Baying was probably nothing more than a devout ex-

clamation "ii bearing our Loan allude to the recompense which should attend the
I ! if he had said, — II!. — . - 1 will he be who shall share

in th of which Thou so persuasively and well!

Spirit to Bt John the Divine, 1 are they

which are • Sapper of the Lamb !"(&) The words probably

mean! appear to have been I by what our Savioi r had

said.(/i — and we ' from III- practice on other occasions that it was the

manner of God's ancient people to Bpeak of " the Resurrection of the Just,
Abraham, [saao, and Jacob in i of GOD."(m)

But our Saviour takes the human words as they fall from the ui

aightway moulds them to a higher purpose by imparting to them
a divine meaning. He den bat the other had said, — nam' • •! is

he that shall eat bread in the Kingdom of God 1" Far from it! But Hepro<
to show by a parable that ••tin- Kingdom" spoken of, hath its beginning/

■ and He foretells, darkly indeed, yet in wondrous detail, how different would

ption from what the speaker supposed. Thoee "that were bidden,"

chosen people,— the "heirs of the Kingdom,") would reject the

us invitation to i te, when all tilings were ready. .Nay. the verj Gentiles,

(heir- by adoption, i bo Car from a anting it their supreme blessedni

in th ' would invent all manner of pr staying av

Thi ihief meaning of the Parable; and !t is the

worth our attention, inasmuch as the Church in her second Exhortation in the
Oommuni Lord's b iching. The Parable fol-

:—

16, IT Then said II.- unto him, A certain Man mad
and bade many: and lenl Sis servant at rapper time to say to them
that were bidden, I ] for all things are now ready.

(A) B
(mi) (fckL iv. I.

I
.1.11

XIV.]

ON ST. LUKE'S GOSPEL. 527

God is this "certain man," — God, who "when the fullness of the time was come,
sent forth His Son."(?i) Christ Himself therefore, who took upon Him the form
of a servant, or any one whom Christ sendeth, is the servant in the parable ; — His
Church and Kingdom " is the Great Supper ;" — the " things now ready," are His
Word and Sacraments; "the Vision of God, the society of Angels, the fellowship
with the Saints." Heavenly joys are even spoken of in Holy Scripture under this
image of a Feast, — a feast where plenty, instead of cloying, does but add keenness
to the appetite; and where fullness, instead of producing satiety, awakens only
delight. How strong the call of appetite for earthly food ! how soon appeased !
when appeased, how small seems the joy ! But the reverse is true of the heavenly
banquet. We hunger for it but little ; yet will the ages of Eternity not suffice to
satisfy the soul's desire: and when experienced, how Avill the joys of Heaven sur-
pass all that the heart has ever imagined of bliss !(o) Now, because this Heavenly
Banquet begins here on earth, Christ's visible Kingdom is likened to a great sup-
per. " Come ; for all things are now ready." .... Surely in this, the evening of
the World, we hear that invitation daily ! What are opportunities of obedience, —
occasions for the exercise of the graces of the Gospel, — invitations to prayer, — the
return of sacred seasons, — the music of Sabbath-bells, — what is each of these but a
summons to "Come, for all things are now ready?" — Mark next the conduct of
those invited :

18 And they all with one consent began to make excuse.

Hitherto, the parable of "the Great Supper" reminds us forcibly of the parable
of "the marriage of the King's Son."(j;) When all is ready, the Servants are sent
out to call the guests, — but no guests are willing to come. In the case of the Mar-
riage, however, the summons is refused and disregarded, — the field(g) and the mer-
chandise still furnishing the greater attraction. But civil excuses are offered by
those who were invited to the Great Supper.

19 The first said unto him, I have bought a piece of ground, and
I must needs go and see it : I pray thee have me excused. And
another said, I have bought five yoke of oxen, and I go to prove them :
I pray thee have me excused.

Thus, "one goes to his farm, another to his merchandise."^) The piece of
ground and the five yoke of oxen (for ploughing) (s) have been bought subject to
approval. Hence the first must be inspected, and trial must be made of the
second.

20 And another said, I have married a wife, and therefore I cannot
come.

" Vet this Feast is that invisible Kingdom of Grace into which men must press
with violence !"(£) Land, — oxen, — a wife: "all innocent; perhaps all needful:
all certainly fatal. They loved them too much, or the Gospel too little. Their love
for them was perhaps not excessive ; it might have been but little : but, at all
events, their love for the Gospel was less. Or their love for the Gospel might have
been great, very great ; but their love of the world was greater. Still, it all came
to one and the same end ; for God will not have a divided heart. It is the choice
of the two which is presented at all times. To have married a wife was provided
for in the Law as a sufficient plea not to go forth to war ;(it) but the Gospel is higher
in its requirements. ' He that loveth wife or children more than Me, is not worthy
of Me.' "0)

It may be observed that, in describing the reception which the Gospel would
meet with, our Lord mentions the very things which He notices in speaking of the
old World and of Sodom. " He omits all mention of their great crimes, but chooses

(») Gregory. (o) See St. Matth. xxii. 1, &c.

(p) The word translated "a piece of ground" in St. Luke xiv. 18, is translated a "farm" in
St. Matth. xxii. 5.

(q) St. Matth. xxii. 5. (r) See 1 Kings xix. 19.

(«) St. Matth. xi. 12, St. Luke xvi. 16. h) Deut. xxiv. 5.

(w) Williams quoting St. Matth. x. 37. (a:) St. Luke xvii. 28.

A 1'LAIX rOMMEXTAHY \> I1AI'.

out, for their resemblance to the last day, points innocent iii

bine worldly nature. In the d \ which ar.' likened I of the

world, 'they bought and Bold,'(y) — as here the excuse is'] have 1 en and

l them.' In the former, ' they planted, they builded,' — a< here the

-'1 hare bought a field, and mast d Is go and see it.' Again, in th<

ih and of Lot, 'they married and gave in i in tiio

ted, because, 'I hare married a wife, and ther< I

the Bame things, therefore, are true of th<' days of the Bon of Man, as appears from

ture; whether we speak of Christ's final Coming, or of the Christian di

generally."(a) And can it be needful to point out that for the same

which are daily Been to be in operation, the Gospel i- practically n • that

'•a wife" here Btands for all earthly ties, l ause Marriage i- the cl si and most

I. and land which must be visited, for all worldly
and p issessions whs

21 Bo that servant came, and Bhowed bid Lord these things. ]
the Master of the house being angry, said to His servant, Go out
quickly into the streets and lane- of the city, and bring in hither the
poor, and the maimed, and the halt, and the blind.

•• When tTiou makest a feast," (our Lord had said in ver. 13) "call the i r, the

maimed, the lame, the blind:" and these are precisely the classes of persons which
the servant is ordered in the parable to "bring in," to be partakers of the Great
Supper. Uut of tli" heavenly banquet he i of, il is of course "the |

apvnt,' who arc desired; and such as, because their hand offended them, cut it off,

and bo became maimed: because their foot offended them, cut it nil*, and bo l ame

lame : l ause their eye offended them, plucked it out, and bo became blind. (6)

22, 23 And tie- Servant said, Lord, it is done as Thou hast com-
manded, and yet there is room. And the LOBD said unto the Servant,

il into the highways and hedges, and compel tfo m to come in, that
My House may be fills I.

. - 1 1 :i 1 . a prophecy of what was reafter, is

fulfilhnent was obvious. The Jews rejected the Gospel. The Publicans and harlots
itraightway brought in from thi and lane- of the Holy City ; and yet

there was r n. Whereupon the offer was freely made to the Gentiles. Consider

•1 1 For I say onto yon, That none of those men which were bidden
shall t iste of My Snpper.

The Parable being brought to a close, "ur Blessed I<>'i:i>, by a single word,
Hi to understand thai He is Himself the Giver of the Supper, and that

discoursing to them concerning the decrees of UN own Provideno

'." The words are no longer those of the lord of the Feast addri

ngor. They are the words of <J"i> Himself I
the Jewish nation did indeed, after ibrace the Gospel: butit

■ that they tasted of God's Mercy. They came in wil
Other nations of the earth. But surely these terrible words ban ader

ad are addressed to as many as shall come after, to the end of the world.
i who, when bidden, refuse the Feast, shall afterwards find themselvi

oluded. Soe the 1 i i part of St. Luke xiii. 24, and the note there.

i lider, finally, wnal an instructive specimen is here afforded u< of our 1!!' !
i method, and Hie untiring seal in the ihepherdin \\

bath-day, and tl * of the Synagogue over, (where doubtless Ho lei-

delh ering a di\ ine di He proceeds I \

frith dropsy stands before Ilim. He heals him. Sinful men are
iy j and f'>r their . il defi 1 1 - 1 — lli> action, and by His comment apon it, brings

ipel into harmony with tl Law. Hi from what

(a)Wnili

XIV.]

on st. luke's gospel. 529

He sees, to "teach Humility ;"(d) conveying at the same time a parable of marvel-
lous value and secret beauty. To the giver of the entertainment, He delivers pre-
cious counsel concerning "feasting the poor."(e) A guest, in reply to what our
Saviour had been saying, ventures an ordinary remark ; and our Saviour forth-
with addresses to him the parable of " the Great Supper" .... It may all have
been the work of half an hour !

25, 26 And there went great multitudes with Him : and He turned
and said unto them, If any man come to Me, and hate not his Father,
and Mother, and Wife, and Children, and Brethren, and Sisters, yea,
and his own life also, he cannot be My disciple.

Our Saviour had been prophetically declaring that worldly possessions or earthly
ties would prove the things to prevent a man from freely embracing the Gospel.
But the scene of His discourse is changed. Instead of the festive chamber, it is
now the weary high-way ; and among the "great crowds" which "journeyed with
Him," there may or may not have been those who listened to the parable of the
Great Supper which was delivered at the banquet. It does not follow, however,
because the scene is changed, that the subject of our Lord's discourse is uncon-
nected with what went before. On the contrary, the Evangelist seems to have been
divinely guided to select from what our Lord proceeded to deliver, such sayings as
bore directly on His previous teaching. All things, therefore, (it is here declared,)
must be relinquished for the Gospel : or, (as our Lord will be found to re-word the
matter below, in verse 33,) — "Whosoever he be of you that forsaketh not all that
he hath, he cannot be My disciple." Moreover, the temper requisite in one who
would follow the Crucified, is further insisted upon in a saying which is itself almost
a prophecy.(y)

27 And whosoever doth not bear his cross, and come after Me, cannot
be My disciple.

Verses 26 and 27 will be found very nearly repeated in our Saviour's Charge
delivered to the Twelve. (r/) The saying in the latter verse may be considered to
recur three times in the Gospel, — being found besides in the discourse which He
delivered after His Transfiguration ; as all the three Evangelists conspire in
recording.(/j)

28, 29, 30 For which of you, intending to build a tower, sitteth not
down first, and counteth the cost, whether he have sufficient to finish
it ? Lest haply, after he hath laid the foundation, and is not able to
finish it, all that behold it begin to mock him, saying, This man began
to build, and was not able to finish.

Take notice how He who created Man such as he is, here, for the second time,(i)
appeals to Man's sense of Shame, — as above (in ver. 10,) He appealed to Man's
sense of Pride.

So difficult, then, and so formidable a thing is the work of Salvation ! — " The
foundation" must indeed be laid in Faith in Christ, — for " other foundation can no
man lay."(&) But, besides this, it is a work of labour and difficulty ; demanding,
as our Lord specially notes, great sacrifices, — and to be accomplished only at a
large cost of time, and skill, and labour, — even as the building of a tower. Then,
besides a great work to accomplish, we have also a powerful King to encounter.
And take notice, that the hostile sovereign spoken of in the next verse, is none
other than Christ Himself. It follows, —

31, 32 Or what king, going to make war against another King,
sitteth not down first, and consulteth whether he be able with ten thou-

(cZ) See the heading of the chapter. (e) See the heading.

(/) See the note on St. Matth. x. 38. , {g) St. Matth. x. 37, 38,

(h) St. Matth. xvi. 24, St. Mark viii. 34, St, Luke ix. 23, — on each of which places the notes
may be consulted.

(i) See above, ver. 9. (k) 1 Cor. iii. 11.

580 A PLAIB OOMMBNTABI [CHAP.

Band to meet Him that oometb against him with twenty thousand? or
else, while the Other is yet a great way ull". he sendeth an am
and deeireth conditions uf peace.

- that our Lord's counsel on this ooeasi id closely resembles thai other word of

Hi-, which has already twice come before u \ ee with thine Adversary

ly, while thoa art in the way with llim."(0 "'' comes againsl us with Blight

and with Majesty which nunc may presu to resist "Behold," (saith Enoch,)

"the Loan cometh with ten thousands of Hi- Saints,(m)— yea, with "ten thousand
times ten thousand."(n) "But who may abide the day of Hi- coming! and who
shall Btand when He appeareth?"(o) "W 1 1« ► 1 1_\- unable are we to meet Hun in J
in. Hi. when Se -hall appear with all Hi- hosts. What remains, then, hut i>< make
our peace with Him while 11'- "is yei a great way off," (being not yet seen coming
in Judgment:) to send Him an ambassage of prayers ami tears, and earnestly to
desire of Him " conditions of Peace I"

:'.•! So likewise, whosoever he be of you that forsaketh not all that
he hath, he cannot be My Disciple.

Tim- ilnc-; ( mr Lord gather up into a single sentence the teaching of the seven

s So .-low ami laborious is the work of Salvation, — bo

formidable is II'- with whom we have t" do,— that unless there be a forsaking of all

things, a man is not lit to be Christ's disciple. A remark already twice met with,

lull' ■

■ )[, 35 Salt is good: hut if tlte suit have lust his sav< r, wherewith
shall it he seasoned? It is neither lit for the land, nor yet fur the

dunghill ; byt men cast it out.

■.-■I- have been explained already. (5) They mean here,- '1'" be a Chris-
tian is a g 1 thing: hut let the Christian character once lose that whi

all 'r id it becomes nothing worth. Men are hereby taught tin' 1

quence of falling away from Christ in the hour "1" trial, from nut having well con-
sidered beforehand what it would cost thi'in to be His followers. There must be
!: ami this is the doctrine 1 I' all Scripture, t" an extent
which few pen ms imagine. "H er the knowledge of the Truth fall- back,"

(our Loan says,) " is neither able to bring forth tin' fruit of good work- himself,
nor to instruct others. Hi' must therefore be cast out."(r) Ami lest this applica-
tion "I' Hi- words might !><• overlooked, 11'' added Hi- well-known saying, —

lie that hath ears to hear, let him hear.

(/) Ft. Maith. v. 25, and St Luke xii. 58, — on irhiob I e ti-.t 0.

r. 14. (n) Dan, \ii. la. (■•) -Mm!. I

, .-. tin' note ''M \ or. 26.
lq) G -[. .Murk i.\. 60. ('•) B

XV.] ON ST. LUKE'S GOSPEL. 531

CHAPTER XV.

1 The Parable of the Lost Sheep: 8 of the Piece of Silver: 11 of the Prodigal Son.

1 Then drew near unto Him all the Publicans and Sinners for to
hear Him.

Concerning "Publicans and Sinners," — of whom such frequent mention is made
in the Gospel, — see the note on St. Mark ii. 15. The former were persons who,
both from their odious calling, and their sinful manner of life, were deemed infa-
mous, by the rest of the nation. But, among their number, was found the Saint,
and Apostle, and Evangelist.(a) They supplied, moreover, patterns of Faith, (6)
of Prayer, (c) and of Zeal.(rf) At their table the Saviour of the world, homeless
Himself, and despised of men, was many a time the welcome and the honoured
Guest. . . . How unspeakably precious in the ears of all such must have been the
gracious words which follow !

2 And the Pharisees and Scribes murmured, saying, This man re-
ceiveth sinners, and eateth with them.

There is much of gracious meaning in this intimation that our Lord "received
Sinners." Consider such places as St. Luke ix. 11 ; — where, (as in St. Luke viii.
40 : xix. 6 ; St. John i. 11, 12 : iv. 45, &c.,) a kind and hearty welcome is evidently
implied.

"To eat" with Publicans was evidently deemed a pollution. See St. Matthew
ix. 11, and St. Luke xix. 7. This was because the Publicans belonged to a class
which was reckoned among the heathen, — with whom to eat was to be polluted : see
Acts xi. 3 ; Gal. ii. 12, &c. Compare St. Matthew.xviii. 17, and the note St. Mark
ii. 15.

3 And He spake this parable unto them, saying,

The parable of the Lost Sheep follows : in studying which we are to remember
that our Saviour Christ is " the Good Shepherd," — as He himself declared.(e)
Here, then, we have explained to us the object and purpose with which He "re-
ceived sinners, and ate with them." He was "going after that which was lost." . . .
The same parable, somewhat more briefly given, is found in St. Matthew's Gospel,
xviii. 12-14, — where it stands actually prefaced by the words, — " The Son of Man
is come to save that which was lost."

4 What man of you, having an hundred sheep, if he lose one of them,
doth not leave the ninety and nine in the wilderness, and go after that
which is lost, until he find it ?

Our Blessed Lord appeals to one of the instincts of the human heart. The
ninety and nine, which are in safety, are left ; for the sake of the one which is lost.
But the Heavenly Shepherd's care for " the people of His pasture and the sheep of
His hand"(y*) is such, that He rests not "until He find."

Concerning " the wilderness," see the note on St. Luke i. 80.

Who, that reads, exclaims not, — "/have gone astray like a sheep that is lost.
seek Thy servant?"

(a) St. Matthew x. 3. (b) St Matth. xxi. 32. (c) St. Luke xviii. 10-14.

(d) St. Luke xix. 2-4. (e) St. John x. 11. (/) Ps. xev. 7.

A TLA IN OOMMBRIABT [cmr.

5 An»l when he hath found ft, he layeth it on his shoulders, rej
ing.

1 1 who " gathereth the Iambi with His arm, and oarrieth them in II'

th" the loel Bheep "on Hi> shoulders," also: t t "all we like sheep I
gone astray; we have turned every one to hie own way; and the Loan hath hud on

lliin the iniquity of oa alL" " Surely Qe bath born ir griefs, and carried mir

An. I beneath this heavy burden, "the Shepherd and Bishop of our
soul- and to walk "rejoicing."

refore, that the purpose with which the G 1 Shepl after

II -• sheen, i- not to drive it back to the fold; much i I it. II" will

laok, "ii Hi- shoulders. 11'- will carry it ;ill the way.

<i Ami when he cometh home, he calleth together hi* friends and
neighbours, Baying unto them, Rejoice with me; for I have found my
sheep which was lost.

We Bhall be reminded in tin' next verse, that Heaven i- the <; L Sbeph

"home:" ami from verse In we learn that the "friend* ami neighbours" are none
other than the Ain/i la qfi k>n. " Friends," — because they '1" the f ithsr'b v, il
•• v ghbours," — because they Btand in Hi- ; I behold His face,(m)ana

gather brightness from Hi- _ r l"ry.

The Heavenly Shepherd having come after us thai were lost, until He found us;

— after He hail taken OUT Nature upon Him, and borne OUT Bins, traightway re-
turned home. "' I came forth from the Fathsr," He -aid. "and am oome into the
World: again, I Leave the World, and go m the 1\\tukk."(")

7 I say unto you, that likewise joy shall he in Heaven over one sin-
ner that repenteth, more than over ninety and nine just pen ins, \shieh
need no r< pentance.

Take notice, that it i- not -aid that those who havi id repented, are ob-

/ than the righteous. but Joy, is the emotion e

by tie- Penitent's return. /. i- for ih who havet lered away from

the Shepherd's Bide.

The phrase, — "Just persons, which o 1 no repentance," admits of an obvious ex-
planation. "There i- none that doeth good : H". n* But, compared with
the- mpared with those who " were dead, and are alive again;" many
are "just," — and "need no repentance."

On "Joy .-hall he in li note on verses 6 and 10.

8 Either what woman

The Saviour of the World reappears, but it i< now under another form. Or
this may represent Him, in the persi n of His Church, seeking for one, posei

; hut since, accidentally, let slip. The Woman knows thai -he -hall find the
*' Imt treasure within her Bon a Bj the aid of "a burning and a shin-
iiL'ht,'T/<j -he therefore commences an anxious search.

having ten pieces of silver, if sin- lose one piece, doth nol light a

Can p the house, and ,-rek diligently till she find it.'

Under this domestic image, then. — the humble figure "fa Woman with a li
candle, sweeping the house, in anxious Bearch of n I si pie .— he- the

i i: oftne World here get forth to u- II Mil nls of men. The lost

piece ■•!' i precious because it borethi ,

1 mpare tie- I f St. Luk< . 24, and <•! I »

9 And when she hath found ft, she calleth her friends and her neigh-
fa I is d. ll. (h) baiaJi l.ii. r.. t. -• r ■•

• M i'i'.. •> \\. 1 1. il) St. I. nl,. i. [9

{„.) Bt Miitth. \ rill 10. (») Si. Ji ; {■■) r

(j.) St. Jehu v. Blstth. \. II. 1 ■• (•/) G

XV.] ON ST. LUKE'S GOSPEL. 533

bours together, saying, Rejoice with me ; for I have found the piece
which I had lost.

The powers of Heaven are once more made partakers of the Saviour's joy. See
the next note.

10 Likewise, I say unto you, there is joy in the presence of the An-
gels of God over one sinner that repenteth.

How wonderful a view is here opened to us of the sympathy of the Holy Angels
with this part of God's Creation ! They love us with more than a brother's love.
With what intense interest must they behold us ! with what assiduity and care
must they minister and watch for us ;(?•) that the tidings of " one Sinner that re-
penteth," should fill the courts of Heaven with joy !

Most affecting of all, however, is the joy of Christ — the Good Shepherd. "Re-
joice with Me" — He says. His friends and neighbours are but invited to be par-
takers of His mysterious joy ! See the note on verse 7. Also, the note on verse 6.

Can we doubt, by the way, that when " the Holy Church throughout all the
World" keeps Christmas, or Easter, — celebrates Good-Friday, Ascension-Day, or
Whitsuntide ; — there must be a corresponding strain of sympathy among the An-
gels in Heaven, likewise : if the welfare of one can fill the skies with joy ?

The Parable of the Prodigal Son follows.

11 And he said, A certain Man had two Sons :

About the "certain Man," in the parable, there can be no difference of opinion.
The "two Sons" set forth, as well the Jew and the Gentile, as two opposite charac-
ters; — the "sinner that repenteth," and the "just person that needeth no repent-
ance." We shall do well to seek our likeness in the former character, — that,
namely, of the poor prodigal ; where we shall assuredly be most likely to find it.

12 and the younger of them said to his father, Father, give me the
portion of goods that falleth to me. And he divided unto them his
living.

If this be understood nationally, — then, we have here a picture of the portion
which the nations of the Gentile world chose for themselves when they wandered
forth from the haunts of Shem.

If individually, — then, behold here the impatience of one who cannot brook the
restraints of his Heavenly Father's home ; but claims his portion and receives it : —
health and strength, — youthful spirits and intellectual vigour, — the portion of good
things, whatever it may happen to be, which falleth to him. In both cases the
gifts of Nature are implied, as contrasted with the gifts of Grace.

13 And not many days after, the younger son gathered all together,
and took his journey into a far country,

Behold the Youth's impatience! He sets out "not many days" after. He goes,
in fact, whenever, and whithersoever he pleases ; for the will of man is left per-
fectly free.

And he travels " into a far country ;" for this is the fate of all those who forsake
God. To be deprived of the light of His countenance, is to be in a very " far coun-
try" indeed.

" Not many days" — seems to mark the impatience of the natural man to break
away from God.

and there wasted his substance with riotous living.

He " wasted his substance," for he made a prodigal and a reckless use of the
gifts of Nature : in consequence whereof, (as St. Paul says of the Gentile world,)
"he became vain in his imaginations, and his foolish heart was darkened." "Pro-
fessing himself to be wise, he became as a fool."(s)

(r) See the Collect for "St. Michael and all Angels." (s) Rom. i. 21, 22.

A PLAIN' C0MMBN1 [CHAP.

Hi- high endowments all turned to his shame. His very moral
darkent d, The candle of the Lord had gone out within him.

1 I And when he had Bpent all, there arose a mighty famine in that
land; and he began to be in want.

Spiritual set forth to us in Scripture under the image of hunger and

•• Bi bold the '!a_\ - come, saith the Lord God, that I will send a famine in
the land : not a famine of bread, aor a thirst for water, but of hearing the w<
the Lord."(u)

ly, there was a mighty Famine in all lands, (typically set forth in the history

i the time 01 the Advent of our Saviour Christ ; and the younger

er had been made to feel the want of which he had long before "begun" to

be aware! There was nothing to Batisfy the bouI's cravings in those systems with

which men had beguiled themselves so long; and Faith had departed from them.

Then, besides its national bearing, this can of the Parable Bets forth the spiritual
misery "fan individual who is Beeking to live "without God in the World, (y) A
mighty Famine arises, and it reaches also unto him. He himself, (for bo ii is in the
original,) begins to be in want. Too often however, the beginnings of distress tail
to recall buoo an one to a Bense of his true position and of his duty. When he only
"begins" to suffer, his proud heart remains unsubdued. He probably acts in the
manner described in the following verse.

15 And lie went and joined himself to a citizen of that country : and
he sent him into his fields t<> feed swine.

Uno!er euoh a degrading image is the hard service which theyounger Son hail
engaged in exhibited. The "Citizen of that country" is '!:•• Devil, — who is "a
citizen" and therefore oX home, where the Prodigal Son is hut an outcast ami
strata II ■<• thru, we trace the downward course "I" one who ha- fled from the

dee of God. He straightway enters into the Bervioe
nf tin- Devil.

The "swine" Ithy dreamers," (as St. Jude Bpeaks,)(z) who

belong to the Evil < toe; and in pandering to whose lusts, he employs any miserable
being whom he gets into his power. They are fitly called swim : those being the
unclean creatures with which the devils love most to be,— as we learn from St. Matt,
viii. 31. The animal, moreover, was among those which the nation were forbidden
and which they held in peculiar abhorrence.

Paul further helps us to the national application of this part of the Parable :
fur, (describing the consequences to the Gentiles, "when thej knew God," of "not
glorift tag Him as God,") be adds, — " Wherefore God also gatx tht m up /<> unclean-

■■ Ami even as they <li'l not like to retain God in their knowl ■ G
//((//( ov r to a reprobatt mind."

In it- individual application, this part of the Parable reminds us of those who
nourish foul desires and unclean thoughts in their soul: despising "At
! ■■ ing divers lusts and pleasures,"(c) as the Apostle spi

L6 And he would fain have filled his belly with the huska that the

swine did eat: and no man gave unto him.

Then' i- in ii,,- i; .i i b peculiar kind of bean-shaped fruit, here called " husks,"
which is given to Bwine, and whiob maj be eaten i,\ men also. Bu1 the
mi-er\ hero d< ncribed musl be very great: to be reduced so 1"\\ as to crave a por-
tion for one's-self of the food one is dispensii u' to the herd; yel i ne found I

ind Hupply a more wholesoi lietl . . . The Prodigal &

i . reduced n> the lowest depth of misery j but hen', a -till lower depth >li-'

itself. Hi- -"ill was fainting within him; ami vet to "till his belly," — to gratifj his
lower app< object of his desire]

17 And when In himself,

r. s. . .1. :,,,:! 18. \- . x

('J I

XV.] ON ST. LUKE'S GOSPEL. 535

For one who could so act, — forsake such a Father, and desert such a home, to
incur nothing but misery, insult, and the pangs of hunger, — can only be spoken of
as one not in his right mind.

He " came to himself," and forthwith came home. From which we may rightly
infer that when he "took his journey into a far country" (ver. 13,) he altogether
departed from himself.

he said, How many hired servants of my father's have bread enough
and to spare, and I perish with hunger !

How pregnant here is every word with meaning ! The " hired servants ;" — those
labourers, namely, whom the Heavenly Father had hired for a penny a day,
according to the Parable, (d) and sent to work in His Vineyard. . . . "Bread
enough ;" — for under that image, God's Worcl(e) and Sacraments (/) are spoken of
in the Gospel. All Christian privileges, it may be, are " briefly comprehended in
that one saying,"(r/) " the children's Bread."(h) .... " And to spare ;" — whence
arises the duty of imparting and distributing to others.

He who lacks the " Bread" here spoken of, does more than suffer want. He
even "perishes with hunger."

18 I will arise and go to my Father,

He will " arise," — for he has been till now grovelling in the dust. He will
" go," — for he is a very long way off. To his " Father," — for at present he dwells
among swine.

And that he shall be able to " say — Father !" is the ground of all his confidence ;
the foundation all his hope.

and will say unto him, Father, I have sinned against Heaven, and
before thee,

This is the language of true Repentance. " I have sinned — against Heaven."
Compare that of David, — " Against Thee, Thee only have I sinned."(t) Compare
also 2 Sam. xii. 13 ; and two earlier instances, in Gen. xx. 6, and xxxix. 9.

19 and am no more worthy to be called thy son :

Such words do we make our own, as often as we draw near to the Divine presence,
in the public services of the Church. Thereby, not only interpreting the Parable,
but identifying ourselves with the most conspicuous character in it.

make me as one of thy hired servants.

The entrance into the courts of Glory is by the gate of Humility.

A very ancient writer, (who was also an Archbishop,) commenting on these
words, piously exclaims, — "0 Lord Jesu ! Preserve us from such husks as the
swine did eat, and instead thereof, give unto us the true Bread ; for Thou art
Steward in Thy Father's House. As Labourers, vouchsafe to hire us also, although
arriving late ; for Thou dost hire men, even at the eleventh hour, — and givest to all
alike the same reward of Life eternal."

20 And he arose, and came to his Father.

In this, lies one of the most instructive lessons which the Parable conveys. The
Father was yearning towards the Prodigal with tenderness unspeakable ; the robe
and the ring, the shoes and the banquet, were all in store ; but the Prodigal must
first arise and go. He was, as yet, "dead" in the Father's sight; ver. 24: "where-
fore He saith, Awake thou that sleepest, and arise from the dead, and Christ shall
give thee light."(&) We must first " draw nigh to God," and then He will " draw
nigh" to us.(Z) "When the Son has risen, mark all that follows : —

But when he was yet a great way off, his Father saw him, and had
compassion, and ran, and fell on his neck, and kissed him.

(d) St. Matt. sx. (<?) St, Matt. iv. 4. (/) St. John vi. 35—58.

{(/) Rom. xiii. 9. (h) St. Matt. xv. 26, (i) Ps. li. 4.

(k) Ephes. v. 14. (?) St. James iv. 8.

53G A PLAIN COMMLNTAKY [CHAP.

What can be imagini L more affeotii while

way off :" the prevailing feeling or" em which hi.s

the impatience, which mast "run" to meet him, halfway: th<
'Is njinii hu neck;" the tenderness, whioh "kit a him!" ... In the
rum. Foreknowledge: in the em

\\ . . tread thai the Son, — tied and bound with the chain, and burdened with

the \\>'i^lit, of his many Bine, — ran to meet the Father It was ih a the

•y, who ran to meet him. We cannot " run," (as the Psalmist in h certain

■ 1' '.lares) till God has "set our Ih-arts at lilnTty :"i ;//) BOW let and bin I

else, in running the rare that i- set before as. W< God,- -the heavenly

1 us finds os: running to meel as, while we ar< real way off!* 1

\\ ben Chkisi bo falls upon the neck of the returning Penitent, Be removes th<
from the weary and heavy-laden, the yoke of slavery, — and instead then
there His own light Burden, and easy Soke. For this, He ini itee all men 1 1 "
unto Him. '

21 And the Son said unto him, Father, I have sinned against

Heaven, and in thy sight, and am no more worthy to be called thy Son.

The Father doee not give him time to say the res! of what be intended to
rses L8, L9. He would have almost spared him the pain of Confession alto-
gether, — for he has already embraced; and, in act, has forgiven him. Observe how
be procee Is to heap blessing npon blessing: — •

22 But the Father said to his Servants, Bring forth t 1 robe,
and pnt it on him; and put a ring on his hand, and shoes on his feet :

"The beet robe" was the robe of honour, and the special property of the •
Bon : Bee Genesis zxvii. 15. The ring was a mark of dignity, — a badge of rank, as
well as an ornament: as may be inferred from Genesis uxviii. L8: all. 42: and St.
James Li. 2. Lastly, & wore "ehoes on his feet," who was invited to •■draw i
— not to a terrific presence, as in Exodus iii. 5, and Joshua v. 1"> ; but to the tender
embrace of a most loving Father.

B . have to look for some for loftier meaning than this: for the merciful

Cbj ltor, and the repenting Creature, are here Bpoken of. Whether we shall .-uc-
ni finding what we perceive that we must search aJ ther question.

plies not directly to the Son, (for our prayers are not answer* d by
m Heaven;] but He addresses Uia answer "to Hi- Servant
I enly, or those earthly minister! I His, "that do His pleasure," and "fulfill
His commandment, and hearken unto the voice of His words."(o) "Theb t\ i
then, may denob Hoh Baptism, for which Repentance is the fitting preparation j —

"for," in the Apostle a words, "as many as nave l o baptised into Christ, have

- < Ihru i '. (jp) It is thai recovered robe of innocence, which, when Adam Lost,
knew that lie was nakrd.'Xv) Compare 2 Cor. \. 3; Rev. iii. 17. 18,

and w i. 1 5.

But the meaning of the Ring and the Shoes, is less clear: and it is '■■ tter I

noranoe than to venture on merely fanoiful and unfounded conjecture. S me
have thought that the Ring is a badge of that union with Christ, which

Church, (which is the Spouse of Christ,) should carry.
pare the langus 2 Cor. >.i. 2; Eph. \. 32; Rev. nm. 2, &c. See also, II oa

ii. L9, 20.) And it i- easj to eonneel the notion of Shoes, with that Christian walk
which directs attention bo constantly to the fed of the believer
the path of lif< n [uiring"s Light," end "a Lantern :"(0 being "shod

with the preparation of the Gospel: [it) and the Like. But of such things, we can
... conjectural!} , hex oontine

and bring hither the fatted calf, and kill it ; and let us eat, and
he merry :

(..) St. Mutt. .v. ( ■■) Psalm eilL

(7) (Jen. iii. 7.
{,) < I In tin- margin: l I

(•) I'-iilm EVi. 11 | <- «ini>iir< I x-cvii. 11; I'

1 ■: ■

XV.] ON ST. luke's gospel. 537

This can be none other than the heavenly banquet of His Body, — whoso Sacrifice
is set forth throughout the whole of the Bible : — the pledge of the reconciliation of
us Gentiles to an offended God. That banquet is now celebrated throughout the
whole World, — feeds the whole House, — and fills the hearts of all with joy and
gladness.

24 for this my Son was dead, and is alive again ; he was lost, and is
found. And they began to be merry.

He who lives in sin, is dead in God's sight, even while he liveth. See Eph. ii.
1 ; 1 Timothy v. 6 ; 1 St. John iii. 14 ; and compare with the phrase, — " he was
lost and is found," St. Peter's words, — " Ye were as sheep gone astray, but are now
returned unto the Shepherd and Bishop of your souls :" by which, the first and last
of these Parables are connected together. See 1 St. Pet. ii. 25.

25 Now his elder Son was in the field : and as he came and drew
nigh to the house, he heard music and dancing.

Here begins the second part of the Parable, — by which the history is carried on
beyond the point which was reached in the two former Parables. (a;) The elder
Brother now appears ; just in time to witness the merriment and rejoicing which,
in each of the three Parables, obtains such prominent notice.

As before, (see verses 7 and 10,) Angels are the harpers; and the Christian
Church swells their Songs of Triumph with her own Hymns of Praise.

26, 27, 28 And he called one of the servants, and asked what these
things meant. And he said unto him, Thy Brother is come ; and thy
Father hath killed the fatted calf, because he hath received him safe
and sound. And he was angry, and would not go in.

Even as the Pharisees and Scribes, in ver. 2, " murmured, saying, This man re-
ceiveth sinners, and eateth with them." As their Father, also, (although they knew
Him not,) had come out, and was even now intreating them. It is the same to this
day. The Jew is still standing without, and " will not come in."

But to return from the national, to the individual interpretation of the Parable,
— we have here represented to us the envious displeasure of the wicked, at every
advance in holiness on the part of the just. For the world does not, by any means,
rejoice at the sight of goodness in others : rather the reverse.

Therefore came his Father out, and intreated him.

It has been thought that this indicates what will take place hereafter, when "the
fullness of the Gentiles" shall have come in; that so, " all Israel may be saved."(y)

29 And he answering said to Ms Father, Lo, these many years do I
serve thee, neither transgressed I at any time thy commandment :

This boastful speech is an apt exhibition of the remonstrance of the Scribes and
Pharisees, already alluded to. They were the elder Brother. In ver. 2, they had,
in effect, been saying of themselves the very thing which is here attributed to the
self-righteous man, in the Parable. Our Lord Himself, certainly, gave them a very
different character. See St. Matthew xxiii. 13, and what follows, especially
verse 33.

and yet thou never gavest me a kid, that I might make merry with
my friends :

There is a double emphasis at the end of this verse : " Thou never gavest me,"
so much as " a kid." Which may perhaps mean, that no effectual deliverance had
been wrought for the Jewish people ; — whereas the return of the Gentiles had been
celebrated, as well as effected, by the sacrifice of the greatest Victim of all.

The elder Brother will not see that he is invited to be a partaker of the same
banquet. He contemplates a scene of merriment, apart " with his friends." And

(*) See the end of the note on St. Matth. xxii. 10. (y) Romans xi. 25, 26.

538 A PLAIN COMMKNTABY ['HAP.

fatted Calf," — the great Victim which hi
promised, — has been killed I .... II' proceeds,

30 hut a> scnii ;is this fchj Bon was come, which hath devoured thy
living with harlots, tlmu hast killed for him the fatted calf.

cedly he, who in the former yen ated bis own <

in the present verse magnifies the offence of hit B Compare what is

here >ai'l with what was Btated in verse 13.

"As boos a- tlii- thy Son"(I) he lays, "was . And why not

■

Bl And he said unto him, Son, thou art ever with me, and all that
I have is thine.

The Father, who received back the younger Son without reproach* - now

to rebuke His elder Son; far less does Be charge him with untruth, — reminding
him, as He might have done, of oountless act.- of unfaithfulness ami disobedii
!!• pi oeeds calmly,—

32 It was meet that we should make merry, and he glad : for this
thy Brother was dead, and is alive again : and was lost, and is found.

It was tl ne thought which filled the Father's heart. See ver. 24

\ tice bere the delicacy of the implied reproof. "This thy Son," had been the
language of the elder Brother, in ver. 30, Bui the Father, entreating with him,
Baj a not, " For this my Son was dead and is ali\ e again ; but, — " ThU thy B

reminding him, thereby, of the claim which the ] r Prodigal bad upon him.

The frequent preference given to the younger Son over the elder, in Hoh Scrip-
•had prepared men'e minds for thai great national dispensation, which, in
the preeenl Parable also, is traced prophetically: namely, the ultimate acceptance
of the Gentiles. Even where no marked oontrasl is established, or prefi

d, — as when God said, "I loved Jacob, and I hated Esau,"(s) — the place of
and again assigned to the younger Son. Seth, Shem, Peleg, Abra-
ham: then Jacob, who has been already noticed: Joseph and Ephraim: Judah
and Pbarez :(a) Moses and David, — are all examples prefiguring what was to happen
1 Judges vi. 15, and 1 Samui 1 ix. 21.

Three Parabli nearly of on tendency, delivered in succession, call for

•i. Each Bets forth the concern of Almighty God for every individual bouI.
We are reminded, in all three, that ii is not Hie will that any Bhould perish,
they correspond in noticing ; Heavenly rejoicing which at!
ry.
<»n the other hand, they exhibit Borne points of contrast. Tic first Parable <lc-
of "in' who has simply gone astray, ami wandered from the Fold:
the second, (Aatofonewho ha- I. ecu lot through neglect: the lost audio
history of a wilfully disobedient man. Ami the methods adopted for t ;
. of each, are found t" differ likewise. No pains are Bpared for t!
of the lift, uh,, i, followed after, until he i> found For tin
ond, a patient heart ami a vigilant eye are alone required. But tic Last is

ii- of the I r, urging him to return. In

tlii- i p towards reconciliation must bo taken by the offender,

ery of one in " hundred, — of one in /■ n, and of th>- other
intended to repress all curious inquiries into o Bubject with which we have
ncern : namely, the spiritual condition of <

and whether few persons, or many, stand in need of the >
on of. < »n i- Savioua's words on a recent occasion, when He sought
t" 'li inprofitable speculations of a similar itrictly applies

this place: "J ihall all likewise perish."

The following remarks, 1 md thoughtful man, are I ind beau-

tiful to be omitt trikingly shown in tin

(■) .Mai. i. 2. 1} goofed B "iii i.\ II (<■) Ccn. ixxvi.

XVI.] ON ST. LUKE'S GOSPEL. 539

ive Parables. " There is nothing more worthy of observation" (he says) " than
the way in which the natural habits and affections of men are used in Scripture, to
illustrate the dealings and dispositions of the Invisible God ; nor can anything be
imagined more likely to bring the Truth and Love of God home to our hearts, than
when we are thus made to feel an image of it in ourselves. It is to be observed,
however, that the habits and affections of mankind, thus taken and made use of,
are purely natural, — as God made and willed them ; and no ways connected with
the degeneracy of the sinful state. We may then feel the justness of their use in
this way, to make known to us the things of God. For God not only made man
upright, but He made him in His own image : and if so, then in the Human Na-
ture, (that is, our own,) we may see as in a glass the truth of God's. For an image
is but the resemblance of something original, which only is the reality, the sub-
stance, — of which the other is a shadow. We may understand, moreover, that
there is in the Creature a natural capacity and fitness, given it no doubt by its
Creator from the first, for setting forth His own Love, and Goodness, and Glory.
For otherwise, how could the Son of God have taken upon Himself the form, — and
been made in the likeness, — of Man?"(6)

CHAPTER XVI.

1 The Parable of ilie Unjust Steward. 14 Christ reproveth the hypocrisy of tJie
covetous Pharisees. 19 The rich glutton, and Lazarus the beggar.

The Parables of our Saviour here succeed each other with marvellous rapidity.
We met with three, in the former chapter. In the present, two more are recorded.
The parable of "the Unjust Steward," which comes first, is certainly one of the
most difficult of our Lord's parables ; partly, because after bringing forward, and
stating in detail, a case of great dishonesty, the Divine Speaker not only withholds
His censure, but even seems to dismiss it with words of commendation : partly also,
because of the doctrinal application of the Parable, which is certainly far from ob-
vious. Much of this difficulty will be found to disappear, on a careful study of the
narrative : but there will remain much to make us thoughtful ; and to impress us
with the strangeness, even in its minutest details, of a Revelation which comes from
God.

The three last Parables were addressed to the Pharisees and Scribes. Not so the
Parable of "the Unjust Steward," — though the Pharisees are found still standing
by. It was spoken to the Disciples : —

1 And He said also unto His Disciples, There was a certain rich
Man, which had a Steward; and the same was accused unto Him that he
had wasted His goods.

So far, all seems plain. The "Rich Man" is God; the "Steward" is one of
ourselves : and this reveals to us one very important relation in which we all stand
towards our Maker, namely, that of stewards, — stewards of the opportunities with

(I) From a MS. Sermon by the Rev. W. J. Palmer.

540 A H.AIN (m.MM i:\TA KV [CHAP.

which Hia Providence hath entrusted us. Now, "ii ia required in stewarda ,:
man be (o\indfaWiful."(a) Elsewhere, we are taught to regard ourselves at Tra-
but in either case, our opportunities an ll ids;" the ownerehip rests,

with /A.". nut us; :in«l terrible ia the responsibility of those who "wa*A His

a Is." • there ia one that ever aocuseth as unto Sim, — even Satan, who

from that very circumstance is called the .1 a.(6)

2 Ami Be called him, and Baid onto him, How is it that I hear this
of thee? give an account of thy stewardship; for thou mayest be no
er Steward.

\ id Gon calls as in many waj b : by afflictions, by illness, by the signs of decay
in ourselves or others, by the Bighl of Death. Whatever sneaks to as of departure,
and of Judgment to come, is a call from (Son. Of course, the actual requirement to
give up our stewardship, comes with the Day of our Departure, — when Gon will
call u- bo our (I rent Account. I '»i it it is plain that Death itself ia not what ia rei
to in the Parable, but rather a warning that Death is at band : else would the
Steward ha\ e found it impossible to act as he acted : and it ia clearly unfair to press
the Parable, so as to make it- details applicable to what may take place apon a
death-bed.

3, 4 Then the Steward said within himself, What shall I do? for my
Lord takcth away from me the stewardship : 1 cannot dig; to hen I mn
ashamed. 1 am resolved what to do, that, when I am put out of the
stewardship, they may receive me into their houses.

Hitherto, he who reads the Parable readily admits that under the names of "a
certain Rich man," and "a Steward," he is bearing about Gon and Man. The
transactions which follow, beginning with the last words in ver. I, Beem to Bhow
that this i- a mistake: that we arc, in fart, bearing of a purely human transa
the conduct of a shrewd, hut wholly unprincipled Bervant with respect to a confiding
employer. And yet, our L alls our original conviction. Indeed

it proves that it was correct. The difficulty consists, (as we at mice discover,) in
deciding on the extent to which the details of the Parable are capable of being ap-
I to oursel 1
r, the Steward's perplexity we can readily apply and explain. II*- ba
'Ii of hi- own, ■(" I cannot dig:") he is ashamed to Bees; help of his fellows,
— (•• t" beg I am ashamed.") Neither from within nor from without does he lind
security. Be resolves on a proceeding therefore, which, when he becomes I
Less, may prove the means of providing him with a refuge.

5, <>, 7 So lie called every one of his Lord's debtors unto Mm, and
said onto the first, How much owest thou onto my Lord? Ajidhesaid,
An hundred measures of oil. And he said unto him, Take thy bill, and
sit down quickly, and write fifty. Then said he to another. And how
much OWesI thou? Ami he Said, An hundred measures of wheat. And

I id unto him, Take thy bill, and write fourscore.

1 ■ lord of the Steward had evidently great possessions, -oliveyarda and bai
fields, -which were farmed by tenants, on oondition of t!mir paying him a
rtion of the produce. One of these tenants bad yet a hundred measure
I in : another, still owed hi lord as many measures of wheat The Steward
bids them both " (for no time must be lost, them back

their "bill," (the written acknowledgment of their respeoth e debte,)— end >>i'l> them
alter the amount to a Ear less mum.

\ml the lord commended the unjusi Steward, bt cause he had dune
wisely: for the ohildren of this world are in their generation wiser than
the children of Light.

'•Tit,: Lord,"— namely , 0/ ti ■'. \ • L erve. This is often

L 10.

XVI.]

ON ST. LUKE'S gospel. 541

overlooked, but is much, to be noted. Our Lord does not commend the servant ;
nay, He calls him " unjust." But the man's master, on hearing the history of what
he had done, praised him for his shrewdness, — commended the prudence he had
shown in providing for his own temporal interest. The Steward had, in fact, so
availed himself of his position, — so improved his remaining opportunities, — that
though displaced from his office and driven from his home, he found himself pro-
vided at once with a place of refuge, and with friends.

Next, let our Lord's comment on what precedes, be carefully noted. He has told
us nothing about the Steward, — except that he was " unjust." Concerning the
entire transaction, however, He has this remarkable observation, — that "the children
of this world are in their generation wiser than the children of Light."

Let it be observed, therefore, that these words supply the true clue to the Para-
ble ; and that it is at our peril that we seek to draw our Saviour's words aside from
their declared intention, in order to elicit from them teaching which they were never
meant to convey. He is discoursing of the Use and Abuse of Riches, — or, (as He
calls them in the next verse,) "the Mammon of Unrighteousness:" and He has
shown how a man of shrewd foresight would act with respect to the unrighteous
Mammon, in the prospect of dismissal from his stewardship. That he would act
unrighteously, was to be expected. He was an unrighteous man, — one who had
wasted his lord's goods. But the man's character is not the question. He acted
'providently, — and that was all. As in the Parable of " the Unjust Judge," so here,
our attention is invited to a single circumstance. Since here, the Steward, — as
there, the Judge, — is "unjust," the argument may be considered to stand in this
case, somewhat as in the other: — " See how the unjust Steward acted, in order to
secure for himself mere temporal comfort. And shall not the children of Light dis-
play the same anxiety to provide for themselves an eternal home?"(c) Our Lord's
declaration, in the verse before us, is in fact little else than this question, thrown
into a different shape. The Prudence displayed by worldly persons, so far sur-
passing that of many Christian men, — is the thing we are called upon to notice ;
and a striking thing it certainly is. — Our Lord proceeds.

9 And I say unto you, Make to yourselves friends of the mammon of
unrighteousness ; that when ye fail, they may receive you into ever-
lasting habitations.

On this, it may be observed first, that "when ye fail," means nothing else than
"when ye die:" but it is an uncommon, as well as a very beautiful expression, im-
plying a peaceful and happy end,(cZ) like that of Abraham, and Isaac, and Jacob :(e)
— a mere " failing" in respect of bodily strength, and passing out of this visible
world. "Whosoever liveth and believeth in Me," (saith our Saviour,) "shall never
die."(f) But the next words present graver difficulty, and more require explanation.

" Mammon," though a word of foreign origin, was a familiar term, in the lan-
guage of the ancient Jews, for " riches." On our Lord's lips, therefore, it denotes
worldly wealth generally. (g) And because the goods of this world are so often
obtained by unfair, unholy means, — so often expended in a selfish, unholy manner,
— He here calls Riches " the Mammon of unrighteousness," or " the unrighteous
Mammon."(7i) " They are so frequently and so generally misused," (says a good
man,) " as from that to have acquired a name."(?) But it is of Money, nevertheless,
unrighteous though it be, that our Lord here bids us " make to ourselves friends ;"
and the mysterious reason is added, — "that when ye fail, they may receive you into
everlasting habitations :" — concerning which striking mode of expression the reader
is referred to the note on St. Luke xii. 20. This counsel, in fact, it is, which is so
pregnant with difficulty ; for we are actually required to do something with respect
to money which, in its result, shall so resemble the proceeding of "the unjust
steward," " that, when we are put out of the stewardship, they may receive us,—
not indeed into their houses, but, — into everlasting habitations. "(&)

It is useless therefore to overlook this difficulty. It might be truly remarked, for
example, that since our Lord's debtors are sinful men, and their debts, sins ; he who

(e) See the ancient Greek version of Gen. xxv. 8: xxxv. 29: xlix. 33, — where we render the
word "give up the ghost."

(/) St. John xi. 26. (g) Compare St. Matth. vi. 24.

(h) See below, ver. 11. (i) Rev. TV. J. Palmer. (&) Compare ver. 4.

542 A li.UX OOKMSHTABY [CHAP.

turn- the tinner from the error of his way, causes bin who in realii hun-

dred t" write fifty or fourscore,— and makes i'^r himself friends who will I ■■
I rful intercessors for him with Goo. B it then, how is 1 1 i i — "a making friends
with the mammon of unrighteou ' Our busini srtainwhat

tlii- iiif:iii-. and how this is to be <l"in-.

inferenee from our Loan's words, then, is unavoidable. I bis | -
exercise the stewardship of our opportunities, — o to conduct ourseh es in the man-
mt of our wraith.— that the great Work of our Salvation, (so far as it is
lit .lit with fear and trembling by i arse] irarded thereby.

i osider this matter for himself, and apply to hi- own particular

the principles by our Lord here so emphatically Laid down. By Faith, dou
are men - wed; not by Works: yet is Faith, if it bath not Works, de i ither

it is ii"/ Faith. " What doth it profit, my brethren, though a man say he hath I
and have not Works 1 Can Faith Bave him?"(o) "Faith which worketh \>y

I - what < Ion requires : and doubtless great -i_ r n- of Love towards man may
he displayed by the distribution we make of our worldly wealth. " Now, we bare

me means become rory jealous of Buch statements, and very unwiUing to admit
that any reward hereafter is promised to good works and alms-deeds ; but we '-an in it
shut our eyes to the fact that such promisee are made in Holy Scripture ; and it i.s
not our business to Bet them aside, but to interpret them rightly."(g)

Can we then <1" exactly as the Steward did in the Parable? Certainly not : and
it ii obvious that if. by any Btrictly similar proceeding, we could Becure to ourt
the good-will of any order of beings in the great and terrible Day, it would be a
erimr to '1" so. It may be thought, in fact, that the analogy fails altogether in this
respect ; Bince it -will be the holy Angels who will receive the just into ever!
habitations, (r)

And yet, — (for the sayings of Christ may Dot be disposed of as if they wen
mon sayings, of which we are sure that we understand entirely the meaning,) —
what it' it Bhould piw e that "friends" is the word to 1"' Bupplied before — " 1 1

and what it' it were our Lord's actual intention in this place to Bet
the rich tl warning that they will be themselves hereafter welcomed to

the bow era of Bliss by those \ ery persona whom their bounty had in life sustained,
— the poor of this world, rich in Faith, whom He expressly describes as the heirs
of the Kingdom? "Make friends of the poor," (the meaning will therefore be,)
"by ministering to their wants; for to them belong those everlasting tabernacles
into which thou wilt hereafter desire t<> be thyself admitted." It must be all
that tl P ble of Lazarus, which < [t, strongly supports this view. Or,

'• if we were t<> interpret these by other words of our Lord, we might Bay that Bince
raciously considers what is done for Hi- poor as done for Himself, •) we are
making Him our Friend when we devote our means to their relief; and that B
will receive as into everlasting habitations." (f)

ugh has perhaps now been offered concerning this very difficult Parable.
v. is most dark, we must be content to leave bo. The suggestions already of-
fered concerning what i- doubtful, we forbear to press. [( remains that we hold
fast the great lesson which the Parable was meant to convey,— and clearly appre-
hend its ' point. The steward was wondrous prudent in his conduct, < 1 i - -
filai ii amount of worldly wisdom. How is it that Christian men 'Ii-;
itti<' ot that better wisdom wbicn they have been taught in the Sclnnii of Ch

. it w.i- in respect of the unrighteous Mammon that he showed hi- wisdom.

II it happen that we, the Stewards of a Lord dividing to every man

ally as He will,(u) whence i- it that »•< overlook the similar reeoJt with which that
same unrighteous Mammon may also be dip.pi urselves: namely, so, that

when " flesh and heart failetb,"(x) we may be received into an everlasting hon |
The strai the history adduced by our Blessed Lord, in order to estab-

lish thi- Ii --■ m, wofl freely admitted at the outset. In taking leave of it. the pious
it, r well deserves attention; namely, that it may :

(/) Willi; i'liil. ii. 12. (") B 17.

1 1. t /' i

Miitth. riii.
r») St. M.'ittli. \\\. I". tt.

( II ) 1 ' I • ' \ \

(y) Comidor tbi . Matthew vi. 19 to 21 : six. 2L Bt Laki

XVI.]

on st. luke's gospel. 543

object of the narrative, (which, like the next, has been supposed to be a true histo-
ry,) " to show that all the occurrences 6f the world, however bad and unworthy in
themselves, yet should minister to the spiritual edification and wisdom of God's
children ; that whatever language they may speak to others, they contain within
them another better language which they speak to these. . . . Here was an instance
of great iniquity, crowned with success, and admired by the world for its wisdom ;
and which might, therefore, have been supposed to serve as a stumbling-block to
the good : yet, on the contrary, it comes forth with the greater force and beauty as
bearing witness to the transient nature of things below, and of eternal habitations
with God. There is a peculiar sweetness and power in such teaching. It seems to
show the world as God's world : all things as working for good to His elect. It
corrects the error of looking upon the things of the world in any way as apart
from God ; as if, because iniquity abounded, it were not His world. Thus Love
itself is instructed, and need not was cold, nor be stifled, but burn the brighter ;
while the very evils of the world are made to minister to the divine flame of Cha-
rity, and the wisdom of the just."(z)

Our Saviour proceeds " to lay down a rule upon which God's judgment will be
justified in withholding the enjoyment of the greater good in Heaven from those
who have not used aright the things entrusted to them on Earth :"(«) —

10 He that is faithful in that which is least, is faithful also in much:
and he that is unjust in the least is unjust also in much.

"Which is as much as if He had said, — The use which men make of the goods
of this present world, which are comparatively of small value, shows the use they
would make of such as are far greater, were the same committed to them, and
which belong to the children of God in Heaven. If they have used these aright, so
would they use those ; and if they have abused these, they would abuse those like-
wise. Faithfulness and Injustice are properly applied to the use and abuse of
things not our own, but committed to us for the honour and purposes of the owner.
For to apply them to our own uses and purposes, and not His, would be a breach
of trust, and therefore unfaithful and unjust in a very high degree."(6)

This, then, supplies the answer to any doubt which may arise concerning the
dignity of the little concerns of daily life. The Saints of God will hereafter "judge
Angels."(c) Can then the petty concerns of an earthly stewardship be worthy of
their attention ? " It is in these small matters that the fidelity is to be proved
which shall be found meet to inherit eternal treasures ; in these shadows of good is
to be shown worthiness for the Divine realities." (d) Hence it follows, —

11 If therefore ye have not been faithful in the unrighteous mammon,
who will commit to your trust the true riches ?

" Assuredly, no wise person will ; and therefore neither in this case will God
commit to your power the riches of the world to come.

" But," proceeds the pious man just now mentioned at the foot of the page, "the
very nature of the possession of present and future good is different. The present
is not our own: the future, by God's gift, will be. The present belongs to another:
it is only committed in trust to those who enjoy it for a season. To God and
Christ present things belong : to us, they are only committed in trust, being lent ;
graciously lent, that by them we may work out an inestimable reward. If we have
not been faithful in these, — if we have not done the works for the doing of which
they were entrusted to our care, and concerning which we know that we shall have
to render an account, — never must we expect to be put in possession of those better
things, which at a future day, and if we have used these aright, we may hope to
call our own." As it follows:

12 And if ye have not been faithful in that which is another man's,
who shall give you that which is your own ?

(z) Williams. («) Rev. TV. J. Palmer.

[b) From a Sermon by the Rev. "VV. J. Palmer, — late Rector of Mixbury and Finmere: a
man of truly primitive piety and exemplary goodness ; who gave in the account of a most
blessed stewardship, on the 28th September, 1853.

544 A TLA IX OOMMBNTARI [('HAP.

r own,"- ■' will be required concerning them; and in

them our will, will ! G The for f the argument is cli

the appn bi i sion of 1 1 • • • ~ * - who bear in mind what i- revealed ox the conditions of

shall be 'all in all.'f') and where we shall
Kin.'- and Prii I ; »d and the Pathih of our Loan?'

and faithful man, bat lately gone to bis reward. Lei u not fail

jrular light thrown by the pr> lin^ words of Scripture on the life

; xning which bo little' h:i* been revealed, that every fresh communi-

ibject from the lips of Christ Himself is unspeakably precious.
• i of the future Life, — the bliss which will Bpringout oi tl •

tion and the perfect] f human tii Si Paul distinctly noticet

promotion t i a loftier trust and a more splendid stewardship is further declared by
our Saviocb in other places of the Gospel besides the present. (A) And we may

not fail to observe that, on more than on casion, a difference in ( of the

Tenure is proclaimed. No longer Service, but Rule,(i) — no longer anotfa

1 hi t our own, — will occupy as many as ar I with the blessed salutation, —

•■ Well '1 good and faithful servant!"

1- uly remains to notice the sayings with which our Savioob takes leave <>f the
Bubject

13 No Bervant can serve two masters: for either lie will hate the
one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and de
the other. Ye cannot Berve God and Mammon.

"Mammon," in this place, denotes the pleasures of this life generally ; b»
money is 1 1 1 « • means of procuring them. And the intention of these words seem to

convey to our Loan's hearers a Bolemn warning against any attempt to

a compromise between the sen ice of ' Ion and the Ben ice of the World : that i-. to

re the impossibility of doing Goo's pleasure here, am! our own pleasure after

tic flesh, at tin- viiip- time. In tin- Sermon on tin- Mount we have met with this

saying already ;(k) but take notice that, instead of "no man can &erve t\\" ma--

bere,) it i- here, int," — in allusion to the Steward in the parable

Which ;_ r "e- he!

1 \ And the Pharisees; also, v. ho were covetous, heard all these things:
and they dn-ided Him.

They perceived that the Parable of "the Unj Si ird" was directed against

Judas.Q) The Pharisees were themselves largely infected by the same

\ sordingly, ties Beek i<> turn into derision what the Holv tine ha- spoken.

L5 And He said unto them, Ye are they which justify yourselves
before men; bnt <'"i> knoweth your hearts: for that which is highly
esteemed among men is an abomination in the sight of God.

These last lew words seem t<> contain an awful foretaste of the parable which is

»w : — if that may he called a parable which ha- every appearam

a trin- history. Our I meaning is probably very well represented by the

-imi "highly esteemed;" hut what lie actually said, was— "that which is

lofty." lie was addressing a dominant sect among the Jews, notorious for nothing

-.> much a- for their ambition, self-righteousness, ami vain-glorious prid< I

who fenced themselves within the sanctions of the Law, — oi which they maj have

• to imply that our Savioub was an author ar. Be ti^erefore informs

them that,

l'i Tl i Law and the Prophets were until .T<>hn: Bince that time, the
Kingdom of <i"i> ia preached, and every man presseth into it.

'her words, the entire fabric of the haw bad a' ted it- put

the predictions of the Prophets, ha\ ing now found fulfillment, both " the Law ami the

< /•) Rer. i. 1 lTh«

tiz. 17, 19. (( ' .17.

(t) St. Muiili. tI. 24, whm (/) - " dv. 15.

. xxiii. (the wholi -t. Luke .\

XVI.]

on st. luke's gospel. 545

Prophets" belonged in a manner to the past. " The preaching of John," as it
was the birthday of the Gospel, (n) so -was it also the day of departure for the Law
and the Prophets, (o) " Thenceforward, the good tidings of God's Kingdom are
proclaimed ; and every one forceth his way in ;" that is, the Kingdom is being
taken by violence, like Canaan of old, from you its ancient possessors, — who " dwell
careless, after the manner of the Zidonians."(p)

Not that the Law had indeed failed by the bringing in of the Gospel. Its deeper
meanings had but thereby been discovered, and its true intention seen. Hence,
the words which follow :

17 And it is easier for Heaven and Earth to pass, than one tittle of
the Law to fail.

Christ therefore was not about to destroy the Law. He came not to destroy but
to fulfill, — and to convict them of their wickedness in making that Law of none
effect by their lax interpretation of it. Adverting to their wicked teaching on the
subject of divorce, He proceeds to give one instance of the inviolability of the Law :
saying,—

18 Whosoever putteth away his wife, and marrieth another, com-
mitteth adultery : and whosoever marrieth her that is put away from
her husband committeth adultery.

Full of instruction it surely is to find the sanctity of Marriage, and the indisso-
luble nature of the Marriage bond, so often insisted upon by our Saviour ; and
here, singled out of the whole Law, to be a sample of it. Consider St. Matthew v.
31, 32 : also xix. 9, and the notes on both places. The Keader is also requested to
read what has been offered on St. Matthew xix. 10. He is further requested to
take notice that the four verses we have just been considering are but costly sam-
ples of our Lord's teaching on this occasion, — precious fragments of a long, and
lost, Discourse.

Hitherto, our Saviour " has been showing how by a certain right use, Riches
may be made available even to our being received into everlasting Happiness when
we die. In what follows, He inverts the picture : showing the loss of one who uses
the good things with which his life may have been blessed, upon himself alone, —
namely, in advancing his state and condition in the world, serving in various ways
his own ease, pleasure, and gratification."^) The Parable of Lazarus is in fact a
most astonishing Revelation. Whereas all the other parables of our Lord, refer
either to the Life present or to the Life to come, this parable refers to that mysteri-
ous Life which lies between the two. It follows the soul of man beyond the limits
of the Grave, uncovers the unseen World, and tells us many things concerning that
hereafter concerning which we cannot but feel such deep and awful interest. The
constant belief of the Church that what follows is a true history, adds to the sense
of wonder with which we read it.

19, 20 There was a certain rich man, which was clothed in purple
and fine linen, and fared sumptuously every day: and there was a
certain beggar named Lazarus,

The name of the " certain rich man" is not mentioned ; but the beggar bore the
name of our Saviour's friend,(V) — and that, for a mysterious reason which will be
found suggested below, in the note on ver. 31. It is the only proper name which
occur's in any of our Lord's parables. " Does He not seem to have been quoting,"
(asks Augustine,) "from that book where He found the name of the poor man
written, but where the name of the rich man was blotted out V'(s)

What is said concerning these two persons must be carefully noticed. No sins
are laid to the rich man's charge. It is only related of him that his outer and his
inner garments were habitually of the most costly and luxurious kind ; and that he
"fared sumptuously," — (literally, "feasted(^) splendidly") — "every day." From

(») Acts i. 22. (o) See the note on St. Matth. xvii. 8.

