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5.
the:
DAYS OF HIS FLESH
THE EARTHLY LIFE OF
OUR LORD AND SAVIOUR JESUS CHRIST
BY THE REV.
DAVID SMITH, M.A., D.D.
rROFSSSOR OF THEOLOGY IN MAGEE COLLEGE, LONOONORRRY
AUTHOR OF "the PILGRIM's HOSPICE," ETC.
TENTH EDITION
.'^'
HODDER AND STOUGHTON
LONDON NEW YORK TORONTO
MCMXIV
EDITIONS PRIifTED
First Edition
Second Edition
Third Edition
Fourth Edition ,
Fifth Edition
Sixth Edition
Seventh Edition .
Eighth Edition, Revised
Ninth Edition
Tenth Edition
September igog
November igof
February jqo6
August igo6
December igo6
November igorj
February jgog
July rpio
December igit
January 1914
\
TURNBULL AND SPBARS, PRINTERS, BOINBUKGH, GRKAT BRITAIN
MY MOTHER AND SISTERS
** Methougkt I saw with great evidence, from the four
evangelists, the wonderful works of God, in giving
Jesus Christ to save us, from his conception and birth
even to his second coming to Judgment. Methought
I was as if I had seen him grow up as from the cradle
to the cross, to which also, when he came, I saw how
gently he gave himself to be hanged and nailed on it
for my sins and wicked doing. Also, as I was musing
e*t this his progress, that "dropped on my spirit, he
was ordained for the slaughter." — John Bunyan.
PREFACE
The aim of this work is two-fold. In the Introduction I
have endeavoured to vindicate the historicity of the evangelic
records and adduce reason for believing, in opposition to an
influential school of modern criticism, that they present Jesus
as He actually lived among men, and not as He appeared to
a later generation through a haze of reverence and superstition.
And in the subsequent chapters I have sought, by interpreting
what the Evangelists have written, to justify the Church's faith
in Him as the Lord from Heaven. It might be well for such
as lack taste or aptitude for technical discussion to pass over
the Introduction.
My thanks are due to the Rev. W. Robertson Nicoll,
LL.D., who invited me to undertake the task and has guided
me in its execution ; to the Rev. Professor Marcus Dods,
D.D., New College, Edinburgh, the Rev. Professor James
Stalker, D.D., United Free Church College, Aberdeen, the
Rev. George Reith, D.D., College Church, Glasgow, the Rev.
H. A. A. Kennedy, D.Sc, Callander, and the Rev. S. G.
MacLennan, MA., Sherbrooke United Free Church, Glasgow,
who read my MSS. and gave me profitable criticism ; to
J. D. C. S. and C. A. S. who have aided me much, especially
in preparing the Indexes ; and to the Rev. James Angus,
Stirling, for his counsel and sympathy.
D. a
TUIXI ALLAN U.F. MaNSB,
KlNCABJDINK-ON-FOKTH, N.B.
PREFACE TO THE EIGHTH EDITION
In the present edition I have corrected several clerical errors
and made a few additions to the notes.
My one desire in writing this book was to help others to
a deeper knowledge of the Lord Jesus by showing them what
I had seen of His grace and glory ; and I bless Him for
many testimonies that He h<is owned my poor service.
D. S.
4 Thb Collsgk,
londonderkt.
CONTENTS
INTRODUCTION
VAGI
The Evangelic Records . , , . . . ix
CHAPTER I
The Wondrous Birth ...... i
CHAPTER II
The Silent Years ....... 14
CHAPTER III
The Messiah's Call ...... 35
CHAPTER IV
The Messiah's Temptation ..... 34
CHAPTER V
The Messiah's Manifestation unto Israel ... 4a
CHAPTER VI
The First Miracle . . . . . .53
CHAPTER VII
At the Passovkr . , , . ^ . . 58
viii CONTENTS
CHAPTER VIII
Among the' Samaritans . . . ... 69
CHAPTER IX
Settlement at Capernaum ..... 80
CHAPTER X
The Lord's Choice of the Men who should be with Him Sy
CHAPTER XI
In the Synagogue of Capernaum , ... 94
CHAPTER XII
A Mission through Galilee , , , , ,110
CHAPTER XIII
The Gathering Storm . , , . » ,116
CHAPTER XIV
The Offence of Befriending Sinners , , , 123
CHAPTER XV
The Offence of Sabbath-breaking . , • ,131
CHAPTER XVI
The Pool of Bethesda ....,, 138
CHAPTER XVII
The Twelve Apostles ...... I4S
CONTENTS
CHAPTER XVIII
The Ordination of the Twelve .... 157
FACB
CHAPTER XIX
A Lesson in Prayer ...... 168
CHAPTER XX
Renewed Confuct . , . , , , .176
CHAPTER XXI
Teaching by Parables ...... 183
CHAPTER XXII
Retreat across the Lake .. ... 189
CHAPTER XXIII
Back in Capernaum ...... 196
CHAPTER XXIV
In the House of Simon the Pharisee , . .102
CHAPTER XXV
Another Mission through Galilee . , . .21a
CHAPTER XXVI
The Closing Scene of the Baptist's Life . , .221
CHAPTER XXVII
Another Retreat across the Lake . , , ,331
CONTENTS
CHAPTER XXVIII
Controversies in Capernaum ..... 240
CHAPTER XXIX
Retreat into Phoenicia ...... 247
CHAPTER XXX
Wanderings ,...•.•• 254
CHAPTER XXXI
The Great Confession . . . . . .260
CHAPTER XXXII
Sufferings and Glory ...... 267
CHAPTER XXXIII
The Return to Capernaum ..... 277
CHAPTER XXXIV
Lingering in Galilee ...... 289
CHAPTER XXXV
The Journey through Galilee ..... 300
CHAPTER XXXVI
The Journey through Samaria .... 320
CHAPTER XXXVII
Ministry in Jerusalem ...... 330
CONTENTS xl
CHAPTER XXXVIIl
rACB
Retreat to Bethany beyond Jordan .... 354
CHAPTER XXXIX
The Raising of Lazarus ...... 367
CHAPTER XL
Going up to the Passover ..... 376
CHAPTER XLI
The Entry into Jerusalem ..... 390
CHAPTER XLII
Encounters with the Rulers ..... 397
CHAPTER XLIII
The Great Indictment . . . , . .411
CHAPTER XLIV
Discourse about Things to Come . . . .421
CHAPTER XLV
The Upper Room ....... 435
CHAPTER XLVl
The Arrest in Gethsemane ..... 45a
CHAPTER XLVII
Before the High Priests ..... 463
xii
CONTENTS
CHAPTER XLVIII
Before Pontius Pilate
477
CHAPTER XLIX
The Crucifixion ....
491
CHAPTER L
The Resurrection .•••... 508
APPENDIXES
I. Objections to the Miraculous Conception . . 527
II. St John's Method of Reckoning the Hours of the
Day 528
III. "The Son of Man" 529
IV. "Second-first Sabbath" ..... 530
V. The Unnamed Feast ..... S3I
VI. Chronology of the Passion-week . • .532
VII. The Murder of Zechariah . , . -533
VIII. The Day of the Crucifixion . » . .533
INDEXES
L Names and Subjects
II. Greek Words and Phrases
III. The Gospel Text .
541
546
547
INTRODUCTION
THE EVANGELIC RECORDS
§ I. Our Lord Jesus Christ was a Jew according to the flesK,
and the story of His life and teaching was preserved after the
Jewish method. That method was oral transmission, and its
efficiency is attested by the amazing fact that it was not at the
earliest until the fifth century of our era that the Rabbinical
literature was reduced to writing. It was at least a century
before the birth of Jesus that the Halacha and Haggada came
into existence, and during all those centuries that voluminous
and ever-growing literature was carried in the memories of
the Rabbis and their disciples and orally transmitted from
generation to generation.^ " Commit nothing to writing " was
the maxim of the Rabbis,' prompted originally by their
reverence for the Written Law (^J^^ac' nn^ri). They subse-
quently claimed for the Oral Law ('"iB 7J?3K' rnw) no less
antiquity and even greater worth,' alleging that it had been
delivered to Moses on Mount Sinai along with the Written
Law, had come to Ezra and the Great Synagogue through
the Prophets, and had been transmitted orally ever since ; *
nevertheless they still adhered to the maxim, and the
diligence of the Rabbis was directed to the immaculate trans-
mission of the Oral Law. " Raise up many disciples " was
their motto,' and their disciples were drilled in the multi-
tudinous precepts of that interminable tradition until they had
them by heart. The lesson was repeated over and over till
it was engraved upon their memories, and hence the term
for Rabbinical instruction was Mtsknah, " repetition." • Nor
^ Cf. the rhapsodes, who recited the Homeric poems from memory (Jos. C. Ap,
\. § 2) ; the Druids : " magnum ibi numerum versuum ediscere dicantur . . . neque
(as esse existimant ea litteris mandare " (Cses. De Bell. Gall. vi. 14).
'Jost, Gesck. deijud. i. 367. "Lightfoot on ML xr. 3.
*Lightfoot, i, p. 517 ; W. R. Smith, O.T. in Jew. Ck. p. 60.
•Taylor, Say, of Fat k. i. I.
' Greek 8evT4p<i}irit. Cf. Jer. Algas. Qwest, x.
A wii
xiv THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
was it only while they sat at the Rabbis' feet that the disciples
conned their lesson. It must never be out of their minds.
" Two that sit together without words of the Law," said R.
Chananiah ben Teradion, " are a session of scorners ; for it is
said: 'Nor sitteth in the seat of the scornful' (Ps. i. i);
but two that sit together and are occupied in words of the
Law, have the Shekinah among them ; for it is said : ' Then
they that feared the Lord spake often one to another, etc'
(Mai. iii. i6)." "He who is walking by the way and study-
ing," said R. Jacob, " and breaks off his study {Mishnah) and
says : ' How fine is this tree ! how fine is that tree ! and how
fine is this fallow ! ' they account it to him as if he were guilty
of death." ^ Nothing must interrupt a man in his study, not
even the sacred office of burying the dead, unless there were
no one else to perform it.*
It is marvellous how the faculty of remembrance was
fostered by this method. Eliezer ben Hyrcanus, one of the
five disciples of R. Jochanan ben Zakai, was likened to " a
plastered cistern which loseth not a drop." ' " Should any of
us," says Josephus,* " be questioned about the laws, he would
repeat them all more easily than his own name. Indeed
from the very dawn of understanding ^ we learn them off and
have them, as it were, engraved on our souls." Such had
been the historian's own precocity that at the age of fourteen
he was consulted by the High Priests and the rulers about
minuticB of the Law.*
The study of the Law was thus a purely mechanical
exercise, and the least disposition to originality would have
been fatal to proficiency. The qualifications were a retentive
memory and scrupulous adherence to the letter of the tradi-
tion. It must be handed on exactly as it had been received,
ipstssimis verbis or, as the phrase was, " in the tongue of the
Rabbi " Oiai pi^a) ; f and, if a disciple forgot a word of
his Mishnah, it was accounted to him as if he were guilty of
death.' " He who teaches anything," said R. Eliezer, " which
he has not heard from his master, provokes the divine Majesty
* Taylor, Say. of Fatk. iii. 3, ii ; Lightfoot on Lk. xxiv. 32.
■Wetstein on Mt. viii. 21. 'Taylor, Say. of Fat h. ii. la
* C. Ap. ii. § 18. » C/. 2 Tim. iii. 15. • Vit. % 2. ' Eduj. i. 3.
* Taylor, Say. of Fath. iii. 12.
THE EVANGELIC RECORDS xv
to depart from Israel." *■ And no statement was authoritative
unless it were prefaced by " R. So-and-so says." *
§ 2. Such was the Jewish method, and it was at once
natural and inevitable that the Apostles, being Jews, should
follow it in recording the life and teaching of Jesus. The
prejudice against " committing anything to writing " was
carried over into the Christian Church, and even St Chry-
sostom regarded written records as a dernier ressort. * The
record of the Lord's words and works was the tradition of
the Apostles ; but they did not so entitle it They re-
membered how Jesus had condemned the tradition of the
Scribes (Mt xv. 3, 6) ; and, moreover, the word vapaboaii
sounded ominously in their ears, since it meant " betrayal "
as well as " tradition " (t/i Mt xxvi. 45-6 = Mk. xiv. 41-2).
They used another term, very beautiful and significant —
" the True Deposit" * The meaning of the term is well
illustrated by Herodotus' story of the Spartan Glaukos to
whose custody a certain Milesian committed half his wealth,
and who refused to deliver up the " deposit " when it was
reclaimed.* It furnished a striking metaphor. " God," says
St Paul, " hath put in our keeping {dt/Mivoi iv rifiTv) the Word
of Reconciliation" (2 Cor. v. 19). "They that lie," says
Hermas,' " make themselves defrauders of God, not rendering
unto Him the deposit which they received." " Show your-
selves proved bankers " is one of the most striking of the
aypapa of Jesus ; '' and it is remarkable that it was interpreted
in the primitive Church as inculcating the duty of dis-
tinguishing between true and false scriptures, as bankers test
coins whether they be genuine or counterfeit' The apostolic
account of the sayings and doings of Jesus was the True
» Lightfoot on Mt. xxiii, 7. ' Ligbtfoot on Mt. vii. 29.
' 2n Matth. i ad init. Cf. Iren. Adv. Bar. iii. 2.
• 2 Tim. i. 14 : ttjv koKi^v vapaB^Krjv. Ka\6s {cf. p. 349, n. 2) was used of
genuine as opposed to counterfeit coin. Cf. Xen. Mem. iii. i. § 9 : 3ta7t7J'W(r*«u'
rb re KoKhv ipyOpiop koI t6 Kl^drjXor. I Thess. v. 21,
» Her. vi. 86. Cf. Lev, vi, 2, 4 (LXX) ; Plin. E^. x. loi : the accused Chris-
tians pled "se Sacramento non in scelus aliquod obstringere, sed ne . . . fidem
fallerent, ne depositum appellcUi abnegarent."
• Pctst. M. iii. § 2. Cf. Eus. H. E. iii, 23.
^ Orig. In Joan. xLx. § 2: t-J)* ivroK^v 'IrjffoD Xiyovcaf S6ki/uh -paxe^rcn
ylytaOt. In Matth. xii. § 2 ; In Luc. Horn. L Cf. Ceb. Tab. 831.
• Clem, Rom. Horn. ii. § 31.
xvi THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
Deposit, and it was the sacred duty of those to whose
custody it had been committed to guard it no less faithfully
than the Rabbis guarded the tradition of the elders. It was
a two-fold vigilance that they must exercise. They must see
to it, on the one hand, that nothing was lost, and, on the other,
that it suffered no change. With a reverent sense of their re-
sponsibility they must hand it on unimpaired and uncorrupted.
"The True Deposit guard by the Holy Spirit that dwelleth in us."
" O Timothy," says St Paul, " guard the Deposit, turning
away from profane babblings and oppositions of the Knowledge
falsely named, which certain professing missed the mark as
regards the Faith" (i Tim. vi. 20-1). Heretical teachers
had been busy at Ephesus, certain persons (r/«f) well known,
whom the Apostle might have named and whom Timothy
would immediately identify. The epistle is full of them
(i. 6-2 ; iv. 1-3, 7 ; vi. 3-5). They were heretics of the
blatant sort, loud-mouthed and shallow-minded, puffed up
with windy vanity (cf. vi. 4). It would seem that their
teaching was of two kinds. Some were of a philosophical
turn and unsettled the minds of the believers by their meta-
physical disputations — " oppositions of the Knowledge falsely
named " {c/. Col. ii. 8). Others again tickled the fancies of
their hearers with silly and unhistorical legends which the
Apostle justly brands here as ^t^tiXovt xtvopuvlas and in iv. 7
as ^t^fi^tus xal yfawhtii ftvdoui — the sort of fables wherewith
the apocryphal Gospels crowd the Silent Years. The cir-
culation of those base counterfeits discredited the True
Deposit. " O Timothy," pleads St Paul, " guard the De-
posit" Nen enim, says Erasmus, vult aliquid addi traditis.
This passage reveals a necessity which emerged at that stage
of the history of the primitive Church and which must have
cost the Apostles much anxious thought — the necessity of
effectively safe-guarding the evangelic tradition and preserving
it alike from mutilation and corruption by committing it to
writing and stereotyping it in a permanent record. Littera
scripta tnanet. It would be in consequence of this anxious
solicitude for the True Deposit that the canonical Gospels
were put into shape and an authoritative version of the
evangelic history given to the Church.^
* Q". Chrytost U.
THE EVANGELIC RECORdS xvii
§ 3. Ere the story was written, there was a class of
teachers in the primitive Church whose function it was to
go about instructing the believers in the oral tradition and
drilling it into their minds after the fashion of the Rabbinical
schools.^ They were named the Catechisers (•/ xarijp^oC^nj)
and their scholars the catechumens (0/ xar»j;^ou/4iMi) ' — an ex-
pressive name, since xarriy^^th signifies to t/in a thing into a
person's ears by incessant iteration.* Their Mishnah was
called " teaching " (3/iaffxaX/o), and it was hard and disagree-
able work with none of the inspiration of preaching about
it St Paul, borrowing the phrase which the Rabbis used of
their Mishnah, speaks of it as " labour." * Nevertheless it
was a most necessary service at a time when there was no
written record and believers were dependent on oral in-
struction for their knowledge of the Gospel history ; and St
Paul was careful to remind the Church of the debt which it
owed to its Catechisers.
§ 4. The oral tradition emanated from the Apostles,
being their testimony to the things which they had seen and
heard.^ It was preserved and disseminated far and wide by
the Catechisers ; and, when the Evangelists composed their
narratives, they simply reduced the oral tradition to writing,
each adopting the version of it which was current in his
locality. The First Gospel represents the tradition as it
circulated in Judaea, and, though it was not written as it
stands by Matthew, it was certainly derived from him and
is stamped with his authority." The Second Gospel repre-
sents the tradition as it circulated in the Roman Church, and
^ Cf. Wright, Compos, of the Four Gosp. ; Synops.
s Gal. vi. 6. Cf. Lk. i. 3 ; Acts xxi. 21.
• Cf. Chrysost. In Joan, xviii : In old days, after some crisis in his experience,
a man gof a new name as a memorial of the goodness of God, that it might be
continually dinned into the ears of those who heard the name {jiprtxvrat^ rtXt
• I Tim. ▼. 17. Cf. Lightfoot on Lk. v. i.
» Lk. i, 2. Clem. Alex, speaks {Strom. I. i. § II ; fragm. oi Hypotyp. in Eu*.
H. E. ii. I) of a tradition received from the Lord after the Resurrection by Peter
and James, John and Paul {cf. i Cor. xi. 23), and transmitted by them. Ep. ad
Diogn. xi : airorrbXuv -rapddora ^vXdffvrrai. Justin M. calls the Gospels tA
uirofj.rrjfwvevfiaTa rwr 6,xoaT(iKinp,
• Mt.'s Gospel, according to ancient and credible testimony, was a Hebrew,
i.e. Aramaic, book of Logia. It is probably the basis of our First Gospel. Cf.
Papias in Eus. H. E. iii. 39 ; ibid. iii. 24 ; Iren. Ado. H«r. iii. i ; Orig. In Mattk,
i ; Jer. Script. Eccl. under Mattkaus.
xviii THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
it has this connection with Peter, that Mark was his com-
panion and enjoyed the advantage of hearing his discourses.*
At the request of the believers at Rome, it is said, he wrote
a short Gospel, and, when Peter heard it, he approved it and
sanctioned the reading of it by the Church.* The Third
Gospel, composed by Luke, the physician of Antioch and
the companion of Paul, represents the tradition as it circulated
in Asia Minor and Achaia, and is pervaded by the spirit
of the Apostle of the Gentiles.' The Evangelists were not
authors but editors ; they reduced the oral tradition to writ-
ing, and therefore it is that their books are entitled, not the
Gospel ofy but the Gospel according to Matthew, Mark, Luke.
§ 5. The evangelic tradition has thus been preserved in
three editions : the Judaean, the Roman, and the Greek ; and
it is a striking evidence of the fidelity wherewith the True
Deposit was guarded that these three editions, though circula-
ting in regions so remote and diverse, have remained so true
to their common source. So little variation have they under-
gone in their independent transmission that it is possible to
arrange the first three Gospels — hence called the Synoptics —
in parallel columns, exhibiting almost verbal agreement And
such divergences as they display make it clear that their
agreement is not due to inter-dependence : the earliest Gospel
did not set the type, its successors being merely revised
editions of it Compare, for instance :
Ml ix. 6.
tra W tlhr(T€ Sri i^ovalaw
lx«« i vlbt Tov i.y6f><l)irov ixl
r^i yijt i^Upcu inaprlat —
rArt \eyti t^J wapaXvriKif
tiyeipe i.p6v vov r^v kKIyt)*
0.al Orar/e tit row elxSr vov.
Mk. ii. 10- 1.
fro ii elirfTt 5n i^ovclai>
^« 6 vlos Tou ivOpdyrov i^n-
ivcLi i/jMpTlat (tI rfjt y^t
— Xfyet T<^ Tapa\in-iK(fi
2oi \iyu, lyeipt ipop top
Kpi^arrbw gov KoX (nraryt tls
TOP ol/re'r vov.
Lk. ▼. 24.
&a Si elSiJTt in 6 vlbs rw
opffpiltrov i^ovfflap ex« frJ
TTJi yTJt a^epcu ifj-aprlai —
etrep r^ rapa\e\vfjie»(f> SoJ
Xryw, €yeip« Kal ipat to
kKipISiop ffov Topeiov e/t rir
oIkop ami.
On the supposition that Mt is a revision of Mk., and Lk. a
revision of both, the retention of that awkward parenthesis
throughout and the introduction of two or three merely verbal
and quite insignificant alterations are inexplicable. The truth
is that each Gospel is an independent reproduction of the
apostolic tradition, and the differences are such variations as
were natural and inevitable in the process of oral transmission.
» PapiM in Eui. H. E. iiL 39. » Jcr. ScHpt. Eccl. under Marcus.
' Ihid, under Lucas ; Irea. Uc,
THE EVANGELIC RECORDS xix
§ 6. The Evangelists were not so much authors as editors,
and their task was one which required no little discrimination.
Since the oral tradition covered the whole of our Lord's
ministry, they had before them a huge mass of material, and
it was impossible for them to incorporate all of it in their
books (cf. John xx. 30-1). They had perforce to omit much
which possessed exceeding value and interest, much which
they no doubt would gladly have included and we would
gladly have learned. Some fragments of the omitted material
have reached us by other channels to our great enrichment
To St Paul we owe the preservation of one exquisite logion
(Acts XX. 35), and on the pages of the Fathers we find others
which in not a few instances may well be authentic.^ More-
over, it was the custom of readers in early days to write com-
ments on the margins of their MSS., and it sometimes happened
that a copyist, mistaking such an annotation for an accidental
omission, would innocently insert it in his text Often worth-
less stuff was thus intruded into the sacred narrative, but
occasionally the interpolation was an authentic fragment of
the tradition which had reached the reader's ears and which
he desired to preserve. Such are that precious logion, included
in T. R. but rejected on documentary evidence by Tisch., W.
H., and R.V. : " Ye know not what spirit ye are of. For the
Son of Man came not to destroy but to save men's lives " (Lk. ix.
55-6) ; the Pericop^ (John vii. 53 — viii. 11), which is probably
a reader's marginal note over against viii. 15, and which has
its true place among the Lord's encounters with the rulers
during the Passion-week ; ' the prayer of Jesus at the Cruci-
fixion (Lk. xxiii. 34). After Lk. vi. 4 one MS. interpolates
an incident which also may be an authentic fragment of the
oral tradition.' Dr Duff, the celebrated missionary, found
this inscription in Arabic in the gateway of the mosque of
Futtehpore Sikri : " Jesus, on whom be peace, has said : ' The
world is merely a bridge ; you are to pass over it and not to
build your dwellings upon it' " *
» Cf. Westcott, Introd. to the Stud, of the Gosp., Append. C; Resch, Agrapk*
in Gebhardt and Hamack's Text. u. Untersuch. v. 4.
' In a few MSS. the Pericopi stands after Lk. xxi. 38. Cf. W. H. n.
* D : T^ airr^ illi-ipq. 0faffdfiey6i riva ipya^6fiet>ot> rif ffa^^drtf) tlrev adr^*
'AyOpunre, €l fiiv olSat tL roietj, fuxKapiot el* tl 8i fii] oWai, triKaTopaTOt koI rapa-
pirrii tt Tov j'6/iou. Cf. p. 1 35.
* Dr Geo. Smith's Lt/e 0/ Duff, ii. p. 164.
XX THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
§ 7. Not only were the Evangelists obliged to omit much
of the oral tradition, but they exercised no small measure of
editorial freedom. It may easily be understood that they
found their material in a somewhat sporadic condition. Like
the rhapsodes who, while they carried the forty-eight books of
the Homeric poems in their memories, recited on each occasion
only a particular episode, the Catechisers would on each
occasion repeat over only so much of the tradition. In this
way it got broken up into sections, and the chronological
sequence was lost Consequently, when they took in hand the
business of editing it, the Evangelists found themselves face to
face with a large assortment of disconnected material, much a?
though a modem editor had before him a pile of loose leaflets
which he must weave into a continuous narrative. To ascer-
tain the historical sequence was, to a large extent, impossible ;
nor was it indeed any great matter to the Evangelists. Their
aim was not to chronicle the events of the Lord's ministry but
to pourtray Himself; and therefore they arranged their
material rather topically than chronologically, bringing to-
gether passages which, though they might belong to different
occasions, illustrated some aspect of His work or person.^
§ 8. An instructive example of the editorial method of the
Evangelists is furnished by that long discourse commonly
called " the Sermon on the Mount " (Mt v.-vii.). It is really not
a single discourse but a collection of discourses delivered to
different audiences and on different occasions. One special
aim of the First Evangelist, following the lines of Matthew's
Book of Logia, was to report the teaching of Jesus ; and,
just as Luke, in pursuance of his design to exhibit the
Grace of Jesus, has transferred the Lord's visit to the
Synagogue of Nazareth, when "they all marvelled at the
words of grace that proceeded out of His mouth," from its
actual position well on in His ministry to the very commence-
ment, setting it there as a sort of frontispiece to show his
readers at the outset "the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ"
(Lk. iv. 16-30; cf. Mt xiii. 54-8 = Mk. vL 1-6), so the First
Evangelist has woven several discourses into one and placed
it at the beginning of his Gospel as a sample of the Lord's
» q. Plmy'i arrangement of his epistles : " Collegi, non serrato temporis ordin«
(aequo cum histonam componebam), sed ut quacque in maaus venerat."