(p) Judges xviii. 7, — quoted by Williams. (q) Rev. W. J. Palmer.

(r) St. John xi. 5. («) Consider Exod. xxxiii. 12 : also the note on St. Luke x. 28.

(t) See the note on St. Luke xii. 19, — where the same word is found.

546 A PLAIN O'MMLNTAKY [CHAP.

thi* last circumstance, he Lb styled in the beading of the Chapter(u) "the rich : /lut-
Um :" and without pretending to defend Bach u interpretation of our Lord's i

ki ret remark that the man is a glutton whose fare is Bumptuou \y (x)

A- the rioh man is charged with do Bingle crime, -■• neither d
obtain a word of praise. It is simply said that, — i far from sharing the luxurious
:' the rich man,— he \\a- I

•_'1 which was laid at his gate full of sores, and desiring to b<
with the crumbs which fell from the rich man's talk' : moreover the
came ami licked his em

ds, few indeed ; yet conspiring to exhibil The

picture "f tin- dogs approaching t" li>-k tin- : is Barely more than

affecting — on the Dps of Buch a Speaker! ] . however, that it i- not im-

plied that tin- beggar was habitually laid at the rich m I

that "H ;i certain occasion hi' "had been Laid" there. On the other hand, it
Beem t" be implied that he wished, but wished in ruin, t-i be fed with the crumbs
which fell from the other's table; ami farther, that his bodily ailments were as
little regarded as hi- bodily needs. The poor Bufferer, it may be, ha\ ing been
Laid near the rich man's threshold, remained then' till be died; haying had the

of his own misery heightened by tin 1 Bight of the other's enjoyment, —
Belfish hardness of heart was also thus left without ei

22 And it came to pass, that the beggar died, and -was carried by
the Angels into Abraham's bosom:

Let u- notice, one by one, the several points which an> here revealed to as ©on?
corning the Btate of the soul after death : and tir-t, the statement that the bouIs of
the just are "carried by the Angels into Abraham's bosom," — that i-. into the
place where Abraham is ; a region of Peace and Joy, where, (as it i- Baid in ut.
Z5) the souls of the just are "comforted." The beggar died; and oh, b :
change! Be who knew no friend on earth, finds that "the Gk>n"(y)are

appointed to minister to his bliss. Festorday, dogs Licked his I ly, — "not

one An lt'-I carries him, but many ; for many are eager to bear:"(z-) "each rejoicing
ich such a burthen."(o) "Are they not all ministering Spirit-, sent forth to
minister for them who shall be heirs of Salvation ?"(o) lr tol

the rich man also died, and was buried;

the contrast. After a time, "the rich mai
Nothing more is related. Sis end was marked by a splendid funeral, and that was
all. (Weeping friends, of whom the rich man was unconscious, — in-mad "t" rejoio-
Lngels, whose embracing arm- the beggar felt!) ^ arus was buried

it in. t we are nut told; neither '1" we '-are to inquire \n<l all this

down for the comfort of the poor, who have but humble funerals. The rich man.
then, was buried ; "but he carried nothing away : his glory did not descend after
him."(') Far from it :

28 ami in Hell he lifted up his eyes, being in torment-, and BCeth

Abraham afar "IV, ami [*asanu in his bosom.

Further, and yel more wondrous disclosures, are here made. v ment,

in the case of the wicked, is found to their final condemnati ertain

l looking for of iudgment,"(d) as the \ '■ * souls are

nU> the chambers of the departed, and they ar< I it not

also implied that they behold the Saint- afar off in bliss '.' It would m so,

from another place of Scripture as \n<'I1 as th<- pn ind, in Buch case, the
remark would be as true as it i- striking, that "as the p i »r man while he Lived, had

his sufferings heightened by beholding th< abondanoi it now add

■

(:) WUlia (.i) Lodol] li L 14.

17. (-/) B

XVI.]

ON ST. LUKE'S GOSPEL. 547

to the torment of the rich man to behold Lazarus in bliss/'C/) But it may be
unsafe to take our Lord's -words concerning this matter quite literally. What is
certain, the regions occupied by the wicked and the just are not only different, but
they are so entirely distinct that there is no longer any possibility of passing from
the one to the other. This is made plainer by the words which follow, in ver. 26.

24 And lie cried and said, Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and
send Lazarus, that he may dip the tip of his finger in water, and cool
my tongue : for I am tormented in this flame.

Truly that was " a great and exceeding bitter cry V\g) The rich man is now the
beggar ; and see how piteously he pleads ! Release, he knows to be impossible :
some relief, he thinks he may obtain. Moreover, he can apprehend no channel of
mercy so obvious as the hands of the very beggar whom in life he had slighted ! Con-
sider this in connection with what was offered above in the note on ver. 9, — fourth
paragraph from the end.

Many of the Fathers observe that " he who had refused crumbs of bread, now
asks for a drop of water:" but, (as a thoughtful writer observes,) " it is more than
this. Lazarus desired to be filled with the crumbs : the rich man prayed for but
one drop of water on the tip of his finger; and that for his tongue only." (A) And
this is a safer remark than the other ; for it is not stated that the rich man refused
crumbs to the beggar.

The suffering wretch addresses himself to Abraham ; and calls him his "Father,"
because, being a Jew, he was himself a son of Abraham :(i) but our Lord's warn-
ing in this matter had been very emphatic, — " Think not to say within yourselves,
We have Abraham to our Father !" (k) .... Moreover the rich man knows that he
is addressing one who was hospitable to strangers ;(l) and surely (he thinks) Abra-
ham will not turn a deaf ear to such a small request from himself! But in this
respect also, he has to be undeceived.

Gregory the Great, in his Commentary on the Book of Job, has a striking remark
on the rich man's complaint that his tongue was the seat of his suffering. "Almost
always," he observes, "is unbridled speech the attendant of banqueting. Hence,
the man who used to ' fare sumptuously every day/ in the end is declared to have
coveted a drop of water to cool his tongue. The punishment is a hint as to what
had been his sin." But the force of this remark would not be diminished if it
should be thought that in respect to gluttony also the rich man had greatly offended.
The narrative, however, is severely brief. Not one of the rich man's sins are re-
corded.

The mention of " eyes," " finger," " tongue," in this place, is, of course, figura-
tive. So we speak of the eyes, the finger, the mouth of God. But it has been well
remarked that " as, in this latter case, there may be some secret reference to the
Incarnation, so there may be, in the former, to the Resurrection of the Body."(m)
To proceed :

25 But Abraham said, Son, remember that thou in thy lifetime re-
ceivedst thy good things, and likewise Lazarus evil things : but now he
is comforted, and thou art tormented.

The discourse of Abraham reminds us of the discourse of Him whose day "Abra-
ham saw, and was glad."(/i) " Woe unto you that are rich," — " that are full," —
"that laugh now;" — "for ye have received your consolation !"(o) Indeed, the
two places should be compared ; for we are thereby guided to a right understand-
ing of the case before us.

It is sometimes pointed out concerning the present parable, not only that the
rich man is not related to have been guilty of any heinous offence, but that he ap-
pears to have gone to the place of torment less for sins of commission, than for sins
of omission ; — that he had failed to do anything in order to serve and please God ; —
and the like.

But we must be very careful as to the inferences we draw from Holy Scripture.

(/) Chrysostom. (</) Gen. xxvii. 34. (J>) Williams.

(i) Consider St. Luke xiii. 16. (it) St. Matth. iii. 9.

(I) Heb. xiii. 2, alluding partly to Gen. xviii. 3. (m) Williams.

(«) St. John viii. 56. (o) St. Luke vi. 24, 25.

548 A I'l.Alx OOMMBNTAM [CHAP.

True indeed it is thai nothing actually sinful is distinctly recorded oonoeroing the.
Rich Man : but then, (as already obsen Bd,) neither i- th( re a syllable spokei
eernii a the way of praise. We most reason backward concerning

them therefore: and since tl newai finally accepted,— the other, miserable, —

their Lives must lmvo I n suoh and such. 'I rtainly was not rewarded

/ had been ) r, any more than the other was punished beam ■ In- was

rich. Of Abraham, with whom the beggar bad his eternal portion, it i- even ex-
pressly recorded that he was "very rich.(p) The reason, therefore, of their respec-
tive fate Lb to i"' sought in smiir unrelated cause : and it is not difficult to
nature thai cause must bare been. Indeed, the rich man's sin is conl

and all but formally stated, in the reproof addre 1 to him by Abraham:

remember that thou," (the word is emphatic,) "didst in thy Lifetime hau • ui" or
" fully take, thy good things." The things Bpokenof were not really good : true.
lint tin' rich man in this parable, (like tin' ri.-h fool, in another,) (pi had made
them his "good" things, all the same. He had Lived for this world only: and had
no treasure, no hope, no concern in the world to come. •• Thou," (says Abraham,)
" t in thy lifetime," — for the rich man had cared for no Life but lltat.

Bui the Beggar had received " evil things" only, all his days: that is, he had
suffered poverty, disease, hunger, abject misery, — all those things which the world
accounts "evil." It is to Ik; supposed further, that ho had hungered and thi I
after heavenly consolation, even more than earthly: had been patient in Buffering;
and become perfected by the discipline of pain. His Loathsome condition will have
bred in him the most abject Bense of his own vileness: whereby it came to
that he found favour with Him who " raiseth up the poor out of the dust, and Lift-
eth up the beggar from the dunghill." (j) How plainly, at all events, are we taught
hereby that such an estate is a favourable condition to futun Blessi Lness; — hut
that the possessor of Riches, on the contrary, because be is in danger of trusting
in his Riches,! r) incurs the further peril ol forgetting hi- Gon I [1 -■ i ms to be the
object of our Lord's discourse to -how the fatal tendency of a Luxurious Life t>

the heart against want and mi-en. : and to set forth, in solemn warning, the con-
trast which may exist between the conditions of men in Time and in Eternity. . . .

aeral tendency of the parable, — Bevere in it- brevity,
and wondrous Bparing, (as the manner of Scripture is,) in its details. •• I
setting forth, in Living representation, of the concluding maxim of the fori

fnrselves friends' of the | r, by the use of r
or here the rich man is shown as having failed to make Lazarus his friend. 'The

Augustine, 'have no habitation here on earth into which tl

ut they have habitations which arc EternaL' "(«) — Abraham oonti

And Ik -ides nil this, between n- and you thore If a great gulf
fixed : bo that they which would pass from hence v> you cannot ; neither
can they pass to as, that would <-<>uh from then*

The gulf is " great," — because it Bunders tho evil from the just, as the West is

l from the East: "fixed,"— because God hath separated <z. 1 from evil by

an everlasting harrim- which can never be disturbed. And thi- Beems a- exp

nt a- an hone ii desire against the doctrine thai after a Beason of

I torial suffering the souls of the departed i insferred from the pli ;

I the pli f rest. L{fe, n i- implied, is the Beason for Repentanoe: —

■ it follows, —

•J7. 28 Then he Baid, 1 pray thee therefore, Father, thai thou would-

end him t'> my father 1 : For I ha?e five brethren; that he

fy onto thnn, lot they also come into this place of I

\\ ■■ ire • ented with another striking disclosure: namely, that in the

Is, not only consciousness remains, but "the recollect
what was done on earth, and of the persons of those with whom the dead formerly
oonversed."(0 "The rich man'-. Knowledge and memory are preserved for his

Eunishment; for he I urns whom he had despised, and he remembered his

rethren whom he had Left."(ti)

|.) ii.n. xiii. 2. (;,) Bm Si. Lnl

ith Si Laki
(•)WiHisms. (i)B i w". J. ] («) Gregory the t

XVI.]

ON ST. LUKE'S GOSPEL. 549

Take notice, that whatever the sins of the rich man may have heen, (and they
were doubtless great,) a kindly disposition seems yet to have been his. Very little
is revealed concerning him; but the anxiety he displays to provide for the safety of
his " five brethren" is an affecting indication of feelings not yet wholly blunted, — a
heart by no means callous to the claims of family and kindred.

It is even better worth our observation, however, that we behold here, as in so
many other places of Scripture, the strivings of fruitless remorse. As the foolish
go in search of oil when it is too late, — as the wicked begin to knock "when once
the Master of the house hath shut to the door," (a;) — as Judas brings back the price
of blood, and seeks to make a miserable restitution, after his Lord had been con-
demned,^) — as Esau, with " a great and exceeding bitter cry," demands of his
father the blessing which he has already forfeited, — so here does the rich man,
when it is too late, begin to think of sending a preacher to those brethren with
whom, in life, he had so often made a mock of Heaven and Hell, — of the unseen
World, — of Religion itself! Unavailing sorrow becomes henceforth part of his
torment ; and probably its most bitter ingredient.

29 Abraham saitli unto him, They have Moses and the prophets ;
let them hear them.

"As if he said, Thy brethren are not so much thy care as His who created
them, and appointed them teachers. "(z) " They have sufficient means of grace af-
forded them : let them act up to their own light."(a)

30 And he said, Nay, father Abraham: but if one went unto them
from the dead, they will repent.

It is ever thus with sinners : they fancy that had they but greater opportunities
they must surely become saints. This man supposed that clearer evidences of reli-
gion would have made of himself and all his brethren, true believers. In the
meanwhile, his perseverance in the argument is no less affecting than it is striking.
But Abraham is unmoved :

31 And he said unto him, If they hear not Moses and the prophets,
neither will they be persuaded, though one rose from the dead.

He does not say that he will not grant the thing asked for ; but that it will be
unavailing. Thus, a Lazarus was actually sent from the dead, at the end of four
days, to the Jewish people ; but without effect. And it may be thought that it was
in order to draw the attention of the nation towards this circumstance, that our
Saviour assigned to the beggar beforehand the name of him whom He would here-
after awake out of sleep.(fr)

" This part of the Parable," writes a good man, — " prophetic as it was of the
continued unbelief of the Jews, who, refusing to hear the law and the testimony of
the Prophets, and to believe the miracles which Jesus our Lord had done before
their eyes, failed to be converted by that greatest miracle of all, His own Resurrec-
tion from the Grave, — teaches us this lesson, — that it is of the very last moment
immediately to set about performing the will of God in such things as it hath been
once revealed: for, by the example of the Jews, we may understand that other-
wise no reason can render intelligible a dispensation which we do not like ; no evi-
dence can persuade us of truths which we are not willing to receive." (c)

This, in truth, is the sum of the matter. There is not, — there never hath been,
— any lack of evidence. A change of heart, not a more impressive teacher, is the
one thing needed. Concerning all impenitent sinners of these latter days, Abra-
ham's words declare thus much: — If the Old and New Testaments, — the Gospel of
Jesus Christ, — the means of Grace by God Himself provided, — Sacraments, and
the services of the Sanctuary, and the teaching o*" the Prayer-Book, — Christ plead-
ing with us, invisibly, by His Holy Spirit, — and the countless helps afforded to
Christian men in a Christian country ; — if all these prove unavailing to produce re-
pentance, and to awaken to a life of holiness, — nothing could achieve that blessed
end ! Men will not repent, — men will not be persuaded, — no, not though one rose
from the Dead !

fa;) St. Luke xiii. 25. (#) St. Matth.'xxvii. 3 to 5. (z) Chrysostom.

(a) Williams. \b) St. John xi. 11, &c. (c) Kev. W. J. Palmer.

A PLAIN OOMMBHTABY [CHAP.

CHAPTER XVII.

1 Christ t

'. 7 //'•/'• m are bound to God, and not II tc it. 11 H
ten lep rt. 22 '{''//,. Kingdom ofQost, and Vie Coming of fh

It is obvi"ti> t" snj, ]...>(> that some interval daj.-fil l.etween the delivery of the
Parable of Lazarus, with which the former chapter ended, and tin 1 discourse which
follows. The first word (" then") has no relation, in this place, to Time.

1, 2, 8 THEN said He unto the Disciples, It is impossible but that of-
fences will come: but woe unto him, through whom they come! It were
better for him that a millstone were hanged about his neck, and he cast
into the sea, than that he should offend one of these little ones. Take
heed to yourselves.

Whether our Lord is here Bpeaking particularly of children in age,(«) or of men
with childlike hearts, (6) does not appear.

v. have already met with these sayings, in St. Matt] ) but the

clauses are there found in a contrary order. Moreover, they were then delivered in
quite a different connection.

B • it will be asked, — What connection have our Saviour's words in this place,

with the words which follow ? And it musl be freely admitted that they do nut

appear, at first sight, t" have any connection at all. The Bame thing may 1 1 I

of verses •'• and I. and of verse 6,— in all of which places, sayings of our Lord arc

; ded which are found more or Lees exactly given in different parts of St. Mat-

1 1 «pel.(d) We are aot, however, on that account at liberty bo assume that

these sayings are Bcraps of those other discoui 1 at random by St Luke,

and here Bet down by him, in utter disregard of Time and Place. And yet, this is

bo frequently assumed by writers of good repute, and the suspicion Likely

; - the mind "Tan ordinary reader, that a few remark- shall here be offered on

i .ill not be out of place, and certainly they are not uncalled for.

i irded as quite oertain, then, that the recorded Discourses of ">ir

B Saviour, are only partially Bet down in the Gospels. Perfect ind I, those

ire, as they stand recorded: (that is, there is aothing in them to oh
away: there has oot been one word set down which it concerns us
not to aor has there been one word withheld which it would concern as t'>

er:)yet have those Discourses been not entirely given. This is obviona The
World itself would oot contain the record of our Lord's actions ;(« i and is it
supposed that Four short Gospels contain more than a sample of His oral Teaching?
I ■ those Divine Discourses have been seldom, \fever, given < nitre, is surely obvi-
ona. This thru will explain why it is often BO ilitlirnlt tO trace the e..ni

■■ sentence and another : and bo detect the nature of every transition. A
link often Beams, doubtli - wanting: so that what must once have been

tifully connected in all it- parts, is often pr< sonted to us in a state which, for
want of a bettor word, wo must term fragmentary.

But we ar. not at Liberty to assume that there never hoi any connection, b»
there does not appear to ot any conn •• The beads arc unstrung. True.

. iii 2, 6.

v. ■ : •• uh. xi Hi. 1."'. 21. With St. Lake xvii. f>, com-

(

XVII.] ON ST. LUKE'S GOSPEL. 551

But it does not follow that nothing ever held them together. And if, (as not seldom
happens,) the fragmentary sayings in question are found to recur in a different part
of another Gospel, it is surely a mark of singular impatience, or uncommon weak-
ness, that the suspicion should be so readily admitted that those sayings were ut-
tered only once ; and that the Evangelists had been putting together, at random,
sayings which were uttered at a different time, and on a widely different occasion.
The jewels may exactly resemble each other, and yet the threads on which they
were once strung may surely be wholly distinct. How much worthier, (as well as
more obvious,) is the belief that those words were more than once delivered ; and
that, put of a long discourse, for some good reason, they alone have been preserved
on this, the second time of their delivery ! In such cases, it will often be useless to
seek to recover the lost links of thought or expression. They are perhaps hopelessly
gone. And the sayings must be studied, (like those in the Book of Proverbs,) each
by itself.

It has, indeed, many times been the reward of Piety and Learning to supply the
wished for clue ; and great is the gratification which results from the discovery that
the members of a discourse which at first seemed unconnected, do, on the contrary,
marvellously cohere. Yet, frequent variety of opinion reminds us that there 'is
seldom any real certainty in such criticism. It is the effort of a human artist to
supply what the Divine Artificer has purposely left incomplete. Hence the diffi-
culty, and indeed the danger, of attempting to supply absent words, and to recover
the missing link of thought.

The remarks thus made, once for all, shall not be repeated : but they will be called
to mind with advantage by those who love to ponder over the sayings of their Lord ;
and who desire to entertain worthy notions of the Book wherein those sayings stand
recorded. — In a case like the present, it seems to be the safer plan gratefully to
recognize the fragments of one of His many long, and lost Discourses : and carefully
to gather them up, that nothing, through neglect of ours, be lost. Surely, the fact
that the same sayings have already been met with elsewhere, should only serve the
more to awaken our attention, — suggesting as it does their uncommon weight, dig-
nity, and importance.

Our Lord proceeds to speak of forgiveness of injuries. "What follows should begin
with the word " Moreover," —

4 ^ If thy brother trespass against thee, rebuke him ; and if he repent,
forgive him. And if he trespass against thee seven times in a day, and
seven times in a day turn again to thee, saying, I repent ; thou shalt
forgive him.

Sayings very closely resembling these, (as already explained,) yet clearly not the
same, are found in St. Matthew's Gospel.(/) It is interesting to discover that in
St. Matthew also, they are preceded by a discourse concerning the " little ones."

Can it require stating that " seven" in this place is indefinite,^) and stands for
an unlimited number? There are to be no bounds to our forgiveness. " Not until
seven times, but until seventy times seven."(/t)

5 And the Apostles said unto the Lord, Increase our Faith.

How beautiful a prayer ! and in itself, how strong a proof of Faith in the blessed
speakers ! They knew therefore that their hearts and minds were in their Master's
Hands : and Ho could mould and fashion them according to His own sovereign will.
As Williams truly says, — " For Faith they ask ; and by asking, show their Faith.
Thus Prayer ever increases Faith, and Faith ever inclines to Prayer." The reader
is referred to the latter part of the note on St. Luke xviii. 8.

6 And the Lord said, If ye had Faith as a grain of mustard seed,
ye might say unto this sycamine tree, Be thou plucked up by the root,
and be thou planted in the sea ; and it should obey you.

Though this precise saying occurs nowhere but here, its resemblance to the words
whichour Lord delivered on two other occasions, — namely, after His Transfigura-

(/) St. Matth. xviii. 15, 21. (g) Compare Prov. xxiv. 16. (h) St. Matth. xviii. 22.

562 A 1'I.AIN OOMMXHZABI [CHAP.

doa,(t] and during 1 1 1 ■ * la W Hi Ministry, (£) escape

; Phe points of difference however, are 1 ■ • • 1 1 1 numerous and considerable. < m
the Bret occasion, mir Lord was speaking of the Faith required i" work miracles;
and He mentioned mustard-seed, and the rem mountain, but nothii t

< »n the present occasion, 1 1 en Bpeaking of the Forgii

of Injuries ; and He mentions mustard-seed, and the sea, but nothing is said of the
mountain. A tree, ( if the/ip speci< pluoked up by the i

instead. -< m the third and last ocoaaion, we shall find Ilim Bpeaking both

:' [njuries(Z) and the working of miracles; and though no mention
ie of mustard-seed, l>"th the moving oi a mountain, and the drj ing u|> of a fig-
from the roota,"(m) obtain n iti £ muoh likeness with so much \
ion.

It has 1 a already freely admitted n) thai the six preo il first

aight to have no manner oi connection either with w bat goes before, or what i
after them ; ami in 1 1 1 « - long note at the beginning of the p asent Chapter, the possi-
ble reason of this was suggested, as well as the risk encountered by him wh

in to furnish the missing links of thought. It is oi ly right, however,
dismissing the passage, to point out that a bond of connection, — neither improbable
nor far-fetched, —between the several parts maybe easily supplied. Thus, tl
of the rich man (in the parable of Lazarus) is one of the most Btriking "off
(that i>, stumbling-blocks,) with which we arc acquainted. The prosperity of the
wicked "offended" the prophet Jeremiah ;(o) and the Psalmist declared concerning
himself that the sight of it had so "offended" him, that his " steps had well-nigh
Bupped."(p) — The transition from "offending" tittle ones, to the duty of "fo
ness of injuries," in verses 2, 3, finds a striking precedent in St. Matth. xviii. - to
L4, and 15 to 35. It may be that "offences" of a certain class cause men to I
in need of forgiveness at the hands of their fellow-men. The Disciples hov
deeply conscious that so large a measure of Forgiveness as their Divine Master re-
quired could proc 1 only from a huge measure of Faith. (7) apply to Him who is

the Fountain of all ' toodness, for this great gift : and their request gives ris< to the
remarkable saying which we have just been considering.
w ■ ■ the same form as certain Parables, — that of "the lost ah

and it is therefore Bometimes called a Parable. But, by the same
ml", ought not St. Luke xi. 11 : xiii. 15: xiv. •"> and 28, to be called Paral I
Our Lord b

7. 9 But which of yon, having ;i servant ploughing or feeding cattle,
■will -ay onto him by and by, when he is come from the field, <'■" and .-it
down to meat? ami will not rather Bay unto him, Make ready wherewith

1 may sup, ami gird thyself, and Berve me, till 1 have eaten and
drunken; and afterward thou Bhalt eat and drink'.''

. what does this mean? and above all, how is it connected with what imme-
■ beforel The meaning and the connection may possibly be oi this
nature.

The Apostles had asked for a large measure of Faith. They knew doubtli
the moral wonders which Faith can work: their request in fact shows that they
knew it. They knew also that they were asking for a gift which would enable
them to perform miracles. Of this their Divine Blaster had assured them mi a for-
mer d I He reminds them of it 1 I was this request of theirs,

it ;i double portion, as i1 were, of their Master's Spirit migl

upon them,] I — a reasonable request at this timet Such gifts "had not yet been

given CnRisT had not yet been glorified." (ti) "It was expedient for the

D that Ho si old go away: for if lie went not away, tl I would

in" nut- 1 them; but if He departed, He would -end Ilim unto them."(x)

than those which they had seen Ilim do, would then be done by

M SI ' (h) Si Mr (/) SI '

In) St

\n\ J«r. .\ii. 1

(7) Tl DDMtiOD i

• -ii|-:irc .v. . . u. 7.

. 10. (11) St. Jebn rii

(xj St. John wi. 7.

XVII.]

ON ST. LUKE'S GOSPEL. 553

themselves : but not now, — because He had not yet gone to the Father."(?/) Their
request was therefore ill-timed ; and not more reasonable, (our Lord seems to say,)
than that a servant should be directed to sit down and refresh himself before his
Master. It is implied therefore that the Apostles must wait, — (perhaps until the
Day of Pentecost,) — and in the meanwhile be content to minister unto their Lord.
Short indeed, as yet, had been their labour at the plough, (2) — slight indeed had
been their shepherding,(«) — and they were not to claim at once the rewards of pro-
longed service ; nor anticipate the hour when their Lord would " gird Himself, and
make them sit down to meat, and come forth, and serve them." (b) In the mean-
time, He proceeds to remind them that they had no claims upon Himself whatever ;
and shows, (in the words of the heading of the Chapter,) "how we are bound to
God, and not He to us." When a master has been duly waited upon by his ser-
vant, (our Lord asks,) —

9 Doth he thank that servant because he did the things that were
commanded him ? I trow not.

Rather, — Doth he feel obliged to that servant ? (for thank him he doth doubtless.)

10 So likewise ye, when ye shall have done all those things which
are commanded you, say, We are unprofitable servants : we have done
that which was our duty to do.

Thus ends this mysterious and difficult Parable ; which we have read so often,
that its strangeness no longer strikes us. The general purport of the first half was
explained above, in the note on ver. 8. In this latter portion, (namely verses 9 and
10,) it is no longer the duty of patiently serving our Divine Master until the ap-
pointed time of refreshment, — which is enjoined; but the duty of forming a lowly
estimate of the relation in which we stand towards God. And this was necessary;
because impatience of reward can only spring from a mistaken view of the relation
in which we stand towards Him who deigns to employ us, and from an over-estima-
tion of our service.

We are therefore " unprofitable servants," at best ; but if this is to be said by
those who have "done all," what should be the language of those who have offended
by thought, word, and deed, against God's Divine Majesty; and that grievously?
what should be our language ? . . . . The Church embodies the text in her XlVth
Article against the Romish Doctrine of " voluntary works besides, over and above,
God's Commandments."

11, 12 And it came to pass, as He went to Jerusalem, that He passed
through the midst of Samaria and Galilee. And as He entered into a
certain village, there met Him ten men that were lepers, which stood
afar off:

Because their touch would have brought pollution. As companions in misfortune,
they consort together ;(c) yet do they hold themselves aloof from all. " They were
obliged to keep without the city;"(d) in type of those unclean ones who shall be
shut out from the City of God, by Iliin who bears the keys of the House of
David."(e)

The reader is referred to the notes on the cure of the Leper in the viiith chapter
of St. Matthew's Gospel.(y ) " There has been already occasion to speak of the nature
and meaning of Leprosy in the Law of Moses ;{g) that it was the outward symbol
of Sin in its deepest malignity, — of Sin therefore as involving entire separation
from God. Not of spiritual sickness only, but spiritual Death ; since absolute
separation from the one fountain of Life must be no life."(/j)

(y) St. John xiv. 12.

(2) St. Luke ix. 62. Consider 1 Kings xix. 19, 1 Cor. ix. 10 : and see the note on St. Luke
iii. 17.

(«) There is nothing said about "feeding cattle" in the original. The word (and it is pre-
sumed the allegorical meaning) is the same as in St. John xxi. 16 : Acts xx. 28 : 1 St. Pet. v. 2.

(b) St. Luke xii. 37. (c) Compare 2 Kings vii. 3. (d) Lev. xiii. 46.

(e) Rev. iii. 7. Compare Is. xxii. 22. (/) St. Matth. viii. 2.

(g) See the second note of St. Luke v. 13. Also the notes on St. Matth. viii. 2, and St.
Mark i. 41. (/,) Trench.

564 A PLAIN COMMENTARY [CHAT.

18, 14 And they lifted op their roices, and said, Jesus, Master, have
mercy od as. And when He saw tl,,m. He said onto them, Go show
yourselves unto the priests. And it oame to pass, that, as they went,
they were cleansed.

On the sanotion of the Law • I fcj implied by the command "Go show your-
selves onto the priests," — ee the last note on St. Matthew viii. 4.

Take notice therefore that it was not by the Wests, bat by Chbist Himself that
these men were released from thai malady which is the great type of Sin. Neither
wore they commanded to "show themselves" to the Priests with any view to theix
\g. The office of the Priest was (and is) merely t<> pronounce with authority
on the sufferer's state : for who can forgive sins Bave God only? Enough has been
already offered on this subject in the second cote on St Matthew \\\\. 4.

"Most instructive is it" (observes Mr. Trench,) "to observe the cliff
our Lord's dealing with the different sufferers and mourners who are brought in
contact with Him ; how the Physician who is all wisdom and tenderness varies Hi>
treatment according to the varying Deeds of His patients :(t) how He seems to
resisl a Btrong Faith, that He may make it stronger yet \(k) how he meets a weak
Faith, lest it should prove altogether too weak in the trial :(/) how one, He forgives
first and heals after ;(m] and another, whose heart could only be Bofteoed byreceiv-
ing an earthly benefit He first heals and then pardons.(n) There is here, too, no
doubt a reason why these ten air dismissed as yet nncleansed, ami bidden t" go
ahow themselves to tip' priests; while that other, whose healing was before re-
corded, is first cleansed, ami Dot till afterwards bidden to present himself in the
Temple. Doubtless then' was here a heavier trial of Faith :" fur, while yet in their
anoleanness, they were bidden to '1" that which implied they were clean,—" t" take

a journey which would bave l d ridiculous, anlese Christ's implied promise

! true. They could not have thought that they were Bent to the priests in
urder to be cured: for they must have well known that this was no part of the
Priesfe but only to declare cured."

1"> Ami one of them, when lie saw that lie was healed, turned Lack,
and with a l«>ud voice glorified <!od,

\ be bad l n loud in Prayer, (o) so is he now loud in Praise. Bui the Prayer

had been ottered in impurity, and therefore at a distance: the Praise, because it
poken alter his cleansing, was poured forth by the Leper at our Saviour's
feet. How far the party had got on their way, when the blessing overtook them,
not appear: hut they were probably out of right of their Benefactor: and
onoe removed from His presence, they were unmindful of Hi- leu. (inly

one returned; hut this man pressed up t" the very feet of the Holj One, whom He
had disooi ered t" he " mighty to Bave. (_p) As it follows, —

L6, IT :ind fell down on his face at Hi- feet, giving Him thanks : and
he WSJ a Samaritan. And JESUS answering said. Were there nut ten

cleansed ! hut where are the nine J

• r, — M Were not the im cleansed?" . . . How striking an expression c
a the lips of our Saviour I He adds, —

is There are not found that returned I lory to God, this

stranger.

for the £ n and "alien- from the I

monwi i Thua was it typically shown that "the Gentiles were

toluded IV -iii tie- Kmgd f God -. nay, rather might find a place in it h. fere

who by birth were ohildren of the Kingdom;— -that the ingratitude "t" these

.i- \iii. .".'.i: St. MsMo > M uk \ 19.

I
h,< , Hark 11. 6,— 1 (n) A- in UJSprssent InsUi

(,,i b r. [8 [p] 1-- bdit i.

( 7 ) Bph. ii. IS. BtS the ii"t" •"' Bt M.ittli. \. ''.

XVII.]

ON ST. LUKE'S GOSPEL. 555

might exclude them, while the Faith of those might give them an abundant entrance
into all its blessings."(r)

" The nine others were already healed and hastening to the Priest, — that they
might be restored to the society of men, and their life in the world : but the first
thoughts of the Samaritan are turned to his Deliverer. He had forgotten all, in
the sense of God's mercy, and of his own un worthiness." (s) Like Naaman, the
Syrian, when recovered from the same terrible disorder, he had come back to his
Benefactor, saying, — " I pray thee, take a blessing of thy servant \"(J)

19 And He said unto him, Arise, go thy way : thy Faith hath made
thee whole.

From which words it is obvious to suspect that some higher good had befallen
this man than his nine companions in suffering. All had been made clean ; but
nine ungrateful ones were hastening back to the World. Only one was found eager
to remain with his Saviour. It seems to have been the design of that blessed
assurance, " Thy Faith hath saved thee," to imply that the Samaritan had expe-
rienced an inward as well as outward cleansing : that, in his case, the soul as well
as the body had been the object of saving Love.

How strikingly was the history of Israel itself displayed in the conduct of those
nine men ! " When He slew them they sought Him, and they returned and in-
quired after God . . . Nevertheless . . . their heart was not right with Him . . .
Yea, they turned back, and . . . remembered not His Hand, nor the day when He
delivered them from the enemy. "(«) And is it not the way with every one of our-
selves ? Under the pressure of calamity, — under disease, and in the near prospect
of Death, — all are prone to lift up their voices from afar, and cry aloud to God for
mercy : but when His heavy Hand has been removed, what man can say that he
has remembered to be duly thankful for the release ? " We open our mouths Avide,"
(says Sanderson), "till He opens His Hand; but after, as if the filling of our
mouths were the stopping of our throats, so are we speechless and heartless."

Not only a joyful, (x) but a thankful spirit also, is of great price in God's sight.
Hence that pious outbreak of the Psalmist, — " Bless the Lord, my soul ; and all
that is within me, bless His Holy Name. Bless the Lord, my soul, and forget
not all His benefits." [y) What follows might have been fitly spoken by the Sama-
ritan himself.

Our Lord was at this time on the way to Jerusalem :(z) and it is reasonable to
think that either from the eager anticipations of His Followers, or from something
which He may Himself have said, a suspicion had arisen that the Kingdom of
Messiah was at hand.(a) This may have suggested the inquiry which follows.

20 And when He was demanded of the Pharisees, when the King-
dom of God should come, He answered them and said, The Kingdom
of God cometh not with observation :

The Pharisees knew not what they asked. If the Apostles themselves put forth
a similar question in ignorance, (6) how much more the enemies of our Saviour !
These men in fact were inquiring after the visible Advent of that Messiah whom
they had not eyes to discern, nor the hearts to desire, when they saw Him.(c) How
then was it possible to satisfy their question ? The answer which our Saviour re-
turned was one which contained as large a measure of the truth as they were able
to bear. "In another place indeed we are told that both Comings of the Kingdom,
the first and the last, are with observation ; and may be known by the signs of the
times :(d) but it is here meant that it was not with such signs as the Pharisees
intended, — of which the bodily eye and ear could be witnesses ; but with such
indications as Faith alone could perceive. "(e) Our Lord's reply suggested to them
that the Kingdom after which they inquired had begun already ; that it was secret
in its nature, and silent in its progress ; that it was not only above and around
them, but within them likewise. As it follows,

(r) Trench, (s) Williams. (<) 2 Kings v. 15. («) Ps. Ixxviii. 34 to 42.

(*■) See the note on St. Matth. xi. 30. (y) Ps. ciii. 1, 2.

(«) See above, ver. 11. (a) Consider and compare St. Luke xix. 11.

(6) See the note on St. Matth. xxiv. 3. (c) Isaiah liii. 2.

(d) See St. Mark xiii 29, and the notes there. (e) Williams.

A I'i.ux OOMMIRZABI [CHAP.

21 Neither shall they say, Lo here! or, lo there! for, behold, the
Kingdom of I rOD is within yon.

Thai ■ : a Kingdom seen, material, and temporal ; bat invisible, spiritual,

and eternal: an unseen Kingdom, whose door is opened bj Faith, which hai fa
in the bouI it>.-lf."(./') " The kingdom of Goo, says the Apostle •
i Peace, and Joy in the Boli Ghost."(0)
I>iu hu\ in- returned this general answer to the Pharisees, onr Sai 101

Hi- Disciples :t more particular account of the great mystery after which
bors bad inquired. Hi- discourse, which partakes of the prophetic chai
of that delivered as He Bat on the Mount of Olives, begins witn the near Future ;
and Btraightway Btretches on to the end of the World, — embracing the terrors of the
I .Vl\ ent, in fa span.

22 And He said unto the Disciples, The days will come, when
shall desire to see one of the days of the Son of Man, and ye shall not
Bee if.

Be Bpeaks of the season, now close al hand, when Be should be taken from them ;
and prophesies, (how truly, what heart does not feelf) that they would then wish
for one of those days back, of which as yet they bo little knew the value. He pro-
bo warn them of what would prove t< > them a Bource of especial danger:

_' t And they shall say to you, See here; or, sec there: go not
after them, nor follow them. For as the lightning, that bghteneth <>ut
of the one part under Heaven, shineth onto the other part under Hea-
ven : bo .-hall also the Son of Man be in His day.

These words have keen already discussed, and at length, in the Commentary on

St. Matthew's Gospel, — to which it must suffice to refer the reader.(A) It -hall
only he repeated that a- "false Christs" arose both before ami after! i) the Fall of
Jerusalem, so it is evident from Prophecy that Pretenders will attend the si
Advent "I Messiah. <»t' /-./A sets "I' Deoeivers therefore, onr Loan here speaks;
although it i- (plain that Hi- words point chiefly to what will happen in the
///'■ World, — that tremendous I 'ay when the glorious Advent of Mi--nu will be no
matter of private opinion, ami vague rumour, hut a thing patent a- the lightning
which till- the air with brightness, ami make- itself seen in an in-taut from one
extremity of [leaven to the ether.

-■'> Bnl first must lie suffer many things, and he rejected "I" this
generation.

Thu« d ■ II" ever check the ardour ami impatient f Bis Disciples, by Borne

allusion to Bis Passion, — Borne assurance that of Bimself, no less than <'t" the
humblesl of His followers, it holds true that He must endure the Cross, before Ik'
the Crown. Very brief however i- the allusion to Hi- own coming humilia-
tion; after which, Ik' at once resumes Hi- Prophecj concerning the end of all

thin/ imparison of what follows, with St. Matthew \\i\. 36 t" •

enough t" prove. The direct connection in which our Saviour thuspresei
onr \ ieu Hi- nun lowest depth of Humiliation and loftiest height of Glory, -depart'
a despised criminal, and returning a- a triumphant Ju surelj very

,-trik

_''i. _'T And afl it was in the 'lays <A' Noe, 10 -hall it he also in the
day- of the Son of Man. They did eat, th.y drank, they married

wives, they irere given in marriage, antil the day that Noe entered into
tin- Aik, and the flood came, and destroyed them all.

TIm' sadden d i mankind by the waters of the Flood is cited by our

(/) Willi u m, slv. it.

to 27.
(r) \ St. John a ullu-

XVII.] ON ST. LUKE'S GOSPEL. 557

Lord in another place as a great type of the sudden destruction which will come
upon the World in the Last Day. (k) In this place, besides the vengeance which
was taken on mankind by the Element of Water, "in the days of Noe," — the over-
throw of Sodom, " in the days of Lot," by Fire, is adduced (in respect of its sudden
and unexpected nature) as typical of the great and terrible Day. — It will be remem-
bered that St. Peter in like manner connects these two tremendous Judgments, in
his Second Epistle. (I)

28, 29, 30 Likewise also as it was in the days of Lot ; they did eat,
they drank, they bought, they sold, they planted, they builded; but the
same day that Lot went out of Sodom it rained fire and brimstone from
heaven, and destroyed them all. Even thus shall it be in the Day
when the Son of Man is revealed.

"What is here said of the end of the World is fulfilled and multiplied in little
images in the life of each : in every case these are, by Divine appointment, preced-
ing judgments which warn of the suddenness and surprise with which Eternity
overtakes each man. And for the same reason that from each, the day of his Death
is hidden, in order that he may be always living in expectation of it, — so is it also
with the End of the World, that by every generation it may be expected. 'Behold/
says Chrysostom, ' we know the signs of old age, but we know not the the Day of
Death ; so we know not the End of the World, though we know the signs of its
approaching/ "(m)

31 In that Day, he which shall be upon the housetop, and his stuff
in the house, let him not come down to take it away ; and he that is in
the field, let him likewise not return back.

This striking warning also forms part of the Prophecy which our Saviour de-
livered on the Mount of Olives ; but, (what is remarkable,) in that place it as un-
mistakably forms part of the predictions relative to the Destruction of Jerusalem,
as in this place it must be considered to relate to the Destruction of the World : for,
to suppose that the Divine Speaker discourses of the Day of Judgment from ver.
26 to ver. 30, and again from ver. 34 to the end of the chapter, — and yet, that He
interposes some remarks (in ver. 31 to ver. 33) relative only to the Fall of Jerusalem,
— is absurd. In the Commentary on the two first Gospels, perfect order and method
were shown to exist in the Prophecy on the Mount ;(«) and we are loath to believe,
or rather we cannot for a moment admit the suspicion, that there exists any want
of order and method here. — What, then, is to be thought of the words before us ?

We are compelled to inquire in what sense the warning which was to be literally
understood by those Christians who were alive at the Destruction of Jerusalem,
will be capable of being acted upon by the Church of Christ in the great and
terrible Day: and our first impulse is to point it out as manifest that since, in the
Day of Judgment, there can be no " turning back," — only in a figurative sense can
the present precept be intended for the Church's guidance then.

But he who revolves the matter maturely, will perhaps be led at last to adopt a
more diflident mode of expression. We know absolutely nothing concerning the
nature of the End, and the manner of our Blessed Lord's second Coming, — except
what He has been pleased to reveal. Should we not therefore reverse the process of
remark ; and rather occupy ourselves in silence with the strangeness of the Revela-
tion here made to us ? — the assurance, namely, that a trial resembling that of Lot
and his family, in the Day of Sodom ; a trial resembling that of the early Christians,
in the Day of Jerusalem ; will befall the Church of CnRiST in the latter Days :
when delay will be Danger, and return — Death? — Something more will be found
on this subject in the notes on verse 33.

But in the meantime, does not one great object with which the words are here
introduced seem to be, to suggest to us that the Fall of Jerusalem, no less than the
overthrow of Sodom, was typical of the Destruction of the World? "Then, let
them which be in Judaea flee into the mountains," said our Lord concerning the
first event. " Let him which is on the housetop not come down to take anything

(k) St. Matthew xxiv. 37 to 39. (I) 2 St. Peter ii. 5 to 7.

(m) Williams. (n) See the notes on St. Matthew xxiv. 3, 35, <£c.

558 A PLAIN COMMENTARY [CHAP.

oni of hii house: neither lei him which is in tin- field return back to takehia

clothes. And woe unto them that are with child, ami to them that give suck in

those daj b ! '(•■) What onr Savioui here aaya ia clearly connected with the end of

i. and carries on whal Se had been -as ing in i er. 'J 1 '. " 'I'll'- same expression

rning, thi i >mes down to u^ with the for< f an additional type,

wherein the figure has been twice already fulfilled, — both in Sodom and in Jeru-
salem." p) That our Loan, in ver. 31, ia carrying on the allusion oontaii
roved by the very striking words which follow, —

Remember Lot's wife.

I; ing \ Genesis six. 17 to 26. — "Thi- allusion t" Lofa wife u remarkable,
tring bow every incident in the "Id Testament is replete with ' instru
in Righteousness :'(o) fur it deduces a type from what appears to be nothing more
than one of the miraculous incidents of history; and leaves it as a proverbial
warning unto the end of the Worl<L w (r) Compare St Luke ix. I _ Philip-

piana iix. 13, 14.

Whosoever shall seek to save liis life shall lose it ; and whosoever
shall lose his life shall preserve it.

Thia ia one of those sayings, so full of deep Evangelical meaning, the ■
in^ of which on the matter in hand it i- often (as in thia place) very difiicull I
termine. Thia difficulty arises probably from our entire ignorance id* what will take

Since at the Lasi Day. It may be that during that terrible overthrow, — that
iction of the Earth and the works thai be therein, — the heavenly-minded will
be abl igna] proof of their heavenly-mindednese ; and the worldly, of tlnir

hankering after the things of thia World. Regardless of the warning of " L fa
wit'"/' the men who refused to be seasoned with the salt of her Bad history will
in hark" at the last, — and be involved in the tremendous fate of which tier's

was bul the ty] t Bhadow. Then will he who thought to Bavehia life, lose it;

while he whose obedience caused him to pursue the path of apparent danger, will
in the end be saved. All this, however, ia a Bubject which nothing but the event
will make intelligible. We do well to meditate on unfulfilled Prophecy. It ia "ur
bounden duty so to do.fs) Bul we have m* right to understand it.

our Saviour proceeds to foretell "some extraordinary interpositions of i
criminating Providence, which will preserve the righteous in situations of the
greatesi danger from certain public calamities which in the last agea of the World
will fall upon wicked nations." (/) IIi> firsl example, (the two men asli
couch,) ia peculiar to the preaei . and Beems t" be added t" the other

in order to increase the doubt and uncertainty in which "that Day and Hour" ia
involved. Will Christ come duringthe hours of Li v, but it will be in the

"when n sleep"(«) that He will oome. Will it be in the Ni

Nay, bul the hind will be in the field, and maid-servant at the mill.

"i, 85, 86 I tell you, in that night there shall be two men in one

bed ; the one shall be taken, and the other shall be left. Two women

shall be grinding together; the one shall be taken, and the other left.

\en shall be in the field; the one shall be taken and the other left.

1 Matthew xxiv. I" and 11. It seems to be implied that tl

discrimination will be used in distinguishing between the righteous and tin- v.
ut tin I t Day. Audit is worth obeerving, that both the examples b<
i from vcrj humble life. One, of two labouring nun in the i
of two i- m grinding at the mill, - are mentioned as Bam] I who

hIiuII be heira of futiu I • They will be " taken" at the lasi Day, (" caught

up," a meet tile Lobs in tin; air." The wicked will

be "led ir their tremi a ace.

87 And they an ad said vnto Him, Where, L d1 And He

(„) St. Miittli. i Williams. (•/) - Tim. iii. 10. (r) Williams.

B
th. xxv. C.
Consider 1 (y) 1 Thc»«. ir. IT.

XVIII.] ON ST. LUKE'S GOSPEL. 559

said unto them, Wheresoever the Body is, thither will the eagles be
gathered together.

That is, — No doubt will exist as to where all this shall he. As the eagles about
the slain, (z) so will the saints of Gon(rt) be seen in that Day gathered about " the
Lamb that was slain from the foundation of the World."(6) Wheresoever " in the
clouds"(c) the Human Body of the Incarnate Son is, thither will His thousand
thousands be gathered together ! See more on the note in St. Matthew xxiv. 28 ;
and take notice that what there is called "the Carcass," is here called "the Body."
The reason is perhaps that in that place, (as already suggested,) the Divine lan-
guage is so shaped as to have indirect reference to the slaughter which attended the
Destruction of Jerusalem ; whereas here, the reference is to the Day of Judgment
only.

In terms purposely dark, rather than vague, did our Saviour return this reply
to the curious inquiry of His Disciples. They cannot have understood all that He
intended: perhaps they understood Him not at all. Yet was it doubtless more
edifying to them thus to have their doubts resolved, than to be favoured with any
more explicit statement. The interpretation of our Saviour's saying afforded above,
we hold to be the true one : yet would we by no means deny that such wondrous
words as His may embrace within their scope a yet wider meaning, and convey a
message of comfort, as well as a note of warning, to all. " It is probable that the
eagle and the carcass was a proverbial image among the people of the East, ex-
pressing things inseparably connected by natural affinities and sympathies." So
that it may be a true, although only a partial paraphrase of our Lord's words, to
understand Him to say, — " Wheresoever sinners shall dwell, there shall My
vengeance overtake them ; and there will I interpose to protect My faithful
servants."^)

CHAPTER XVIII.

3 Of the importunate Widow. 9 Of the Pharisee and the Publican. 15 Children
brought to Christ. 18 A Rider that would follow CnRisT, but is hindered by his
riches. 28 The reward of them that leave all for His sake. 31 He foreshoweth
His death, 35 and restoreth a blind man to his sight.

The Parable of "The Importunate Widow,"(e) which follows, "is addressed to
the Disciples ; and stands in closest relation with what has gone immediately before,
with the description of the sufferings and distress of the last times, when even the
Disciples ' shall desire to see one of the Days of the Son of Man, and shall not see
it.' "(/) " Watch and pray" is the injunction which our Saviour delivers in con-
nection with every prophecy of the suddenness of His second Coming: and the same

(a) "Her eyes behold afar off; . . . and where the slain are, there is she." Job xxxix.
29, 30.

(a) " They that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength. They shall mount up with
wings as eagles : they shall run and not be weary; and they shall walk and not faint." Isaiah
xl. 31. Compare Ps. ciii. 5.

(M Rev. xiii. 8. (c) 1 Thess. iv. 17. (d) Bp. Horsley.

(e) Sometimes less happily called "The Unjust Judge;" but see the heading of the Chapter.
(/) Trench.

5G0 A l'l.AIX n.MMLNTAKY [CHAP.

I ight by a P the last 'words of which contain express men*

events alluded to. — It follows,

l \\ d II • spake a parable onto them to thii tno\ thai men ought
always to pray, and not to faint:

i: "thai they ought always to pray." The precept u addressed to the

l '

S l a statement as is found here, and in ver Lemand our gratitude;

for, iii both places, the Author of the Gospel becomes UN own [nterpreter, and
directs us to the scope and intention of the parable which follows, by Himself openly
declaring it. Deprived of such assistance, the Parable of " the Labourers in the
Vineyard"(c) niay com ince as of our real helplessness in the Interpretation of < lon'a
Word.

•• Men ought always to pray." The duty is urged, in the same language, ii
parts of the New Testament :((£) from which it will appear that the Christian Life
should be one o mtinuous Praj er, — one long reaching out of the heart to God. For
"the soul which is accustomed to direct itself to Gon upon every occasion, — which,
whatever chord be Btruck, is ever turned towards Him, — that bouI prays sometimes
when it does not know that it is praying."(e) The knee cannot indeed be bent fox
ever ; but the desire and Longing ot the bouI should never cease.

Our Loan adds "and not to faint;" knowing how prone is the heart of man
to weary, despond, and grow Black, if it does not at once obtain the thing it prayed

This precept will also be found urged in countless places of Scripture.
l alow, the second note on verse 5.

•J saying, There was in a city a Judge, which feared not God, neither
regarded Man:

A fearful character is drawn in two words. Here was one who was neither
restrained from orime by the fear of God's anger; nor deterred by regard for the
good opinion of mankind. Qe was recklessly wicked. And this man wac

8 and there was a widow in that city; and Bhe came onto him, Bay-
ing, Ayenge me of mine adversary.

■•A widow," the verytype of weakness, poverty, and affliction throughout I
Word '.( Surely, hers was a hopeless case, having to do with such an one as the
former verse describes. However, she did what she could: St. Luke says "she kept
continually coming to him," with the petition that he would "do her justice" against
'. Iversary.

4 And he would not for a while: bat afterwards he said within
himself,

Thai is, "he thought within himself:" l>ut "wtid" is better, for it sets forth the
close connection between evil thoughts and evil words. The voice of the heart is a
loud cry in the ears of God. He Baid at last,

Though I fear not (Ion, nor regard Man: yel because this Widow
tronbleth me, I will avenge her, lest by her continual coining she
weary me.

11 lamuoh stronger word than "weary me." He was a bold bad man. —

as in conduct; and hi* impatience here finds rent in ■

hor which transforms the i r, helpless, persevering widow into a spiteful

ist.
Q will l"' presently more fully shown,) i> "" , Mhs the Unjust Judge; but

the course He pursue) I wards His elect " whioh cry day and night unto Him," is
Like that of the man described in the Parable, that "H ' n long with

(,•) St. Matlli. U I tO L6 ■ IT. I "lie.

• at. x.
.!,.■. w,\. L3. i B i Has. r,

D Bk BUtth. sxiii. 1 I.

xviii.] on st. luke's gospel. 561

them."(f/) This truth He set forth hy a Miracle, when He caused the blind to follow
Him into a house, (A) — and when He heeded not at first the cry of the blind at Jeri-
cho,^') — and when He suffered the waves well nigh to engulf the ship, in which
He sailed the Lake. (A:) Above all, He set forth this way of His Providence in His
dealings with the woman of Canaan, (7) — whom He not only neglected for a while,
but even repulsed. Nor may we doubt that what our Lord enforced twice by a
Parahle, so often by a Miracle, and on countless occasions by precept, it especially
concerns every Christian man to carry in his constant remembrance. The Reader
is referred to the notes on St. Luke xi. 8, — St. Matthew vii. 7, 8, and xv. 24, 27, 28.

6, 7 And the Lord said, Hear what the unjust Judge saith. And
shall not God

" The unjust Judge ;" — not touched with pity, but weary of molestation ; not
mindful of the widoiv's wrongs, but careful for his own ease and quiet; not desirous
of drawing her to himself, but of being rid of her importunity !

"Hear what the unjust Judge saith:" and shall not the " Lord, the Righteous
Judge," (m)

avenge His own elect, which cry day and night unto Him, though He
bear long with them ?

Our Lord often reasons in this manner. "Which of you, though he be but a
man," &c. (n) " If a son shall ask bread of any of you that is a Father," &c.(o)

God is not therefore like the unjust Judge in this Parable ; neither is He like the
churlish neighbour of whom we read in the Parable of " the Friend at midnight."^)
The argument is, — If the unfriendly and the unrighteous can thus be moved by
persevering prayer and entreaty, how much more " the Holy One and the Just;"(^
who " tires only when ice are silent," — as one of the Fathers beautifully remarks, (r)

But it is time to advert to the intention of the Parable ; which doubtless sets
forth to us the Church in these the days of her Widowhood, — " when the Bride-
groom is taken from her."(s) She cries to God "the Righteous Judge," " Avenge
me of mine Adversary," — that is, the Devil,(/) and all those powers of the World
which she finds continually arrayed against her. " God, how long shall the
Adversary do this dishonour V\u)

For, in the words of a thoughtful Writer, — " The World is ahcays, whether con-
sciously or unconsciously, whether by unwholesome patronage, or by hostile vio-
lence, oppressing the Church ; and Satan is evermore seeking to hinder the life of
God in every one of her members. Prayer is the cry " out of the deep" which the
elect utter, the calling in of a mightier to aid, when they feel the danger to be earnest
lest the enemy should prevail against them."(cc)

And like other parables, the present has also its personal and private application.
What is true of the Body is true of each of the members. " Every soul" (says a
great Father,) "conscious of its loneliness, conscious that it has no help save in
God only, is a widow."(y) What do we else day by day, than repeat the Widow's
prayer, when we exclaim, "Deliver us from Evil," or rather "from, the Evil One?"(z)
We may not doubt that as many as are conscious of a conflict with the powers of
Darkness and the World, find here their lesson ; are taught what must be their own
special course.

But to return to the precious assurance of the text : — If the unjust Judge could
act thus towards the despised widoiv, who made a feeble wail at his gate, during the
short period when causes might come before him, — shall not the Righteous Judge
attend to the desire of His own elect, (His "jewels,") (a) whose great and exceeding
bitter cry resounds in His ears all day and all night? — " Though He bear long with
them," may perhaps mean, " Though He be patient with respect to them;" that is,
although He displays, even towards those who oppress them, that long-suffering

(g) See below, verse 7. {h) St. Matth. ix. 27, 28. (i) St. Matth. xx. 30 to 34.

(k) See St. Mark iv. 38, and the note there. (I) St. Matth. xv. 22 to 26.

(hi) 2 Tim. iv. 8. (n) St. Matth. vii. 9, — where see the note. See also verses 10, 11.

(o) St. Luke xi. 11 to 13. Qj) St. Luke xi. 5 to 8, where see the notes.

(q) Acts iii. 14. (r) Chrysostom.

(s) St. Matth. ix. 15, and St. Mark ii. 20,— where see note. (t) 1 St. Peter v. 8.

(«) Ps. lxxiv. 11. (x) Trench. (y) Augustine.

(z) See St. Matth., vi. 13. St. Luke xi. 4, — and the notes there. (a) Mai. iii. IT.

562 A PLAIN' C0MMSN1 [CHAP.

lead men to Repentance.(o) 1 rex-

plains,) "The Lord is not .-lack concerning Hi- promise, as some men count slack-
: but is long-suffering," or, toward us; not willing that anj si 1

perish, but that all should eon ....•■ II

I nd trin-, dost Thou not judge and avenge i or bio 1 on them that dwell on the
Earth 1"(d cry of the .-mil- G martyred Saints beneath til'-- altar.

\ I answer in I which follow :

8 I tell you that He will avenge them speedily. Nevertheless, when

the Son of Man cometh, shall He End Faith on the Earth?

This entire passage \\ill 1"- found t.> derive singular illustration from that pi
E . I'- tor's -•• • nd Epistle, where If speaks of Christ's second Advent, — delayed in-
deed, yet certain: delayed, moreover, only because of that very long- ufflrring
patiena of God which has been already noticed. (e) . . . "I tell you/' (tJ
ous Judge Himself here declares,) " He will avenge them speedily." Ami
which an- the concluding words of tin' Parable, air the concluding words of the
Volume of Revelation also, — "Surely I come quickly 1" f\ •• I r II math,"
thr Psalmist,) " for lie cometh t<> judge the Earth."

•■ Nevertheless," — (It is mournfully added,) — " when theS n of Man cometh, shall
He find Faith on the Earth?" Or rather, "the faith:" that is, "the faith which

and prays to < i . . i » continually." For we know that, in tin- 1
Christs ami false prophets -hall arise,"— showing -i.u r n-, ami working mil
enough t" "deceive, it' it were possible, the verj el© Ihe faithful will then

doced to a very little band; for, " because Iniquity shall abound, tJ I
the many will wax cold ;"(') ami doubtless their FaUA a!-.'. Nay, even their Faith,
(a- our Lord Himself here assures us,) will have well-nigh died a

lien remarks that OUT LORD Spoke tl ihat when

Faith fail-. Prayer dies. In order t" pray, then, we must have Faith; ami that our
Faith fail oot, we inu-t pray. Faith pours forth Prayer; ami the pouring forth of
the heart in Pi I aith."(A) See the i- • Luke

xvii. "'.

9 And He -pake this Parable unto certain which trusted in them-
selves that they were righteous, and despised oth

It was thi I the foregoing Parable, then, to Bet forth the duty of pr

fly. The Parable which follows teaches the duty ol prayii i
the one may be regarded as setting forth the duty of Prayer : the other, as teaching
in what Bpirit that duty is to be performed.

10 Two men went up into the Temple to pray;

We shall be told in the next words who and what these " two re. "They

are as yet called by that name only, in which all i . and equal

their oommon Lord." They "went rip," — fortheTemi . a M unl S

and to pray,— for the Temple was a " II" " Thej entered severally

the Court "f tin- [sraelites out of the hours of stated worship, m order t" perform

duty."(m) They went up ready to pray. The differen
tle-m uould it be noticed how much thej had in common.

the '.ne a Pharisee, and the other h Publican.

' earning the Publicans, that is, the Jews who collected the
eonqueroi mething has been said aln " The persuasion was

popular ami general that for the free-born ohildren of Abraham, it was nn-

r, "i- any heathen government J aid the Jews who
OOUld SO far (orgel their Bacred character a- I BUch tril

1 ('') '-'

116. ( / } 1

(.) St (H '

(/) P 14,1 slow, it i- laid that Iho Publican " w

Dr. W. EL Mill.

XVIII.] ON ST. LUKE'S GOSPEL. 563

to inform against their countrymen who paid it not, hence came to be regarded
with horror as sinful men, — apostates from the character and profession of true
Israelites. The Pharisees, on the other hand, were men whose exactness in the
observance of the Law was proverbial among the people ; indicated by their very
name, which denoted their separation from all others . . . Hence, therefore, to say
of these two men that the one was a Publican, the other a Pharisee, is to say that
one passed among the people necessarily for a sinner, — the other, necessarily for a
saint. How they were viewed in this respect by the Almighty, who sees the
heart,"(o) the rest of the Parable sufficiently shows.

11, 12 The Pharisee stood and prayed thus with himself,

They both stood to pray. Standing was anciently a more usual attitude of prayer
than now.(jj>)

God, I thank Thee, that I am not as other men are, extortioners,
unjust, adulterers, or even as this Publican. I fast twice in the week, I
give tithes of all that I possess.

Although a single fast-day in the year, was all that was required by the Divine
Law, ((7) God's ancient people, (like some branches of the Christian Church,) ob-
served two weekly fasts ; not one only, as our Church directs. These were kept on
Monday and Thursday : and these, the Pharisee faithfully kept. By his profession
of giving a tithe of all he possessed, or rather, "of all his gains," he means, — "Not
only the portion which the Law exacts for Religion, and its ministers ; but from
everything, however minute, which at any time becomes my property, — from mint
and anise and cummin, — I scrupulously measure off and lay aside a tenth part for
the same purpose." (r)

And here, the character of the Pharisee's thanksgiving and profession must be
noticed ; for it cannot be called a Prayer. " If you look into his words," (says
Augustine,) "you will find that he asked nothing of God. He goes up indeed to
pray ; but instead of praying, he praises himself." In thanking God for having
kept him from the commission of heinous sin, he was, however, undoubtedly right.
His practice of fasting was sanctioned both by the example, and the precept of our
Lord ;(s) and his strictness in this behalf was a commendable thing. All will
allow that his dedication of a part of his substance to pious uses, was religious and
praiseworthy : while it is but fair to suppose that he imputes to God's grace no less
what he had actually done of good, than what he had avoided of evil ; and therefore
that he " thanks" Him for all. There was no " self-righteousness" here.

But all that can be said in his favour, has now been said. His utter absence of
Humility comes out forcibly in the form which his profession takes, — " God, I thank
Thee that I am not as other men:" for, "by what right does he introduce the con-
sideration of other men, as objects of comparison with himself, when he is approach-
ing the presence of God?"(Q Consider too, above all, the uncharitableness of that
clause, — "or even as this Publican." "To despise the whole race of man was not
enough for him : he must yet attack the Publican."(«) Surely, the very sight of
one who pursued an infamous calling, coming into the Temple for the mere purpose
of approaching God, and engaged in the manner which the next verse describes,
should have inspired a good man with cheerful hopes concerning him ! " "When
thou returnest thanks to God," (says an excellent preacher,) "let Him be all in all
to thee. Turn not thy thoughts to men, nor condemn thy neighbour."(x) A pious
Writer has said, — "If we desire that God should not enter into judgment with us,
two great rules are given us in Holy Scripture, for each of which this Parable fur-
nishes an example. 'Judge not, that ye be not judged ;'(?/) and;. 'If we would
judge ourselves, we should not be judged'(g) of the Lord."

(o) Dr. W. H. Mill.

(p) Hannah stood (1 Sam. i. 26,) while she poured, forth her passionate prayer, — 1 Sam. i. 9
to 13. See also St. Matth. vi. 5, and St. Mark xi. 25. — Kneeling, however, has ever been the
approved attitude of addressing God. Notice how 2 Chron. vi. 13 supplies what 1 Kings viii.
22 omits. See also Dan. vi. 10, &o. &c.

(q) Levit. xvi. 29 : xxiii. 27 : Numb. xxix. 7, — alluded to in Acts xxvii. 9.

(r) Dr. W. H. Mill. (s) St. Matth. vi. 16 to 18. [t) Dr. W. H. Mill.

(u) Chrysostom. (x) Chrysostom. (#) St. Matth. vii. 1.