THE EVANGELIC RECORDS xxi
teaching. Nor is it difficult to resolve it into its com-
ponent parts and restore each to its historical setting.
1. Mt. V. 1-16, 39b-42,44-8,vii. 1-6, 12, 15-27 is the Ordi-
nation Address to the Twelve. Cf. Lk. vi. 20-38, 41-9, xi. 33.
2. MLvi. 9-15, vii. 7-1 1 belongs to the Lesson on Prayet
Cf. Lk. xi. I- 1 3.
3. Mt. vii. 13-4, with viii. n-2, is the Lord's answer to
the question : " Are there few that are being saved ? " Cf.
Lk. xiii. 23-30.
4. Mt. vi. 19-34, belongs to the Discourse on Worldly-
mindcdness. Cf. Lk. xii. 13-34. Observe how the discourse
in Mt. fits on to the parable in Lk. : " So is he that layeth up
treasure for himself and is not rich towards God (Lk.). Lay
not up for yourselves treasures, etc." (Mt.).
5. There remains Mt. v. i7-39a, 43, vi. 1-8, 16-8. All
this is peculiar to Mt. except, v. 25-6, which is given by Lk.
as an unconnected logion (xii. 58-9). Is it possible to place
this section in its historical setting ? It is remarkable that
the conclusion of " the Sermon on the Mount " (Mt vii.
28-9) is identical with the observation which Mk. and Lk.
make on the impression produced by our Lord's discourse in
the Synagogue of Capernaum (Mk. i. 22 = Lk. iv. 32); and
it is an attractive and reasonable inference that this homeless
section of " the Sermon on the Mount " is nothing else than
a report of that discourse. If it be so, then the Evangelists
have divided between them the oral tradition's narrative of
what happened at Capernaum ; Mt reproducing, at least in
part, its report of the discourse, and Mk. and Lk. its account
of the miracle (Mk. i. 21-8 = Lk. iv. 3 1-7).^
A kindred example is furnished by Mt's report of the
Lord's commission to the Twelve (x. 5-42). Much of it was
doubtless spoken in that connection, but the Evangelist
has introduced logia spoken on other occasions, fragments
of the abundant teaching which Jesus addressed to the
Twelve during His intercourse with them. Lk. has distributed
the material between the commission of the Twelve and that
of the Seventy (ix. 3-5 ; x. 2-12); and he has betrayed his
editorial method by first including x. 4 in the latter and
' Mt. V. 38-9a and 43 are editorial additions. Observe the abbreviation of the
recurrent formula: " Ye have heard, etc," when alien matter is introduced (rr. 31,
38. 43).
XXll
THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
subsequently reporting the Lord's allusion to it as a com-
mand to the Twelve (xxii. 3 5). Again, ML has prematurely
included in the commission to the Twelve a prediction of
persecution (x. 17-22) which Mk. (xiil 9-13) and Lk. (xxL
12-7) have put with more probability in the apocalyptic
discourse. It may be added that Mt x. 34-42 is apparently
a series of disconnected logia^ and Mk. has given v. 42 a
more appropriate setting in the discourse on humility in
Peter's house (ix. 41).
§ 9. It was nothing unusual for the Evangelists to intro-
duce thus, in what they deemed appropriate places, logia
connected with incidents which they had omitted. Lk.
omits the discourse in the Synagogue of Capernaum, but he
has preserved, though with little relevance to the context,
one memorable fragment of it (Lk. xvl i7 = Mt v. i8).
Lk. reports the question : " Are there few that are being
saved?" and the Lord's answer (xiil 23-30); Mt omits the
question, but, true to his purpose of reporting the teaching
of Jesus, he gives the answer, partly in one connection, partly
in another (viL 13-4; viii. 11-2). Lk. alone records our
Lord's entertainment by one of the rulers of the Pharisees
(xiv. 1-14) ; but Mt has, suitably enough, inserted a sentence
of His discourse on that occasion in his report of the Great
Indictment (Mt xxiii 12 =» Lk. xiv. 11). Lk. omits the Great
Indictment, but he gives in another and obviously unhistorical
though not unfelicitous connection the exquisite apostrophe
wherewith, according to Mt, it closes (Lk. xiii. 34-5 =Mt
xxiii. 37-9) ; and he reports a large part of it as a discourse of
Jesus at a Pharisee's table (xL 37-52) — an impossible connec-
tion, since Jesus would never have committed so gross a
discourtesy. He omits the ambitious request of the sons of
Zebedee (Mt xx. 20-8 = Mk. x. 35-45) ; but he gives a frag-
ment of the Lord's rebuke on that occasion in connection with
the contention in the Upper Room (xxiL 25-6), where the
actual answer was the acted parable of the feet-washing
(John xiiL 1-17). Mt omits the contention in the Upper
Room, but he inserts in the Great Indictment a passage
(xxiiL 8-12) which belongs thereto {cj. John xiii. 13-5).^
* The ET»ngelisti frequently insert in what they deem sniuble places l^ia
vhow original connection is quite lost, their present connection being often
THE EVANGELIC RECORDS xxiii
Another example is furnished by the triple account of the
Passover in the Upper Room. Lk. mentions not only the
distribution of the bread and wine at the institution of the
Supper, but the mixing of the cup wherewith, according to
the paschal rubric, the feast began, and tells how, when Jesus
had taken this first cup, He made the announcement : ** I
shall not hereafter drink of this fruit of the vine until that
day when I shall drink it with you new in the Kingdom of
My Father" (xxil 17-8). Mt. and Mk. make no mention
of the first cup, but they record the solemn announcement,
appending it to the distribution of the sacramental cup at the
close of the feast (Mt xxvi. 29 = Mk. xiv. 25).
§10. Again the Evangelists make no scruple to introduce
an incident in unchronological order because it illustrates the
theme in hand Thus, at ix. 5 i Lk. makes Jesus bid fare-
well to Galilee and set out on His last journey to Jerusalem ;
yet he afterwards recounts much that happened in Galilee.
The explanation is that w. 51-6 serve to illustrate xw. 49-50,
being a further instance of the disciples' intolerance and the
Lord's disapprobation thereof. The Evangelist, arranging
his material topically rather than chronologically, has brought
the two passages into connection, and, having started a new
section of the tradition, he continues it, with sundry interpola-
tions (ix. ^7 — x. 16, 21-4), down to x. 42. With such
scrupulous fidelity does he reproduce the tradition that he
retains its preface to the forestalled passage (ix. 51), thus
betraying his procedure and enabling us to refer the passage
to its rightful position after xviiL 14.^
A cognate instance occurs in the parallel accounts of the
supper at Bethany (Mt xxvi i-i3 = Mk.xiv. 1-9 = John
xii. i-ii). Mt and Mk. seem to put it two days before the
Passover, whereas John expressly puts it six days before the
Passover. The truth is that it happened as John relates, and
Mt and Mk., following perhaps the catechetical practice, bring
the story of what befell at Bethany into juxtaposition Wr-ith
the Betrayal (Mt xxvi i4-6 = Mk. xiv. lO-iV The idea
artificud and verbal, Cf. Mt. xiL 33-7 = Lk. vi. 43-5. Lfi* an diroroe, abtMft
which the Champion of the oppressed would say mach, are inserted here and there.
<7. Mt. ▼. 31-2 : Lk. xtL 18.
»XTiL II resumes ix- 51. *Cf. Ang. Dt Csm. £». 5. f ISJ.
xxiv THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
evidently is that the traitor's foul deed was provoked by the
Lord's rebuke. It was a stroke of revenge.
§ 1 1. Such free manipulation of their material on the
part of the Evangelists was not only warrantable but in-
evitable. The oral tradition was all in confusion, and, when
they undertook the task of editing it, they could do naught
else than exercise their discretion in the arrangement of its
disconnected sections. And they set to work in no reckless
spirit It is remarkable that hand in hand with their freedom
in arranging it went a scrupulous regard for its literal repro-
duction, a steadfast determination to preserve its language
intact This appears in their welding of the sections. They
did not as a rule hold themselves at liberty to forge new links
of connection, but retained the prefaces which they found in
the tradition even when by so doing they introduced
inconsistencies into their narratives. Thus, Mt begins his
third chapter with the formula : " And in those days," though
he is resuming his narrative after an interval of thirty years.
At the beginning of "the Sermon on the Mount" (v. i) he
makes the auditors the disciples^ at the end the multitudes ;
the explanation being that v. i is the tradition's preface to
the Ordination Address and vii, 28-9 its comment on the
discourse in the Synagogue {cf. Mk. i. 22 = Lk. iv. 32). The
triple tradition relates the healing of the withered hand
immediately after the plucking of the ears of com (Mt. xii.
9 = Mk. iii. I = Lk. vi. 6) ; but, whereas Mt puts the inci-
dents on the same day, Lk. puts them on different Sabbaths
and Mk. says vaguely : " He entered again into a synagogue."
Probably the tradition contained some intervening matter,
involving a space of time between the incidents. Mt has
simply let the tradition's preface stand ; Mk. has modified it
just enough to avoid a positive misstatement ; while Lk. has
more boldly inserted " on another Sabbath.'^ Cf. Mt xiii. i
= Mk. iv. I = Lk. viii. 4 ; Mk. iv. 35 =» Lk. vii. 22 = Mt viii.
18. According to Mk. v. 43a = Lk. viii. 56b, after the
raising of Jalrus' daughter Jesus enjoined silence regarding
the miracle — an injunction which in the circumstances could
not be observed. The fact is that in the tradition the miracle
In the house of Jalrus was followed by the healing of two
blind men in private, and the injunction was addressed to
THE EVANGELIC RECORDS xxv
them (Mt ix. 27-31). Mk. and Lk. omit the latter miracle,
but they retain the injunction and attach it to the former,
oblivious of the incongruity. Mt. rightly represents the dis-
course on cross-bearing at Caesarea Philippi as addressed to
"the disciples" (xvi. 24); according to Mk. it was addressed
to "the multitude with His disciples" (viii. 34); according to
Lk. "to all" (ix. 23). Perhaps the confusion is due to the
isolation of the passage in catechetical teaching. Inculcating
an important lesson, it would be often repeated and would easily
be misentitled. In Mt. xv. 39 = Mk. viii. 10 it is said that
Jesus and His disciples " embarked in the boat," though no
boat has been mentioned, nor is it to be supposed that they
should have a boat at their disposal on the eastern shore of
the Lake after a long journey by land. Probably the tradition
contained some explanation which the Evangelists do not
reproduce, and they would not tamper with the tradition by
striking out " the " and writing " a boat" Once more, after
the Zacchaeus-incident Lk. gives the parable of the Pounds.
It was probably spoken in the synagogue of Jericho on the
following day, the Sabbath ; yet it is introduced by " And
while they were listening to these things " (xix. 1 1), as though
it followed immediately after the incident of the meeting with
Zacchaeus. " These things " refers to the previous part of the
discourse in the synagogue, recorded by the tradition but
omitted by the Evangelist
Mt viii. 1 6 has " evening having come " ; Lk. iv. 40 " the
sun setting." Such variations were natural in the course
of oral transmission. Probably both were current, and
Mk., anxious that nothing should be lost, combined them :
"Evening having come, when the sun set" (i. 32). Mt iii.
1 1 has " carry His sandals " ; Mk. i. 7 and Lk. iii. 16, " unloose
His sandal-strap" {cf, John i. 27). Both were common
phrases for menial service, and would readily get interchanged
in oral transmission. Sometimes, however, a supposed
equivalent creates a false impression, as when Lk. (iv. 2)
substitutes " He ate nothing " for Mt's " He fasted "
Civ. 2).
§ 12. With such scrupulous fidelity did the Evangelists
" guard the Deposit" Nevertheless it was inevitable that the
tradition should suffer somewhat in the process of oral trans-
xxvi THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
mission, and there are sundry mishaps which have manifestly
befallen it
1. Slips of memory. Mt and Lk. put the temptations in
the wilderness in different orders (Mt. iv. i-ii = Lk. iv. 1-13)
— precisely the sort of confusion incidental to oral trans-
mission. Perhaps they were arranged mnemonically by the
Catechisers : as they succeed each other in human life, appetite
alluring youths, glory men, wealth the aged (Mt.) ; in the
order of severity, hunger being easier to bear than poverty,
and poverty than contempt (Lk.).^ The actual order is
probably the reverse of Mt's. The temptation to turn the
stone into a loaf was certainly the last It happened at the
close of the forty days, and, when Jesus grew faint with
hunger, no more was possible.
Whereas Mk. and Lk. give one demoniac at Gerasa and
one blind man at Jericho, Mt gives two in each case (Mt
viii. 28 = Mk. V. 2 = Lk. viii. 27 ; Mt xx. 30 = Mk. x. 46 =
Lk. xviii. 35). Mt and Mk. put the latter miracle as Jesus
was leaving Jericho, Lk. as He was approaching it These
are obviously slips of memory. Mt's duplication of the blind-
man may be due to confusion with ix. 27-31.
It is another slip of memory when for Mk.'s "except
a staff only," Mt and Lk. substitute "neither a staff"
(Mk. vi. 8 = Mt X. io = Lk. ix. 3). It is natural that
the clauses should get assimilated in the course of repetitioa
2. Fusion of similar but really distinct passages. Afeer
the first of His encounters with the rulers during the Passion
week Jesus completed their discomfiture by a couple of
parables. There the controversy ended (Mt xxi. 45-6 =
Mk. xii. i2 = Lk. xx. 19); yet Mt adds the parable of the
King's Marriage-feast (xxii. I- 14). It is hardly doubtful
that this parable is a fusion of two others — the Great
Supper (Lk. xiv. 15-24) and another about a marriage-feast
and an unworthy guest Cf. the parable of the Pounds
(Lk. xix. 11-28), which evidently fuses a parable about a
nobleman who went into a far country to receive a kingdom,
and the parable of the Talents (Mt xxv. 14-30).
3. Emendation of what was deemed (i) incredible or (2)
unintelligible,
* Wetstein on Lk. It. 5.
THE EVANGELIC RECORDS xxvii
(i) Mt xiii. 13 softens down Mk. iv. ii-2=>Lk. viiL la
It seemed incredible that the parabolic teaching had a
judicial purpose. So in Mk. vi. 3 = Mt xiii. 5 5 the
sentiment of reverence took oflfence at the idea of the
Lord engaging in a menial handicraft and altered " the
carpenter " into " the carpenter's son." The process was
subsequently carried a step further, some MSS. either omitting
Mk.'s "the carpenter" or assimilating it to Mt's "the
carpenter's son " ; so that Origen could reply to a gibe of
Celsus that nowhere in the canonical Gospels is Jesus called
a carpenter.^ It was a like sentiment that glorified
Mk. i. 38: "To this end came I forth," t.e, from Capernaum,
into Lk. iv. 43 : " For this end was I sent," i.e. into the
world ; and it is perhaps in consequence of Gentile ignorance
of the character of the Jewish rulers that the Baptist's
invective, which was actually hurled at them (Mt. iii. 7),
is represented by Lk. as addressed to the multitudes (iii. 7).
In order to safeguard the divinity of Jesus His question
to the Young Ruler : " Why callest thou Me good ? "
(Mk. X. i8 = Lk. xviii. 19) is changed in Mt xix. 17
(approved reading) into " Why askest thou Me about what is
good ? " — a theological gloss which removes the pivot of the
argument
The editor's hand appears in the parallel reports of the
Beatitudes (Mt v. 2-12 = Lk. vi. 20-6). Jesus said simply
" the poor," " those that hunger " (Lk.) ; and, in order to
guard against an Ebionitic interpretation, Mt wrote " the
poor in spirit" " those that hunger after righteousness." '
Probably with a view to symmetry Lk. has reduced the
Beatitudes to four, setting over against each a corresponding
Woe. It is impossible that Jesus should have spoken the
Woes to the newly ordained Twelve ; and they are precisely
the sort of homiletic additions which the Catechisers would be
apt to make.
1 C. Cels. vi. 36.
" Some think, on the contrary, that Mt.'s is the authentic report and Lk.
omitted the qualifications, finding here an instance of the latter's alleged Ebionitic
tendency. CJ. Schmiedel, art. Gospels § iio in E. B. ; Strauss, Leb. Ju. ii. tL
§ 76. Keim speaks of "the morose world-hating Ebionite of Luke's source." It ii
surely a reductio ad absurdum of the theory that Schmiedel discovers opposite
tendencies in Lk. — Universalism and Particularism.
xxvlii THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
(2) A striking instance of the tendency to emend what
seemed unintelligible occurs in the narratives of the anointing
at Bethany. According to John xii. 3 Mary anointed the
feet of Jesus ; according to Mt. xxvi. 7 = Mk. xiv. 3, His
head. The former is the true account, and so it would stand
in the apostolic tradition ; but, since the anointing of the
head at feasts was as usual as the anointing of the feet was
extraordinary, the Catechisers, not knowing who the woman
was or wherefore she did so strange a thing, innocently substi-
tuted head for feet and dropped the unintelligible circumstance
of her wiping His feet with her hair.
Misunderstanding of the Lord's announcement of Peter's
denial is responsible for much confusion. Mt. has : " In
the course of this night, ere a cock crow, thrice shalt thou
deny Me " (xxvi. 34) ; Mk. : " To-day, during this night, ere
a cock crow twice, thrice thou shalt deny Me" (xiv. 30);
Lk. : " A cock shall not crow to-day until thrice thou deny
that thou knowest Me" (xxii. 34) ; John : " A cock shall not
crow until thou deny Me thrice " (xiii. 3 8). They all agree
that Jesus predicted a threefold denial, and so they all repre-
sent it as coming to pass (ML xxvi. 69-75 > M^k. xiv. 66-75 \
Lk. xxii. 56-62 ; John xviii. 16-8, 25-7); but they recount
different denials. Paulus reckons, between the four, at least
eight denials.^ The truth would seem to be that the announce-
ment ran : " Ere a cock crow, twice and thrice," i.e. repeatedly,
" thou shalt deny Me." ' The expression was misunderstood,
and what seemed an obvious and very slight correction was
made in the process of oral transmission. Then the fulfilment
was twisted into artificial agreement with the prediction, at all
events in the Synoptics. Though he recounts three denials,
John lays no stress on the number as fulfilling the Lord's
prediction. Cf. John xviii. 27 with Mt. xxvi, 75=Mk. xiv.
72 = Lk. xxii. 61.
4. Mutilation of obscure LOGIA. Under this category falls
Ml vL 22-3 = Lk. xi. 34-6. While Lk. gives this as an
isolated logion, ML inserts it in the Discourse on Worldly-
mindedness ; and it is very suitable to the 4atter connection,
since it is certainly a logion about covetousness. ArXoDf has in
» Cf. Strauss, Leb.Ju. III. iiL § 129.
' £. A. Abbott, art G^spth %\6,'\a E. B.
THE EVANGELIC RECORDS xxlx
Biblical Greek the sense of " liberal " and tc^jj^c; that of
" churlish " or " niggardly " ^ ; and St Chrysostom in his dis-
course on the parable of the Ten Virgins says that " dark "
was a colloquialism for "uncharitable."* This much seems
clear, yet it does not suffice to explain the logion. The per-
plexity lies in the apparent confusion of literal and metaphori-
cal, the eye of the body and the eye of the mind. Euthymius
Zigabenus, after St Chrysostom, follows quite another line of
interpretation, taking "single" as "healthy" and "evil" as
" diseased." The truth in all probability is that the logion
has got hopelessly mangled in the course of oral transmission,
nor does Lk.'s embellished version tend to its elucidation.
Another crux interpretum is Mk. ix. 49-50. It probably
blends a logion about the wholesome use of sacrifice with
that perspicuous logion^ Mt. v. i3 = Lk. xiv. 34-5. The
addition : " and every sacrifice shall be salted with salt " {cf.
Lev. ii. 13) is an interpretative gloss valuable only as showing
that the passage was a puzzle in the earliest times.
5. When an Old Testament prophecy found its fulfilment
in some incident of the Lords ministry^ the tradition was apt to
be modified into more precise agreement with it. Thus, in the
story of the Triumphal Entry, Mt., thinking of Zech. ix. 9
and, like our A.V., misinterpreting the Hebrew as though
it meant " an ass and a colt " instead of " an ass, even a colt,"
introduces two animals and incomprehensibly represents Jesus
as riding upon both (Mt. xxi. i-ii : cf. Mk. xi. i-iiaLk.
xix. 29-44 = John xii. 12-9),
6. Confusion due to an erroneous presupposition in the minds
of the editors. The Eschatological Discourse exemplifies this.
As reported by the three Synoptists, it deals with two great
crises : the destruction of Jerusalem, which was accomplished
by the army of Titus in A.D. 70, and the Lord's Second
Advent, which is still future ; and the difficulty is that, accord-
ing to the Evangelists' reports, Jesus has brought these two
events into immediate connection, declaring that His Second
Advent would follow hard after the destruction of Jerusalem
and be witnessed by that generation (Mt. xxiv. 29, 34 = Mk.
» Hatch, Ess. in Bibl. Gk. pp. 79-82 ; Rom. xii. 8 ; Ja. i. 5 ; Henn. Past.
M. iu § 4. Cf. Lightfoot and Wetstein.
' In Matth. Ixxix.
B
XXX THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
xiii. 24, 30 —Lk. xxi. 32). What must be said of this ? It
is remarkable that two passages which Mt incorporates with
the Eschatological Discourse, are given by Lk. in other con-
nections (Mt. xxiv. 23-8, 37-40 (Mk. xiii. 21-3)= Lk. xvii.
20-37; Mt. xxiv. 43-5 1 =Lk. xii. 39-46); and here lies a
clue to the solution of the problem. It is likely that, as the
end drew near, Jesus spoke much about the future ; and, when
the Evangelists took in hand the task of editing the oral tradi-
tion, they would find many scattered sayings relative thereto ;
and these they would dispose in what they judged suitable
connections. And where could such fugitive fragments find a
more fitting shelter than in this great prophetic discourse?
It was a perfectly legitimate procedure ; yet it was not
without its perils, and it chanced that in this instance the
Evangelists laboured under a peculiar disqualification. They
shared the prevailing expectation that the Second Advent was
imminent ; ^ and, with this idea in their minds, it is no marvel
that, when they compiled the Lord's sayings about the future,
they should have brought the destruction of Jerusalem and
the final Judgment into immediate connection. This is in no
wise the representation of Jesus. He taught that the progress
of His Kingdom would be a long development, like the
ripening of harvest, the growth of a tiny mustard-seed into a
great tree, the operation of leaven (Mt xiii. 24-33 5 ^^' ^^•
26-9). And even in this discourse there is a striking
evidence of the Evangelists' faithfulness in reproducing the
oral tradition. Though they shared the current expectation
of an immediate Return, they have preserved sayings of Jesus
which correct their error (Mt xxiv. 6 = Mk. xiii. 7 = Lk. xxi.
9 ; Mt xxiv. 8 = Mk. xiii. 9; Mt xxiv. i4 = Mk. xiii. 10).
And Mt has preserved two parables — the Ten Virgins and
the Talents — which belong to the Eschatological Discourse,
and which show beyond all question what really was the
Lord's teaching about His Second Advent The argument
turns, in the former, on the tarrying of the Bridegroom and,
in the latter, on the prolonged absence of the Master.
7. Comments inserted in the tradition as LOGIA of Jesus.
Mt xii. 40 is an instance. It is absent from Lk. xi. 29-
» Cf. I Cor. X. il } XT. 51 ; Phil. iv. S; i Thess. it. 15 sqq. ; Heb. x. %$;
I*. T. 8 ; I Pet, iT. 7 ; i John ii. 18 ; Rct. L i, 3 ; iiL ii ; xxiu 7, 10, la, 2a
THE EVANGELIC RECORDS xxxi
3p. and not only does it lack the savour of a genuine logion
ol Jesus but it spoils the argument Jonah's adventure with
tne whale was no " sign " to the Nincvites, who knew nothing
about it. It was his preaching that was a sign to them ;
and this is what Lk. says. Obviously the verse is no saying
of Jesus, but a homiletic gloss which found its way into the
Judaean tradition in the course of catechetical instruction and
was unsuspectingly received by the Evangelist Probably
Lk. XX. 1 8 had a similar origin.
Another instance is found in the narrative of the healing
of the bloody flux. To the remark of the disciples : " Thou
seest the crowd pressing about Thee, and sayest Thou, ' Who
touched Me?'" Jesus really, as Mk. represents (v. 32),
made no reply. Lk., however, puts a comment of the
tradition on His lips, imputing to Him a singularly crude
and materialistic idea : " Some one touched Me ; for I
recognised power having gone forth from Me " (viii. 46 ; cf.
Mk. v. 30).
Another instance is Mt xxiv. 15-21 =Mk. xiii. 14-9 =
Lk. xxi. 20-4. The section exhibits several suspicious
features: (i) It is the only passage in the Eschatological
Discourse where a definite event of history is predicted ; and
herein it hardly agrees with Mt xxiv. 36 = Mk. xiii. 32.
(2) The express citation from the Book of Daniel is not in
the Lord's manner. (3) It is impossible that He should
have shared the Judaistic scrupulosity about Sabbath-
observance (Mt xxiv. lo). It is related by Eusebius that
on the eve of the catastrophe the Christians, " in accordance
with a certain oracle," forsook the doomed city and took
refuge in the Peraean town of Pella ; ^ and it is very probable
that this section is nothing else than that oracle. In the
excitement of that awful crisis the prophet who counselled
retreat, might well be deemed inspired ; and the oracle which
came from his lips, would be accepted as a command of the
Risen Lord, and would, with no sense of impropriety, be
incorporated with the Eschatological Discourse.
Lk. xxii. 43-4, is bracketed by W. H. on documentary
evidence as " an early Western interpolation." A passage so
dear to religious sentiment cannot be relinquished without
» H. E. iii. s.
xxxii THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
a pang, but it is certainly unhistorical. It combines two
distinct legends which were entered originally as marginal
notes and were introduced by some copyist into the text,
not too skilfully, since v. 44 had better precede v. 43.
The angelic strengthening availed little, if it was followed
immediately by the agony and bloody sweat
§ 13. It was inevitable that such mishaps should befall
the tradition, and they are the less serious that they are not
only easily detected but, for the most part, easily rectified.
It has already appeared how effectively the parallel narratives
of the Synoptists check each other, and there is another and
even more effective instrument of rectification. It is not the
least of the services which John has rendered to the Church
that, writing his Gospel with the Synoptics before him, he set
himself, in the fulness of his personal knowledge, not merely
to supplement but, where necessary, to correct them. His
double emendation of the Synoptic report of the Supper at
Bethany has already been remarked, and instances no less
striking occur wherever he traverses ground already covered
by his predecessors. In fact he never tells a story which
they have already told without either emending or supple-
menting their narratives in some particular. The following
instances may be adduced.
The Feeding of the Five Thousand (Mt xiv. 13-21 =
Mk. vi. 30-44 = Lk. ix. 10-17 = John vi. 1-14). John
mentions that the Passover was near, thus fixing the date.
Again, while Mk. represents the multitude as accomplishing
the long detour round the head of the Lake in less time than
the boat took to sail across and arriving first at the eastern
side (w. 33), John makes it plain that the boat arrived first,
and Jesus was already seated with His disciples on the
mountain-slope when He beheld the multitude approaching
(w. 3-5). A comparison of Mt's narrative reveals how Mk.
was led astray. Mt. xiv. 14 preserves the language of the
tradition : " And having come forth," i.e. from His retreat on
the mountain, " He saw a great multitude." Mk. understood
" having come forth from the boat," and inserted, by way of
explanation, "and outwent them" {v. 33). Again, by
mentioning His prompt inquiry of Philip {w. 5-6) John
brings out what the Synoptists overlook, that Jesus designed
THE EVANGELIC RECORDS xxxiH
the miracle from the first : it was no after-thought suggested
by the hunger of the multitude. Further, John's mention
of the attempt to acclaim Him king (v. 15) explains the
Lx)rd's energetic compulsion of the disciples to re-embark
(Mt xiv. 22 = Mk. vi. 45).
Thg Triumphal Entry (Mt. xxi. i-i i = Mk. xi. i-i i » Lk.
xix. 29-44 = John xii. 12-9). John's account of the incident
itself is somewhat meagre, and he would probably have let
the Synoptic narrative suffice but for the necessity of explain-
ing so remarkable an outburst of popular enthusiasm. It was
the Lord's first appearance in Jerusalem since the raising of
Lazarus ; and it was the fame of that stupendous miracle that
earned Him the ovation (John xii. 1 7-8).
The Announcement of the Betrayal (Mt xxvi. 21-5 = Mk.
xiv. 18-21 =Lk. xxii. 2i-3=John xiii. 21-35). Mt {v. 23)
and Mk. (v. 20) represent Jesus as answering the universal
inquiry " Is it I ? " with an open indication of the traitor ;
and it is inexplicable that Judas should forthwith have con-
demned himself by dipping in the dish and that the rest of
the disciples should still have had no suspicion of him, suffer-
ing him to go out and accomplish his design. The mystery
is cleared by John's explanation that the indication of the
traitor was given secretly to himself (z/z;. 25-6).
The Announcement of the Desertion is represented by Mt
(xxvi. 31-5) and Mk. (xiv. 27-31) as made by Jesus when the
company had left the Upper Room and were on the way out
to Gethsemane. It is incredible that it should have been
made then, just when they needed all their fortitude and
when the communion-peace was in their souls ; and John gives
it its true place early in the evening (xiii. 36-8 ; cf. Lk. xxii
31-4).
The Trial before the High Priests (Mt xxvi 57-xxviL I
= Mk. xiv. 53-xv. I = Lk. xxii. 54-xxiii. i = John xviii. 12-27).
According to Mt and Mk. it would appear that there were
two trials before the High Priest Caiaphas : an informal
examination immediately after the Arrest while it was yet
night, and a hasty trial before the Sanhedrin in the morning
to pass formal sentence. Lk. seems to have perceived the
improbability of this, and represents the prisoner as merely
detained at the High Priest's house until it was day and the
xxxiv THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
Sanhedrin might convene, suffering the while insult and mal-
treatment at the hands of His guards. John makes the situa-
tion plain. There were really two trials, but the first was
merely a precognition before Annas, the High Priest
emeritus, to whose house Jesus was conducted immediately on
His arrest The second was the formal examination before
Caiaphas, the High Priest in office, at the meeting ol
Sanhedrin in the morning.
The Trial before Pilate. The Synoptists suppose that the
Jewish rulers were present at the trial {cf. Lk. xxiii. 1 4) ;
John is at pains to explain that they remained outside the
Praetorium (xviiL 28). The procurator examined Jesus within
doors, and had to come forth when he would confer with the
rulers (xviii. 29, 33, 38 ; xix. 4, 9, 13).
§ 14. John does more than correct the Synoptic narratives:
he supplements them. Indeed it was said in early days that
this was his great purpose in writing another Gospel ;^ and
there is no lack of evidence that, as he wrote, he had the
work of his predecessors before him and studiously excluded
from his narrative whatever they had adequately recorded,
assuming indeed that his readers had the Synoptics in their
hands. Thus, he omits the Baptism of Jesus, yet he makes
a reference to it (i. 32-3) which would be unintelligible with-
out the Synoptic account (ML iii. i3-7 = Mk. i. 9-ii=Lk.
iii. 21-2). He has greatly enriched the evangelic history.
But for him the very names of Nathanael, Nicodemus, and
Lazarus would have perished, and of Thomas nothing except
his name would have survived. It was, however, one special T"
and serious defect in the Synoptics that chiefly moved him to
take up his pen. They narrate with much fulness the Lord's
labours in Galilee, but He prosecuted also an important
ministry in Judaea, principally in Jerusalem. This is un-
recorded in the Synoptics, and to rescue it from oblivion was,
according to ancient tradition, the special task to which John
addressed himself. And his representation is confirmed by
every consideration of reason and probability. Jesus must
have visited Jerusalem in the course of His ministry, and,
when He was there, He would assuredly do the work of the
Kingdom of Heaven. Since Jerusalem was the sacred capital,
> Ens. H. i?. iiL 24 ; Chrysost. In Afatth. L
NX
THE EVANGELIC RECORDS xxxv
it was neccsssry that the Messiah should manifest Himself
there and assert His claims before the supreme tribunal of
the nation. Nor is the silence of the Synoptists inexplicable.
They simply reproduced the oral tradition ; and, since it took
shape under the Apostles at Jerusalem where the incidents of
the Judaean ministry were well known, there was no need
that it should include these. It related only what had
befallen in distant Galilee.
§ 15. Yet the Synoptists are not wholly silent regarding
the Judaean ministry. They relate two incidents which beyond
question belong to it One is the entertainment of Jesus in
the house of Martha, recorded by Lk. alone (x. 38-42). The
other is the clearing of the Temple-court ; and it is recorded
by all the Synoptists, though they have misplaced it (Mt. xxi.
12-3 = Mk. xi. i5-7 = Lk. xix. 45-6). It occurred, as John
gives it (ii. 13-22), at the outset of the Lord's ministry. So
remarkable an incident could not well be passed over by the
Synoptists ; and, since they had omitted the early visit to
Jerusalem, they included the incident in their narrative of the
Passion-week when He had gone up to die.^
There are, moreover, numerous Synoptic passages which,
if not absolutely unintelligible without the Johannine narrative,
are wonderfully illumined by it. Thus, the calling of Simon,
Andrew, and John at the very outset of the Galilean ministry
(Mt. iv. 18-22 = Mk. i. 16-20) is hardly credible without
the Johannine account of their meeting with Jesus at
Bethany and their subsequent intercourse with Him (i. 35-
42). Jesus would not have chosen men whom He had not
tested and approved ; and, even if it be supposed that, with
His unerring insight. He had read their hearts and perceived
their fitness, it is inconceivable that they should without
preparation have responded to His call. Again, unless it
had been already conferred upon him (John i. 42), it is
diflfacult to account for the mention of Simon's surname of
Peter or Cephas in the lists of the Apostles (Mt. x. 2 = Mk.
iii. 1 6 = Lk. vi, 1 4). It may indeed be urged that it was
* So Wetstein, Neander, Ewald. Others (Strauss, Baur, Kcim) follow the
Synoptists in putting the incident at the close. Of course it is possible, though very
unlikely, that there were two clearings of the Temple-court (Chrysost., Aug., Eulb.
Zig., Theophyl., Erasm., Paulus, Olshaus., Heng., Ebrard, Schlcienn., M«|.,
God., Weit,).
xxxvi THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
actually bestowed at Caesarea Philippi (Mt. xvi. i8) and is
here used by anticipation ; but in fact the Lord's exclama-
tion at Caesarea : "I tell thee that thou art Peter," was not
the bestowal of the name but a delighted recognition of
Simon's worthiness of it, as though He had said : " Behold the
justification of the confidence which I placed in thee at our
first meeting ! " Again, does not Mt x. 5 imply John iv ?
To have dealings with the Samaritans would never have
occurred to the Twelve, steeped as they were in Jewish
prejudice, but for the Lord's example. And is it not
reasonable to connect the Lord's answer to the question of
the Baptist's disciples (Mt ix. i5 = Mk. ii. 19-20 = Lk. v.
34-5) with John iii. 29? It is as though He had said:
** Recollect your master's words. He called Me the Bride-
groom, and said it was meet that the Bridegroom's friends
should rejoice." According to Mt. xxvi. 6i=Mk. xv.
29, Jesus was accused before the Sanhedrin of having
boasted that He could pull down the Temple and rebuild it
in three days ; and the saying on which the charge was
based, is found in John ii. 18-21. "How often would I"
in the Lord's apostrophe to unbelieving Jerusalem (Mt xxiil
37-9 = Lk. xiii. 34-5) is unintelligible if, according to the
Synoptists, His ministry had been prosecuted exclusively in
Galilee ; but it agrees well with the Johannine representation
of extensive labours in Judaea. The charge against Jerusalem
that she stoned them that were sent unto her, is recognised
as no mere flight of rhetoric, no mere allusion to her treat-
ment of the prophets in bygone days, when it is remembered
that, according to John (viii. 59 ; x. 31-9), Jesus had twice
at least escaped being stoned by the rulers in the Temple court
It is tempting to find at this point in the Johannine
narrative a home not only for this logion but for another which
Mt and Lk, report in different connections: Mt xi. 25-7 =
Lk. X. 21-2. How apt it would be on the lips of Jesus as
He left Jerusalem, rejected by her wise men, but accepted by
the multitude I And it is remarkable how Johannine the
logion is {cf. John iii. 35 ; xiii. 3 ; i. 18 ; vi. 46, 65 ; x. 15V
* Cf. Lk. xiii. 32-3 with John xi. 9 ; Mt. xxi. 22=Mk. xi. 24 with John xvi. 23.
How Johannine is Mt. xxiv. 36 = Mic. xiii. 32, one of Schmiedel'jt "absolutely
credible passages" (art. GospcU § 139 in E. B.)
THE EVANGELIC RECORDS xxxvii
§ i6 It is a misfortune that, comprehending only the
ministry of Jesus, the apostolic tradition began, as a glance
at Tischendorfs Synopsis Evangelica discovers, with the
appearance of John the Baptist (Mt. iii. i-4««Lk. iii. 1-3 =
Mk. i. 1-5), and its testimony is thus lacking to the miracle
of the Lord's Birth. Mt. and Lk. have preserved the
wondrous story, and the question is : Whence did they derive
their information and what is its value as history? They
certainly were persuaded of its truth. Lk., at all events,
asserts the carefulness of his investigation and the reliability
of his information (i. 1-4); and the Hebraistic style of his
early narrative (i. 5 — ii.), so unlike the pure Greek of his
prologue, proves how faithfully he adhered to his sources,
whatever these may have been.
It seems certain that the narratives are based on the
testimony of Joseph and Mary. The facts were known
only to them, and from them ultimately the story, if it be
true, must have proceeded. Mt. has preserved the account
which was given by Joseph and which circulated in Jerusalem.
It is related from his standpoint, describing how he felt and
what he did ; and the description of him as '* a kindly man "
and therefore loath to take harsh measures even when, as it
seemed, he had suffered a foul wrong, is the tribute of his
intimates to the good Joseph. The Judaean origin of the
story furnishes, moreover, a reasonable explanation of the
only real disagreement between the Evangelists in those early
narratives. According to Mt. it seems as though Bethlehem
were the home of Joseph and Mary. There Jesus was bom,
and it was after the return from Egypt that Joseph, appre-
hensive lest Archelaus should prosecute his father's murderous
design, fixed his household's abode at Nazareth. According
to Lk. Joseph and Mary dwelt at Nazareth, and it was the
requirement of the census that brought it about that they
were at Bethlehem when Jesus was born. Their going to
Nazareth when all was over, was not a migration but a return
home. It is likely that Lk.'s is the true account and ML's
modification of it is due to Judaean contempt for Galilee,
especially Nazareth. The Messiah's connection with Galilee
was distasteful to the men of Jerusalem, and they suppressed
it as far as possible.
xxxviii THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
As Mt. has preserved Joseph's story, so Lk. has preserved
Mary's. Is there not an evidence of this in his repeated
remark about her keeping what befell and pondering it in her
heart? (ii. 19, 51). She kept it to herself at the time and
imparted it long after when occasion arose. Here is an
instance of that sympathy with women-folk which characterised
the gentle Lk. and made him record certain incidents over-
looked by the other Evangelists (vii. 1 1-5 ; 36-50 ; viii. 2-3 : x.
38-42 ; xl 27 ; xxiii. 27-9). Not a little of the precious
material which he has added to the common store of the
evangelic tradition, was probably derived from those devoted
women who had attended Jesus during His ministry and with
the heroism of love stood beside the Cross ; and his story of
the Lord's Birth is distinguished by feminine touches {cf, il
40, 52). It may be that he heard it from the friends of
Mary ; but, if she was indeed, as the Protevangelium represents,
a mere girl only twelve years of age at her betrothal, it is
most likely that she was still alive in the home of the Beloved
Apostle {cf, John xix. 27) when Lk. was at Jerusalem with
Paul (Acts xxi. 1 5 sqq^y and he may have heard it from her own
lips. It does not detract from the historicity of his narrative
that he has clothed it in poetic garb, quoting apparently from
the hymnology of the primitive Church {cf. i. 46-55 ; 68-79 »
ii. 14; 29-32).
§ 17. There is another and still graver defect in the oral
tradition. Comprehending only the ministry of our Lord, it
ends with the Crucifixion and omits the supreme event of the
Resurrection. Its failure, just where its testimony is most
needful, is matter for profound regret ; but it should be
distinctly understood that, whatever it may mean, it does not
mean that the Apostles knew nothing of the Resurrection or
had any doubt regarding it. On the contrary, they believed
It with exultant faith, and it was the constant burden of
their preaching. For St Paul it was the supreme fact, the
very foundation of the Faith {cf. i Cor. xv. 14-20 ; Rom. x. 9).
At the commencement of his ministry he had a confer-
ence with the Apostles, the men who had been with Jesus,
and laid his Gospel before them ; and in after days he
publicly claimed that they had approved it (Gal. i. 18 — ii. 19).
It is beyond question that they believed with absolute certainty
THE EVANGELIC RECORDS xxxix
that the Lord had been raised from the dead by the power of
God ; and it was that conviction which rescued them from
despondency and sent them forth with resolute hearts to
preach and die. They must have been right well assured that
their faith was true, or it would never have nerved them to
sacrifice and toil and martyrdom.^ Why then is the Resurrec-
tion omitted from the apostolic tradition ? In regard to the
omission of the Lord's Birth and the Silent Years it is
enough to say that the Apostles included in the tradition only
what they had themselves seen and heard ; but they had been
witnesses of the Resurrection.
§ 1 8. There are two considerations which go some way
toward a solution. One is that, when the tradition took
shape, the wonder of the Resurrection was at its height.
The purpose of the tradition was to prevent the facts of the
Lord's ministry from being forgotten or distorted ; but the
Resurrection was an amazing and overwhelming fact which
had happened but yesterday and was fresh in every mind.
The very fact that it was deemed needless to record it is an
evidence of its notoriety and certainty. And it was deemed
all the more needless forasmuch as the Lord's Return was
believed to be imminent It was enough, the Apostles
thought, to proclaim the fact that He had risen, and keep
His words and works fresh and clear in remembrance.
Again, it is remarkable, though in no wise inexplicable, that
the Apostles always speak with a certain reticence about the
Resurrection. They proclaim the fact, but they refrain from
entering into particulars. As time went on and still the
Lord did not return, John, the last surviving eye-witness,
yielded to the importunities of the believers and wrote the
wondrous story.'
" Imminent was the outcry 'Save our Christ I'
Whereon I stated much of the Lord's life
Forgotten or misdelivered, and let it worlt."
Yet even John hesitated when he came to speak of the
Resurrection. The twenty-first chapter of his Gospel is an
after-thought, a subsequent addition, "a postscript," says
Renan, " from the same pen as the rest" He stopped when
he had told what happened in Jerusalem during the first week.
» (^. Isidoc. Pelitt. Ep. ii, ai3. ' Eus. H. E. iiL 24.
xl THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
Here he ended his Gospel, and it was probably not only the
importunities of the Ephesian elders but a desire to silence
the wild story which had got abroad regarding himself (xxl
24), that moved him to resume his pen and reveal what had
happened at the Sea of Galilee. In truth it is no marvel that
the Apostles should have maintained such reticence. The
story was too sacred to be divulged. The Risen Lord had
manifested Himself unto them and not unto the world, and
they remembered His word : " My mystery is for Me and
the Sons of My House." ^
§ 19. When the Synoptists undertook the task of com-
posing their Gospels, they laboured under this disadvantage,
that the Apostles had dispersed in prosecution of their
missions, and were inaccessible for enquiry and consultation.
In the oral tradition they had, so far as it went, an amplitude
of trustworthy material ; but it stopped short at the Crucifixion,
and for the episode of the Resurrection they had to be
content with such information as they could glean among
the believers. This was all that they had to work upon, and
from the fact that their narratives comprise hardly anything
beyond the visit of the women to the Sepulchre, it is a fair
inference that they learned only what the women had divulged.
And this meagre material would be distorted at once by
the excitement of the moment {cf, Mt. xxviii. 8 ; Mk. xvi. 8)
and by the subsequent process of transmission from mouth to
mouth. The result is that in their account of the Resur-
rection the Synoptic narratives, elsewhere so remarkably
accordant, bristle with discrepancies which refuse to be
harmonised even by the most violent expedients. It is hardly
too much to affirm that, as they stand, they agree only in
their unfaltering and triumphant proclamation of the fact that
Jesus rose and appeared to His disciples.
I. The visitants to the Sepulchre: Mary Magdalene and
the other Mary (Mt xxviii. i) ; Mary Magdalene, Mary
the mother of James, and Salome (Mk. xvi. i); "women
who had followed Him from Galilee," including Mary
Magdalene, Joanna and Mary the mother of James (Lk.
xxiii. 55 ; xxiv. I, lo) ; Mary Magdalene alone (John xx. i),
Clem. Alex. Strom, v. lo. § 63: TapiJ^ryeiXer 6 Kvpios (p rii't tiayyeXltf /iva-
r^iMf ifi6p i/ioi Kol rtif vloit rpD oUw ficv. Cf. Clem. Rom. Horn. xix. fi 30,
THE EVANGELIC RECORDS xli
though her ''we know not" in v. 2 may mean that she
had companions.
2. The time of the visit : " late on the Sabbath, when the
h'ght was dawning unto the first day of the week " *
(Mt. xxviii. i), i.e. at nightfall; "very early, when the sun
had risen" (Mk. xvi. 2); at "deep dawn" (Lk. xxiv. i);
"early, while it was yet dark " (John xx. i).
3. The object of the visit : to embalm the Lord's body
(Mk. xvi. I ; Lk. xxiv. i) ; to see the Sepulchre (Mt. xxviii.
I ; John XX. i).
4. They bought the spices after the Sabbath was past
(Mk. xvi. i) ; they had bought them on the Friday evening
between the burial and the commencement of the Sabbath
(Lk. xxiii. 56).
5. The stone was rolled away after the women's arrival :
there was a great earthquake, and an angel descended, rolled
it away, and sate upon it (Mt. xxviii. 2-3) ; on their arrival
they found the stone already removed ; no mention of an
earthquake nor, thus far, of an angel (Mk. xvi. 3-4 ; Lk.
xxiv. 2 ; John xx. i).
6. One angel (Mt xxviii. 2, 5 ; Mk. xvi. $) ; two
(Lk. xxiv. 4 ; John xx. 12).
7. The angel outside the Sepulchre, seated on the stone
which he had rolled away (ML xxviii. 2, 5) ; inside, seated
on the right side (Mk. xvi. 5) ; the Sepulchre empty when
the women entered, and, while they were wondering, the two
men suddenly appeared beside them in flashing raiment
(Lk. xxiv. 3-4) ; on her return to the Sepulchre after informing
Peter and John that it was empty, Mary, as she peered in,
saw the two " sitting one at the head and the other at the
feet where the body of Jesus had lain" (John xx. 1-12).
8. The angels bade the women go and tell the disciples
that the Lord had risen and would meet them in Galilee
(Mt. xxviii. 7 ; Mk. xvi. 7 ) ; no command : the angels
merely remind them that, while yet in Galilee, Jesus had
predicted His Betrayal, Crucifixion, and Resurrection (Lk.
xxiv. 6-9).
* Not the J"'cht of morning but the light of the lamps kindled at nightfall, when,
according to Jewish reckoning, the day began (</. Lk. xxiii. 54). See Ligbtfoot
and Wetstein. Cf. Moulton'i Gram, tf N. T. Gk. L pp. 72 sq.
xlH THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
9. The women, hastening away from the Sepulchre,
*• said nothing to any one, for they were afraid " (Mk. xvi. 8) ^ ;
they " told the whole story to the Eleven and all the rest,"
but gained no credence (Lk. xxiv. 11); as they were hurrying
to tell the disciples, Jesus Himself met them and reiterated
the angel's behest (Mt xxviii. 8-10), and their story evidently
was believed {v. 1 6) ; Mary Magdalene of her own accord,
ere she saw the angel, ran, not to the Eleven, but to Peter
and John and told them that the Sepulchre was empty ; and
they immediately repaired thither (John xx. 2-10. Cf. Lk.
xxiv. 24. Lk. xxiv. 12 is spurious.)
10. Jesus did not repulse the women, including Mary
Magdalene, when they laid hold on His feet (Mt xxviii. 9) ;
He repulsed Mary (John xx. 17).
11. The Risen Lord asked for food and ate it in the
disciples' presence (Lk, xxiv. 41-3); this is omitted in John
XX. 19-25.
12. Lk. xxiv. represents the Ascension as taking place
from Mount Olivet late on the Resurrection-day, crowd-
ing all the Lord's appearances into that brief space and
making Jerusalem and its neighbourhood the scene of them
all. Mt. xxviii. 16-20 and John xx. 26-xxi, imply a long
interval, spent partly at Jerusalem, partly in Galilee. There
was a tradition in early times, that Jesus rose and ascended
on the self-same day,* and Lk. adopted it in his Gospel.
Afterwards in the Book of Acts he corrected his error (i. 3).
§ 20. Thus discordant are the evangelic accounts of the
Resurrection, and it may seem as though there were no escape
from the dilemma which Strauss presents : either we must
** adhere to one of the four accounts as pre-eminently apostolic,
and by this rectify the others," or we must " confess that in
all the evangelic accounts of these first tidings of the
Resurrection we have before us nothing more than traditional
reports." But we are not shut up to these alternatives. An
Mk. 's Gospel is broken oflF abruptly here, w. 9-20 being a later supplement
and quite valueless. There is no knowing what the missing conclusion may have
contained. The apocryphal Ev. Pttr. gives an account closely resembling Mk.'s
of the women's visit to the Sepulchre. It concludes " Then the women, affrighted,
fled," and proceeds to narrate an incident similar to John xxL I. sqq. The MS.,
however, breaks off after a few sentences.
' Cf. Ef. Bam. xv. S 9.
THE EVANGELIC RECORDS xliii
attentive scrutiny of the narratives discovers order amid their
chaos and a firm foot-hold for faith. The fact is that there
are three distinct strata of evangelic testimony to the
Resurrection, each possessing a peculiar value :
(1) The common rumour reported by the Synoptists (Mt
xxvii. 62-6, xxviii. 1 1-5 ; xxviii. i-io, 16-20 ; Mk. xvi. 1-8 ;
Lk. xxiii. 56-xxiv. 11 [12], 36-53). These traditions are
valueless as history, yet they constitute a testimony of no
little weight to the fact of the Resurrection, proving that it
was universally recognised and was much talked of. And,
moreover, loose and inaccurate as they may be, they are never
very far from the truth. They are in every case vague
reports, distorted versions of actual occurrences.
(2) Lk.'s research [cf. i. 1-4) has rescued from oblivion
that story of what befell Cleopas and his unnamed companion
on the road to Emmaus (xxiv. 13-35). The story carries its
own credentials. It shines amid its surroundings like a gem
in a heap of dust. Perhaps the Evangelist got it from
Cleopas, whose Greek name suggests that he belonged to
the circle of Joanna, the wife of Chuza, Herod's steward.
Throughout his narrative there is evidence of close intimacy
between Lk. and this circle of believers.
(3) The clear and full narrative of John (xx-xxi). The
Lucan passage and the Johannine narrative stand out distinct
and strong, and the more closely they are scrutinised, the
more convincingly do they attest their title to historicity.
There is at least one point where they are linked together
and attest each other. Lk. xxiv. 24 is a plain contradiction
not only of Mk. xvi. 8 but of Lk. xxiv. 11. It agrees, how-
ever, with John xx. 3-10.
§ 21. As soon as the true nature of the Synoptic
narratives is recognised, the history of the Resurrection is
disencumbered of several bewildering accretions and assumes
a distinct and harmonious shape. It is a minor yet not un-
important gain that the real errand of the women to the
Sepulchre stands revealed. It was not that they might
embalm the Lord's body (Mk. and Lk.). That had already
been done by Joseph and Nicodemus (John xix, 39-40) in
the women's sight (Mt. xxvii. 6 ; Mk. xv. 47 ; Lk. xxiii. 55).