(z) 1 Cor. xi. 31. The quotation is from a Sermon by the Rev. 0. Marriott*

A PLAIN COMMKNTAKV [CHAP.

And the Publican, Btanding afar o% would Dot lift up so mm
' I nto Beaven,

II beoaase be thought himself unworthy to join tl

1 1 was be "not afar off from Gon; for the Lord i- 'nigh onto them

in- of :i contrite heart' "(a) Be would not " bo much as lift up his eyes unto

II in." being self-abased before the Majesty of Him whom be was approaching.

II Eira felt, of old, — "0 my Gon, 1 am ashamed and blush to lilt up my

ia_\ Gon."(6)

but smote upon his breast, savin.:, <!"i> be merciful to me a sinner.

II- mii ;•• hi- breast again ami again, a- a rign of the -^H-*-}" ■ t" his Spirit "He
aly frit 1 1 i in -*■ 1 1" unworthy t<> draw near to Gon, but had a bq "f his

rving punishment : ami a desire t<> condemn ami chastise Sin in himself, which
1 -■ <l by beating on hi- breast w e must take the action for what it natu-

rally means, because our Loan bean witness to bim."(d)

The language which he used is moreover highly remarkable; for it is found not
only to express his desire of mercy, and of reconciliation with i'<<>\>. but to contain
the notion of a propitiatory offering as being needed also. " Besides, be meant
more in calling himself a sinner than we do, who have learned tocalloun
.siitn'i •■-. It i- rather what we should mean by 'a wicked man,' or 'a guilty man;'
ami i- what a man would not say "f himself unless he were under a very deep con-

ion of his own faults. "(»-)

]Ii- words of t 'onfession and Prayer were of course " inaudible to the I'h
u- they were meanl to be ; yet the Publican's attitude and gesture, might hai ■
marked by him. They must have been Been, as the Publican is bo present t" the
mind of the Pharisee in bis prayer: yet instead of inspiring the kiml h
which a ju-' man should ei er take in a Bincere penitent these marks of humiliation

i to him only evidences of tin- <_r » i i 1 1 of his fellow-worshipper Far dif-

• from this vain estimate is the decision of Him to whom he thus presumed to
address himself. The man whose prayer was -<, remarkable for all the featurea
which the other's wanted,— the man who realized the Divine presence, ami spread
hi- lull wretchedness before Him without a word it thought of extenuation, — who
r compares himself with others more guilty, or pleads their evil example in
arrest of judgment '"it asks <■!' mere mi I it i- for Divine Mercy alone to

14 1 tell you, this man went down to his house jostifii 1 r tiher than
the other :

The one, foun oe with Gon. Tl ther, si ■d, as a warning

iiikiml for ever. For it is not by any means implied that thePharisi
justified a little, and the Publican mucA. Nothing of the kind. The one was ao-
I ; (that is. hi- prayer bad been heard, and Gon bad bad mercy on him) the
other was rejected.

\ I let us i"' well persuaded that " tip' spiritual pride which was the character-

of the Pharisee, may lurk under tin' humblest theory of Religion; supposing

even, (which is doI always tie' case,) that the view, presumed t<> \«- humble, is bucE

in reality. The Religion, whatever be its theory, of which the main effect is t<>

li-h in tin- mind a persuasion that there is something in ourselves which be-

ol Christ's Brother! 1 and Family, which makes the ruling

any to be t" thank GOD that h> is n,,t n> other nen. i- in g

worst point* of Pharisaism."^)
II /i to his house," because he oing from Mount Sion.(^)

The remark ia obvious. Of how different a character is the following observation
which a pious and thoughtful Writer has made on the text] "Thewordsi
I.' >i: i "clearlj point t<> the truth, that our several actions pass und Hi

I H that 'this man ir< ni <l"irn (<> hi* hou rather than

. !-. i . \. r..

(./) I :..tt.

(/) l»r. W. H M>H.

■ I".

xviii.] on st. luke's gospel. 565

the other ;' clearly meaning that the very act of worship he had heen performing
at the Temple was approved, as well as that his person was accepted. And we
should do well to bear this in mind in every action, that judgment is passed on it;
and that we go from it justified in it or not, in respect of what we have done."(/i)

It were, of course, a mere abuse of this parable to infer that external observances,
— as Fasting and Almsgiving, — are worthless forms, because in the Pharisee's case
they happen to be united with a self-righteous spirit: or, that the essence of Reli-
gion consists in an occasional abject cry to God for mercy, however careless the life
may be of external helps. This were indeed to trifle with Divine Truth. The
uncharitable Pharisee was wanting in Humility ; the Publican stands forth the
very model of that great virtue. Hence, alone, the sentence passed upon either by
our Saviour.

for every one that exalteth himself shall be abased ; and he that
humbleth himself shall be exalted.

Rather, "he that abaseth himself shall be exalted."

The present Parable therefore is not only prefaced, like the last, by a sentence
declaring its general scope and purpose, but it also concludes with a proverbial
saying, — which, in the way of inference, as it were, gathers up its heavenly teach-
ing. The same thing was also observed in the case of the parable of " the Labourers
in the Vineyard."(0

The words alluded to may be regarded almost as the very motto and moral of the
Gospel itself. They are found in many shapes ; but they still embody one and the
same great truth, or rather solemn warning ; — whether they occur in the Blessed
Virgin's Hymn of Praise, where mention is made of the proud and the humble ;(k)
or in the Sermon on the Mount, where the fate of the rich and the poor, the hungry
and the full, is contrasted ;(1) or whether they be spoken of first and last ;(»i) or,
(as here,) of those who humble, and those who exalt themselves. (»)

Wondrous anticipations of this, as of so many other great Gospel truths, exist in
the Old Testament. (o) The words of Proverbs iii. 34, in particular, are found to
have supplied St. Peter(_p) and St. James(^) with all they required, when they
wished to remind the Church that "God resisteth the proud, but giveth giace unto
the humble."

Our Lord's last saying forms a beautiful transition to the incident which follows.

15, 16, 17 And they brought unto Him also Infants, that He would
touch them : but when His Disciples saw it, they rebuked them. But
Jesus called them unto Him, and said, Suffer little Children to come
unto Me, and forbid them not : for of such is the Kingdom of God.
Verily I say unto you, Whosoever shall not receive the Kingdom of
God as a little Child, shall in no wise enter therein.

Concerning this precious incident, which is related both by St. Matthew and St.
Mark, the Reader is referred to the notes on the earlier Gospels. (r)

18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23 And a certain Ruler asked Him, saying, Good
Master, what shall I do to inherit Eternal Life? And Jesus said unto
him, Why callest thou Me good ? none is good, save one, that is, God.
Thou knowest the commandments : Do not commit adultery, Do not
kill, Do not steal, Do not bear false witness, Honour thy father and
thy mother. And he said, All these have I kept from my youth up.
Now when Jesus heard these things, He said unto him, Yet lackest
thou one thing : sell all that thou hast, and distribute unto the poor,

(A) Rev. C. Marriott. (i) See St. Matth. xx. 16. (k) St. Luke i. 52, 53.

(?) St. Luke vi. 20, 21, and 24, 25. (m) St. Matth. xix. 30 : where see the note.

(») See also St. Matth. xxiii. 12, and St. Luke xiv. 11: where the saying will be found to
recur.

('j) It is obvious to refer to 1 Sam. ii. 4 to 9. (])) 1 St. Peter, v. 5.

{q) St. James iv. 6. (>•) See on St, Matth. xix. 13 to 15 : and St, Mark x. 13 to 16.

5G0 A PLAIN* COMMENTARY [OHAP.

ami thou Bhalt have treasure in Heaven: and come, follow Bfe. And
when he heard this, he was very Borrowful: for he was wry rich.

24, 25, 26 And when Jesue saw thai he wan very Borrowful, He
Baid, How hardly shall they that have riches enter into the Kingdom of
G ! For it is easier for a camel to go through a needle's eye, than
for a rich man to enter into the Kingdom of GOD. Ami they that
heard it Baid, Who then can he Bav< d :

Ti have been oommented on elsewhere.(»)

i!7 Ami he Baid, The things which are impossible with men are pos-

sihle with I '"!'.

That which unassisted man finds impossible, (namely, this making of himself
" poor in spirit,") God's grace can accomplish : for the Kingdom of < trace km

r marvel-: than the Kingdom of Nature. "The impossible thin;.', which yet
sible with God, is not the Baring of the Rich man, but the making of the Rich

man p

28 Then Peter said, Lo, vre have left all, and followed Thee.

"What -hall iM have therefore?" be added: to which our Lord returned a won-
drous answer. See St. Matthew six. 27, 28, and the notes there,

29, 30 And He said onto them. Verily 1 Bay onto you, There is no
man that hath left House, or Parents, <>r Brethren, or Wife, or chil-
dren, for the Kingdom of God's sake, who shall not receive manifold
more in this present time, and in the World to come Life Everlasting.

nlv ye, but every cue, to the end of the World, who Bhall forsake the thin";
which he I ■. when called upon to do so " for My sake and the Gospi

shall •• in this present time" be recompensed an hundredfold ; ami in the world to
come shall be everlastingly rewarded.

This portion of St. Luke'- Gospel i- also found in the two earlier Gospels. The
Reader n therefore again referred thither, (v)

31 Then He toofc unto Him the Twelve, and Baid unto them. Be-
hold, we go up to Jerusalem, and all things thai are written by the
Prophets concerning the Son of Man shall be accomplished.

Take notice bow He guides them to that sure word of Prophecy which lie had
prepared concerning Himself. In the writings of Moses and of the Prophets, and
in the Psalms, all that was to befall the Son of .Man might be found written of
Him.

82, 88 For He shall be delivered unto the Gentiles, and shall be
and spitefully entreated, and Bpitted on: and they Bhall
scourge Him and put Him to death: and the third day lie -hall

: n.

•"■1 Ami they traders! 1 none of these things: and this savin:: i

hid from them, neither knew they the things which wire Bpoken.

1 it afterwards, and called to mind everything which their
i are often reminded in the later pn^ca of the li
already made the sub, I mment; to which it shall

suffice, in thN | ' ■ the reader.(t)

(.) !• M.itth. xix. IB lo M, and Bi Hark \. it

•' -I \. 29, where -•■•■ the

0; and si. Mark
Coi lerSl Luk« uli 3 (■) I . 3 li. 2L\ Xc.

Bt Matthew xx.l7to]

XVIII.] ON ST. LUKE'S GOSPEL. 567

35, 36, 37, 38, 39 And it came to pass, that as He was come nigh
unto Jericho, a certain blind man sat by the way side begging : and
hearing the multitude pass by, he asked what it meant. And they told
him, that Jesus of Nazareth passeth by. And he cried, saying, Jesus,
Thou Son of David, have mercy on me. And they which went before
rebuked him, that he should hold his peace : but he cried so much the
more, Thou Son of David, have mercy on me.

This rebuke then is found to have proceeded from them " that went before."
Doubtless there was much of majesty in the common events of our Lord's daily
life, notwithstanding the depth of Humiliation to which He submitted Himself.
Here was a crowded thoroughfare, — the close of a weary day's journey, — an impa-
tient multitude. Yet are there found persons to walk in advance, as if to herald
His august coming ; and when a beggar begins to cry out, " Thou Son of David,
have mercy on me," — " many" are heard rebuking him, and charging him to hold
his peace while the " Prince of Peace" passes by. It has been piously suggested
that Christ "was teaching as He went, and they would not have Him interrupt-
ed."^)

Viewed as conveying a lesson to ourselves, we are reminded of what may some-
times befall those who are most earnest in the matter of their Salvation.' Their
conduct procures for them the rebuke not only of the enemies of Christ, but even
of those who walk with Him, and profess zeal for His Honour. — Observe, however,
what follows :

40 And Jesus stood, and commanded him to be brought unto Him :

Whereupon, " they call the blind man, saying unto him, Be of good comfort, rise;
He calleth thee."(6)

This, too, observes an ancient Father, " repeats itself often in the spiritual his-
tory of men's lives. If a man will only despise these obstacles from a World which
calls itself Christian ; if, despite of them all, he will go on until Christ is plainly
with him ; then, they who began by blaming, will finish by applauding : they who
said first, He is mad, will end with saying, He is a saint." (c)

41, 42 and when he was come near, He asked him, saying, What
wilt thou that I shall do unto thee ? And he said, Lord, that I may
receive my sight. And Jesus said unto him, Receive thy sight : thy
Faith hath saved thee.

Thus, the Chapter ends as it begun, — by showing the fruits of importunity in
Prayer !

And immediately he received his sight, and followed Him, glorifying
God : and all the people, when they saw it, gave praise unto God.

The miracle performed by our Lord on the two Blind men of Jericho, will be also
found fully related by St. Matthew and St. Mark. The reader is therefore referred
to the notes in the earlier Gospels. (d) But it is well worth observing how these
blessed Writers, when describing one and the same transaction, although, to a care-
less observer, they may seem to have employed nearly the same terms, will yet be
found, by countless minute touches, to have achieved immense variety ; and by con-
sequence to have supplied a large amount of unsuspected information, as well as of
most precious teaching. Without dwelling further on this remark, it shall suffice
to point out that St. Luke, in this place, is the only Evangelist who preserves the
beautiful circumstance of the gratitude manifested by this object of our Saviour's
mercy. St. Matthew informed us that he " followed" Christ ;(e) and St. Mark ex-
plains that he " followed Jesus in the tcay."(f) But St. Luke declares that he fol-
lowed Him, with praises on his tongue ; and not only so, but that his example was
followed by the people, who, "all, when they saw it, gave praise unto GOD."

(a) Trench. (b) St. Mark x. 49. (e) Augustine, quoted by Trench.

id) See on St. Matth. xx. 29 to 34 : and St. Mark x. 46 to 52.

(e) St. Matth. xx. 34. (/) St. Mark x. 52.

A I'L.MN COMMENTARY [CHAP.

CHAPTEB XIX.

I Of Zaccha >>■ in. 1 1 7V

iisaletn with triiimji/i .■ II weepeth over it: 1"> driveth mi'! Selh

of the Temple: 17 teaching dauy in it. The Riders icovld haw destroyed Him,
vat for fear of the peopU .

1 And Jesus entered and passed through Jericho.

The narratives of the two earlier Evangelists transport aa at oni e from Jericho,
the scene of the miracle performed on the two Blind men, to Jerusalem ; or rather,
to the Mounl of Olives, which Btands on the Eastern Bide of tl St Luke

interposes an incident, full of the deepest interest and beauty, and subjoins b Para-
ble: taking up the narrative of the other Evangelists, at verse 29, What t
is the history of what t""k place a^ our Lord " was passing through Jericho."

2 And, behold, there "-'is a man named Zacchseus, whioh was the
chief among the Publicans, and he was rich.

igh has l i"'ii said elsewhere, concerning the class of men to which Z

) The farmers of the Revenue were probably all wealthy men: well
may " e Publicans," (or rather, "a ohief Publican, ) have

"no!

After tie' interview in which we beheld our Loi otly engaged with a

young Ruler having great possessions, and the Discourse o incoming Riches which
followed, - ; it becomes a matter "I' special interest t" notice what took place "ii the
at occasion, when the Savioi i: is brought into direct contact with another rich
man. Nor should it escape as that here was one, n< t only rich, but who bad ac-
quired riches in a disreputable, even in a dishonest way. It will be observed that
Chri go ami sell all that he bas ami give t'> the poor. He sim-

ply commends him for his virtuous resolution to give up half. Cornelius, in like
manner, was assured that his aim- had gone up " for a memorial before God
without any hint that God required larger sacrifices at his hand. Then further,

l of an intimation that the needles eye would prove t arrow for Ili~ pre-

1 ntertainer, we .-hall find our Lord ltim' i> u~ 1 \- declaring that this 'lav had Sal-
vation '-"in.- to tie' Douse of Zaccbssus. Bede accordingly remarks, " See here the
camel disinoumbered of his bunch," ami of his burthen]

iught to see Jesus who 11'' was; and could not for the
i , because he was little of Btature.

/ is, like (Ierod Antipas, desired t" Christ :fe) but in how differ

spirit did thei entertain this desire 1 Men carnal curiosity was the motive in the
,-,- of tie' despised publican, it was the result
• "m' m bo desired "to set w bat sort of p
that be might the better I ■ B whom he had heard bo much, and

ciplo be was alreadj so well prepared t" become.
Elastening therefore along tiie road whei I tting

, lUtth. : " ci. l.

w ' .;. LO
(<D '
1 (/

XIX.]

on st. luke's gospel. 569

in advance of the crowd, (from anion g(#) which he had found it impossible, on ac-
count of his smallness of stature, to behold the person of Christ,) he availed him-
self of one of the fruit trees which grew by the wayside to obtain a view of the Holy
One who must needs presently approach the spot. As it follows,

4 And he ran before, and climbed up into a sycamore tree to see
Him : for He was to pass that way.

Much has been written on the subject of the tree into which Zacchaeus climbed.
Its name is here literally translated " Sycamore," — a word which denotes " Fig-
mulberry." Accordingly, some have thought it was a Fig, some, a Mulberry-tree.
A great botanist thus settles the question : — Out of two hundred known species of
the Fig, only two are eatable, that in common use, {Fiats Carica,) and the inferior
kind here noticed, (Fiats Sycoynorus,) which, as its name denotes, has leaves re-
sembling those of the mulberry. " 'I was no prophet, neither was I a prophet's
son;' says the Prophet Amos, (7* ) 'but I was an herdman, and a gatherer of Syca-
more fruit:' from which, and from other passages of Scripture, it may be inferred
that this tree was of very great importance among the Jews."(/)

Screened by the foliage of such a tree, Zacchaeus may well have expected that he
should remain unseen. But he had to do with the same All-seeing Eye which had
spied Nathanael beneath the fig-tree, "before that Philip called" him. (A 1 ) Of this,
he was soon made conscious ; for it follows,

5 And when Jesus came to the place, He looked up, and saw him,
and said unto him, Zacchoeus,

(For "the Lord knoweth them that are His :"(l) "He calleth them all by their
names.") (m)

make haste, and come down ; for to day I must abide at thy house.

Zacchajus desired no more than to see Christ ; but He who does for us more
than we can either ask or think, was prepared to grant him a much greater favour,
and one for which he was little prepared. " Our Saviour comes uninvited to his
house ; for though He had not heard the word of invitation, He had already seen
the will to ask Him. "(h) Nothing but humility, like that of the Centurion, (o) had
kept Zacchaeus silent.

6 And he made haste, and came down, and received Him joyfully.

Such verses as this, are for the reader to pause at, and for his imagination to
picture. The astonishment of the man, detected through his leafy screen, when the
Mighty Stranger halted on " coming to the place," — looked up, — spied him out, —
kindly called him by his name, — and even expressed impatience that he should
come down ; with the gracious announcement that He "must needs pass this day
in his house :" then, the haste and joy with which the other obeyed the welcome
summons, — the wonder of the populace, who, a moment ago, had witnessed the
vain efforts of the man as he stood among them, to obtain even a glimpse of our
Lore's person, — and the final withdrawing of the Blessed One and His Disciples to
the house of the delighted host : — all this is matter for the heart rather than for the
pen. If the Gospel were indeed sweet to our taste, — "sweeter than honey and the
honey-comb," — we should read it more slowly ; and be made sensible that the
purely narrative portions, in their literal sense, yield abundant delight, as well as
instruction.

7 And when they saw it, they all murmured, saying, That He was
gone to be guest with a man that is a sinner.

They called him a " sinner" only because he was " a publican." The reader is
requested to refer to the second note on St. Luke xviii. 10, for some remarks on

(g) Instead of "for the press,"'it should be "from among the crowd."

(h) Amos vii. 14: where see the margin.

(/) Sir W. Hooker's "Guide to Kew Gardens." — See the note on St. Luke xvii. 6.

Ik) St. John i. 48. (I) 2 Tim. ii. 19.

(m) Ps. cxlvii. 4: compare St. John x. 3. Consider also Gen. xvi. 8.

(») Ambrose. (o) See St. Matth. viii. 8.

570 A PLAIN' OOmCBNTABY [('HAP.

this subject. There is no whatever fordoubtii

An entertainment mu8t have followed; after which we are perhaps to fancy much
of lofty teaching. What need to -ay who will have bean the most attentat e list
At last) we read, —

- Ail Zacchseus stood, ami said unto the Lord; Behold, Lord, the
half of my goods I i_ r ive to the poor; and if 1 have taken any thing
from any man by false accusation, 1 restore him fourfold.

Be '■••in- to have oome forward in presence of the assembled guests, and stand-
ing before hi-- Loan and ours, to have made this declaration of what henceforth lie
was resolved to do, in testimony of the sincerity of bis belief and repentance; a-.
well as of his hearty acceptance of the Bublime precepts to which he had been list-
ening. He may have heard our Swim b declare thai the Estate of Poverty is holy

and precious in God's sight ; that Riches are an encumbrai to him who would

enter by the "strait gate;" and that "it is more blessed to give than I
ceive."(p) Then, a- St. John Baptist was asked by the Pharisees for a rule, bade
them "exact no more than that which was appointed them, "(7) " i* obvious to Bup-

hat our S lvioi b will have discoursed to this man of Truthfulness and M
•• Behold, Loan," he therefore replies, " half of every thing 1 have, J this daj
op to the poor; and it' I retain the other half of my property, it is chiefly in order
that I may have wheivwith to fulfill the further resolution which I have m
give hark fourfold to >'\ ery one whom I have ever wronged by false accusation." . . .
On this, Williams remarks kindly, — "The expression seems to indicate thai his
trains had been comparatively innocent, in an occupation proverbial for extortion:
else, how could he restore fourfold out of the remainder?"

Concerning the proposed measure of restitution, it is to l" 1 observed that Zao-

ohsBus imposed upon himself th rerest measure enjoined by the Law concerning

any urn- convicted of theft; (as it is written, "he shall restore four Bheep for a
Bheep :) i '/•) but this •■ 1 only of him who had made away with the property

1 I stolen, "If the theft be oertainly found in his hand alive," whether " ox,
ox ass, or sheep," he was only to"] "(*) Whereas, with respect to

him who conft wed his crime, it is but said, " be shall recompense his trespass with
the principal thereof, and add onto it th* fifth part thereof and give it unto him
against whom he hath trespassed."^) Zacchseus therefore judged himself, and

everely: a pattern Barely to as all I "for if we would judge ourseh
should not Be juaged."(u)

9 And Jests said unto him, This day is salvation come to this house,
forsomuch as he also is a son of Abraham.

I- : likely that St. Luke means that OUT SaTIOUB -pake thus •• concerning"

"(/•//// ' ZacohsBus: not actually to him. Be may have turned and ad-

1 the company. Ili> words imply, that the Gospel message bad come to the
by publican's doors; and that he had closed at once with the offer of Mercy,
had therefore oome to him, on that day; tor bl >, by that

oonduot, h ed his birthright, heretofore forfeited, and shown him

true descendant of "faithful Abraham."

Cnaisr "well says, *He also;' to declare that ool only tl
justly, but those who are raised ap from b life of injustice, the -ens of

{arom ii not that he 'was,' but that he now 'i ' I ; fore, when

of among toe publicans, and bore ao likeness to riahtcous Abraham, he
wn."(y) Hence, the fitness of the words which follow:

L0 For the Bon of Man is oome to seek and to Bave that which was
lost.

■| p of the house of [sraeL"( ) Take aotioe then, that

Ciiki-1 the (i I Shepherd was " seeking" this one He preps

( 7 ) St. Luke iii. !

(0 i'\ L xxlL t.
i ' (■) i

(y) Theopbj 10 St. Matth. \.

xix.] on st. luke's gospel. 571

depart from Jericho The saying is found to recur, with the exception of one

afi'ecting word, in St. Matthew xviii. 11. But observe, that a parable immediately
follows, (in St. Matthew,) which more than supplies the omission of that word. (a)

How great a consolation to many a burdened conscience, may this entire portion
of Scripture well prove ! Dishonest gains do not exclude a man hopelessly from
the Kingdom. The door of Repentance yet remains open, — while there is life.
But then, the offer of Mercy may not be trifled with. Zacchceus acted promptly.
It is worth observing that he acted openly also.

11 And as they heard these things, He added and spake a parable,
because He was nigh to Jerusalem, and because they thought that the
Kingdom of God should immediately appear.

That is, " the Kingdom of Israel;" for compare Acts i. 6. That the Kingdom of
Messiah could not be far away, the Jews knew from prophecy ; but they had
formed a wrong notion of its nature.

Is it perhaps implied that our Saviour's announcement of the purpose of His
coming, (in verse 10,) and the allusion to Abraham which is found in verse 9, had
already awakened proud hopes in the breasts of his hearers ? as if He had declared
that it was His intention now to " gather together in one the children of God that
were scattered abroad," (b) " and to perform the oath which He sware to their father
Abraham ?"(c)

The parable of "the Pounds," which follows, and which St. Luke alone relates,
resembles in many respects the parable of " the Talents," which is peculiar to St.
Matthew's Gospel.(cZ) Yet are the two parables strikingly contrasted. Both, how-
ever, are prophecies ; and the present parable opens with the express mention of
" a Kingdom" yet future.

12 He said therefore, A certain Nobleman went into a far country
to receive for Himself a Kingdom, and to return.

He "went into afar country," (!) in order to obtain for Himself the right and
title to that Kingdom which, on His return, He should "receive:" for consider the
language of verse 15. — This is that "far country,"(e) from which the "good news"
is "as cold waters to a thirsty soul."

13 And He called His ten servants, and delivered them ten pounds,
and said unto them, Occupy till I come.

It matters nothing what is the particular sum here spoken of.) (f) The thing to
be observed is, that calling " ten of His servants," this Nobleman entrusted each
of them with the same amount, — bidding them " employ," or " trade with" it, till
His return. The knowledge of the way of Salvation, (" one Faith, one Bap-
tism,") (r/) seems to be the " pound" given to all alike. And here, one of the points
of contrast between the Parable of " the Talents," and of " the Pounds," presents
itself. See St. Matthew xxv. 15, and the note there.

Take notice, that there are Ten Servants, as there were Ten Virgins. (7;) This
was a favourite number with God's people. It seems not unlikely, however, that
the number of servants specified, so nearly corresponding with the number of the
Apostolic body, was meant to quicken the Twelve to strenuous exertion after their
Master's departure. Can we be mistaken in seeing a warning addressed to the
Traitor, in every hint which fell from the lips of Christ, of one who had proved
faithless, and who alone acted in a manner unworthy of his lofty calling? See the
note on St. Mark xiv. 25.

14 But His citizens hated Him, and sent a message after Him, say-
ing, We will not have this man to reign over us.

We shall hear more of them, and of what befell them, in verse 27. — Was it perhaps
especially the victims of persecution, — St. Stephens, St. James, and the rest, —

(a\ See St. Matthew xviii. 12. (h) St. John xi. 52. (c) St. Luke i. 72, 73.

[d] St. Matthew xxv. 14 to 30. (e) Proverbs xxv. 25.

(/) It is called a mina, which is rather more than 31. See the margin of a reference Bible.
(</) Ephes. iv. 5. (7i) St. Matthew xxv. 1.

572 A plain COMMENTARY. [ciIAP.

II .•■■■ii, and whose souls carried into the unseen world this
message from those "of whom, as concerning the flesh, Christ came,"(i) and who
were, therefore, " His citizens?" When the ■' m( l. " We bave do King

but Caesar;" and " "Write not, The King_ of thi J they did nothing else in

We will not have this Man to rule over us, even before Bis de-
parture.

B the Parable may not be thus limited in its application. The disobedient in
all ages find bere their picture; and, in verse 27, they read their final doom. \
manj as refuse subjection to the yoke of Christ, Bend the sam after Him:

and this will continue to tl ml. See Psalm ii. 2, • ,

15 And it came to pass, that when He was returned, having received
the Kingdom, then lie commanded these servants to be called unto
Him, ti» whom He had given the money, that lie might know how much
every man had gained by trading.

And thus we are transported at onoe to the end of the World, and to the g
Day of Accounts. Then will " the Kingdom" ha\ e " come ;" for I !hrisi w ill nave
"received" of the Father " the heathen for His inheritance, and the uttermost
parts of the eartb for His possession."^) Then will be "given Qim Dominion,
and Glory, and a Kingdom, that all people, nations, and languages, Bhall
Sim: His Dominion is an Everlasting Dominion, which Bhall not pass away,
His Kingdom that which shall not be destroyed."^)

16 Then came the first, saying, Lord, Thy pound hath gained ten
pounds.

Spoken ai Servant ol Christ! "Thy pound hath gained;" as

scious that it was GOD who had * * -_r i n * ■ i » the increase."(n] So, after saying "1
laboured more abundantly than they all." St Paul suddenly checks himself, and
adds, — "Yel not /. but th I i GOD which was with me."(p)

17 And He said unto him. "Well, thou good servant : because thou

hast been faithful in a ?ery little, have thou authority over ten citi

II v. mighty a reward is bere hinted at ! The man who before had to toil, as a
servant, with a Bingle piece "I money, now reigns, lik>' a King, over ten oities.(p)
Verily, huh was "judgment given to tin- Saints of the Most High; and the time
that the 9 ' . I im !"('/)

And we may uotioe that the riches and at resources of Christ's King-

dom are bere not obscurely binted at, although in figurative language: a spur,
surds, to increased exertion while yet our Loan "delays His coining 1"

And the second canic, saying, Lord, Thy pound hath gained five

pounds.

be uses the same pious language as the former "good servant" They
to bave been of one mind, and to bave said day by day as they toiled,- ' s
unto us, <> Lord, not unto us, but unto Thy Nana gim thi praisi ■'"(/)

19 And He Baid likewise to Him, Be thou also over five citi<

ird, we find, was proportioned to the work. — Onlyoi therservant is

♦ "hi"!*. The remaining seven may have gained some more, some less. But these
three n pn - at classi i, the very faithful, the very faithless, and those \\h>> have
simply none welL The reader is requested to read the not S "■ .17.

forward, "with that self-confidence over round in
i

I another came, saying, Lord, behold, hen it Thy pound,

B ■ John she Ii and IL

Dai i IL 1 1. (m) i • (••) 1 Cor. xv. m.

( 7 ) Dan. \
(r) Ps. ezv. 1. " '■■ XXr. II.

XIX.] ON ST. LUKE'S GOSPEL. 573

which I have kept laid up in a napkin : for I feared Thee, because Thou
art an austere man : Thou takest up that Thou layedst not down, and
reapest that Thou didst not sow.

22, 23, 24 And He saith unto him, Out of thine own mouth will I
judge thee, thou wicked servant. Thou knewest that I was an austere
man, taking up that I laid not doAvn, and reaping that I did not sow :
wherefore then gavest not thou My money into the bank, that at My
coming I might have required Mine own with usury ? And He said
unto them that stood by, Take from him the pound, and give it to him
that hath ten pounds.

The resemblance of these five verses to as many in the parable of " the Talents"
in St. Matthew's Gospel, (xxv. 24 to 28,) is very striking. The reader is referred
to the notes on St. Matthew xxv. 24 and 27. — A Talent is too large a sum, (being
nearly 2007.) to be " laid up in a napkin ;" it must needs be buried in the Earth.
Hence the variety of circumstance between the two Parables.

25 (And they said unto Him, Lord, he hath ten pounds.)

The meaning of these words, it is hard to discover. Do the Angels, then, (for it
is they who " stand by," and execute the Lord's commands,) testify surprise at the
directions given them? They seem to say, — Nay, but he hath already ten, of these,
and hath been set over as many cities. He therefore hath no need of more. . . But
it is hard to see why such a saying was introduced into the Parable. Indeed there
are several points in the Parables of " the Pounds" and " the Talents" which have
never yet been satisfactorily explained.

26, 27 For I say unto you, That unto every one which hath, shall be
given ; and from him that hath not, even that he hath shall be taken
away from him.(^) But those Mine enemies, which would not that I
should reign over them, bring hither, and slay them before Me.

This recalls what went before, in verse 14; and reminds us that the present Para-
ble is a complex one. It will be observed that nothing is said of any punishment
which awaited the unprofitable servant, as in the other Parable.(tt) His punish-
ment here seems only to have been the forfeiture of that which he had. Attention
is directed instead to the doom of those rebellious citizens, who sent the message of
defiance recorded in verse 14.

28, 29 And when He had thus spoken, He went before, ascending up
to Jerusalem.

30 And it came to pass, when He was come nigh to Bethphage and
Bethany, at the Mount called the mount of Olives, he sent two of His
Disciples, saying, Go ye into the village over against you ; in the which
at your entering ye shall find a colt tied, whereon yet never man sat :
loose him, and bring him hither.

St. Mark and St. Luke are careful to notice that on this ass' colt, " never man
sat." The mystical meaning of this statement will be found fully noticed in the
note on St. Mark xi. 2.

31 And if any man ask you, Why do ye loose him ? thus shall ye
say unto him, Because the Lord hath need of him.

32, 33, 34, 35, 36 And they that were sent went their way, and
found even as He had said unto them. And as they were loosing the
colt, the owners thereof said unto them, Why loose ye that colt ? And
they said, The Lord hath need of him. And they brought him to

(0 Sec the note on St. Matth. xxv. 29. (it) See St. Matth. xxv. 30.

574 A PLAIN' OOMMBNTABY [CHAP.

Ji:-i a : and they east their garments upon the colt, and they set J.
thereon. And as ll«' went, they spread their clothes in the way.

•''.", 88, 89, I" And when He was come nigh, even now at the descent
of the Mount of Olives, the whole multitude of the Disciples began to
rejoice and praise God with a loud voice Cur all the mighty works that
they had Been, Baying, Blessed be the King that cometh in the Name of
the Lord: Peace in Heaven, and Glory in the highest. And some of
the Pharisees from among the multitude said unto Him, Master, rebuke

Thy Disciples. And He answered and said unto them, I tell you that
if these should hold their peace, the stones would immediately cry out.

What a Boulnstirring declaration ! proceeding, a^ it does, from the very Author of
Creation. II >w are we reminded of the mysterious pangs which boob after Bhook
the Earth; when the Sun underwent an eclipse, and the whole framework <>f
Nature became convulsed with portentous anguish! "Surely, it' the Lord of
Angels, amid Hi- Humiliation, was not to receive even this acknowledgment from
the poor, the very lifeless stones must re-echo back the Voice of Prophecy which had
Bounded from the beginning of the Worldl"

41 And when lie was come near, lie beheld the City,

Which lay beautifully epread before Sim, covering the whole of the rising ground

on the other Bide of the valley. The Temple crowned the sacred beight ; and the

everlasting hills stood run ml about, — an emblem of His own and) ing Love.(x) How

irious is the Borrow which we are permittednezt to witness ! " He beheld the

City,"-

4:2 and wept over it, Baying, If thou hadst known, even thou, at least
in this thy day, the things which belong unto thy peace! but now they
are hid from thine eyes.

Thai is, "0 that thou hadsl known 1" "This thy Day," — that is, the day
told in Prophecy, as that on which thy King should visit thee.(y)

43 For the days shall come upon thee, that thine enemies shall

a tivueh about thee, ami eompass thee round, and keep thee in on every
side,

I ere is more on this Bubject in St. Luke x\i. 20.

44 and shall lay thee even with the ground, and thy children within
thee; and they shall not leave in thee one stone upon another; because
thou knowest not the time of thy visitation.

The allusion in out Blessed Lord's words to the language in which the prophet
Isaiah dem anced "Woe to Ariel, to Ariel, the City where David dwelt, "(z) Beems
unmistakable. But what is principally broughl to mind, is our Sn km b's own pas-
sionate lamentation over the rlolj City, recorded in a former chapter ;(a) and which,
like the present place, intimates thai the Day of Grace and Probation had at lasi
i Jerusalem for ever. Many a time would He have gathered her children
together, <■ ■ en as a hen gathereth her chickens under her wings, — and she " would
•in licial blindness had therefore overtaken the City. The things whioh be-
i iintu her ponce were now hid from ber e
I ce thai the Sw [oi i: weeps, even while foretelling the otter destruction

uaalem : somewhat as Joseph, (His type,) wept, even while he bound Simeon
of his brethren. (6) He does not however withdraw Bis threat
judgments, tremendous though they 1"', on that account. Very terrible is II ■
wrath, although it be " the wrath of tin I..\Mi:.'\ I \ > blind as n

I (.v) sVr St. Matth. \\ : . liftfa \\i\. i

: Luko xiU. i. wiii. ::; |

. 1 8.

xx.] on st. luke's gospel. 575

see the private and personal teaching of the text ? To the spiritual Jerusalem, as
well as to the very least of " her children within her," doubtless God declares His
Almighty Power most chiefly in showing Mercy and Pity: but does He therefore
cease to be a God of Justice also ? And have not they the time of their Visitation ?

45, 46 And He went into the Temple, and began to cast out them
that sold therein, and them that bought ; saying unto them, It is writ-
ten, My house is the House of Prayer : but ye have made it a den of
thieves.

Several remarks will be found on this incident and these sayings in the notes on
St. Matth. xxi. 12, 13 ; and especially on St. Mark xi. 16, 17.

47, 48 And He taught daily in the Temple. But the Chief Priests
and the Scribes and the chief of the people sought to destroy Him, and
could not find what they might do : for all the people were very atten-
tive to hear Him.

The expression in the original is striking. It denotes that the people "hung
upoii" the words of Christ. See the last note on St. Matthew vii.

CHAPTER XX.

1 Christ avoucheth His authority by a question of John's Baptism. 9 The Parable
of the Vineyard. 19 Of giving tribute to Ccesar. 27 He convinceth the Saddu-
cees that denied the Resurrection. 41 How Christ is the Son of David. 45 He
warneth His Disciples to beware of the Scribes.

1, 2 And it came to pass, that on one of those days, as He taught
the people in the Temple, and preached the Gospel, the chief Priests
and the Scribes came upon Him with the elders, and spake unto Him,
saying, Tell us, by what authority doest Thou these things ? or who is
he that gave Thee this authority ?

The expression used in verse 1, denotes that these assailants of the Holy One
came suddenly into His presence with their imperious demand. Our Lord's reply
has already been the subject of sufficient comment in the notes on the two earlier
Gospels, — as will be presently indicated.

3, 4 And He answered and said unto them, I will also ask you one
thing ; and answer Me : The Baptism of John, was it from Heaven, or
of men ?

5, 6, 7 And they reasoned with themselves, saying, If we shall say,
From Heaven ; He will say, Why then believed ye him not ? but and

57G A PLAIN OOMHBNTABT [cnAP.

if we • .. I >:' men ; all tlic people will stone us: for they be |

that John was a Prophet. And they answered, that they could not

tell whence it was.

8 And Jesi B Baid unto them, Neither tell I you by what authority

I du these things.

I erning all this, the reader is referred to what has been alread in the

Commentary on St. Matthew and St. Mark.(a) — The parable of "the Vineyard Let
cut to Bosbandmen" follows, which i- fonnd in all the three Gospels.

9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 1"> Then began He to speak to the people this
parable : a certain man planted a Vineyard, and 1ft it forth to husband-
men, and went into a far Country for a long time And at the Beason
lie sent a servant to the husbandmen, that they should give Him of the
fruit of the Vineyard : hut the husbandmen heat him, and sent him
away empty. And again lie sent another servant: and they heat him
also, and entreated him shamefully, and sent him away empty. An I
again He sent a third: and they wounded him also, and Cast him out.
Then said the Lord of the Vineyard, What shall I do? I will send My
beloved Son: it may he they will reverence Him when they see Him.
But when the husbandmen saw Him, they reasoned among themselves,
saying, This is the Heir: come, let us kill Him, that the inheritance
may be our's. So they cast Him out of the Vineyard, and killed
J I tin.

lti "What therefore shall the Lord of the Vineyard do unto them?

II shall come and destroy these husbandmen, and shall give the Vine-
yard to others.

And when they heard if. they said, God forbid.

Concerning this remarkable Parable, which is none other than a Prophec
much bas been already Baid, that it must suffice t" refer the reader t<> the notes ■ d
St Matthew, — ui. 33 to 11: and on St. Mark xii. 1 to 9. " Gon, the great Boose-
holder, was pleased t<> mark off, as it were, one part of the Earth to be more parti-
cularly Bis own: ll«- 'planted a Vineyard,' when 'He chose Jacob unto Bimself
and Israel for Bis own possession.' (6) This \ ineyard was k>-\>i separate from tin;
of the world. The rite of Circumcision, the whole of the Ceremonial I. aw . was
the 'hedge' round about it, which shutout the Gentiles. It had its ' wine-]
in the altar of burnt offerings, ami it- 'tower' in the Temple. But what fruit 'lid
tlir Vineyard produce to film that planted it ?"(c) The rest of tin' Parable i>
Prophecj .

The only circumstantial difference to which the reader's attention -hall ho
directed is, that I" n tin- Parable i^ represented a- spoken "to the people,"(<i)
rather than, (as in tii' 1 former instance,) to their teachers.

17 And 1 Ie beheld them.

Thai i . II' looked them Bteadily in the face; a- Hi Divine manner seei
have been when II'' was about to deliver any saying of unusual solemnity, —

and Baid, What is this then that i- written, The Btone which the
builders rejected, the Bame is become the Head of the corner I Who-

!■ -hall fall upon that stone shall he broken; hut on whomsoever
it -hall fall, it will grind him to powder.

The reader ii referred to the notes on St. Matthew xxi. l4^andon St. Mark

xii. II.

ffl

d St. Matth. wi. :■:. and St. Mark xl. 28, ! 0, SI, u d
,4 (c) Dr. -oi'l lti.

XX.]

ON ST. LUKE'S GOSPEL. 577

19 And the chief Priests and the Scribes the same hour sought to
lay hands on Him ; and they feared the people : for they perceived
that He had spoken this Parable against them.

20 And they watched Him, and sent forth spies, which should feign
themselves just men, that they might take hold of His words, that so
they might deliver Him unto the power and authority of the Governor.

21, 22 And they asked Him, saying, Master, we know that Thou
sayest and teachest rightly, neither acceptest Thou the person of any,
but teachest the way of God truly : is it lawful for us to give tribute
unto Csesar, or no ?

They felt sure that He would return a negative answer to their question : for
they had, with perfect truth, set forth the fearless character of our Lord's teaching;
and they knew that He was influenced solely by regard for God's Honour, without
any admixture of worldly considerations. They cared not, however, which way His
answer might incline. For if He allowed the payment of Tribute to their Roman
Masters, they foresaw that His reputation with the people would be at an end; if,
on the contrary, He forbad the practice, they would have a valid charge to bring
against Him before Pilate, the Roman Governor of the Province. — Concerning the
character of these assailants of Christ, whom both St. Matthew and St. Mark de-
scribe as "Pharisees and Herodians," the reader is referred to the note on St.
Matthew xxii. 17.

23 But He perceived their craftiness, and said unto them, AVhy
tempt ye Me ?

" Ye hypocrites I" adds St. Matthew ;(e) and such, they truly were ; seeking, as
"a ground of accusation against Him, that which of all things they most desired
themselves, namely, the exemption of their nation from Tribute." Here, again,
were men who sought to " procure His condemnation by the Romans as a rebel
against Cassar ; whereas, if He had possessed that character, and sustained it with
vigour, they would themselves have flocked eagerly to His standard. He found
means, however, so to answer their inquiry as at the same time to display^ their
hypocrisy and to elicit the Truth, in sight of that very multitude"(/) whose indig-
nation they sought to draw down upon Him : saying,

24 Show Me a penny. Whose image and superscription hath it ?
They answered and said, Caesar's.

They brought him a piece of money, called denarius, — a Roman coin, of silver,
(worth about Id. or 8d.)— which bore upon it the name and portrait of Tiberius
Caesar.

" The coin which they affected to scruple about paying into the Roman Treasury,
itself bore the Emperor's effigy and legend, — the mark of his sovereignty, and their
subjection. This money they hesitated not to circulate among themselves in all
matters of traffic and exchange ; and they well knew the import of its image and
superscription. The absurdity of scrupling to withhold from a sovereignty thus
acknowledged, the necessary homage of obeying its import ; as well as the consis-
tency of such a payment with the higher claims of the one supreme and unchange-
able Lord of &\},"(g) — our Saviour proceeds to make manifest in the famous words
which follow.

25 And He said unto them, Render therefore unto Csesar the things
which be Caesar's, and unto God the things which be God's.

" This sentence, which confounded and baffled those blind guides of the people,
extends further in its application than to the mere question in reply to which it
was given. Since Tribute here represents the whole of that allegiance of which it
is an essential part and symbol, we may view our Lord's sentence as embracing
these two propositions : — First, that there are certain duties which we owe to Cassar,

(e) St. Matth. xxii. 18. (/) Dr. W. H. Mill. {</) Abridged from Dr. W. H. Mill.

578 A TLAIN COMMENTARY [CHAP.

ndly, that these dati com-

Srehended, cannot interfere with those to which they Bhould erer be united, the
uties which we owe directly and immediately to Gon."(A)

26 And they could do! take hold of His words before the people:
and they marvelled :it His answer, and held their p<

27, 28 Then came to Sim certain of the Sadducees, which deny that
there ia any Resurrection; and they asked Him, saying, Masl
wrote unto us, It' any man's brother » I i «.• , having a wife, and he die
without children, that his brother Bhould take his wife, and raise up
seed untO his brother.

They allude to the Law round in Deuteronomy xxv. 5 ; which prescribed tl
next oi kin Bhould marry the widow of a deceased kin-man. under the circui

oken of. "And it shall be," (so ran the law,) "that the firstborn which she
beareth shall succeed in the name of his brother which is dead, that his nai
not put out of Israel." It was a remarkal aent, truly; thi

tion of which was to Bhadow forth the Doctrine of the Resurrection of the I
This has been more fully shown in the note on St. Mark xii.

2 '. 30, 31, 32, 33 There were therefore seven brethren: and the
first took a wife, and died without children. And the second took her
to wife, and he died childless. And the third took her ; and in like

manner the .-oven also: and they left no children, and died. L
all, the woman died also. Therefore in the Resurrection whoe
them is she? for seven had her to wife.

84, 85, 86 And answering said unto them, The children of

this World marry, and are given in marriage: but they which Bhall be
accounted worthy to obtain that World, and the Resurrection from the
dead, neither marry, nor are given in marriage: neither can they die
any more :

Rather, neither can then tie any more:" by which words our Saviour

assigns the object of Holy Matrimony, -which chiefly is the procreation of chU-
in order to supply the Losses whicb Death occasions. Ami of thi-. t ho Church
hiu! to remind us, in the Marriage Berri

for tiny arc equal unto the Angels; and are the children of G

being the children of the Resurrection.

'■('. the first-born from the dead ;'(t) and we, ' the children of the Resur-

..' The Spirit of Christ abiding in us maketb us the members of Christ;
and by the Bame Spirit, we have a full right and title to rise with our Head,"(A-)

•".7. 88 Now, that the dead are raised, even M 1 at the

bush, when he calleth the Lord the God of Abraham, and the God of
I !, and the God of Jacob. For Be ia not a Goi f the dead, but
of the living: for all live unto Him.

r Loan's answi i imply that the Patriarchs had Dot, and Deeded not,

any i i re - declaration of this doctrine ; for that an affi and a due

fijijiroi,.ii i ,,,r, bad in these words the fullest assurance that it was

ilc of rccen in-.'

"At the bush," denotes that section of 8 ripture which contains the history of

M -. because be wrote that history, is here said, to nave

i >, the God of Abraham," «V'\ : but God was, of course, the Speaker.

Our Savioi k is, in fact, explaining now the words whicb He s]

red to th< for an

D W. II. Mill. i 18.

(k) 13i>. Pearson. (I) Willi:..

XX.]

ON ST. LUKE'S GOSPEL. 579

exposition of the preceding most precious portion of the Gospel. It shall suffice,
in addition, to call attention to the fact that many more hints are supplied in Holy
Scripture of the Future Life than is commonly supposed. How often are we re-
minded of its joyous character ;(m) — of its social aspect,(n) (if the expression be
allowable ;) — of the perfection to which every earth relation, (as that which subsists
between a Pastor and his flock,) (o) will then attain ! In the former chapter, the
enlarged sphere of stewardship then to be revealed, was not obscurely indicated.(jp)
In this place, the ennobled and exalted nature of the Body, is as plainly declared.

39 Then certain of the Scribes answering, said, Master, Thou hast
well said.

By comparing the present Gospel, with those of St. Matthew and St. Mark, it
will be found that the saying of the Scribes here recorded has reference to a por-
tion of narrative which St. Luke omits, — namely, our Lord's reply to a Scribe who
had asked Him which is the first, or great commandment ?(g) All the three Evan-
gelists concur in the statement that, " from that day forth," the Holy One was never
more molested with cpiestions by His adversaries. As it follows, —

40 And after that, they durst not ask Him any question at all.

"We next behold our Lord, — who has already put to silence the chief Priests,
Scribes, and Elders, (r) the Pharisees and the Herodians, the Sadducees, and last
of all the Scribes, or expounders of the Law, — Himself addressing a question to the
most conspicuous of His enemies. They have hitherto assailed Mint. It is now
His turn to be the assailant.

And surely, we have grown too familiar with the contents of the Gospel, if we
can approach the words which He employed on an occasion like this, without the
deepest reverence and attention. Before 'Him lay the whole volume of Inspiration.
He knew its manifold resources, for His Divine Spirit had inspired it in every part;
and out of all that various store, He was about to select somewhat which might at
once silence His opponents, and edify the bystanders.

We find that, "when the Pharisees had heard that He had put the Sadducees to
silence, they were gathered together ;"(s) and, while they were yet "gathered to-
gether, Jesus asked them, saying, What think ye of Christ ? whose Son is He 1"
(This cmotation from St. Matthew's Gospel is made here, in order to render the
more concise narrative of St. Luke which follows, fully intelligible.) "They say
unto Him, The Son of David."(£)

There is nothing unexpected in the reply ; which, in fact, expressed the general
belief of all the nation.(w) At the same time, the words were used in a merely hu-
man sense. Our Saviour does not blame the Pharisees therefore because they con-
fess Him to be the Son of David ; but because they did not believe Him to be the
Sox of God. Now, it seems to have been His design, in this brief dialogue, to " lift
up their hearts ;" and to suggest to as many as had " ears to hear," that far more
is implied in Scripture concerning the nature of Messiah than they supposed. It
has been truly pointed out that one " great source of the unbelief which filled these
Pharisees, was a low sense of the Messiah ; and pride in a literal but very superfi-
cial knowledge of the Scriptures."(a;) Still addressing the Pharisees, therefore, our
Saviour turns Himself to the populace, (who may be supposed to have watched
the progress of His recent dialogue with wonder, and marked its close with admi-
ration,) —

41, 42, 43 And He said unto them, How say they that Christ is
David's Son? and David himself saith in the Book of Psalms, The
Lord said unto my Lord, Sit Thou on My right hand, till I make
Thine enemies Thy footstool.

(God the Father is addressing God the Son.)

(m) St. Matt. xxv. 21, — where see the note. (n) St. Matt. viii. 11, — where see the note,
(o) 1 Thess. ii. 19. (p) St. Luke xix. 17, 19: also the notes on St. Luke xvi. 12.

(q) See St. Matthew xxii. 36. St. Mark xii. 28 and 32. (r) St. Luke xx. 1.

(s) St. Matth. xxii. 34. {t) St. Matth. xxii. 41, 42.

(u) St. Matth. ix. 27 : xii. 23 : xv. 22: xx. 30, 31: xxi. 9, 15, &c. (x) Williams.

■>0 A PLAIN COMMBNTABT [< IIAP.

1 1 Davi I tb Jleth Him Lord, how is He then hi S

Our I. i.i' here quotes tin' f the ox. F aim, which propheei

••Tip- Kingdom, the Priesthood, the Conquest, and the Passion "1 Christ ;"(y)
and declares I *• ■ 1 1 1 thai David was 1 1 1 « - author of thai Psalm, and that tin- Psalmist
was inspired bj 1 1 * * - Bolt Ghost while In- wrote it.(:) The pi is, in fact,

three times quoted,(a) (beside and once referred to, in the

course of the New Testament,(6) as descriptive of our Loan's subsequent ezalta-
tion.(i Does there no! seem to be a peculiar adaptation of the text quoted) to 1 1 1 « *
circumstances nnder which it was nowuttered? Surrounded by enemies whom
He bad even now Bubdued with " the sword of His mouth,"(a*} does not 1 1 * « - Divine
Speaker seem to imply that what bad been that day witnessed was but the prelude
and D minion yet future; when He who was now enthroned only in
the hearts of a few Disciples, [for St. Mark declares that the people "heard Him
gladly ,")(e) Bhould occupy the Right Hand of tl • M High?

I >u i the suggestion which lias been already offered, (in a note on St. Mark xii.
27,) here recurs ; namely, that there is reason to suspecl that we ourselves " know
not th" Scriptures," nor indeed that we thoroughly understand our Lord's inter-

tion of them. For it is easy to Bee what answer a captious carnal i
the modern school would have returned to our Lord's inquiry. David, (it might
be said,) does indeed speak of his illustrious Descendant, as his "Lord;" but is not
that only because Chrisi was to be so much greater a King than David 1 Christ
i- still David's Son, because He is David's D dant.

Ami indeed it must be admitted that our Lord's question "does not, by the

referred to, solve any difficulty; but rather throws out a difficulty which

might arrest the attention of s is to know the Truth, such as would

lead him to Bee there was something far higher and more mysterious about the

in than he supposed <'ur Lord's words were a clue, by which Faith

might apprehend tli" secret nature of the Kingdom. To Reason, they j
nothing: but to Faith, they opened lofty views <>i tin- I >i\ im- Economy in the G -
pel : a- far surpassing anything which Reason could have inferred, or imagination
could conceive, a- Heaven is above Karth. "(./')

"And I think," adds tin' excellent Writer hitherto quoted,

illy, that they who • it ami express warrant in the words of Scrip-

fcure as concerning the Doctrine "I' 1 1 1 « - Trinitt, ami the Like, will find nothi
this kind promised in our Lord's Teaching; but, on the contrary, hints and allu-
sions thrown 'an. which He, by and by, in Hi- Church, or in the ways of a [.arti-
cular Providence, will solve to those who will obey Him : ami to th

45, 16, 47 Then in the audience of all the people He Baid unto His
Disciples, Beware of the Scribes, which desire to walk in long]
ami love greetings in the markets, and the highest seats in the syna-
gogues, and the chief rooms at tVasts; which devour widows' li"
and for a Bhow make long prayers: the Bame shall receive greater
damnation.

These sayings form hut a pari of the loir_ r Discourse which our 1
to deliver at this time, — the weighty denunciations which occupy an entire chapter
G pel, and which will be found fully commented upon elsev
irticularly St. Matth. xxiii. ■">, 6, ami 1 I.
Thus ends this remarkable portion red narrative; remarkabl

sentii i -li of assaults made by carnally-minded nun against the Sw iour

of tlm World, and which were all attended with the same result Not onlj "in
ne ne! which the\ hid privily, i- their foot taken,' me fresh i

ne Truth i- vindicated at ever} -•■ p, A thoughtful writer ha- said,—
ciroumstan atally out of another; ami new inquiries take place with

rit and temper. But whatever the natui

•

M 'th. x\\\ i

l
((/) l;
(/) Will... . (.j) Psalm i.\. i ...

XXI.]

ON ST. LUKE'S GOSPEL. 581

the occasion at the same time of answering what is in the heart of the Speaker, of
instructing the promiscuous crowd, and of putting forth to all ages the highest
truths of God. And perhaps what here takes place in the Temple is a type of God's
Providence generally in His Church, to be shown forth in its History : — that by
disputes and discussions and questionings among those that engage in them under
various feelings and motives, (and these sometimes not the most pure,) others of a
temper more meek and teachable, are instructed ; and the Church of all ages is
furnished with great and saving Doctrines." (z)

CHAPTER XXI.

1 Christ commendeth the 'poor Widow. 5 He foretclleth the destruction of the Tem-
ple, and of the city of Jerusalem. 25 The signs also which shall be before the last
Day. 34 He exhorteth them to be watchful.

The truly affecting incident with which the present chapter commences, is found
only in the Gospels of St. Mark(a) and St. Luke. The place where the History of
" the poor" (or, as she may fairly be termed, " the munificent") " widow," occurs,
is highly remarkable ; for take notice that it stands midway between the weighty
discourses of the former chapter, and the tremendous prophecies contained in the
present: so that it occupies the little halting place between our Lord's leave-taking
of His enemies, and His anticipation of the vengeance which was to be wrought
upon them, — first, by His avenging armies ; next, by His legions of Angels. It im-
mediately follows His refutation of chief Priests, Scribes, and Elders, (6) — of Phari-
sees and Herodians, Sadducees and Lawyers ;(c) together with His eight withering
denunciations of Woe against those " Scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites," whose
enmity He had borne with so long;(cZ) and it immediately precedes His prophecies
concerning the Destruction of Jerusalem and the End of the World. But before
entering upon that far-sighted prophecy, the whole tenor of which shows that the
Blessed Speaker's eye was already filled with images of magnificence and grandeur
unspeakable, — the destinies of the whole Human Race, and the consummation of
all things, — being now about to leave the Temple, St. Mark says that He took His
seat "over against the Treasury;" (that is, opposite to the great money-chest of the
Temple, which stood " on the right side as one comcth into the House of the
Lord," — the work of Jehoiada the priest, in the reign of King Jehoash :){e)

1 And He looked up, and saw the rich men casting their gifts into the
treasury.

Are we perhaps to understand from this expression, (which also occurs in many
other places of the Gospel,) that our Saviour had been sitting till now with down-
cast eyes ? Be this as it may, — Looking up, He " beheld how the people cast money
into the Treasury ; and many that Avere rich, cast in much :"(/)

(z) Williams. (n) St. Mark xii. 41 to 44. (b) St. Luke xx. 1.

(e) 2 Kings xii. 9. (/) St. Mark xii. 41.

A PLAIN COMMLNTAUY [CHAP.

2 And He Baw also a certain poor Widow casting in thither two

then, amid all the v f IIi> Soman Body, and the anguish ot Sis

Human Soul, — amid griefs unrepealed and bitterness of Spirit inscrutable, — the
l. • Heaven and Earth was at leisure to sit down and watch the ways of "tie
of the humblest of His creatures 1 II -.•.'■ ■ Sim the Destruction 01 tin
pie, and the fall of Jerusalem ; the wreck of Nature,*and the crash <'f" Worlds, and

tting u]> of the great White Throne, and the gathering together "I all the
Tribes of the Earth : all this, Se saw. But "He saw ah

and it was Hie ]>i\inr pleasure to scrutinize her act, and weigh it in a balance, and
to pronounce upon it, calmh and at length, as if Life and Death hung upon the
the issue. " Se called onto Sim Bis Disciples,"(a) —

3, 4 And lie said, Of a truth I say unto yon. that this poor Widow
hath cast in more than they all; for all these have of their abundance
in unto the offerings of God: but she of her penury hath cast in
all the living that she had.

The language of our Lord is even stronger. They had given of what they had
oyer and al , of her Bhort supply.

Si. carefully then arc the little thh m ! So true also is it that lie
seeth Dot as .Man Beethl What is remarkable, the days of the Temple were num-
bered. The offerings, even of "the rich men," w< re no Longer of any
avail. But the Bum oast in by this very ] r Widow, could not, under any circumstan-
ces, from its ex< ding smallness, have been of any real use. itwasbul ■ > thing i

And yei we find it attracted the notice of the Loan of all Creation, and drew from
Jlim words of loftiest praise. Learn from thi<, to mistrust the reasoning, (hi i

filausible it may sound,) of those who would discourage offerii I forGon'a

[onour. Learn also, (and from Bis own lips,) the manner in which Be who weighs
act- of munificence in a heavenly balance, forms Sis estimate of their importance
and value. . . . For a few words more on this subject, see the last note on St.

Mark xii.

The present Evangelist ' eful, like St. Mark, 'A) and still mere St Mat-

thew//) to point "ut that the conversation which follows took place n hen theB
Company had left tie when our 8avkhtr indeed had " departed" from it,

— never to enter it< courts again. The Disciples appear to have dh
1 iitie.ii to the ho of which the Temple was l>nilt.(/,) and to the

royal offerings which it contained, — raoh as arc alluded to in Judith x\i. 19, and -
Maccabees \. L6: Lz. 16.

5, fi And as Borne spake of the Temple, how it was adorned with
g Uv stones and gifts, Be said, At/or these things which ye behold,

iays will come, in the which there shall not be left one Btone upon
another, that shall not be thrown down.

"This prophecy of the total overthrow of buildings, which at the time when the
prophecy was uttered seemed to defy assault, was fulfilled to the very letter in forty
From that very time. Tims, who conducted the siege, had given orders that
the Temple should be preserved ; but one of the soldiers, moved, (as the Jewial 1 1 -•
t < ■ r i .- 1 1 1 Josephu divine impulse, set it on fire, and every effort I

tinguish tl • is ineffectual." The Reader is referred to the notes on St.

- Mark xiii. '2.

7 And they b keel Bim, saying, Master, but when shaE these things
ind whal sign will there be when th< shall come I

I ax ef their comber are found to have approached our Loan with this question,

II " nt of Olives :(/) and to them, apart from tl

our Loan delivered the stupendous predictions which ensue. St. Andrew on this

II (h) St. Mark xiii. 1. f»1 Bl ■ . I.

(4 Mark xiii. 1. (l) Bt -Mark xti

XXI.] ON ST. LUKE'S GOSPEL. 583

great occasion is admitted to share the privilege of those other three most favoured
of our Lord's Disciples, — St. Peter, St. James, and St. John. Well may the whole
company of the Disciples have been disquieted by the sentence of desolation which
they had just heard their Lord pronounce upon the beautiful structure which lay
full in view before them, — covered with plates of gold, and of a dazzling whiteness.
" It had been so sanctified by the Almighty in ancient days, and their Religion was
so bound up with that spot, that they looked upon it with an awful reverence beyond
what we can understand."(»i) They are found to have asked Him two questions.
(1st.) When these great buildings should be overthrown ; and what sign there should
be when these things should come to pass? (2ndly.) — What sign there should be
of Christ's Coming, and of the end of the World? St. Luke only records the
former of these inquiries, — as will be found fully explained in the note on St. Mat-
thew xxiv. 3.

8, 9 And He said, Take heed that ye he not deceived : for many
shall come in My Name, saying, I am CHRIST ; and the time
draweth near : go ye not therefore after them. But when ye shall hear
of Avars and commotions, he not terrified : for these things must first
come to pass : hut the end is not by and by.

That is, — "But not immediately [cometh] the end : for nation shall rise against
nation," &c, as in the two earlier Gospels ; where see the notes. (?i)

10, 11 Then said he unto them, Nation shall rise against nation, and
kingdom against kingdom : and great earthquakes shall be in divers
places, and famines, and pestilences : and fearful sights and great signs
shall there be from Heaven.

" These are the beginnings of birth-pangs," — as it is elsewhere added.(o) And
all these things actually happened before the Destruction of the City and Temple of
Jerusalem. Civil dissensions, and hostile movements abounded ; the famine fore-
told by Agabus, "which came to pass in the days of Claudius Csesar,"(p) made
itself severely felt in Judea ;(q) while in Jerusalem, many actually perished for want
of food. Pestilence is known ever to follow at the heels of Famine. During the
extremities of the siege, these two scourges prevailed to an extent which was alto-
gether appalling. Many earthquakes are recorded to have taken place, throughout
the East ; while the portents and prodigies which are described by an eye-witness,
(who knew nothing of the Gospel, nor would have believed it had he known it,)
were regarded by the people themselves as unmistakable signs of something tremen-
dous which was to follow. A flaming meteor, like a fiery sword, hung over the
city by a space of a year : one night, a radiance like the light of noon, shone about
the Temple and altar, for half an hour's space : a heifer, as it was being led to
sacrifice, brought forth a lamb in the Temple : the eastern gate, which was of brass,
and so heavy that twenty men could scarcely shut it, although secured by deep bolts,
swung open at midnight of its own accord. Josephus mentions one more prodigy,
which he admits would be thought a fable, but for the evidence on which it rests.
Chariots and troops of armed soldiers were seen at sunset, careering in the clouds,
and besieging cities in the air. The Roman Historian Tacitus records the same
thing.

12, 13 But before all these, they shall lay their hands on you, and
persecute you, delivering you up to the synagogues, and into prisons,
being brought before Kings and Rulers for My Name's sake. And it
shall turn to you for a testimony.

That is, " It will afford you an opportunity of bearing witness to your Reli-
gion."^-)

14, 15 Settle it therefore in you hearts, not to meditate before what

(m) Williams. (n) On St. Matth. xxiv. 5, and St. Mark xiii. 6.