And, moreover, the body had lain over thirty hours in the
xliv THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
Sepulchre ere they visited it, and must already have suffered
decomposition. Their real errand was to see the Sepulchre
(Mt., John), if haply the soul had reanimated its clay.*
Again, the Synoptics represent Jesus as performing carnal
functions with His spiritual body. According to Lk. xxiv.
41-3 He ate in the presence of His disciples. It is incredible
that He should have carried to Heaven a body which needed
food, and that such a body should have been capable of pass-
ing through closed doors (John xx. 19 ; ^. Lk. xxiv. 36).
Two theories have been advanced in this connection. One is
the blunt and obvious notion that when He ate the broiled
fish, He acted xar olxovofLlar. He ate supernaturally,
and the miracle was designed to establish the disciples' faith
and assure them of the reality of His presence.* The other,
which is more subtle, is that between the Resurrection and
the Ascension His body underwent a process of sublimation.
It was " in a state of transition and change, upon the boundary
of both worlds, and possessed the impress or character both of
this world and of the next" ' It is indeed conceivable that
there should have been such a process, gradually purifying
His body of fleshly qualities and advancing it to a glorified
condition ; but it is difficult to conceive the possibility of His
body being at the same stage so sublimated that it could pass
through closed doors and so gross that it required food.
Nor is it necessary to maintain a position so embarrassing
and indeed grotesque. Only in Lk. xxiv. 41-3 is it said
that the Risen Lord ate, and the statement is absent from
John's parallel narrative (xx. 19-25). It belongs to the
Synoptic cycle of unhistoric tradition, and is obviously a faint
echo of John xxi. 5, 9, 13. It is remarkable that alike in
Lk.'s narrative of the supper at Emmaus and in John's
narrative of the breakfast on the shore of the Lake it is plainly
implied that, while He gave food to His disciples, Jesus Him-
self took none (Lk. xxiv. 30 ; John xxi. 12-3).
Lk. xxiv. 39 is wanting in John's parallel narrative.
Ignatius quotes the curious saying, though in a somewhat
less gross form : " Grasp, handle Me and see that I am not
» Cj. p. 369.
•Joan. Damasc De Fid. Orthod. iv. i ; Enth. Zig.
■Martensen, Ckr. Dogm, \ 172. Cf. Oria. C CeJs. ii. 6a.
THE EVANGELIC RECORDS xlv
a bodiless daemon ; " ' and Jerome says that Ignatius quoted
it from the apocryphal Gospel of the Hebrews. * This reveals
its nature. It is simply one of the unhistorical traditions
which floated about the primitive Church, and Lk., ever
watchful for fresh material, heard it and incorporated it in
his Gospel. It may be that Paul had heard this tradition
which represents the Risen Lord as saying : " A spirit hath
not flesh and bones as ye behold Me having," and had it
in view when he wrote : " This I say, brethren, that flesh and
blood cannot inherit the Kingdom of God, neither doth
corruption inherit incorruption " (i Cor. xv. 50).
§ 22. It appears as the result of this investigation that
the evangelic history is worthy of all acceptation. Indeed
it may be questioned whether any other history carries such
credentials or is entitled to equal reliance. It contains indub-
itably a certain admixture of unreliable elements ; but these
are easily distinguished, and so far from discrediting the mass
serve rather to approve its value. One of our Gospels is the
testimony of the best beloved and most spiritually minded
of the men who had companied with Jesus to the things
which he had seen and heard {cf. i John i. 1-3) ;' and,
though the others were not written by Apostles, yet they
embody the tradition which emanated from the Apostles and
was transmitted with reverent fidelity. In the Gospels
Jesus is set before us as He appeared to the men with whom
He companied in the days of His flesh.
But, though it be allowed that the Gospels truly record
the doings of Jesus, do they accurately report His sayings?
One of the marvels of modern literature is Boswell's report,
so minute and accurate withal, of his hero's conversation ;
and the explanation is that, as he states in his introductory
chapter, he " had the honour and happiness of enjoying his
friendship for upwards of twenty years ; had the scheme
^ Ep. ad Smyrn. iii : Xd/Serc, \lni\a<p'^ffaTi fu xot (Sere tn oiK ttfd icuftoyiof
iffilifiaro;'.
' Script. Eccl. under Ignatiui.
* It is impossible to enter here into the question of the authenticity of the Fourth
Gospel. Suffice it to say that the traditional date is practically conceded. Baur
put the date about A.D. 170, but the stress of evidence has pushed it further and
further back, until it is now put in the last decade of the first century 01, at the
latest, the first decade of the second. Cf. Moffatt, Hist. N. T. p. 49S-
C
xM THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
of writing his life constantly in view ; acquired a faculty
in recollecting, and was very assiduous in recording, his
conversation, of which the extraordinary vigour and vivacity
constituted one of the first features of his character." But
even that vigorous and vivacious conversation must quickly
have faded from the listener's memory had he not hastened
to write it down while it was still ringing in his ears. And
thus it was that Damis of Nineveh, the Boswell of ApoUonius
of Tyana, succeeded in preserving his master's conversation.^
There is, however, no evidence that the Apostles pursued
this course. They wrote from memory ; and, though they
might here and there reproduce the ipsissima verba of a
memorable epigram, they could, as a rule, recall only the drift
of what they heard. And thus, it would appear, all that
remains of Jesus' teaching is a far off echo. Seldom, if ever,
is it given us to quote a sentence and say : " The Lord
spoke these words." The utmost that we can say is : " He
spoke after this manner."
One cannot, however, read the words of Jesus as they
are reported by the Evangelists without demurring to this
conclusion. There are no words like them. How they
sparkle and glow on the pages of the Gospels ! ' It is neither
exaggeration nor irreverence to say that they are embedded
in the evangelic narrative like jewels in a setting of base
metal. One knows instinctively where Jesus ceases and the
Evangelist begins. It is like passing into another atmosphere.
In a quiet nook of Scotland lies a little town, remote from
the throng of cities and the highways of commerce. It is
an old-world place, and certain of its red-tiled and moss-
grown dwellings bear dates of the seventeenth and sixteenth
centuries over their crumbling lintels. Built here and there
into their rude walls one observes blocks of masonry, broken
and defaced yet skilfully shaped and carved with quaint
devices. How comes it that they are found in so unworthy
a setting? Hard by stand the grey ruins of an ancient
castle which, if tradition be true, sheltered King Robert the
Bruce ere he had won Scotland's liberty ; and, when " the
rude forefathers of the hamlet" were minded to build them
» Philostr. ApolL i. 19.
•Cy. Just M. Dial. e. Tryph., ed. Sylbarg., p. 225 C
THE EVANGELIC RECORDS xMi
dwellings, that venerable pile served them as a convenient
quarry. At a glance one recognises those fragments of
nobler handiwork amid their alien setting. And even thus
do the words of Jesus shine on the pages of the Evangelists.
It is indeed indubitable that they have suffered some measure
of change and are not always written precisely as they came
from His lips ; but the change is generally inappreciable.
As they stand on the sacred page, they attest their originality.
They are no far off echoes but living voices, as fresh and
powerful now as when they were first heard by the Sea of
Galilee or in the city of Jerusalem. They palpitate with
life, they throb with emotion, and they make our hearts to
bum within us, reminding us how He said : " The words
which I have spoken unto you, they are spirit and they are
life" (John vl 63). No other than He could have spoken
them ; and, if it be asked how it came to pass that the Apostles
were able to reproduce them, what answer is possible save
that they had received the fulfilment of His promise : " The
Advocate, the Holy Spirit which the Father will send in My
name, He shall teach you all things and remind you of all
things which I said unto you " (John xiv. 26) ?
CHAPTER I
THE WONDROUS BIRTH
Lk. L a6-
38: Mt.L
*' Altitudo, quid hie jaces xS-aS : Lk.
In tam vili stabulo ? Jj: *:?9 :
Qui creasti coeli fac«5S, ^ "* *"**
Alges in prsesepio ?
O quam mira perpetrisd,
Jesu, propter hominem 1
Tana ardenter quern amisti
Paradise exulem." — Med. Hymn.
The life of our Blessed Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ differs Pre-exist-
in one momentous respect from every other which has ever j^^
been lived on earth. It did not begin when He was bom. In
the prologue of his Gospel St John, borrowing a great conception John L
of Alexandrian speculation, calls Him " the Word, who was in '**■
the beginning, was with God, and was God, through whom all
things were made, in whom was life, and the life was the light
of men." ^ " And the Word was made flesh and tabernacled
among us, and we beheld His glory." And St Paul, albeit
in simpler language, advances an equally tremendous claim.
He affirms the pre-existence of Jesus ; nay, only a generation
after Jesus had departed and while many who had been with
Him in the days of His flesh still survived, he assumed it
as already an article of faith which his readers would never
dream of disputing. " Ye perceive the grace of our Lord a Cor.
Jesus Christ, that for your sakes He became poor when He ""' '"
was rich, that ye, by His poverty, might become rich." " Let PhiL u.
this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus, who, in
God's form primally existing, deemed it not a prize to be
on an equality with God, but emptied Himself, having taken
a slave's form, having been made in men's likeness."
Here is an exceeding wonder. What manner of person Awert^dby
must Jesus have been when the men who companied with
» Cf. Paul's cosmic Christology : CoL I 15-7.
2 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
Him in the days of His flesh, who saw Him eating and
drinking, who knew Him in all the intimacies of daily inter-
course, could thus think and speak of Him ? It is difficult
to conceive how they could make so transcendent a claim on
His behalf, had He not Himself advanced it And such is
indeed the representation of the Evangelists. Over and over
Ml t. 17. again He declared that He had come. " Think not that I
came to pull down the Law or the Prophets. I came not to
Lk. xix. to. pull down but to complete." " The Son of Man came to
Ml XX. 28 seek and save what is lost" " The Son of Man came not to
Q^johnti be served but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for
. 39- many." " What," He enquired of His offended followers at
' a crisis in His ministry, " if ye behold the Son of Man
ascending where He was before ? " And at its close He
John xrii. 5. prayed : "Glorify Thou Me, O Father, by Thine own side
with the glory which I used to have, ere the world was, by
Thy side." His birth was an Advent It was the Incarna-
tion of One who had been from all eternity in the Bosom of
God.
Bom of a It is in no wise surprising that the Birth of such an one
*""^°' should have been unique. He was conceived by the operation
of the Holy Spirit in the womb of a virgin, a new creation of
God's hand, a divine man, a second and greater Adam.^ His
mother Mary dwelt at Nazareth, and had been betrothed to
one Joseph who followed the trade of carpenter and, if tradition
be true, was much her senior.' He was a kindly man,' and
on discovering her condition he was disposed to deal leniently
with her and put her away privily, sparing her shame as far as
he might ; but, ere he could carry out his purpose, he was
apprised in a vision of the wondrous truth.
The Cen- When Mary's time was near, it happened, untowardly, as it
' seemed, but in truth according to the purpose of God, that
she must needs set out with him on a long journey. The
Emperor Augustus, that master of state-craft, had ordained
that every fourteen years an estimate should be made of the
^ See Append. I.
• So the apocryphal Protev. riii-ix ; Ev. de Nat. Mar. viii ; Hiii. Jos. xiv.
• Such is the meaning of iUiiiot in Mt. i. 19. Cf. Chrysost In Afatth. It ;
Hkomw irravBa rim iriperow »r AToo-t \^l fcri flip yiip SiKauxrinj gal ri fiii
wXtoPtKTtu'' Irri ii koI ■^ Ka$o\ov ipeni. . . . iUctuot oSr flr, Tairem xPVrit Kal
iwttu-^. Hatch, £ts. in Bii. Gk., p. 51.
THE WONDROUS BIRTH 3
population and resources of the Empire, in the proud Roman
phrase " the whole world," all the conquered provinces and
tributary kingdoms which lay under the sway of the sovereign
city from the Euphrates to the Atlantic, from Britain to the
Cataracts of the Nile.^ Had Judaea been then, as in later
days, a mere province, her census would have been taken Toamey or
after the Roman method, which enrolled the people wherever MJl^y^o*"^
they chanced to reside ; but, since she was still a kingdom, ^'»>iet»«»'
it was taken after the Jewish method, which required each to
repair to his ancestral seat and there report himself. Since
Joseph was " of the house and ancestry of David," he must
needs betake himself to Bethlehem, David's city, a three days'
journey from Nazareth. And, notwithstanding her condition,
he took Mary with him, not caring in the peculiar circum-
stances to leave her amid curious and ill-judging people.
Near Bethlehem her pangs came upon her. There stood hard The
by a caravanserai, one of those rude structures adjoining the Birth."'*
highways of the East for the convenience of travellers, and
consisting of an open court-yard for the beasts with a raised
platform along the walls, roofed over and divided into com-
partments where the travellers lodged.' So many were afoot
that every lodgment was already occupied, and there was
nothing for it but that Mary should lie down on the litter in
the court-yard among the asses, kine, and camels. And there
she brought forth her Child and cradled Him in a manger. It
is a singular instance of the irony of history that, when Rome
was sacked by Alaric, some of her high-born citizens, men
and women both, escaped and found an asylum at Bethlehem.*
In the holy town where her imperial pride had given the Lord
of Glory a manger for a cradle, that remnant of her citizens
sheltered, homeless and starving, in the day of her calamity.
As he sate in his gilded palace, master of the world,
Augustus little dreamed that far away in despised Judaea a
1 On the historicity of Lk. ii. 1-3 see Ramsay, Was Chr. Bom in Btthl. t Cf.
Chrysostom's express assertion in his sermon Injes. Chr. Diem Nat. that at that
time, probably A.D. 386, the records of the Jewish census were lying among the
state-papers at Rome and might be inspected by any who desired.
* The tradition that Jesus was born in a cave (Just. M. Dial, cum Tryph., ed.
Sylburg., p. 296 ; Orig. C. Celi. i. 51) may be due to Is. xxxiii. 16, which Ju»ti«
quotes.
* Jei. Cemm. in Eueh. Hi. Hi, Proam,
4 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
King had been bom whose name would be continued as long
as the sun, and whose dominion would extend from sea to
sea when Rome's empire had perished and her glory become
a memory of the past God hid these things from the wise
The shep- and understanding, but He revealed them unto babes. That
* night on the pasture lands around Bethlehem, where in days
long gone by David had tended his father's sheep and Amos
had driven his herds and dressed his sycamores, a company
of shepherds kept watch over their flock.^ Those shepherds
were a brave and hardy and withal a somewhat lawless race ;
and, honourably as it figures in the Holy Scriptures, their
calling had in later days fallen into disrepute. " Let no man,"
said R. Gorion, " make his son a muleteer, a camel-driver, a
barber, a sailor, a shepherd, an inn-keeper ; forasmuch as their
craft is a craft of robbers." ^ Yet it was to a company of
shepherds that the first announcement of the Lord's birth was
made. They were reclining under the star-lit sky and whiling
away the hours of vigil with flute and song,' when suddenly
an angel hovered above them and soothed their alarm with
good tidings of a great joy : " There was born for you to-day
a Saviour, who is Messiah the Lord." It was good tidings
indeed, and wonderful as good, that Israel's long-promised,
long-expected Deliverer had come, and that He had come to
redeem even them. It was a happy augury of the grace
which should afterwards be revealed, that, when the Herald
Angel winged his way from Heaven, he passed by the Holy
City and sought those poor sons of the wilderness, proclaiming
that the Messiah had come to save the lost, to call not the
righteous but sinners.
Theangeis' " And this," said the angel, " is a sign for you : ye shall
*°"^' find a babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, and lying in a
manger." Then, as though Heaven had opened, the sky was
filled with a multitude of the heavenly host and rang with the
music of a heavenly song :
* Jerome, writing at Bethlehem, thns describes the wilderness of Judaea (Comm.
in Am. lib. i, Proaem. ) : "Quia humi arido atque arenoso nihil omnino frugum gignitur,
cuncta sunt plena pastoribus, ut sterilitatem terrx compensent pecorum mulii-
tndine."
' Wctstein on Lk. iu 8.
• Two explanations, according to Euth. Zig., were given of irfpiiv\t7» : (i) tepift
in the fields, {2) to diwmac in thefieldt by night.
I
THE WONDROUS BIRTH 5
*• Glory in the highest unto God,
And on earth peace
Among the men of His good pleasure."
The vision faded, and the shepherds, hastening over the fields,
found it as the angel had said.
Israel's religion had sunk very low in those days. Her Th«? godly
priests were Sadducees, her teachers Pharisees. Nevertheless '^'°"*^'-
she had still a godly remnant, the Lord's hidden ones, who
nourished their souls on the Holy Scriptures and lived quiet
lives of faith and prayer, staying their hearts on the promises
and hoping, like watchers for the morning, for the appearing
of the Messiah. And to two of these His advent was
revealed. It happened forty days after His birth. He had
already been " circumcised on the eighth day " according to The cir-
the Jewish Law, receiving then His name jESUS. It was a ^f "ujus!"
sacred and heroic name in Israel. It is the same as Joshua, cf. Actsm
and had been borne by Moses' successor ; by that true priest J^^^'g"'**'
who aided Zerubbabel in the restoration of the Temple and
served in Zechariah's vision as a type of Messiah's salvation ;
by that wise and godly Jerusalemite, Joshua ben Sira, Jesus
the son of Sirach, who in the first quarter of the second
century wrote the Book of Ecclesiasticus, the gem of the
extra-canonical Jewish literature, a book which, as appears
from more than one echo of it in His teaching,* our Lord
loved. It meant Jehovah is Salvation, and it had served 2 Mace. via.
as a battle-cry during the Maccabean struggle. But what '^ ' *'"■ *^
gave it its peculiar suitability for the Holy Child was not its
historic associations but its prophetic significance. " Thou cf. Ecdos.
shalt call His name Jesus," the angel had said, " for He it is ""• *•
that will save His people from their sins."
A month later in obedience to the Law Mary, accom- His praen-
panied by Joseph, took her Child from Bethlehem ^ to ^^Jj"^'
Jerusalem, at once to make the ofiering for her own purifica-
tion and to pay the five shekels which were the ransom for Ler. xii.
the life of her first-born son. The offering of purification Num. xriii.
was properly a lamb, but in case of poverty " a pair of turtle- *5-
doves or two young pigeons " sufficed ; and this " offering of
' Cf. Mt. vi. 7 with Ecclus. vil 14; Mt vL i4-S = Mk. xi. 25-6 with Ecclus.
xxviii. 2 ; Lk. v. 39 with Ecclus. ix. 10 ; Mt. xi. 28-30 with Ecclus. U. 23-7 ; Lk.
xii. 16-2 1 with Ecclas. xi. 18-9.
• According to Pseudo-Maith. Ev. xv they left the itabulum and went into
Bethlehem on the sixth day after the Birth.
6 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
the poor," as it was called/ was all that Mary could afford.
There was in Jerusalem in those days an aged saint named
Sfmeon. Symcon, one of those who in that dark and calamitous time
were expecting the dayspring from on high and the consola-
tion of Israel. " It had been revealed to him that he should
not see death until he saw the Lord's Messiah " ; and, like an
imprisoned exile, he was yearning for his release. He was in
the sacred court, engaged in the offices of devotion, when the
Holy Family entered ; and, recognising the Child, he took
Him in his arms and blessed God with a glad heart : " Now
nnloosest Thou Thy slave, Lord, according to Thy word in
peace, because mine eyes have seen Thy salvation." Not in
vain had Symeon mused on the Messianic Scriptures. While
his contemporaries were dreaming of a victorious King, he^had
laid to heart the prophecies of a suffering Redeemer ; and he
forewarned Mary what would be : " Behold, this Child hath
been set for the falling and rising up of many in Israel, and
for a sign gainsaid, and through thine own soul shall a sword
pass, that thoughts out of many hearts may be revealed."
Anna. While Symeon was speaking, another saint appeared on
the scene — an aged prophetess named Anna, who, since she
Lk. il 37 had been a widow for eighty-four years, must have been over
Cf. X Tim', a hundred years of age.' She haunted the Temple, giving
'• 5- herself night and day to fasting and prayer. Entering the
sacred court while Symeon was still speaking, she took up the
refrain of praise, and afterwards spoke of the Holy Child to
such as, like herself, " expected Jerusalem's redemption,"
quickening their hope and preparing a welcome for Him when
He should be manifested unto Israel.
Universal Nor was it Only to a chosen few in the land of Israel that
*onhe Re" ^^ Messiah's advent was revealed. It is no wonder that in
comer's those dark days, when the Jewish people were groaning under
the Roman yoke, the Messianic hope should have revived and
the belief arisen that the Redeemer was at hand. So utter
was the nation's need of Him that, it was felt. His advent could
no longer be delayed. The wonder is that beyond the
borders of the Holy Land a like expectancy prevailed. Yet,
^ Lightfoot on Lk. ii 24.
* Cf. Plin. H. N. Tu. 50 for instances of longerity in N. Italy when the ocosoi
was taken ia the reign of Vespasian.
THE WONDROUS BIRTH 7
if it be true that " coming events cast their shadows before," It
is in no wise strange that there should have been premonitions
of the greatest event in the world's history. One who lived
through the crisis, has vividly pourtrayed the unrest and alarm
of Europe on the eve of the Reformation, when distress
abounded, lawlessness prevailed, unbelief was rampant, and
" the whole world was in travail with some great evil." ^ And
even so it was when the fulness of the time had come and
God was about to send forth His Son. A single instance
may suffice. It is related by Plutarch ' that a ship, bound
for Italy and laden with merchandise and passengers, was
becalmed one evening " off the isles Echinades." She had
drifted nigh to Paxos when suddenly a voice was heard from
the island calling aloud " Thamfis I " Thamfts was the
Egyptian pilot. Twice was he called and held his peace, but
the third time he answered. And then the voice charged
him : " When you come over against Palddes, announce that
the Great Pan is dead," The ship's company were amazed
and reasoned with themselves whether it were better to obey
the behest or pay no heed. Thamfls decided, if there
were wind, to sail past in silence, but, should there be a
calm at the place, to proclaim what he had heard. When
they came over against Pal6des, there was neither wind nor
wave, and Thamiis, looking from the stern to the land, cried :
" The Great Pan is dead I " Straightway there arose a loud
mourning, not of one but of many, mingled with wonderment
Such stories — and they are many' — reveal what despair had
filled men's hearts when Jesus came. It seemed as though
the world's sun had set and its night were hastening oa
Humanity was crying out for deliverance ; and it is remark-
able that, perhaps because the Hope of Israel had been
noised abroad, even the heathen were turning their eyes
toward Judaea, thence expecting the Deliverer.*
> Erasm. Coliog. Pwrf., written in 1525, two years before the siege of Rome.
• De Defect. Orac. § 17.
• Cf. the rumour at Rome in A.D. 34 of the appearance in Egypt of the Phoenix
(Herod, ii. 73 ; Plin. H. N.x. 2; Philostr. Apoll. iii. 49), whose advent at Interval*
of 1461 years, marked the end of one cycle and the beginning of another. Since it
had last been seen in the reign of Ptolemy Euergetes (B.C. 247-2*) the Annui Atagmti
had still some 1200 years to run. Tac. Ann. tI. 28.
• Cf. Suet Vesf. S 4 ; Tac. Hist. ▼. 13 ; Jos. De BelLJud. vi. 5. I 4
8 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
The sur- It is therefore in no wise incredible that, when the Messiah
Wiiar^ appeared, there came strangers from afar, enquiring after Him.
" Behold, Wizards from the East arrived at Jerusalem, saying :
' Where is the new-bom King of the Jews? For we saw
His star in the East and came to do obeisance unto Him.* "
They were astrologers, and their craft, which read men's
destinies on the face of the sky, was in great repute in an age
when religion was dead and superstition had usurped its
place. Its home was the mystic East, but the Chaldaean
soothsayer was a familiar figure in the West, especially at
Rome, where, like his successor in medieval Europe, he exerted
a potent and too often malign influence not only over the
multitude but over statesmen and princes.^ Tradition, pro-
bably on the ground of their triple offering, has it that those
Wizards were three in number, and makes them kings, by
name Caspar, Melchior, and Balthasar. In their distant
home' they had observed a strange star, and it has been
ascertained that there were astronomical phenomena about
that time. These could not escape the observation of the
Wizards ; and it was natural that, when some strange star
swam into their ken, they should hail it as a prognostication
of a royal birth.' They knew not where it might have
Cf. Gen. occurred, but, furnishing themselves with fit offerings, they set
iCings X.' X forth on their quest. As they travelled westward, they would
learn of the expectation which centred in Judaea ; and they
bent their steps toward Jerusalem, arriving two years after
their setting out* " Where," they eagerly inquired, " is the
new-born King of the Jews ? For we saw His star in the East
and came to do obeisance unto Him."
Alarm of Since it was believed that His birth would be heralded by
a star,' who could this King of the Jews be but the Messiah ?
^ Cf. Hor. Od. i. ii ; Juv. iii. 43 ; Tac. Ann. vi. 20-1 ; Hist. L 22. Severe
measures against them : Val. Max. i. 3. § 2 ; Dion. Cass. xlix. I ; Suet Tib. % 36 ;
Tac Hist, ii 62 ; Ann. u. 32. See Erasm. Adag. under Qui btne conj'iciei, hunt
vatem.
' Persia (Chrysost., Theophyl., Enth. Zig.) ; Arabia, (Just. M., Tert.).
• C/. Orig. C. Cels. i. 59; Wetstein on Mt. ii. 2.
• On the assumption that the star appeared at the time of the Birth it has been
Inferred that Jesus was two years old when the Wizards arrived. But, according to
Abarbanel, the star which heralded Moses' birth, appeared three years before.
• Cf. Num. xxiv. 17. The pseudo- Messiah of A.D. 132 was called Bar-cochb«,
Son of a Star.
THE WONDROUS BIRTH 9
The city was greatly moved and Herod was seized with
alarm. He had won the throne by adroit craft, and knew
with what hatred he was regarded by his indignant subjects.