(o) St. Mark xiii. 8. Compare St. Mattk. xxiv. 8. (p) Acts xi. 28.

(q) Consider Rom. xv. 25, &c. (>•) Burton. See St. Mark xiii. 9, and note.

584 A PLAIN' OOMMBHTABT [CHAP.

' all answer: for I will give yon a mouth and wisdom, which all yonr
adversaries Bhall nol be able to gainsay nor resist.

A • l m it came to pass ; for, as it i- Baid in the case of St. Stephen, " The]
not able to resist the wisdom and the spirit by which Be Bpake."(«) 'I

ild be compared with four others which arc found in a much earlier part
lew's Gospel; namely, in out Lord's charge to Bis Twelve Apostles.({)
M b briefly, the substance of the prophecy, the injunction, and the promise here
delivered, may be also Been in St. Luke; — but in < i n i t . ■ a different connect]

I i otice that on all the thn tasions where thi~ solemn Bubject recurs, it is

expressly promised that the Bolt Ghosi shall Bpeak l>y the mouth of* the Apostli

L6, 17, 18 And ye Bhall be betrayed both by parents, and brethren,
and kinsfolk, and friends; and some of you Bhall they cause to be put
to death. And ye shall be hated of all men for My Name's Bake, l^ut

there shall not an hair of your head perish.

The Bubstance of these verses also will be found in our Lord's Charge!
Twelve;(y) including the precious assurance thai the very hairs of the head are
all numbered in His Bight.(z) "The truth contained in these words is the founda-
tion of all Christian courage; which consists in an entire dependence on God, as
taking the most watchful and particular care over the very minutest circumstance
that can appertain to us. And yet it is \ cry remarkable, and most important to ob-
serve, that this the strongest description ofa particular and protecting Providence,
implies do relief from temporal evils, while at the Bame time it promises the most
assured Bafety."(a) We arc nowhere encouraged to expect. >>r hope, that Christian
men shall pass their days without ■ The pledge is but riven

that they shall be 8af< under the Bhadow of the Almighty wings, — that no rtaihartn
shall beiaU those who put their trust in God.

Saving thus assured the Disciples of their Bafety, our Saviour adds:

19 In your patience possess } T e your souls.

These words, however, do not at all give the meaning of our Lord's Baying;
which should rather be translated, — '• Save your li\cs by your patience." The in-
junction, in foot, corresponds to the promise which is found in the two earli<
pels, — " Be that shall endure nnto the end, the Bame Bhall be BaveoV'(6) And thus

the grace of Patience, which is bo often Bingled out for Divin immendation,

held up to the Church's notice as of prime importance to secure 1 • in the

coming strife.

The answering to this in St. Mark's Gospel is found tobetransci

word for word, from our Lord's Charge to t ~ -The

Blessed speaker continues :

20, ~\ And when ye shall Bee Jerusalem compassed with ars
then know that the destruction thereof is nigh. Then let them which

are in . 1 1 1 < 1 ; • : i tier to the mountain- : and let them whioh are in the midst
of it depart OUt; and let not them thai are in the countries enter there-
into.

I'. " the midst of it," and " therei Jerusal which

he mentioned in verse 20. These, then, an' the directions whioh our Sw ioi h
to the faithful for their guidanoe when " the end,"(e) should come. Tl remoter
ming danger lie Bp re all

I XV. 11

I'.'. I -. L9, 20 ; v.

(«) St. Luke \ii. il. IS.
' ' -k xiii. 11. to the

(.»/) ~ " " («) Williams,

lb. It. 7.

- v |

. li itihcw sady. 1 1.

XXI.]

ON ST. LUKE'S gospel. 585

these" things, (He said,) His followers must be prepared for the hardships and per-
secutions, which He enumerates from verse 12 to verse 19. Next follow (in verse
20,) the signs of danger, no longer remote, but at the very doors ; and from which,
safety must be procured by flight. And the reason follows :

22 For these be the days of vengeance, that all things which are
written may be fulfilled.

Very instructive it is, and full of delight, to turn from this prophecy to the pages
of the Jewish Historian Josephus ; who little thought that, in writing the History
of the siege of Jerusalem, he was recording the fulfillment of our Saviour's predic-
tions, and a wondrous illustration of His words.

It is found that thirty-seven years after this discourse was delivered, Cestius Gal-
lio, the president of Syria, with a large army, marched against Jerusalem at the time
of the Feast of Tabei-nacles, and encamped within a mile of the city. At the end of
four days, he advanced to the very walls ; and for five days assailed them from
every quarter. Next day the attack was formally begun ; the walls were under-
mined, and the enemy were about to set fire to the gate of the Temple, when, con-
trary to all expectation, and without any apparent reason, the Commander, (" most
unaccountably," says Josephus, A.D. 66,) "retired from the City!" A fierce sally
of the inhabitants, and a successful onslaught, was the consequence. The Romans
fled and the Jewish army returned in triumph ; whereupon it is recorded that a
large number of the inhabitants " swam away from the city, as from a ship about
to sink." This took place in the beginning of October.

Unaccountable indeed, in the eyes of the impatient soldiery, as well as of the
terrified inhabitants of Jerusalem, must the withdrawal of the enemy at such a mo-
ment liqpf appeared : but the Christians who were immured within its walls, mind-
ful of their Saviour's words, must have known very well how to account for the
opportunity of a departure thus unexpectedly afforded them. They had the sure
promise of the Eternal God, that " not a hair of their heads should perish."(/")
They had received directions to flee from the city when they should see it " com-
passed with armies." Hath He then said, and shall He not do it ? Hath He coun-
selled flight, and shall He not also provide a way to escape ? Doubtless, if it was
not " a blast" and " a rumour," (as in the days of" Sennacherib,) (</) it was that the
heart of the Roman " melted, neither was there spirit in him any more," and the
terror of the Jews fell upon hini:(7j) but, for whatever reason, the enemy with-
drew ; and the Christians suddenly found themselves at liberty to follow their
Lord's direction, and to escape.

Those, however, within the city, who missed the sign alluded to, cannot have
mistaken the indications of danger three years later, when Titus came in person
against Jerusalem and formally besieged it. After wasting some time before the
walls, the Roman resolved to encircle the city with a fortification, five miles in ex-
tent ; and the work was conducted with such spirit, that in three days it was com-
pleted. This may well have been the special sign of danger, to which our Lord
alluded ; for the inhabitants from the walls must then have beheld their City liter-
ally " compassed with armies,"(t) — ("compassed round, and kept in on every side,"
as it is elsewhere said :) (k) and it is worth remarking that to cut off from them
further opportunities of egress and escape was one of the special objects which the
enemy had in view. At the critical moment when this work was first being under-
taken, it is obvious to suppose that as many as were resolved to save their lives by
flight, availed themselves of the opportunity to retire from the devoted City. — Our
Saviour continues :

23 But woe unto them that are with child, and to them that give
suck, in those days ! for there shall be great distress in the land, and
wrath upon this people.

The sufferings which, in the time of the siege, should befall the wife and the
mother in her hour of greatest need, are twice alluded to by our Lord. " Behold,
the days are coming," (He prophesied as He was being led to Crucifixion,) " in the

/) See above, verse 18. (</) See 2 Kings xix. 1. (h) See Josh. ii. 9 : v. 1.

i) See above, verse 20. (k) St. Luke xix. 43.

58G A PLADi OOMMBHTABT [CBAP.

which they shall • Bl I are the barren, and ti and

the papa which Derer gave iuck."(/)— 8ee the note on St Mark xiii. 17.

-I And they shalJ fall Ly the edge of the sword, and sball be led
away captive into all nations :

And so indeed it came to paas : for the entire Dumber of the slain in the war
was reckoned at upwards of a million ; while ninety-seven thousand are said to
h;i\ e been carried away captive. " Spread as it were on the Burface of the 1 1
bat not blended with it-- waters; scattered through the mass of mankind, but -till
preserved distinct,"( m ) — they remain a living witness "!' the Sacred Narrati
are here considering. <;<>n hath set a mark npon the members of that nation, by
which they arc at mice known : and there is no land where their name is not a by-
word and a reproach ; no land where they are not identified with transactions in
money,— through the lust of which, Judas fell. "Thechildren of Israel, n (as it
was foretold concerning them,) "abide without a King, and without a P
without a sacrifice ;"(nj Bifted and dispersed "among all nations, like as corn is
sifted in a -ie\ e."(o)

Take notice, that as forty year- elapsi d between the institution of th<
and the entering of the Promised land, so between the sacrifice of the true Paschal
Lain!, and the loss of that Land, did forty years elapse also. The men of Nineveh
had forty 'lavs of warning, and they repented at the preaching of Jonah: but the
unbelieving Jews, though they had forty yean of warning, (and behold, a greater,
than Jonas was there,) yet repented not. — Our Lord proa

and Jerusalem shall be trodden down of the Gentiles, until the tiroes
of the Gentiles he fulfilled. %

So trodden under fool is ehe at this day; but her restoration is promised, and
glorious things are Bpoken of it, and of her.fj?) " It' the casting away of them,''
exclaim- the Apostle, "be the reconciling of the world, what -hall the r<
them be, but life from the dead?"(a) in the meanwhile, a fixed period of time,
known only in the deep counsels of Gon, (" the times of the Gentil( -." as it Is here
called, i must elapse : concerning w hicb remarkable expr< ider Buch i

as the following: — St. J. ,lm ii.4: vii.6,8: xiii. 1: x\ii. 1. Acts i. 7: xvu. 26.
Gal. iv. !. Eph. i. 9. 1 Tim. ii. 6: vi. 15. Rev. i.\. 1"».

The dew ol Eeaven, which at first was mi the fleece alone, (the little flock » >f
Israel,) while it was " dry upon all the earth," hath been transferred, in turn. u> the
nations of the Earth. <mh> hath said, in Gideon's words, "let it now be dry only
upon the fleece, and upon all the ground let there he dew :"(r) and Blind-

ness in part i- happened to lsra< I. until the inline-- of the Gentiles be come in
but when "the times of the Gentiles be fulfilled," the dew of Beaven shall refresh
all the Earth, "and there shall be one fold, and One Shepherd."(0

iiiir our attention is invited to " the signs" which shall prece le the o ming of the

25, 26, 27 And there shall be Bigns in the Sun. and in the Moon,
and in the Stars ; and iijh.h the Earth distress of nations, with perplex-
ity; the sea and the waves roaring; men's hearts failing them lor fear,
and for looking after those things which are ooming on the Earth : for
the j .' Eeaven snail be Bhaken. And then shall they see the

Bon of Man coming in a cloud, with power and great glory.

i re full and particular in the two former f the

other Evangelists. Concerning what pn on St. Matthew sxiv.

how parallel are not only the tWO ;:• ■ which form the

our Loan's prophecy, (u) but also I which were to precede the

L (m) Chnrton,

.. i ..
i: m ■ i
h) St. John x. IS. i
(n) Sea the hitter pari ". btthew zxir,

XXI.] ON ST. LUKE'S GOSPEL. 587

other. The remoter tokens, in both cases, are declared to he false Christs and false
prophets :(x) the nearer tokens, — fearful sights, and signs in Heaven. (y)

28 And -when these things begin to come to pass, then look up, and
lift up your heads ; for your Redemption draweth nigh.

Consider this place, and St. Matthew xxiv. 8, (where see the note,) in connection
with the following : " We know that the whole Creation groaneth and travaileth in
pain together until now. And not only they, hut .... even we ourselves groan
within ourselves, waiting for the adoption, to wit the Redemption of our body."(z)

29, 30, 31, 32, 33 And He spake to them a parable : Behold the
fig tree, and all the trees ; when they now shoot forth, ye see and know
of your own selves that summer is now nigh at hand. So likewise ye,
when ye see these things come to pass, know ye that the Kingdom of
God is nigh at hand. Verily I say unto you, this generation shall not
pass away, till all be fulfilled. Heaven and Earth shall pass away :
but My Words shall not pass away.

"With these verses, which are found very closely repeated in all the three Gos-
pels,(a) — (but notice that St. Luke adds, "and all the trees,") — St. Luke takes leave
of our Lord's reply to the twofold question with which the chapter commences ;(b)
adding only certain words of general caution. There was the less need why this
Evangelist should say anything about the "day and hour" of Christ's final Com-
ing,^) since ho had not recorded the Disciples' inquiry concerning that event. See
the notes on St. Matth. xxiv. 33 and 35, and especially on St. Mark xiii. 29, for
some remarks on these verses.

34, 35 And take heed to yourselves, lest at any time your hearts be
overcharged with surfeiting, and drunkenness, and cares of this life,
and so that Day come upon you unawares. For as a snare shall it
come on all them that dwell on the face of the whole earth.

Rather, "that sit on the face:" implying a state of carelessness and ease, un-
conscious of its misery and unsuspicious of its danger. (d)

The Reader is referred to some remarks in the latter part of the note on St. Mark
xiii. 29. He will observe that what, in St. Matthew's Gospel, takes the form of a
warning, derived from the conduct of the men before the Flood, — (" eating and
drinking, marrying and giving in marriage,")(e) — is here delivered as an exhorta-
tion. "Lest," (says our Lord,) "your hearts be overcharged with surfeiting, and
drunkenness, and cares of this life."

36 Watch ye therefore, and pray always, that ye may be accounted
worthy to escape all these things that shall come to pass, and to stand
before the Son of Man.

"For "who may abide the Day of His coming? or who shall stand when He
appeareth ?"(/) "Wherefore," (says the Apostle,) "take unto you the whole
armour of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day ; and having done
all, to stand :"(g) that is, to appear as those who are acquitted by their Judge.

"The one great point to which our Lord is attracting notice throughout the
whole of these warnings, is in some sense true of all generations of Christians, as
well as it will be of the last : that their final day overtakes them unawares, not

(a;) Compare St. Matth. xxiv. 5 with ver. 24 of the same Chapter.
(y) Compare ver. 11, with verse 25 and 26 of the present Chapter,
(a) Rom. viii. 22, 23 : see also verses 18 to 21.

(a) Sfc. Matth. xxiv. 32 to 35 : St. Mark xiii. 28 to 31.

(b) See the note on St. Matth. xxiv. 3. See also, above, — the note on verse 7.

(d) Consider Is. ix. 2, as quoted in St. Matth. iv. 16. (e) St. Matt. xxiv. 38.
(/) Mai. iii. 2. Compare Nahuin i. 6. Also Ezra ix. 15. Ps. i. 5, cxxx. 3.

(</) Eph. vi. 13.

588 A l'l.AlX OOMMKHTABI [ciIAP.

r which they have lii I : 1 nit from want

iitioii, — their minds being occupied by worldly pursuita."(A)
Baying thus finished his narrative of our I. great Prophecy, the Evanj

adds :

•",7. B8 And in the day time He was teaching in the Temple ; and
at night He went out, and abode in the mount that ifl called the mount
of 01

And all the people came early in the morning to Him in the Temple,
for to hear Him.

Such is the Evangelist's brief record, and summary, "f t 1 : in which

these solemn days were Bpentl At night, our Lord's babitwas to repair t" the
village of Bethany, — (the pillage of Lazarus ami his sisters,) — which was about
two mil''- from^Jerusalem : but first, He seems t" nave frequented the Garden of
Gethsemane, situate at the i'""t of the Mount of Olives; where, lighted by the

Paschal d d, He spent tin' earlier hours of tin- night in the company of His

Disciples.(t)

CHAPTER XXII.

I '/" ' Christ. •'■ Satan preparethJud Him. 7
prepare <■ R I' 1 Chrj i instituteth His Holy Supper, 21
rtly foreteuetn of the Traitor, 24 dehortetl il I from ambi-
tion, 31 a ureth Peter his faith should not faU: 34 and yet hi should deny Him
tlin 89 5 prayeth in the mount, and sweatethbl betrayed with n
■ 50 //■ healeth Malchus' ear, ■"> I //■ isthriee dent shamefully
seih Himself to bi />',■ Son of Qqd.

1, ■_' N"\v t!; I'. • of unleavened bread drew nigh, which is called
the V An*! the chief Priests and Scribes soughl how they

t kill ] [im ; for they feared the people.

[twasnowtl ■ lay in Passover v [1 therefore waul days"

wo learn from the earlier' ie remarks hav<

offered on the prcced . to which it must suffice t<> refer the reader.(a) "ur

Lord had w ithdrawn fn m Jerusalem I • Bethany on t! rening of this day, and a

brief interposed between the terrible events whioh are imme-

diately to follow. In the meantime, His enemies are intent on nothing less than
Hi- death ; and arc b< means of effecting their wicked purpose " by

<ratt,"(/) not daring I i apprehend Him openly, ami on the Feast Day! All this,

" b. x\i. 17-
(„) Bm t! " .1. :'. i\it>i the d

(/•) St. .Mattli. x.wi. I: St. M:irk m\. I.

XXII.]

on st. luke's gospel. 589

which St. Matthew and St. Mark explain at length, St. Luke omits ; contenting
himself with assigning the reason of their conduct, — namely, "for they feared the
people." It is clear from verse 6, below, that this is the meaning of the present
Evangelist's briefer record.

3 Then entered Satan into Judas, surnamed Iscariot, being of the
number of the Twelve.

The word " then," in this place, does not relate to time. In fact, the period when
" Satan entered into Judas," is not specified by St. Luke, at all ; but it is carefully
marked by the two Evangelists who wrote before him, (especially by St. Matthew, )(c)
as the period of the Supper at Bethany, on the evening of the Sabbath previous. (d)
Take notice however that St. Luke supplies what the others omit, — namely, the
remarkable statement that it was "Satan" who "entered into" the Traitor, before
the commission of his crime.

And this circumstance suggests the remark, that among the points of difference
between the Bible and every other Book, not least striking is the fact that here, and
here only, is the veil removed from Creation, and the true cause of an event as-
signed. Does a dumb creature refuse to proceed on its journey? It was because
it "saw the Angel of the Lord standing in the way, and his sword drawn in his
hand."(e) Is Elisha secure amid the hosts of Syria? The Lord opened the eyes
of his servant, "and he saw: and, behold, the mountain was full of horses and
chariots of fire round about."(y) Does Zedekiah the son of Chenaanah prophesy
falsely ? A lying Spirit had gone forth from the Lord, and spoke by his lips.(</)
Does David offend God by numbering the people ? It was at Satan's suggestion
that he offended. (li) And does Disease in consequence ravage Jerusalem ? It was
the work of the Angel of the LoRD.(i) So again, — Has a woman been bowed
together for eighteen years ? lo, Satan hath bound her throughout all that long
period. (A:) Is the surface of a pool ruffled, and a healing virtue straightway com-
municated to its waters ? It was once more the work of an Angel, "which went
down at a certain season into the pool, and troubled the water."(/) The agent on
the present occasion was none other than Satan himself, — the chief of the fallen
Angels, and the great Enemy of the Second Adam. Judas was possessed by him.

4, 5, 6 And he went his way, and communed with the chief Priests
and Captains, how he might betray Him unto them. And they were
glad, and covenanted to give him money. And he promised, and
sought opportunity to betray Him unto them in the absence of the
multitude.

Such then was the accursed work of Judas on the Wednesday of Holy "Week, —
and Wednesday has evermore preserved the impress of his crime, and partaken in
the solemn observance of Friday. For some remarks on this subject, see the notes
on St. Matth. xxvi. 15, 16, and'St. Mark xiv. 11.

7, 8 Then came the day of unleavened bread, when the Passover
must be killed. And He sent Peter and John, saying, Go and prepare
us the Passover, that we may eat.

The beginning of the 14th day of the month Nisan, is spoken of. This may
have been either the evening of Wednesday or the morning of Thursday ; but it
was most probably the former. St. Luke alone it is who mentions the names of
the favoured pair of Disciples who were sent from Bethany to Jerusalem on this
great errand, — the same, it may well be thought, whom our Saviour had sent on a
former occasion to bring Him the ass and the ass-colt on which He made His
triumphant entry into His Capital.(m)

(fi) Numb. xxii. 23. (/) 2 Kings vi. 17. (g) 1 Kings xxii. 21, 22.

(h) 1 Chron. xxi. 1. Compare 2 Sam. xxiv. 1. (i) 1 Chron. xxi. 15, 16.

(k) St. Luke xiii. 16. {I) St. John v. 4.

(m) See St. Matth. xxi. 1 to 3, &c. St. Mark xi. 1 to 6, &c. (where see the notes,) St. Luke
xix. 29 to 34.

590 A PLAIN COMMi:.\TAKY [CHAP.

9 And they Baid onto Him, Where will Thou that we prepare?

i . 11. 12 And He said unto them. Behold, when ye are entered
into the City, there shall a man meet yon, bearing a pitcher of water;
follow him into the house where he entereth in. And ye Bhall Bay unto
the goodman of the house, The Master saith unto thee. Where is the
guest-chamber, where 1 Bhall eat the paasover with My Disciples? And
he Bhall Bhow you a large upper room famished: there make ready.

this has a moat mysterious air; and the suspicion i labia that there

imi>t be more in the narrative than meets the eye. Why did our Lord gn
Disciples a sign whereby they Bhould know the House in which it was III— divine

rre to eai IT Passover; instead of telling them the name of the owner of

the II iuse? and further, — What meaning may be supposed to attach to the peculiar
Bign He gave t In -m . of one bearing water.' Onr reply to both of these questions
may well be brief, since conjecture on Buch a Bubject is all that can

I ■•■in- not unlikely, i hen, that one great purpose of the Divine directions which
St. Peter ami St. John now received, was t>> impress the minds <■!' those Disciples,
(ami through them, the minds of all the rest,) with the dignity ami solemnity of the
errand en which they were now Bent : to awaken the attention "1' all. to this Paschal
Supper, a- unlike those former three of which they had been partakers with their
i ,— not only in it- actual progress, hut also in the very circumstances of its
preparation. Next, to convince them at once of Hi- own Divine Foreknovt
ami Almighty Power: Foreknowledge, — Bince He was able to describe what should
befall them; ami Power, — since lie was about to Bhow them hew mysteriously,
(according bo Hi- ancient Name,)(n) He could "provide." The hearts of men are
in His Hands, ami the Human Will beoomes obedient at Hi- bidding; while the

■ ■ upper room" proves furnished and prepared, when His myai
makes it-e|f t'ch.

r the particular Bign,— it shall suffiee to remind the reader of the mai
when singular mercies are described in Scripture as having befallen men

neotion with that element which our Savtoub consecrated to the mystical
ing away of Sin. Thus an Angel found Hagar at the well Lahai-roi,(o) (the

first in- 1 an« f Angelic ministration on record ; i — and near the same well

met [saac(n) For the second time, at a well of water, the Angel found Hagar ;(g)
and Eliezer met Rebekah;(r) aud Jacob met Rachel ;(«) and M< Zippo-

rah.(/) Bya well, also, our Loan revealed Himself to the Woman of Samaria, (uj —
Whether we are right in connecting these many incidents with the
in the text, can only be matter of conjecture: but it i- hard to resist the suspicion
that there exists some secret affinity between them; and it shall Buffice to have
thrown out the hint, in this place. The reader may further be reminded hew,
almost L900 years before, one bearing a pitcher of water proved a Bign to the ser-
vant i ■ ) at a time also, when thai eminent type of Christ was about to
take o. hi m -elf his 1 > ri< 1 c. -as in truth our Saviovb Chrisi was now.— On the pre-
versea the reader i- requested further to refer i<< the commentary en St.

i. IT ami L9.

L8 Ami they went, ami found as He had said unto them : ami they

made readj the Passover.

11 And when the hour -was come, Be sat down, and the Twelve

Aj. h liim.

When tl • renins had arrived, 'he Son of Man, attended by t!

; i ded 1 1- • -iii Bethany to the place of entertainment so mysteriously provided for
their reception. What 1 I occurred , by St Luke alone, in the fouri

which follow: —

(11) iii'n. ixiL 1 1, m« us margin. (•■) I 1 1.

h n. xxi^. 21 .16 to 17.

(») Bt John iv. 6. (.. ) Wen. \xiv. 1 I.

XXII.]

ON ST. LUKE'S GOSPEL. 591

15 And He said unto them, With desire I have desired to eat this
Passover with you before I suffer :

" Very vehement desire is on no other occasion attributed to our Lord, either by
Himself or others. So great was this occasion, when, before He left His Disciples,
He had to give to them the New Covenant of His Body and Blood."(#)

16 for I say unto you, I will not any more eat thereof, until it be
fulfilled in the Kingdom of God.

The Passover was "fulfilled in the Kingdom of God" when He, the true Paschal
Lamb, was offered on the bitter Cross. (2) "The Kingdom of God," — which in one
sense had come already, (a) and which, in the highest sense of all, is yet to coine,(&)
— that Kingdom would then in a special manner have arrived ; for the Veil of the
Temple having been rent in twain, the shadows of the Law would have departed,
and the substance would have been at length revealed. Christ " came not to de-
destroy, but to fulfill, — as He Himself declared ;(c) and the fulfillment of the Pass-
over, which was to take place on the morrow, was the prime end of His Coming.

"Until," in this place, has the same meaning as in St. Matthew i. 25, and else-
where, (d) Our Saviour's words obviously imply that He will never partake of the
Paschal Supper any more.

17, 18 And He took the cup, and gave thanks, and said, Take this,
and divide it among yourselves : for I say unto you, I will not drink
of the fruit of the Vine, until the Kingdom of God shall come.

Rather, — "And He took a cup:" for this cup of wine mingled with water was
one which was drunk by the ancient Jews before the celebration of the Paschal
Supper. It has been called " the Cup of the Old Testament ;" and is evidently a
thing apart from that "cup after Supper" which our Saviour converted into the
Sacrament of His most precious Blood. See what has been already offered on this
subject, and on the method observed at the Paschal Supper generally, in the note
on St. Mark xiv. 21.

Two things are here to be noticed : first, that from the language of our Blessed
Lord in verses 17, 18, it would appear that He denied Himself the refreshment of
the Cup on the occasion of this, His last Supper. And next, it will be perceived
that our Saviour, (in verse 18,) varies the phrase which He used above, in ver. 16.
The reason is obvious. The Wine which was drunk at the Paschal Supper, sym-
bolized no spiritual Blessing: there could be no "fulfillment" therefore, here, as
in the case of the Paschal Lamb. The words — " I will drink no more of the fruit
of the Vine till the Kingdom of God shall come," — may be compared, and their
meaning safely gathered, from our Lord's declaration with respect to "the Cup of
Blessing ;" namely, that He " would drink no more of the fruit of the Vine, until
the day when He should drink it new with His Disciples in the Kingdom of
GoD:"(e) concerning which words, the reader is referred to an earlier part of the
present Commentary. [f)

And now, the Paschal Supper was actually proceeding, as St. Matthew and St.
Mark are careful to inform us.(^)

19 And He took Bread, and gave thanks, and brake it, and gave
unto them, saying, This is My Body which is given for you : this do in
remembrance of Me.

"Which loving command, " to continue a perpetual memory of that His precious
Death until His coming again," — the Church pleads evermore at the celebration of
the Lord's Supper.

(y) Williams. (2) See the note on St. John i. 29. Also on St. Matth. v. 17.

(a) See the note on St. Matth. xvi. 28, and especially the note on St. Luke ix. 27: also, on
St. Luke xvii. 20, 21. Consider St. Matth. xi. 12, St. Luke xi. 20, &c.

(6) See St. Matthew vi. 10, St. Luke xiii. 28, &c. (c) St. Matth. v. 17.

(d) Besides the note on St. Matthew i. 25, see on St. Matthew xviii. 34; and the last para-
graph of the Commentary on St. Matthew.

(e) St. Matth. xxvi. 29 : St. Mark xiv. 25. (/) See the note on St. Matth. xxvi. 29.
(g) St. Matth. xxvi. 26 : St. Mark xiv. 22.

A PLAIN OOMMBNTABY [CHAP.

nut of the Institution of tin- greal Sacrament, is thought to
have foil '■■ St. J'aul.— who declares that he rec I

Sapper from the 1 I [imself. " Por I 1

I. u> that which also 1 delivered unto you, that the Loan Jasus, the
.-.mi.- night in which II'' was betrayed, took bread: and when Be had given thank",
Be brake it, and said, Take, eat: thit i- Mj B dy, which is broken tor you : this

ill in remembrani I' Me."(A) Here was "not a typical or prefigurative rite,

■ .;■••. but commemorative, as St. Paul himself explains it: 'for as often as ye
eat th tnd drink this Cup, ye do show the Loan's Death ti B •' "(0

— But tin- reader must be requ :amine what has been already offered on

j< t in the Commentary on the two earlier Gospels.(A')
What interval of time may have elapsed between the appointment of the B
in the Boly Eucharist, and the consecration of tin' Wine t" the same great m

not appear. Hut that the Paschal Supper was now ended, is clear from the
form of words in which both St. Paul ami hi- companion in travel, St. Lu] .
Boribe that part of the Institution. As it folio

20 Likewise also the Cup after Supper, saying, This Cup u the
New Testament in My Blood, which is shed for you.

"'Likewise,' — for if these two were not connected together by the time of their
appoint • something, either in the marked and emphatic manner

of our Loan, or Borne other circumstance, that distinguished these two a<-ti"n< be-
yond all tin- other transactions of that memorable evening ; drawing them oat,
putting them forth together, as tin' two cardinal ordinances of which the < >M Dis-
pensation Bpoke in type and 6gure."(0 Once more, however, it must suffice to refer
to what ha- been already offered on tin- subjeel

"Th Se Ti .nit ")•• in .Mv til 1." — is said with reference

to th.' words used by M • - c acerning th'' Elder Covenant : " This i- t'
the Testament which <ioi> hath enjoined unto you,"(n) — a- St. Paul quotes the lan-
guage of Exodus xxi\. i. " r t wl ment i-. there must

• death of tin- testator Whereupon neither the tir-t testament was

dedicated without blood ami without Bhedding of blood i^ no remission."

. . . . Now, "if the bl I of bulls and ol _ .... onctifieth to the purifying

of tin' flesh; how much more shall the Blood of Chbist, who through the I
Bpibit offered Himself without -i>"t to God, purge your conscience from dead w..rks
rve the livii i ; — See more, in the first i St. Matthew xxvi.

Thus then hath "Wisdom builded her Bout "mingled her Wine,'

"furnished her Table. I lith -ho. ■ i . Bread, and drink of the

Wine which I have mingled."(D | — Thus was tl o greal Sacrament of Cb
and Blood instituted: and who can tail to be struck with the brevity of the r
Bow many words do we waste on brides : and on this, the grandest of all
how few and simple are the words spoken I — words which have nevertheless filled
■ hurch with divisions, and occasioned endless Btrife and debate, although con-
- tin- most precious legacy ^ I ha- not this, in great measure, pro-

i from carnal curiosity; which seeks to reason and dispute, where God has
rather willed that men should believe and adore? The reader is referred on this
■ the famous language of Booker quoted in the Commentary on the latter
hew axvi. 28.
Th.' Divine Author of this blessed mystery i- Btraightway found to renew the
awful declaration which lie had made while tin' Paschal Supper was yet pro-

21,22 Id, the hand of him that betrayeth Me t» with Me

en the table. And truly the S< >n <>f Man goeth, Ined:

but woe onto that man by whom He is betrayed !

On this torribli ann oncement, see tl. - M Evi. 24. S

(h) I ' 21.

(/) Willi t

(;.) PrOV. i.\ 1 I " " :i. ,\i\. 1-

XXII.] ON ST. LUKE'S GOSPEL. 593

remarks will be found elsewhere offered on the extraordinary circumstance that
although our Saviour, at an earlier stage of the Last Supper, not only announced
the presence of the Traitor with Him at the Table, but even gave a sign whereby
it might be known which was he ; nor only so, but in reply to a question addressed
to Him by Judas, further proceeded to reveal the Traitor to himself ;(?•) it should
be found that by no one of those present, except Judas himself, was this last inti-
mation understood. (5) Our Saviour therefore repeats, but in a more solemn man-
ner, His former warning : whereupon, strange to say, it is added concerning the
Twelve Apostles, —

23 And they began to inquire among themselves, which of them it
was that should do this thing.

The remarks which have been already offered on a similar passage of St. Mat-
thew's Gospel are so applicable here, that the reader is requested to refer to the
Commentary on the earlier Evangelist^! 1 ) — Strange as to us it may appear, eleven
of the Apostles, in their guileless love, and simplicity of character, find it impossi-
ble to realize the notion of such villany as our Lord foretold, and as one of their
number was actually contemplating. — To know what happened next, we should
probably read St. John xiii. 22 to 30, — from which it will be perceived that at this
juncture, Judas Iscariot, (" Mine own familiar friend, in whom I trusted, ivhich did
eat of MylBread !")(u) left the table and went forth on his accursed errand. — It
follows :

24 And there was also a strife among them, which of them should be
accounted the greatest.

A sufficient proof by the way, that no superiority over the other Apostles had
been yet bestowed upon Simon. Consider what has been said on this subject in the
note on St. Matthew xvi. 19. It is not very evident what should have led to con-
tention on such a subject at such a time ; and perhaps this is one of those places
where the connecting link has been withheld by the Evangelist. The train of
thought may be other than can be gathered from the perusal of a single Gospel.

25 And He said unto them, The Kings of the Gentiles exercise lord-
ship over them ; and they that exercise authority upon them are called
Benefactors.

As if He had said, — " You are right in supposing that you are on the point of
being established in My Spiritual Kingdom over the World, in order to do good to
Mankind : but think not that from the benefits you shall confer on the World, you
are to bring any honour or credit upon yourselves ; for My Kingdom is of a far
different character."(.c) — " The Kings of the Gentiles," (says our Saviour,) "lord
it over them ; and their oppressors are called ' Benefactors :'" alluding at once to
the well-known course followed, and to the well-known title assumed, by many of
the heathen Sovereigns of Antiquity ; who, while laying claim to an appellation
which implied that they enjoyed the love of a grateful people, were observed to be
guilty of a tyrannical exercise of an absolute power.

26 But ye shall not be so : but he that is greatest among you, let
him be as the younger ; and he that is chief, as he that doth serve.

" The Nobles, and Princes, and Judges of Christ's Kingdom, were to be formed
on the type and model of Him, who being in the form of God took on Him the form
of a servant."(?/)

27 For whether is greater, he that sitteth at meat, or he that
serveth ? is not he that sitteth at meat ? but I am among you as he that
serveth.

(r) St. Matth. xxvi. 25.

(s) See the note on St. John xiii. 29. See also, on St. Matth. xxvi. 22.
(0 See the note on St. Matth. xxvi. 22. (») Ps. xli. 9.

(x) Williams. (y) Dr. W. H. Mill,— quoting Phil. ii. 6, 7.

A PLAIN OOMMBHTABI [ciIAl*.

Words, of which we Bhould not ha\ <• Buspeoted the full force and signincancy, bat
fur thi rd n bioh St John's ' rospel supplies of onr Sai 101 1

condescension in washing the Disciples' feel on this occasion.(s)

It will be remembered that Bayings rerj much r mbling these, have been met

with aln -:i'lv. It was with such measured language of reproof that cur Sai ioi a
-. 1 1 the Ten, when Se beheld them "moved with indignation" against •lames
an. I . I. Jin, at tin' request of those two brethren that thej might be permit!
occupy the two places of highest honour in Hi- Kingdom, a) " Bui on thu
sion, He takes pains not only to repeat the words, but by thai expressr •
engrave, — as it were by the finger of the Soli < Ihost, — that Lesson on their heart :
for tip.-'' expressions in St Mat thru ami St Mark, as well a- these now in St Luke,
seem like comments on that which had just before taken plaoe."(o)

l!\ l".', :]0 Yc arc tlioy which have continued with Nfeirj My tempta-
tions. And I appoint unto you a Kingdom, as My Fatheb hath ap-
pointed unto Me; that yc may cat and drink at My Table in My King-
dom, and sit on thrones, judging the Twelve Tribes of Israel.

" In this Bentenoe," (says J)r. Mill. | •• • Lord describes the liiirli<--t honours of

that Kingdom which, in the verses preceding, Be had distinguished from all others
founded by man."(c) "There is hardly any passage in the Scriptures," (ol
an excellent living writer) (d) "in which the high and glorious estate of the Church,
the persona] feebleness and insufficiency of those who are called its pillars, and the
true secret of it< Btrength and glory, are more Btrikingly exhibited," than in the
n preceding verses.

•■ ^ •■ which bave followed Me," (said our Loan to Simon Peter, on a | r
oasion,) — '• in the Regeneration, when the Son of Man -hall ail in the Throne < l i '
Glory, ye also shall Bit upon Twelve Thrones, judging the Twelve Tril
[sraeL"(e) The two places closely resemble each other ; but the points of diffi
ar>' \iv\ significant and Btriking. Thus, the nearer approach of Christ's AY
may have suggested the distinct allusion to it by name, In this place; \\ bile it Beems
impossible aot to oonnect the promise that the Disciples Bhould " eat and drii
the Loan's Table, in Sis Kingdom," with the recent institution of the Bl !

Sacrament of Christ's Body and Bl l.(/i It will be observed, further, that there

i- do mention here of Twelve Thrones, — as in the other place referred to.

81, 32 And the Lokd said, Simon, Simon, behold, Satan hath de-
sired /-- //<"•<■ y<>u, that In- may sift you as wheat: hut L haw prayed for

thro, that thy i'aitli fail not :

Satan hail earnestly desired to get (hem into bis power: {"you," not "the*
1 seeking to devour" them ou; (that phrs . Peter's own

especially did the Enemy of Souls desire t" have St Peter. Benoe, our Lord adds,

"But I bave prayed for thee." And who may describe the power of that prt
It was not, however, a prayer that Simon might not fall; (for tall he did, ami that
grievously;) hut that his faith might not eventually fail him.

M inj a revelation, by the way, of what bad hern taking place in that

ce of tin- Realm of Darkness, (the heart of Satan,) for tin' but three
II'- had longed beyond all things to deal with the Twelves iolentli and mer-
ciless^ ing them to sharp and sudden trials, (even as when he had to 'hi
with tip- patriarch Jdb',)(ff) — -< >, in short, to deal with them, as the husbandman

(-.) St. John rill. I ' I ■.

(fi) St. M:ii i ti. , and St U

'■

. n iiii tin- r . . 1 1 r Bmpira whien i> ■. i

I ;. i .

" • rly. [.) St. M.ittli. riX U

Idor St Lake \iii. 20.
Job 1. 16, 16, 17, 18, — whlL I fresh

evil tidingi BOmlng in.

was

XXII.] ON ST. LUKE'S GOSPEL. 595

deals with a sieve of mingled wheat and chaff! For Satan is at once a Serpent and
a Lion ; a Serpent in craft, — a Lion in assault. (h)

And let not the beauty of the present saying be overlooked : still less let it be sus-
pected that since the object of "sifting" is the purification of the good, the image
which our Saviour has here employed is inappropriate. Satan does indeed sift in
order to destroy, — in order that nothing may bo preserved which can possibly be
scattered and caused to perish. On the other hand, he does no more harm than
God is graciously pleased to permit: nor (what is especially to be noted,) when he
rages most fiercely, can he do more than sift the Disciples. The chaff is indeed
reserved for the burning ; and that which is chaff, Satan causes straightway to
appear: but the wheat will the Heavenly Husbandman gather into His garner,(i)
— purified by affliction, and rendered more precious by the fiery trial through which
it has been made to pass. These words are therefore found to convey a message of
comfort and assurance to all. — Our Saviour adds :

and when thou art converted, strengthen thy brethren.

The phrase " when thou art converted," is apt to convey a very wrong impression
to an English reader ; and yet it cannot perhaps be mended. The popular sense of
the term " Conversion," be it however observed, is as much excluded here, as in
chap. xvii. 4, — where the same word recurs ; though it is there translated " turn,"
instead of " be converted." Our Lord is in fact here giving St. Peter an indirect
hint of that desertion and denial, which, in ver. 34, He foretells more distinctly.

" Strengthen thy brethren." What is this but the command, — " Feed My
Sheep ?"(&) Now, this was to be when St. Peter was "converted:" which seems
to mean after his fall, and subsequent recovery, — when it is to be supposed that he
became an altered man.(Z) And such, in truth, his Epistles prove him to have be-
come : for, contrast the impetuous protestations of ver. 33, and again of St. Mark
xiv. 29, 31, with those words of counsel which he afterwards delivered to the Church,
— " give an answer . . . with Meekness and Fear ;" and — " Be clothed with Hu-
mility ."(to) — Notice, lastly, that the Divine purpose with which strength is im-
parted, is the confirmation of the weak brother : according to that of the Psalmist,
— "0 give me the comfort of Thy help again, and establish me with Thy free
Spirit ; then shall I teach Thy ivays unto the wickcd.'\n)

The resemblance of part of the verse under consideration, and that which follows,
to the Greek version of 2 Samuel xv. 20, 21, is extraordinary.

33, 34 And he said unto Him, Lord, I am ready to go with Thee,
both into prison, and to death. And He said, I tell thee, Peter, the
cock shall not crow this day, before that thou shalt thrice deny that
thou knowest Me.

Thus does the Holy One for the first time predict that Simon will deny Him.(o)
It is remarkable that on this occasion, {and on no other,) our Saviour should be re-
lated to have addressed Simon by his name of Strength, — Peter, (p)

35 And He said unto them, When I sent you without purse, and
scrip, and shoes, lacked ye any thing ? And they said, Nothing.

He alludes to the mysterious charge which He had given to the Twelve, (q) and
again repeated to the Seventy :(r) as if He had said, — When I bade you provide
yourselves with no human aids, did ye not find My words come true that neither
would ye require any ?

36 Then said He unto them, But now, he that hath a purse, let him

(h) This was a favourite remark of Augustine. It occurs five times in the course of his
writings. Hence the language of our Litany, — "From Sin, from the crafts and assaults of the
Devil," &c.

(i) St Matth. iii. 12, where see the notes. (k) St, John xxi. 15, 16, 17.

(I) See the note on St. Matth. xxvi. 75. (m) 1 St. Peter iii. 15 : v. 5.

(n) Ps. li. 12, 13. Compare also the language of 2 Cor. i. 3, 4.

(o) For the second prophecy, see St. Matth. xxvi. 33, 34, — and the note there.

(p) See St. Matth. xvi. 18. (2) St. Matth. x. 9, 10. [r) St. Luke x. 4.

GOG a ri. u.\ < ,,m.mi:xt\ky [chai\

tukr jit, and likewise hit scrip: and he that hath nc sword, let him sell
his garment, and buy one.

R ither,— "and be that not [a pane,] let him sell hi* garment, and [therewith]
bay a sword." Words which it is obvions to u$ are purely symbolical, and will
admit of none bat an allegorical interpretation. They do bat imply that ■ -

eeding trial was at hand; when the lives of the Apostles would be endan-
.. and when every other personal oonoern would be swallowed op by thi I
of |'i-"\ iding for the preeen abon of lit"'-.

B ised Speaker prooeeds to give the reason why every means, at once of
support and defence, would benoefortfi be needed by His Disciples. The time was
at band when He, whose presenoe bad so long been their protection, would be with-
drawn from them; imr only so, bnt by the Death He should die, He would leave
them a legacy of shame and reproach. As it follows :

37 For I say unto you, that this that is written must yet be accom-
plished in Mi-. And He was reckoned among the transgressors : for

the things concerning Me have an end.

Our Sai ioub quotes curtain well-known words of Prophecy, (») as still requiring
fulfillment ; (for that is the meaning of the expression "have an end;") and take
notice that St. Mark points out how, on the morrow, "the Scripture wot fulfilled,
which saith, 'And He was numbered with the transgrt — rs.' "(0

The citation of such a prophecy at such a time may, to some readers, seem
strange: and it may be well that readers of every class should 1"' reminded how fre-
quent arc the appeals to ancient prophecy, — (whether in the way of direct quota-
tion, or indirect allusion,) — throughout this, the c including Bcene of our Loan's
earthly Mini-try. (») The reason of those referei nous. Like a wise

• - 1 J u i 1 ■ 1 1 * r , the Author of our most boly Faith was careful, before He de] !
out of the World, to neglect qo part of that foundation on which the Spiritual fabric
of His church was presently to rise. For take notice that thejulfiuti
phecy in our Loan's person, — not the reality of II " was the eviden

which the Apostles rested their proof that Christianity was a Revelation sent from
Goo. "The invariable purport of all their arguments, the end which they kept
them, in whatever they said or wrote, was to prove that the subject of all the
various prophecies with whioh the old Testament Scriptures were filled, was the
Gospel which they preached; and, so Car as appears, this only it was which the

•Jew- denied. "(y)

Our Loan had been warning His Disciples th< I they would ex>

periencc of every mean- of defence:

38 And they said, Lord, behold hero are two swords. And He said
unto them, It is enough.

Observe how literally these holy men understood our Savioi r's words.fjr) Two
of their number, (St. reter was certainly one;(s) and what if St John were the
other?) show that they ha\e provided themselves each with a weapon: but of what
avail wm U M " two swords" have I a, had a contest ensued! Clearly of none. "It

(>) rouinh liii. 12. (0 St. Murk .\\.

i ler «ill do wall to verify the following referao " kith. x\\i.2s. (:illu.linK

] . noting Znh. liii, 7

referring genemllj to nil thai now took i
i 1 ■. (quoting Zecn. ell 13:) Mi (alluding I

i . wii. I - Bt M urk \*. 28, quoting b. liii. U

□e prophet •
ling to 1'-. •

■
40, or Numb. li. 11 10:) nml to

b I // .,iir all fJU Frap&ett wii >r, when " he preached

Camai I • 0orn< U '

them.

Xc.

XXII.]

ON ST. LUKE'S GOSPEL. 597

is enough," however, says our Lord ! therehy plainly showing how different a mean-
ing from what they supposed, His divine words were intended to convey. By that
exclamation He simply puts the subject aside for the moment ; leaving to the events
of that terrible night, to discover His real meaning.(a)

The Paschal Supper having been concluded with the customary Hymn,(&) there
followed that long and affecting discourse which " the disciple whom Jesus loved"
has alone recorded ;(c) and the blessed company, eleven Apostles and their Lord,
(for Judas, after receiving the Holy Eucharist, had left the Table,)(rf) moving slowly
through the moon-lit streets of Jerusalem, at last left the city by the gate which led
to the Mount of Olives.

39 And He came out, and went, as He was wont, to the Mount of
Olives ; and His Disciples also followed Him.

After descending a slight declivity, they crossed the brook Kidron, and again
ascending, made their way towards the retired spot which was to be the scene of
our Saviour's mysterious Agony : but as they went, He is found to have prophesied
St. Peter's denial, and the cowardice of all.(e)

" Then cometh Jesus with them unto a place called Gethsemane:(/) where was
a Garden, into the which He entered, and His Disciples." (g) Thus was a Garden
made the scene of our Saviour's Passion, as it was the place where He made His
Grave :(h) and thus, the curse which was entailed on our race in a Garden, by the
first Adam, was there also, by the second Adam, undone.

40 And when He was at the place, He said unto them, Pray that ye
enter not into temptation.

These words do not seem to have been addressed to all the Eleven : but only to
those three Disciples, — ("Peter and James and John,") — whom our Saviour se-
lected out of the entire number to be the witnesses, or rather to be the companions,
of His greatest Agony. To the rest He said on first entering the Garden, "Sit ye
here, while I go and pray yonder :"(i) but to these, He appears to have spoken the
words of the text, after withdrawing with them to a more retired part of the Garden.
There, — " sore amazed and very heavy," — He is found to have added, " My soul is
exceeding sorrowful, even unto death: tarry ye here, and watch with Me."(&) —
Concerning such passages, we know not how to speak. The reader is, however, re-
ferred to the notes on the earlier Gospels. (Z)

41, 42 And He was withdrawn from them about a stone's cast, and
kneeled down, and prayed, saying, Father, if Thou be willing, remove
this cup from Me : nevertheless not My will, but Thine, be done.

The two earlier Gospels here discover to us our Blessed Redeemer as " fallen on
His face" "to the ground,"(m) while He poured forth these mysterious words of
resignation to the Father's Will. — " I seek not Mine own Will," (said He on another
occasion,) " but the Will of the Father which hath sent Me."(w)

And here, it is obvious to remark how completely the text establishes the exist-
ence of a Human, as distinct from a Divine Will, in the one Person of our Saviour
Christ, — " Very God, and Very Man." Not that it is here implied that His own
"Will" was at variance with the Will of the Eternal Father: but the very instincts
of Humanity cause us to shrink from Agony ; and here was Agony the sharpest that
had ever been endured by any of the sons of Adam. See the note on St. Matthew
xxvi. 42.

"The expression 'Not My Will, but Thine, be done,' uttered with respect to that
which would then only become sinful if followed in preference to the Divine Will,

(a) Consider below, ver. 49 to 51. St. Matth. xxvi, 51 to 53. St. John xviii. 10, 11; and,
not least of all, 36.

(6) See St. Matth. xxvi. 30, and the note there. (c) St. John xv. xvi. xvii.

id) See the conclusion of the note on ver. 23, above.

ie) See St. Matth. xxvi 31 to 35. (/) St. Matth. xxvi. 36. {g) St John xviii. 1.

ih) St. John xix. 41. (i) St. Matth. xxvi. 36.

(k) St. Matth. xxvi. 38: St. Mark xiv. 33.

(l) See the notes on St. Matth. xxvi. 37 and 38. Also on St. Mark xiv. 34.

\m) St. Matth. xxvi. 39 : St. Mark xiv. 35. (n) St. John v. 30.

598 A I'LAIX OOmODTZABY [chap.

may inform as where mere Temptation ends, and irhere Bin (which in our Lord
t the remotest place) begins. And may ire no! conceive also that th<' more
aonte apprehension 01 things Which the perfeel contexture of BQa Humanity bronght
with it,— the keener sense of pain and distress, at well as of other's ingratitude and
treachery, whioh Bis Binless son] entertained, rives shar] this

description of trial in Him ; and far more than counterbalance, in respect of bard-
• endurance, that which leas holy and duller spirits have to encounter from
what in Him ha<l uo place, — the remnants of native corruption, and ill desires im-
i stly mortified V'\o) — These valuable remarks prepare us for the memorable
statement which follows, and which exhibits to as the Lord of stained in

Hi— hour of mysterious extremity by one of His own i

43 And there appeared an Angel untu Ilim from Heaven, strength-
ening Ilim.

"In such infinite condescension did He deign as Man to Buffer agony, and in that

suffering to receive Bupjpoii from 01 : Hie own creatures, who was made and who

lived by the breath oiHis mouth. "(/0

1 nder the comment of the Snail on this mysterious transaction. After men-
tioning our Kkiii.i mi.u'.s "strong crying," — and aoticinga circumstance nowhere
else recorded, namely the precious "tearf of Christ, — St. Paul, (who derived Id-*
< tospel by immediate revelation from Gk>D,)(g) declares, — He " vxu h< ard, — in that
// . "i >■) .... It seems to be implied that He was " heard" by this Bending
of the Angel; whose appearance, (saye Theophylact,) is recorded for "ur safe
te ich us the efficacy of Prayer.(«) But the precise occasion of " Fear," in th
of our Blessed Loan, seems t iwful a matter for the speculations of Buch as we

are. It may Buffice to remind the reader of a place in the Psalms where this article

of tin.' Passion finds express prophetic notice: — "My heart i- sore pained within

id the terrors of Death are fallen upon Me. Fearful ne-- and trembling are

come upon Me, and horror hath overwhelmed Me. And 1 said, Oh that 1 had
wingB like a dove I for then would I fly away and be at rest."(<)

A living writer remark-. — "When our Loan was tempted in the Wilderness, it
was not till after His Temptation was ended, thai "Angels came and minis! I
unto B3m."(t*) Here, an Angel comes from II ngthen Him during

II trial: from which we may infer that this was a far more severe struggle than
tie- former. The same inference may be drawn from the accounts of the h

and from our Loan't own language and demeanor, "ii this latter occasion."(z)
This was, in fact, th . ." darkly hinted at in St. Luke i\. 13, (whei

the note,) until which, Satan had departed from the Holy One ; and for which, he
had doubtless gathered up all his strength, in order to make one tremendous assault.
"The Prince of this World oometh,"(y) — our Loan had said a few hours before.

He had now, doubtless, i")nc.(:) It follows:

\ \ And being in an Agony lie prayed more earnestly : and His
t was as it were great drops of blood falling down to the ground.

y word here is full of dignity, awe, and wonder. V>\ that " A

Bl 1 Sweat," the Church evermore prays to her Good Loan for delivers W

it te', in a manner, the Undoing of a part of the ancient curse, that the

Adam should have thus watered tin' earth, (which was cursed for the tr

Of the first Adam,] with the Sweat, not only of Hi- -'• I d His

Divine Person! Surely Christ bore that curse now in it- fullness; not in a : .
but literally: even as when on the morrow, He submitted to v m of

thorns. Consider the fir-t note on St. Matthew ixvii. S

The heavy burthen of cur Saviour's Suffering on this tr N in is

noticed by all the four Evangelists, and fimself.(a) ' F< it His

I". W. II. Mill. (,,) William*. (7) (Jul i. 12. (r) II.-l.. I

i xxi. 17.) with I I nith Cor-

nell . ' 8,4.) (0 Pi. It. L, ' : "'■ »• ".

(,) BUbopLoi ..n .\iv. 30.

. Mid tli'- note thereon.
(.i) St. Muttli. a

XXII.]

ON ST. LUKE'S GOSPEL. 599

strange and never else heard of Sweat, — drops of blood plenteously issuing from
Him all over His Body, no man then touching Him, none being near Him ; — that
Blood came certainly from some great Sorrow, wherewith His soul was pierced."
So, Bishop Andrewes, who dwells on the circumstance with pious wonder ; remark-
ing that " when no manner of violence was offered Him in Body, — no man touching
Him, or being near Him, — in a cold Night, (for they were fain to have a fire within
doors,) — lying abroad in the air, — and upon the cold Earth, — to be all of a Sweat!
and that Sweat to be Blood ! and not a thin faint Sweat, but of great drops ; and
those, so many, so plenteous, as they went through His apparel and all ; and
through all, streamed to the ground, and that in great abundance ! Read, inquire,
and consider if ever there were sweat like this Sweat of His? Never the like
Sweat certainly, and therefore never like Sorrow .... That hour, what His feel-
ings were, it is dangerous to define. We know them not ; we may be too bold to
determine of them. To very good purpose it is that the ancient Fathers of the
Greek Church, in their Liturgy, after they have recounted all the particular pains
as they are set down in His Passion, — and by all, and by every one of them, called
for Mercy, — do, after all, shut up all with this : ' By Thine unknown Sorrows and
Sufferings, [felt by Thee, but not distinctly known by us,] Have mercy upon us and
save us!' "(b)

45, 46 And when He rose up from Prayer, and was come to His
Disciples, He found them sleeping for sorrow, and said unto them, Why
sleep ye ? rise and pray, lest ye enter into temptation.

Allestree has some striking remarks on this. " Truly" (he says) "of two visions
which our Saviour gave to His most intimate Apostles, Peter, James and John, —
the one of Glory on Mount Tabor, the other of sufferings in Gethsemane : showing
in the one, Heaven and Himself transfigured, a glimpse of beatific vision ; and in
the other Hell transfigured, and a sad scene of all its agonies, — He thought this a
more concerning sight : for when they fell asleep at both, at His Transfiguration,
' Peter and they that were with him were heavy with sleep ;'(c) yet does He not
rouse them up to behold His glory. When they did awake indeed, they saw a
glimpse of it, but straight ' there came a cloud, and overshadowed them.'(eZ) But
at His Passion, He bids them 'watch with IIim:'(e) and when He findeth them
asleep, He says 'What, could ye not watch with Me one houvVXf) and bids them
'watch' again, (g) and comes again a third time and upbraids their drowsiness. (Ji)
So much more necessary was it to behold His Agonies, than to see His felicities !
Glory does not discover or invite to Heaven, so much as sufferings drive to it ; and
we are more concerned to take a view of that Garden of Gethsemane, than that of
Paradise ; and the going down from the Mount of Olives does more advantage us
in climbing the Eternal Hills, than all Mount Tabor's height."

The narratives of St. Matthew and St. Mark, which are somewhat fuller in this
place, should here be consulted. (i) Little or nothing will be found in the way of
Commentary, however, on the verses in question. In truth, the entire History of
our Saviour's Passion is a subject for Meditation and Prayer: not for criticism and
dry discussion. Solemn and affecting, past all words, we pass by the most striking
passages, not knowing how to speak of them as we should .... "Rise," (said
our Redeemer, at last, to His slumbering Disciples,) " let us be going ; behold, he
is at hand that doth betray Me." (A;)

47 And while He yet spake, behold a multitude, and he that was
called Judas, one of the Twelve, went before them, and drew near unto
Jesus to kiss Him.

For this was the concerted " sign" or " token" by which the traitor had promised
to indicate the Divine Person of his Lord to his partners in crime. (I) St. Luke
alone of the Evangelists remarks that Judas walked in advance of the rabble and
soldiery who came to apprehend our Blessed Lord. It will be remembered that
St. Peter in another place notices the same circumstance, when he proposes that a

(b) Andrewes. (c) St. Luke ix. 32. td) Ver. 34. (e) St. Matth. xxvi. 38.

(/) Ver. 40. (g) Ver. 41. [h) Ver. 45.

(i) See St. Matth. xxvi. 41 to 46 : St. Mark xiv. 38 to 42.

(fc) St. Matth. xxvi. 46 : St. Mark xiv. 42. (I) St. Matth. xxvi. 48 : St. Mark xiv. 44.

GOO A PLAIN COMMENTARY [CHAT.

witness of the Resurrection should be ordained in the place of Judas, — "which
•iid. to them that took J«sus."(m)

48 Bui ' lid unto him, Judas, betraycst thou the Son of Man

with a 1..

"Y< i "'■- it la elaewhere written,) "Mine own familiar friend, in whoa
which 'li'l eat of My bread, hath lifted np bis heel against Me."(n) Concerning
this act of treachery, the reader may refer t" the notea on the first uoepel.(o)

49, 50, 51 When they which were about Him saw what would follow,
they said unto Him, LOBD, shall we smite with the sword? And one
of them smote the servant of the high Priest, and cut off his right ear.
And JBSU8 answered and said, Suffer ye thus far.

•• Shall we smite with the sword?" — the Apostles had inquired. " Suffer ye thus
far," — was the Divine reply: whereby our Sayioi b evidently forbade Sis foil

d in Bis defence. But in the meantime, "Simon Peter having a
sword drew it," — and performed the act of violence here recorded. "The servant's
name was Malohus."(n) See St. Matth. xxvL 51 to 53, and the notes then
the first Evangelist has recorded at greatest length our Loss's discourse on this
occasion. But St. Luke, (the Physician !)(g) alone it is who describes the miracle
which follows : —

And He touched His ear and healed him.

Thin, by tlic way, is tin- only case recorded of the miraculous healing of a wound
inflicted by external violence. Whereby our Lord Bet forth in example that

heavenly precept of His, — "Love your enemies," "do e 1 to them that hate

you. "(7) Consider the graciousness of Buch an act,— performed in favour 1 1 such
an i. ne, — and in such an hour! — "One might indeed be curious to know what

nderfuJ a cure and miracle might have had at Buch a time. Possibly, in the
heat of the moment, the man neither noticed the wound nor the miraculous cure:

11, it may have had the effect, in the end, >f reclaiming him. and withdrawing
him from that Ben L<
It has also been pointed out that "in all other miracle-. Faith seems to bare Wen

■eiitial requisite in all who required and received the benefit. But this ap-

to have been performed in favour of an enemy, in whom therefore we should
not look for such faith ; ami as a pure act of our Loan's charity and forgin
One cannot but suspect, however, that there might have been seereth - I

in him, known to ^uv Loan, which rendered him meet fox this mercy being vouch-
safed to him."(.v)

52 Then JESUS Baid unto the chief Priests, and captains of the

Temple, and the elders, which were come to Him,

Take notice, by the way, what s motley company had come forth from the City
on this accursed errand: s great multitude bearing lanterns and torches, swords
and >tave-,(/) a band of soldiers with their captain, and officers of the Jews,(t(] —
and among them, the chief Priests, and captain- of the Temple, with the Elders! —
To them, Baid the Holy One :

Be ye come out, as against a thief, with swords and Etai
When I wae daily with you in the Temple, ye stretched forth no hands
net Me: bat this is your Hour, and the power of Darkn<

\ ii I,— "Why do ve treat Me as it' I were a robber, thus coming out

ami' ■■: Vie by night t What have! rrequire this! Daily

have l hing in the Temple, and that openly. Why did ye not ta

//'"i ''' 'I* ■•/'/. our Loan proceeds, in very remarkable language, I • as-

rather, He Ii av( Hi- enemies to Infer. They had not taken Sim till now,

(»i) \. • L 10 (n) t (.■) i Vitih \\\i. :.

1". .11. (-) St. Matth \. ;i. (») Williams.

(ij St. John aviiL 8. Bt Matth. ucvi 17. (m) 8L John xriiL U.

XXII.] ON ST. LUKE'S GOSPEL. 601

because not till now had He surrendered Himself into their hands : but this was
"their Hour ;" and, (it is mysteriously added,) "the Power of Darkness." For a
short period of time, — predetermined in the eternal counsels of God, — were they
permitted to display their malice ; and " the Power of Darkness" was suffered to
nave the ascendancy, — to bruise the heel of Him who was about to bruise his
head, (a:) Consider what has been already offered on this subject, above, in the note
on ver. 43. All this illustrates, and helps to explain, the marked manner in which
St. John declares concerning the Traitor that " it was Night" when he went out(y)
from the Paschal Supper and from the presence of his Lord.

Take notice that Christian men are declared by the Spirit yet to wrestle "against
Principalities, against Powers, against the Rulers oj the Darkness of this World,
against spiritual wickedness in high places :"(z) but, (as it is elsewhere said,) God
" hath delivered us from the Power of Darkness, and hath translated us into the
Kingdom of His dear Son."(«) It follows in the earlier Gospels, that at this junc-
ture, " all the Disciples forsook Him and fled."(&)

54, 55 Then took they Him, and led Him, and brought Him into
the High Priest's house.

And Peter followed afar off. And when they had kindled a fire in
the midst of the hall, and were set down together, Peter sat down
among them.

This is related more particularly in St. John's Gospel, to which the reader is
referred. (c) From the house of Annas, (whither our Blessed Lord was first con-
ducted,) (d) He was led to the palace of Caiaphas, the High-priest, — followed at a
distance by St. Peter and St. John. Owing to the coldness of the weather, (for the
nights in Palestine at the Passover season are intensely cold,) a charcoal-fire had
been kindled in the outer part of the Hall, where the servants and officers of the
High-priest stood ; and St. Peter, after standing for a while with them,(e) sat down
to warm himself at the fire.(/)

It will be perceived that St. Matthew and St. Mark in this place record the pro-
ceedings of the Sanhedrin, (who find " two false witnesses ;") together with the
High-Priest's behaviour towards the Holy One, — who is charged with Blasphemy,
and declared to be "guilty of Death."(/7) The terrible course which events were
thus taking at the upper end of the Hall prepares us for the sad but instructive
spectacle to which St. Luke next invites our attention. Having described St. Peter
as seated among the servants, at the fire, he adds :

56 But a certain maid beheld him as he sat by the fire, and earn-
estly looked upon him, and said, This man was also with Him.

See the note on St. Mark xiv. 67. It has been pointed out, as worthy of notice,
" that the women introduced on this occasion are the only women mentioned as
taking part with the enemies of our Lord : and even they are not concerned in
bringing about His condemnation, nor any further than to detect St. Peter. It is
remarkable that no woman is mentioned throughout, as speaking against our Lord
in His life, or having a share in His death. On the contrary, — He is anointed by
a woman for His burial, women are the last at His grave, the first at His Resur-
rection : to a woman He first appeared : women ministered to His wants from
Galilee : women bewailed and lamented Him : a heathen woman interceded for His
Life with her husband, the Governor ; and above all, of a woman He was born."(/0

57, 58, 59 And he denied Him, saying, Woman, I know Him not.
And after a little while another saw him, and said, Thou art also of
them. And Peter said, Man, I am not. And about the space of an
hour after, another confidently affirmed, saying, Of a truth this fellow
also was with Him : for he is a Galilaean.

(x) Gen. iii. 15. (y) St. John xiii. 30. (z) Eph. vi. 12.

(a) Coloss. i. 13. Compare Acts xxvi. 18. (6) St. Matth. xxvi. 56 : St. Mark xiv. 50.

Sc) St. John xviii. 12 to 18, — where see the notes. See also the note on St. Mark xiv. 54.
d) St. John xviii. 13. (e) St. John xviii. 18. (/) St. Mark xiv. 54.

(jr) St. Matth. xxvi. 59 to 66 : St. Mark xiv. 55 to 64. (h) Williams.