All along he had been haunted by nervous dread lest he
should be driven from the throne which he had usurped and
retained only by favour of Rome ; and to secure himself and
his heirs in the tenure thereof he had imbrued his hands in
much innocent blood. From two quarters chiefly was danger
to be apprehended. On the one side there were the repre-
sentatives of the ousted dynasty of the Asmonaeans, and he
had set himself to extirpate them, not sparing even his wife
Mariamne, a daughter of that honoured house, and the sons,
Alexander and Aristobulus, whom she had borne him.^ And
on the other side there were the Rabbis who, indignant that Cf. Detn.
an alien should sit upon the throne of Israel, made no secret ""^ *^
of their disaffection ; and he had signalised the commencement
of his reign by a massacre of the members of the Sanhedrin.*
And now, when he heard of a new-born King of the Jews
who would thrust himself and his successors from the throne,
it seemed as though all his precautions, his scheming and his
sinning, would prove unavailing. At every hazard the danger His san.
must be averted, and he determined to slay the infant f^tiiioa.
Redeemer. First, however, he must find Him, and he turned
for guidance to the Sanhedrin. Thirty years before he had
destroyed the august court, but it had been reconstituted soon
after ; ' and now the tyrant convenes the dishonoured council
and demands of it, as the recognised authority on such ques-
tions, where the Messiah should be bom. " At Bethlehem,"
was the answer in accordance with the prevailing conviction
derived from the prophetic Scriptures.* Straightway Herod had
a private interview with the astrologers, and, directing them
to Bethlehem, bade them seek out the Child and, when they
had found Him, bring him word, that, as he professed, he
might go himself and do obeisance unto Him. It was a
transparent device. Herod was no longer the astute diplomatist
of earlier days. The aged tyrant appears here as on the
pages of the Jewish historian — a decrepit dotard, suspicious
» Jos. Ant. XV. 7. §§ 4-6, xvi. II. §§ 2-7 ; De Bell.Jud. L 22. §§ 3-5, 27. §§ 2-6.
• Jos. Ant. xiv. 9. § 4 ; Lightfoot on Mt. ii 4.
• Jos. Ant. XV. 6. § 2 * See Wetstein on Mt. u. 6.
lo THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
and malignant as ever, but feeble even to imbecility in his
very violence. It was a transparent device, nor were the
heaven-guided Wizards deceived by it They repaired to
Bethlehem, and, finding the Child, they bowed before Him
and presented their offerings — gold, frankincense and myrrh.
" The gold," says the good monk of Constantinople after the
manner of the ancient interpreters, " is a symbol of kingship,
for subjects pay tribute of gold to their kings ; and the
frankincense of deity, for frankincense was burned unto God ;
and the myrrh of mortification, for herewith the ancients
anointed the dead that they might not rot nor smell." ^ They
found the Child, but they did not carry word to Herod.
They returned by another way to their own country.
Massacre The baffled King would not be diverted from his purpose.
inno«ents! It was two years since the star had appeared, and, since the
Child might have been born at any time during the interval,
he ordered a massacre of all the male children of two years old
and under in Bethlehem and its neighbourhood. " Then
was fulfilled," says the Evangelist, with exquisite felicity
applying an ancient Scripture to the tragedy, " that which
a^ iSf was spoken through Jeremiah the prophet :
' A voice in Ramah was heard.
Weeping and lamentation great :
Rachel weeping for her children ;
And she would not be comforted, because they are not'*
Ramah was a village on the border of Benjamin on the
highway between Bethel and " Ephrath, which is Bethlehem."
There Jacob buried Rachel when she died in giving birth
Gen. xxxT. to Benjamin, the Son of her Sorrrow. Her tomb was by
'^^ the way-side, and, as the exiles passed it on their way to
Babylon, it seemed to the prophet as though Rachel were
weeping for her children's woes. Later legend placed
Rachel's tomb at Bethlehem,* and in the lamentation over
the slaughtered innocents the Evangelist again heard Rachel
weeping for her children.
Flight to The Infant Redeemer was snatched from the tyrant's
^^P*" fury. Warned of the impending danger Joseph took Him
» Eoth. Zig. Cy: Orig. C. CcU. i. 60 ; Chrysost In Mattk. viii ; Claudian,
I
THE WONDROUS BIRTH ii
and His mother by night and fled with them to Egypt* In
that historic land, where of old their fathers had groaned in
bondage, the Jews had settled in large numbers and prospered
exceedingly." There the exiles would find a secure asylum.
And there they remained, for a year according to tradition,*
until the death of the bloody tyrant, when they travelled
back to the land of Israel and reoccupied their long forsaken
home in Nazareth.*
It is a striking tribute to our Blessed Lord that His The Birth
Birth is recognised as the watershed of history. When He the t^n-
appeared, the foundation of the city of Rome was the starting- "'"ko**
point of chronology; but His Birth was ere long recognised
as the birth of a new world, and about the middle of the sixth
century of our era Dionysius Exiguus, abbot of a monastery
at Rome, proposed in his Cyclus Paschalis, that Christians
should thenceforth reckon from that supreme event ; and
the proposal met with immediate and universal acceptance.
It is certain, however, that in fixing the commencement of
the Christian era Dionysius erred by several years ; and it
is a singular fact that, though our Lord's Birth is the supreme
event of history, it is difficult, perhaps impossible, to deter-
mine its precise date.
It is certain that Jesus was bom before the death of King The year.
Herod, which occurred in the spring of B.C 4 ; ' but how long
before can be only approximately determined. He was bom
while the census of Quirinius was in progress ; and since the
year B.C. 8 was appointed for this, the first of the imperial enrol-
ments, it seems as though there were here a sure datum. It
appears, however, that the Judaean census had been considerably
delayed by the troubles wherewith Herod was encompassed.
The miserable quarrel betwixt him and his sons, Alexander and
Aristobulus, which issued in their execution, was at its height ; •
• Lk. omits the Flight to Egypt. Cf. his silence in Actx r^arding Paul's retiral
to Arabia (Gal. i. 17).
' In Philo's time there were no fewer than a million Jews in Egypt. The city
of Alexandria was divided into five districts, of which two were called " Jewish *
because the inhabitants were mostly Jews (/» Flacc. §§ 6, 8).
» Hist. Jos. viii. « Cf. Introd. % id
• Schilrer, H. J. P, L I, p. 464 sqq.
• Jos, Ant. xvi. II. §§ 2.7 ; De Bell. fud. L 87. §§ 2-6.
la THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
and in B.C 9 or 8 he went to Rome in order to lay his griev-
ance before the Emperor. On his return he found Judaea
suffering from the depredations of the brigands of Trachonitis,
who had been emboldened by his absence and encouraged
by the unscrupulous Arabian, Syllaeus. He led an army into
Arabia, and Syllaeus, smarting under defeat, addressed a piteous
appeal to Augustus, representing Herod's invasion as an un-
provoked aggression. The indignant Emperor sent a severe
letter to Herod. " I have hitherto," he wrote, " treated you
as a friend, but now I shall treat you as a subject." ^ Only
with extreme difficulty did the luckless King regain the im-
perial favour, and two full years elapsed ere he was at leisure
to turn his attention to the business of the census, which is
thus brought down probably to B.C. 5.
Again, St Luke states that the Baptist's ministry began
during the governorship of Pontius Pilate (A.D. 25-35 *) and
in the fifteenth year of the government of Tiberius, that is, in
A.D. 25, since the government of Tiberius began, not with his
accession in A.D. 1 4, but with his assumption in the latter part
of A.D. 1 1 as Augustus' colleague with " equal authority in all
the provinces and armies."' If at His baptism early in A.D.
Lk. m. 23. 26 Jesus had turned thirty. He was born in B.C. 5. It agrees
herewith that when He was at Jerusalem celebrating the Feast
of the Passover at the commencement of His ministry, the
/obniLao. Herodian Temple had been forty-six years abuilding. Herod
ascended the throne in July, B.C. 37, and since the work of re-
storing the Temple began in the eighteenth year of his reign,*
that is in B.C. 20, this would be the year A.D. 26.''
The day. Western Christendom celebrates 25 th December as the
Birth-day of our Lord, but this also is an error. When He
was born, the shepherds were keeping watch by night over
their flocks in the wilderness of Judaea ; and, since the flocks
were taken out to pasture about Passover-time and kept there
until the middle of October when winter set in,' His birth fell
> Ant. xvi. 9. § 3. • Eos. H. E. u 9.
» Veil. Paterc. ii. 121. %Z', tf. Tac. Ann. i. 3.
• Schiirer, H./. P. i. i, p. 410.
• Cf. Ramsay, Was Chr. Bom at Bethl, f pp. 224-5. The ministry of Jesus
lasted three years, and according to Tert. Adv. Jud. § 8 He died during the coosul-
■hip of Rubellius and Fufius, i.e. A.D. 29 [cf. Tac. Ann, ▼. i).
• Lightfoot on Lk. ii. 8.
THE WONDROUS BIRTH 13
betwixt April and October. Nor is it difficult to understand
why the Western Church fixed upon 25 th December. Toward
the close of that month the Romans kept their festival of the
Saturnalia, abandoning themselves to revelry.^ Albeit marred
by debauchery, it was a season of peace and good-will. While
it lasted, it were impious to begin a war or execute a criminal,
and friends sent gifts to each other.' And there is one
curious custom which must not be forgotten : for a whole day
freedom was granted to the slaves.' Many of the primitive
Christians belonged to this oppressed class ; and it was natural
that, while their heathen fellows were spending the day of
freedom in riot, they should keep it as a holy festival, celebrat-
ing the Birth of their Lord who had redeemed them with His
precious blood and delivered them from the bondage of Rom. riii.
corruption into the liberty of the glory of the children of'**
God.
^ Senec Ep, xviii ; " Decembrii est mensis cum maxime civitas desudat,"
• SueL Aug. § 32 ; Mart. vii. 53 ; xiv. I. • Hor. SeU. a, 7.
CHAPTER II
ULt^ THB SILENT YEARS
5a; Mi-Ti.
3=Mt. ziu.
55^ •■ Very dear tbeOaaseCAsBC
WlKce He took tte sbmi's blaae^
And tiie tmb wkeran Ac SBvioor lay,
Uma the OM d^ caae ;
But He bore the self-same load.
And He west the same high road
WktB &e cvpeMer af Naamk
i for God."— WAtTE* C. Smth.
Gaiace. Galilee, the ancient heritage of Naphtali, Asher, Zebulon,
and Issachar, was the fairest region of the Land of Israel It
was a country of green hills and fertile valleys, abounding in
springs and rivulets. There the poet of the Song of Songs
Its beantj. had his home, and, as we read that exquisite idyll, we seem
to scent the fragrance of the lovely land and move amid its
i. 6, 5. 1-3. varied enchantments. We see the blossoming vineyards, the
^ j^ valle>'s gay with roses and lilies, the laden apple-trees of the
L y.a. wood, the orchards of pomegranates ; the flocks feeding in
the pastures or resting in the shade at noon, and the kids
i. 14. 15, plajong beside the shepherds' tents ; the doves nesting in the
^' clefts of the rocks, the foxes making havoc of the vineyards,
5. 17, II. the gazelles leaping on the hills. We drink the cool air of
L ia-3, rv. moming and breathe the breath of Spring. We smell the
^^^ perfume of spikenard, myrrh, frankincense, and mandrake,
i. 15, T. X, and far-wafted odours of Lebanon. We hear the song of the
V'lZ i^' vine-dressers, the hum of bees, the bleating of sheep and
*& "■ goats, the cooing of the wood-pigeon, the prattle of brooks
and the gurgle of hidden springs.
Nor despite the rude vicissitudes of history had Galilee
lost aught of its charm when the Lord dwelt there. It was
In fcrtffity. still a fair and pleasant land, and withal exceeding fertile,
giving to the Holy Land, according to R- Jonah,^ its title to
be called " a land flowing with milk and honey." Affording
^ Ligiitfixit, ii. p. 404.
at
THE SILENT YEARS 15
a plenteous sustenance, it had a teeming populace. " It is
easier," said R. Eleasar, " for a man to rear a legion of olives its pop*,
in Galilee than a single child in the Land of Israel" * " The '"*'"*'*'
country," says the Jewish historian,* "was fat and rich in
pasture and planted with all manner of trees, so that by its
geniality it allured even the least zealous in husbandry.
Therefore it was all worked by the inhabitants, and no part
of it was idle. Yet were there also frequent cities, and the
multitude of villages had in every case, by reason of the
fertility, a large population, so that the smallest had upwards
of fifteen thousand inhabitants." On this reckoning, since
the cities and villages of Galilee numbered two hundred and
four,' the population would be over three millions ; and,
though it may be deemed incredible that an area of some
hundred square miles should have supported so vast a
multitude, yet, after all deductions, the population was un-
questionably very great During the Jewish War Josephus
levied from Galilee a hundred thousand recruits;* nor is itMk.L45:
possible to read the Gospels without being impressed by the ^31^1!.*
size of the crowds which, at the shortest notice, gathered "• "-
about Jesus wherever He went
Galilee is the Hebrew Ga/i/, * Circle " ; and the land was GentOe
called originally Gait/ haggoyim^ " Circle of the GentikSy* |^ |^ ^
since, unlike Judsa which was bounded by deserts, she was
encompassed by heathen nations — Phoenicia, Decapolis,
Samaria. In the time of the Maccabees so hardly was she
pressed by " those of Ptolemais and Tyre and Sidon and all i ifaec ^
Galilee of the Aliens " that her Jewish inhabitants were ccm- **'**
veyed South " with their v^n ves and their children and all that
they had " and settled in Judaea ; nor was it until the days of
John Hyrcanus (b.C 135-105) that she was repeopled by
Jews and restored to the Jewish dominion. In our Lord's
time the population was mainly Jewish, insomuch that she
^^'as called no longer Galilee of the Gentiles but simply
Galilee. Heathen elements still remained : Phoenicians,
Syrians, Arabians, and Greeks ; and hence Renan infers that
the Galileans were a mongrel race and " it is impossible to
ascertain what blood flowed in the veins of him who has coo-
» Cf. Wetstein oa Mc xxri. 53. " Jofc DtBeJLJud. 2L J. | *
» Jofc Fa. I 45. *Dt B*n,Jmd. iL aa I <b
i6 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
tributcd most to efface the distinctions of blood." It would,
however, appear that the Gentiles in Galilee dwelt apart in
exclusive colonies,^ and betwixt them and the Jews bitter
enmity prevailed, breaking out from time to time into
sanguinary conflict'
Galilean The truth is that the presence of the heathen in their
patnotic niidst, SO far from corrupting the Jews of Galilee, rather
and re- quickened their patriotism and strengthened the tenacity
* wherewith they clung to the traditions of their race. Albeit
a more liberal spirit prevailed there than in the southern
stronghold of Rabbinism, nowhere was patriotism so intense
or religion so ardent. Josephus had been governor of Galilee
and knew its people well, and his testimony is that "they
were warriors from infancy, and cowardice never had hold
of the men." ' The names of Hezekiah and Judas the
Galilean are eloquent of the heroism of the race and their
readiness to risk their lives in desperate enterprises for the
glory of God and the liberty of Israel.
Despised Nevertheless the Galileans were despised by the proud
judacans^ Judaeans. Judaea was the home of orthodoxy, the shrine of
Israel's sacred institutions. Hers were Jerusalem, the Temple,
the Sanhedrin, the great Teachers ; and she boasted of these
distinctions and disdained the boorish folk of Galilee. The
ignorance of the latter was a by-word, and, when they visited
Jerusalem at the festal seasons, their manners, dress, an«l accent
were the jest of the citizens. Since they spoke with a strong
(^. Mt. burr, the instant they opened their mouths their nationality
Mk.'xW, was discovered, and their confusion of the gutturals some-
70- times occasioned ludicrous blunders. A Galilean woman
once said to her neighbour : " Come, and I will give you
butter to eat," and it seemed as though she said : " May a
lion devour you I " * The Judaeans derided the Galileans,
but their contempt was probably not unmingled with jealousy.
The contrast between their own barren land and fair and
fruitful Galilee awoke their envy. " Why," asked the Rabbis,
bent on finding even here an evidence of divine favour, " are
' E.g. Cannel was in the hands of ^le Syrians, and Scythopolis also was a Syrian
town (Jos. De Bell. Jud. ii. 18. S 0.
• Jos. Vit. %6', De Bell. Jud. iL 18. §§ I tqq,
• D* Bell. Jud. iii. 3, § 2.
• Cf. Ligh^ioot, iic 232-3 ; Wetstein on Mt xxtI. J^
THE SILENT YEARS 17
there none of the fruits of Gennesaret at Jerusalem? Lest *
they that come up to the feasts should say : ' We had not
come save to eat of the fruits of Gennesaret' Why arc not
the hot waters of Tiberias at Jerusalem? Lest they that
come up to the feasts should say : ' We had not come save
to bathe in the baths of Tiberias.' " ^ The contempt of the
Judaeans was certainly unjust. They had a saying : " Out johnrii?..
of Galilee a prophet ariseth not," regardless that several
of Israel's greatest prophets had been Galileans. Though
Tisbeh in Gilead was his birth-place, Galilee was the scene
of Elijah's ministry, as it was the scene also of that of his
successor, Elisha of Abel-Meholah. Jonah and probably
Nahum were of Galilee. In after days, to say nothing of the
prophetess Anna, though St Paul was born at Tarsus in Lk, IL ji
Cilicia, his parents, according to St Jerome, had belonged tOActsxxiLj
the Galilean town of Gischala and quitted it on its capture by
the Romans.' And it is surely the most impressive of
history's revenges that Galilee, once the jest and scorn of
Judaea, has for nigh two thousand years been esteemed the
holiest region on the earth, "blessed and hallowed of the
precious body and blood of our Lord Jesu Christ ; in the
which land it liked him to take flesh and blood of the Virgin
Mary, to environ that holy land with his blessed feet"
Galilee gave the Messiah a home, Judaea gave Him a
cross.
Among the mountains of Galilee, just where they drop Nazareth,
down precipitously to the Plain of Esdraelon, lies a hollow
amphitheatre ; and on its north-western slope nestled the town
of Nazareth where the Holy Child was nurtured, " increasing
in wisdom and stature and favour with God and men." The
people of Nazareth had an evil reputation even among their
fellow Galileans, who had a proverb : " Out of Nazareth can John l 4&
there be aught good ? " And their behaviour to Jesus, when
He visited their town and preached in their Synagogue in
the course of His ministry, is evidence that they were of a Lk. hr. ss-
passionate and lawless temper. But, whatever the faults of
its people, Nazareth was a lovely spot, worthy of the en-
^ Lightfoot, iL 227 ; Wetstein on John ▼. 4.
' Script. Ecd. Jerome says Paul was born at Gischala, " qno a Romanis capto
cum parentibos suit Tarsam Ciliciae commigniTit."
i8 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
comium of Antoninus the Martyr who likened it to Paradise.*
The houses were built of white lime-stone hewn out of the
calcareous mountains which girt it round ; and, when the
Talmud mentions among the districts which produced wine
for the drink-offerings, the White City on the Hill,* in all
likelihood it is Nazareth that is meant The town is closed
in by the encircling ramparts of hills ; but climb the over-
hanging brow, and, behold, what a panorama opens to the
view ! Northward, the ridge of Lebanon and the snow-capped
peak of Hermon ; eastward, the Jordan-valley and the
mountains of Gilead ; southward, the Plain of Esdraelon,
Israel's historic battle-field ; westward. Mount Carmel and
the sheen of the Mediterranean. Round the foot of the hill
wound the Great West Road, "the Way of the Sea," the
route of the caravans betwixt Damascus and the Mediter-
ranean sea-ports ; while southward ran the road to Egypt,
thronging with merchants, and the road to Jerusalem, along
which, as the festal seasons drew near, companies of pilgrims
took their joyous way to the Holy City.
The home Such were the surroundings amid which our Saviour
° "iiis passed His holy childhood and grew to man's estate,
brothers There were other children in the home : for Jesus was
and sisters. ' •'
Lk. iL 7. Mary's first-bom, and she subsequently bore to Joseph
Ml xiiL four others, James, Joseph, Judas, and Simon, besides
" %i 3! several daughters.^ It is pathetic that, though after the
Resurrection they came over to His cause, during His
John Tu. ministry the Lord's brothers not merely rejected His claims
^'^' but sneered at them ; and once they went so far as to
Mk. iiL 21, pronounce Him mad and attempt to lay hands on Him
^** and hale Him home to Nazareth ; illustrating the proverb
so often on His lips that " a prophet hath no honour among
His own people." * Nevertheless, whatever estrangement may
have shadowed His life in after years, it appears from what
little the Evangelists relate that He had a sweet and happy
**• 40. childhood. " The Child," says St Luke, " grew and waxed
^ Wetstein on Mt ii. 23. * Menach. 9. 7.
• Two, Assia and Lydia {Hist. Jos. U).
* In the interests of the doctrine of Mary's Perpetuaf Virginity {cf. Aug. In
Joan. Ev. Tract. xxviiL § 3) two theories have been held regarding our Lord's
brethren. (l) They were sons of Joseph by a former marriage (Orig,, Clem. Alex.,
Epiphan.). Cf. J. B. Lightfoot, Gal. pp. 252-90. (2) They were His cousins,.soBS
of Mary, the wife of Alphaens, sister to the Virgin (Jer., Aug.). Cf. p. 147, n. 2.
THE SILENT YEARS
19
strong, being filled with wisdom ; and God's grace was upon
Him." Joseph was only a humble carpenter, earning a Hi«
scanty livelihood by daily toil, and luxury was unknown in *'*"*'*"
the home where the Lord of Glory passed His wondrous
childhood ; yet, poor though it was in worldly gear, it was
rich in better possessions. It evinces a spirit of earnest
piety that, though the attendance of women was optional,*
Mary accompanied her husband year by year when he went Lk. ii 41.
up to the Passover at Jerusalem. Joseph was a kindly
man, and he took the Holy Child to his heart, well de-
serving to be called his " father." * The harsh discipline Lk. ii. 33,
of his childhood's home at Eisleben haunted Martin Luther **' *^ ***
all his days ; and, since the word " father " conjured up in
his mind the image of one who would beat him, he could
never repress an involuntary shudder when he repeated the
Pater noster. Not such was the Lord's remembrance of the
good Joseph, and it is no irreverence to recognise in His
master-thought of the Heavenly Fatherhood a tribute to
the fatherly love which had cherished Him in His childhood,
anticipating His every need and withholding no good thingMtriS;
from Him. Even as the shepherd-psalmist had desired ^"' "'
naught better for himself than that God should be his
Shepherd, dealing with him as he dealt with his sheep, so p^ xxiii. x.
Jesus, looking abroad over the whole domain of human
experience for an emblem of the divine Love which He had
come to manifest, found none so apt as that human love
which had done so much for Him and which He so grate-
fully remembered. And no less well did Mary discharge His
her office by the Child whom God had given her. Would ™°'^"-
it not be from her that He had learned that caressing mother-
word, Talitha, "My lamb," which rose to His lips beside Mk. v. 41
the couch of JaYrus' daughter ?
The apocryphal Gospels tell much about the Lord's Educauo.
school-days and His behaviour toward His teachers and
His play-mates ; but of all this nothing is recorded by our
* Cf. Lightfoot on Lk. u. 43 ; Wetstein on Lk. iL 41.
' Cf. Talmudic anecdote in Lightfoot on Lk. iii. 23. Offence was taken at the
word as seeming to conflict with the virgin-birth ; and in Lk. ii. 48 some ancient
authorities omit "Thy father and I"; at v. 33 for "His father" some read
"Joseph " ; at v. 41 for " His parents " some Latin cursives h^y^ /ostjih tt Maria •
at p. 43 " His parents" becomes "Joseph and His mother."
20 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
Evangelists. They mention incidentally that He could both
read and write, and it would have been strange indeed had
He grown up uninstructed. " Our ground is good," says
Josephus, ^ " and we work it to the utmost ; but our chief
ambition is for the nurture of our children." According to
R. Salomo, a father had as well bury his son as neglect
his instruction.' It was recognised that youth is the
golden season of opportunity. " He who learns as a lad,"
said R. Elisha ben Abujah, " to what is he like ? To ink
written on fresh paper. And he who learns when old, to
what is he like ? To ink written on used paper." ^ And it
was a saying of R. Judah the Holy that " the world exists
by the breath of school-children."
At home. A Jewish child's education began in his home. His
parents were his first teachers. St Paul testifies that
• Tim. Ls; Timothy's faith was an inheritance from his grandmother
'^' Lois and his mother Eunice, and that from his infancy he
had known sacred literature. Certainly Joseph and Mary
would not be less assiduous than other parents in the task
of instructing their Child. And He was an apt pupil,
Lk. u, 52. " making progress," as it were pari passu, " in wisdom and
age." Costly as copies of the Scriptures were, they were
I Mace. L found by the emissaries of Antiochus in B.C. i68 in not
^^" a few homes in the cities of Judah ; and it may well be
that, poor though he was, Joseph had acquired a copy at
least of the Law. Nor would he be unmindful of the in-
Dgm^ ^ ^ junction : " These words which I command thee this day,
7- shall be upon thine heart : and thou shalt teach them
diligently unto thy children, and shalt talk of them when
thou sittest in thine house, and when thou walkest by the
way, and when thou liest down, and when thou risest up."
The House At the age of six or seven years * a Jewish boy was sent
^^ to the elementary school, called, because the material of
instruction was the Book of the Law, the House of the Book.'
c/. Lk. V. It was attached to the Synagogue ; and, since every village
'7" had its Synagogue, every village had also its school.' Thence
> C. Ap. i. § 12. ' Wetstein on 2 Tim. iii. 15. » Taylor, Say. of Path. iv. 27.
• According to the ordinance of Joshua ben Gamla (a.d. 63-5), which was
merely a reinforcement of existing requirements. Cf. Schilrer, H.J. P., II. iL p. 49.
* IDDrt n*2U " See Lightfoot on Mt iv. 23.
THE SILENT YEARS 21
such as desired to pursue their studies further passed into The Honw
the Scribal College, the House of the Midrash,^ where the MiSLh.
great Rabbis taught. There was a House of the Midrash at
Jabne, where R. Eleasar and R. Ismael taught in a place
called the Vineyard ; ^ but the leading college was at
_>erusalem. It was within the Temple-precincts, probably lnc/.lJk.\L
the Synagogue of the Temple. Though the main business *^"
was the drilling of the disciples in the oral tradition,'
it was customary also to propound problems, the Teachers
putting questions to the disciples and hearing questions from
them with a view to the elucidation of difficulties.* The
Teachers occupied a slightly elevated dais, while the disciples
sat round in a circle on the floor, " powdering themselves in
the dust of the feet of the wise," ^ whence St Paul's phrase : Acti xjdi.