602 ,\ 1'I.AIN bOMMBNTABY [CHAP.

• Bi M - : . riv. 68, 69, 70.

60, ,; 1 And Petei said Man. I know not what thou sayest. And
immediately, while he yet Bpake, the cock crew.

i> turned, and looked anon Peter. And Peter remem-
I the word of the Lobd, how II<' had said onto him, Before the
cook crow, thou Bhalt deny Me thrice.

•■ \\ bsi was expressed in that look of our Blessed Sw [our, thought of man can-
• ■ iceive, and words cannot utter. That it spoke of all that had passed in our
i long intimacy with St Peter, and especially of the conversation of that

night, and that it derived a peculiar force and meaning from the indignities which
(mi- Lord was Buffering, — that it implied something of this, we may well buj
but what more we cannot tell. The conciseness and sublimity with which it is
mentioned, resembles the account in Genesis of Sis Word being spoken, at which
the World wasoreated. Christ looked, — and Light filled thesoulof I'
thought of his Lord's Divinity, which he had believed, but had forgotten, cow
rushed afresh on his mind. In the darkness and Bilence of the eight, his eyes were
opened to all that had passed:"

62 And Peter went out, and vrept bitterly.

The reader i- requested to read the remarks which have been already offered '!i
St. Peter's fall, in the Commentary on the two earlier Gospels, (i) St. Luke pro-
- with the history of our Savioi a's Passion.

»;:'», til. »;"» And the men that held JESUS mocked Him, and smote
Htm. And when they had blindfolded Him, they struck Him on the
face, and asked Him, Baying, Prophesy, who is it that smote Thee!
And many other things blasphemously spake they against Him.

Concerning this portion of the Divine Narrative, the reader i- referred to the

St Matthew xxvi. 67, and on St. .Mark xiv. 65. Now was Christ thai

''Ian," of whom we read in the B ' oi Psalms; " persecuted," and

i at the heart ;" "helpless and poor," and Hi- " lie art wounded within"

Him: (A;) "despised and rejected of men; a Man of Sorrows and acquainted with

Grief." "He was oppressed, and Be was affli< B L not BDs

mouth."(Q

Bow certain does it become, by the way. Grom ■ oareful study of the Gospels,
that the Divinity of our Blessed Loan's person cannot have been so apparent a
matter as, in our devotion towards our Krdrrxrr and our Gon, we are sometimes
apt to imagine! There must have been a rery thick mantle spread over Bis Qon-
head. The Glory of Bis Deity must have been curtained dose, — o rerj close that

■ ly a ray, if ei en so much as a ray. could ever break through and meet thi
of men. Eh erything in the Gospels tend- to show this. He spoke in the accent of
despised Galilee. Be was called the "carpenter;" and deemed the son of aver]
man. No one u ever said to have been Btruokby Bis aspect. Bis voice did not by
any means always persuade. Bis speech was cavilled at .Men asked Bim to depart
outof thei Lt the close of His Mini-try, soldiers oould strike Him with their

■ i 1 smite 1 1 i ii i with their open palms, — blindfold Him, — force s thorny crown
into His pun- temples, scourge Him, spit upon Bim, tortun Bis paroned lips
with gall, — orucify Bun, -thrusl s spear into Bis lifeless side I None of these
things could have happened, had Be seen lit to reveal Bimself to Bis enemies.
(i .11 appeared to three of ill' iplee in the Dearest approach to Bis

proper Glory which their mortal eyes oould bear to look npon ; and next day, when
He descended "theHolj Mount, the multitude oame running to Him I
. 15.
lt depends npon the heart of man therefore, now as then, whether Chbist -hall
be discerned or not : discerned in the common round of daily duty. — in the lowly
in the unadorned path-way of common Ufa. tf we perceive Him not, it is
not because he ii not there, but because we have not tl Bim.

(.) E (*) Fa cix. 16, 21.

(0 I

XXII.] ON ST. LUKE'S GOSPEL. 603

66, 67 And as soon as it was day, the elders of the people and the
chief Priests and the Scribes came together, and led Him into their
Council, saying, Art Thou the Christ ? tell us. And He said unto
them, If I tell you, ye will not believe :

For our Lord had already told the High-Priest that He was "the Christ."(w)

68 and if I also ask you, ye will not answer Me, nor let Me go.

For, when our Saviour asked questions of His enemies, they either would not,
(being afraid,) (?i) — or they could not, (being convinced and refuted,) (o) — return
Him any answer. Take notice that He now repeats the splendid prediction which
is also found on His lips on the occasion alluded to above, in the note on ver. £>~l.(p)

69, 70 Hereafter shall the Son of Man sit on the Eight Hand of the
Power of God.

Then said they all, Art Thou then the Son of God ?

A most remarkable question, truly : showing how entirely His learned auditory
recognized our Lord's reference to Daniel vii. 13, and how well they understood
that prophecy. He had only said, " the Son of Man."

71 And He said unto them, Ye say that I am.
And they said, What need we any further witness ? for we ourselves
have heard of His own mouth.

This entire portion of narrative, (namely, from ver. 66 to ver. 71,) will be dis-
covered to be peculiar to the present Gospel. It describes what took place when
our Lord was brought before the high Court of Sanhedrin, — "their Council," as it
is called in ver. 66. It was now early morning, (the interval between three and
six ;) and the Court seems to have sat for a very brief space of time. The words
of our Saviour Himself, when interrogated, rendered the calling of witnesses a
superfluous form: and every instant was now precious. His Judges therefore
availed themselves of His declaration that He was indeed " the Son of God," to
bring the solemn mockery of their judicial proceedings to a close. And now, they
are prepared to conduct Him before Pilate, and require the execution of their sinful
sentence.(^)

(m) See St. Matth. xxvi. 63, 64 : St. Mark xiv. 61, 62. (») As in St. Luke xx. 1 to 7.

(o) As in St. Matth. xxii. 41 to 46, and St. Luke xx. 23 to 26.

(p) See St. Matth. xxvi. 64, — and the note there.

(q) Compare St. Luke xxiii. 1, with St. Matth. xxvii. 1, 2, and St. Mark xv. 1.

G04 A PLAIN COMMENTARY [VlIAP.

CHAPTER XXIII

] .h>i g it accused before Pilar > to Herod. 8 Het >. 12

Herod and Pilate are made friends. !•' Barabbat is desired of tin people, and is

d by Pilate, and Jxsua is given to be crucified. 27 fli teueth the women that

lament Him, tiie destruction of Jerusalem. ."I Prayeth for His enemies, 39 Tico

evildoers are crucified Vfith Jli/n. 40 {lis Death. f>o His Jhuial.

1 And the whole multitude of them arose, and led Him unto Pilate.

To understand the meaning of tins, the concluding note on the xxii. Chanter
should he home in mind. From this place, a new aspect of our Lord's Humilia-
tion is presented to our notice, — namely, Hia sufferings at tin' hands of the Roman
Governor. Sere begins, therefore, that train of events which ended in the memor-
able truth, — Be "suffered under Pontius Pilate."

Having hurried the Holy One through the mock formality of a Trial before their
own < lourt, ami bo far gratified the priae of their nation, these impious men are im-
patient to transfer the execution of their sentence to the [toman Governor; as the
shortest, as well as the safest, method of contriving the Death of their Prisoner.
Hence, the transaction which follows. It is likely that on witnessing this result of

the pr ledings of the Sanhedrin, Judas set the Beal apon his iniquity, — in the

manner St. Matthew describes.(a)

Our Lord was now brought before Pilate. To have taxed Him, in such a pre-

sence, with pretending to be the Bon of God, would have b en clearly ridiculous.

They must charge Him with the violation of some Roman Law; and accordingly, as

km from the present Gospel, the formal charge brought against Him, was

that of claiming to be a King. As it follows:

2 And thoy began to accuse Him, Baying, We found thifl feUotO per-
verting the nation, and forbidding to give tribute to C&sar, Baying that
lie Himself is Christ a King.

ll i- accused of making Himself a King by the very people who would them-
by force have onoe made Him one. (A) Consider bow Joseph, (an eminent
l to punishmenl tor the ?erj crime which be abhorred to
commit. (c) And yet, in a far differenl sense from what Ili^ enemies intended,
Ohrisi was a King; so that, by successfully urging the present charge, they bear
unwilling witness to a solemn truth-, and finally (albeit in mockery) procure the
true title of the Savioub to be affixed to Hi> very Crossed) "The Beroeni
man," (it i^ written in a certain place,) "shall turn to Thy praise."(<)

i •• notice also that He is accused to Pilate of the rery crime from the imputa-
tion of which He had in the fullest manner oleared Himself, on a r» ision;
namely, of "forbidding t" give tribute to CsBsar;"f/^ and this t"" by the very
nation who would have rejoiced in nothing so muco a- in having Him for their
leader in such a cause. Consider St. I .uk<- ax 28, and tin' note thai

:'. Ami Pilate asked Bim, Baying, Art Thou the King of the .Tews?

And lie answered him ami .-aid, Thuu snyi-st it.
fal " uril B i 10, when the reader Is now

(/•) St John \i. \ ■ (.■) (it'll. uxix. (■') DM MloW, tin- BOtS OB fBl

. bond. 10. (/; Bet Bt Lok« a. M to K.

XXIII.] ON ST. LUKE'S GOSPEL. 605

A memorable question, truly ; recorded by all the Four Evangelists in the self-
same words :(g) and yet a more memorable reply. It is that " Confession" noticed
by St. Paul in his first Epistle to Timothy, as the "good Confession" which Ciirist
Jesus "witnessed before Pontius Pilate."(/t) For a fuller account of His dialogue
with the Roman Governor, St. John's Gospel must be consulted. (i) St. Luke re-
cords nothing but the result of that interview, in the words which follow, and which
are only found besides related by St. John.

4, 5 Then said Pilate to the Chief Priests and to the people, I find
no fault in this Man. And they were the more fierce, saying, He
stirreth up the people, teaching throughout all Jewry beginning from
Galilee to this place.

To all of which, our Saviour is found to have "answered nothing." "As a
sheep before her shearers is dumb, so He opened not His mouth."(A:) Pilate there-
upon asked Him if He heard not the accusation of His enemies; "but Jesus yet
answered nothing ;"(Z) "returned him," as St. Matthew says, "not even a single
word of answer ; so that the Governor wondered greatly." (m) There was doubtless
something in our Lord's manner, so different from what is usual in a criminal,
that the Judge felt something of awe and wonder before Him.(n) In the mean-
while,

6, 7 When Pilate heard of Galilee, he asked whether the man were a
Galilsean. And as soon as he knew that He belonged unto Herod's
jurisdiction, he sent Him to Herod, who himself also was at Jerusalem
at that time.

" Also," — because Jerusalem was not the usual residence either of Pilate or of
Herod. The Roman Governor usually lived at Cgesarea.

Pilate is the very type of a weak, irresolute statesman. Sufficiently able and
inclined to recognize the right, to shrink from the commission of open and flagrant
wrong; yet too fearful of consequences, to dare to be strictly just ; he rejoiced in
the opportunity of transferring to another the burthen of a responsibility which he
dared not incur in person. It must have also seemed to him a master-stroke of
policy, in this manner to conciliate Herod's friendship by the self-same act which
secured his own safety. And here, a new scene in our Lord's Humiliation is un-
folded to our gaze. He is transferred from Pilate's judgment-seat, to that of the
Idumaean Herod : whereby, the remote descendant of Jacob is confronted with the
remote descendant of Esau ; and experiences the same cruel treatment from him
which had been experienced by all His ancestors at the hands of the same family, (o)
Herod, who slew the Forerunner, must have a hand in the death of Messiah
likewise.

Herod's is indeed a wonderful history. His name comes before us at the begin-
ning of the Gospel, as the disciple of the Baptist ; next, as his destroyer : then,
disturbed by a guilty conscience, it will be remembered that he supposed the mur-
dered Saint to be the author of the miracles which were wrought by our Lord.
" And Herod said, John have I beheaded ; but who is this, of whom I hear such
things ? And he desired to see Him."(^>) Last of all, we behold the Tetrarch face
to face with the Saviour of the World : and with how fearful a result ! — On this
entire subject, the reader is referred to a long note on St. Luke ix. 9.

8 And when Herod saw Jesus, he was exceeding glad : for he was
desirous to see Him of a long season, because he had heard many
things of Him ; and he hoped to have seen some miracle done by Him.

(g) St. Matth. xxvii. 11 : St. Mark xv. 2: St. Luke xxiii. 3: St. John xviii. 33.

(h) 1 Tim. vi. 13. See also the note on St. Matth. xxvii. 11.

{i) See St. John xviii. 33 to 37. (k) Is. liii. 7. (I) St. Mark xv. 4, 5.

Cm) St. Matth. xxvii. 14. («) Williams.

(o) Consider the following places: Gen. xxv. 22: xxvii. 41. Ex. xvii. 8, (Compare Gen.
xxxvi. 12.) Numb. xx. 14 to 21. 1 Sam. xxi. 7: xxii. 18: xxx. 1, 2, &c. Obad. x. 14. Ps.
cxxxvii. 7. 1 Esdr. iv. 45. Lam. iv. 22. 2 Chron. xxviii. 17 : xx. 1, &c. St. Matth. ii. 16 :
xiv. 3 to 10, &c. (p) St. Luke ix. 9.

(JOG A PLAIN COMM i:\TAKY [CHAP.

Well may Herod bave "heard many things" ofourSavioi i:, — being Tetraroh of
the Province where our Lord bad worked bo many miracles; having moreover •

,:>1, whose wife was a mosi devoted disoiple 01 Chbist.(oJ Prom those about
him , be iiiu-t bave become acquainted with many a divine, many a wondrous hi—

and In' Beems to bave (alien into that fearful, but as it may be not oncommon
i i ■!-.• i;.-!i jion beoomes a mere sentiment of the heart, or matter of intelleo-
tual curiosity ; but forms no essential part of the inward 1 i i * * , and produces d
mi the daily practice. ll< retained bis rice k an interest in heavenly

things. Be listened to John, yet lived in open adultery. Just one year had elapsed
since the period when Herod Antipas had"desired Ohrist; and now that

he Baw Hun, the result might have 1 a anticipated. He was altogether surprised

lisappointed. There was no Beauty in the Saviour that be Bhould desire
Him:(r) no wonders were displayed in proof of His Dominion over the powi
Nature: no reply vouchsafed to any of the onrious questions with which the
Tetrarch plied Hun. As it follows,

0, 10, 11 Then lie questioned -with Him in many words ; but lie
answered him nothing. And the Chief Priests and Scribes stood and
vehemently accused Him. And Herod with his men of war set Him
at Nought, and mocked Htm, and arrayed Iliin in a gorgeous robe, and
sent Him again to Pilate.

Herod caused our Saviour to be clad, not "in a -s "i ■■_'•• >us" hut "in a tr/titc
— uch a dress as persons wore who were candidates for any high office.
1 1 ere was One accused of aspiring to nothing short of the crown royal : yet He made
Jli- appearance unsupported by a Bingle friend, — poor and silent, — "a worm and
ii. i man ; a wry Bcorn of men, and the out-cast of the people."(s) Claim-; to kingly
honours, if Bet op by Buch an one, seemed to Herod a Bubject forridicule, rather
than for punishment : and to mark \n- Bense of this, be pursued the oourse described
in the text, — mocking Him, by arraying Him in a white robe.

12 And the same day Pilate and Herod were made friends together:
for before they were at enmity between them-el ,

[thee ever been tlm<. Men who before were at enmity will combine, and be-
come friends, when Christ Himself, or the Ohurob of Christ, is to he persecuted.^
The occasion of the quarrel of these tw> is not recorded, and therefore not certainly
known. (») Par more important \\a- it to notice this, the occasion of their i
oiliation; wherebj were fulfilled those words of anoient prophecy — "Whydo the
heathen rage, and the people imagine a vain thing? The bangs of the Earth set

themselves, and the Rulers tak ansel together, against the Loan, and against

His Anointed"- thai is " His Christ." Consider the quotation of Psalm ii. 1,2 in
Act i. and the comment supplied by the united voice of tin- Apostles, in

verses 27 and 28, on those words of David.

It now became necessary for Pilate to act; and he is found to have summoned
v the members of the Sanhedrin, but "the people" also, (among
whom the Holy One certainly had many followers, many humble yet devoted
friends,) r) in order that he might hai e the better chance or effecting hi< purpose :
which was, to prooure our Lord's release. But no blessing ever attends crooked
endeavours to do g l. It follows :

18, 11. L5 And Pilate, when he had railed together the Chief
Priests, and the Rulers, and the people, Baid onto them, Ye have
brought this Man unto me, as one that pervertetb die people: and,
behold, I, bavins examined Him before you, have found no fault in
this Man touching those things whereof ye acou e Him: no, nor yet

fa) Bt Lnke vttL r. 10. (r) I-. liii. 2. (.) P

(i ) - - ■ ■■ . i. (ii) &m Bt Lake sill. I.

John LLS8: riLSl: viii. 80. Bit zL ii, 48: mi. 1L Also Bt. Malta \\i
46. Bt Luk« six 18 1 mm

XXIII.] ON ST. LUKE'S GOSPEL. 607

Herod : for I sent you to him : and, lo, nothing worthy of death is
done unto Him.

Rather, — "nothing deserving of death has been done by Him." Pilate is argu-
ing that, in Herod's judgment, our Lord can have done nothing which deserves the
punishment of death, — for He has been acquitted by the Tetrarch.

Take notice by the way, in passing, how many, and what various persons bear
testimony to the innocence of the Holy One. Pilate,(?/) and Herod,(z) and Pilate's
wife ;(a) Judas himself,(6) the Thief on the Cross,(c) and the Centurion. (d) — Pilate
adds :

16, 17 I "will therefore chastise Him, and release Him. (For of
necessity he must release one unto them at the Feast.)

To set a prisoner free, at the Feast of the Passover, seems to have been a privi-
lege which the Romans granted in pursuance of a Jewish custom ; and, as far as
Pilate was concerned, it must have been of modern date : but it had evidently be-
come absolute. St. Mark records that, " the multitude crying aloud began to de-
sire him to do as he had ever done unto theni."(e) Now the eager desire of the
Roman Governor was, that Jesus of Nazareth might be He whom the people would
desire ; but the friends of the Holy One were silent, or their voices were overpow-
ered by the rabble whom their Rulers had persuaded to procure His death.

18, 19 And they cried out all at once, saying, Away with this Man,
and release unto us Barabbas : (who, for a certain sedition made in the
city, and for murder, was cast into prison.)

Thus " denying the Holy One and the Just, and desiring a murderer to be grant-
ed unto thenVC/') — as St. Peter afterwards boldly declared.

Now, the Roman Governor knew well that it was for envy that the Chief Priests
had delivered Him. Rugged, therefore, and little inclined to mercy as he is known
to have been by nature,(#) he appears to have been so wrought upon by the calm
majesty of his Prisoner, that he made repeated efforts to procure His release. As
it follows :

20, 21, 22, 23 Pilate therefore, willing to release Jesus, spake again
to them. But they cried, saying, Crucify Him, crucify Him. And
he said unto them the third time, Why, what evil hath He clone ? I
have found no cause of death in Him : I will therefore chastise Him,
and let Him go. And they were instant with loud voices, requiring
that He might be crucified. And the voices of them and of the Chief
Priests prevailed.

24 And Pilate gave sentence that it should be as they required.

" Three times did he challenge the whole nation of the Jews, ' Why, what evil
hath He done V Three times did he make that clear profession, ' I have found no
cause of death in Him.' His own wife, admonished in a dream, ' sent unto him,
saying, Have thou nothing to do with that just Man:'(7t) and when Pilate heard
that He made Himself the Son of God, 'he was the more afraid.' "( i) Notwith-
standing all this, he condemned and crucified the Lord of Glory. Qc) It was in
order to pacify the people, and retain possession of his office undisturbed and un-
molested, that the Roman Governor thus acted. But his policy proved unavailing.
At the end of a few years he was summoned to Rome, to meet certain charges which
were brought against him ; and an old Greek Chronologer, (quoted by Eusebius,)
relates that he destroyed himself in desperation. — It follows :

25 And he released unto them him that for sedition and murder was

(y) St. Matth. xxvii. 24. (z) See above verse 11. («) St. Matth. xxvii. 19.

(b) St. Matth. xxvii. 4. (c) See below verse 41. (d) See below, verse 47.

(e) St. Mark xv. S. (/) Acts iii. 14.

(g) See St. Luke xiii. 1, and the note there. (h) St. Matth. xxvii. 19.

(i) Bp. Pearson, quoting St. John xix. 7, 8. (/c) 1 Cor. ii. 8.

C08 A PLAIN COMMENTARY [CHAP.

oast into prison, whom they had desired; but he delivered Jesus to
their will.

Then wa« He scourged, and stripped by the soldiere, and arrayed in the mode
ensigns ol Royalty, — a crown "f thorns, :t purple robe, and a reed in Hi- right hand
I of a Bceptre: while those wretched miscreants smote Him on the head, and
I the 1. 1 1'''' before Him in derision; ami even spat in the face(f) of Him who is
'•the brightness of" the Pathss's "Glory, ami the ex p re s s image of Hi- per-
son !"("') \11 tliis, St. 1, ukc omits. He likewise passes over in silence the

memorable interview between our Satioi i and Pilate, and the many efforts which
made by the irresolute Roman to procure His acquittal, — "when," a-; St.
Peter expresses it, " he was determined to let Him go; v»)yet could not prevail
with the multitude bo consent to Hie release. On all tins Bubieot, the Gospel of St.
John must be referred to, and the remark- Bhould be read which are there offered.
It has been already pointed out,(o) and tlie remark deserves repetition, that the
monstrous violence ox the soldiery on this terrible occasion, as well as the length of
wickedness to which their rulers proceeded, can be referred to nothing .-hurt of the
Prince of Evil himself, who with all his furces conducted this assault against the
Son of Man. St. Paul not obscurely hints at the various rank- of those Powers of
Darkness :(jp) and declares that it was in ignorance of the marvellous Bcheme which
God had devised for Man's Redemption, that they procured the Death of the Ki.-

DBHXB: "for had they known it," remarks the £reat Apostle, "they would not
have crucified the Lord of Glory."(</) Of a truth they would not : for what was the
( Iross but the marvellous instrument of His own victory, and their undoing ! With

this, the choice weapon of the Enemy, was the Enemy himself slain. As it is
written, — "David stood upon the Philistine, and took his sword, and drew it out

of the sheath thereof; and tleu him, and cui off hit head therewith." {f) — But

turn.

Some hours had now elapsed. It was in fact almost nine o'clock in the morn-
ing -, the formal abandonment of our Saviour into the hands of Hi- blood-thirsty
enemies having taken place at six.(.v) On reaching the City-gate, np to which time
He- had Himself borne the Cross on which He was condemned to Buffer, —

26 And as they led Him away, they laid hold upon one Simon, a
Cyrenian, coming out of the country, and on him they laid the Cross,
that he might bear it after Jesi b.

Concerning this incident, the reader is requested to read what has been offered
on St. Matthew xxvii. 32 and St. Mark rv. 21. — Pleasant it is to believe that tins
highly favoured person will have become a Disciple from this hour, even if he n ere
already ; for he was one who, not in figure, but in actual truth, had fulfilled
that injunction of his Saviour, — "Whosoever will come after Me, let him deny
himself, ami take up hit cr<>ss, and follow .V'."(/)

27, 28 And there followed Ilim a great company of people, and of
women, which also bewailed and lamented Him. But Jesus turning
onto them Baid, Daughters of Jerusalem) weep not for Me, but weep for
yourselves, and for your children.

■■ N our children," — for in their time, [namely, forty year- after the Crucifixion,)
would the Siege of Jerusalem and the sail of the <'ity take plaoe:(«) and
onto them thai are irith ohild, and to them that give suck in those days," 0— the
same Divine Speaker had already deplaned of that oooasion. lie addaasayu
me effect, now :

. BO For, behold, the days arc coming, in the which they shall

(/) Bt Bfatth. i ■. Kui xv. It to 19. {>») H< b, L ■"•

In) A (u) Sm '■ w\ii. 35.

I p) Comport Bph. Hi. to 11, with vi. U, (■/) l Cor. U. B.

I,.) Bt Jobs -\i.\. 1 I.
" tth. .wi. 24: Bt Murk Hit 84: Bt Luke i.\. It,
(n) Boa thi
(x) Bt I. the note.

xxiil] on st. luke's gospel. 609

say, Blessed are the barren, and the wombs that never bare, and the
paps which never gave suck. Then shall they begin to say to the
mountains, Fall on us ; and to the hills, Cover us.

Compare with this, the language of Isaiah ii. 10, 19, 21 ; and for a yet stricter
parallel, see Rev. vi. 10. But so exact is the resemblance of the present place, in
point of expression, to Hosea x. 8, that it may be regarded almost as a cpuotation
from that ancient prophet.

31 For if they do these things in a green tree, what shall be done in
the dry ?

If such sufferings can befall the Innocent Man, — what shall be the fate of the
ungodly Nation? If the "tree planted by the water, that bringeth forth his fruit
in his season," is thus shamefully cut down, — what shall become of "trees whose
fruit witheroth, without fruit, twice dead V'(y)

32 And there were also two other, malefactors, led with Him to be
put to death.

These men are called " thieves" in the two earlier Gospels. (2) One of them after-
wards obtains such conspicuous notice, that a few words concerning the class to
which they belonged, will not be out of place here. They were probably offenders
of a kind which had sprung up in Palestine in consequence of the convulsed and
lawless state of the country ;(«,) among whom must have been found every grade of
guilt, — from that of the bold insurgent and outlaw, who, with misguided patriotism
seeks to revenge his country's wrongs by violent means of his own devising ; down
to that of the common thief, whose trade is plunder, and who scruples not to add to
his other crimes the guilt of blood. It seems reasonable to conjecture from St.
Mark xv. 7, that the two malefactors mentioned in the text were seditious men of
the kind first spoken of.

33 And when they were come to the place, which is called Calvary,
there they crucified Him,

It had been written full a thousand years before, — " They pierced My hands and
My feet. I may tell all My bones. They stand staring and looking upon Me." (b)

"The mystery here unfolded," remarks a good man, "far transcends ordinary
thought. With hearts undisciplined, we shall never comprehend it ; neither with
the best preparation can we do more than imbibe to our soul's health some portion
of that which passeth knowledge, and which angels but imperfectly apprehend."(e)

Scarcely endurable, when the thoughts are engaged on a subject of such awful
interest, are remarks of a purely critical character. It may, however, be thought
worthy of passing notice, that "Calvary" (Calvariq) is merely the Latin word for
"a skull;" retained (but only in this Gospel) from the Vulgate version of the
Scriptures. The other three Evangelists mention that the spot to which these sin-
ful men had now conducted our Saviour, was called in the Hebrew, " Golgotha."
" There they crucified Him," —

34 and the malefactors, one on the right hand, and the other on the
left. Then said Jesus, Father, forgive them; for they know not
what they do.

This was the first of our Lord's seven sayings on the Cross. Thus did He "make
intercession for the transgressors," — as His ancient prophet had foretold ; (cl) and
confirm, in His hour of bitter agony, one of His loftiest precepts, (e) by His own
most holy example. And surely, a truer notion may be obtained of the stupendous
nature of the transaction we are here considering, from this short Prayer of the
Saviour for His murderers, than could be conveyed by many words of painful ex-

(,?y) Ps. i. 3. St. Jude verse 12. And compare Ezek. xx. 47 with xxi. 3, 4.

(z) St. Matth. xxvii. 38: St. Mark xv. 27.

(a) Consider St. Mark xv. 7. Acts v. 36, 37: xxi. 3S. (I) Ps. xxii. 16, 17.

010 A plain OOMMHRTA&T [ciIAP.

planation from ourselves. The occasion is one of those where (in the pious l;m-
! i r.) ••diir safest eloquence is our silence."
Bui in proportion to <>nr Bense of the terrible -in of the actors in this black I
action, should surely I or hatred of sin in ourselves. No less alarming than in-
structive is the warning of the great Apostle against Bin in Christian i
veying as, : l n intimation that :ill that shocks and confounds as in the bis-
: our Saviour's Crucifixion is, after some mysterious fashion, thus repeated
and renewed, — "seeing," (1 "they crucify to themselves I

afresh, and put Him to an open shame."(/)

And they parted Bis raiment, and cast Lots.

This will be found more particularly related by tl Evangelist

pecially the notes i n St. John six. 23 and -t.

85 Ami the people stood beholding. And the rulers also with them
derided Him, saying, He saved others; let Him Bave Himself, if lie
be Chbist, the chosen of God.

For, Btrange as it may appear, yet is it "next to certain, that tho Death of the
Mi ss] mi, at the hands "1' His own, or any other people, was never apprehended by
the Jews as one "i" the events by which Sis Advent would I"- declared. This part
■ I His future history is foreshown indeed as clearly as words can express, in the
xxii. Psalm, in the ix. of Daniel, and in the liii. of Isaiah: and though other
parr- of these aame chapters are by the Jews themselves referred to the Mxa-
8IAH," (the liii. of Isaiah, more expressly and more frequently than any other
Bingle prophecy of the < » 1. 1 Testament;) "yet 'I'"'- this event appear, from tl i
beginning, to have been entirely concealed from their Church. Jlail it n
anciently foretold concerning this remarkable people, thai they should " grope at
noon-day, a- the blind gropeth in darkness '.'" that " the Bpirit of deep Bleep Bhould
be " poured out apon them," and •• their eyes be closed '.'" that they were "to hear

ind 1, hut. understand not ; and Bee indeed, but perceive not !" Nay, to this day,

are they not " blinded ;" and "when Dloses i- read," is not "the veil upon their

h )
I; ■;• besides to the notes on St Matthew xx\ii. 40, VI, and 43 : and on St. Mark
xv.31, 32.

36 And the soldiers also mocked Him, coming to Him, and offering
Him vinegar,

"They gave Him vinegar to drink, mingled with gall," St. Matthew says.(t)
Whereby those marvellous words of ancient prophecy were fulfilled, — "The;

II for My meat ; and in My thirst, they gave Me vinegar to drinkv'(A)
This they did, mocking Him:

37 and saying, If Thou be the King of the Jews, save Thyself.

In explanation of which circumstance, — ("If Thou be,") — the Evangelist adds:
And b saperscription also was written over Him in letters of

Greek, and Latin, and Hebrew, THIS IS THE KING OF '1111-:

JEWS.

An inscription was set over tin- head of our crucified Saviour, in conformity
with the Roman practice; which was, on such occasions, to specify in writing the

crime for which tl Bender Buffered. In calling our Loan "the Kin- ol tin 1

Jews," i' may, however, well he suspected that Pilate intended indireotlj to Bpite

tip- i pie who bad forced him m violate the dictates "t his own consciem i

coruingly, it will be remembered that they wanted him to alter the terms of tho
oharge, to which request of theirs, it was divinely overruled that the Roman Go-
vernor did not accede. (Q And thus vras our I tl character and off
claimed to all men. He was a King.(tn)

tf) Hsbrswi *i. ft. xr. 34.

f k) Dean Lyall, lx.10: \i '■'■ n-r. in 14, 16.

(i) St. Matth. i (/.) Psalm l\i.\. 21. (t) Sec St John six. 21, l'-'.

(mi

XXIII.] ON ST. LUKE'S GOSPEL. 611

The writing was in Greek, — because Greek was then the language of the world: in
Latin, — because Judaea was already a Roman Province : in Hebrew, — because the
Mighty Sufferer belonged by birth to the commonwealth of Israel. Grotius finely
connects the diverse languages which surmounted the Cross of CnmsT, with the
custom of the Roman Emperors, to carry before them the names of the " people,
nations, and languages," who were subject to their sway.

Our attention is nest directed to the conduct of the two malefactors ; who, as we
have already seen, were crucified with the Holy One. St. Luke alone, of the four
Evangelists, relates the striking circumstance, "that the two men thus placed, the
one on the right hand, the other on the left of our Lord, in His last agony, bore in
a manner the image of those who should stand at His right and at His left in Judg-
ment, — the elect of God, and the reprobate. "Wonderful indeed may it appear, — if
any thing after Christ crucified can seem wonderful,— that one of the former class
should be found there, where every thing told of extreme guilt and extreme punish-
ment: but even thus did He who came to save the lost. — and who, while we were
yet sinners, in due time died for the ungodly, — even thus did He choose to mani-
fest, even in the scene of His death, its atoning virtue to the worst of sinners re-
penting."^)

39 And one of the malefactors which were hanged railed on Him,
saying, If Thou be the Christ, save Thyself and us.

The sinful man read the inscription upon the Cross, and heard the furious railing
of the disappointed rabble, as they called upon our Saviour to save Himself, — if,
indeed, He had any claim to the proud title written above Him.(o) "Can we won-
der that he should have beheld only the contrast of his own extreme misery with
the asserted power which could save, but did not, — which saved not even its pro-
fessed possessor; and that, in the bitterness of anguish at the contrast, he should
cast in the teeth of his fellow-sufferer the taunt of the chief priests and people, —
" If Thou be the Christ, save Thyself, — and us?" Can we wonder that the per-
ception which could alone suppress these bad thoughts, was wanting to the miser-
able man in that hour of agony, — the perception of the majesty which sat on the
bleeding brow of the Christ beside him, self-resigned, and praying for His mur-
derers ?

" For there is nothing in suffering, in itself considered, which has power to bring
these or any other gracious feelings to minds before strangers to them : rather does
it harden the heart of the carnal man, by centering his thoughts on his own woe, to
the exclusion both of God and his fellows. Awful in this respect are all the pangs
which sever soul and body. Not without reason, therefore, has the Church taught
all her faithful children to say, — ' Suffer us not, in our last hour, for any pains of
Death, to fall from Thee!' If thus it is with those whose hearts have been disci-
plined and sanctified in the School of Christ, — how in that dismal struggle must
it fare with such as have put off their repentance and piety to the last?"(2^) — So
asks a good man, whose observations are directed against the danger of those who
defer the work of repentance to the end of life, in the vain hope that it may fare
with them as it fared with the repentant malefactor. He is bent on showing that
that man's blessed example is balanced by this other example of final impenitence.

40 But the other answering rebuked him,

It is impossible to say with certainty whether both of those who were crucified
with our Saviour were, at first, blasphemers or not: but it seems the safest plan to
take the statements of the two earlier Evangelists, according to their literal force
and meaning. And if both "the thieves which were crucified with Him," at first
reviled Him,(g) then we have the marvellous picture of one repenting at the very
latest hour, and accepted.

Be this as it may, we shall derive a sufficiently striking lesson from the wonder-
ful history before us, if we hold fast by the revealed details of the case. Here was
one who may, or may not, have been an old and hardened offender ; one who may,
or may not, have added the guilt of murder to robbery. What is certain, he was
"a felon justly convicted, justly executed: one, whom public justice had adjudged

(n) Dr. W. H. Mill. (o) See above, verse 37. tp) Dr. W". H. Mill.

(q) St. Matth. xxvii. 44: St. Mark xv. 33.

♦ J 1 li A PLAIN COMKBNTABT [CHAP.

to the most disgraceful as well as cruel of puni and t<> whom public mer-

bich bad jusl Barabbas from a murderer's death,— had do1 been ex-

tended. T • such :i persi n, therefore, was that signal mercy shown, which the brief
narrative of St. Luke enables us t<> trace. The repentance of the malefactor is
evinced in his confession, when be rebuked his hardened comrade (who hadj
t' y against the Royal Messi aship of Jbsi -,") (/■)

■11 Baying, Dost not thou fear God, : thou art in the same con-

demnation? And we indeed justly ; for we receive the due reward of

our d(

To repentance thus hearty, at the very moment also when he was writhit
neatb the bitter consequences of hi- crime, "he adds a Faith no less admirable;
w ben, pointing to the Man beside him. then under that load of \\ rath which ob
Hi- sacred person from all common Bight, In- adds to hi- mnation and t<>

lii- rebuke, tin' sentence," —

but this Man hath done n< 'tliii);_ r ami--.

42 And he said unto Jesus, Lord, remember me 'when Thou coniest
into Thy Kingdom.

Bather, — " when Thon comest in Thy kingdom :" a striking prayer indeed, and
worthy even of one who bad companied with the Apostles "all the time that the
Loan Jbsus went in and out among" them.(«) What is it but a confession that
Christ, having taken to Himself 1 1 1 - Kingdom, would return (7 in the 4 ilory of that
Kingdom,(u) in the latter day, t<> be the Judge of quick ami dead '.' This despised
oriminal could hardly have Bpoken more aptly bad he been one of those who heard
Loan foretell Bis future coming in Glory.(x)

13 And JESl • -aid unto him, Verily I say unto thee, To-day -halt
thou be with Me in Paradi

. when I come in M\ Kingdom, will I remember thee: but, This 'I";/ ahalt
thou be with V . This is the third "t".,ur Loan's seven last Bayings.

"In Pa I . memorable a word to be found on the lips of the S

Adam, and at such a time! What else does it imply but that, having undone the
curse, — having overcome Deatb by dying, — He was about to r< Mankind in

the Lost privilege ol their race; to reconduct them back to that happiness
which, by the disobedience of their first Parents, they bad been expelled!
remark- the great Athanasius, and Ambrose, with manj otb

Thus did our Saviocb convey to this man the blessed assurai f "a pat

with Him through His Baptism of Blood to His rest and to His final Glory.
'To-day— ti P ■' oot in the High M a, to which our Loan Himself

led not till afterwards ; whither ale - S ifterwards preached to the

d himself had not yet ascended ;(y) and whither to ascend at this time
was surely no privilege of this penitent thief;— but in that intermedial
faithful -'Mil-, the blessed division of that unseen region, to which on that day our
Loan descended, (according to the prediction of the Psalmist,(z) and the con!
in our Creed,) was the penitent Thief to he that day with Cbbist. With the souls
in that gafc custody, a - ,p ter write-, (./) -to whom Cbbist then declared their

nption accomplished, and their more perfect felicity surely approaching,
tin- penitent to await the full consummation of bis bliss, both in body and soul. (6)
•■ An I the c inclusion from it can be none other than thi-.- -that there i> i
bl iod of Chbisi can expiate it : no -inner to wh< m tl

lint lledemption have I d borne, who may not by repent. me., an i

Thus will tl cample of the dj ing thief ever afford onul

■ • the real penitent.
I. • none however presume on this singl ■'" 'the l»i.

(r) Dr. W. M Mill. (.) \.t-i IL '-•

- - . Mnttll. \\''

(,,) ' !■.'..• 10. I - I'. L i. 19.

(/,) .-■■ in i > '

(r) Dr. W. H. Mill.

XXIII.] ON ST. LUKE'S GOSPEL. 613

extended to a dying Malefactor; for, of a truth, very rarely in its essential features
can such a case be repeated, — in its accidental features, never. For aught that
appears to the contrary, here was a conscience only at last awakened ; yet embra-
cing the offer of Mercy with a free Confession, a hearty Repentance, and the prompt
exercise of a most mighty Faith. When even Peter had denied his Lord, and all
but St. John had forsaken him and fled, this suffering man comes forward, an almost
solitary witness to the Divinity of Christ : recognizing Him when "His visage was
marred more than any man, and His form more than the sons of men ;"{d) and con-
fessing "a Kingdom which had the ignominious Cross as its foundation, when that
mystery, — to the Jews a stumbling-block and to the Greeks foolishness, — was even
to the faithful Disciples yet unknown." .... What possible encouragement such
a history can be supposed to afford to those who delay their Repentance, reserving
it for a dying bed, — it is hard to discover. Scarcely is it too much to say that the
cases have no manner of resemblance. He who would be a partaker in the promise
vouchsafed to the accepted malefactor, must rather imitate him in the prompt devo-
tion of his remaining opportunities, whatever they may be, to the active service of
God. " For while in Him we have a solitary instance of one accepted through
Faith without external works, (for which he had not the opportunity,) yet, by no
means do we see in him a faith destitute of works, in the larger and fuller meaning
of the word. For Confession and Humiliation are works; the charitable admonition
of sinners is a work ; and Faith itself, the direction of the mind to unseen realities
against the bent of carnal feeling, is a work of no small difficulty."(e) — But enough
has now been offered on this great subject.

44, 45 And it was about the sixth hour, and there was a darkness
over all the earth until the ninth hour. And the Sun was darkened, and
the Veil of the Temple was rent in the midst.

Concerning these three hours of miraculous darkness, — at the close of which,
(namely, at three in the afternoon,) our Saviour expired on the Cross, — see what
has been already offered in the note on St. Matth. xxvii. 45. About the rending of
the Veil, see also the notes on the earlier Gospels ;(/) in St. Matthew, the other
prodigies which occurred on this occasion will be found recorded. (tj)

46 And when Jesus had cried with a loud voice, He said, Father,
into Thy Hands I commend My Spirit : and having said thus, He gave
up the Ghost.

"With a loud voice," — (a miraculous circumstance insisted upon by all three Evan-
gelists,) (/<) — did our Redeemer resign His sinless Soul into the Hands of the Eternal
Father : applying to Himself the language of the xxxi. Psalm ;(;') (which is the
last of His seven sayings on the Cross ;) and thereby "teaching us in whose hands
the souls of the departed are. "(A) — St. Peter alludes to these dying words of his
Lord, in his first Epistle :(l) and take notice, how the first Martyr, St. Stephen,
sought to die like Christ in respect of his two latest sayings.(w) — "The souls of
the righteous," (it is said in a certain place,) "are in the hand of God, and there
shall no torment touch them."(/i)

47 Now when the Centurion saw what was done, he glorified God,
saying, Certainly this was a righteous Man.

The reader is requested to read the note on St. Mark xv. 39 : also that on St. Mat-
thew xxvii. 54.

48, 49 And all the people that came together to that sight, beholding
the things which were done, smote their breasts, and returned. And
all His acquaintance, and the women that followed Him from Galilee,
stood afar off, beholding these things.

(d) Is. Hi. 14. (e) Dr. W. H. Mill.

(/) St. Matth. xxvii. 51, and St. Mark xv. 38. (</) St. Matth. xxvii. 51, 52, 53.

(h) St. Matth. xxvii. 46, 50 : St. Mark xv. 34, 37. See the note on St. Mark xv. 39.

U) Ver. 5. (k) Bp. Pearson. (I) 1 St. Pet. iv. 19.

[m) See Acts vii. 59, 60. (w) Wisdom of Solomon iii. 1.

''■11 A PLAIN COMMBNTABi [OHAP.

8l Hatth. txvii. 55, 56, and St. Mark xv. 40, 11 : and
tin- former pla S dao St. Luke \ iii. I I
The keen eye of Prophecy had noticed that mournful group long before. Dai id,
ing in the person of hi> great Descendant, complains, — "Mi l ren and my
friends Btand aloof from my sore; and my kinsmen stand afar off. (o) It i- worth
observing how much is said in the Psalms of tin- desertion of the Disciples, (with
the si ption of St John,) throughout tlii- dreary scene ; for it would

to liu\ e constituted a Bpecial ingredient in "ur Lono't ' !up of Sorrow. Thus, in the
xxxi. Psalm, — •• 1 wa- a reproach among all Mine enemies, but especially among
ghbours, and a fear to Mine acquaintance. They that did see Me without)
Bed from Me/'(p) "Thou hast put away Mine acquaintance far from Me; Thou
bast made Me an abomination unto them .... Lover and friend hast Thou juit
far from Me, and Mine acquaintance into darkness."^)

50, .01 And, behold, there was a man named Joseph, a counsel!
and he was a good man, and a just: (the same had not d to

the counsel and deed of them;) he was of Arimathsea, a city of the

: who also himself waited for the Kingdom of GrOD.

In rach terms is the disciple who, with Nicodemus, enjoyed the sublime prn
of providing for the Burial of his Loan, introduced to our notice. He pro 1
have been a member of the lii,u r li Court of Sanhedrin ; but, like that other member
of the same Court already named, be had bad no Bhare in the sinful proceedii \
the morning. - j To "wait for the Kingdom of Goo," as alreadj explained^
the hope of every faithful Israelite for the Advent ol Messiah.

52, 53 This man went unto Pilate, and begged the Body of J]

And he took It down, and wrapped It in linen, and laid It in a .-ejiul-
chre that was hewn in stone, wherein never man before was laid.

Some remarks on these incidents will l"' found in the notes on St. Matthew \xvii.
- Mark xv. 42 to 46.

5 1 And thai day was the Preparation, and the Sabbath drew on.

The last Jewish Sabbath which the World was ever to behold I See th<
which precedes St. Matth. xxvii. 57: also th>- note on St .Mark w. II'.

55 And the women also, which came with Him from Galilee, followed
after, and beheld the sepulchre, and how His Body was laid.

"There was Mary Magdalene, and the other Mary, (that is, "Mary tl

;j "sittinj linst the Sepulchre," — as St. Matthew relates.(v)

56 And they returned, and prepared Bpicea and ointments : and n
the Sabbath Day according to the commandment.

Contrast the blessed calm in which these sad matrons passed their Sabbath, with
the unholy excitement of the Chief Priests and Pharisees throughout the -ante
solemi These pious women, eager as they were to perform the last

of love to their l.'>iti>, yet would not transgress the commandment. Hai ins prepared

tin- i It'ul spices and unguents, they resolved t" wait till the first Daj of the week

should 'lawn, before they presumed to approach the Holj Sepulchre. How i

e result! and how unblessed would have been the impatient yielding to their
own inclination ! Had they presented themselves sooner at the Grave, thej would
have been grieved by the presence, perhaps molested by the ru man

soldiers: while their purpose could in>t possibly have 1 n effected B; 1 1 i 1 1 ^

till the Sabbath was ] i found the guard dispersed, and theii L

risen ! Thej embraced 1 1 • > . — * - umbs alive, which they had come to r, and

to anoint in I 'eath !

<.,) Pa x x x % "u i . ii ri. 1L (7) Pa IxxxvilL

■ . r er. i .
/«) k m . !."•. snd "n Bt I.

r t ) B i . "
(h) St Matth. x.\» n. ■

(s) St. Matth.

xxiv.] on st. luke's gospel. 615

CHAPTER XXIV,

1 Christ's Resurrection is declared by two Angels to the women that came to the
Sepulchre. 9 These report it to others. 13 Christ Himself appeareth to the two
Disciples that went to Emmaus. 36 Afterwards He appeareth to the Apostles,
and reproveth their unbelief. 47 Giveth them a Charge. 49 Promiseth the Holy
Ghost. 51 And so ascendeth into Heaven.

The concluding chapter of each of the three first Gospels comprehends the his-
tory of the great Forty Days ;(a) and stands in marked contrast with the chapters
which immediately precede. With all the fearful events of our Blessed Lord's
Passion fresh in our memory, the story of the first Easter is like the cool fragrance
of morning after a night of suffering and Death. It is in fact the Birthday of the
New Creation. But the History is continuous ; and to understand the first verse
of the present chapter, the two last verses of that which goes before must be borne
in mind. "When the Sabbath was past," says St. Mark, "Mary Magdalene, and
Mary the mother of James, and Salome, had brought sweet spices, that they might
come and anoint IIim."(&) It was therefore the first Lord's Day, and about day-
break. As it follows :

1 Now upon the first day of the week, very early in the morning,
they came unto the Sepulchre, bringing the spices which they had pre-
pared, and certain others with them.

These holy women, whose names the Evangelist will be found to specify more
particularly in verse 10, desired to bestow upon the lifeless Body of their Lord the
full honours of Burial ; and they supposed that the rite of Anointing yet remained
undischarged. The hasty ceremonial performed by the loving hands of Joseph and
Nicodemus,(c) they must have deemed incomplete in this respect. How striking,
however, becomes the recollection, at this stage of the sacred History, — (striking
even to ourselves, but how much more striking must it have been to theyn!) — that
a full week before, the sister of Lazarus was declared by Christ Himself to have
bestowed upon His yet living Body the Anointing which was commonly reserved
for the bodies of the dead \{cl) And fitting it surely was, that the Lord of Life
should experience so singular an anointing, — that those blessed limbs, which were
destined never to "see Corruption," should exhibit in this respect a kind of pro-
phetic intimation of the triumph which was to follow.

"Who shall roll us away the stone from the door of the Sepulchre V(e) — the
women had " said among themselves" as they came along. But they looked,

And they found the stone rolled away from the Sepulchre.

How this had come to pass, St. Matthew explains. (/)

3 And they entered in, and found not the Body of the Lord Jesus.

The course of the sacred narrative conducts us at once from the interment of our
Saviour, on the evening of Friday, to His Resurrection from Death, very early in
the morning of Sunday. Concerning the whole interval, as far as the Great Cap-
tain of our Salvation is concerned, nothing whatever is revealed to us in the Gospel:

(a) Acts i. 3. (b) St. Mark xvi. 1. (c) See St. John xix. 39, 40.

U) See St. Matth. xxvi. 12. St. Mark xiv. 8. St. John xii. 7.

(e) St. Mark xvi. 3. (/) St. Matth. xxviii. 2.

610 A PLAIN COMMIHTABY [ciIAP.

lmt tli-' momentous Truth that, during th tided into Hell,"

hath ' nt belief of tin.- Church, (tli'' ' ' IE

Writ,")(g) from tin- beginning. Not indeed that the words tbemsi
in tin- earliest copies of the Dreed; but when Apollinaris, (who

A.l 1 . 2,) taught that Christ had do human soul, but that
Him in place of a soul, tin: Church put forward this well-k
doctrine, ami added it to her Cret '1, a- an eternal pn

of the purj — - "!' our I. rd'j ••'!' u n< into 11,11," i~ declared in a welt
known passage of St. Peter's first Epistle. Hi went to " preach to the souls u
keeping,"(A) — according to the mysterious language of the Apostle; ami the place
of their abode was " Paradise."(0 Doubtless, Be proclaimed to them thi
demption accomplished, and rehearsed in their wonderii ! :

Sin ami heath. A few more words on thi subject will be found in the

prefixed t" St. .Mark xvi.
lint the Sabbath was now passed : ami the Human Soul of our Loan bavini
turned to its fleshly Tabernacle, "perfect Gon ami perfect Man." He raised lliia-
Belffrom Death ;(k) with calm majesty, divested Himself of His fragrant garmi
and sometime before the Sun had risen, be ire even the Angel had descent
hurl away th<' Btone from tin- door of His Sepulchre, — b wonderful and

unrecorded fashion, He had come forth. Hence it was, that the women, on enter-
ing the chamber of Death, " i'uuud not the Body of the I.

\ And it came to ] they were much perplexed thereabout,

behold, two men stood by them in shining garments:

More than "shining." [1 i implied that their garments wefe "flashing?' with
light

5 ami as they were afraid, and bowed down th ir faces to the Earth,
they Baid onto them,

said, — "Fear not ye. £< - tJra of Naxaretht which was
crucified :"

\V1 e the Living among the dead!

i roclaims concerning Himself in th B
Revelation,—" I He thai . 1 ; and '

\lucli."(/j

• ;. 7 II" is not here, but ia risen: remember how He Bpake unto
yon when II" was yet in Galilee, Baying, The Son of Man most 1
livered into the hands of Binful men, and be crucified, and the third
day rise again.

v And they remembered J lis words,

the memorable words recorded by St. Matthew,(m) and St.
md alluded to by St. Luke,(o)— as addressed to them by their Loan
'. rather more than half a year before. The

the notes on St. Matthew x\ii. 23, and St. Mark i
me remarks on 1 1 1 i - subject.— I added a memorable injunction on

■i. They charged the wom< o to announce to tin- Disciples thai appear-
n a mountain in QaTilce, which our Sai rot R \\;i- about to vouchsal 11
follow* formity with the promise He had made I life-

He is found to have renewed, now that II " :(y)

and indeed the appearance alluded to must have been one of prime importance; t"r,
it is almost the onh i >' to the Resurrectii

(« ) Artlcl [k] I r 111.

(/) &av. i. i-.

(") •
N - Ifatth. wxiii. 10.

(r) I. • i whii li thi refer.

XXIV.] ON ST. LUKE'S GOSPEL. 617

lated by St. Matthew ; and may be even said to fill the concluding chapter of his
Gospel. St. Luke, perhaps because he will omit all notice of the appearance in
question, is silent also as to the Angelic announcement of it. The women, (he
says,) remembered the words of Christ,

9 and they returned from the Sepulchre,

Returned, — themselves "anointed with the oil of gladness above their fellows."(s)
"And as they went to tell His Disciples, behold Jesus met them, saying, All hail.
And they came and held Him by the feet, and worshipped Him. Then said Jesus
unto them, be not afraid: go tell My brethren that they go into Galilee, and there
shall they see Me."(t) Thus charged, the company of women repaired to the City,

and told all these things unto the Eleven, and to all the rest.

10 It was Mary Magdalene, and Joanna, and Mary the mother of
James, and other women that were with them, which told these things
unto the Apostles.

These, then, are the women alluded to in ver. 1, — to which St. Mark adds
Salome.(») It is striking indeed to find the name of Joanna, (the wife of Herod's
Steward,) recurring at such a time. The circumstance recalls the last place where
we met with her name ; and suggests that "Susanna" may have been another of
that company of holy women, whose names, by consent, the Evangelists pass over
here in silence. Consider St. Luke viii. 2, and xxiii. 55, in connection with the
present place; and see the note on xxiii. 8.

11 And their words seemed to them as idle tales, and they believed
them not.

It will perhaps occur to some, that they considered not the miracle of the raising
of Lazarus, for their heart was hardened. (x) They had also clearly forgotten the
express predictions of Christ Himself on this great subject: not once or twice
made, but again and again. "From that time forth," — (from that time, namely, of
St. Peter's Confession,) — "began Jesus to show unto His Disciples, how that He
must go unto Jerusalem, and suffer many things of the Elders, and Chief Priests,
and Scribes, and be killed, and be raised again the third day."(//) One week after,
He had charged them to tell of the Transfiguration " to no man, until the Son of
Man be risen again from the dead."(z) Then followed, in Galilee, that special pre-
diction of His Betrayal, violent Death, and Resurrection, (a) to which we have heard
the Angels refer, above, in verses 6 and 7. " Behold, we go up to Jerusalem ;"
(our Saviour had said to the Twelve, when He was going up to the Capital for the
last time,) "and all things that arc written by the prophets concerning the Son of
Man shall be accomplished. "(6) For He " shall be delivered unto the Chief Priests,
and unto the Scribes; and they shall condemn Him to Death, and shall deliver Him
to the Gentiles: and they shall mock Him, and shall scourge Him, and shall spit
upon Him, and shall kill Him, and the third day He shall rise again. "(c) After such
minuteness of description, (for it is more like a narrative of the past than a pro-
phecy of the future,) it is strange indeed to find such utter unwillingness to believe
in the fulfillment of what the lips of Christ had spoken: but so it was, that "they
understood none of these things: and this saying was hid from them, neither under-
stood they the things which were spoken. "(d) Accordingly, we shall find that
when the two Disciples returned from their walk to Emmaus, and related to the
Apostles what had befallen them on the way, — " neither believed they tliem."(e) Well
might our risen Lord upbraid the Eleven "with unbelief and hardness of heart,
because they believed not them which had seen Him after He was risen."(/) — Take
notice of what follows.

(*) Ps. xlv. 7. (t) St. Matth. xxviii. 10. (,/) St. Mark xvi. 1.

(x) Alluding to the language of St. Mark vi. 52. {y) St. Matth. xvi. 21.

(z) St. Matth. xvii. 9. (a) St. Matth. xvii. 22, 23.

(&) St. Luke xviii. 31. ( c) St. Mark x. 33, 34.

(d) St. Luke xviii. 34. And observe that the same was said before; namely, St. Luke ix.
45, which is the parallel place with St. Matth. xvii. 22, 23, above cpioted.

(e) St. Mark xvi. 13.

(/) St. Mark xvi. 14, — where the reader is requested to read the note.

618 A PLAIN C0MMBHTAB1 [CHAP.

1 _' Then ar< I r, and ran unto the Bepnlchre; and stooping
down, he beheld the linen clothes laid by themselves, and depa
lering in himself

r, -•• departed home, wonderii

that which was come to pat

- - 1 • 1 1 f i bad run with St Peter and outstripped him, — both in r*
and of Faith. The reader will <\'< well to compare the present verse with the
parallel place in St. John's Gospel.^/*) Both A] ching the Sepulchre,

1 and looked into it: > <• ■ t li . in th<- end, entered, and beheld the Bpot where
their Loan had lain, — observing the tokens of One who, having " laid Him down
and Blept, had awakened ; for the Loan sustained Him. "(.■/) It had been do hurried
waking, either. His grave-clothes were found deposited by themselves: "and the
napkin that was about Hi- [lead, not lying witn the linen clothes, but wrapped
together in a place by itself."(A) In one of the beholders, thi> sight is found to
have produced Belief:(i) in the other, only Wonder.

13 And, behold, two of them vent that same day to a village called
Emmans, which was from Jerusalem about three-score furlongs.

The name of one of these Disciples ia found to have been eh-',], a- ; ami St. Luke
himself is presumed t" have been the other. The conjecture, (for it i- no more than
ii conjecture, | ie a reasonable one. It i- found t" be the manner of the Evang
thus to relate Bomething concerning themselves \(k) ami the minuteness of detail
with which St. Luke describes the present interview, favours the supposition that
- :t witness "I' the transactions he describes.

14, 15, L6 And they talked together of all these things which had

happened. And it came t" pass, that, while they communed i<< : r
and reasoned, Jesus himself dren near, and went with them. Bat
their eyes were holden that they Bhould not know Sim.

Mark, with reference to this appearance <■!' our risen Loan, says that //■■
appeared "< another form unto t"" of them, as they walked, and went into the
country."(0 As already remarked in another plaoej /" | a wonderful change seems
t'i have passed over the appearance of our Loan, at Hi- Resurrection. Be "a- the
same, yet another; whence neither .Marvin the garden, (n) — nor Cleopas and his
companion, on tin- road t<> Emmaus,— nor tin' Beven Disciples at tin- Lake, at once

nized Elim. The language of the Evangelist in the last-named case is very
remarkable.(o) St. Luke's manner of expressing the change alluded t" i> singular,
and Buggestn e.

17, I s Ami He said onto them, What manner of communications ars
thai ye have one t < * another, a- ye walk, and arc sad! And the
of them, whose name was < lleopas,

(Quite a distinct person, by the way, from the " Cleophas" mentioned in St. John
25, and which ought to I"' written "Clopas.") Cleopas,

answering Baid onto Him, Art Thou only a Btranger in Jerusalem,
and bast not known the things which air come to pass there in these

, art the "iily sojourner in Jeruselem who knowetfa
1 '.' And I [e >aid onto them, What thii

••

(A) i tfntth. ix. '.'. 10, .{•■.. and tin- BOl

there. St John

(»») - ' 1--

I.. w.. I. I..

XXIV.] ON ST. LUKE'S GOSPEL. 619

As, before, He asked them the subject of their conversation, not as needing to be
informed, but in order to draw them into discourse which He might turn to their
instruction, — so now, He is found to make inquiry concerning Himself. See the
notes on St. Mark v. 9, 30 : ix. 21.

20, 21 And they said unto Him, Concerning Jesus of Nazareth,
"which was a Prophet mighty in deed and word before God and all the
people : and how the Chief Priests, and our Rulers delivered Him to
be condemned to death, and have crucified Him. But we trusted that
it had been He which should have redeemed Israel : and beside all
this, to day is the third day since these things were done.

These few words declare what had been the belief, — or rather, the " hope" and
" expectation," — of the Disciples of Christ, concerning Him. This was the hope
which had sustained them to the last:(j/) and the utter destruction of this hope it
was which had paralyzed their minds, and reduced them to the strange state of
perplexity and even despair, in which, at the dawning of the first Easter, we find
them every one. Even on the Day of the Ascension, we hear them timidly in-
quiring, — " Lord, wilt Thou at this time, restore again the kingdom to Israel?"^)
Cleopas proceeds :

22, 23, 24 Yea, and certain women also of our company made us
astonished, which were early at the Sepulchre ; and when they found
not His body, they came, saying, that they had also seen a vision of
Angels, which said that He was alive. And certain of them which
■were with us went to the sepulchre, and found it even so as the women
had said : but Him they saw not.

In such terms do they describe the visit of the women, and of the Apostles St.
Peter and St. John, to the Sepulchre.

25, 26 Then He said unto them, fools, and slow of heart to believe
all that the Prophets have spoken : ought not Christ to have suffered
these things, and to enter into His Glory ?

First, "Suffering," — then, "Glory." "In like manner, the two passages of all
the Old Testament which speak most fully of the Humiliation of Christ, (the xxii.
Psalm and the liii. of Isaiah,) both end with the announcement of His Glory.
' Therefore will I divide Him a portion with the great, and He shall divide the
spoil with the strong.' ' The Kingdom is the Lord's, and He is the Governor
among the people.' "(r) Take notice, further, that St. Peter declared himself to be
" a witness of the Sufferings of Christ, and also a partaker of the Glory that shall
be revealed." (s)

It has been pointed out on St. Luke xxiii. 35, (to which the reader is requested to
refer,) that however marvellous it may seem to ourselves, the Jewish people seem
never to have realized the great truth here laid down by our Saviour : namely, —
that it had been predicted by their ancient prophets that He should be put to death,
and that through the gate of suffering He should enter into Glory. The Psalms, —
the Books of Isaiah and of Daniel, — are full of this ; and the Jewish Doctors freely
recognized the Messiah in all those writings ; yet, such was their blindness, they
overlooked the great doctrine of what should befall Him at His first Advent.

"Slow of heart," proved the very Disciples themselves to believe "all that the
Prophets had spoken" concerning CnRiST. Even they were slow to recognize, in
the one Person of their Lord, the fulfillment of the prophetic witness to a suffering
Messiah. Of what paramount importance this was to the fixing of their belief, and
that of the early Church, on a sure basis, has been pointed out in the note on St.
Luke xxii. 37 : to which the reader is invited to refer. Behold, therefore, the risen
Lord Himself pours into the wondering ears of the two Disciples a Divine Commen-
tary on " Moses and all the Prophets." As it follows : —

(])) Consider St. Luke xix. 11. (q) Acts i. 6.

(;•) Moberly. («) 1 St. p e ter v. 1.

G20 A PLAIN COMI KNTARY [< II A I'.

27 And beginning at Moses and -ill the Prophets, He expounded
iuit'> them in all the Scriptures the things concerning Him

r, , — ■ He thoroughly interpreted."

The walk to Emmaus was do! certainly the most Btriking incident of the first
l •; yet, who baa not felt that if be must name the one recorded event of that
glori iu Day at which be would desire to have been present, it must I"- thist
appearance vouchsafed to Mary Magdalene, in the grey of the morning, — (the first
of our Lord's recorded appearances .) (f) — when she "supposed him to be the gar-
dener:" — die appearance to the Ten, as they Bat at meat. — when, ai Cd
bidding, with mingled terror, joy, and wonder, the men whose names we kn
well, bandied Him and saw that it was He indeed ; and when, with calm words "f
Benediction, He conveyed to them that Peace which the world can neither give nor
take away :(») — almost any Bight of the first Easter, it were bliss beyond all telling,
to have beheld. Set, to have walked with Him, although unknown, all the way to
Emmaus; and to have beard Him, "beginning at Moses,(a and all the Pro]
expound in all the Scriptures the things concerning Himself,"— <Aw, surely, were
the,, I portion of all! Surely, our heart- burn within us, even at the

thought of what it must have been, to have heard Him bo open the Scriptures. The
- must have come down to listen, ami Nature herself grown attentive to the

accent- of her < '1:1: 1TOR ami her ( rOD !

1 itice that St. Paul, following in the footsteps of his Lord, " expounded ami

testified the kingdom of God," before bis unbelieving countrymen, at Rome, "per-
Buading them concerning Jesus, both out of the Law of Moses, ami out "t" th
from morning till evening ,

28, 29 Ami they drew ni,u r h unto the village, whither they went:
and He made as though He would have gone further. But they con-
strained Him, Baying, Abide with as: for it is toward evening, and the
dav i- far Bpent. Ami He went in to tarry with them.

• sider on how many occasions besides the iire-ent.it i- intimated that con-
straint i- necessary on the part of those who would secure the abiding presence of
Christ. " /' ! away, I praj The,., from Thy Bervant,"(z) was the respectful

language Of the patriarch Abraham: ami, "i Will i<"/ let 1 cept Thou

bless me,"(a) was the earnest exclamation of the patriarch Jacob, "Depart not
hence, I pray Thee, until I come unto Thee, ami bring forth my present, and

Thee, Baid < lideon to the Angel. " And I le Baid, I will tarn till thou
again."(6) " I pray Thee, let us detain Thee,"(e) was the entreat) of Manoah and
bis wife.