" I was educated at the feet of Gamaliel." *
Jesus never attended any of these colleges, not being John vu. 15.
designed for a Rabbi. It was required of every Jewish father Handi-
that he should teach his son some honest craft, failing in ^
which he was as if he taught him robbery.' " Hate not
laborious work " was the precept of one of Israel's wise men ; Ecdut. fU.
and even the Rabbis had their handicrafts.' Saul of Tarsus, *^
though designed for a Rabbi and studying in the Rabbinical
college at Jersualem, learned the craft of tentmaking, an
equipment which stood him in good stead in the days of his Acts, xrni
apostleship.8 Like every Jewish lad Jesus was put to work ; ^^^ ^
and very naturally he followed Joseph's calling, fashioning
for the peasants of Nazareth those ploughs and yokes which
in after days furnished Him with heavenly parables.*
Jesus never attended a Rabbinical college, yet on one J^e Child
1 • 1 r r u Jesus at Ibt
memorable occasion He was found sittmg at the feet of the Pasiover.
Rabbis in the House of the Midrash at Jerusalem. At the
age of twelve a Jewish boy was reckoned "a son of the
' Sometimes the classes met in an upper room in a private boose, like the
Christian iKKXTjria in early days (i Cor. xvi. 19; CoL iv. 15). Taylor, Say. tf
Fath. i. 4 ; Lightfoot on Acts L 13.
» Cf. Introd. § I.
• Lightfoot on Lk. ii. 46. • Taylor, Say. of Fath. i. 4, n- "•
• Lightfoot on Mk vi. 3. ' Delitzsch, /wmA Artisan Life, chap. T.
• Taylor, Say. of Fath. i. il, n. 22.
•Just. M. Dial. c. Tryph., ed. Sylburg., p. 316 C Cf. Introd. I 12, 3, (l).
33 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
Law " ^ and entered upon all the privileges and responsibilities
of an Israelite, including attendance at the Feast of the
Passover.* It was probably in A.D. 8 that Jesus, twelve years
old the previous summer, joined with Joseph and Mary the
train of pilgrims travelling southward to Jerusalem to keep
that sacred feast which year by year in the month Abib or
Nisan, our April, was celebrated in commemoration of Israel's
deliverance from her bondage in Egypt. The hundred and
twenty-second Psalm describes the joy wherewith a young
Israelite of old obeyed the summons to join the festal
company and the wonder which filled his soul when at last
his feet stood within the gates of the ancient capital and his
eyes beheld the sacred Temple. Even such would be the
emotion of the youthful Jesus on this memorable occasion.
Often had he heard from Joseph and Mary of the Holy City
and Mount Zion. He had longed for the day when He
should go thither and see it all with His own eyes ; and
now at length His desire is fulfilled.
Leftbebind The week of sacred solemnity was like a wondrous
"sa^. dream to the Holy Child. He would feast His eyes on the
impressive pageant and drink in all that He heard.
When the festival was over, the train of Galileans started on
the homeward journey, and Joseph and Mary set out with the
rest, unwitting that they were leaving Jesus behind. Amid
the confusion of the crowded city ' the mishap might easily
occur ; and, inasmuch as the men and the women
travelled in separate bands, the children accompanying either
parent. His absence would alarm neither Joseph nor Mary,
since each would suppose that He was in the other company.*
When the caravan halted at the end of the first day's march,
they missed him, and hastened back enquiring and looking
for Him all along the road in case He should have lagged
behind. But not a trace of their lost Child did they
discover until they reached Jerusalem ; and there they found
* niyp *l^, ' See Lightfoot and Wetstein on Lk. ii. 42.
* At one Passover the High Priests, at the request of the procurator Cestius Gallus
(a.d. 63-6), estimated the worshippers in the city. From the number of lambs slain
in the Temple (256,500), they reckoned the worshippers at 2,700,200, exclusive of
those who took no part — unclean persons and foreigners (Jos. De Bell.Jud. ri. 9. § 3).
They came from all parts (Acts ii. 8- 11).
* Cf. Bede in Cat. Aur.
X.
THE SILENT YEARS ^3
Him, on the third day after their setting out, seated in theJ'oundat
House of the Midrash among the disciples at the feet of the \^ k!!uL
Rabbis, listening to them and asking them questions, at once
delighting and amazing them by His singular and unearthly
intelligence.^ What would those grave and venerable teachers,
iS they marvelled at His understanding and answers, have
felt, had it been revealed to them Who that wondrous Child
really was ? " Therefore," says old Euthymius, " let us that
are teachers fear, recognising that in our midst is the Christ,
attending how we teach."
His parents were amazed, and Mary, forgetting, in her joy Di»cov«wy
at the recovery of her lost treasure, the august presence in klnlh^JI*
which she stood, broke into gentle chiding: "Child, why *""* ^'"^
didst Thou thus to us ? Behold, Thy father and I were vocation
seeking Thee in sore distress." Wondrous things had happened
to the Holy Child during the Passover-week. God had
spoken to His soul and discovered to Him Who He was and
wherefore He had come into the world. " Why is it," He
replied wistfully as one whose thoughts were far away, " that
ye are seeking Me ? Did ye not know that it is in My
Father's House* that 1 ought to be?" This is the earliest
recorded saying of our Blessed Lord, and it is no wonder
that it puzzled Joseph and Mary. It strikes the keynote of
all His after-life. Henceforth He called no one on the earth
His father and owned no carnal kinship ; He realised that
He had one only business among the children of men, the
mighty work of their redemption, and He kept it ever before
Him, never resting, never faltering, never turning back.
Nevertheless He quietly returned to Nazareth and resumed "»* ^"™
' It is an ancient and inveterate misconception that He was coofoonding them Nuareth.
bf His superior wisdom. The £v. Infant. Arab, (llii) represents Him as ex-
pounding hard questions of theology, astronomy, physics, metaphysics, and
anatomy, " things which no creature's intellect reaches. " So Ev. Thorn, xix.
Cf. Origen : " He was questioning the Teachers ; and, because they could not
answer, He Himself was answering the questions which He asked." " He was
questioning the Teachers, not that He might learn aught, bat that by questioning
He might instruct them " {In Luc. Howt. xviii, xix).
• iv Tois Tov IlaTpdj fiov either ( i), "in My Father's House," which is the fwtrisdc
rendering; cf. tl% ri tSia (John xvi. 32; xix. 27); or (2) "about My Fither'i
business " \ cf. \ Tim. iv. 15 ; Plat. Phaed. 59 A : lit ^ ^\o<ro(^ ij^wr ivrw.
Decisive in favour of (l) is a saying of Jesus quoted by Irenseus (Ach. Htn. v. 32)
from the elders, i.e. Papias and his circle : iv twt toO IlarpoT /lov/Mvit elro* »o-\Xdi.
Cf. John xiv. 2 : iv t% oUlg, tov IlaTp6t fUM fioral roXXtU tltv.
24 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
His simple and duteous life. For eighteen years He toiled
with hammer and saw, knowing all the while Who He was
and wherefore He had come, yet hiding the wondrous secret
in His breast and never, until His hour arrived, revealing it
by word or sign. Nor were those silent years lost. They
served in the providence of God as a preparation for the work
which had been given Him to do. All the while He would
be brooding over those Sacred Scriptures which spake of
Him, foretelling His Advent and prefiguring His Redemption.
And He would be looking abroad, with keen eye and
sympathetic heart, upon the world which He had come to
save. To the unwitting folk of Nazareth He seemed as one
of themselves, but to Him they were His Father's lost
children ; and, as He mingled with them. He would take
earnest notice of them, entering into their thoughts, con-
sidering their temptations, and sharing their sorrows, that,
when the time should come, He might speak to them as One
who knew their hearts and had understanding of their needa
CHAPTER III
THE MESSIAH'S CALL ***• ?i^i."*.
t-itsLk.
" Dum baptizat, baptizatur, UL i-xg, ti>
Dumque lavat, hie lavatur ta>
Vi lavantis omnia.
Aquae lavant et lavantur ;
His lavandi vires dantur
Baptizati gratia."— Hbni. Pist.
Eighteen years have elapsed when the curtain is again h'fted, John the
and it rises on a stirring scene. A great prophet has ap- B^thlny**
peared, and from Jerusalem and all Judaea and all the country ^^
about the Jordan an eager multitude is pouring dowTi to the
scene of his ministry at Bethany just across the river at the
place where the Israelites under Joshua had crossed over into
the Promised Land.^ It was John, son of an old priest
named Zacharias who had exercised his obscure ministry
somewhere in the hill-country of Judaea.* Some thirty years
ago, six months before the Birth of Jesus, his wife Elisabeth, Lk. L 36.
after long childlessness, had borne him a son, and the glad
parents had consecrated him to the Lord's service. Elisabeth
was a kinswoman of Mary, but the families had dwelt far,
almost the whole length of the land, apart, and John and J°^ '• 33-
Jesus had grown up strangers one to the other.
While Jesus was toiling in the workshop at Nazareth, His early
John, a holy Nazirite, was leading a life no less obscure in uci. 15;
the wilderness of Judaea,' like his predecessor Amos who ^; ^^'
* Cf. Onomast. Called "Bethany beyond Jordan" to distinguish it firom the
Tillage of Lazarus. On T, R. Bethabara see W. H. Notes.
* Lk. L 39: eZf r6Xu' 'Ioi/5a, either "to a city of Judah," possibly the
priestly town of Hebron {cf. Josh. xxi. 13), or "to the city called Judah." Adopt-
ing the latter Renan, after Reland, regards Judah as a corruption of Juttah (Josh.
XY. 55, xxi. 16) ; but Caspari with more probability identifies it with the modem
Khirbet el-Jehtid, i.e. City of Judah, adjoining *Ain Karim, the traditional site.
Cf. Warfield in Expository Apr. 1885 ; P. E. F. Q., Jan. 1905, pp. 61 sff.
* Lk. i. 80 does not mean that he was a hermit, but simply that be led a
rural life away from the capital. The antithesis of iw rait ip^^ftots is tfr ry toX«.
C/. 2 Cor. xi. 26.
>S
26 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
Am. L X : had been a herdsman and a dresser of sycamores in that very
'** region eight centuries before. Like Amos too, while he plied
his labours, he had busied himself with meditation, pondering
how it fared with hapless Israel and what might be God's
purpose concerning her. Hard by, in the desolate region
bordering on the Dead Sea, the Essenes had their abodes,
those blameless anchorites who had left the world that they
might spend their days in toil, chastity, meditation, prayer,
and fasting ; and it may well be that he had intercourse with
them, even as in his zealous youth Josephus, the future
historian of the Jews, passed three years in the wilderness
under the austere rule of the hermit BanQs.^ But he belonged
to no sect He was himself a master and had gathered about
him a band of disciples.*
His caiL When he reached the age of thirty, " the Word of God
came unto John," as it had come to the ancient prophets, and
he must needs utter the thoughts which glowed within him, as
Am. iiu 8. a burning fire shut up in his bones. " The lion hath roared :
who will not fear ? The Lord God hath spoken : who can
but prophesy ? " The fame of his preaching quickly attracted
curious and ever-increasing crowds ; and ere long Bethany
beyond Jordan was the scene of a mighty revival. It was
indeed a striking coincidence that just where Israel of old
had entered the Land of Promise, the door of the Kingdom
of Heaven should in those last days be opened.
Secret of What was the secret of the preacher's power? It was
Qis power : . * *
I. A manifold. He was a prophet, and it was long since a prophefs
prophet. yQic^ f,^^ jjgg^ ^g^^^ ^^ ^^^ ^^^ jj^g j^gj. Qf ^Yi^^. " goodly
fellowship " had been Malachi, and during the four centuries
which had elapsed since his death, the oracles of God had
I Sam. been mute. As once of old, " the Word of the Lord was
' precious in those days ; there was no open vision " ; and
men were lamenting like the Psalmist of the Maccabean age :
P».btxiv.9. " We see not our signs: there is no more any prophet;
neither is there among us any that knoweth how long."
The successors of the prophets were the Rabbis, those servile
» Vit. § 2.
• Clem. Rom. Horn. ii. § 23 : as Jesus had twelve disciples, answering to the
months of the year, John had thirty, answering to the days of the month. The idea
that Jesus was a disciple of John (Renan, Brandt) is the wildest of Tagarics,
destitate alike ci reason and of eridence.
THE MESSIAH'S CALL 27
worshippers of a dead past, who busied themselves with
exposition of the Law and conservation of the Tradition of the
Elders with never a living word from a living God. And
now at length a prophet's voice is heard with that ring of
assurance and that note of authority which never fail to
awaken a response in the souls of men.
The nation was ripe for a revival. Its miseries had revived a. Pre-
the Messianic Hope and created an expectation of its im- Sn^**
mediate fulfilment ; and it is no marvel that, when John ?<»?'«•
proclaimed with unfaltering conviction and impassioned
earnestness that the Kingdom of Heaven, that is, the Reign of
the Messiah,^ was at hand, he won unhesitating credence.
Moreover, it was understood that the Messiah's Advent would,
in accordance with an ancient promise, be heralded by a D<rut xvia.
prophet like unto Moses ; and in later days, when there was *^
no open vision and there seemed no prospect of a new
prophet appearing, the idea arose that one of the old prophets
would return and usher in the Messianic Kingdom. Some
thought of Jeremiah, but the general expectation pointed to
Elijah.' It chimed in with this idea when John appeared
in the wilderness of Judaea " in the spirit and power of Lk. L 17.
Elijah," wearing a dress like his and living like him on such a Kin^ l
simple fare as the wilderness afforded,* and announced the xvii! •-7?''
approach of One mightier than himself.
And even had it lacked such singular reinforcement, John's 3- N-vture
preaching must have produced a profound impression. It preachinf.
dealt with themes which never fail to awaken a response in the
human heart — sin and judgment^ repentance and forgiveness.
These were the themes which on the lips of George Whitefield
^ See Dalman, Words of Jesus, pp. 91 sqq.\ Lightfoot and Wetstein on Mt iii.
2. Mt's "Kingdom of Heaven "is identical with Mk. and Lk.'s "Kingdom of
God," Heaven being a reverential substitute of the later Jews for God, Cj. Taylor,
Say. of Fat h. iv. 7, n. 8.
' Mt. xi. 14 ; cf Mai. iv. $. John i. 21. Mt. xvi. i4 = Mk. viii. 28=Lk. ix.
19. Mt. xvii. 10-3 = Mk. ix. 11-3. Cf the belief that John Huss would return
to Bohemia a hundred years after his death and complete his work.
» CameFs hair, either the hairy skin (in Mk. L 6 D has MeSv/tifot H^jniw *a^i^i>)
or cloth woven of the hair. According to Chrysost. and Jer. John's dress was a
protest against the luxurious fashion of his day — loose robes of soft wooL Locustt
were eaten by the poor (Lightfoot, Wetstein), but according to some John's locusts
were a sort of bean (Euth. Zig. on Mt. iii. 14). WiU-hotuy, either bee-honey oc
palm-honey. See Diod. Sic xix. 731 ; Plin. H. N. xv. 7 ; Suidai under
UpLu
28 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
melted the hearts of the colliers of Kingswood, till the tears
poured from their eyes and " made white gutters down their
black cheeks." Twenty thousand gathered to hear the
message, and " hundreds and hundreds of them were soon
brought under deep conviction, which happily ended in sound
and thorough conversion."
4. The de- And not only had John a distinct message but he made a
^"^ o?Ss definite demand. His message was " The Kingdom of Heaven
demand, jg ^^ hand," and his demand " Repent" It was an imperious
demand, brooking no delay. The Messiah was at hand and
would presently appear, an awful Avenger, a ruthless Reformer.
His fan was in His hand and He would thoroughly cleanse
His threshing-floor, gathering the wheat into the granary but
burning up the chaff with unquenchable fire. Already His
axe was laid to the root of the trees, and every tree that did
not produce good fruit, would be hewn down and cast into
the fire. The expectation prevailed that the Messiah would
come as a victorious King, terrible to the heathen but gracious
to Israel ; John, however, announced judgment not on the
heathen only but on the sinners in Israel, and the quickened
consciences of his hearers sided with the prophet " What
shall we do ? " they cried, and he answered " Repent" It was
a saying of the Rabbis : " If Israel repent but for a single day,
forthwith the Redeemer will come " ; ^ and the call to repent-
ance came most fitly from the lips of the Messiah's herald.
Nor was it merely a profession of penitence that was exacted
by John. He required of the penitents that they should sub-
mit to the rite of Baptism, thereby earning for himself the title
of " the Baptist" This served to deter the unworthy, since
only such as were deeply earnest would undergo the ordeal.
And the rite was doubly symbolic, at once typifying the
inward cleansing of the penitent and prefiguring the better
Baptism of the Messiah. " I indeed baptise you in water unto
repentance, but He that cometh after me is mightier than I,
whose sandal-strap I am not worthy to unloose : ' He will
baptise you in the Holy Spirit and fire."
Very searching and practical was John in his examination
* Hieroi. Taan. 64. I : "Si resipuerit Israel vel nno die, illico adrrniet !••
demptor." See Lightfoot on Mt. iiL a.
*SeelDtrod. § II.
THE MESSIAH'S CALL 29
of candidates for Baptism. He laid his finger on every man's
besetting sin and demanded its surrender. Was the candi-
date rich ? Then, in terms which recall the Lord's dealing Mt. xix. n
with the Young Ruler, he bade him share his possessions with TitlLk**
the poor. Was he a tax-gatherer ? Then let him adhere to "*^ "•
the prescribed tariff and refrain from over-charging.^ Was he
a soldier ? Then let him have done with bullying, false-accusing,
and mutineering.*
It is a remarkable evidence of the Baptist's power that his Approach
preaching drew to Bethany not only the simple and the rude ^LTajui
but not a few of the men of education and of rank. " He s«iduce«
saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees coming unto the
Baptism." It was no whit more surprising that sanctimonious
Pharisees and courtly Sadducees should mingle with the jostling
rabble than that, belonging as they did to rival and bitterly
antagonistic sects, they should be found thus in company.
In after days, forgetting in a common enmity their mutual
antagonism, they co-operated against Jesus ; but wherefore are
they united now ? It may be that the religious authorities at
Jerusalem, ever vigilant and astute, learning what was in pro-
gress down by the Jordan, had, as in the case of Jesus by and
by, recognised the expediency of taking the movement under
their patronage and employing it to strengthen their hold upon
the multitude ; and those Pharisees and Sadducees came as
deputies from the Sanhedrin to spy upon the work and carry
back a report. When, however, they found themselves face
to face with the preacher and listened to his impassioned
eloquence, they too were carried away. Whatever may have
been their motives, they were disposed to show themselves
friendly to the prophet, and actually presented themselves for
baptism. " He," said Jesus to the rulers, reminding them more John r. 35,
than a year after of the testimony which John had borne to
Himself, and quoting perhaps their own verdict upon him,
" was ' the lamp that burneth and shineth,' and ye were minded 2v|*=J*"*
for a season to rejoice in his light."
It was not hidden from John what manner of men they HUrecep-
were. He knew well their inveterate hypocrisy and hollow ihem.
* Lightfoot on Mt. v. 46 ; Schlirer, ff./. P. i. II, pp. 70-I.
' On the behaviour of soldiers r/ Luc. Afer. Dial. 1$ i WeUtein on Lk. iiL 141
Mayor on Juv. xvi. 10.
£
so THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
formalism, and distrusted their professions. They had
indeed been impressed by his lurid picture of the coming
judgment, but it was fear and not penitence that awed them.
As he looked at them, he thought of a scene which he had
often witnessed in the wilderness, when the parched brush-
wood caught fire and the reptiles rushed from their lairs in
mad terror.^ " Ye offspring of vipers ! " he cried ; " who
warned you to flee from the coming wrath ? " His Baptism
was not for such. Let them demonstrate their sincerity by
abjuring their vain hope. It was their boast that they
were Abraham's children, and they reasoned that, since God
had made a covenant with Abraham and his seed after him,
He was their God and they were His people ; forgetting that
a man is Abraham's son not because he has Abraham's blood
in his veins but because he has Abraham's spirit in his heart
John viii. Like Jcsus and St Paul afterwards, John assails this vain
iii. confidence, the situation furnishing him with a dramatic
argument On that great day, well-nigh fifteen centuries
before, when a path was opened through the flood and Israel
passed over on dry land, Joshua had taken twelve stones, one
Josh. iv. for each tribe, from the river-bed and " laid them down in the
place where they lodged that night" There, it was said,*
they remained unto that day ; and, pointing to those grey
monuments, the prophet cries : " Think not to say within
yourselves : ' We have Abraham as our father.' For I tell you
that God is able from these stones to raise up children
unto Abraham." And so He did when from the Gentiles,
those stony-hearted worshippers of stones. He raised up a
seed unto Abraham, heirs according to the promise.^
Galileans Tidings of the revival had travelled northward and
It Bethany, it
brought some all the way from Galilee to hear the wondrous
prophet and perchance share in the blessing which, like the
manna of old, was falling in the wilderness. Among them
were five young men who were marked out for a great destiny
— John, two brothers, Andrew and Simon, and Philip, all from
the shore of the Lake of Galilee, and Nathanael from the
upland village of Cana. John and Andrew not merely obeyed
the prophet's call to repentance, but joined the company of
« G. A. Smith, B. G. p. 66. « Jer. Ep. xxvii, Ad Eustoch. Virg.
• Cf. Ireo. Adv. Har. i». 13 ; Clem. Alex. Protrepu i. 4.
THE MESSIAH'S CALL 31
his disciples. By and by another Galilean appeared on the
scene. It was Jesus. His coming occasioned no remark,
since in outward seeming He differed in no wise from the rest
Presently He approached John and offered Himself asjenua
a candidate for Baptism. Then was the discovery made, fo"**'*****
It was not the way of the stern prophet to administer the ^P**«*
solemn rite ere he was satisfied of the sincerity of each
candidate's penitence and his purpose to lead a life of new
obedience ; and when Jesus presented Himself, he would
subject Him to a searching examination. But, ere it had
proceeded far, he was stricken with astonishment. If, when
Jesus was only twelve years of age, " His understanding and
His answers " had amazed the Rabbis in the House of the
Midrash at Jerusalem, it is no marvel that now, after eighteen
years of communion with God and meditation on the Scriptures,
He should have amazed the Baptist. One thing above all else
would excite the latter's wonderment. When candidates for
Baptism presented themselves in response to the prophet's
warnings and appeals, it was ever with trembling contrition
and humble confession ; but Jesus evinced neither guilt nor
fear. In another such a mood would have argued insensibility
and unfitness for the rite ; but as John surveyed that serene
form and that holy face radiant with the peace of God, his
soul bowed in reverence and awe, and, like every mortal who
ever came under the gaze of Jesus in the days of His flesh,
he realised his own unworthiness. As Peter in the Upper
Room remonstrated : " Lord, dost Thou wash my feet ? " so
John would have hindered Him, saying : " / have need to be
baptised by Thee^ and comest Thou to me ? "
It is indeed an exceeding marvel that the Holy One "Number-
should have taken His place amid that throng of penitents and tniM-
sought to participate in a rite which symbolised the cleansing 8r«»sor«.
away of sin ; and the explanation lies in His answer to the
Baptist's protest : " Suffer it just now ; for thus it is becoming cf, Hebr.
for us to fulfil every ordinance." Jesus was " born under the '"• "•
Law," and, " though He was a Son, He learned obedience."
In His helpless infancy He endured the rite of Circumcision
which signified the putting away of the defilement of the
flesh ; and after He reached manhood He paid year by year
the Temple-tax, though as the Son of God whose House
3« THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
Mt. xriL the Temple was, He might have claimed exemption. He
24-27. jjj^j jjQ^ come to pull down the Law but to complete it, and
throughout His holy life He sedulously submitted Himself
to its requirements. He was bom under the Law that He
GaL !▼. 4-5 might redeem them that were under the Law, that we might
receive the adoption. And therefore it was that He would
be numbered with the transgressors at the Jordan, making
Himself sin for us. It was, in the language of St Chrysostom,
as though He had said : " As I was circumcised that I might
fulfil the Law, I am baptised that I may ratify grace. If
I fulfil a part and omit a part, I leave the Incarnation
maimed. I must fulfil all things that hereafter Paul may
write : ' Christ is the fulfilment of the Law unto righteous-
ness for every one that believeth.' " ^
His dis- Thus far John knew not who Jesus was, but it was presently
""'j^hiu discovered to him that He was none other than the Messiah.
Cf. Is. xL He had learned from the Scriptures by what mark he should
a : Lri. I, recognise the Messiah when He appeared. He would see the
John I 33. Spirit descending and remaining upon Him. And now the
sign is given. When God makes His revelations. He ever
makes them in such ways as men are able to understand, with
gracious condescension employing their ideas, albeit erroneous,
as the vehicles of His communications. He made known
the Saviour's Birth to the Wizards by a star ; and, since John
was a Jew, He dealt with him as a Jew. The Jewish
imagination, fastening on that passage in the first chapter
Gen. L a. of the Book of Genesis which speaks of " the Spirit of God
brooding upon the face of the waters," according to the
Rabbinical comment, " like a dove hovering over its young,"
loved to figure the Spirit as a dove.' And there was
another idea which had lodged itself in the minds of the
later Jews. The voice of prophecy was mute, and men,
longing to hear the silence broken and remembering perhaps
how their poets in old days had styled the thunder the Voice
P». ndx. of Jehovah, persuaded themselves that ever and anon God
spoke from Heaven, sending forth at perplexing crises what
they called Bath Kol, the Daughter of a Voice.*
* In Sanet. Theoph. Serm.
■ WeUtein on Mt. iiL 16. See Conybeare in Expentor, June 1894, j^. 451-8.
* 8cc Ljghtfbot on Mt. iiL 17 ; xii. 39.
THE MESSIAH'S CALL 33
Being a child of his age and people, the Baptist shared The Do««
those ideas, and God employed them to reveal the Messiah vo'icij*
to him. As Jesus after His baptism stood praying on the
river bank, " behold, the heavens were opened and the Spirit Lk. iii «.
of God as a dove descended upon Him ; and, behold, a Voice
out of the heavens : * This is My beloved Son, in whom I am
well pleased.' " It was a distinct attestation of His Messiah-
ship, since the Son of God was a Jewish title for the c/. John xi
Messiah. The vision was seen and the voice was heard *7 ; "- 3'-
by Jesus and by John, and by no others. Even so it mciu. i6a
was when the Lord manifested Himself after the Resurrection : V^ \ "•
His glorified body was invisible to the eye of sense, and only 34.
those perceived Him who were endowed with the gift of
spiritual vision. Jesus and John were thus enlightened, and
they beheld the vision and heard the voice, while the
multitude saw nothing and heard nothing. It was fitting that
it should happen thus. For them alone was the revelation
designed — for Jesus, that He might know that His hour had
come, and for John, that he might recognise the Messiah.^
^ There was a Jewish tradition that " the Messiah would not know Himself nox
have any power until Elijah [cf. Mt. xL 14) came and anointed Him and made Him
manifest to all." See JusL M. Dial, cum Trypk., ed. Sylburg., p. 226 B.
CHAPTER IV
MtiT.i-ii THE MESSIAH'S TEMPTATION
=Lk. iv. I-
Z3=Mk. u
12-3 " Saviour, breathe forgiveness o'er us ;
All our weakness Thou dost know ;
Thou didst tread this earth before us,
Thou didst feel its keenest woe ; ,
Lone and dreary,
Faint and weary.
Through the desert Thou didst go."— James Edmeston.
Retirai to The hour had come, and Jesus must abandon His peaceful
^^ *nS' ^^^^ ^"^ address Himself to His Mission. He had long been
brooding over it in the seclusion of Nazareth ; but, when the
hour arrived, He realised the magnitude of the ordeal, and,
GaL L is-7 like St Paul when after his conversion he " conferred not with
flesh and blood, but went away into Arabia," He hastened
from the faces of men that He might collect His thoughts
and in communion with God gain light and strength. West
of the Jordan lay a wild tract, rugged and barren,^ the haunt
Mk. i. 13 ; of fierce beasts and still fiercer bandits who by their deeds of
*■ ^°" violence had earned for the steep road from Jericho to
Jerusalem the ghastly name of the Ascent of Blood.* Thither,
impelled by the Holy Spirit, who had taken possession of
Jrfmiii. 34. Him at His Baptism and thenceforth dwelt in Him "with-
out measure," Jesus retired. And there for forty days ' He
pondered the work which had been given Him to do, wrestling
with perplexities which crowded upon Him and hardly attain-
ing to clear certainty of the way which He must take.
The It was a mighty task which lay before Him, and He
^ons : questioned within Himself by what path He should pursue it,
resolute to obey the Father's will yet distracted by alluring
» Jos. D« Bell.JucL iv. 8. § 3.
*Josh. XV. 7. Jer. Ep. xxvii, Ad Eustock. Virg. : " Locum Adomim, qnod
Interpretatur sanguinum, quia multus in eo sanguis crebris latronum fiindebatur
incursibus." C/. p. 328. See Lightfoot on Lk. x. 30 ; G. A. Smith, H. G. p. 265.
'Perhaps a round number. Cf. Gen. vii. 12; Num. xiii. 25; Ezek. iv. 6;
Dent. ix. 9 ; I Kings xix. 8.
34
THE MESSIAH'S TEMPTATION 35
voices.^ As he wandered meditative over that dreary desert, 1. A
He found Himself on the summit of a lofty mountain, perhaps m^^
that mountain overlooking Jericho whereof Josephus speaks : ^^
" The city stands on a plain, but over it hangs a mountain
bare and barren, of very great length, all irregular, and
uninhabited by reason of its sterility." ' Very striking would
be the prospect from that height, and the imagination would
travel further than the eye. At His feet lay Jericho, that
fair City of the Palms, reposing on its lovely champaign ; and Dent
westward through the clear atmosphere might be descried the "*'*' *
white walls and gleaming minarets of the Sacred Capital.
The land of Israel spread before Him, and, as His eye followed
its lines of busy highway, conducting to Egypt, Arabia, Persia,
Damascus, and the ports of the Mediterranean, those outlets
to the Isles of Greece and imperial Rome, there rose before
Him a vision of " all the kingdoms of the world and the
glory of them."
And this world He had come to redeem. It was natural The Jewish
that the question should occur how best He might accomplish '
this mission and win the teeming myriads of mankind. And
it was inevitable that the Messianic ideal which prevailed
among His contemporaries should present itself before Him.
It was expected that the Messiah would be a victorious King
who should emancipate Israel from the tyranny of the
Gentiles and set up the fallen throne of David in more than
its ancient glory. If He were indeed the Messiah, must He
not appeal to the ardent patriotism of His people and,
announcing Himself as the long expected Deliverer, rally
them about Him and disown ths dominion of Rome ? Mad
as they may appear, such projects were cherished by thousands
of indignant Jews in those days of national humiliation.
Only the other year Judas the Galilean had raised the
standard of rebellion and set the land aflame. The insurrec-
tion had indeed come to naught, but the fire was still
smouldering and needed only a breath to fan it into a fierce
conflagration. A new party had arisen in Israel, bearing the
significant name of the Zealots ; and they were eagerly
watching their opportunity to resume the baffled enterprise.
^ On the order of the Temptations see Introd. % I2j U
* De Btll. Jtid. iv. 8. § 2.
36 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
Jesus had merely to proclaim Himself the Messiah come
to restore the Kingdom unto Israel, and thousands upon
thousands would have mustered to His side. Such was the
r61e which it was expected the Messiah would play, and truly
it would have been no ignoble enterprise to unfurl the banner
of liberty, a second and greater Judas Maccabaeus. Judas
Mt. xxvi. of Gamala had failed, but Jesus of Nazareth had the hosts of
^'^' Heaven at His command.
The true -^s He looked abroad upon the world which He had come
ideal to win, this course must have opened before Him ; but He
resolutely turned from it, knowing that He had come to
achieve a better salvation than deliverance from the Roman
yoke. The current Messianic ideal was in truth a worldly
dream. Had Jesus embraced it, He might indeed have won
" all the kingdoms of the world and the glory of them."
Did not the anti-Christ in after days sit upon the throne
of the Caesars ? But far other was the Kingdom of the
Is- '». 1-2; true Messiah. " The Spirit of the Lord God is upon Me ;
17-9! because the Lord hath anointed Me to preach good tidings
unto the meek ; He hath sent Me to bind up the broken-
hearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives and the opening
of the prison to them that are bound, to proclaim the accept-
able year of the Lord." That was His Mission. The path
whereunto He was called, was a lowly path of service and
sacrifice ; and, though at its end there stood not a Throne
but a Cross, He set His face like a flint to walk therein.
Alliance But was there not another way ? Might He not ally
""iS^! Himself with the Jewish rulers ? Indeed it appears that the
Sanhedrin from motives of policy would gladly have taken
Him under its patronage. After His first public appearance
at Jerusalem that high court deputed one of its members,
the good Nicodemus, to wait upon Him privately, evidently
with the design of coming to an understanding with Him.*
And, had He welcomed their overtures. He might have gone
forth upon His Mission in peace and prosecuted it unmolested.
' There is thus a measure of reason in the fantastic idea of Bengel and Lange
that the Tempter in the wilderness was a deputy from the Sanhedrin who, after
the Baptist's testimony, tracked Jesus to His retreat and ni^ed Him to adopt the
Messianic ideals of the age and secure the patronage of the rulers. Bengel indeed
allows that the Tempter was Satan, supposing merely, on the ground of the thrice
repeated " It is written," that he had assumed the guise of a Scribe.
1
THE MESSIAH'S TEMPTATION 37
It was an alluring prospect, yet Jesus turned away from it
A like temptation had been presented to the Baptist when
the Sanhedrin sent its delegates to Bethany ; and he had
flung it from him with indignant scorn. And Jesus no less
than John knew what manner of men the rulers were,
and perceived the motives which prompted their overtures.
Corrupt and worldly-minded, they desired to have to do with
the new movement only that they might control it They
durst not crush the prophet whom the multitude revered,
and therefore they would adopt the safer course of patronising
him and making him their creature. If the alliance was
impossible for John, it was still more impossible for Jesus.
He had His commission from God and needed not the
sanction of men, least of all men like these. He was the
foe of priestcraft and ceremonialism, and He could not ally
Himself with the very system which He fought even unto
the death.
Perhaps another thought occurred to Jesus as that vision Limiutioa
of " all the kingdoms of the world and the glory of them " MisJoo.
floated before Him. There is this apparent contradiction in
His ministry, that He was at once the Messiah of Israel and
the Saviour of the World ; and this makes the supreme
pathos of His earthly life, that, with an " ocean and abyss of
philanthropy " ^ in His heart. He should have been shut op
to a single family of mankind and restrained from pouring
forth His universal compassion. It is very plain, if it may be
said with fitting reverence, that He fretted all the days of His
ministry against the limitation of His Mission, and was
grieved by the thought of that great outer world hungering
for salvation and perishing in its sore need. It was a hard
necessity that was laid upon Him throughout the days of
His humiliation to confine His grace and restrain the
outgoings of His heart. The veiling of His love cost Him
more than the veiling of His glory. As He beheld that far-
reaching vision, would He not be tempted to overleap His
barriers and betake Himself to the broad field of the world
outside the land of Israel ? And He would conquer the
temptation by recalling how God's purpose of redemption
had been wrought out all down the ages. Its arena had
' Chrysost. In McUth, ▼ : t6 wAa-yot jcol ttji- ipvfffor riji ^Aafdporrlat t»C e«»0.
38 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
been the little land of Israel, and there, as in soil providentially
prepared, must the Messiah sow the good seed of His
Kingdom. Had He, as the Tempter suggested and His
John vii. enemies once surmised that He intended, forsaken Israel and
^^ gone to the Gentiles, it would have fared ill with Christianity.
It is significant that the Greek Fathers were wont to speak of
the Faith as a " philosophy " ; and, had Jesus preached among
the Greeks, they would have accounted Him a philosopher
and not a Saviour, and His teaching a philosophy and not
a Gospel.
Jesus came It is likely that among the heathen He would have been
■ better entreated,^ but this was no allurement to Him. He
knew that He had not come to be welcomed and honoured
but to be rejected and slain, a sacrifice for the sin of the world.
Lk. xx\y. " It was necessary that the Messiah should suffer these things
" ' and enter into His glory." And He knew this from the begin-
ning. It was no late discovery, no unexpected dinouement, no
unwelcome necessity which He would fain have evaded.^ He
contemplated it from the first At the very outset of His
John ii. 18- ministry He puzzled the sign-seeking rulers with a mystic
""■ prophecy of His Passion and Resurrection. In His conversa-
tion with Nicodemus He spoke of the necessity of the Son of
John iii. 14. Man being " lifted up," a phrase which signified at once His
elevation on the Cross and His subsequent glorification. And
Mtix.is= shortly after the commencement of His Galilean ministry He
ao=Lk.T predicted the coming of days when the Bridegroom should be
34-5- taken away and the sons of the bride-chamber mourn. There
is profound truth in the tradition that Jesus never was seen
to laugh but oftentimes to weep.' He had come into the
world to die. All the days of His flesh He was bearing the
load of its guilt. The Cross was His goal, and its shadow lay
dark and dread upon His path. " It was necessary that the
Messiah should suffer these things " ; and therefore He abode
in the land of Israel,
a. A spec- When He had thus refused to ally Himself with the world,
Messiah^ Jesus was assailed by an opposite and subtler temptation.
«^p. Might He not ally Himself with God ? That was an age
» Cf. p. 418.
' Keim : " It was the death of the Baptist which, weighing on the mind of Jesus,
first matured in him the presentiment of his own near departure."
• Ep. of l^nt. ; " Aug." Serm, ccviii. § 9.
THE MESSIAH'S TEMPTATION 39
which loved marvels and, except it saw signs and portents,
would not believe. It expected that the Messiah would show johaiT. ^a
signs in attestation of His claims, and every impostor that arose johnru. ji.
in Israel sought to win credence by a pretence of miraculous
power.^ The multitude and the rulers both continually de-
manded signs of Jesus in the course of His ministry; and the c/.johnri
idea presented itself to Him in the wilderness that He might f^';{^^^
establish His claims by gratifying this universal desire. His38"Lk.xi.
thoughts turned to the Holy City gleaming afar on her i-ml
mountain throne;' and He pictured Himself ascending to ^'^ "'
the Wing of the Temple, that lofty parapet whence James, the
Lord's brother, was hurled some thirty-eight years later,' and,
in sight of the multitude which would throng the sacred court
at the approaching Passover, casting Himself headlong from
that dizzy height. God would intervene ; for was it not
written of the Messiah : " His angels will He command con- Pt. ad. n-
cerning Thee, and on their hands they shall bear Thee up, "•
lest Thou ever dash Thy foot against a stone " ? Unseen hands
would support Him and bear Him in safety to the ground,
and the wondering multitude would shout " Hosanna " and
hail Him as the Messiah.
Jesus rejected this course as, in the language of Scripture, Tempting
a " tempting of God." It is indeed the privilege of the sons j^^j ^^^
of God to encounter with quiet and steadfast hearts whatsoever
befalls them in His providence ; but should any rashly incur
danger, should he court it vain-gloriously, " acting presumptu-
ously in carnal confidence," he has no warrant to expect God's
intervention.* And the idea of winning applause by a
spectacular display was abhorrent to Jesus. Wonder is not
faith ; and He desired, not the acclamation of a gaping
» Mt. xxiv. 24«Mk. xiii. 22. Cf. Theudas (Jos. An/, xx. 5. 8 I ; Eus. ff. E,
a. u) ; the Egyptian impostor (Jos. Ant. xx. S. %6; De Bell.Jud. ii. 13. § S).
' The Temptation was from first to last a spiritual conflict waged within the
Lord's breast. It were a misuse of Jewish imagery to conceive that the Deril ap-
peared in bodily shape or actually transported Him to Jerusalem. At the same time
the mention of the Devil or Satan should not be explained away as a mere accom-
modation to contemporary theology. Jesus repeatedly spoke of a personal power
of evil, and Keim insists that the question must be regarded as "scientifically quiu
open." Cf. Gore, Dtsstrt., pp. 23-7.
» Eus. H. E. ii. 23.
♦ Cf. Aug. De Civit. Dei xvL 19 : " Si periculum, quantum caveri poterat,
[Abraham] noa caveret, magis tentarct Deum quam speraiet in Deum."
40 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
multitude, but the homage of believing souls, born of a reason-
able recognition of His claims. Throughout His ministry
He shrank from being accounted a mere wonder-worker, and,
whenever He wrought a miracle, He would fain have done it,
as it were, by stealth. His grace was the evidence of His
Messiahship, and such as had experience of it, required no
other evidence. The craving for signs bespoke a carnal
mind.
J. A selfish Towards the close of His sojourn in the wilderness,
"ship" exhausted by the protracted conflict and faint with long
abstinence, Jesus was assailed by the last and subtlest of His
temptations. Around Him lay fragments of limestone, and,
as His eye rested on a lump, the idea occurred to Him that
He might relieve His hunger by miraculously converting it
into a loaf. And He could have done it. Ere many days
elapsed. He changed water into wine, and twice in the course
of His ministry He multiplied a handful of bread into a meal
for thousands. Yet He would not do it ; and the explana-
tion lies in the fact that of all the miracles which He wrought
in the course of His ministry, not one was wrought on His
own behalf His power, ever alert to the cry of others' need,
slumbered when His own was great. His Mission demanded
this self-abnegation. He had come to bear our load and
drink our cup, and it was necessary that He should experience
the uttermost of our woe, in order that He might be touched
Hebr. IT. with the feeling of our infirmities. Had He exerted His
'^' miraculous power to save Himself from suffering. He
would have cancelled that great act of self-renunciation
whereby He assumed our nature that He might dwell here, a
man of sorrows and acquainted with grief. At every step of
His progress through the world He denied Himself, resolutely
sharing the woes which He had come to heal.
•* Such was the life He liv&d ; self abjuring,
His own pains never easing.
Our burdens bearing, our just doom enduring,
A life without self-pleasing I **
Thesiniess- His temptation in the wilderness most strikingly evinces
/<sus. the sinlessness of our blessed Lord. When Saul of Tarsus
retired to the solitude of Arabia, he was haunted by the
remembrance of his "exceeding madness" against Jesus
I
THE MESSIAH'S TEMPTATION 41
and His saints. It clung to him all his life, and during that
season of retirement he would mourn over it and vow with
sore contrition to make the future, so far as he could, a
reparation of the past. But far otherwise was Jesus employed
during His sojourn in the wilderness. He could look back
without regret or shame. It was not the past that concerned
Him, but the future ; and His only thought was how He
should do the Father's will, and accomplish the work which
had been given Him to do. The past had left no regret, and
He faced the future, not with tears of penitence and vows of
reparation, but with a prayer for guidance and a steadfast
resolution to recognise no law save the Father's will and seek
no end save His glory. It was a spotless life that the
Messiah consecrated to the work of the world's redemption.
CHAPTER V
John L 19- THE MESSIAH'S MANIFESTATION UNTO ISRAEL
SI.
"Salve sancta facies
Nostrl Redemptoris,
In qud. nitet species
Divini splendoris."— J/frf. Hymn.
Deputation In the meantime what had been transpiring at Bethany ?
Simhedri" The Pharisees and Sadducees who had presented themselves
to the as candidates for baptism and been so scornfully rejected, had
^ " ■ quitted the scene of their humiliation and carried a report to
the Sanhedrin. It is an evidence of the impression which he
had made upon them, that the rulers did not straightway take
vengeance on the audacious prophet. They feared him ; they
thought it possible that he might be the Messiah or the
Messiah's herald.^ And therefore they resolved to despatch a
deputation to interview him and ascertain what he claimed
to be.
The composition of the deputation is remarkable. There
were two great parties in the Jewish state in those days — the
Sadducees and the Pharisees. The former were the aristo-
cratic order ; and, albeit sceptics, acknowledging, it is said,
only the books of Moses as authoritative and rejecting the
doctrines of the Resurrection and Immortality,^ they enjoyed
a monopoly of the lucrative offices of the priesthood. Being
more subservient to the Roman government than the
patriotic Pharisees, they had this for their reward. Strong,
however, in the favour of the populace, the Pharisees
constantly overbore their rivals in the councils of the
Sanhedrin.' It was they that conceived the idea of a de-
putation to Bethany : it was " sent on the motion of the
Pharisees," * but they stood aloof from the negotiation,
^ Cf. p. 27. * Cf. p. 404. ' Jos. Ant. xiii. 10. § 6 ; xviii. I. § 4.
* In John L 24 omit oi. in of the ultimate ageitt. Cf. iii. i ; ix, 40 ; xl. 19 ;
xviii. 3.
4»
THE MESSIAH'S MANIFESTATION 43
entrusting it to a party of Priests and Levites. It was an
astute device. Since John was a priest's son, a priestly
deputation would presumably be acceptable to him.
And, when they approached him, they were received not Johni di«
merely with courtesy but with the utmost frankness. " Who m^^So?
art thou ? " was their first question ; and, divining their •*"?•
thought, he hastened to assure them that he was not the
Messiah. " What then ? " they asked. " Art thou Elijah ? "
" I am not," he replied. " Art thou the Prophet ? " " No."
He might indeed have answered the latter two questions in
the affirmative, since he actually performed the part of the
prophet of Jewish expectation ; and in this sense Jesus by Mt. zL 14:
and by declared him " Elijah that should come." But John Ji^^iJik.
knew that, whatever might be the truth about that current "• "-y
expectation, he was no ancient prophet returned to life ; and
it evinces his absolute sincerity and his utter freedom from
the fanatic temper that he would not encourage a delusion
in order to enhance his prestige and influence.
It would lift a load from the deputies' minds when they Reiirf
heard those explicit disavowals. John was not, as they had depuii«.
feared, the Messiah, nor was he even the Prophet ; and they
had been disquieting themselves in vain when they trembled
for the impending judgment and stayed their hands from
taking vengeance on the bold preacher. His confession had
divested him of his terrors, and they might now with impunity
deal with him as they listed. Forthwith they altered their
tone. " Who art thou ? " they persisted, " that we may give
an answer to them that sent us. What sayest thou about
thyself? " " I am," John answered, quoting the ancient
prophet's description of the return of the exiles from Babylon, is. xL 5
" a voice of one crying in the wilderness : * Prepare the way
of the Lord.' " " Then why," they demanded with Sadducean
brusquerie,^ " art thou baptising, if thou art not the Messiah
nor Elijah nor the Prophet ? " Here they spoke on the
Pharisees' behalf John's Baptism would be no offence to the
Sadducees. They would account it simply another of those
endless ablutions which, to their no small amusement, the
Pharisees practised with indefatigable assiduity. " Lo ! *•
they sneered, " the Pharisees will presently be cleansing the
» Jos. Dt Bell.Jud, ii. 8, § i*.
44 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
sun for us."^ But it was an offence to the Pharisees.
Since ceremonial ablution was their affair, they regarded it as
an invasion of their peculiar province ; and the deputies were
apparently echoing the complaint of their colleagues when
they demanded of John what right he had to baptise.
Formerly the fiery prophet would have blazed with indignation,
but since he had seen the Lord's blessed Face, he had been
clothed with meekness, and he felt only a great compassion
for the blindness of those arrogant men. " I baptise in water,"
he answered, " but in the midst of you standeth One whom
ye know not, even He that cometh after me, whose sandal-
strap I am not worthy to unloose."
Manifesta- Next day Jesus reappeared at Bethany. He had fought
Jesus as ^^s battle and attained to clear certainty regarding the
}^ path which He should take in the prosecution of His Mission.
There was something unearthly in His look, and John gazed
at Him ; then, turning to the bystanders, he cried : " Behold,
the Lamb of God that taketh away the sin of the world."
He had learned much from the Scriptures. Unlike most of
his Jewish contemporaries, who formed their expectation of
the Coming Deliverer after those magnificent yet secular
pictures of a King that should break in pieces the oppressor
and reign gloriously in Zion, he conceived of the Messiah,
in accordance with a profounder ideal born of the nation's
is.liiL woe, as a sin-bearer, led like a lamb to the slaughter. That
was a great hour when John pointed to Jesus and declared
Him the Messiah. His mission was accomplished. He had
ushered in the Greater than himself.
Andrew No more is recorded of that day's doings, but the story
jo^Hinu °^ what befell in the course of the next two days is among
the most memorable on the pages of the New Testament.
It is the story of the Lord'a meeting with five of His future
disciples, and every sentence is crowded with significance and
throbs with emotion. It chanced on the morrow that John
the Baptist was standing with two of his disciples. One of
them was Andrew, and the other, though unnamed, was
certainly St John. It was the manner of the Evangelist to
conceal himself thus. Amavit nesciri et pro nihilo reputari.
The Baptist espied Jesus walking to and fro, and, looking
* Cf. Edersbeim, Life and Times of /ems the Messiah, L p. 312.
THE MESSIAH'S MANIFESTATION 45
upon Him, repeated his declaration : " Behold, the Lamb of
God I " The two disciples heard, and they understood. It was
their master's farewell. He was pointing Jesus out to them
that they might betake themselves to Him and be thence-
forward His disciples. They timidly approached the newly
discovered Messiah ; and, as they followed Him wonderingly,
He suddenly wheeled round and, says the Evangelist, " beheld
them." It is the same word that the Baptist employed when
he said : " I have beheld the Spirit descending as a dove from John i 3a
Heaven " ; and its meaning is that it was a solemn and glad
spectacle that met the eyes of Jesus. In these two, following
Him with reverent and wondering faces, He recognised the
forerunners of the great multitude which should yet believe on
His name and call Him Lord. " What are ye seeking ? "
He enquired. They were abashed and confounded, thinking
that He resented their intrusion ; and they stammered out :
" Rabbi, where lodgest ^ Thou ? " " Come," He answered
kindly, " and ye shall see."
It would be a poor lodging, perhaps some fastness in interview
the wilderness where Jesus slept with no covering but His *"** ^**"**
cloak and no roof but the canopy of heaven. He conducted
them thither that they might see the poverty of His con-
dition and realise how they must fare if they cast in their
lot with Him. And they stood the test. It was ten o'clock
in the forenoon ^ when they joined Him, and they stayed
with Him the livelong day, returning to their abodes at
night-fall with wonder and gladness in their souls and never
a doubt that He was indeed the Messiah. It is noteworthy
that this great day when Jesus, resting from His conflict,
rejoiced in the birth of those two souls, seems to have been
the Sabbath.' It was the supreme crisis in the lives of
the two. They never forgot it. When he wrote his
Gospel some seventy years later, the scene was still clear
and vivid in St John's memory. He recalled the very
hour.
* Cf. p. 449. 'Append. II.
• Since the marriage of a virgin was, according to Rabbinical law, celebrated
on the fourth day of the week, i.e. Wednesday {cf. Lightfoot on John ii. i), th«
order of events was this : Sabbath, John and Andrew with Jesus ; Sunday, Simoo
brought to Him ; Monday, the start ; Tuesday, on the road ; Wednesday, arriTal
at Cana and marriage in the evening.
F
46 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
Ssmon. As soon as morning broke,^ impelled by that sacred
instinct which ever prompts one who has found Jesus, to bring
others to His blessed feet, Andrew sought his brother Simon
and acquainted him with his discovery. " We have found
the Messiah ! " he cried — " the speech," says St Chrysostom,
"of a soul travailing for His advent, expecting His arrival
from above, overjoyed on the appearance of its expectation,
and eager to impart the good tidings unto others." He con-
ducted Simon to Jesus and forthwith Simon's heart was won.
johB L 41. The Evangelist tells how it came to pass : " Jesus looked
upon him." What was there in the Face of Jesus that the
mere sight of it should have sufficed to win men, yea, and
rebuke the erring and overwhelm them with remorse? A
look from that Face conquered Simon at Bethany ; and, in
the hour of his shame in the courtyard of the High Priest,
Lk. xxii. a look from it recalled him to his allegiance. " The Lord
^"* turned and looked upon Peter. And Peter went outside and
wept bitterly." It was a wondrous Face.^ It haunted St
John to his dying day. It stood in his remembrance for
all that is most blessed and all that is most awful. Would
he realise the joy of Heaven ? He thinks of that Face :
Rev. xxii. " His Servants shall minister unto Him, and they shall see
^*" His Face." Would he realise the terror of the Day of
Rev.xx. XI. Judgment? Again he thinks of that Face : "I saw a great
white Throne and Him that sate thereon, from whose Face
fled the earth and the heaven, and no place was found for
them."