St. Andrew and St. John are thus found m have followed after the Sw 101 r, till
they won from Hi- lips the word of invitation :(d) while the Woman of Canaan
I ursued the Holy One into the House whither He had retired.(<) On tl

lilee, about the fourth watch of the night, the Disciples -aw Him < ing unto

them, "walking upon the Sea: ami //. would hats passed by them, v (f) had they

led "ut. ami by their entreaties persuaded Him m enter the snip in which

they weir. The like i- found to have taken pla luring the walk to Emmaus.

B I of which we are reminded, that as, without an effort, the blessing of Cb
presence may not be won, so neither, with. an a constraining effort, maj it be
retained in tin- bouI.

80, •'•! Ami it came t" pa -. as M meat with them, He took

bread, and blessed it, ami brake, and gave t" them.

1 their ey< - were opened, ami they knew Him : ami He vanished
out of their Bight

f St. Mark i („) s,.,. below, ■-

B " trrott

'('/)' III. :t. Gen. xxi

i... \d) .'-'. Jeha i

Mark vU. 34. (/) St. Mark vi

XXIV.] ON ST. LUKE'S GOSPEL. 621

It is impossible to read this statement without a deep conviction that a mystery
lies beneath it. Here was no mere recognition ; as when the unsuspected presence
of a friend is discovered by his well-known gesture. It was more than that. The
act described, corresponds exactly with what we read concerning the institution of
the Lord's Supper ;{g) and "the breaking of the bread," (which is presently alluded
to, as the special act of our Saviour on this occasion.) (h) is the very expression by
which the Lord's Supper itself is twice indicated in the Acts.(i) Not that it is
necessary to suppose that the Holy Eucharist was partaken of at Emmaus : but it
seems to be implied that the blessing of Christ served to a sacramental purpose;
and that, by means of the Bread which He gave to the Disciples, " their eyes were
opened." "It enlighteneth with belief," says IIooker(&) of the Holy Eucharist;
" it truly conformeth us unto the image of Jesus Christ." Now, to " be like
Him," and to " see Him as He is," are one.(Z)

Take notice that the two Disciples, at Emmaus, had not been " forgetful to enter-
tain strangers;" whereby, they had "entertained Angels unawares." (m)

32 And they said one to another, Did not our heart burn within us,
while He talked with us by the way, and while He opened unto us the
Scriptures ?

" We seem to be taught by this, that in reading the Scriptures there may be an
affectionate warmth and wonder as He opens them to us, — a kindling of His own
Divine Love in the soul of His Disciples, however imperfect, — while He shows
therein His Cross and His sufferings ; and, it may be, discloses something of the
Glory that is to be revealed. While we walk and are sad, from this we may yet
find comfort. Discourses also which fill the hearers with a sensible warmth and
fervour, and kindle a fire in their souls, maybe from God ; for Christ has promised
that His Holy Spirit shall speak by His Ministers. But such must consist in the
unfolding of the Scriptures, and in the setting forth of Christ crucified, and the
Power of His Resurrection. Let the middle, and the beginning, and the end, be
the setting forth of Christ crucified, that the hearts of those that hear may burn.
We know not how much in these things Christ is with us, in the stirring of the
heart and affections, until He vanishes from us, and it is all past.

" But if He comes to be with us when we talk of Him, and while we walk with
Him, yet are we hereby taught that it is in the Breaking of Bread He is to be
known in His Church, unto the end."(»)

38, 34 And they rose up the same hour, and returned to Jerusalem,
and found the Eleven gathered together, and them that were with them,
saying, the Lord is risen indeed, and hath appeared to Simon.

Take notice, that nothing is here said of the appearance to Mary Magdalene, or
to the company of women. The appearance to Simon Peter is singled out in a
marked way by the whole body of Disciples ; and the language used concerning it,
is the language of men who believe the thing they state. It perhaps had been
attended by some extraordinary circumstances. St. Paul gives it the foremost place
in his enumeration of our Lord's appearances after His Piesurrection. "He was
seen of Cephas ; then, of the Twelve ; after that, He was seen of above five hundred
brethren at once."(o)

35 And they told what things ivere done in the way, and how He
was known of them in breaking of bread.

Yet, strange to say, their report did not win belief: as St. Mark has expressly
recorded.(p)

36 And as they thus spake, Jesus Himself stood in the midst of
them, and saith unto them, Peace be unto you.

(g) St. Luke xxii. 19. (A) See below, ver. 35. (i) Acts ii. 42 and 46.

Uc) Quoting Cyprian. (I) 1 St. John iii. 2. (»i) lleb. xiii. 2.

(») Williams. (o) 1 Cor. xv. 5, 6. Consider the note on St. Matth. xxviii. 16.

\p) St. Mark xvi. 13.

A PLAIN OOMMBNTABT [CHAP.

■• II,- ■ -•■■> ,1 in the midst of them.' — suddenly, and without a sound or
beard, or any approach or passing by noticed ; noiseless as :i shadow, an
in Bis coming as a dream. Be is m the midst of them, with ;i suddenness and
Bilence which marks all the comings of Christ. Bere then was 1 1 > « - promise visibly
fulfilled, • where tw> or three are gathered together in My .Name, there am 1 in the
midst of them.' "(g) And what words may declare the joy of the Disciples at thi.s
" A -r, thus standing among them a- of old ; restored t" them,
in a manner past all understanding, at tin- moment when thej longed for Bim
ami regarded His return as altogether impossible?

Peace, the Ias1 word of the prophecj of Zacbarii burthen <>f tin' An*

gelic 11 mii ii "ii the night of the Nativity ;(*) the Salutation which our Saviour bad
directed Bis Disciples t" convey with them, wheresoever thej published the Gospel
of Peace;(Q the precious legacy which the same Saviour, on the last Bven
His mortal Life, bequeathed t" Mi- Apostles :(u) Peace, — i- the first word which is
heard from His Bpa when lie i- again risen from Mir (lead.

37, 38, 30, 40 But they were terrified and affrighted, ami Bupp

that tlit'}' had seen a spirit. And He .-aid unto them, Why ai
troubled? and why do thoughts arise in your hearts? Behold My

Hands and My feet, that it is I Myself: handle Me, and see: for a
spirit hath not flesh and bones, as ye see Me ha\e.

And when He had thus spoken, lie showed them His hands and His

The Reader is requested to refer to Borne remarks in the Comment S . ■' hn

xx. 20.

11. 12, 13 And while they yet helieved not for joy, and wondered,

II aid unto them. Have ye here any meat'.' And they gave Him a

of broiled fish, and of an honeycomb. And He took it, and did
eat before them.

Thus showing them the reality Bis Body.

Bow is it possible here to avoid hanging upon every word with interest and won-
der? This then was the fare of the Apostles,- -"broiled fish," and " honeycomb."
May there nol 1"' a meaning, also, in the food thus particularly mentioned, and
partaken oi ii an occasion '.'

1 I And He said unto them. Thefi I ' ■ the Words whieh I spake antO

you, while 1 was yet with you, that all things musl be fulfilled, which
were written in the Law of Moses, and in the Prophets, and in the

I' alms, eoiieernin^ Mi'.

nol only "the whole Book," hut "every folding, every leaf of this Book," is
full of Bim. "Thou shall nut find a Story," (says Bammond,) "a Ki<l<lle. a Pro-
phecy, a Ceremony, a downright Legal Constitution, bnt hath some mam

• "ii this glass, some waj drives at this mystery, ' God manifest in the flesh.'
1 tamplc, (perhaps you nave noted,) whenever yon 9 ilogiea

I "ii than Cain'-, Bhem's than hi- elder brother Ham'-. Abraham's than
the whole Word besides, Jacob's than Esau's, Judah's than the whole Twelve Pa-
triarchs; ami the like passages which directly drive down the line of Christ, ami
make that the whole business of Scripture: whenever, I say, you read "i any
of these, then are you to note that Shiloh "a- to come ; that Be which "a- BCnt,
was "ii Hi- iournoj . tint from the Creation, t<> the fullness of tin ipture

i travel w ith linn."

\< Tien opened Be their understanding, that they might understand
the Bcripturi -.

Matlli. win. (r) St. Lokt i. 7'.'.

it- {u) E r. ::.

xxiv.] on st. luke's gospel. 623

Words soon read, but involving how important a doctrine ; and suggesting how
many heart-stirring thoughts! " Open Thou mine eyes, that I may see the won-
drous things of Thy Law,"(a-) "was the prayer of the devout Psalmist. The gift
which he coveted, was now imparted to the Disciples of Christ ; and by the hands
of Christ Himself.

Consider how glorious must have been the result, when these words were spoken
by Him who said, "in the beginning/' " Let there be Light, and there was Light."
He had already, in the case of Cleopas and his companion, " expounded in all the
Scriptures," ("beginning at Moses and all the Prophets,") "the things concerning
Himself."(y) But now, Ho caused all those dark writings to become clear to the
mental eye ; enabling the Disciples, by a mere act of intuition, to "understand the
Scriptures:" not so much, (be sure !) to understand the hard points in Chronology,
Geography, Physical Science, Natural History, and the like, which abound in Holy
Writ ; as to see which portions of Sacred Story are allegorical ;(z) which persons.(a)
transactions, (6) and things, (c) are typical ; how far typical; and of what; — what
hidden teaching lies concealed under the several enactments of the Law ;(d) — what
is the true reference of the several Prophecies of the Old Testament ;(e) — lastly,
what unsuspected mysteries and meanings lie beneath the surface of the latter, in
every Work of the Spirit. (/)

With most convincing power must men so enlightened, so unerringly instructed
in the mysteries of Christ's Kingdom, have proceeded to spread the knowledge of
the Faith. There was even a time (we know it for certain,) when certain great
and curious secrets were in the keeping of the Church. (g) These, indeed, have since
passed into oblivion. Yet must the result of such divine illumination have been per-
manent. The general consent of Antiquity on certain great subjects, — as the refe-
rence of our Lord's Discourse with Nicodemus to Water Baptism, — must be re-
garded as quite conclusive as to the mind of the Spirit on those subjects ; and the
style and ^method of the ancient expositors, generally, must be held to be in strict
conformity with the Truth. To proceed, however. Our Saviour " opened the un-
derstanding" of the Disciples :

46, 47 and said unto them, Thus it is written, and thus it behooved
Christ to suffer, and to rise from the dead the Third Day : and that
Repentance and Remission of Sins should be preached in His name
among all nations, beginning at Jerusalem.

" Go ye therefore, and teach all nations," — is the language of our Lord's Charge,
as recorded by St. Matthew. (A) " For, from the rising of the sun unto the going down
of the same, My Name shall be great among the Gentiles, . . . saith the LoRD."(i)
The prophet Micah, in like manner, speaking of the last days, declares that "many
nations shall say, Come, and let us go up to the Mountain of the Lord, and to the
House of the God of Jacob : and He will teach us of His ways, and we will walk
in His paths : for the Late will go forth of Sion, and the Word of the LORD from
Jerusalem, (k)

48 And ye are witnesses of these things.

Take notice bow distinctly the office of "witnesses" was assigned to the Apostles
by their Lord ; here, in St. John xv. 27, and in Acts i. 8. Accordingly, it is recog-
nized by them on many occasions: — at the election of Matthias, into the Apostolic
body ;(l) in St. Peter's speech on the Day of Pentecost ;(«i) after the healing of the

(.*■) Ps. cxix. 18. (y) See above, ver. 27.

(z) As, the History of Hagar. See Gal. iv. 21 to 31.

(a) As, Melchizedek. See Heb. vii. 1 to 17.

(b) As, the Crossing of the Red Sea. See 1 Cor. x. 1 to 6.
fc) As, the Veil of the Temple. See Heb. x. 20.

(rf) As, the High-Priest's entering the Holy of Holies: see Heb. ix. 7, 8. Also, the prohi-
bition (in Deut. xxv. 4,) to muzzle the ox which treadeth out the corn : See 1 Cor. ix. 9 to 11.

(e) Consider how St. Peter expounds Ps. xvi. 8 to 11, in Acts ii. 29 to 31. Consider also St.
Matth. ii. 15, 18, 23, — with the notes on each place.

(./') Consider the inference which our Lord draws from Ex. iii. 6, in St. Mark xii. 26, 27. —
where see the notes : and how St. Matthew (viii. 17,) explains Is. liii. 4: and how St. Paul
comments on the viii. Psalm in Heb. ii. 5 to 9. Consider also Gal. iii. 16.'

{g) See 2. Thess. ii. 6. {h) St. Matthew xxviii. 19. (*) Mai. i. 11.

(k) Micah iv. 2. (I) Acts i. 22. (m) Acts ii. 32.

024 A l'LAIX COMMENTARY [CIIAI\

lane man , John;(n) before the Council I

ami his company ;(p) and in Bt Paul's Sermoi I

Peter v. 1. and 2 ■ L6.

v.- h:i\ e I ii occupied by the History of the t

ele Sunday: but the five verses which come next, give the hietoryof our
i \ onsion into Heaven ; and therefore a long interval, — the spa

D . in fact, — is interposed between what precedes and what foil

place from which our Loan led the Eleven Apostles "out as far as Bethany,"
rtainly the City of Jerusalem, i of the preceding verses. He had

indee 1. in the meantime, manifested Himself to Hi- Disciples on the Mountain in
Galilee, and again by the Lake:(r) but they bad now, once more, returned
rusalem. "And, being assembled together with them,' 5 in an-

other place; where, by the way, the words should rather be translated, as in the
margin, ' eating together with them,') He " commanded them that they should not
depart from Jeru alem ; but wait for the promise of the father, which, (saith II".)
ye have beard of Me. For John truly baptised with Water; but ye shall be bap-
tised with the Holt Ghost not many days hence."(«) All this is her<
more briefly, as follows :

49 And, behold, I send the promise of My Father upon you: but
tarry ye in the city of Jerusalem, until ye be endued with power from
on High.

Which is said with obvious allusion to the great outpouring of t! - d the

Day of Pentecost, which was to follow in ten days from the date of the Ascension;
and for which the Apostles were to wait, (literaUy, to "sit" still,) in Jerusalem.

" Behold, I send.'' And jo, in Bt. Jo 1, — "The < , whom /

will tt i«i unto you from the Y \ \ mi;." "If I depart / will * nd Him ui I

By which texts it is Bhown that the Holt Ghost " pnx leth from the Paths*

o'u<l i t) — The outpouring of the Spirit, thus alluded to, was lt tfu prom-

of the I ' \ i ii 1 1: . (as it is called here, and in Acts i. 4 ;) for the gift had
d iv- by the mouth of His hoi; .(x)

AimI He led them ont as far as to Bethany,

From Jerusalem, tl H

in forth along the well-known road to Bethany ; that road which, rather more
than forty days before, they bad Been Him daily tread in much afflicti
thus He guided them to the summit of the Mounl I , — which, in common

with the entire district in which it stands, was known by the name of " Bethany."
"Spots consecrated by the recollection of a thousan ; and incidents which

were full of | uliar interest to them ; and many of which, the events that had sine*

occurred had now unfolded and explained ; bul oh, with feelings and bh<
different from those with which they had \i-it''.l them b<

There He delivered to His Apostles His parting Charf ited in tl

cludii f the two first Gospels.(o) Those solemn words ended, " He lifted up

lli> I uring the marks of the wounds which He had received i">>r them;

and bestowed upon them His prevailing blessii s . Luke aloo

and He lifted ap His hands, and blessed them.

The Law then m and ended with a Curse :(&) but I

I n, with a Blessing. • ) And take notice, that it vsa- v\ bile our Sa i km r -.mi> in
; ry act of blessing 11 is Apostles, His hands yet lifted up i

1 over them in Love unspi

follows :

i bn \\i. l. (•) \

(ii) .-• L, IS.

: i

q
(/,) Qen. iii. i i ''• v. 8 to 1 1 place.

xxiv.] on st. luke's gospel. 625

51 And it came to pass, while He blessed them. He was parted from
them, and carried up into Heaven.

Beautiful words ! denoting rather that He was taken away from the men He
loved, than that by an act of His own, He left them. For His Passion, it is said
that He was impatient : (d) for His Ascension, not so. He did not leave His Apos-
tles, but "was parted from them."

In the Commentary on St. Mark's Gospel, several remarks of a doctrinal charac-
ter will be found on the subject of the Ascension, — to which the reader is invited to
refer, (e)

He " sat on the Right Hand of God," — as St. Mark is careful in this place to
add.(y) But St. Luke's supplementary record, in the Acts, is especially worthy of
remembrance here. After rehearsing a part of our Lord's Charge and Commission,
nowhere else recorded, (</) the blessed writer adds, — "And when He had spoken
these things, while they beheld, He was taken up ; and a cloud received Him out of
their sight. A chariot-cloud, — which was doubtless a host of ministering Angels :
for " the chariots of God are twenty thousand, even thousands of Angels ; and the
Lord is among them, as in the holy place of Sinai."(7i) "Lift up your heads,
ye gates," is their song ; " and be ye lift up ye everlasting doors, and the King of
Glory shall come in."(z)

" And while they looked steadfastly toward Heaven, as He went up, behold, two
Men stood by them in white apparel ; which also said, Ye men of Galilee, why
stand ye here gazing up into Heaven ? This same Jesus, which is taken up from
you into Heaven, shall so come in like manner as ye have seen Him go into Hea-
ven." That is, — As ye have seen Him in a cloud depart, so " in clouds"(A-) shall
ye behold Him return. "And His feet shall stand in that Day upon the Mount of
Olives, which is before Jerusalem on the East."(Z)

"Then returned they unto Jerusalem from the Mount called Olivet, which is
from Jerusalem a Sabbath-day's journey." (m) The record of the same Evangelist,
in his Gospel, is much briefer : namely, —

52, 53 And they worshipped Him, and returned to Jerusalem with
great joy : and were continually in the Temple, praising and blessing
God. Amen.

They had been sorrowful, but their sorrow hath been turned into joy. ' Christ
hath seen them again, according to His true promise: wherefore their heart rejoic-
eth ; and now, their joy no man taketh from them.(«) They repair to the Temple;
and lo, the Temple-Service becomes henceforth filled with new meanings. " The
Song of Moses has become to them the Song of the Lamb." To them the Psalms
speak henceforth another language, for they speak to them only of Christ.

Well may the Apostles have been henceforth " continually in the Temple, prais-
ing and blessing God!"

THE PRAYER.

Almighty God, who through Thine Only-begotten Sox Jesus
Christ, hast overcome Death, and opened unto us the gate of everlast-
ing Life ; we humbly beseech Thee, that, as by Thy special Grace pre-
venting us, Thou dost put into our minds good desires, so by Thy con-
tinual help we may bring the same to good effect ; through Jesus
Christ our Lord, who liveth and reigneth with Thee and the Holt
Ghost, ever one God, world without end. Amen.

(d) St, Mark x. 32, and St, Luke xii. 50.

(</) Acts i. 6 to 8. (/() Psalin lxviii. 17. (i) Psalm xxiv. 7.

(k) See the note on St. Matthew xxiv. 30, — the latter part of the verse.

(0 Zech. xiv. 4. (m) Acts i. 9 to 12. («) St. John xvi. 20, 22.

A PLAIN COMMENTARY

THE FOUR HOLY GOSPELS.

ST. JOHN.

CHAPTER I,

1 The Divinity, Humanity, and office of Jesus Christ. 15 The testimony of John.
39 The calling of Andrew, Peter, &c.

St. John wrote his Gospel long after the other three Evangelists ; at a time, when
" many deceivers" had " entered into the world, who confessed not that Jesus Christ
had come in the flesh,'" {a) Now, " every Spirit that confesseth not that Jesus Christ
is come in the flesh, is not ofGoD."(6) "This," (as the beloved Disciple states
repeatedly, "is the Spirit of Antichrist." (c) Accordingly, it was the object of the
blessed writer to check the growing Heresy. " These [signs] are written," as he
declares, at the end of Ch. xx., (speaking of his own Gospel,) " that ye might be-
lieve that Jesus is the Christ, the Sox of God ; and that believing, ye might have
life through His name."

We are prepared, after these statements, for the very express declaration con-
cerning the Divinity and Humanity of Christ, with which the present Gospel com-
mences.

1 In the beginning was the Word,

" In the beginning," — to remind us of the first words of Genesis (i. 1.) See the
note on St. Matthew i. 1.

St. Matthew and St. Luke supply the human genealogy of Christ ; and the for-
mer Evangelist begins his Gospel with it. But the Disciple whom Jesus loved, soars
up far higher ; and discourses at once of his Lord and ours, as " without descent, —
having neither beginning of days, nor end of life:"(fZ) as "the Root" as well as
"the offspring of David :"(e) the Word, who was "in the Beginning;" and "was
God." "Who shall declare His generation ?"(/)

By this less usual name also, ("the Word,") St. John draws away our thoughts
from the Human to the Divine Nature of our Redeemer. And yet it was no new
designation, but one perfectly well recognized at the time.

The reason of the Name may be perceived by many considerations. It is designed
to teach us that the Son was "with the Father," somewhat as a word dwells in the
mind. It is the utterance of the mind ; and the Son is the utterance (so to speak)
of the Father. Begotten from all Eternity, He yet abstracted nothing from the
Father ; whose very Image and Representation He yet was and is. And the name
seems especially designed to preclude many of the thoughts which the mention of
Sonship is sure to awaken, — and which cannot attach to a Being " without Body,

(a) 2 St. John, ver. 7. (I) 1 St. John iv. 3.

(e) 1 St. John iv. 3; ii. 22; 2 St. John, vor. 7. (d) Hebrews vii. 3.

(e) Revelation xxii. 16. (/) Isaiah liii. 8.

628 A PLAIN COMMENTART ['II LP.

I a, further, Christ was fitly called "the W
II Earth " to declare" the Father (i. I s : whom He revealed to

mewhat as words r<*\ <*:i 1 the heart and mhid of man. "All things, ' II
said, "thai I have heard of My Father, 1 have made known unto yon." (xv. 15.)
\ rdingly.it is Btated in the Epistle to the Hebrews, Goo " hath in these last
days n unto us by His Son." (i. 2.) See more, in the note on tot. 1 v .

I. tly, il may be observed that a word b< mes known, by plothing itself with a

sound. Expressed in writing, it becomes visible also. Andsomewhat thus it was,
that the Eternal Woro, by assuming flesh, manifested Himself to the World: and,
was beheld, not only by human eyes; but, as the Aposthi remarks, wai
1 ■"(.'/)

and the Word was with <!"i>, and the Word was <ioD.

The So» was " in the Beginning:" bo that there never was :i tiim- wh( II
not. Bui lest : 1 1 1 y one should Buppose from this, thai the Word \\a- I nl egotten,
the Evangelisl adds immediately, — "And the Word was with God." To the same
effect does the Second Person in the Blessed Trinity discourse concerning Himself,
in the Book of Proverbs: — "The Lord possessed Me in the beginning of His way,
before ili^ works "f old. 1 was set up from Everlasting, from the beginning, or

ever the Earth was. When there were ao depths before the mountains

were settled while a- yet He had not made the Earth." (\iii. 22 — 26.

that there is one Person of the Father, and another Peteon of the S

This was He whom the Bame St. John beheld by Revelation "clothed with a
ture dipped in blood: and His Name" was Btill "called the Word ofGoD."(a)

2 The same was in the beginning with God.

"With" Him, — yel be tm«with Him: for, i

Fathi r are one." (r. •'>".) " He that bath Been Me, bath Been the Fathrr." "1 am
in the 1' \ mi i:. and the I' mink in Me." (xiv. 9, 10. |
The words of the texl are inure precise (if possible) than those which went before,
reclnde the notion that the Fathrr was in any way prior, in tame, to tl
• >m. thai is, Christ, (compare 1 Corinthians i. -1) says in the Book <■,
-"When !!'• prepared the Heavens, 1 was there: when He Bet a compass on

the face of the depth : when He established the clouds above whenH<

to the Sea His decree; then 1 was by Him, a- one brought up with Hun:

and 1 was daily Hi- delight, rejoicing all e Him." (\iii. "J7 i".

•"> All things were made by Him: and without Him was not any
thing made that was made.

We arc carried hack t<> tin' very beginning of Time. — to that period which is
Bpoken "i' in Genesis i. I, ami which toi ' i. 2. What. then, is

here declared concerning the birthday of Creation? Even, that when Gon the
Fathrr, "in the beginning," "created the Heaven and the Earth," — Gon t;
was " with" Him : " by whom also He made the worlds." (») The Evangelist lays

down this great truth first positively, and then negatively; for it is oi t' those

mighty verities which may admit of no doubt or question. We proclaim in i
cene C I " By Whom all things wen' made," meaning Christ: ami our warrant
fur it i. the plain and repeated statement of Scripture. " ■• the

Father, of whom are all thi and one Lord Jesus Christ, by whom are

all thi! Bui the ne.-i sublime passage of all. perhaps, is found in d

16, 17 : where ii i- -,i'el, — " For 1 y Him were all thin-- created, that I
i, ami that arc in Earth, Visible ami invisible, whether they he Thivi
ions; or Principality ' I i

Him: and He is before all things, and bj Him all thii See

also Ephesians iii. 9, II ti. 3, 2 St. Peter iii. 5. , com-

I I 'few , j. 8, 1".

It is asked in the Book of Proverbs, concerning the Autl I ntlon, — "What

it II \ ne, and wb I N Son' Name, if thou cans! - \. I.) Aid. in

the aa B I work in Creation is ascribed to the Son : — "The Lord

(y) 1 Tim. n six. 18. (i)HebnwsLS {J) 1 Carintlfiaiis vlIL 6.

I.] ON ST. JOHN'S GOSPEL. 629

by WISDOM hath founded the Earth." (iii. 19.) Now Wisdom, as already ex-
plained, is one of the names of CniusT.

4 In Him was Life ; and the Life was the Light of Men.

We still linger on the threshold of Creation. " In Ilim was Life." "In Him," —
as in a Fountain! "For as the Father hath life in Himself; so hath He given to
the Sox to have Life in Himself."(/t) Moreover, the Life which was in Him, " was
the Light of Men." All the Light which our Spirits are conscious of, and whereby
alone they may be said to live, — is from Him!

5 And the Light shineth in Darkness ; and the Darkness compre-
hended It not.

Our nature, since Adam's Fall, had become as it were " without form and void,
and darkness was upon the face" of it. And it is said, — " the Light of men" shone
athwart that darkness : but " the darkness comprehended It not." The Evangelist
is hinting at the New Creation.

Compare this repeated mention of Light (ver. 4, 5, 7, 8, 9,) with what is said in
Genesis i. 3, 4, 5 ; and take notice how the first page of the New Testament again
recalls the first page of the Old.

But observe that in ver. 9, as if with a special reference to that earlier Revela-
tion, Christ is called " the true Light:" just as He is elsewhere called "the true
Bread," (vi. 32,) and "the true Vine." (xv. 1.) All others, therefore, were but "the
figures of the true ;"(l) that is, they were but types^ -emblems, figures, of Him who
created them ; — who, emphatically, is the Truth; — and for whose sake alone, "they
are, and were created."

6 There was a man sent from God, whose name was John.

The Evangelist speaks generally of the office of St. John Baptist, — concerning
whom he will speak more particularly by and by. He was "sent from God:"
whence, speaking by the mouth of His prophet, God says, — "Behold, I send My
Messenger !'\ni)

7 The same came for a witness, to bear witness of the Light, that
all men through him might believe.

8 He was not that Light, but was sent to bear witness of that Light.

See note on verse 23.

The Baptist bore witness to the glorious Luminary which had arisen on the
world, by the rays which it threw upon himself. In like manner the sunlight on
the mountain informs men that the Sun has risen, though they do not yet behold
the Sun's orb.

9 That was the true Light, which lighteth every man that cometh
into the World.

In so marked and emphatic a manner is the appellation of Light bestowed upon
our Lord at the outset of St. John's Gospel. That Name He often took to Him-
self, — as in viii. 12 : ix. 5 : xii. 46 : and it is full of high and holy teaching. The
creature is evidently meant to instruct us concerning the Creator. Here, the men-
tion of Light seems to carry our thoughts back to "the beginning." (See note on
verse 5.) It suggests, moreover, that the Son came from the Father, — being "the
Brightness of His glory, and the express Image of His Person, "(ii) — somewhat as
Light comes from Light (" Light of Light," as it is said in the Creed.) Now, it is
the nature of Light so derived, to be co-existent, con-substantial, co-equal. Whence
our Lord could say, "he that seeth Me, seeth Ilim that sent Me." (xii. 45.)

10 He was in the World, and the World was made by Him, and the
World knew Him not.

" ¥he World" here denotes particularly the Gentiles ; and the reference is espe-
cially to the time of the Old Dispensation. St. John reminds us that Christ was

(k) St. John v. 26. (1) Heb. ix. 24. (m) Malachi iii. 1. (n) Heb. i. 3.

G30 A PLAIN COMMENZABT [CHAP.

the Author ion: and bi marvellous fact that, thou

i-r in tli' v lich was the \\"i-k <•(' Hii Almighty Hands, — upholding

ami sustaining it, — yet that the World did m Llim.

11 lie fame unto His own,

"Hisown," — or " His own home," unewordu? 27,) —

EIou f Israel; to which out Lord 11 imself declared that He v.

i i ie World might, of course, be equally called "His own," —

_■ ■ of Creation, all things are equally Hi-. Jfel had the Jewish |
been, from the beginning, Goo's " peculiar treasure :"(j>) "a Bpecial people unto
Himself, above all people that are upon the face of the ran' I

Abraham, [His] friend^O "whose were the Fathers: ami of whom, a> » i
ing the flesh, Chrisi came. I tin m "pertained the Adoption :" — as it j I

in Exodus iv. '2-, — "Israel is M en My First-born." And again, "I will

be b Father unto you, and ye Bhall be my Bons and daughters, saith the Lord Al-
mighty.'^*) Well, therefore, when He was " madi B
of the Fatbeb be said to have come to " E

It ie written in the v < og of Moses, " When the Mosl High divided to the Na-
their inheritance, when He separated the Bons of Adam .... the Lord's por-

Hi~ ] pie, Jacob' [was] the lot of His inheritance." W<

fore, when He was born in Bethlehem of Judea, might our Saviour be Baid to have
come to " //' own htytu .'"

and His own received Him not.

what is here said. The World " did not know:" "Hi own," "did ii< >t
Him." The "foolish beart" of the first had been "darl

"they did not lik<- to d in their knowL They, therefi re, <li'l not

God. But file Jews, " to whom pertained the Adoption, and the <
1 and the eiving of the Law, and the Bervice of God, and theProm-

) — of them it could not be so properly said that they did
lid not "receive," the Saviour. The firsl bad ignorance to pl<

knowing Him: I iving Him, the a nd were without excuse. Whence it

!! proved a Light to lighten the Gentiles,(y) when by i
and faith they turned to Him: whereas, of the Jewish nation, it is at last d<

that, in i bc me of tln-ir hard and unpenitent 1 lid hide Himself

from them.' I r judgment," said our Blessed Lord, m ] am come into this

world, that they which see not might see; and that they which see might be made
blind" (ix.

U Bui as many as received Bin, to them gave He | become

the Sons of God,

1 • though the Jews, as a nation, rejected the Messiah, yet many amoB-j
people " received Him." See, tor instance, St. .John ii. 23 : vii. 31: \

12: .\i. 15, 18: xu. 11 and 12. To th in reward of t h«ir Faith, (as

It is h was given the privil< oming"the Sons of G oern-

bich wondrous title, «« 1 St. John iii. L, 2, Chri thedi-

I but invite it.

i; men " the sons of God :" He does but give tl

i Implying thereby that ire, being

made God's children I >y Adoption and Grace, (by the sa Linance,) —

i, w wed by D ily Spirit.(a)

n to them that believe on His S;i\ur :

1 St John in another place declart W i th thut Jj

is the Christ, i i bot n • j <• OD.

( /■) I 'hi iii. 17.

.. ..
. . 1^. (,«, Il.-lll. \\\ll.

Rod iv. i.

('■) 1 St. Jubn v. 1.

I.]

ON ST. JOHN'S GOSPEL. 631

13 which were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor
of the Avill of Man, but of God.

He speaks of our Regeneration, or new Birth in Christ, — and contrasts it with
our natural Birth. More is said of this great mystery in ch. iii. verses 3 to 8 :
where our Saviour declares that " except a man he born of Water and of the Spirit,
he cannot enter into the Kingdom of God." This explains what the Beloved Dis-
ciple only hints at in this place. See note on iii. 5.

The Only-Begotten Son of God, being by nature of one substance with the Fa-
ther, for us men and for our Salvation came down from Heaven and was made
Man. Baptized into Him, we become " members of His body, — of His flesh, and
of His bones."(c) We are made "partakers of the Divine Nature." (d) "The
Spirit itself beareth witness with our Spirit, that we are the children of God."(<°)
Whence, in amazing condescension, God describes the Son as " the first-born among
many Brethren :"(/') and He Himself, (as the Apostle speaks,) " is not ashamed to
call [us] brethren." (g)

In order that Men might be born of God, God was first born of Man. Whence,
it follows —

14 And the Word was made flesh,

That is "Man," as in Psalm cxlv. 21 : Joel ii. 28 : Galatians ii. 16. Now, Man
consists of Body and Soul ; — so that besides human flesh, our Saviour Christ had a
human soul also.

It is not here said that " He came to," — or was "joined with," — but that He was
"made" Man: for the Word came to men often, (7t) but He was made man only
once: and He might have been joined to man without becoming a partaker of man's
Nature. But because He was made " very man," language which can be applied
properly to man alone, is applied to Him, — as, that He wept(7) — hungered, (k) —
thirsted ;(l) marvelled(m) was grieved,(u) — wearied,(o) — and made angry.(^) It
was because He had His own body, that He was able to bear our sicknessess:(2)
because He had His own soul, that He was able to carry our sorrows, (r)

Lest any should be so weak, or so wicked, as to pretend that the Word by being
" made flesh," parted with the Divine Nature, or underwent any change whatsoever,
the Apostle proceeds, —

and dwelt among us.

" The fullness of the Godhead, bodily," was therefore there.(s)

"Dwelt among us" may seem only to imply that Christ made His dwelling with
the sons of men: but something infinitely loftier than that is meant. "Tabernacled
in us," (for so the words in strictness should be translated,) teaches that the Eternal
Son, not only put on a Tabernacle of Flesh, as St. Peter and St. Paul speak ; but
that He took up His abode, in that common Human Nature which belongs to all
our race: whence it is declared that He dwelt "in us." As Hooker excellently
says, — " It pleased not the Word or Wisdom of God to take to Itself some one per-
son amongst men; for then should that one have been advanced which was assumed,
and no more. But Wisdom, to the end She might save many, built Her House of
that Nature which is common unto all, — She made not this or that man Her habita-
tion, but dwelt in us." By thus becoming a partaker of our fallen Humanity,
Christ became the Restorer of it, likewise : for from Him is thereby derived to every
other son of Adam those divine graces which are inherent in Himself. And this is
why He is called "the new man," — the second Adam," — and "the beginning of the
Creation of God."(<) This supplies the reason of that contrast — " for as in Adam
all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alivc."(w) Hence, also, it is said — "If
any man be in Christ, he is a new creature." (»)

M Eph. v. 30. (d) 2 St. Peter i. 4. (e) Rom. viii. 16.

(/) Romans viii. 29. (</) Heb. ii. 11.

(It) Jeremiah i. 2, Hosea i. 2, &c. (i) St. John xi. 35, St. Luke xix. 41, and Hebrews v. 7.

(k) St. Matthew iv. 2, and xxi. 18. (0 St. John iv. 7, and xix. 28.

(to ) St. Matthew viii. 10. (») St. Mark iii. 5. (o) St. John iv. 6.

(p) St. Mark iii. 5. (q) St. Matthew viii. 17. (V) Isaiah liii. 4 (s) Colossians ii. 9.

(t) Rev. iii. 14. (») 1 Corinthians xv. 22. («) 2 Corinthians v. 17.

■ _ A PLATE OOMMHfTABI [-HAT.

•

there ia an allusion here to the manner in which Chmh
.tlv "dwelt" among His chosen people. HU'VGlorj filled the Tabernacle

■ Shekinah" i was the token of Hi- special . a lint the

] I'emple, (by whioh latter name the Taberna letimescalh

U a Body, in which oar S glorious Godhead v. .

'•• ■ . therefore, the Evangelist the Loan "tabernacled in

i which closely resembles tie- Hebrew word "Sheki-
nah," he is evidently recalling, and reverting t". 1 1 1 « - past history of the Jewish
ami Temple; ami implying tin- actual fulfillment of what Ilaggai had
; — namely, that the Desire of all nations," when He came, would

rem] iG iry, that " the Glory of this latter II a -. than of the

former." a) Ami th i- may help to Bhow the meaning of the exclamation which
follow -. —

(and we beheld Hifl Glory, the Glory as of the Onl; f the

ii;i:.i full of < rrace and Truth.

Our Loan "manifested forth His Glory," to be sore, when He wrought II"
racles, — as at Cana, concerning which, see St. John ii. 11: and at the raiai
Lazarus, concerning which, see St. John >.i. -1. 40, But tl I . list in this place
alludes to a Bight which was witnessed by only two others besides himself. He n -
fers to the Tran a of our Loan; — having been one of the "

Hie Majesty," and "with Him in the Holy Mount," as St. Peter Bpeaks. £ - B<
I . L6 to L8.

15 John bare witness of Him, and cried, Baying, This was 1!
whom 1 -pake. He that cometh after me is preferred before m<
before me.

The history d< The Evangelist is but anticipating here the wit-

tiat r rded in ver. 30.

He - .- • that John "cried," because John was "'tl ying in the wil-

]•» Ajid of His Fullness have all we received, and Grace for Grn

These are the words of the Evangelist; whereby he contrasts the supplies of
Law and the < lospel respecth elj ,— I i i j pe oral

of the other. "( trace for Grace, — the New in the place

17 For the Law was given by Moses, but Grace and Truth came by

JBSI - < 'HRIST.

and Troth," the end of ver. 14. This contrast of the I.'

the Gospol supplies the best comment on the conclusion of the former v<

1 - N i man hath Been <>"i' at any time; the Only-Begotten S
which is in the bosom of the Father, He hath declared Him.

w th one more solemn Baying, the Evangelist > eludes his introduction. That

aw Gon ii clearly laid down in the "M Testament,(6) n> well as in the

imetimes recorded of men in Scripture that thej "saw

• . i the! ■ --ami the

lik<\ The meaning of those marvellous and m lined.

I iity w ho tl ' To

I i in i;, had been the blessed office ol - from the heginning.

I who, in the person of a created Angel, -■• oft< n *poke to the I

the at; as, to Abraham ;(jr) t J N ' tothechi

( r ) ' to.

■ J bi ' I

■

10. (/) Isaiah vi. 1. [g ■

I.] ON ST. JOHN'S GOSPEL. 633

Israel ;(j) to Gideon; (A) to Manoah and his wife;(7) to Isaiah, (m) and the rest; — a
prelude, as it were, to His future Incarnation.

The Historical part of St. John's Gospel now begins.

19, 20 And this is the record of John, when the Jews sent priests
and Levites from Jerusalem to ask him, Who art thou ? And he con-
fessed, and denied not : but confessed, I am not the Christ.

The attention of all the World was awakened to the probable Advent of the Mes-
siah about this time. It was natural, therefore, that so remarkable a person as the
Baptist should have called forth the inquiry, — Art thou the Christ ? For John's
reply shows that that was the question now put to him.

21 And they asked him, What then? Art thou Elias? And he
saith, I am not. Art thou that prophet ? And he answered, No.

They meant, — Art thou Elijah come back to Earth in person ? For in that sense
did the Jews interpret the two concluding verses of the prophet Malachi. To this
the Baptist makes answer, " I am not." But we know that he wag the promised
Elias; for our Blessed Lord expressly says so. See St. Matth. si. 13, 14 ; and xvii.
10 to 13.

"Art thou the Prophet?" is said with reference to that famous prediction of
Moses, — " The Lord thy God will raise up unto thee a Prophet from the midst of
thee, of thy brethren, like unto me; unto Him shall ye hearken ;"(n) whereby he
foretold the Messiah, of whom he was himself in so many respects, a typo. This
second title, the Baptist of course disclaims.

22 Then said they unto him, Who art thou ? that we may give an
answer to them that sent us. What sayest thou of thyself?

23 He said, I am the Voice of one crying in the wilderness, Make
straight the way of the Lord, as said the prophet Esaias.

Quoting Isaiah xl. 3. — John was but "a Voice:" the voice of "the Word." So
was he but "a burning and a shining lamp," (for that is the expression in St. John
v. 35 :) going before Him, who reveals Himself as " the Light of the World;" — a
lamp kindled at the fountain of Light !

Consider how empty and vain is the mere voice, without the word: whereas, the
word needs not the voice, — except to make it known to others !(o) Consider also
how humble is the office of the lamp ; helping only to dispel the darkness, until the
Day dawns ! (p)

24, 25 And they which were sent were of the Pharisees. And they
asked him, and said unto him, Why baptizest thou then, if thou be not
that Christ, nor Elias, neither that prophet ?

26, 27 John answered them, saying, 1 baptize with water : but there
standest one among you, whom ye know not ; He it is, who coming
after me is preferred before me, whose shoe's latchet I am not worthy
to unloose.

John contrasts his own Baptism, which was a mere washing with water, with the
Baptism of Christ, which was attended with the gift of the Spirit. He then
humbly professess his own comparative littleness and unworthiness ; (for to loosen
the shoe or sandal, was the office of the meanest slave:) and thus ends the first re-
corded testimony which he bore to Christ. The Evangelist proceeds to fix the
scene of this transaction.

28 These things were done in Bethabara beyond Jordan, where John
was baptizing.

(j) Ex. xxiv. 9—11. (k) Judges vi. 11—24. (I) Judges xiii. 3—22. (m) Is. vi.
[n) Deut. xviii. 15, which is quoted both by St. Peter, Acts iii. 22, 23; aud St. Stephen, Acts
vii. 37

(o) 1 Sam. i. 13, &c. (p) 2 Pet. i. 19.

684 A PLAIN COMMKX'. [CHAP.

I why, when bo many names of places an-, as it seems, industriously withheld,
was t 1 list guided to describe the present locality bo particularly? It may

have been for the following reason: —

B oifiea the " Hi use of passage/' — a name eminently allusi

fi r by him, the transition, passing, or / - made from the

I. i the Gospel, from Moses to Christ. As the Israelites of old had t
through Jordan into the land of Canaan, bo now were they t • < • i 1 1 ur brought, by Bap-
tism i ■ waters, into the true land of Promise. There was a divine i
h it •• these things" Bhonld have been " done in Bethabara
a was baptizing .

incoming the name of Nazareth, in Si
I I, ii. - J.;, (where Bee the note,) this will not perhaps be thought a fanciful Ex-
position of the present text.

29 The next day John Beeth Jesus coming unto him, and Baith, B -
hold the Lamb of GrOD, which tiiketh away the Bin of the World.

Surely, when the Baptist Baid that, he uttered a mighty prophecy I Hie
look backward, and tell of "the Lamb that was slain before the foundation
world :(q) forward also, so far as to the Last Passover. They are a prophecy "t"
< < rucifixion; (" He is brought as a lamb to the slaughter l"(r) and tl

forth the meaning of the Paschal type, — declaring therein how " Christ our Pa
is sacrific >"(*)

30 This is He of whom I said, After me cometh a Man which is pre-
ferred before me : for lie was before me.

Alluding to what he had said the day before : ver. '27. The testimony contained
in the present verse was anticipated, as already remarked, in \,-r. 15.

". 1 And I knew Him not : but that He should be made manifest to
Israel, therefore am I conic baptizing with water.

82, 33, '-'>\ And John bare record, Baying, 1 saw the Spibit descend-
ing from heaven like a dove, aid It abode upon 1 Ihn. And 1 knew 1 lim
not : 1 u' lie that sent me to baptize with water, the same Baid unto me,

upon whom thou shalt see the Spirit descending, and remaining
Him, the same is lie which baptizeth with the Holy Ghost. And 1

saw. and bare record that this is the SOU of GrOD.

The Evangelist St. John describes neither the Baptism of Christ, nor Hi- Tempta-
tion. He begins his narrative (in ver. 19) at a period subsequent to both events.
i ■■ supplies -"lie- precious particulars concerning our Loan's
ad explains how the Forerunner stood personally affected towards Him
a it was his office to baptize.
We learn that John had no certain knowledge of Hi- mighty Kin-man. a- He
hould baptize with the Hoi/i Ghost, till the promised Heavenly Bign revealed
Him. When the Spirit descended upon our Lord from Heaven like a dove, and
ab "!'■ upon I lim, with which should he compared Isaiah xi. '_'.) — then, and n
fore, w.i- -i ilm made oonscii us of the wondrous truth. Whereupon, a- we learn
from this pi re joyous testimony that •• this was the s..\ of God."

ii ii the next day after John Btood, and two of his dlSCipl

H he history of the third day whioh St John describes. Well may he

irticularly! for it was the occasion when hi- eyes were firal i I

with 1 r the S.wiouR of the World.— It will bo percoived that this Evan-

gelist, after his divine introduction, (I) begins w\\\\ the events which be personally
witne

B6 And looking apon Jbsus as He walked, he Baith, Behold the
l. F God!

( 7 ) l (r) Isaiah UiL t. (•) 1 Oor. v. 7< (<) V.

I.] ON ST. JOHN'S GOSPEL. 635

As St. John hoice uses these words of Ciirist, (in ver. 29, and in this place,) so
do we, in the Litany, ticice call upon our Blessed Saviour by the same appellation.

37 And the two disciples heard him speak, and they followed Jesus.

These were St. Andrew and St. John, — men who from the very first showed them-
selves ready "to follow the Lamb whithersoever He goeth."(«)

38 Then Jesus turned, and saw them following, and saith unto them,
What seek ye ?

This was not perhaps a very encouraging address, — as men speak. It may warn
us against expecting too much in our first approaches to Christ. That all His
human heart was yearning towards them, all the while, — who shall doubt ?

They said unto Him, Rabbi, (which is to say, being interpreted, Mas-
ter,) where dwellest Thou?

Their inquiry shows that they desired to be with Him : to know His dwelling, in
order that they might frequent it.

39 He saith unto them, Come and see. Thej came, and saw where
He dwelt, and abode with Him that day : for it was about the tenth
hour.

That is, they spent with Him tlie whole day, from 10 o'clock in the morning. St.
John reckons his hours in the manner of the Asiatics, among whom he wrote ; and
whose reckoning, strange to relate, agreed exactly with our own.

How blessed and memorable was the occasion here recorded, to the Author of the
present Gospel ! Well may he mark all things so accurately, — the- place, and the
day, and the hour of the day : the gesture of his Lord, and His gracious words.
The Evangelist suppresses only the mention of himself.

If we are but in earnest in drawing near to Christ, He gives us ample oppor-
tunities.

40, 41 One of the two which heard John spealc, and followed him,
was Andrew, Simon Peter's brother. He first fincleth his own brother
Simon, and saith unto him, We have found the Messias, (which is, being
interpreted, the Christ.)

" lie Jirst ;" — that is, Andrew found his brother Simon, before John was able to
find his brother James : but be sure the Disciple of Love was not much later in
bringing his brother to Christ. How genuine was the zeal of these men towards
God ; which would not let either rest till he had conveyed the good tidings to his
Brother !

42 And he brought him to Jesus. And when Jesus beheld him, He
said, Thou art Simon the son of Jona : thou shalt be called Cephas,
(which is by interpretation, A stone.)

Our Saviour no sooner sees Simon than He bestows upon him his name of
strength ; foreseeing what would be hereafter. The speaker in this verse is the
same who, in the Old Testament, gave new names to Abram, to Sarai, and to
Jacob.

43, 44 The day following Jesus would go forth into Galilee ; and
findeth Philip, and saith unto him, Follow Me. Now Philip was of
Bethsaida, the city of Andrew and Peter.

Thus, a fifth Apostle, — a fellow townsman of Andrew and Peter, — is gathered
into the fold !

It is impossible to think of these poor plain men without wonder and admiration.
They had left their home, and forsaken their trade, in order to wait upon the stern

(u) Kev. xiv. 4.

686 A I'l.MX OOMMBNTARI ['HAT.

line his disciples. Their souls were i I with the desire <>f

ling tin- promised Messiah, whose advent they felt assured was :tt band
it never be thought that they received "a call,*' and thereupon became ••
nying, holy. They did not become great Saints b were ca

'I 'hey win-, on tin- contrary, called to

sureh their glorious History may well teach as to look on men of the -am.- con-
dition of life \\ itli interest, not <■> say with reverence. It Betbsaida alone
an Andrew, a Peter, ami a Philip, — there maj surely I"- dwelling unsus]
at this day among ourseh es !

\ I can it be wrong to extend this observation to th< ■. remembering

that a maiden worthy to become the Mother <>i' our Blessed Rkdxemxr, was found
dwelli i rty in tlir despised Nazareth?

45 Philip findeth Nathanael, and Baith unto him. We hare fonnd
Him, of whom Moses in the Law, ami the prophets, did v,
Nazareth, the Son of Joseph.

•••If si - of Nazareth," — tin- appellation whieh fulfilled the prophecy noticed in St.

Matthew ii. 23, is here for the first time beard. Next, it i- Bpoken by a devil, —

St. Luke iv. 34. It clung evermore t" the Son of Man: ed to His

ironounced by Angels :(«/) claimed by Himself :(«) ami finsdl) 1 ame the

ling name by which diseases were banish d in conformity with which

the first Christians were cailed.(6)

Take notice, that Philip speaks of Him I had been long known to him-

self and his friends, — lots of tin- city of Nazareth, the Son ■ Have 1

i long time uith you, and yet hast thou not known Me, Philip ?"(c) — w*
oordingly the question which our Loan asked him at the Last So]

•• IT' nave found?" that is, Andrew and Simon, James and John ; the first named
\,\< own especial friend. Consider the following passages, — St. John vi. 5
ami 8: \ii. 21 and 22.

46 And Nathanael Baid onto him, ('an there any g -1 thing come

out of Nazareth'.' Philip Baith unto him, (

tanael (who is i tholomev* by the I lists,) was of Cana in

read in ch. x\i. •_'. The holy company bad, t] y this time

i th" Bcene of the miracle recorded in the next chapter.
A ived at Cana, Philip straightway hastened away in search "f his friend;
(these holy men are our exampl step if the history!) aid hi- ami

incut, when he ha- found him. clearly BhowS I10W full his heart \va- of 0O(

subject. It shows, too, what studious readers of Scripture they both had
When Nathanael hesitates, Philip answers him with a saying wbioh he had perhaps
.;. learned from the lips of nis Master, Ch

17 Jssus saw Nathanael coming to Sim, and Baith of him. Behold
an Israelite indeed, in whom is do guile.

1 1 i i (had He chosen) could b 11 1 servant with a complete solu-

tion of the difficulty he bad recently expressed concerning the supposed place of
Cbrist'e Nativity: but we find that He took a far diviner course. He convinced
that lie knew him. by declaring to him his character: thua leading the
1 1 ! to the belief that he bad to <i" with the Searcher of heart-.

B Nathanael "an Israelite indeed," and bj th<

whi.h i ||i ws, our Lord's wordB Beem to have resp< Israel,

, as it i- bo( down in < lenesis sxv. 27 N
menl especially granted: consider G tviii. 12: xxxii. 1,2:

iJm 24 • 1 30. This prepares us lor the remarkable language of ourl .51.

L8 Nathanael Baith onto Him, Whence knowest Thon met J
answered and Baid unto him, Before that Philip called thee, when thon
under thi . 1 saw thee.

I 19. (.V) Bt Murk II v

mi Iv. i". ~ : ■' ,: - ; ' zlv. '•'.

I-]

on st. john's gospel. 637

Our Saviour perceived the thought which was already springing up in His ser-
vant's heart. Nathanael suspected that surely it was Philip who had been talking
to our Lord concerning him. Hence the peculiarity of our Lord's reply; by which
He convinced Nathanael that He derived His knowledge from no human source.

Before the arrival of Philip, Nathanael, as if in literal fulfillment of the prophetic
foreshadowing.? of the days of the Gospel, is found to have been " sitting under his
fig-tree." (cZ) He had been alone. He had thought himself unobserved also. The
words of our Blessed Lord just now quoted, convinced him that he had been all
along in the presence of one and the same Being, — even of Him whose " eyes are
in every place, beholding the evil and the good."

What might the occupation of Nathanael have been, as he sat beneath his fig-
tree ? Doubt not but what there is some very exquisite circumstance alluded to
here ; though we know it not, and cannot know it.

49 Nathanael answered and saith unto Him, Rabbi, Thou art the
Son of God ; Thou art the King of Israel.

Such was his hearty confession, — produced by the discovery that he had to do
with One who searcheth the heart and the reins. By the same evidence, the Wo-
man of Samaria became a believer ;(e) and the Apostles were fully convinced that
Jesus of Nazareth "came forth from God."(/")

Doubt not that, evermore, Nathanael, (that is Bartholomew,) felt that he was
bound to Philip by a tie strong as that of blood. Not in vain, be sure, is it recorded,
that when our Lord sent forth His Apostles "by two and two,"(#) it was "Philip
and Bartholomew" who went together. Consider the following texts, — St. Matthew
x. 3 : St. Mark iii. 18 : St. Luke vi. 14.

50 Jesus answered and said unto him, Because I said unto thee, I
saw thee under the fig-tree, believest thou ? thou shalt see greater things
than these.

One of the "greater things" here promised, was the miracle of the Water made
Wine, which immediately follows.

51 And He saith unto Him, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Here-
after ye shall see Heaven open, and the Angels of God ascending and
descending upon the Son of Man.

Our Blessed Lord directs the divine saying which follows to Nathanael, ("He
saith unto him;") but addresses His prophecy to all who were present, ("ye shall
see.") Most mysterious indeed are His words, and hard to explain ; but they seem
to mean something like this : —

Ye are about to see the actual fulfillment of that which was only shown to Jacob
in adream.(A) Henceforth, ye shall be made conscious that " Heaven" is "opened;"
that a free intercourse is established between Heaven and Earth. Moreover ye
shall be witnesses how the heavenly messengers are perpetually occupied in offices
of mercy towards mankind; "ascending and descending upon the Son of Man," —
that is, ministering to Him, whether in His own person(i) or in the person of His
members;(A) doing His bidding in behalf of "those who shall be heirs of Salva-
tion." (I) Whereby ye shall perceive that I am He "to whom all things in Heaven,
in Earth, and under the Earth, do bow and obey :" and shall know Me to be God.

On all this, a modern Writer says beautifully, — " This introduction of the Dis-
ciples to our Lord is remarkable for its extremely quiet, and what might be called
its domestic character. It is all emblematic of Him who "should not strive nor cry,
neither should His Voice be heard in the Street."

" Much is of the nature of human incident, and what looks like chance occur-
rence. Natural ties, of Discipleship, of Kindred, and of Friendship, are the moving

(d) Compare Micah iv. 4 and Zech. iii. 10. (e) St. John iv. 19.

( /') Compare St. John xvi. 19 and 30.

\g) St. Mark vi. 7. (h) Gen. xxviii. 12.

(i) For example, — St. Luke xxii. 43: St. John xx. 12: Acts i. 10.

(/.-) For example, — Acts v. 19 ; x. 3 ; xii. 1 ; xxvii. 23.

{I) Heb. i. 14

<;:> A PLAIN OOMMBNTAM [CHAP.

. circumstance of daily 1 1 ±~« - ; and all this, in order, as with noi
band8,(m) to lay the everlasting found the City of God. The II B ptistin

his ordinary teaching, intimates t" Borne disciples the presence uf the Lamb i I

at bj way of bint or incidental mention, — "as In- looked on Jssi -," while He
: I by. They introduce themselvi H e, and go in silence to H s abode,

and are received by Him, — ;ba man receives his friends. Thedooi them;

tin \ are with Christ; but what passes is unknown. Then, the coming of th< j

■ is through the call of Kindred : the natnral tie is the apparent cause of his
coming. Then, rhilip also is called, as being one of the same city; and be natu-
rally hastens to hi- own friend. Friendship di rhat Kindred did bef
few words are recorded; and Buch is the beginning of the Church whose top reaches

d ! The grain of mustard-sei were, t'» the mercy of the

winds, till it anas tit place to take root But it i- :ill by Him, without whose Icnow-

ao4 :i Bparrow falleth to the ground: by Him who hath the times and Beasons
in His own Hand, and also the hearts of men : whocalleth the Btars by th
and they answer, II re we I e: or with the infant Samuel, — 'Speak, Loan, for Thy
Bervant heareth '.' "

THE P R A Y 1 1 B .

Everlasting God, who hast ordained and constituted the sen
of Angels and men in a wonderful order; mercifully grant, thai as Thy
holy Angels alway do Thee service in Heaven, bo by Thy appointment
they may succor and defend us on Earth; Through •' [ our

Lord. Amen.

c II A PTBR II.

1 Chbibi turneth water into wine. 12 departed I

11"-. n // purgeth the 7' m\ '•>iih

H ' . but ll> won

ith limn.

1 And the third day there was b Marriage in Cana of Gain 1

That is, the third Day after the three which

The ' John, like the Book of ( th the hist

ad last day, (on which the si nd Adam "mani-

the chief of all, and emphatically pronoui I

I." ( »n both • cth day was Bignalii ■

the Ma ]

in < '.in ol Gal I

Take notice, that, as the Eternal Son had instituted Holy Matrimony "in the
B ■ . ' beginning B Barthlj M inistrj . H<

(rn) ('• ••. -'. [( r 1 Kil |l I i. 7.

II.]

ON ST. JOHN'S GOSPEL. 689

honor to the Marriage Rite, and Messes it anew. Surely, it was a fitting occasion
for His presence, and for the act of Almighty Power which followed : for was He
not Himself, mystically, the Bridegroom; who had come into the World to take His
Spouse, the Church? — Consider the following texts: — St. Matt. xxii. 2, &c. ; xxv.
1, &c. St. John iii. 29. Ephes. v. 22 to 32. Rev. xix. 7 to 9: xxi. 2.

The village is called hy the same name ("Cana of Galilee,") to this clay. It is
described by a friend, (a) who has recently visited those parts, as occupying "a
gentle declivity, facing the setting sun : a sweet peaceful Village, which still arrests
the traveller with its loveliness, and makes him feel that something still lingers
there of His presence who makes all things blessed and lovely."

and the Mother of Jesus was there :

" Was there," — not "was invited." It is thought that this Festivity celebrated
the Marriage of one of her relations.

2 and both Jesus was called, and His Disciples, to the Marriage.

Our Saviour does not annul human relationships : He does but sanctify them
with His presence, — when He is invited to witness them. Least of all, can the
Holy Estate of Matrimony be thought displeasing in His sight. He had already
blessed Virginity, by His Birth ; — and Widowhood, by revealing Himself to Anna,
in the Temple. Behold Him now making a Marriage the occasion when He first
"manifested forth His glory."

that He were invited to all our Marriage-feasts ! Who shall describe the bles-
sedness of having Him, at all times, for a guest ?

3 And when they wanted wine, the Mother of Jesus saith unto
Him, They have no wine.

The circumstance seems to have become known at once to herself, — because she
was among members of her own family. Her words to her Divine Son, clearly
amounted to a request that He would supply the deficiency which began to be felt; and
they show that she knew that He had the power to do the thing she wished, — if it were
but His pleasure. It does not follow from this, that He had ever worked a miracle
before. On the contrary. We are told that this was " the Beginning of Miracles."
.... Observe, however, that a Mother's request, under ordinary circumstances, is a
command: for this remark will help to prepare the mind for the words which fol-
low.

Can the presence of so many additional guests, — perhapn the unexpected presence
of the six Disciples of Christ, — have been the occasion of this deficiency in the
supply of wine? The thing is possible; but the conjecture would not really be
worth hazarding, except for the memorable result of this day's entertainment,
which made the Bridegroom's hospitality an occasion of his enriching, — instead of
his loss. Six water-pots of wine, — (one for each guest!) — became a lasting memo-
rial of the day, when, "not forgetful to entertain strangers," he " thereby enter-
tained Angels unaivares."(b)

4 Jesus saith unto her, Woman, what have I to do with thee ?
Mine hour is not yet come.

"Woman" was a respectful mode of address at the time, and consistent with the
utmost tenderness and love. See how the same Blessed Speaker addressed the
same Mother from the Cross, — St. John xix. 2G.(e)

But, — "What have I to do with thee?" is the language of rebuke. This phrase
occurs in other parts of the Scripture, and always denotes that the speaker has
been unseasonably spoken to, and, as it were, interfered with. (7?) In this place, it
seems to be as if our Lord had said, — What is there common to Me, thy Creator,
and thee, My creature ? Thy Son I am, — after the flesh ; and, as thy Son, these
thirty years have I been content to be " subject unto" thee. But I am also thy God ;

(«) C. L. Higgins, Esq., of Turvey Abbey.

(b) Hebrews xiii. 2. (e) Compare St. John xx. 13, 15.

(d) 2 Sara. xvi. 10: xix. 22. 1 Kings xvii. Iii: 2 Kings iii. IS: 2 Chron. xxxv. 21. St.
Matthew viii. 29 : St. Mark i. 21.

A PLAIH COMMEKTABT [<iIAI\

and ir is only as thv < lou that I ran do thi* thing. As such, — " What hare / to do
with ti

" Mine hour is not yet come," — probably means that the moment had n<
qnite arrn id for Him to act: but the Baymgs of Him who"* man

: ad often, like tl difficult.

BUa Mother Baith unto the servants. Whatsoever He Baith unto
. do it.

Once more -I. as to the Servant*, — mparativeb

It is evident that the Blessed Virgin understood, even from our Lord's die
ing reply, that lie was about to grant her petition. Compare with this, what Pha-
- iid to his servants concerning Joseph, ■ memorabl I I lene-

gis xli.

•• \\ -aith onto yon, doit:" — most holy and exi ascl!

Were it but deeply engraven in our hearts, so as to produce a life of i
uniform obedience, — how would Heaven begin, even on this Bide of Eternity! —
Ho* would the issue of all our undertakings be bl

r> Ami there were set there six waterpots of stone,

Thei Bingle word or syllable in Holy Scripture which is Bet down I

in vain. Why, then, does St. John, who omits bo many important thh
waterpots were "six" in number?
ems likely that the number of the was providentially overruled,

(and was tl recorded,) with reference to the >who

lit with Him on this occasion. See the note on \ i :•-• 11;
He was about to pour into those men, as into new vessels, the good "W
the Gospel :(e) from whose ample Btores the servants of Cnau
in turn ; and present to every "guest" at "the Marriage-Supper of the 1,\ ".,.."(/)

illy, as much as he would. For remember, — " The Kingdom of
like unto a certain King, which made a marriag for His . v "n . . . And the wedding
. mi-he. l with guests."(gr)

after the manner of the purifying of the Jews, containing two or three

firkins api

par-
ticularly informed by St. .Matthew (xv. '_'.) and St Mark (\ii. 2 ti
their practice, in this place, reminds n* that 1

Sel at a distance from Judaea. He always supposes his readers unav
(A) and unacquainted with the Jewish languag I

John v. 2.

The " firkin" has been thought to contain about five galloi
whelming supply, therefore, of wine was here! Surely, in the abundance thus nn-
odly produced, we have a lively image of thai Royal bounty, which u
wer down up m us " more than either we desire or desei

7 J aith unto them, Pill the water-pots with water. And they
filled them up to the brim.

T a \ ery unpromising Btep towards remedying the wanl

- worth, when GOD is the s.
'■'• lo it?" Surely, in all cases of doubt or difficult

injun . (in verse 5,) is the counsel whi I urch add

urse whioh u sure to lead to Peace at la
13 ing.

8 And He Baith unto them, Draw out now, and bear unto the Go-
vernor of the Feast. And they bare it,

[t was the 1 aor, or Ruler of the I the

(/) l: •• ;!.. xxii. 3 I

i.
; i xx 10.

II.]

ON ST. joiin's gospel. 641

entertainment of the guests, and to taste first what was set before them. Hence
our Lord's injunction.

9, 10 When the Ruler of the Feast had tasted the water that was
made wine, and knew not whence it was: (but the servants which drew
the water knew ;) the Governor of the Feast called the Bridegroom, and
saith unto him, Every man at the beginning doth set forth good wine ;
and when men have well drunk, then that which is worse : but thou
hast kept the good wine until now.

" Good wine," — for it came immediately from Him, whose works when they first
left His Almighty hands, were pronounced good. The effects of the miracles of
Christ are better than the productions of Nature.

When the Ruler of the Feast spoke these words to the Bridegroom, he stated a
sad truth, — of far wider application than at first sight appears. Men seek to show
their best at first, — whether of property, or sentiment, or feature. They fall away
on trial. In each respect they set forth "then, that which is worse." Is it not so
with Him " whose ways are not Man's ways." *

Christ always keeps the best things till the end. They who " sow in tears, reap
in joy." (i) In life "evil things," — after death, eternal comfurt.^-) "Heaviness
may endure for a night, but Joy cometh in the Morning."(Z)

11 This beginning of Miracles did Jesus in Cana of Galilee, and
manifested forth His Glory;

Unspeakably deep and mysterious, surely, must the teaching of our Lord's first
miracle be. Do we not trace therein, symbolically, the purpose with which He
came into the world, — namely, to convert the weak and watery ordinances of the
Law, into the "new wine" of the Gospel, whieh "makes glad the heart of man" for
ever ? Compare St. Matthew ix. 17. Not, observe, to create a new thing : but to
convert the old into something better.

For our Lord did not now create something new, — as when, "in the beginning,"
He " made the Heaven and the Earth. "(m) Neither did He increase and multiply
a thing already existing ; as when He fed the four and the five thousand. But He
changed a thing which already existed, into a better thing of corresponding bulk.
Just as, during the Great Six Days, He had "formed Man — of the dust of the
ground."(n)

" Now," (as the greatest Father of the Western Church has remarked,) " if He
had ordered the Water to be poured out ; and had then introduced the Wine, as a
new Creation, He would seem to have rejected the Old Testament. But convert-
ing, as He did, the Water into Wine, He showed us that the Old Testament was
from Himself: for it was by His order that the waterpots were filled." (See ver. 7.)
Aye, filled to the very brim.

And so it is, that when the mind is suffered to dwell attentively on a Miracle like
this, fresh points of analogy, and meanings, at first unsuspected, suggest them-
selves. Thus one is led to observe that, in Scripture, Water and Wine, alike are
connected with the mention of spiritual gifts. (o) Moreover, it is obvious to remark
that on this occasion, the use of Water was but preparatory to the Feast ; whereas
the Wine was an essential part of the Feast itself: and this seems to symbolize, in
no obscure way, the relation in which the Law stood to the Gospel. See St. Luke
v. 37 to 39.

Surely, at "the Marriage of the Lamb," the great features oftJiis marriage Feast
will be restored ! It will then be confessed, on all hands, that the same Almighty
Benefactor hath kept "the good wine until now;" for things which "eye hath not
seen, nor ear heard, neither hath it entered into the heart of man to conceive," hath
He prepared for those who love Him. " Thou hast kept the good wine until now."
Surely that is the cry of Saints in bliss !

(0 Psalm exxvi. 5. (£) St. Luke xvi. 25.

(I) Psalm xxx. 5. (m) Gen. i. 1.

(») Gen. ii. 7 : compare i. 11, 20, 24, &c.

(o) Isaiah xii. 3, — compare St. Johnvii. 37, 38, 39. Isaiah xxxv. 6, 7: xliv. 3. Joel ii. 2S, 29,
— compare Acts ii. 13, 15, 17, 18, &c. Ephes. v. 18, &c.

642 A. PLAIN COMMEfTABI [CHAP.

ithor of the Miracle which we have been considering, hath
"left [fimse\f without wit | | even to the Qeathen world. For do but con-

bow, year bj year, the same miraole ia performed, and under our \»-r\ ■
although, I f its frequency and regularity, we ^ r i\'' no beed t" it! What

is i' lesa than a miracle that the Rain, falling upon our \ inej ards, should be " made
Win

and fail n> >t, reader, t<> remark, in conclusion, the severe simplicity "f the pre-
z narrative. Not a word is >aiil of the dismay which the failure of the \\im-
occasioned, — nor of the pleasure which attended so unexpected b supply : — nothing,
of the surprise of the Servants, — nor of the satisfaction of the L r m-«t.-: — nothh
the effect which this miracle produced on the Giver of the Feast; nor of I
came, at but, n> his knowli dge. Neither i- our attention called to the largei
the miraculous Bupply which made him henceforth rich. \\ .■ are left to study the
details, and draw pie inferences, and feed upon the teaching, of every part of the

miracle, for ourselves Let it be freely allowed, at least, that the number <4

particulars withheld, Berves to impart interest and dignity, a hundredfold, to every
word which is actually Bet down. Nothing can be in rain, where bo little is n
ed : nothing can be trivial, which tomes from the Mouth of God.

and His Disciples believed on Him.

Those who delight in bucIi inquiries, may like to pursue the hint given in I
few words of the progress of the Gospel, by examining the following references:
St. J ihn ii. 23: iv. 39, 41, 42: vii. 31 and viil 30, 31 : i\. 16: \. 12: xL I"

xii. 1 1 and 12.

12 After this He went down to Capernaum, He, and His Mother,
and His Brethren, and His Disciples: and they continued there not

many day-.

\\ ■ have jn-t witnessed one great Miracle. In the verses which follow v
about to be presented with another. Bel ■ • d the two, comes thi* mention of the
/" and '* Brethren." It is the manner of the Evangelists thus to blend the
Divine and Human, in describing the actions of our Loan. See the first n
Si Matthew \ iii. 10, and on St Luke viii. 23. Also the in.tr mi St Mark ii.5, and
- . Luke i\.

terning the " Brethren" of <air Loan, Bee the note on St Matthew xiii. 55.
Capernaum, where this holy company now came to sojourn, and where "iir Sat ioub
li\.'.i bo much, was a town situated at the North-Western extremity of the £
Galilee. No traces of it are to I"- seen at the preai nl day, according t<> th
morable prophecy contained in St Matthew .\i. 23. See the note on that place.

13 And the Jews' Passoyer was at hand, and Jesi - went up to
Jerusalem,

•• The ./■ "■ ■' Passover,"- (as in xi. 55, I ecause St John v. rote at a distance from
the Holy Land ; and addressed his Gospel to persons who were only Blightly, if at
all, acquainted with Jewish customs. See the first note on the second part of ver. 6.

This, then, was 1 1 1 « - first of Pour Passover seasons which are distinctly marked in
' 'ur Loan went \\y to Jerusalem on th<- i ccasion, in conformity with
tin- requirements of the L : the references iii the note on St Luke ii. II.

11 and found in the Temple those that sold oxen and sheep and
dov< -. and the changers of money sitting:

• were kept for the purpose of sacrifice. I were the

ofl'i-rin^- "I those who ca t.i be purified iallj <>f thi

The changers of money found their accounl in supplying those strai
:m<l foreigners who came up, in greal numbers,?*) t" worship al Jerusalem on these
•ii-. and broughl with them the m ther countries, in order to nor*

ohase rictima for sacrifice; aocording to the express direction of the Law.(l) Ihe

. 17. I. 'Ml. \^. i ■

(r) -• Luke Ii. 24

(.) E n. (" Deal xlv. U I

II.]

on st. John's gospel. 643

payment of "tribute," — that is, the tax of a half-shekel which all contributed to-
wards the support of the Temple, — must have also supplied these "changers of
money" with occupation.

15 And when He had made a scourge of small cords, He drove them
all out of the Temple, and the sheep, and the oxen ; and poured out the
changers' money, and overthrew the tables ;

The " scourge of small cords" was not the instrument, so much as the emblem of
His wrath. It is manifest that such a Weapon must have been powerless in other
hands ; certainly, it would have been ineffectual to produce the mighty results here
noticed. But Christ wrought a miracle on the present occasion ; not on lifeless
matter, — as at Cana ; but on the hearts and minds of His rational creatures. Armed
with that scourge, men beheld in Him a type of the Vengeance which will at last
overtake the wicked. The traffickers in the Temple, panic-stricken, fled before the
awful presence of Him, in whom they nevertheless had not eyes to discern their
future Judge. And surely the spectacle is one which it will do men good to seek
to realize to themselves. We love to speak of our Saviour as "meek and lowly ;"(u)
and we do well, — for such an One He was. But, on this occasion, He revealed
Himself in a very different character: terrible in His wrath, — and, as it were, con-
sumed by His zeal for the honor of His Father's House.

In truth, what we here behold is the fulfilment of that famous prophecy of Mala-
chi : — " The Lord, whom ye seek, shall suddenly come to His Temple ; even the
Messenger of the Covenant, whom ye delight in. Behold, He shall come, saith the
Lord of Hosts. But who may abide the Day of His Coming? and who shall stand
when he appeareth ? For He is like a refiner's fire, and like fullers' soap : and He
shall sit as a Refiner and Purifier of silver."(w) These words had a partial accom-
plishment, doubtless, at the Presentation in the Temple :(w) their fullest accom-
plishment, (as they refer to thejirst Advent of Christ,) when at the close of His
Ministry, He purged the Temple for the second time: (a;) but they were strikingly
fulfilled now. See the note on the last half of St. Luke ii. 38.

Deeply emblematic, we may bo sure, was this act of our blessed Lord. Besides
its prophetic fulfillment, and its prophetic teaching, it set forth one great purpose of
His coming ; — which was, to annul the system of carnal ordinances, and to bring to
light the sublime truths which lay concealed beneath them. When He drove the
victims from the Temple, He showed that a better Victim had at last appeared ; and
that the Legal Sacrifices were no longer to have any place.

And will it be said that it is merely an ingenious use of the text to find in it an
individual application also? " What? Know ye not that your Body is the Temple
of the Holy Ghost, which is in you ?"(y) " Know ye not that ye are the Temple of
God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you V ' (z)

16 and said unto them that sold doves, Take these things hence ; make
not My Father's House an house of merchandise.

" My Father's House :" — the blessed Speaker had spoken of the Temple by the
same name about eighteen years before ; (see the note on St. Luke ii. 49 :) thereby,
in express words, claiming to be the Son of God. See the end of the note on St.
John v. 17.

On two occasions, — once at the commencement of His Ministry ; next, at its close,
— our Saviour thus drove the buyers and sellers out of the Temple. The first in-
cident is related by St. John only : for the second, see St. Matthew xxi. 12, 13 : St.
Mark xi. 15 to 18 : St. Luke xix. 45, 4G.

Surely, they still make His Father's House " a House of Merchandise," who
carry thither anxieties about their secular concerns ; and allow thoughts about
Trade, — hopes and fears about the Market, — to find place in the Sanctuary of God !

17 And His Disciples remembered that it was written, The zeal of
Thine House hath eaten Me up.

(m) St. Matthew xi. 29. (?) Malachi iii. 1, 2, 3. (w) St. Luke ii. 22 to 38.

(x) St. Matthew xxi. 12, 13. (y) 1 Cor. vi. 19.

(z) 1 Cor. iii. 16. Compare 2 Cor. vi. 16. Ephes. ii. 21, 22. Hebrews iii. 6. 1 St. Peter ii. 5.

• '.11 A PI.AIX COKIOENTABT [CHAP.

\ y prophecies concerning Christ which tl •
! and applied. Verse 9 is quoted, -jpartly bj St John, —partly by St. Pauh(a)
\ \ erse25, bj St. P

It w they " remembered:" certainly not till Be was risen from

the d< rer. 22; ana compare the statement in St. John xii. 16. It d

indeed, that it was not until the Ascension of Christ that they nnd< .
these things ; until after the ont-pouring on II • Dii iples ol thai Spirit,

prophesied thai " He should teach them all things, and bring all thin
their remembrance, whatsoever Christ bad said nut" thi ' great

. it may be thought that the application of 1'-. brix. 9 to this act of Messiah,
erwitb the real meaning of many more of our I ndrous sayin j, pre-

■ I itself to His Apostles.

[tistol bserved, however, that II" "opened their under!

might understand tin' Scriptures," (c) previous to Hit . into I l<

18 Then answered the Jews ami said unto Bim, What
Thou unto as, seeing that Thon doest these thin.

It was their wont always t<> make such a demand. Gon had accordingly furnished
with more signs than one. (cQ The Prophets, in like manner, were all fur-
nished with -urn,' visible | if hi I' df their mission. Ii a ill be remembered that Zacha-
rias asked fur a sign; Bee St. Luke i. 18 to 20, and tin- notes there: and we find the
.Jew Mi people, "ii several other occasions, demanding a sign oi
Matthew xii. 38, and the note there; also x\i. I. St Luke \i. 1 S
\i. 30 : and consider I Cot. i. 22.

19 -I i si s answered and said unto them, Destroy this T< mj le, and in
three days 1 will raise it up.

A Divine answer, truly I Ele gave them the most wondrous Bign imaginable, —

a Bign which was t" 1 me the very foundation of the Christian Faith. Sublimely

allusive it also was, ami was intended to l"\ t" the mystical connection '

l! use" for which lie bad displayed such seal, and that "I e) in

which Hi- own Divinity was enshrined, as in a Tal Compare ~ C r. \ . 1.

13, 14. Lastly, it contained a declaration <>f Hi-- own I
•ii. 1 // ioi7/ Himself from Death.

It will he remembered, that tin- wondrous propbe [

d supplied tin- enemies of Messiah with a ground of

• Him, in the end. S -i. 61,— where it will be

-nil that a garbled version of it was found on the lips of the
and Si I". — where the blasphemy of the bystandi

i- recorded. "There seems a particular reason therefore why St. John should intro-
duce the cluster of circumstances, here described : for the other !'•■ adre-

l the charge made against Him at Bis Death, without mentionm
sion mi which our Loro delivered it."

20 Then said tin- Jews, Forty and six years was thi- Temple in
building, and wilt Thou rear it up in tin

They Bpoke of that material shrine,- -the second Temple, as Zorobabel's structure
led, which hail I c.-h restored, in astyli me magnificence, bj King

II' rod I be ' ■: • at.

•Jl But In- spake of the Temple of Hi- I'" dy.

II B lyl" .. How marvellously •!■> remote, and apparently
i\.r li - ripture harmonise with those words, ''tii

and, in turn, receive illustration from them ! . . . 'I i tided that

the i ■. in his first chapter, (verse I 1,) intimated that, in the •

I • human Body, tlmi Qodhxad had come to reside, of which the

»• Shrk ina! i.' . in tin- Temple, was but a type. See the last note on thi

half of St, John 1. 14. The Veil of the Temple, (which " was rent in twain from
the top to the 1 »t( oa, n (J when Jrsus Christ expired upon the <

(.i) Rom. .i ('•) Bt. John dv.

., i'.i. . Ifatthtw rxvll U.

-1

II.]

on st. john's gospel. 645

expressly told, emblematic of His flesh,(g) — in the same hour cruelly torn: and ob-
serve, that as God was said to dwell in the Temple, so, in our Saviour's Body
" dwelleth all the fullness of the Godhead bodily."(/t) We have just read how men,
with their merchandise, denied the Temple of God ; and witnessed how God treated
them : which reminds us of what is said of bodily defilement, in 1 Cor. iii. 17.

The Temple of old, and our Churches, at this day, have one extremity pointing to
the East, — the other to the West* And even so point the Temples of our Bodies,
when they are laid in the dust.

Many are the intimations in Holy Scripture that the Human Body is occupied by
the Soul, as a House is occupied by its Tenant. Thus Job, as we have seen, de-
scribes Men, as " them that dwell in houses ofclai/:"(i) and God is said in the be-
ginning to have " builded" a Woman, (k) But St. Paul calls the Body, "our Earthly
Tent-House," or " Tabernacle-Residence," — for that is the real meaning of 2 Corin-
thians v. 1 : intimating thereby, (in the words of an excellent living Writer,) " that
the Body is a temporary structure, easily taken down, and liable to removal at very
short notice. And indeed," (he adds,) " the order of removing the Tabernacle in
the Wilderness from place to place, ' when the Camp set forward,' (as prescribed in
Numbers iv.) supplies a very striking emblem of the awful process of dissolution, as
it takes effect upon the natural Body of Man."

As "one with Christ,"(Z) — in whom all the Building fitly framed together grow-
eth unto an Holy Temple in the Lord," — we are further declared to be, spiritually,
" the Temple of the Living God :" even " an Habitation of God, through the
Spirit." («i)

22 When therefore He was risen from the dead, His Disciples re-
membered that He had said this unto them ; and they believed the
Scripture, and the word which Jesus had said.

See above, the note on ver. 17. The beloved Disciple here notes another of the
sayings of his Lord, the meaning of which only became plain long after, to those
who heard it spoken. It was, in fact, the fulfillment of it, — " when He was risen
from the dead," — which made it plain. " And indeed, it is evident," (says a pious
Writer,) " from the subsecpient mention of it by the false Witnesses, that it had
been remembered in Jerusalem, and brought forth into prominent record when most
needed. Thus, though it appeared no answer at the time, yet, the bread cast upon
the waters was gathered after many days ; and the seed sown bore a hundred-fold:
nor did His Word return unto Him void."

St. John tells us, besides, how the Faith of the first Believers, both in the Scrip-
ture, and in Jesus Christ, was confirmed thereby. And the Reader should take
note that "the Scripture," (that is, the Old Testament,) — together with " the Word
which Jesus had said," — made up the sum of the Faith of the first Believers ; for,
as yet, the Books of the New Testament were not written.

23 Now when He was in Jerusalem at the Passover, in the Feast
day, many believed in His Name, when they saw the Miracles which
He did.

But what miracles were these? One only is recorded, in verse 15. It may be
that a whole world of wonders is wrapped up in this short verse of Scripture :
wonders, which are alluded to by Nicodemus, in chap. iii. 2 ; and which obtain fur-
ther notice in chap. iv. 45.

24, 25 But Jesus did not commit Himself unto them, because He
knew all men, and needed not that any should testify of Man : for He
knew what was in Man.

To know the thoughts and intents of the heart, — to look into the mind of Man,
and see what is passing there, — is in the power of God, and God only. In the
words of an Eastern Father, " He knows what is in the heart, because it was He
who fashioned it. He needs no witness to inform Him concerning the mind, be-

(g) Hebrews x. 20. (h) Coloss. ii. 9.

(i) Job iv. 19. (&) See the margin of Genesis ii. 22.

{I) See the Exhortation in the Communion Service, (mi) Eph. ii. 21, 22 : and 2 Cor. vi. 16.

846 * PLAIN COMMENTARY [ciIAP.

otrivance." In like | •!.••:• of t In-

w that " the Maker knew I etter ■■■■ hat was in Bis own work, than

•rk knew what was in itself:" ami he quotes our I- 1 rd's prophecj t" St.
I ' '.' of his oh

• aider the following texts of Scripture:- 1 Samuel xvi. 7: 1 Chron. xxviii. '.' :
n. vi. 30: Psalm rii. 9: cxxxix. 1,2: Jer. ivii. '.'. 1<>-. St. Matthew
(with which compare St. Mark ii. B 1 1 xiL -■'■ : Bt. Luke ri. 8: St. John ^ i. 6 1
i. 2A : Rev. ii. 23.

T II E I'll A V K K.

Al.MICIITY GOD, Unto mIhhii all hearts lie open, all de-ire- known, and

from whom no Becrets are hid : cleanse the thoughts of our bear
the inspiration of Thy Holy Spirit, that we may perfectly 1

ami worthily magnify Thy holy Name ; through CHRIST OUT LORD.
Amen.

C1IA PTE R 111.

f .'.' 14 Of F.

16 TA g\ • i towards the World. L8 Cond r un-

■ rning Chi

1, ~2 There was a man of the Pharisees, named Nicodemus, a Ruler

of the Jews. The same came I J by night.

The name thus introduced to our notice, is one of those which are peculiar I
Gospel of St. John. Nicodemus was a member of the High Court of Sanhedrin ;
ami, like St. Paul, belonged to "the most Btraitest Becf J of "the Jews' religion,
Tie- Evangelist elsewhere relates that, at a subsequent period, manv ether members
of the same Court believed in our Lord; "hut because of the Pharisees they did
net confess Mini," lest they should he put out of the Bynagogue.(o) Such a timid
belie\ it. as yet. seems to have been Nicodemus.

utiful i- the progressive history of his Faith, as it is revealed in the
1 tin's narrative : for he who new ooi to Jxsus under cover of the
I' lubtless in order to escape notice,) i the same who, subsequently, is

found openly pleading with the other Rulers in em- Lokd's behalf. "N demus
saith unto them, (/><■ that < is by nigh ireful to remind

them, Doth our Law judge any man • him, and

Whereupon the Pharisees are found to "chide with
IcmiiH far takin I 1 Waxing bolder in the end, when Joseph of

ithor member of the - I n.i had begged tin' '
" there came also Nicodemus, (which at Ji Jxsus by night,) and brought

a mixture of myrrh and aloes, alien; an hundred pound wei I the} two

i Him. Thus, he who was at first only a timid I'i i ripened into ■

bold Confe >r; and the same who at first believed onh in the end i

forward openly t the Burial of the Lord ol I

(u i Comp ! .".I.

It J John vij. 61.

John > ii.

III.]

on st. John's gospel. 647

Nicodemus, then, came privately to our Lord, — (being at Jerusalem, on the occa-
sion of the first Passover ; as was related in the former chapter:) (e) —

and said unto Him, Rabbi, we know that Thou art a Teacher come
from God : for no man can do these miracles that Thou doest, except
God be with him.

Observe how this man reasoned. He had beheld the miracles of Christ, — that
unrecorded cluster of miracles (as it would seem,) which is alluded to in the 23rd
verse of the former chapter ;(_/') (and concerning which it is expressly stated, that
"many believed in His Name when they saw the miracles which He did;" and
thence he had inferred, at once, the Divine Mission of Him by whose hands those
works were wrought. He reasoned rightly. "I have greater Witness than that of
John," said our Saviour: "for the Works which the Father hath given me to
finish, the same works that I do, bear loitness of Me, that the Father hath sent

Me."(</)

Overcome, therefore, by the force of the evidence thus presented to him, Nicode-
mus comes to Jesus by night ; clearly, with a view to learning more of the myste-
ries of His Religion. But it is discovered that this learned Doctor has not discerned
the Messiah, — the promised Redeemer of Israel, — in the meek and lowly Jesus ;
(which he might have discerned, as our Lord's words show ; which so many others
did discern, as the Gospel-narrative declares:) but only a mighty Prophet of the
Lord ; one come " forth from God as a Teacher." This seems clear from the lan-
guage he employed, in addressing our Saviour. Yet was it an evidence of great
candor and goodness on his part, that he should have thus speedily broken through
the bondage of the system in which he had been brought up, and of which he was
himself an eminent professor. " He that doeth Truth, cometh to the light," — as we
shall presently hear our Saviour Himself declare ;(h) and this is what Nicodemus
now did. He came to the Light, in order to have the darkness of his soul dispelled.

Our Lord, in reply, says nothing expressly to magnify Himself: but proceeds
gently to correct the low views of His Disciple. Availing Himself of the readiness
implied by Nicodemus to receive instruction from His lips, "He begins, in the Dis-
course which follows, to impart some great and fundamental truths concerning that
' Kingdom of God' which Nicodemus, in common with the rest of his countrymen,
was expecting to see established by the Messiah : thus leading him to entertain
juster notions of its nature and end."

3 Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee,
Except a man be born again, he cannot see the Kingdom of God.

As if He had said, — " Thou art not yet born again ; that is, by a spiritual beget-
ting : and therefore thy knowledge of Me is not spiritual, but carnal and human.
But I say unto thee, that neither thou, nor any one, except he be born again of God,
shall be able to see the glory which is around Me ; but shall be out of the Kingdom :
for it is the begetting of Baptism which enlightens the mind."

Such seems to have been the force and bearing of the words, as they were ad-
dressed to the heart of Nicodemus, personally. As containing a great disclosure of
Divine Doctrine, what do they convey but man's need of Spiritual Regeneration, or
New-Birth, in order to the eternal safety of his soul? Our Lord proceeds, in verse
5, to explain His words; .and it is found that He speaks of Holy Baptism, — "as
generally necessary to Salvation." In the meantime, the answer of Nicodemus
proves that he had as yet no conception of our Lord's meaning.

4 Nicodemus saith unto Him, How can a man be born when he is
old ? can he enter the second time into his Mother's womb, and be
born ?

He soars not above the carnal sense of words which cannot be understood car-
nally ; and speaks like a child. "Observe," (says one of the Fathers,) "when a
man trusts spiritual things to reasonings of his own, how ridiculously he talks !" —

(e) St. John ii. 13 and 23. (/) See also St. John iv. 45; and the note on St. John ii. 23.
(g) St. John v. 36; where see the note. Consider also the following places: St. Luke vii. 20
to 22 ; St. John x. 25, 38 : xiv. 11 : xv. 21.
(h) See below, verses 20, 21.

648 A PLAIB OOMMENTAKY [riJAP.

'• 15ut • 1< • thou bo understand the birth of the Spiri r, as Nicodemus did the birth of
the flesh ;" (remarks another :) "for as the entrance into the womb cannot 1
neither can Baptism." — <»ur Loss proceeds to reveal more deai
manner of our spiritual birth :

5 Jesi s answered, Verily, verily, T .-ay unto thee, Except a man be
born of Water ami of the Spibjt, lie eannot enter into the Kingdom of
God.

As it' Be Baid, — " Thou anderstandeei Me to speak of a <-:iri.:i] birth ; but ■ man
must be born of Water and of the Sen: it. if he is to enter into the Kingdom oi God.
If. to obtain the temporal inheritance of hi- bnman Father, a man most be born of
the W mull of bis Mother; to obtain the eternal inheritance of his Heavenly Path] n,
hemust be born of the womb of the < Iburch. And since man < f two parts,

Body and Soul, the mode even of this latter birth is two fold: Water in the risible
part, cleansing the body; the Spirit, by His invisil le co-operation, changing the
invisible soul. — Consider the truly Catholic statements on this subjeet contained
in cur Church Catechism. It -will be remembered that the church of England, in
her Baptismal Service, expressly grounds the necessity of Baptism on the present
declaration of our Lord.

•■ Except a man he born ef "Water and ef \}\r Spirit, he cannot enter in!

in of God." Famous words! which it ha- been the endeavor of misguided
men, in every age ef the Church, to Bet aside or explain away. Opposing them-
selves t" Externals in Religion, generally, and to the two Sacraments of the Church,
in particular, -cctarian- bare Bought to fa-ten a Btrai i d these plain words

nf Christ; contending eagerly, ind 1, for the bestowal of GOD'S gift (the Spi-

while they bave striven to make it appear that the duty required on
aide, (the Water, | can he a matter of no real importance. Hut. — ■• 1 bold it for a
most infallible rule in expositions of Bacred Scripture." (says our wise Hooker,)
"that where a literal construction will stand, the farthest from the lett<
monly the worst." And he adds, that. — "Of all the ami,
named, that ever did otherwise expound or allege this place than a- implying
tenia! Baptism." The result of the most searching inquiry has hut Berved t"
li-h the truth of this remarkable statement.

\ ;. abundantly also i- it proved by the whole tenor of Scripture, that a- the

Sl'I l:l I is / W ;., our

I 'ration. Thus, we are taught, that with water (ion doth cleanse and purifjr

Hie Church.(i) Baptism is termed by the Apostles, the bath, or larer,

ration. (/,) And when the multitude, "pricked in their heart," inqnired of I

and the re-t of the Apostles, "Men and Brethren, what -hall

sai'1 unto them, Repent, and bt baptized every one of you in the name of J

Christ for the Remission of Sins, and ye .-hall receive the gift of the Holi

Ghos r.*'(0

There have been those, however, who looking only at our Election in

Christ, have been thereby led to undervalue the ordinary and immediate mea
L Lei such persons be reminded that Predestination does not conduct us to

Life without the grace of external calling ; in which our Baptism is, oi

Othi "fixing their minds wholly on the known necessity of Faith, im-

bing but Faith is ni r the attainment of all gra . JTel

Mini .., quote Hooker's words,) "If Cnai H If winch giveth

Salvation do require Baptism, it us that look for Salvation to sound and

llim whether unbaptized we may be saved; but seriously to do that which

.. ami religiously to fear the danger irhicl ■ the want

then

11 weighty declaration that except a person be bapti mnoi

G I many from cordially accepting

His words, according to their strict literal construction : thinking themselves bound,

reject an interpretation which would press bo beavilj on those who

cannot obtain Baptism. The Lav ofCHRisr, however, which maketh Baptism ne-

ys the same Hooker,) trued and undo ording

(ij 1 (*) Titui iii. ...

III.]

ON ST. JOHN'S GOSPEL. 649

to rules of natural equity." Thus "it is on all parts gladly confessed that there
may be, in divers cases, Life by virtue of inward, Baptism, even where outward is
not found." One such case, the Church hath ever held to he that of unbaptized
Martyrs ; whose Baptism is one of Blood. Another such case is supplied by per-
sons as virtuous as they, who longed indeed for Baptism, but could not obtain it,
and finally died without it. Desire of Baptism, in both these cases, has been held
to supply the place of Baptism itself.

It remains only to notice the case of infants dying unbaptized ; concerning whom,
Charity and Reason alike compel us to entertain a favourable hope. " We are
plainly taught of God, that the seed of faithful parentage is holy from the very
birth :"{m) that is, the offspring of Christian parents "bring into the world a pre-
sent interest and right to those means wherewith Christ hath ordained that His
Church shall be sanctified." It is not to be thought, therefore, that He who, as it
were from Heaven, hath marked them out for Holiness by the privilege of their very
birth, " will Himself deprive them of Regeneration and inward Grace, only because
Necessity depriveth them of outward Sacraments." In such case, it is to be thought
that the secret desire and purpose which others have in their behalf, will be imputed
to them; and accepted as such by God, all-merciful to as many as are not in them-
selves able to desire Baptism .... Consider, in connection with this subject, the
case of the Paralytic borne of four, — and that of the Impotent man at the pool of
Bethesda ; which will be found respectively discussed in the notes on St. Mark ii.
3, and St. John v. 7.

But it is time that we notice how the Discourse proceeded. Nicoderuus is wholly
unable to comprehend the meaning'of the Divine Speaker: our Lord therefore helps
him by suggesting the analogy of our carnal birth :

6 That which is horn of the flesh is flesh : and that which is horn of
the Spirit is spirit.

That is to say, The Nature which a man derives from his Parents, by virtue of
his natural Birth, is corrupt, fleshly, and human : that which he derives from God,
by virtue of his New Birth, is incorrupt, spiritual, and divine.

7 Marvel not that I said unto thee, Ye must be born again.

Words which reveal that Christ spake with one who was lost in wonder at the
Discourse he heard.

The expression should be compared with St. John v. 28, 29, where the note may
also be read. The appeal is made in both cases to something sensible, in order to
assist the understanding. Here, the Author of Creation, having already dwelt on
the wonder of our natural Birth, notices the mysterious rushing of the Wind : —

8 The Wind bloweth where it listeth, and thou nearest the sound
thereof, but canst not tell whence it cometh, and whither it goeth : so
is every one that is born of the Spirit.

That is, — Something similar is observed to take place in the case of every re-
generate person. It becomes manifest to all that he is acting in obedience to a new
principle ; but the Law of the Spirit's operation, — whence it comes, or whither it
goes, — how, or why, or for what length of time it will continue to affect a man, —
there is none that knoweth.

The illustration may not, of course, be unduly pressed : but the Wind, — which
is unseen, yet may be both heard and felt : which obeys a Law indeed, yet depends
for its motions entirely upon the Counsels of God's Will ; — the mysterious operation
of the Wind supplies our Lord with an image, the fitness of which to express spir-
itual influence, all can feel. In some languages, (in Greek for example,) one word
stands for both Wind and Spirit. Consider also how the descent of the Holt
Ghost, on the Day of Pentecost, was manifested by a sound from Heaven as of "a
rushing mighty Wind.'\n) . . . Nicodemus, for all reply, confesses his utter per-
plexity: —

9 Nicodemus answered and said unto Him, How can these things be ?

(m) Hooker ; referring to 1 Cor. vii. 14. (») Acts ii. 2.

G50 A PLAIN OOMMBNTABI [OHAF.

B • hia \' -:-v perplexity takes the shape of a carious doubt He chums to under-
aland what He is required to believe; and still asks a carnal question : "Mow can
these things be?" — as before he asked ".fibwcana man be born again?"

In Je8i b answered and said unto him, Art thou u master of [srael,
and knowest not these things '.'

Rather, — "Art thou erafl a " Such high and sounding titles

frequently bestowed on the Jewish I' St. Paul seems to bint at several of

those titles in the second ahapter of his epistle to the Romans: "Behold thou art
called a Jew,'* (he says,) . . . . "and art confident that thou thyself art ' A Guide
of the blind,' 'A Light of them which are in Darkness,' 'An instructor of the
foolish,' 'A Teacher of Babes.'"(o) On the supposition that Nicodemi
the lofty title of " The Teacher of Israel," " nothing is inure probable," i remarks a
learned Indian Bishop,) "than that our Savioub Bnould have taken occasion to re-
prove the folly of those who had conferred the appellation, and the vanity of him

who had accepted it; and do occasion could have l a more opportune than the

present when Nicodemus betrayed his ignorant a very important subject. < >ur

Savioi b's readiness to condemn the practice here referred to, may be proved from
St. .Matthew xxiii. 7."

•• V. one," (observes the great Father of the African Church,) "is born of the

Spirit except he is made humble ; for this 1 ery humility it is which make- as to be

horn of the Spirit. Nicodemus, however, was inflated with hi- eminence as a Mas-

■ '1 thought himself of importance, because he was a Doctor of the Jews. Our

1 casts dov n his pride in order that he may be ' born of the Spirit.' "

•• Art thou then 77' of brad" (the words may perhaps be paraphrac

"and remembere8t thou not, that, in the days of Noah, both he and all hi- House,

were saved by water ? the like figure w hereunto is the Baptism of which I Bpeak?(p)

ist thou not that all thy Fathers were baptized unto Moses in the Cloud and

in the Sea ?(g) or hast thou not read of Naaman, the Syrian, who washed in the

Jordan, and was delivered from hi* leprosy, (the well-known ty] f Bin,) bo that

' his flesh came again like unto the flesh of a little child, and he was clean?' "( , ,

Once more does our Lord c lescend t<> hi* infirmity; making use of a common

argument to render what He has Baid credible: —

11 Verily, verily, I Bay onto thee, We Bpeak that we '1" know, and
testify that We have seen ; and ye receive aot our Witn< ss.

"Sight," (says an Eastern Bishop,) "we consider the most certain of all our
Benses;(«) bo that when we say we sav< Buch a thing with our eyes, we seem to
compel men to believe us. Christ, in like manner, speaking after the uss
men, does oot indeed mean that He has Been with the bodtlyeje the mysi
which lie reveals:" (for He Bpeakc as God, and 'God is a Spirit ;') "hut it is clear
that He intends to describe Himself as possessing the most c< rtain absolute know-
ledge." The Reader is here requested to verify the following references, — St John
1,28,38, l": xv. 15; and to read the whole of the note on St John v. 20.
He will also observe the striking parallel between the present place and ver

'down; where the uote may be consulted. The Baptist is there beard de-
claring the Belf-same things concerning Christ, as Christ here declares concerning
Himself.

It i- ve,) and you: n<>t thou and i S hIbo in the next verse, our

Sn ioi r addresses not Nicodemus, but the Jewish nation at large, in the pen

this their and prophesies that they will reject [lis testimony. JTet

lie " the faithful and true witni He had the testimony, not

. but of ' find plainly asserted in St John \m. 16 to l v : and th«t

i- perhaps the reason why the aame B Speaker here uses the plural Dumber:

," ami "our w itness."(u)

L2 If I have told you earthly things, and ; ?e not, how shall

ye belii '•'■- it" 1 tell you of heavenly things?

I: .:- ii. IT. 19, 20. I. 20, -I.

,. 1 1. -•. John i. i • ReveL i. •'-: iii. 11.

III.]

ON ST. JOHN'S GOSPEL. 651

" Earthly things," — because it is here on earth that the mysteries spoken of are
transacted.

"Heavenly things," — seems to he said with reference to the higher mysteries of
of the Kingdom : eternal Truths which, to the very last, as it may he humbly
thought, remained unuttered ; for, on the eve of His Crucifixion, our Lord could
say, " I have yet many things to say unto you ; but ye cannot bear them now."(x)
Observe, however, that in the case of the " earthly" and of the " heavenly things,"
alike, the appeal is made not to Reason, but to Faith; whence our Lord does not
say " understand not," but " believe not."

13 And no man hath ascended up to Heaven, but He that came
down from Heaven, even the Son of Man which is in Heaven.

A little attention will suffice to establish the connection of these words with what
goes before. Our Lord is here conveying the assurance that from Himself alone
could the knowledge of " heavenly things" be obtained ; inasmuch as Ho alone had
" ascended up to Heaven." His witness was worthy of all acceptation ; and His
only : because He spoke and testified of what He had known and seen ; and, be-
side Himself, no man had ascended up to Heaven, to see those " heavenly things,"
and to know them. "What He hath seen and heard," (says the Baptist in verse
32,) "that He testifieth." — We have yet to set forth the meaning of this difficult
place in Scripture.

The first part seems to be explained by our Lord's declaration, — " I came forth
from the Father, and am come into the world ;"{y) for then it was that the Eternal
Sox " came down from Heaven ;" namely, when " He took Man's nature in the
womb of the Blessed Virgin, of her substance."(z) The " Son of Man," beforeHe
was conceived in the Virgin's womb, was not in Heaven ; but, after His conception,
by virtue of the union of the Divine Substance, He was in Heaven : (as He said,
"the Son of Man which is in Heaven;" naming Himself "wholly from His huma-
nity, as elsewhere He names Himself wholly from His divinity.") For, from the
hour of His Incarnation, " two whole and perfect natures, that is to say, the God-
head and Manhood, were joined together in One Person, never to be divided, whereof
is One Ciirist." Speaking after the manner of men, therefore, our Saviour dis-
coursed of Himself to Nicodemus, as having ascended into Heaven ; because, what-
soever is first on Earth, and then in Heaven, must be said to have ascended into
Heaven.

" Although He was made the Son of Man upon earth," writes an ancient father,
"yet His Divinity, — with which, remaining in Heaven, He descended to earth, —
He hath declared not to disagree with the title of Son of Man ; as He hath thought
His Flesh worthy the name of Son of God. For through the unity of Person, by
which both substances are One Christ, He walked upon earth, being Sox of God ;
and remained in Heaven, being Son of Man." — There is, in fact, an interchange of
notions, when we apply the names GOD and Man to our Saviour Christ ; so that
for truth of speech, it matters not " whether we say that the Son of God hath cre-
ated the world, and the Son of Man by His death hath saved it, — or else that the
Son of Man did create, and the Sox of God did die to save the world. Howbeit, as
oft as we attribute to God what the Manhood of Christ claimeth, or to Man what
His Deity hath a right unto, we understand by the name of God and the name of
Man neither the one nor the other nature, but the whole person of CHRIST, in
whom both natures are. When the Apostle saith of the Jews, that they crucified
the Lord of Glory,(a) and when the Son of Man being on earth affirmeth that the
Son of Man was in Heaven at the same instant,(6) there is in these two speeches
that mutual circulation before mentioned. In the one, there is attributed to God,
or the Lord of Glory, Death, — whereof Divine Nature is not capable ; and in the
other, ubiquity to man, which Human Nature admitteth not. Therefore, by " the
Lord of Glory," we must needs understand the whole person of CHRIST, who being
Lord of Glory, was indeed crucified, but not in that nature for which He is termed
the Lord of Glory. "In like manner," (says Hooker, with reference to the present
place,) " the ivhole person of CHRIST must necessarily be meant ; who being Man
upon Earth, filleth Heaven with His glorious presence, but not according to that
nature for which the title of Man is given Ilini."

(x) St. John xvi. 12. (y) St. John xvi. 28. (z) Article II.

(o) 1 Cor. ii. 8. (6) St. John iii. 13.

652 A PLAIN 0OMMBNTAB1 [CHAP.

One of ( the matter as follow then, I!

(li'irn fi . li li me the Son of Man: ami He was in II aven,

'■ W( id, which was ' made flesh,' bad not oeased to he thi Woao."

•■ Having made mention to Nicodemus, of the gift of Baptism," (remarks a third
writer,) " He proceeds to the source of it, namely, \ < "thus unei

edly introducing this Teacher of the Mo I. I piritual sense of thai

e from the < "M Testament .. bich \\a> intendi .1 to be a figure of

ission, and of Man'- Salvation:" —

1 I Aii 1 as Moses Lifted ap the serpent in the Wilderni

— "and it came to pass that if a serpent bad bitten any man, when be beheld
rpent of brass he lived :"(') —

15 even bo must the Son of Man be lifted up: that whosoever believ-
eth in Jlim should not perish, but have eternal life.

For when the fiery serpents bit the Israelites, and " much ] pie died," M

by the command of Goo, " made a Berpent of brass, and put it upon a pole." "*»\ itli

whai result t.> those who beheld it. has l n already Btated.(d) This, then,

manifest type not only of the manm r, but also of the />■ nefii oi Chbist's deal
Christ Himself here declares to Nicodemus. Moreover, the Faith of "those who
truly turn to Him," was aptly Bhown in the condition required of as many as were
bitten of Berpents, and bad thus come nnder " the power of the Enemy.'

To be " lifted up" was the common phrase by which < 'rucifixion was i ->.\ >r
Our Loan employed it on two subsequent occasions. " When

Man.'' (He Baid to the Jews,; "then Bhall ye know thai I am !!<•.'('

again, at the very clo f His ministry, only a day or two before Hi

"And I. it' I be lifted up from the Earth, will draw all men unto Mr." "This He
Baid," declares the Evang // should die."(g) Ami,

indeed, it is evident that the people understood the words in that • m the

reply they immediately made: " We have heard out of the Law that Cnaisi abid-
etn forever; ami how sayest Thou, The Son of Man must be lifted upf"

" Observe," says an Eastern lli—l»« ■{ >. ••He alludes to ; 1' n obscurely, in
consideration to His hearer: but the fro its of the Passion be unfolds plainly," —
namely, "whosoever believeth in Him, Bhall have Eternal Life."

r, therefore, what c imfortable words our S i Christ saith unto all that

truly turn /-/ Jinn —

It; For God so loved the World, that He :_ r a\v His Only-begotten
that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have ever-
lasting life.

here declared that the Only-begotten Son was given to death. A- I

that which belongs to < I <>i • was attributed to Man : BO now. what Man,

signed to Goo. Thus largely has the great mystery of Man's Redemption been
already opened to Nicodemus I Our Loan moreover hen 1 enlightens him at

■ truth, unsuspected by Nicodemus and by the Jewish nation at large; namely,

- ...ill- li..! Of that nation only, hut of tin' whole world.

World that He| ive His Only-begotten Sosr." "And H<
propitiation for our sine; ami not for ours only, but a!- whole

i! rld."(h)

mm. m i.th III- love towards ua," saith Si. Paul, " in that, while to

lied lor U8:"(») in thai. " !!>• .... Spared not II.

ut delivered Him up lor us all.* \k) " In thi-." saith St *•* nmm-

>f God towards us, because that God sent His Onl; S n

into the World, that we might live through Him. Herein ' thai wo loved

God, but that I] His S k to be the propitiation for our sins. (/)

Thi ut promised only Length '■'" the Gospel prt

[lasting l.

(.) Nim.l. Numbers xxl. 61

III.]

ON ST. JOHN'S GOSPEL. 653

17 For God sent not His Son into the World to condemn the World;
but that the World through Him might be saved.

For God desireth not the death of a sinner, hut rather that he should turn from
his -wickedness, and live.(w) He is called the Saviour of the World, for He wills
the Salvation of all men. If men perish, it is because they oppose their wills to His.

18 He that believeth on Him is not condemned :

On the contrary, — he "hath everlasting Life, and shall not come into condemna-
tion ; but is passed from Death unto Life." So it is written in St. John v. 24, —
where see the note.

but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not
believed in the Name of the Only-Begotten Son of God.

He is "condemned," because (as St. John Baptist declares in verse 3G,) "he that
believeth not the Sox shall not see Life ; but the wrath of God abideth on him."
And he is "condemned already ;" for although Judgment hath not appeared, yet is
it already given. The Lord knoweth who are His : ivlio are awaiting the crown,
and who the fire.

19 And this is the condemnation, that Light is come into the World,
and men loved Darkness rather than Light, because their deeds were
evil.

"The condemnation" spoken of in the preceding verse consisted in this; that
when Christ the true Light came into the world, men rejected Him and His Doc-
trine : proving by their actions that they loved Darkness rather than Light, Evil
rather than Good; inasmuch as they made free choice of the one and rejected the
other.

The reason is added, — "Because their deeds were evil." And this statement
exactly falls in with what we are so often elsewhere assured of; namely, that the
discernment of Truth is a moral, not an intellectual act.

20, 21 For every one that doeth evil hateth the Light, neither cometh
to the Light, lest his deeds should be reproved. But he that doeth
Truth cometh to the Light, that his deeds may be made manifest, that
they are wrought in God.

In the language of the Spirit, "Truth" is another name for Righteousness :
hence, " Truth" is found directly opposed to " Unrighteousness" in Psalm li. 5, 6:
John vii. 18: Kom. ii. 8:(«) 1 Cor. xiii. 6. This is surely a most instructive cir-
cumstance ; for whereas Righteousness is a moral attribute, — we are apt to regard
Truth as a purely intellectual matter. And yet Holy Scripture reminds us of our
mistake in countless places ; as was remarked in the preceding note. See some ob-
servations on this subject in the note on St. John vii. 17. The frequent recurrence
of the words " True" and " Truth" in the present Gospel is very remarkable.

With marvellous frequency do we find our Lord discoursed of in Holy Scripture
under the image of Light. He loved to apply to Himself this Title ; and to dis-
course of Himself and of His Heavenly doctrine in terms derived from this, the
first-born of all His creatures, — "the beginning of the Creation of God."(o)

Every one who is resolved to sin, (He says,) who delights in sin, hateth the Light
which detects his sin.

And thus ended this memorable discourse of our Saviour. Is it not possible that
there was something personal, as it were, in its concluding sentences : or, at least,
that the season when it was spoken, — the time of Darkness,(p) — may have suggest-
ed the prevailing image with which it is brought to a close ?

22 After these things came Jesus and His Disciples into the land of
Judasa ;

(m) Ezekiel xxxiii. 11; xviii. 23, 31, 32.

(n) See also Romans i. 18; and consider Rev. xxi. 25; xxii. 15.

(o) Rev. iii. 14. {p) See above verse 2 : and the note there.

65 1 A PLATA COMMENTABI [< BAP.

ij, the bl I pany withdrew from the City of - 1

(whither our Lord had I een to keep the Pas80ver,(g) and where tin- preceding Dis-
course with Nicodemus had taken place;) and went to dwell Bomewhere on the
1 .:in k- of the Jordan. For, aa it follows, —

and there He tarried with them, and baptized.

thai Be baptized any Himself. Of this we are particularly assured in the
ning of the next chapter, — where it is said, "Though Jzsi - baptized not, but
J I i — Disciples."(r)

i'-! And John also was baptizing in iEnon near to Salim, because
there was much water there: and they came, and were baptized.

The Evangelist describes a locality in the north of the Holy I -and. — our Sat ioub
living at tlii.- time in the Bouth of it. and therefore at a distance of man;, miles from
the scene of the Baptist's ministration. All Samaria lay between Chbist and His
Forerunner. Salim is thought to have been the place called Shalim in 1 Samuel
ix. I. . la i' >n and Salim will have been in Galilee, a little to the south of Bethshan,
and west of the Jordan. In this neighborhood, on account of the abundant Bupply
of water, the Baptist had fixed himself:

24 Fur John -was not }-et cast into prison.

With this passing allusion, the beloved Disciple dismisses the imprisonment of
the Forerunner, concerning which the other Evangelists have discoursed to us bo
largely .(*) John Baptist was nol yel cast into the dungeon of Machaerus,— where,
end of two years, he was murdered,(0 — but hewason the very eu of that
c\cnt. The discourse, therefore, which begins at verse 27, and extends to the end
of the present chapter, — being the lengthiest of his recorded discourses,— may be
ded as the latest public witness which John was permitted t" bear to Mi ssi \n.

Then there arose a question between some of John's Disciples
and the Jews aboul purifying. And they came unto John, and said
unto him, Rabbi, He that was with thee beyond Jordan, to whom thou
i, behold, the Same baptizeth, and all men come to Him.

'I'h-;. refer to the transaction : in St. John i. L9 and 32 : which '

place at Bethabara, beyond Jordan, where John was baptisii

I clearly implied thai the "qu< Lion," • r rather the dispute, arose on the part of
the Disciples of John ; and ma j verj well have turned upon the efficacy of the Bap-
tisms re pectively administered by tli" Bapti t, and by our I. nun. They come to
their M ister, as if with the language of complainl ; revealing by their words how
wholly unconscious they are of tin' surpassing majesty "I Christ. " He who was
with thee ;" (and it seems to be implied, " who received Baptism at Th\ hands;")
inn' baptizeth." The expression "All men come to Him," i- the language
iples jealous for their Master's Honor and Reputation. Thereby is implied,
what in the first verse of tin 1 ensuing ohapteris expressly Btated, — namely, that
■••ii i made and baptized more Disciples than John.

The design of John's reply is to remo^ e the jealousy id' his ardent followers : ami
to conduct tlnni to thr knowledge of the Truth.

•J7 .liilm answered and .-aid, A man can receive nothing i zcepl it he
given him from 1 [eaven.

Which may either be the Baptist's vindication of our Savh
humble admission of bis own inferiority, and dependence on Goo. It i- perhaps
rather, a- if he had said, — 1 am a mere man, ami cannot assume any tWng more
than has been freely bestowed upon me from on High uiuenl by

whicb hi- ardent followers thought to have overthrown tin' Mxssi ml he i
turn against them i —

(,/) St. J.. In, ii. ■ Jobfl It. 2.

\,i See 8b M.iitli. siv. 8toia Bt Mark vi. 17 to '-".': Bt Luke iii.
(n S.-.' the aotei on Bl '

III.] ON ST. JOHN'S GOSPEL. 655

28 Ye yourselves bear me witness,. that I said, I am not the CHRist,
but that I am sent before Him.

Alluding to the saying recorded of him in St. John i. 20, 30, 31 : which doubtless
must have contained a special reference to Malachi's prophecy, — " I will send My
Messenger, and he shall prepare the way before Me.' l ''{u) Now, as many as are so
sent, are servants. The Baptist however proceeds to declare the relation in which
he stood to Christ by a different resemblance : as it follows :

29 He that hath the Bride is the Bridegroom :

Christ is that "Bridegroom;" and His Spouse or "Bride" is the Church. To
Him the Bride belongeth. — The language of the Spirit is very constant in this re-
spect. "Thy Maker is thine Husband: the Lord of Hosts is His Name," says the
Prophet Isaiah :(x) and again, "As the Bridegroom rejoiceth over the Bride, so shall
thy God rejoice over thee. "(.'/) Again, " I was an Husband unto them, saith the
Lord. "(2) This thought supplies the imagery of the xlv. Psalm, and of "the Song
of Songs, which is Solomon's." It furnishes St. Paul with illustration and argu-
ment when he discourses of the duties of the married state.(a) Lastly, the Mar-
riage of the Lamb, is told of in the Book of Revelation ; where the Holy City, New
Jerusalem, (that is, the Church of the Redeemed,) is seen coming down from God
out of Heaven, prepared as "a Bride adorned for her Husband :(&) whence it is
styled " the Bride, the Lamb's Wife."(c) — Christ, then, is the chief person; for it is
" He that hath the Bride :" —

but the friend of the Bridegroom, 'which standeth and heareth Him,
rejoiceth greatly because of the Bridegroom's voice : this my joy there-
fore is fulfilled.

As if he said, — That joy, therefore, has been mine; for I have heard the voice of
Christ. I, the friend of the Bridegroom, have heard the Bridegroom's voice — How
must the Disciples of John have thrilled with wonder and admiration when, a year
or two after, they heard our Saviour claim to Himself the very title which the
Forerunner here bestows upon Him ! See St. Mark ii. 19, and the notes thereon.

The expression "which standeth,'" (says an ancient ♦Father,) " is not without
meaning; but indicates that the part of John is now over, and that for the future
he must stand and listen." .... That the expression is not without meaning, either
here, or in chapter i. 35, (the place to which the Baptist's words seem to have re-
ference,) may well be suspected : but what its meaning precisely is, is doubtful. (d)

Certain however it is that in this place the Baptist, (calling himself " the friend
of the Bridegroom,") describes the joy which filled his heart when he first heard the
blessed sound of the Saviour's Voice. Very brief indeed appears to have been the
intercourse of Messiah and His Forerunner. One only sentence is our Saviour
known to have addressed to the Baptist, — or even to have uttered within his hear-
ing ! See St. Matthew iii. 15, and the last words of the note there.

But our Saviour was now about to begin His Ministry: John Baptist therefore
is ready to withdraw from the scene, — " as the Morning-Star is willingly drowned
in the brightness of the rising Sun." It follows, —

30 He must increase, but I must decrease.

My reputation must grow less and less ; my followers must fall away ; the very
Disciples whom I have baptized will have to be rebaptized by Ilim.(e) But His
Name must spread, and His Disciples increase : His Faith must extend into all
Lands, till all the World doth acknowledge Him, and Earth as well as Heaven be-
comes full of the majesty of His Glory Such is the scope of these words of the

Forerunner: " a prophet, yea, I say unto you, and more than a prophet l"(f)

31 He that cometh from above is above all : he that is of the earth
is earthly, and speaketh of the earth : He that cometh from Heaven is
above all.

(u) Malachi iii. 1. (x) Isaiah liv. 5. (y) Isaiah lxii. 5.

(z) Jerem. xxxi. 32. Compare iii. 14, 20. Also IIos. ii. 19, 20.

(a) Ephesians v. 23 to 32. Compare also 2 Cor. xi. 2. And see Rom. vii. 1 to 4.

(b) Rev. xxi. 2 : xix. 7. (c) Rev. xxi. 9. (d) Compare St. John vii. 37.
(e) Acts xix. 1 to 5. (/) St. Matthew xi. 9.

a ri.Aix C0MMBNTAB1 [OHAP.

all [things] ;'' which is only another way of ; the

ordin of God, — "the Most High :" a- 1 1 • - is called in Ants \ ii. 48, and aa

He i- described in Psalm xovii. 9. Bt John Baptist therefore in this pi
the Divinity of Christ. " He that oometb from aboi e," — be Baj s; or, aa om

13, ' " He that came down from Heaven," — is God. The fore-
runner i- contrasting himself, earthly in bis parentage, and earthly in all his
its, with Messiah, the Lord from Heaven, \\ bose way he came to pre] are . . , .
Still Bpeaking of Him, he continues, —

82 A.nd what He hath seen and heard^ that He testifieth; and no
man receiveth His testimony.

•• We Bpeak that we do know, and testify that We have seen ; and ye n ive not

Our Witness;" said our Lord in verse 1 1. where see the note. " As i or senses are
our surest channels of knowledge," obseri es an ancient writer, " and teachers are
most depended on who have apprehended by "sight" or " hearing" what they teach,
John adds this argument in favor ol Christ, that, "what He bath heard and
that He testifieth ;" meaning that every thing " which He said i- true." The parallel
between verses 31, 32, (the words of the Baptist,) and verses 11 and 13, (the w< rds
of Chris r,) is very remarkable.

The Disciples of John had Baid, — "All men come to Ilim/'O/j Their Master
hero replies, — " And 3 Bt no man receiveth Hi* testimony !"

33 He that hath received Hi.s testimony hath set to his seal that God
is true.

The 1 1 : 1 ] » t i - 1 declares that whosoever hath received Chi timony, hat

his Beal to God's Truth : just as " be that believeth not God" is elsewhere di
to have made Christ "a liar; because he believeth not the testimony that <h.,
of His S -.."(It i The words whieh follow are to be taken in close connection with
what precedes: —

84 For he whom l!"i> hath sent speaketh the words of God.

ipplies the reason of what For CHRIST, whom God hath

th the very words of GOD. How remarkable are these statements of
the B erning Christ, when compared with the similar statements made

1 irning Himself! I "1 have not spoken of Myself ; but

: 1:1.1: whieh Bent Me, He gave Me a Commandment, what 1 Bhonld sa;
■what 1 should speak . . . . \\ baU ■ I speak therefore, even as til . said

unto Me, so 1 Bj>eak."(t) '"I speak to the World those things which 1 have heard
of 1 1 ini."(/. ; — For the correct understanding of which sayings, and tin- many similar
mtained in the Gospel, the mysterious relation of the First and Second Per-
Bon in the Blessed Trinity, as set forth in the Creeds of the Church, is to be faith-
fully borne in mind. Some remarks will be found on this Bubject in the 1
John \ . 20 ; to which the reader is referred.

for God giveth oot the Spirit by measure unto Him.

II giveth; "dividing to every man Beverallj as He will." ') On
the • utrarj : "in Him dwelleth all the fullness of the Goohead bodirj .

85 The Fatheb loveth tl ad hath given nil things into His

hand.

And bo our Lord declares of Himself; -a;, ing, " all things are dolii er< 1 unto Me
of M . 1 ... And the present Evangehst remarks concerning Him, tl

the 1 ir had 1 iven all thii 1 1

He speaks of the union of Deity with Manb 1. B ' the Father loveth

the Son 1 as mai . He hath, by uniting Deity with Manhood, 'given all things into

His hand-. \m things thai the Father hath are Mine," said our Savi-

m Him is the inline-- of the same Qoohead ; and more than that,

(*) 1 Bt John r. i". (•') 1 John

L 19.

(mi St. Mark zl -....:... B

{■/) St. John x^ 1. 1 ••

III.] ON ST. JOHN'S GOSPEL. 657

the Father cannot have. "But since the Father alone is originally that Deity
which Christ originally is not, (for Christ is God by being of God, Light by issuing
out of Light,) it followeth that whatsoever Christ hath common unto Him with
His Heavenly Father, the same of necessity must be given Him : yet naturally and
eternally given, not bestowed by way of benevolence and favour."(r)

Now, because the Father hath given all things into the hands of the Sox, He
hath given Eternal Life into His hands also : whence, it follows immediately, —

36 He that believeth on the Son hath everlasting Life : and he that
believeth not the Son shall not see Life ;

St. John says elsewhere, — " He that hath the Son hath Life ; and He that hath
not the Son of God hath not Life."(s) "He that believeth on Me" (said our Savi-
our) "hath everlasting Life ;"(t) "but he that believeth not, is condemned al-
ready."^) So faithfully did the Baptist (who was the Voice of the Word) deliver
his Testimony concerning Messiah !

The three concluding verses of the present chapter are illustrated in a remark-
able manner by St. John v. 19 to 24, where Christ is the Speaker. The train of
thought will be perceived to be similar in both places.

but the wrath of God abideth on him.

" See," (exclaims an ancient Bishop) " how He refers to the Father when He
speaks of punishment ! He says not ' the wrath of the Son,' though the Son is
Judge :(v) but He makes the Father the Judge in order to alarm men more."

It is not said that on such an one cometh the Wrath of God ; but on him the
Wrath of God (it is declared) abideth : " for all who are born, are under the Wrath
of God, which the first Adam incurred." We " were by nature the children of
wrath," as the Apostle speaks. (iv) In this place therefore, the very form of the ex-
pression bears witness to the doctrine of Original or Birth-Sin.

A pious living writer, at the end of his commentary on the present chapter, ex-
claims : — "Out of this Land of Darkness, and which lieth under the shadow of
Death, I stretch forth my hands unto Thee. Thou who dwellest in Light -which
no man may approach unto, who art without variableness or shadow of turning,
from whom alone cometh every good and perfect gift, — grant unto me that Wisdom
which cometh from above, and which Thou hast promised to give unto those who
ask it of Thee. Grant me to understand Thy Words, which are from Heaven ; and
to loose my hold of earthly things ; and to follow Thee ! Do Thou forget those
things that are past ; blot them out of Thy Book, and wash them out of my
heart, that I may be able to see Thee who art the true Light : to see Thee and to
love Thee, in such sort that I may see and love nothing else, except what I behold
and love in Thee I"

THE PRAYER.

Almighty God, whom truly to know is everlasting life ; grant us
perfectly to know Thy Son Jesus Christ to be the Way, the Truth,
and the Life ; that, following the steps of Thy holy Apostles, Saint
Philip and Saint James, we may steadfastly walk in the way that
leadeth to eternal Life ; through the same Thy Son Jesus Christ our
Lord. Amen.

(r) The quotation is again from Hooker. («) 1 St John v. 12.

(0 St John vi. 47. («) St John iii. 18. (t) St John v. 22 and 27. (w) Ephes. ii. 3.

658 A PLAIN CnMMKNl [CHAP.

CHAPTER IV.

1 Christ taHkeih with a Woman of Samaria, and ■ H 2J

// Disciple* marvel. 31 Hi deelareth to Hum H G

v Smii'iri/iiiis l»/i><; on Him. 43 1L departeth into Galilee, and heaUth the
Ruler'e eon that lay tick at Capernaum.

The former chapter ended with the record of the la>t public witness which the
Forerunner was permitted to bear to his Lobd, — the longest of his recorded
discourses. The Baptist bad Bince been cast into prison, and the Ministry "f
Ohrist was now about to begin. It bad begun, in a manner, half :i year i
namely, immediately after lli> Baptism: but the Imprisonment of John is clearly
noticed as tin 1 event from which oar Swim r's public Ministry dated its mor<
cial commencement. A journey info Galilee was then undertaken, — which all the
four li\ angelists concur in recording (a) — and the immediate occasion of a bicb, the
Evangelist St. John subjoins. The present chapter contains a relation of th
incident whieb rendered that journey for ever memorable.

It might well have been Buepected beforehand that the eventsof a journey under-
taken at Bucfa a time must have been replete with interest and wonder : but nothing

luisitc as the fulfillment of hiBtory, (so to speak,) which St. John h<
eouldhave been imagined by unassisted reason. For we shall discover that out
Ki i.i i mi b at the close of Hi^ first daj 's travel, arrived at that »ery Bpol of -_r r . ■ » 1 1 n I

Abraham bad made hi> lii-t resting-place <'ii entering the Land of Caj
Our Saviovi Christ, as faithful Abraham had done before aim, " passed thr< ugh
the land mi/" th - I lo, as Abraham bad there been b

with the vision of Jehovah, and th>- promise — " Unto tti>i teed will 1 ^ r i\<' this
land ;" so did Messiah, having taken M on Him th lbraham,"y(e) at

and at this verj spot, enter on His promised spiritual inheritance! The people of
Sichem, (here written " Sychar,") were the first to enter the Heavenly Canaan.
They became the first-fruits of the spiritual Harvest of the Land. And thus muoh
for the present incident, as it was a fulfillmenl of ancient Prophecy.

Standing in th<- very fore-front of the Sacred Narrative, it Beams to have 1 d

further designed to inform u> that the Samaritans were included, — included, as the
r heathen nations Were not,— in the circle to which the I lospel message in the

tir-t instai iztended ; while yet their preparation and previous character wi

sentially different from that which belonged to the legitimate familj of Abraham.) </)

It becomes necessary novi to enter on the particular consideration of the narra-
tive before us; but the train of thought thus opened will be found pursued lower
down, in the notes on ver. 42.

2, 8 Wiii.n therefore the Lord knew how the Pharisees had heard
thai Ji bi - made and baptised more disciples than John, (though •'
Himself baptised not,) but His diseiplee, He leftJudea, and departed
into Galilee.

I iir-i of the f"iir Passovers which mark the duration of our !'• II

now post.(e) Our Satioub had not returned aton
but bad 1 withdrawn with bis Disoiplea from Jerusalem to the hank- of the Jordan,
ll made a brief sojourn and baptised^/) and wl vt noa residing.

Prom a comparison of the Gospels, it is found that John Baptist, who in the la-t
ohapter, " was i t into prisan,"( \i this juncture,

our 8avioci withdraws from Judea,and returns into Galilee ;(a) and it i- here

Hatta. Iv. \- it: Si. i. nk<- i%. 14: Bt Joan li

;i. b. aUtta. i. i. i' W ii. Mm.

(t) St. John n.2.1. (/) S.t St. John iii. I - J :.u in. -I.

(A) I M arc gircn LB the nbuvc note (<i.)

IV.]

ON ST. JOHN'S GOSPEL. 659

hinted that the immediate cause of ITis withdrawal was the jealousy of the Phari-
sees, — occasioned by the number of Disciples which He made.

But why did a message, conveyed to the Pharisees at Jerusalem, to the effect that
"Jesus is making and baptizing more Disciples than John.(i') lead to the Saviour's
withdrawal from Judea into Galilee ? Were the Pharisees inclined to become John's
Disciples? or were they even jealous for the Baptist's honor? Not so. But from
chapter i. verses 19 and 24, it is found that they had long since satisfied themselves
that John was not " the Christ." Fully alive to the general expectation which
then prevailed, of Messiah's near Advent; and aroused by the tidings of one who
"was baptizing," and making many disciples, " in Bethabara beyond Jordan;"
they had sent a deputation from Jerusalem, formally to inquire whether John were
the Christ or not ; and to ascertain his exact pretensions. (A) " When therefore the
Lord knew that the Pharisees had heard" that He was drawing to Himself more
Disciples even than John, — that "all men," in short, were "coming to Him," and
that He was baptizing them,(^) — (which last circumstance, however, was not strictly
true, as the Evangelist is careful to note,) — it became a measure of prudence to
withdraw from their observation into the remoter region of Galilee : whereby our
Great Pattern is found to have submitted Himself to the precept which He delivered
to His Apostles, concerning flight from persecution. (w)

It is obvious to remark in passing that a hint is here supplied to the probable
reason why our Saviour so frequently imposed silence on the objects of His mercy,
— forbidding them to make Him known. (h) Especially does that command of His,
delivered both to Apostles(o) and Evil Spirits, that they should not tell " that He
was the Christ,"^?) derive illustration from our Lord's conduct at this juncture.
To attract towards Him the notice of the chief professors of Religion among the
Jews, would probably have been the most effectual way of defeating the gracious
purpose of His Ministry. He knew when, and how, and to whom, to reveal Him-
self.^) Other men, not so.

4 And He must needs go through Samaria.

Because that country occupies the centre of the Holy Land, separating Judeea
Galilee.

5 Then cometh He to a city of Samaria, which is called Sychar,
near to the parcel of ground that Jacob gave to his son Joseph.

Alluding to the act of the dying Patriarch, recorded in Genesis xlviii. 22. Sychar
is the city called (by anticipation) " Sichem,"(r) and " Shechem" in the Old Tes-
tament;^-) after "Shechem the son of Hamor the Hivite."(<) In the Acts,(?/) the
name is written " Sychem." " The parcel of ground" here spoken of, is twice men-
tioned in Genesis: first, as the spot where the patriarch Jacob spread his tent, and
erected an altar to the Lord.(z) Here also it was, that " the bones of Joseph, which
the children of Israel brought up out of Egypt," were buried ; " and it became the
inheritance of the children of Joseph." (y) Indeed, it would seem from St. Stephen's
Apology, as if all the patriarchs had been buried in this place. (z) The spot is
clearly distinguishable at the present day, — "a field which the Lord hath
blessed. "(a) In the words of a recent traveller,(6) — " It is a most lovely spot : just
such a choice piece of ground as a Father would give to a favorite Son. It is level
and very fertile, like a garden ; just at the entrance of a pleasant valley between
hills. I have no doubt that the very ancient tomb which stands upon it, is rightly
called Joseph's."

But why is it specially recorded that the incident which follows took place " near
to the parcel of ground that Jacob gave to his son Joseph?" Chiefly, it may be

(i) Such is the exact translation of ver. 1. (h) See St. John i. 19 to 28.

(Z) Verses 1 and 2 should be compared with verses 22 and 26 of the former chapter.

(m) St. Matth. x. 23, — where see the note.

(n) See the note on St. Mark i. 44 ; also the last note on St. Mark i.

(o) St. Matth. xvi. 20. (p) St. Mark i. 34 and iii. 12 ; St. Luke iv. 41.

(q) Consider St. John iv. 25, 26 : ix. 35 to 37, &e. &c. (r) Gen. xii. 6.

(«) See Genesis xxxiii. 18. Joshua xxiv. 32. (*) See Gen. xxxiv.

(u) Acts vii. 16. (.r) Genesis xxxiii. 18 to 20 : see also xlviii. 22.

(y) Joshua xxiv. 32. (z) Acts vii. 15, 10. (a) Gen. xxvii. 27.

(6) C. L. Higgins, Esq., of Turvey Abbey.

A i-i.Al.v OOMOWTABT [<HAP.

ht, in order to lead us to connect that solemn bequest of the Patriarch
Son. with the present incident, — Bomewhat in 1 1 1 • - manner which will be found
pointed out below, in the note on ver. 4'2. "To kbit spot of ground our Loan
that the Sam iritaus, who claimed t" be inheritors of tin- Patriarch Jacob.(e)
'li:n : and In- converted to Christ, tin- Patriarch's legal heir."

5 -liar, lay between the mountains <leri/.im and Khal : a:

" the champaign over against GUgal, beside tin- plain- of Moreh,'
ia Qon found to have directed thi i II end of

their wandering in the Wilderness. They were commanded, when they should
into the Holy Land, to repair hither and put the blessing u] Geri-

zini, and the curse upon Mount Bbal :(./') — building on the latter mountain an
and stationing six of the tribes on Mount Gerixim to i lix upon

EbaL fa i'ur-i'.i;/) The singular nation, known after the Captivity as '"tie- Sama-
ritans," an- found to have made Sheehem their chief plan- of residence •. which
lasted, as we Bee, down to the time Of OUT Loitn. Certain of them remain in the
sane- locality tn the present day.

Their origin has been already briefly noticed in the note on St. Mat!
the only authentic account wt incoming them, being derived from the

Bible, n) It seems probable that along with the Btrange nations which the Kin^
of Assyria transplanted into the cities of Samaria, must ! mixed m

the ancient inhabitants of the Land. Such a remnant will nave retained the wor-
ship of the true God, ;i> anciently they professed to have notwithstanding
icral idolatry of the Land;(&) :lll( l this will account for the anxiety to
I to help the Jews, on their return from the Captivity. to rebuild the Temple.
The -lews denied them the wiahed-for privilege; whereupon the Samaritan- did all
in their power to prevent the rebuilding of the city ami the Temple ;(2) and out of

L which ever alter subsisted between the two races. ]
maritans, in the time of Sanballat, built a rival Temple id* their <>wn upon Mount
1 ene of ancestral worship to which the woman refer- in •.

their name, a-- v an, became nenceforth a reproach, and a con t em]

rd with the Jewish nation.(m) That the Samaritans were wholly in the

, in all the points of < troversy between the rival

the injustit ■ ntimen' with which they - rded by thi J infer-

in the many favorable notices bestowed upon them by our Saviocr,(h) —

their prompt and hearty Faith, so far BUrpassing that of their more favored rival-,

and the astonishing use they bad made of their Knowledge of the Way of Sal

which had been wholly gleaned out of the [■']•.

• i Now Jacob's we'll was: there.

there it if, unmistakably, to this day: a deep well, dt mary

in the patriarchal age, in the place of SOJOUrn ;(o) and which Tradition ha- always

pointed out a- the w ell of the patriarch Jacob. It i- described as ••one of the most

interesting objects in the Holj Land, — admitting of no doubt a- to it- identity with

. John describes. It is exactly in the road w bich a trai eller would take,

in passing from Judaea into Galilee, — it not far from Sychar, — -and above all it is

ily well in the neighborh 1 which fulfill- the requirements of the Scripture

Thi- it does entirely, being very deep, while all the other Wellfl and

springs lie near the surface, and the water of the larger portion can he r, 1

with the hand. The water, from it- depth, is alvvav- exceeding

int it i- that persons are accustomed to \i-it it, in pr<
the ( 'ity."(/')
II king a picture then i B< to whom Jacob had i

ed hi- Altar, and whom the patriarch Jacob himself foreshadowed

•b'swell: and presently we shall behold Him surrotthded bj the
e spiritual tribes — the men who an' hen after I tir twelve

I lae|."(«y)

r. 12. m. 30. ( f) Dent \^

■ '
[.) I. I]

(/) Ezra iv. ! I • (m) S

(»; Sec St. I. nk I the note oi

h>) (Jen. I

( /•) Prom the M Ited in tie -eb.

( 7 " Luke xxii. .

IV.]

on st. John's gospel. 661

Jesus, therefore, being wearied with His journey, sat thus on the
well :

" Thus," in this place, means "accordingly." That is, our Saviour was weary,
and so He sat on the well.

And how is it possible at this mention of a well, and the meeting which follows,
to avoid recalling the many occasions in the Old Testament when a well was the
scene of mighty transactions in the Economy of Grace ? Isaac, and Jacob, and
Moses, each found his future wife beside a well of water :(>•) and here it is seen
that one greater than these, their Divine Antitype, the Bridegroom, (as the Baptist
has so lately called Him,)(s) takes to himself His alien spouse, the Samaritan
Church, at a well likewise. (Q On this head, see more in the note prefixed to the
present Chapter. Take notice then, that as His Death is our Life, so is His very
weariness our refreshment. He thirsted that we might not thirst for ever.

Hunger is once recorded of the Son of Man :(?/) Thirst, twice, (x) He partook of
all our trials ; and was made conscious, by His own mysterious experience, of all
our wants, — wants which the perfection of His nature doubtless rendered unspeak-
ably acute and severe. It is discovered, however, from what follows, that it was
not meat from the city, or drink from the well, for which He so hungered and
thirsted, as for the souls of the men of Sychar, — the soul of her who came to draw
water. Consider verses 10, 31, 32, 34, 35.

The beloved Disciple proceeds to fix with exactness the time at which the event
he is describing, occurred, — which it is his manner to do, more than the other
Evangelists :{y)

and it was about the sixth hour.

It was "the time of the Evening, even the time that women go out to draw
water,"(z)— namely, six o'clock. It has been already pointed out that St. John
does not reckon the hours after the Jewish method, (for it is clear that he wrote his
Gospel at a distance from Judoea, and addressed it to persons who were familiar
neither with the language nor with the customs of the Commonwealth of Israel ;)(a)
hut, writing in Asia, he reckons time after the Asiatic method ; which, singular to
relate, corresponded exactly with our own. It was now Evening, therefore, not
Noon : and the Son of Man, weary with the length of His day's Journey, sat Hini
down to rest on Jacob's Well.

7 There cometh a woman of Samaria to draw water : Jesus saith
unto her, Give Me to drink-.

This " woman of Samaria," or rather, " Samaritan woman," seems to have be-
longed to the city of Sychar. She came to draw water from the well ; little sus-
pecting that before her return to the city she should draw her first draught of living
water out of the "Well of Salvation 1(b)

Are we to suppose that she now complied with the request of the Stranger ? For
she does not seem to have done so afterwards. Our Lord may have withdrawn
from the well's mouth, while she let down her waterpot, before addressing her ; and
then opened the conversation in the manner recorded in the verse before us. In
the meantime, the Evangelist proceeds to assign the reason why our Saviour ad-
dressed His request to her ; —

8, 9 (For His Disciples were gone away unto the city to buy meat.)
Then saith the Woman of Samaria unto Him, How is it that Thou,
being a Jew, askest drink of me, which am a woman of Samaria ? (for
the Jews have no dealings with the Samaritans.)

(r) Gen. xxiv. 11 to 29 : xxix. 2 to 10. Exod. ii. 15 to 17.
(«) St. John iii. 29.

(t) The reader is referred to the note on St. Luke xxii. 12.
(»<) St. Mark xi. 12. (a) See St. John six. 28.

(y) Consider the following places,— St. John i. 29, 35, 39, 43 : ii. 1, 13 : iii. 2 : iv. 52 : v. 1 :
vi. 4, 22 : vii. 2, 14, 37 : x. 22 : xi. 6. 55 : xii. 1, 12 : xiii. 30 : xix. 14, &c.
(z) Genesis xxiv. 11.

(a) See the note on St. John vi. 1. Compare with the text, St. John i. 39.
(ft) Isaiah xii. 3.

O'rJ. A PLAIN* OQMMHRABX [cnAP.

Tin familiar intercourse take- pkv > them. I

mi^lit trade together, — bay and sell, ai the Disciples were even now doing: bat
Doi a i one another, or even drink <>ut >.| the same vessel. T

however, that this ranooroue feeling subsisted rather on the aide of the Jews, ■ ) than
of the singular people towards whom our Lord manifested Hi- favor on this, and
my subsequent i It w;i- " who would "have no dealings

with tht Samaritans." Hence it maj bethought that our Swim

>ue manner,— 40 full of J > i \ i 1 1 • - Love, and gentleness unspeakable, — al onoe
I the heart of this Woman; even while she offered her waterpol to His parched
lips, and gladly bestowed upon Him the favor which De had bo far humbled Him-
self :i- to a»k at her bands.

The words in the last clause, explaining the reason of 1 1 1 * ■ W< man's surpi
being so addressed by our Loan, are clearly not her's, but the Evangeli

10 Jesus answered and Baid onto her, If thou knewest the gifl of
God, ami who it ifi that saith to thee, Give Me to drink ; thou wouldest
have asked of Him, and He would have given thee living water.

•• laving water" is properly water from the spring, — as opposed t<> that which is
stagnant. Our Savioi b Bpeaks <>f the life-giving spirit under this figure, as that
which i- always stirring within the heart, and refreshing the bou! of him v.
- it.
But, by "the gift of Gqd," in this place is meant th S "A".

Hear our learned Hooker: " The gift whereby God hath made Christ a fountain
of Life, is the conjunction of th<' nature of Man in the person of <'m:i-i ; which
gift, (saith He to the woman of Samaria.) if then didst know, and in that
understand who U is which asketh water of thee, thou wouldest ask of Him, that
jive thee living water." So that what <>ur Lord in the I r - .- 1 i • I

, He 1 : namelj . " ' Son bo Un ed the world tl H

\ e, the gift,) " His < inly-begotten Son ; that every one who belies etb in llirn
i not perish, but have Everlasting Life."(d) The connection of our Savi
with the Woman's question thus becomes apparent. She Bad reminded Him
of the enmity which i n her nation and His own. His answer h

that <i"i> lov< |: rl<l. and wills the Salvati

" If thou knewest," (saith our Lord,) "that God hath given and sent II
and that 1 who speak t" thee am He; instead of rebuking Si
of water at thy bands, thou wouldest have been the first t>> a-k tl ir at

Mine; nor would I have rebuked thee, much leas would I have denied thee: 1-nt I
would have given thee to drink even of the water of Lifel"
He "tak therefore, from the well of Jacob th I

according in Mis Divine manner, of that water of Life which conveys pardon, t
and the purification of the soul from Bin; excludes the thirst of discontent, or the
feverish desire of inferior and unreal blessings; and is to every oi
ceives it a well of water springing up to Everlasting Life."(e)

And l eeides the illustration thus afforded "four Lord's manner in availing Him-
self of some aocidental outward circumstance on which to base His Divine Teaching,
two things here strike us. First, He is found to open His Discourse on this
lion, as on - 1 many others, with a hard Baying, — a parable as it were. — and ti
the force of what He declares to be evolved afterwards.!!/") [ -rink

with the furm His Divine address to the woman take-. He wishes that sh< would
Him, in order that He mi \ s very ancient writer profoundly re-

ive a Divine Gift who asks not for it ■"(:/) and be illue-
ition by alleging the striking langui
ier, addressing the S "Ask of Me, and I will

the Ih " I ■ n for Thine inheritance."^ i So, in another place il I, — "Ask,

and it shall be givei k k. and it Bhall be i

ne that ' " •' is highly instructive to

(r) - !

(f/) St. John in. 10.

■ .11. rod from I»r. \V. II. Mill.

i/) ' the follow!] Ifatth.

ivi.i; i

ii. s. (,') St. M.itih. >

IV.] ON ST. joiin's gospel. 668

trace this principle in our Lord's conduct towards this woman, and indeed in all
His dealings with mankind. "(/c)

Take notice that she has already learned to treat the unknown Stranger respect-
fully. She calls Him " Sir;" and instead of denying the possibility of what He has
asserted, asks Him to explain it.

11 The woman saith unto Him, Sir, Thou hast nothing to draw with,
and the well is deep : from whence then hast Thou that living water ?

Striking indeed is the discovery that the well, concerning which we have already
briefly spoken, and which Tradition has pointed out from the beginning as "Ja-
cob's well," should so remarkably retain the character here assigned to it. Tra-
vellers have found it to be of the depth of one hundred and five feet ; and to this
day it contains ten or fifteen feet of living water.

The woman, whose attention is now effectually aroused, seems to imply that He
must be some great One indeed, if, unaided by ordinary means, He can command
such a supply of the pure element, as shall render her future laborious journeys to
this spot superfluous. She proceeds :

12 Art Thou greater than our father Jacob, which gave us the well,
and drank thereof himself, and his children, and his cattle ?

Perhaps when "cattle" were supplied from a well, it was a proof that the water
was abundant. Consider Gen. xxiv. 14 and 19, 20. The argument here, is,- — -The
great patriarch not only gave his children and his cattle to drink of this well, but
he drank of it himself. He knew of no other resource whereby to quench his own
thirst. " Art thou greater than our father Jacob ?" — she therefore asks. And she
already begins to suspect that she is addressing some great One indeed. That she
little suspected the majesty of the Stranger, whom she had found sitting on Jacob's
well, wearing the garb and using the language of a Jew, our Saviour has already
assured her. He proceeds to let her know that He is greater even than the Patri-
arch; not by vaunting Himself as such, but by contrasting the nature of the gift
which it was in His power to bestow, with that of Jacob. As it follows :

13, 14 Jesus answered and said unto her, Whosoever drinketh of
this water shall thirst again : but whosoever drinketh of the water that
I shall give him shall never thirst ; but the water that I shall give him
shall be in him a well of water springing up into everlasting Life.

So spake He who proclaimed Himself of old as "the Fountain of living waters ;"(Z)
with whom "is the Well of Life ;"(m) and in whom whosoever believeth, "shall
never thirst."(w) To the same effect on a subsequent occasion we shall hear Him
cry, saying, " If any man thirst, let him come unto Me and drink. He that be-
lieveth on Me, as the Scripture hath said, out of his belly shall flow rivers of living
water. But this spake He of the Spirit," adds the Evangelist, " which they that
believe on Him should receive. "(o) And of the Holy Spirit our Saviour
speaks in this place also. It is the Water which CHRIST will give, because the
Spirit proceedeth from the Father and the Son. " The fountain of Life in mortal
man soon fails ; but that fountain of Life which is in the Spirit never fails. None
can fathom it, nor tell the depth nor circumference thereof. And this water of
which he that drinks shall thirst again, is a type of all earthly desires, for nothing
upon earth can satisfy the cravings of an immortal spirit; which, being made for
God, can find rest in Him alone." (p)

15 The Woman saith unto Him, Sir, give me this water, that I thirst
not, neither come hither to draw.

Of her history we know nothing beyond what is here recorded : but may not
something be inferred even from her anxiety to be spared these daily journeys to
the Well?

(fc) Williams. (I) Jer. ii. 13 : xvii. 13.

(m) Ps. xxxvi. 9. Consider Jer. xviii. 14, (where see the margin,) and Rev. vii. 17: xxi. 6:
xxii. 17.

(») St. John vi. 35. (o) St. John vii. 37 to 39, — where see the notes. (p) Williams.

0$4 A PLAIN COMMENTARY [Cii

implioity, -till supposing that it wu water fn.ni tin- spru
pake. Wiiat she meant, however, was, in dutiful
ami faith, to ask for the thug which Chuisi had bade her ask Cor. Seeing I
lore ;i • tin' Fountain "lull Wisdom, (who knowetboui

• ■ ask, and <>ur ignorance in a-kiii.'. 11. • had compassion upon our infirm
at thing which for In r unworthineas she dared 1 1> >t . ami for her blindm -
Qon vouchsafed to givs bet for the \. irthinesaof Hi- S
Obkis i our 1>ird.

\> strange and Btartling i- the turn which tin- dialogue at this placet

• :•, that what tin- woman had in effect .-aid. wa-, that .-In- ii

Intent: (" that I thirst not, neither oome hither to draw :") — and to all such,
saith nut our Savioi a, " Come unto Mt " A- it foil

L6 Jesus Baith onto her, <!<>, c:ill thy husband, ami come hither.

Why did our LoHD thus allude to the man with wle m -he appears t>

unlawfully connected! Was it only to give her an opportunity for tie
which follows?

IT. In The woman answered and said, I hare no husband. J]

paid unto her, Thou hast well said, 1 have no husband; for thou hast
had five husbands: ami he whom thou now hast is not thy husband: in
that saidst thou truly.

B; thus Bhowing Himself acquainted with tie- past and 1 1

aim, our Saviocb u':u >• her the same evidence of 11'
which lie had already supplied to the guileless Nathan: • r can we doubt

that, in either ea-e, certain unrevealed circumstances imparted peculiar wond
il Be proved 1>;. sentence that Bis eye had Keen thewitn

what had been transacted in strictest privacy, or with the atm >•('')

Tin- disc »very, moreoi er, was attended in both ea-e- with the - suits :

for it folio* s, —

19 The woman saith unto Him, Sir, I perceive that Thou art a Tro-
pin t.

"The astonished Samaritan,— (respecting whom there is no necessity

ing that she was uow living in .-in, and in u bom the errors of hi

aight have been had not obscured that perception of moral truth which our
Saviour ordinarily required in the bearer of Hi- heavenly mysteries, ) — con
immediately that her informant is a prophet N hut one supernaturallj en-
lightened could have discovered from the midst of a foreign race, what might have
probably unknown to many of her own countrymen. («) She 1 our

i: at one.- a- a prophet ; ami presently, a- tiu " Prophet promised in the
I. ') -Take notice that while the Jews looked chiefly for a Kingly[ii) Messiah,
tnaritans seem i" havedwelt chiefly on Uta Prophetic character : while the
illy to notice the Priestly office ofCHM8T.(x)
Tien pointing to Mount Qerisim, which -lands full in Bight "f the SI

re occurred, the woman appeal- to the immemorial worship i

tlere, and elaim- the holy patriarchs a- the author- of ha race

20 Our fail in this mountain; and ye lay, that in
Jerusalem i- the place where men ought to worship.

I' thereby seek to give a speculative turn I ion which baa

. painfully personal; asweevi turn the edge of reproof, and

i- private and particular, by referring to that which J ami

indifferent? Surely, Or do we behold in these words the statement of a

h a strong internal conviction ! I
from the difficulty -he find- in ;

(.) I>r. W. 11 Mil.
{t) Dent wu.. 1.. 1-. \. ■■. BuJohn tv. .

Bt Lokt i

IV.]

ON ST. JOHN'S GOSPEL. 665

character in a Jew ! — Neither of these suggestions seems nearly so worthy of our
acceptance as the following, offered by an excellent writer, who is pointing out that
" her character is marked throughout with good." He says : — " The gentleness
with which she first received the request of a Jewish stranger ; her pious memory
of the patriarch Jacob ; her readiness to believe ; her expressions of respect
throughout, saying, 'Master;' her uncalled-for confession, that it was not her hus-
band ; and her apparent innocence on that subject, when she found herself before
a Prophet ; her immediate inquiry respecting a point which ivas evidently nearest her
heart, of the most acceptable mode of worshipping GOD ; the fullness of her faith
afterwards ; and the expressions that show she was evidently one of those who
' waited for the Consolation of Israel :' — all these things prove that although, like
many others, she may have been chosen under circumstances apparently the most
adverse, yet that her heart was in the main right towards God : the shadow of Ge-
rizim, the mount of blessing, beside which she dwelt, was not in vain upon her ;
for she inherited the blessing of the pure of heart, in that she had eyes to discern

God."(2/)

And surely it is impossible to call to mind this woman's case, — that of the sinner
mentioned in the vii. of St. Luke, (2) and again of her who is recorded in the viiith of
St. John, (a) — as well as the case of the repentant malefactor, — without feeling
that such examples are recorded not only for the consolation of great offenders, but
also for the guidance of all. A great lesson of charity and forbearance is incul-
cated, when, from a stem to all appearance so lifeless, the fruits of the Spirit are
found so abundantly to spring.

21 Jesus saith unto her, Woman, believe Me, the hour cometh, when
ye shall neither in this mountain, nor yet at Jerusalem, worship the
Father.

In neither place, (He means,) to the exclusion of all other places. — "Believe Me,"
He begins : for that is the necessary condition of all teaching that is to profit. — It
may not be out of place to remind the reader that Christian Churches do not take
the place of the Jewish synagogues, but of the temple of Jerusalem, itself. — Our
Lord's phrase, " The hour cometh," denotes how close at hand were the days of
the Gospel, — when, "from the rising of the sun even unto the going down of the
same," God's Name should " be great among the Gentiles. "(b)

" There was no necessity for Christ to show why the Fathers worshipped in that
mountain, and the Jews in Jerusalem. He was therefore silent on that question;
but asserted the religious superiority of the Jews on another ground, — the ground
not of place, but of knowledge." (c) As it follows:

22 Ye worship ye know not what :

That is, — " You have lost the clear knowledge of the professed object of your
worship, Jehovah the God of Israel, in forsaking that Tabernacle and Temple
where He as truly fixed His habitation and His Glory in the days of David and
Solomon, as He had fixed it in Shiloh of Ephraim before. You approach God in a
way of your own invention ; and have recklessly cut off all genuine record of the
facts of Sacred History, subsequent to the time of Moses, with every sacred book
from which the religious supremacy of Judah and Mount Sion, —the Royalty of
David, and the promised descent of Messiah from his line, — could be learned by
the people."(c7)

we know what we worship : for Salvation is of the Jews.

" For ice, the Jews, can trace the line of human hope from Moses, through David
and all the prophets, of whom ye are 'ignorant." — " He reckons Himself among the
Jews, in condescension to the woman's idea of Him : and says as if He were a Jew-
ish prophet, " We worship ;" though it is certain that He is the Being who is wor-
shipped by all. The phrase " for Salvation is of the Jews," means that every thing
calculated to amend and save the world, — the knowledge of God, the abhorrence of
idols, and all the doctrines of that nature ; even the very origin of our religion, —

{y) Williams. (z) St. Luke vii. 37, &c. (a) St. John viii. 3, &c.

{b) Mai. i. 11. ( c ) Chrysostom. (d) Abridged from Dr. W. H. Mill.

666 A PLATA n-MMKNTARY ['HAT.

■ i the Jes whom pertaineth the Ado] kion," a~ the

"and the Glory, and the Covenants, and the giving of the I

and the 8orvi< f God, and the promises: whose are the Fatneri /torn

mi ng ih> Jtesh < !hri8v eame."\ J ') — Onr Lord proi i

Bal the hour cometh, and now is, when the true worshippers shall
worship the Father id Bpirit and in truth: for the Fatheb seeketh
such t i worship Him.

■■ l Jewish worship then was far higher than the Samaritan ; but even ii
v> be abolished."^) And the acoepted ones would no longer be those of a p .
lar nation; but the distinction would be into false worshippers and true. ( 'ur
Loan had already raid, " The hour ie o >ming:"(A ) but her< 1 1

— to imply that the event foretold was not re to, like the predictions of tl

cicnt Prophets ; but close at hand, even at the doors.

Having aaid thus much concerning the place and the manner of acceptable wor-
ship, the Divine Speaker thus oonoludes :

24 God is a S] >h-i*- : and they that worship Him, must worship Him
in Spirit and in Truth.

Of these words, and of those which go before in verse 21, it would clearly l e ■
wanton abuse to Buppose that they convey a condemnation of externals in Reli-
gion ; or imply that the place of Divine worship is a matter of indifference to Al-
mighty God. — Not bo. But in an age when it was believed that in J only,
God be acceptably worshipped ; and among a people whose I. remo-
nial and outward observances bad become so burdened by carnal traditions, that
spiritual worship had well nigh disappeared altogether, it was of the last impor-
tance to vindicate the Mind and Will of Him who said " I will hav< 1 not
i) and, by Hi- Prophets, bad so often claimed the Bpirit and the truth
of those ordinances which, in respect of the letb r and the type, bad been punctu-
ally en ugh fulfilled.(Jfc)

25 The woman Baithunto Him, I know thai Mbbsiab cometh, (which
!!< -I Christ:) wlun He is come, He will tell us all thing

II em to hare respect to what had gone before. She bad

eerning tht plaet of Divine Worship: the Btranger has spoken concerning

In reply, she declares her belief in the near Advent oi th<
Mm, I! brew word, whioh St. John, for the second time, (/) explains to
the "Christ," that is, "the Anointed On< I implies that all doubts of this
nature will I,.- effectually solved by linn, at His coming: " a confession truly extra-
ordinary, whether we consider the previous materials of this conviction, or the
>n Mi n uow drew it forth. The occasion whioh now drew forth this reo _'ni-
tiim of the great hope of mankind was simply what had just I o spoken concern-
ing the approaching establishment of a spiritual religion and worship. Her intro-
i therefore oi the Mi ssiah upon this, proi ea that it was :i spiritual Leader, —
er of the true worship of God,— that Bh under that name and cha-
llow different from the Jewish expectation of a conquering her,., and t< m-
poral deliverer I And how mueh more remarkable docs this ail ppear when

materials for their respective convictions !(m)" The trul
S maritans, possessing only the Pentateach ; and missed by the
J though David and all thi i . Ie wever,

■ woman for the disclosure which was t" follow: —

ih unto her, 1 that speak unto thee am He.

"And ■' r< all of this announi reraion, not only of this

i, butofmapj >d' ber countrymen." It is th< ition of t he

same natui ■■ •. hich our S moi : ■ the man
born blind. See St. John ix. 37.

(A) B( r. 21.

i i. 11 to 17

. 12. („.) l>r. W. H. Mill.

iv.]

ON ST. JOHN'S GOSPEL. 667

27 And upon this came His Disciples, and marvelled that He talked
with the woman : yet no man said, What seekest Thou ? or, Why talk-
est Thou with her ?

Many are the recorded tokens of the deferential respect -with which our Lord
was regarded by His faithful followers. The reader may be pleased at having such
places as the following recalled to his remembrance : — ver. 33, below : St. John xii.
20 to 22 : xiii. 22 to 24 : xvi. 17 to 19 : xxi. 12. St. Mark ix. 32.

But what was the precise ground of wonder to the Disciples on this occasion ?
Not, probably, so much at beholding their Divine Master discoursing with a female ;
for many followed His footsteps, and ministered to His needs; moreover, He is re-
corded on many occasions to have spoken to women. The Disciples seem rather to
have been astonished at finding Him engaged in converse with such a woman, and at
such a place. They were at a loss, (as the Evangelist himself, who was one of their
number, expressly intimates,) to know what He could want? or what could possibly
be the subject of His conversation with her? Moreover, if the juncture at which
they came up is considered, it will perhaps be thought that the woman's astonish-
ment, so far exceeding their own, must have added not a little to their perplexity
and surprise.

They knew not that they beheld the Good Shepherd rejoicing over the recovery
of the sheep which He had lost.

28. The woman then left her waterpot, and went her way into the
city;

An ancient writer remarks, — " The woman is almost turned into an Apostle. So
forcible are His words, that she leaves her water-pot to go to the city, and tell her
townsmen of them. "{n) Another points out that " as the Apostles on being called,
left their nets, so does she leave her water-pot, to do the work of an Evangelist.
She calls not one person, but a whole city."(o) As it follows : —

29 and saith to the men, Come, see a Man, which told me all things
that ever I did : is not this the Christ ?

" Come, see" Him! — Like Philip, when he invited Nathanael,(p) she knew that
to see Him would be enough ; and that belief must surely follow. How eager are
the Saints of God ever found to be for the salvation of others ! how impatient to
communicate to their brethren the knowledge of the way of Life ! Consider the
conduct of those whom our Saviour first called, — St. Andrew, and St. Peter, and
St. Philip. (q) " Come and hear," (they seem to say,) and I will declare what Goo
hath done for my soul."(>-)

30 Then they went out of the city, and came unto Him.

We shall be told, in ver. 39, that " many of the Samaritans of that city believed
on Him for the saying of the woman" here recorded. How they acted when they
came to Christ, we learn in verse 40.

In the meantime, it seems incumbent on us to notice how much of ministerial
guidance, how many precious lessons, are obtainable from the portion of sacred
narrative before us. First, the case of none is to be regarded as hopeless, or be-
yond the reach of ministerial zeal. Next, in so sacred a cause, we may converse
with such as this fallen woman was : for " not of Apostles only, but of Believers
generally, it was said ' Ye are the salt of the earth ;' and salt must mix with that
which is to be salted. It is to be remembered that our Lord ate and drank with
Publicans and Sinners, neither refused He the invitation of the Pharisee. Such is
our duty : such is the great exemplar of our liver. "(s) Nay more, from such in-
stances of conversion to God, it is not obscurely hinted that the most blessed results
of all may be hoped for. It seems to be implied, in addition, that discourse of this
nature may most fitly take its rise from some accidental circumstance, and be sug-
gested by the events of the moment. From what follows, it is further found that

(n) Origen. (o) Chrysostom. (p) St. John i. 46.

(q) See John i. 40, 41, 45, and the note on 46. (r) Ps. Ixvi. 16.

(«) From a MS. Sermon by the Rev. W. J. Palmer.

A PLAIN COMMENTARY

[chap.

r--uit >>f a lost -"ul Bhould be meat and drink to him who ia called to !"• a
f souls: ami lastly, it may in -t be overlooked, that 1\ c - with

thi- sinful • m in openly, and in a public place, He teacl gdom

d< to the harm! the enemj

inuation.

proceeds to detail what took place when the Di
rctur: Sycl ith the supply of food for the evening meal which thi

to proi ids.

•'il In the mean while Hia Disciples prayed Him, Baying, Ma

"All ask Himatonoe. This i.- not impatience in them, bat simply tenderness
fur their Master."(Q

But He Baid unto them, 1 hare meat to cat that ye know not of.

Thus, in conformity with Hi- Divine practice on other
noticed, (u) our Savioi b ia found to have opened with a hard Baying the subj<
which He was no lesa desirous of enlightening \l\< Disciples than tl f ask-
ing Him. II<' ia willing that they should rejoice with Him over the r iverj

lost trea8ure,(x) but He leads them to the Bubject by degrees; first arresting their
attention by a few dark words, from which He may afterwards lead them up to
something bigher and spiritual. — Very Man. He truly hungered, truly thi
lily needs as nothing compared to the longings of Hia Humi
towards the Race which He had come to save ; and these longings had been \
satisfied, while those needs continued argent as ever. But all this tl.
ciples had yel to learn. They "knew d the depth of I

I they knew nothing aa yet, experimentally, of a heart finding in I

iil Bupply earthly want: they "knew not" that the woman whom

tiny Baw retiring from the well, I ring a whole city to the knoi

ith.

Therefore Baid the Disciples one to another, Hath any man
ght Him ought to •

"What •■■ rider," (exclaims Augustine,) "that the woman did not under
about the •• !. ■■• the Disciples do not understand about the w

that they Baid thi> •• one to another," (y) — with that respectful
of which we find jo man; G els. And it is done in Il<

was d ! nth: for " Isaiah in a vision of the Loan in His Glory," when he

heard the S< raphim crying, " Holy, Holy, Holy," noticed thai ; ; their

with their wingt .) — Our Loan hastent

them from their perplexity.

'•'>\ • litli nnto them. My meat is to <!<> the will of Him that

sent Me, and to finish 1 Lis work.

Sa\ ioi i; here apeake of Himself no! aa Goo, bul aa Man. Aa Man.

nd <lrink to d'> the I W ilL The Human N\ ill in the One I

Saviour Christ, we know was in all thin:;- conformed I II Divine Will,
although it existed independently of iL(a) His Divine Will was alti with

tie- I ITU1

'Him that tent Me:" for, "Behold, I am <
Thi/ Will, O ( irophetic ' in which our Sai i"i r I

Hia own Advent in the flesh; adding that he found II a

! ■ I d, is the c I

I ■ -hall Ruffice, • nee foi all. t •• the chi

\ the Wlitij

(') '

on \>r. 10. (s) Alludl . [0.

I \'. . L'l ; .\M. .. : ivii.

21. 1 8t John It. 9, 10, 1 I.

IV.]

ON ST. JOHN'S GOSPEL. 669

But the Salvation of Mankind is the special " Will of God" here intended ; for
God " willeth that all men should be saved. "(t?) This is also " His Work;" for He
is the sole cause of Salvation in Man: God not only "willing 1 " our Salvation, but
also " working in us both to will and to do."(e)

Not only so ; but the entire scheme of man's Redemption was God's great work,
as the Apostle so often declares :(_/") a work which addresses itself throughout to
Man's Faith. Whence our Saviour's declaration: " This is the work of God, that
ye believe on Him whom He hath sent."Q/) And " to finish" this work is found to
have been the great object of all He said and did on earth: from the Day of His
Baptism until the day of His Crucifixion ; when He said " It is finished?' and bowed
His head ; and gave up the Ghost."(Z<)

With obvious reference therefore to the " door of IIope"(') which was even now
being opened to the men of Sychar, our Lord intimates that He has been re-
freshed and supported during the Disciples' absence by having effectually done the
work of Him that sent Him.

35 Say not ye, There are yet four months, and then cometh harvest ?
behold, I say unto you, Lift up your eyes, and look on the fields ; for
they are white already to Harvest.

The interval between the season of sowing and the season of reaping in Judsea,
was four months. Our Lord's words are allusive to this circumstance, and perhaps
to some proverbial saying which may have grown out of it. But the entire passage
before us has been thought difficult, and given rise to so much conjectural criticism,
that it may be as well in explaining it to show its connection with Avhatgoes before
and what follows.

The Disciples had been pressing our Divine Lord to partake of food. He told
them in reply that it was food to Him to do His Father's will, and to finish
His work. Then, addressing them as the men who were destined to become
His blessed instruments therein : — "At seed-time," saith He, "say ye not: Pass
four months and it will be Harvest ? But look abroad on yonder fields, and take
notice that the wheat is ripe already, and the time of Harvest hath come." It was
in fact shortly after the Passover season that He thus spake. The wheat was there-
fore fully ripe ; presenting that whitish appearance, which many ancient writers have
described, and a few modern travellers have noticed.

We are of course left to infer that to the Divine Speaker's inner vision, a corres-
ponding spectacle discovered itself in respect of the region where that part of the
spiritual " Harvest of the Earth" was also "ripe" already ;(k) and that He beheld
the season for thrusting in the sickle, close at hand. Moreover, He seems to imply
that as the fields of Samaria were now teeming with ripe grain, in the sowing of
which His Disciples had had no share, — just so was it in respect of the fruits of the
spiritual Kingdom. The Patriarchs and Prophets of old had sown; the seed had
fallen into honest and good hearts ; and there had been an abundant increase. The
Apostles of Christ would therefore now have but to reap ; that is, to bring to the
full knowledge of the Gospel, hearts already well prepared and fully disposed to re-
ceive the Heavenly message. The privilege of such reaping is stated in the words
which follow :

36 And he that reapeth receiveth wages, and gathereth fruit unto
life eternal:

That is, — Between an ordinary reaper and yourselves, there will be this mighty
difference ; that whereas he receiveth wages, and garnereth for another in an earthly
barn, the fruit which wasteth away and perisheth, — ye, besides your great hire, shall
gather immortal souls into the Heavenly Garner, unto Life Eternal, to be your
crown of rejoicing in the Great Day of the Lord.(7) — With such language does the
Blessed Speaker sustain the spirits, and kindle the desires of His lowly followers :
adding,

(d) 1 Tim. ii. 4. (e) Phil. ii. 13. (/) See Ephes. i. 5, &c.

\<j) St. John vi. 29. (h) St. John xix. 30.

(i) Hos. ii. 15. May not that prophecy have had reference to this very occasion ? Observe
that the situation of the valley of Achor is unknown ; but it seems to have been not far from
Gerizim.

(k) Rev. xiv. 15. (0 Consider 1 Thess. ii. 19.

070

\ PLAIN COMMENTARY

[< MAI'.

Unit both he that Boweth and he that reapeth may rejoice together.

Our Loan is declaring another |><>int of contrast between earthly and be
reaping. It is as if He nad said, Now, bare on earth, be that sows bath all the
labor, and be that reaps bath all the joy; bat the e esof what I ha\

bing will be that the Sower shall partake in the Reaper's bliss: Mv t
Saint-, — tbe Patriarchs and the Prophets I Bhall rejoice together with you,

igether:" for if the Bepentance of one si ir sufficeth to

fill beholding Angels with Joy,(fn i what rapture ;it the eternal bliss of many Saint*.
must fill tbe hearts of such as have been Qon's instruments in turning these to
righteousness!(n)

And Burely, thrice glorious i- the anticipation thus beld cut. —tin' bint, bamely,
of the bliss in Btore for till those who 1ki\ e alreadj gone t" their rest, and v, bo here-
after -hall go, with nothing bul the experience of hti.nr, for which tbej beheld no
fruit? Doubtless, they who thus wenl on their way weeping, and bearing fortl 1
seed, -hall come again with joy, and even bring their Bheaves with them |

37 Ami herein Is that Baying true, One sowctlt. and another reapeth.

The meaning is, — That common proverb, "One soweth and another reapeth," is
heleaa true; and its truth consists in the fact, that here also, he who leans is
a different person from him who Bowed. As it follows:

38 1 sent you to reap that whereon ye bestowed no labor : other men
labored) and ye are entered into their labors.

X er and the reaper are therefore different persons; and bo i'ar the saying is

true: bul as the laying is commonly employed to denote thai one has till the labor,
the other till the rejoicing, it i- no longer applicable ; forM< rejoicing to the Bower
am! to the reaper is the same.

•■ 1 tent \ "ii to reap:" nol thai their Loan had Bent them yet ; bul since thej were
named " Apostles," that is " [men] sent," from the first, (p) tbe expresaii n was cor-
rect at till times after they had once been called. The rest of the verse has been
explained already, by anticipation. Hut the repeated mention of ministerial labor
in this place, Huggests a reference to such passages "I St. Paul as are noti
,. i while the allusion in ver. 36, to the "joy in harvest," recalls [saiah i
relist now proceeds with the history of the Samaritans.

89 And many of the Samaritans <>f that city believed on Him for
the saying of the woman, which testified, He tola me all that ever I did.

In illustration of this and the nexl verse, what the Evangelist has alreadi

hould be recalled. Take notice of the largeness of the faith
here described; surpassing even that of the Woman herself. "I- not this the
I'm; r?" she bad timidly asked : hut many of these men are found to have " be-
lieved "u linn,*' — that is, t" ha\e believed that it iccu II". from her report alone.

Whatever her own faith maj navel n, she hail at least seen our Saviour: but

the men of Sychar were more blessed, in that though they had not hi;'

Sim, tl ■ • had }<■'■ believed.(r) All this was, however, fits gift; no less than the

reque t « bich foL

•1<» S ■ whi n tin- Samaritans w< re come onto 1 (im, they 1 esonght I lim
thai II" would tarry with them: and He abode there two days.

B< [ueathing t" the Citj which so honorably entertained Him, as it would seem,

Unlike Capernaum, Ohorasin, ami Bethsaida, when our

Loan - ' •' despised, ami which have since utterlj disappeared, Sychar,

it i- ii"\\ called, " Nablous,") i-* in a flourishing condition t<> 1 1 1 « - present 'lav.

its i , far t".> striking t" he overlooked bj the traveller; ha\ mg nothing

of the it!' I" -. indolent, p ■ d appeal almost all the < I

. it

i 1 1 in. It. in :

(r) St- John II

■■::. GiL It. 11. i ■•!. L :'■.'. II, V
* . 17, Ac.

(n) Dim. \

( /.) St Luke rl. IS.

,9: iii.

IV.]

on st. john's gospel. 671

of the country. On the contrary, its neighborhood is fertile ; refreshing springs
run through its streets ; a great amount of activity and bustle is found among the
inhabitants, who seem a thriving prosperous people: the bazaars are crowded ; and
altogether its appearance is so different from other places, that you are induced to
think that there must be some especial circumstances connected with its locality,
more favorable than ordinary. This however does not appear to be the case."(s)

Josephus remarks that it is a three days' journey out of Judaea into Galilee. The
two days therefore which would have sufficed to conduct our Saviour back to Ca-
pernaum, He passed among the men of Sychar: and thus the faith of the "noble-
man," of whom we shall read in ver. 46, and whose son was even now a-dying, was
was taxed to the uttermost. See more in the note on ver. 47 ; and consider, in con-
nection with the constraint exercised by the men of Sychar, the remarks which
were offered on St. Luke xxiv. 29. — It follows:

41 And many more believed because of His own word : and said
unto the Woman, Now we believe, not because of thy saying : for we
have heard Him ourselves, and know that this is indeed the Christ,
the Saviour of the world.

" Because of His own Word," the men of Sychar became believers : not because
of any Miracles which He wrought among them. " Their grounds were therefore
not those overpowering proofs of His Divinity which were yet insufficient to con-
vince the stubborn Jews. All that these good Samaritans appear to have pos-
sessed, or sought, was the sober conviction with which our Lord's prophetic cha-
racter inspired them ; and on the strength of which they proclaim Him, in the
true spirit of knowledge and charity united, the Saviour of the whole World \"{t)

And truly, if their faith was so readily kindled, even from the Woman's report
of Him, what must have been the effect of His prolonged converse on their hearts !
If the rising of the Day-Siar filled them with light and heat, what must have been
wrought in them by the noontide glow of Christ's actual presence! "We have
heard Him ourselves," they say, "and know:" for "Faith cometh by hearing." [u)
Accordingly, their Faith is ample, and their Confession complete : — " This is indeed
the Christ, the Saviour of the World !"

It has been admirably pointed out, that " this was not however their final state;
nor designed to be represented by the inspired historian as such. When the mys-
teries of human Redemption were accomplished and Christ was glorified, then we
are told by St. Luke, in the book of Acts, how Samaria received the Word of God ;
first, by the preaching and Baptism of Philip the Evangelist, and afterwards by
Apostolic Confirmation, and the imposition of hands. Thus, doubtless, were these
men of Sychar in particular actually admitted into that Kingdom for which their
previous reception of its Lord had prepared them, and which He described as on
the point of manifestation to the World." [x)

It is impossible to dismiss this great incident, — which is none other than the
beginning of the fulfillment of the prophecies made to Abraham, confirmed to
Isaac, and renewed to Jacob, without dwelling a little further upon its precious
details. We have read of the first great gathering in of the aliens, (for the Sama-
ritans were reckoned almost with the very heathen,) (y) into the fold of Christ.
Here it is that the Heavenly Canaan first opens to our sight. Viewed from this
spot of holy ground, what new and unexpected light is found to fall on many a
familiar incident of Old Testament history ; and how beautifully does the design
of the inspired narrative straightway become !

We are reminded, before all things, of that original mention of Sichem as the
first place of the Patriarch Abraham's rest, to which attention was called above. (z)
There he received the promise ; there Jehovah (and it was none other than Christ
Jesus Himself!) appeared to him ; and there, he builded his first altar. The spot
thus singularly hallowed as the first place at which God had appeared to man, re-
mained for ever holy in the eyes of Abraham's descendants. Here Jacob, when
he returned with his family into Canaan, hid all the strange gods which were in
their hand. (a) Here arose "the Sanctuary of the Lord,"(6) and here was one of

(s) From the MS. quoted above, on verses 5 and 6.

(0 Dr. W". H. Mill. (u) Rom. x. 17. (x) Dr. W. H. Mill.

(y) St. Matth. x. 5. (z See the first note on the present chapter,

(a) Gen. xxxv. 4. (b) Josh. xxiv. 26.

672 a PLAIN <"M.mi:ntaky. [chap.

tin- cities of refuge.(c) To this place, Joshua solemnly summoned the 1
Trib nd renewed the covenant with them after the oonqueet

and partition of the Land.(<7) Here Abimelech, (Joseph's descendant,) (<
made king ;(/*) and here Etohoboam was crowned.^) Jeroboam likewise "built
■ in in .Mount Ephraim,(a) ami dwelt therein. "(/) Here, therefore, where the
Ti 3 rebelled against the house of David, (A - ) was David's Sob about to

r in one the children of Goo that wi i d abroad."(Z)

\ king i- tip : by the actual record of the Evan-

ihat tin- Boot of ground where our Sw iot b aovi rested, and when' 1 1 < -
was destined to receive thefiral earnest of His spiritual inheritance, (n) was the
which had become thejir, I <n "I any of III- Am r the flesh.

Machpelah Beems to have been a place of burial, and no more ; ool bo the " parcel
of a field" where Jacob spread his tent on returning to Canaan after his absence
;it Haran. Thia piece of ground baa already been the property of
andfather Abraham, (o) and aow became his own bj renewed purchi
the Bame family from whom Ahraham had originally obtained it.(/-) Subsequently,
li_\ right of conquest also, (j) had the Patriarch secured this precious Bpot of ground
to himself and bis family ; bequeathing it to Joseph, " a portion," (or " Shechem"
as the Hebrew expresses it,) "above his brethren," — in token that the right of
primogeniture should be his.(r) To Joseph's descendants (the tribe of Ephraim)
this piece of territory is accordingly found to have afterwards belonged: i
the real to Joshua, the temporal Jesus, Joseph's immediate descendant, who con-
quered the entire Land, — beginning bis conquest almost at this very pis
spot is found to have been very fertile and well adapted from the beginning for
pasturing of sheep ;{t) — a character which it preserves in a remarkable manner t'i
the present day.

An ancient wri itrikingly, — "This parcel of ground I conceive to have

been left do! bo much to Joseph as to Christ, of whom Joseph was a type; and
whom the Sun, the Moon, ana all the Stars, truly ador in fact the

Bcene of tho youthful patriarch's dreams ; remarkable,) after an

interval of just 17"" years, this "parcel of ground" is found to have retained its
t distinction of fruitfulness in corn ; for, as we bave Been, the abundant bar-
on the spot suggested tin form of discourse which our Saviour
adopted in addn U Di iples "ii the present occasion. (y] At Jao b's well,

tnd in "the pai and that Jacob gave to hi- boh Joseph," * 1 i * 1

the discourse above recorded, and which led t" buc£ memorable results, occur;

that "fruitful bough even a fruitful bough l"j ■

of which the dying Patriarch spake; "whose branches run over the wall."

48 Now, after two daya Be departed thence, and went into Galilee.

Our Lord was on His way from Judsea into Galilee, when the incident occurred

which led to His sojourn of two days at Sychar. two days ended, He

ded on His journey; but He did not return t" Nazareth, which for thirty

He had made His home, (and which is henee called in the' . b) " His

own oountrj ;") — and Ihni, for the reason which the Evangelist proceeds to give;

1 1 For J i -i B J [imself testified, that :i Prophet hath no honour in his
own country.

The Evangelist alludes to the proverbial saying which our Lord is recorded to
have addressed to His fellow-townsmen in the Synag ! th, on two

St. Matthi w xiii. "'7, ami St. Mark \i. i.

(el Josh. w. 7 : I i I Ohron. i I

i svii. 2, with Jndgei * i- 11, * ii- I, sad . \. I.

i (/.) I I. (/) -

. . i,

(/,) Q (</) Urn. .\lviii.

i ' hron. \. -. Bask. xhii. 18. •'■ ihna > u.

ii'm. uxvil. 6 to 9. - e above, var. 85 to 8S.

( j i

Miitth. mil I. ukc iv. 23.

IV.]

ON ST. JOHN'S GOSPEL. 673

45 Then when He was come into Galilee, the Galileans received
Him, having seen all the things that He did at Jerusalem at the Feast :
for they also went unto the Feast.

" Received Him," denotes that they welcomed Him back, and gave Him a kind
reception. (c) In assigning the reason of this, the Evangelist alludes for the third
time to the Miracles (doubtless very surprising ones!) -which our Saviour had
lately wrought at Jerusalem, and which the Evangelist has nowhere described
particularly. (d) It was the sight of those wonders which wrought conviction in
Nicodemus :(e) and from the present verse it is discovered that they prevailed with
the Galilaeans likewise. How far more noble was the faith of the men of Sychar,
who "believed — because of His Word !'\f) "Except ye see signs and wonders,
ye will not believe/' was our Lord's reproachful address to the nobleman of Caper-
naum. (17)

46 So Jesus came again into Cana of Galilee, where He made the
water wine.

Instead of returning to Nazareth, our Lord revisits Cana, — which was probably
the abode (as before suggested,) (A) of some of the relations of the Blessed Virgin
Mary. ..." Cana of Galilee, where He made the Water Wine :" — how much is this
in St. John's manner ! It is his wont thus to identify places and persons, by some
single circumstance which rendered them forever memorable. Nicodemus, as
often as his name recurs, is mentioned as he " which at the first came to Jesus by
night :"(i) — the miraculous feeding of the five thousand, was performed "after
that the Lord had given thanks :'\k) — Philip, we are reminded, "was of Bethsaida
of Galilee :"{l) — and the Evangelist himself desired to be remembered by the
Church, as "the Disciple which Jesus loved; . . . which also leaned on His breast at
Supper, and said, Lord, which is he that betrayeth Thee?'\m)

And there was a certain Nobleman, whose son was sick at Caper-
naum.

It is uncertain who and what this person was ; but probably he belonged to the
Court and Palace of King Herod. Hence the marginal suggestion that we should
translate "Courtier." If Chuza, (Herod's steward,) was a believer as well as his
wife,(n) the "Nobleman" may have been Chuza himself. But he was doubtless a
Jew ; one of those Galilseans, it may be thought, who are spoken of above as hav-
ing " seen all the things which Jesus did at Jerusalem at the Feast."

47 When he heard that Jesus was come out of Judosa into Galilee,
he went unto Him, and besought Him that He would come down, and
heal his son : for he was at the point of death.

Let us notice what is here revealed, (doubtless for our profit,) and not miss the
precious teaching which it seems intended to convey. — Here was a child sick of a
fever at Capernaum. His father had been anxiously expecting our Saviour's re-
turn to that City ; but in vain. He knew that Christ could save his child, and
despaired of help from any other source. Every hour at last became of impor-
tance. Presently, he is told that the Great Physician has arrived at Cana. We
may judge of the father's distress and anxiety, by finding that he trusts no mes-
senger, (though a man of such rank as to have many servants at his command,) (0)
but leaving the object of his love at the point of Heath at Capernaum, repairs in
person to Cana, — a distance of some six or eight hours. How untoward must he
have thought our Lord's prolonged absence ! How " unlucky" must that two-
days' sojourn at Sychar, and now this halt at Cana, have seemed ! Yet, perceive
we not that the Great Physician had been thereby dealing no less lovingly with
the father, than He was prepared now to deal with the son ? Was it not to try
the man's faith, and because He designed his great blessedness, that Christ had

(0 So in St. Luke ix. 11. (d) St. John ii. 23. (c) St. John iii. 2.

(/) See above, ver. 41, 42. [g) See below, ver. 48. (/() See the last note on St. John ii. 2.

(0 See St. John iii. 2 : vii. 50 : xix. 39. (k) St. John vi. 11 and 23.

{I) St. John i. 44 : xii. 21. (m) St. John xiii. 23, 25 : xxi. 20.

(n) St. Luke viii. 3. (o) See below, ver. 51.

i.Tl A PLAIN COMMENTARY [CHAP.

first lingered on the road, and now directed Hi- -•• pa not to Capernaum, bat to
Cana; — "knowing that tribulation," a- St, Paul testifies, and "the trying of
faith," as St. James declares,(p) "worketh patience; and patience, ■
and experience, bope; and bopemaketb not ashamed ?"(q I i more on this Bub-
<■ on St. Luke \. 17: and especially the notes on St. Mark \. - J1
and

It was doubtless Faith which brought this man from Capernaum to Cana, in
search of our Saviour: yet it is found to have been a most imperfect Faith. Thus,
es not believe that Cbbui can cure bis son at ■ distance.(r) Be think* (like
the Ruler of the Synagogue) that Be must perforce " come down," and perhaps
that Be uiii-t las JIU hand upon the Bufferer, in order to lii- recovery.(«) Be re-
minds us of the father of the lunatic boy,(<] rather than of the Gentile Centu-
rion,^) or the woman of Canaan,(x) or even the Ten Le]
of heart, therefore, our Swim r replies in the first instance.

18 Then said Jssi B unto him, Except ye see signs and wonders, y<
■will not believe.

•■ J''," -that is, ye Jews, My countrymen : so unlike those Samaritan aliens
whom I have lately left, and among whom I wrought no Bigns. Take notice that
these wonl- full) disclose to as the reason of the discipline to which the llo|\ < rne
was subjecting the man who addressed Bim; and who, while he came to obtain
help for his son, little suspected that he was even in greater want of the Divine
Physician, himself. Nothing but the sight of miracles and wonders would pro-
duce conviction :(z) whereas Faith and Sight are in a manner opposites. What a
contrast, by the way, was all this to the scene we have been bo lately witni
beside Samaria's Well, — where lie who Bpoke was a stranger, and they who lis-
tened were members of a despised race!

49 The Nobleman saith unto Him, Sir, come down ere my child die.

he had left him "at the point of death ;"(a) and his agony will brook nd
delay. From his reply, we perceive yet more clearly the limit- of the nobleman's

faith. He sup] b Christ a power will be ineffectual if his child dies. (6) Bow

far was he, in the meantime, from realising the object of those miraculous cures
which In- seems to have been already acquainted with, ami of which he was even

now Imploring the repetition '. lie knew not that the purpo f Christ's coming

was to build np the feeble in Faith; and that the chief object with which lie
healed bodily Bickneas, was to remedy .spiritual infirmity.

■7n .Ii.-i - Baitfa nut" Him, <l<> thy iray, thy son liveth.

The Physician of souls, seeing that Bis first medioine avails not, mercifully

another treatment ; ami wins \>\ benefits the man whom he could QOl move bj re-
in's. Thereby teaching those in the .Ministry that h_v various methods are
men to be gained over ; and reminding ns that resources mayyel be disci
even after our best-devised clans have failed.

Take notice of the Wisdom of theoourseour Baviovi pursued with this man.
Bad He complied with his request, -gone down with him to Capernaum, ami there
healed bis son,— the nobleman's faith must forever have remained weak: i-r he
would hive ascribed to Christ's present* what was the result only of His
H i I Be, "ii the oontrary, sent the nobleman awaj disappointed, the small spark of
faith in him would have 1 n entirely quenched. By granting one half of the man's

n, and denying the other. Be tanned that spark at once into B Ban

W hen the < lonturion told our S w toi a, of kit servant " lv ing a' home sick of tho
palsy, grierously tormented," he received for answer, *' I will come and heal him"(d)

LVOUr which he had not asked. Here OUT LORO IS entreated |.\ a NoMeiuan to
COme down and heal A is •mil. and He refuses. The reason of this diversity of treat

men! i- to be found in the spiritual condition of these two individuals, respectively.
Tic led. 1. -m in's imperfect faith was perfected by our Lord's refusal to come down •.

f fa) Roman i ) tad we below, the nol >*

M mil. i\. is. M

". iv. 87. i.v) Bee St. Ifatth. riii. der I Cor

[6)8et ebove, the latter part of the note on v>r. 17.
(■ i From Tylotun. (<ii St. Matth. vitt. 6, 7.

IV.] ON ST. JOHN'S GOSPEL. 675

the perfection of the Centurion's faith was displayed by our Lord's proposal to come
down. Both men become the Church's instructors : the first, in the way of warn-
ing ; the second, in the way of example.

It seems worth pointing out that as our Saviour abode for "two days" at Sychar,
and then restored the young man, so also when He heard that Lazarus was sick,
" He abode two days in the same place where He was," and then announced His
intention of going to "awake him out of sleep."(e) Were not these acts typical of
His own Resurrection "on the third day?" according to that of the prophet, —
"After two days will He revive us: in the third day He will raise us up, and we
shall live in His sight."(/)

And the man believed the word that Jesus had spoken unto him,
and he went his way.

Retracing his steps as we may suppose to Capernaum, with joy not unmingled
with anxiety: and travelling, as we shall presently discover, by night. (g) Take
notice that it is not here said of the nobleman that he believed in Christ. This
effect was to follow, and is declared to have followed in ver. 53 ; but the first ne-
cessary step had been taken, inasmuch as he believed His ivord: that is, he believed
it would be as Christ had said ; and departed convinced that his son was already
in the way of recovery. He will have afterwards attained the conviction that the
Holy One, besides announcing his child's recovery, had been the Author of it like-
wise.

51 And as he was now going down, his servants met him, and told
him, saying, Thy son liveth.

As soon as the wonderful change in the young man's state was witnessed, the
servants had been dispatched in quest of their master ; and now they greet him with
the very words which he had already heard from the lips of Christ.

52 Then inquired He of them the hour when he began to amend.

How natural is this ! " He wished to find out," (observes Chrysostom,) " whether
the recovery was accidental, or owing to our Lord's Word."

And they said unto Him, Yesterday at the seventh hour the fever
left him.

He asked his servants when the child began to amend. They tell him in reply,
that this has been no progressive recovery : but that, yesterday evening, his son
suddenly — got well. " At the seventh hour, the fever left him." . . . The reader is
referred to what has been already offered on this striking subject in the Commen-
tary on the latter part of St. Mark i. 31.

" The seventh hour" in the present Gospel denotes either seven o'clock in the morn-
ing, or seven in the evening : not one o'clock, — according to the Jewish mode of
reckoning Time. This has been already explained on ver. G. In this place, there-
fore, it will have been seven o'clock in the evening; for Capernaum is certainly not
more than 8 hours distant from Cana, and the servants met the nobleman on his
way back, — probably when he had got about half way. It was, however, the mor-
row when they met, as we discover from the servant's language ; which could not
have been the case had the miracle been wrought, and the journey commenced, in
the morning.

We have heard the nobleman's inquiry, and his servants' reply. The result will
remind us of the truth of the remark, that the more attentively we scrutinize the
works and the ways of God, the more will our Faith be nourished and increased.

53 So the father knew that it was at the same hour,

Rather; — "that [the fever left him] at the same hour," —

in the which Jesus said unto him, Thy son liveth : and he himself be-
lieved, and his whole house.

(e) St. John xi. 6, 11. (/) Hoseayi. 2.

(g) See below, the note on ver. 52.

A PLAJU COMMKK I [CHAP.

hich evidently imply at teas! thus much ;— that when the father heard
thai 1 1 i -= child had been restored to perfect health a* Beven o'clock on t!
evening, — and connected with this, the circnmstance that in the Belf-eame li"iir mir

I • i him tli>' comfortable assurance, "Thy bod liveth," — the mist
i up from hie son] at once, and he became a true believer in -li n • *'m:i-r.

II id arrived, although by slow and painful that point <<f Faith with
which the Centurion originally came to Chbist. Be perceived thai he had
discoursing with < >ne who could say to a Fever, as to a servant, "G and lie
goeth."(A) Thus a single sentence from the lips of the Lord* L l - < ' _\ r i 1 <>i
Alexandria remarks, i brought healing at i nee to two soali ! The nobleman "him-
geli believed ;" nor only bo, but be became the bead of a beli< ring household. Such
then was the gracious design with which illness had b into this >.
family 1 It was the Hand of Love which had brought his child to the brink of the
grave, and rendered the skill of the physicians ineffectual. Now all these things
•• were written for '>ur learning, that we through patience and comf S -ri j--
tures might have hope."(t)

Venerable Bede points out that "Faith, like the other virtues, is formed gradu-
ally; and has its beginning, growth, and maturity. The nobleman's faith bad its
beginning when he asked for bit Bon'e recovery; its growth when be believed our
LoRo's^words, 'Thy son liveth;' but it did not reach maturity, until the announce-
ment of the fact by his servants. "

54 Tiiis /.„• again the Becond miracle thai Jesi - did, when He
come out of Judsea into Galilee.

i iond miracle again Jbsi - did." The Evangelist has described

ther famous miracle, (the Water made Wine,) and this is the Becond.
wrought at Cana of Galilee; and they are brought into mysterious promin

by the very manner in which St. John records them: the one, as i :

miracles;" (A:) the other, as the lt second miracle.''

<• 11 A PTEB \ .

the Sabbath day cureth him thai lo

T/i< Jews therefore cavil, and pet Him for U, IT ll> answereth for Jlii

roveth them, shoving by the testimony oj li Fathj
H\ 9 and of the Scriptw

1 A; mi: this there n ist of the Jews ; and J entupto
• I osalem.

The Feast of the Passover is probably intended,- tl

ndicatcd in the < tospeu.

2 N"-.\ there ia si Jerusalem by the Bhee] h is
led in the Hebrew tongue Bethesda, hai

" — as in the margin.fa i " Bethesda" means either

II li of Washing." Seethe note on St. John vi. 1. It

o worth observing that the Greek word which I in St. John ix.

7.) i ■ • P !. " literally ** a Bath for swimming in,") was the name which

irly i Ihristi Baptisteri . and to their Baptismi

(A) -

(ft) 8U John li. 11. (a I bemiahilLl: siL

v.]

ON ST. JOHN'S GOSPEL. 677

sider the foot note on St. Luke v. 10: and the first note on St. Matthew xiii. 47.
Bothesda itself, with its five porticos, was evidently a considerable edifice ; for it
follows : —

3 In these lay a great multitude of impotent folk, of blind, halt,
withered, waiting for the moving of the water.

The water of this Bath, which availed to heal every form of disorder, (as we read
in the next verse,) was clearly typical of the Water of Baptism : which heals the
soul by virtue of a Divine Efficacy imparted to it. Mark the contrast, however, be-
tween the Laver of Regeneration, (6) unexhausted and inexhaustible, — the "Foun-
tain opened to the House of David and to the inha