Surnamed The Face of Jesus searched men and discovered the
John u. as. secrets of their hearts. " He read every one, and had no
need that any should testify concerning the man ; for He
Himself ever read what was in the man." And, looking
upon Simon with " those eyes of far perception," He saw what
manner of man he was and what grace would yet make him.
It was the fashion in Israel that, when a man passed through
some experience which made him a new creature, he should
' In John i. 41 b(Ital.) has mane, pointing to a reading irpilXot which is
probably original and certainly preferable to either vpurot (T. R., Tisch.) or
wfCfTtr (W. H.). The latter would mean that the first thing Andrew did was to
find his brother ; the former, that he was beforehand with John.
' Cf. Jer. on Mt. ix. 9 : " Certc fulgor ipse et majestas dirinitatis occultse quae
ctiam in humana facie relucebat, ex primo ad se vidcntes trahere poterat aspectiL."
THE MESSIAH'S MANIFESTATION 47
get a new name, commemorative of the occasion and ex-
pressive of the transformation. And Jesus gave a new
name to Simon : " Thou art Simon : thou shalt be called
Cephas." Cephas meant Rock, being the Aramaic of Peter.
The name was prophetic. For many a long day Simon
retained his character of vacillation and impetuosity ; but
grace wrought upon him its divine transformation, making
him at the last a rock of strength to his brethren and the Cf. Lk,
Church's steadfast foundation-stone. It was of the Lord's ml ^ xt.
kindness that he got his new name ere he had earned it
It would be a constant incentive to him, reminding him
of his Master's generous confidence and prompting him to
prove worthy thereof.
The day following Jesus won two others to faith in His Depvtora
Mcssiahship. He must needs set out for Galilee that'"^^*"**
morning, since He had engaged to attend a wedding at
Cana on the evening of the next day but one ; John, Andrew,
and Simon, as it happened, being also bidden to it Another
of the Galileans who had come south to share in the blessing phiiip.
of the revival, was a man named Philip ; and he had
witnessed all that had transpired and would fain have
imitated the example of his three countrymen and attached
himself to Jesus. It seems, however, that, being somewhat
retiring in his disposition, he held back. Jesus had observed
him and read his thoughts. It chanced that Philip too had
been bidden to the wedding, and, as Jesus was setting out
with the three. He noticed him taking the northward road
and invited him to join the company.^
Philip gladly obeyed and fared onward, listening to Jesus Na
with kindling heart Soon the barren wilderness was left
behind, and he espied an acquaintance some distance ahead
reclining under a fig-tree by the wayside. It was Nathanael
of Cana, who was betaking himself to his townsman's
wedding. He was a devout Israelite, and he had been at
Bethany and heard the Baptist's testimony to Jesus ; and he
was travelling home much tumbled up and down in his mind.
He was deeply impressed, and would fain have welcomed
Jesus as the Messiah ; but his judgment held him back.
» •' Follow Me," litenOly {cf. John »d. 19-ao), not figuatiyelj m in Mt
?iii. 22; iz. 9.
48 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
He was an earnest student of the prophetic scriptures,* and
Cf. Mt iL these plainly declared that the Messiah would be bom at
*"^' Bethlehem. Jesus, however, was from Nazareth, His birth-
place, as Nathanael supposed ; and, apart from the testimony
of the Scriptures, it seemed incredible that the Holy One
should come from a place of so evil a reputation. He would
fain have accepted the Baptist's testimony and rejoiced in the
Redeemer's advent, but he could not sophisticate his reason
or make his judgment blind. And he had lain down under
the fig-tree less to rest than to think.
As he lay lost in meditation, Jesus and His company
approached. Philip spied his acquaintance and, hurrying to
him all out of breath, greeted him with the exultant announce-
ment, jerking it out disjointedly : " Whom Moses in the Law
wrote of — and the Prophets — we have found — Jesus, Joseph's
son — the Man from Nazareth ! " Provoked by a glib
credulity which saw no difficulty where to himself all was
dark, Nathanael eyed him cynically and retorted with the
proverb : " Out of Nazareth can there be aught good ? "
" Come and see," answered Philip, wisely eschewing disputa-
tion. Nathanael obeyed. As he approached, Jesus said to
His companions : " Behold, an Israelite truly, in whom is no
guile ! " It was a precise description of Nathanael's intellectual
attitude, and he exclaimed in wonderment : " Whence dost
Thou read my thoughts ? " " Ere Philip hailed thee," Jesus
replied, " while thou wast under the fig-tree, I saw thee."
** Rabbi," cried Nathanael, saluting Him with the titles of the
Messiah, " Thou art the Son of God ! Thou art King of
Israel ! " What had so suddenly inspired him with such
complete conviction ? It was not alone the Lord's keen
observation and swift comprehension, though that was a
prophetic attribute of the Messiah.' Nathanael was won even
as Simon had been won before him. He " beheld that face
that doth minister life to beholders," and his soul bowed in
wonder and adoration.
A disciple like Nathanael was worth winning. He was
not the man to be lightly tossed to and fro. His very
* Cf. Aug. In Joan. Ev. Tract. viL 8 ^7 : "Intelligere enim debemus ipsam
Nathanaelem eruditom et peritum Legis fuisse." Chrysost In Joan, zix ; In
Servat. Nost.Jts. Chr. DUm Nat. Strtn, xxxi.
* Is. xi. 3 mug. Cf. Lightfoot on Mt. xiL 25.
THE MESSIAH'S MANIFESTATION 49
slowness to believe save on sure evidence was a pledge of
his steadfastness once he had attained to conviction. Never
would he repent of the decision which he had that day made
after so much travail of soul and wrestling of spirit He had
seen enough to persuade him of the Lord's Messiahship, and
fresh evidence would continually crowd upon him. " Because,"
said Jesus, " I said unto thee ' I saw thee beneath the
fig-tree,' dost thou believe ? Greater things than these shalt
thou see." There was a wondrous experience in store for
these men who had believed on His Name and who, as they
companied with Him, would behold ever more and more of His
glory. "Verily, verily I tell you," He says with evident G«a. Mnriii.
allusion to the story of Jacob's vision at Bethel, " ye shall see *'*'
the Heaven opened and the angels of God ascending and
descending upon the Son of Man."
Here for the first time Jesus employs that name, the Son The nick-
of Man, wherewith throughout His ministry He loved to of Man."
designate Himself. Since it is nowhere explained in the
New Testament, its meaning is a matter of surmise ; and it
appears reasonable to connect it with the scene enacted by
the bank of the Jordan when Jesus was manifested unto
Israel. The Baptist had pointed to Him and proclaimed
Him the Messiah. " Behold, the Lamb of God, that taketh
away the sin of the world ! This is He of whom I said : * After
me cometh a man who hath been put in advance of me.' " It
seems strange that the announcement should have produced
apparently so little result. Why did not the multitude flock
to the Lord's side and greet Him with glad hearts? Only
two approached Him and only five believed on His name. It
looks a sorry outcome of the Messiah's manifestation unto
Israel ; yet it is hardly surprising. The announcement must
have fallen on incredulous ears and aroused a sense of
disappointment and indeed resentment The Jews were
looking for a glorious Messiah. They called Him " the Son
of God," the title which had of old been borne by the King Cf. P». M.
of Israel as God's representative and vice-gerent And, '''
when the Baptist pointed to Jesus, a peasant from despised
Nazareth, and said : " Behold, the Messiah ! " they would
exclaim in derisive incredulity : " This the Messiah ? A
Galilean I a Nazarene ! a carpenter ! " The phrase for " the
50 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
common folk '* in those days was " the sons of man " ; * and
the multitude would cry : " This is no Son of God ; he is one
of the sons of man." Jesus would overhear their murmurings,
and would catch up their contemptuous epithet A son of
John vii. man ! one of the common folk, " the people of the earth,"
'*'■ whom the rulers despised. Yes, that was His designation,
and He would wear it all the days of His ministry and be
known as " The Son of Man."
He acted thus not in a spirit of bravado by way of
exhibiting His disdain. On the contrary, it was a happy
device, and had a deep and gracious purpose. The title
" Son of Man " served as a continual protest against that
secular ideal of the Messiahship which more than anything
else hindered His recognition and acceptance ; and in assum-
ing it Jesus designed to make men think and perchance dis-
cover that the true Messianic glory was not what they
conceived — not the glory of earthly majesty but the glory
of sacrifice. And He had the further design of identifying
Himself with the weak and despised, and thus revealing His
grace. And the Jews should have recognised the suitability
of the title ; they would have recognised it, had they not
been blinded by their worldly ideal. The Son of the Fallen
was a Rabbinical title of the Messiah,' and it was closely
analogous to the title " Son of Man." It should have been
no stumbling-block to them when the Messiah came bearing
this name of lowliness and of sympathy with the weak and
despised. Rather should they have hailed Him gladly and
recognised in the name He bore the fulfilment of their ex-
pectation. " Behold, the Son of the Fallen ! "
If this be indeed its origin, the title was in the first
instance an opprobrious epithet, in fact a nickname ; and
Jesus transfigured it by bearing it. Nor was it the only
nickname which was thrown at Him while He dwelt among
men. The Pharisees in Galilee, offended by His kindness
^DIK ^3a, -ff./- "K"a^'n, "the common ciutom"; "m "3 ftB^, "the
common parlance." Cf. "son of man" in O.T. In Pss. yiii. 4, cxliv. 3,
cxlvi. 3, it is equivalent to *' man " with the implication of nwrtal weaJhuss.
In Ezek., where the prophet is over sixty times addressed as " son of man," it has a
like signification, " expressing the contrast between the prophet, as one of mankind,
and the majesty of God " (Davidson).
' Dcrired firom Am. is. il. C/. Lightfoot on Acts zr. 16.
THE MESSIAH'S MANIFESTATION 51
towards the outcasts, styled Him " the Friend of Tax-gatherers Mt a 19
and Sinners"; and the rulers at Jerusalem in their Judacan ^^^'^
pride called Him " a Samaritan," one of the contemptuous john vHL
epithets wherewith the Rabbis branded such as did not sit at **
their feet^ It is indeed only a conjecture that the name
originated thus, but it is not without attestation. Wherever
it occurs in the Gospels, it is Jesus Himself that uses it The
Evangelists never call Him " the Son of Man " ; and what is
the explanation if it be not that it was a name of scorn, and
they would not bestow it on the Lord whom they loved and
revered ? As soon would they have termed Him " the Friend
of Tax-gatherers and Sinners " or " the Samaritan." And,
moreover, Jesus never used it save in two connections : in
connection with His present humiliation and suffering, and Mt tS. as
in connection with His future glory. Nor is there any in- ^ . vil"
consistency between these two usages seemingly so wide f^ **"
apart When He used the title in the latter connection, it »Lk. tx.
was always with the design of startling His hearers. Thus, j^ i, 51 ;
at the outset of His ministry it was nothing but a term of ^^.**"
contempt ; and, when He said to Nathanael : " Ye shall see ml «Tvi.44
the Heaven opened and the angels of God ascending and 6asLk.
descending upon the Son of Man," it was a prophecy of the "^ ^
glory which they would yet discover in one so lowly. And
so, when at the close He replied to the High Priest's question
whether He were the Messiah : " I am, and ye shall see the
Son of Man seated at the right hand of power and coming
with the clouds of Heaven." It would have been no marvel
had He said " the Son of God " ; but, when He said " the
Son of Man," it seemed a preposterous claim. It was credible c/ P«.
only to such as had discovered the glory which was hidden
beneath His humiliation. It was the very opprobriousness
of the epithet that gave point and force to His declaration.*
I CJ. p. 142. " ^. Append. UL
CHAPTER VI
JohaiLi- THE FIRST MIRACLE
II.
" To Thee our full humanity.
Its joys and pains belong ;
The wrong of man to man on Thee
Inflicts a deeper wrong.
" Thy litanies, sweet offices
Of love and gratitude ;
Thy sacramental liturgies,
The joy of doing good." — Whittimu
Cana of THE Village of Cana, called Cana of Galilee to distinguish it
Gaiuee. fj-Qm the Phoenician Cana near Tyre, lay, if it be rightly
identified with the modern Kefr Kenna, some four or five
miles north-east of Nazareth.^ It was three days' journey
from Judaea to Galilee,^ and Jesus and His companions,
setting out in the morning, would arrive on the third day in
good time for the marriage-feast.
The The occasion is for ever memorable forasmuch as it wit-
™^^^ nessed the Lord's first miracle. The feast was celebrated
Cf.w.9-io. after night-fall in the house of the bride's father, the bride-
groom furnishing the entertainment ; ' and they were evidently
humble folk, since there were no slaves in waiting. Those
who discharged that office are designated by the Evangelist
" attendants," * being probably members or friends of the
family. Since she not only lent a helping hand but gave
directions, it is not unlikely that Mary was a relative, and
Jesus may thus have been a kinsman after the flesh of the
Lack of bridegroom or the bride.^ It was a poor home, and in the
course of the entertainment the supply of wine became ex-
hausted. The mishap was known only to the attendants, and
Mary betook herself to Jesus and privately informed Him of
the embarrassing situation.
* Henderson, Palestine, § loS. • Jos. Vit. § 52. * ^- P* 425i i^ ?•
* dtdKOTM, not SovXot. ' ^alvqu
THE FIRST MIRACLE 53
Wherefore did she appeal to Him ? It is evident that she Mary'«
expected some singular intervention on His part, nor is itj^S?**
strange that she should have done so. She knew what had
happened recently. If it be true that, as the apocryphal
Gospel of the Hebrews averred/ she and His brethren had
accompanied Him thither to share the blessings of the
great revival, she had witnessed what transpired at Bethany
beyond Jordan and had heard the Baptist's testimony.
And, even though she had not been present, she must have
heard the story from the lips of others. The five disciples
had come with Jesus to Cana, and they would tell her what
they had seen and heard. It is no wonder that she appealed
to Jesus. He had been declared the Messiah, and in that
untoward accident she recognised an opportunity for Him to
manifest His glory. It may be that St Chrysostom does her an
injustice when he conceives her as actuated by a vain-glorious
ambition to gain iclat in the eyes of the company as the
mother of the Messiah ; ^ but she shared her contemporaries'
secular ideal of the Messiahship, and her fond heart yearned
for the exaltation of the Son of her love. And therefore,
thinking that it afforded a welcome opportunity, she
approached Him and informed Him of the emergency.'
She addressed Him with affectionate familiarity and His
unfaltering confidence, and for the first time in all her '"P°°**-
experience she received a harsh answer from those gentle lips.
" What," He said, " have I to do with thee, woman ? Mine
hour hath not yet come." It is true that the speech was less
harsh than it sounds to modern ears. There was no rudeness
in the appellation, " woman." It was frequently employed in
situations which demanded not merely courtesy but reverence,
corresponding nearly to " lady." * Nor was it incompatible
even with tender affection. Jesus' last word to Mary, as He
hung on the Cross and commended her to the care of the john ts%.
Beloved Disciple, was : " Woman, behold thy son." And as ^
* Jer. Adv. Ptlag. iii. ' In Joan, xx,
» Calvin : she expected no miracle, but wished Him to " remove the disgust of
the guests by some pious exhorUtion, and at the same time relieve the shame of the
bridegroom." Equally quaint is Bengel's idea : she wished Him to take Hii
departure, that the others might follow His example, ere the failure of the wine w«9
known.
* jE.^. Soph. 0. T. 934 : a messenger to Queen Joaut^
54 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
for the question : " What have I to do with thee ? " it was a
common phrase of dissent and remonstrance.^ The speech
was really less harsh than it sounds to modern ears ; neverthe-
less it was strange language for a son to use to his mother
and very unlike what Mary had been wont to hear from the
lips of Jesus ; and it must have surprised and pained her.
What did it mean ? It was the Messiah's assertion of the new
relation wherein He stood toward the world. In that hour
when He accepted His vocation, old things had passed away
and all things had become new. Thenceforth He owned no
human kinship. He was no longer the son of Mary. He
was the world's Redeemer, and none but spiritual ties bound
Him to the children of men, according to that word of His
Mt xiJ. 46- in after days : " Whosoever doeth the will of My Father in
iif 31-5= Heaven, he is My brother and sister and mother." It was a
Lk. viii. 19- j^j^j.^ word for Mary to hear. It would seem to her as
though a great gulf had suddenly yawned betwixt her and
the Son of her love, and she would taste the bitter fulfilment
Lk. ii. 35. of old Symeon's prediction that a sword would pass through
her soul. Yet she concealed her pain and, confident that He
would interpose, bade the attendants do whatever He might
direct
••Mine Jhe words, " Mine hour hath not yet come," disclose
hour,
what was passing in the Lord's breast " Mine hour " or " My
time " is a phrase which was frequently on His lips during the
course of His earthly ministry, always in reference to some
momentous crisis. When His brethren urged Him to betake
Himself to Jerusalem, and manifest Himself to the world, He
John vii. 3- answered : " My time hath not yet arrived." He knew that,
when He went to Jerusalem, the Cross was His goal ; and,
when His hour arrived. He would go thither ; yet the prospect
was awful to Him. " Father," He prayed, " save Me from this
John xii hour " ; and again : " Father, the hour hath come. Glorify
2*7 * XVli I
Ml xxvi. *h® Son, that the Son may glorify Thee." " Behold," He cried
45- in Gethsemane, " the hour hath drawn nigh, and the Son of
Man hath been betrayed into sinners' hands." In these
instances the phrase refers to the supreme crisis of His Passion,
and, when He used it at the marriage-feast, it referred to
"^ Cf. 7, Sam. xvi. 10. jrotrir is understood ; cf, Luc Mert. Cond. §25 : ri Kovbw
\ip^ Kal 8ry ; Euth. Zig. ipterprets : " What concern is it of Mine and thin? ? "
THE FIRST MIRACLE 55
another and very solemn crisis. He was standing on the
threshold of His ministry, conscious of His miraculous power,
and He was questioning whether that were the hour to put it
forth. The great crises are wont to come in simple guise.
Had Jesus found Himself confronted by some mighty task
like cleaving the sea or turning the river into blood, He would
never have hesitated ; but the supplying of wine to a company
of peasants seemed so trivial, so unworthy of the Messiah, so
insufficient for the inauguration of the Kingdom of Heaven.
" Can this be the call of God ? " was the question which He
was debating with Himself, still unresolved, when Mary's
appeal broke in disturbingly upon Him. It was a momentous
crisis ; and in that hour of perplexity, searching of soul, and
enquiring after the Father's will, it was revealed to Him what
" the works of the Messiah " must be — not dazzling marvels, Mt ri. a.
as the Jews expected, but lowly deeds of service and com-
passion.^
And His way was at length made plain before His face. The
Ranged along the wall for the washing of the guests' feet on liu til 44.
their arrival and the ceremonial ablution of their hands before ^^ V'i.
meat, stood six large water-pots containing each some twenty «• 38.
to thirty gallons. They had been drained at the beginning of
the entertainment, and Jesus ordered that they should be re-
filled. The attendants, mindful of Mary's injunction and
doubtless aware of the wonder which invested Him, obeyed
with a will, filling them up to the brim. " Draw some now,"
He commanded, " and carry it to the Master of the Feast" '
It was water in the jars, but, behold, it was wine in the flagons !
It was an amazing miracle, and St Chrysostom observes ' its naiitj.
* Of the many which have been offered, the following explanations of this pro-
found passage maybe noted: (i) Aug. In Joan. Ev. Tract, viii : Jesus had to do
with Mary only as man. As man He died, but His hour for that had not yet come.
(2) Chrysost. In Joan, xxi : The company did not know that the wine had failed.
'• Let them first perceive this, and come to Me in their need and ask help." Man's
extremity is the Lord's opportunity, and His grace is never vouchsafed until the need
of it is realised. (3) Calvin : It was an assertion of His dignity which would brook
no interference and accept no dictation. " Hoc autem loco temporis ad agendum
snmendi et eligendi arbitrium sibi vindicat."
' iipXirplKkwn, the classical ffvfiroalapxot, ipx*^ or fiaffiKtit rijt r6fftm, Lat.
rex or magister convivii, arbiter bibendi ; chosen by cast of dice "to conduct the
banquet." Cf. Becker, CkaruUs, p. 34 1. The Jews in later times had a similw
usage (Ecclus. xxxii. 1-2).
* Jnjoan. xxL
56 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
how careful the Evangelist is to attest its reality. Lest it
should be supposed that the jars were wine-jars and the water,
mingling with the dregs, made a sort of thin wine, he explains
that they were water-pots and stood there for purposes of
ablution. Nor did Jesus simply by a creative act fill the
empty jars with wine. This had been perhaps a greater
miracle, but it had been less credible, since the suspicion
might have been entertained that the wine had not been
created but surreptitiously introduced. Moreover, Jesus did
not Himself fetch the water but employed the attendants,
that, should any question arise, they might testify : " We drew
the water." And, finally, the Master of the Feast is brought
in as a witness. He was the first to taste the wine, and he
remarked upon its excellence. He hailed the bridegroom and
bantered him merrily. " Every man," he cried, quoting ap-
parently an apt proverb, " serveth the good wine first, and,
when they have drunk deep, the worse ; but thou hast kept
the good wine until now."^
Analogy to It was a wondrous miracle, but, as St Augustine justly
observes,' it is not incredible to one who recognises the
divinity of Jesus. " He made the wine that day at the
marriage in the six water-pots who every year makes it in
the vines. For, even as what the attendants put into the
water-pots was turned into wine by the Lord's operation, so
too what the clouds pour forth is turned into wine by the
same Lord's operation." * And most fitly did it serve to in-
* There were ribald scoffers like Woolston and Venturini in Chrysostom's day.
There was no miracle, they alleged. The guests were intoxicated and could not
tell water from wine. Chrysostom allows the intoxication of the guests, but, judging
rather by the fashion of his dissolute city of Antioch than by the evidence of the
narrative, insists on the sobriety of the i^px^rpLKKivoi, whose business it was to keep
order. But (l) the speech of the ipxiTpUXwos was playful : he quoted a proverb.
(2) Had the company been intoxicated Jesus would not have furnished material for
further excess. (3) In those dajrs at any rate the Jews were a temperate people.
C/. Jos. C. Ap. ii. § 25. Drunkenness was a distinctively Gentile vice (i Pet. iv.
3), and the N.T.'s sternest prohibitions of it are found in epistles to Gentile churches.
Cf. Rom. xiii. 13 ; i Cor. v. 11 ; Gal. v. 21 ; Eph. v. 18 ; i Thess. v. 7.
"^ In Joan. Ev. Tract, viii. § i.
•This was a favourite argument in early days. Cf. Iren. Adv. Har. iii. 11. § 9 •
*?• 8 7 ; Chrysost In Joan. xxL Of course, as Strauss points out, our Lord's action
was more than an acceleration of natural processes, which produce only the grape
and must be followed by the artificial processes of pressing, straining, and ferment-
'}Xi^ ; nevertheless the argument i^ not without validity.
nature.
\
THE FIRST MIRACLE 57
augurate the ministry of Jesus. " It manifested," says the a it ta-
Evangelist, "His glory." It was no dazzling display ofoffJJT*"
regal splendour but a gracious work of kindly sympathy, and '^.«»»'»^*«
it revealed, in contrast to the prevailing expectation, what the
glory of the Messiah really was. And it served, on the other
hand, to mark Him out from His Forerunner. John was an
ascetic, unsocial and austere ; but Jesus was a lover of men,
and He dwelt in their midst all the days of His flesh, their
Brother and Friend, sharing their joy and their sorrow. The
world was in His eyes no unhallowed domain ; it was the
outer court of the Father's House. He did not frown on
mirth. He had come that men might have joy and that
their joy might be full. And, though He was Himself
unbound by earthly ties, He deemed them holy, and it grieved
Him when they were profaned.^ He had not come to
condemn the world but to redeem it ; and He dwelt lovingly
among the children of men, ennobling their common life by
His gracious fellowship. And therefore He went to that
marriage- feast, a sympathetic guest, rejoicing in the bride-
groom's joy.
And, like every other that He wrought, this miracle has a symboik
symbolic significance. The Master of the Feast spoke more ^SJ,J
truly than he knew when he said jestingly : " Thou has kept
the good wine until now." " Not simply wine," says St
Chrysostom, " but the best of wine. Such are Christ's
wondrous works, far fairer somehow and better than those
that are perfected by Nature. When He straightened a
halting limb, He rendered it better than those that were
whole." Yea, even sin when repented of and forgiven, is
used by Him for the soul's discipline and enrichment Was
it not the remembrance of his sin that inspired St Paul's
passion of gratitude and devotion ? Had he never been Saul
the persecutor, he had never been Paul the Apostle. Thus
does Jesus turn our dross to gold, our loss to gain, our misery
to bliss. " O blessed sin which hath won such a Redeemer 1 "
* Cf. His frequent protests against diTorce.
CHAPTER VII
JohnH. i«; AT THE PASSOVER
ii. 13-22=
Mt. xxi. la-
3=Mk. xL ** Jesa spes poenitentibus,
ij-7=sLk. Quam pius es petentibus,
J^J^ fS > Quam bonus te quatrentibus,
iii, 31. Sed quid invenientibus ? " — S. BSKNAKD.
Visit to After the marriage Jesus did not return to Nazareth. He
^^' had heard the Heavenly Call and had bidden farewell to His
earthly home and His kindred after the flesh ; and, when He
left Cana, He betook Himself to Capernaum with His disciples
who all except Nathanael dwelt in that town by the shore of
the Lake of Galilee. Mary and His brethren went with Him,
whether merely to bear Him company or to visit kinsfolk
there. Whatever their errand may have been, Jesus had
other thoughts. He designed Capernaum as the seat of His
ministry, and He went thither to view the field of His labours
and perhaps make preparation for His settlement.
The He stayed there " not many days." The Passover was
April I'd. approaching, and He must repair to Jerusalem and participate
*^- in the celebration. Ever since His twelfth year He had gone
up annually with the train of pilgrims from Galilee, but on
this occasion it was not the mere custom of the Feast that
took Him thither. He would go up as the Messiah. It was
fitting that His public ministry should open in the sacred
capital and His first appeal be addressed to the rulers of the
nation.
Traders in On His arrival He betook Himself to the Temple, and in
Tempi*^ the forecourt, the Court of the Gentiles, a strange scene greeted
court f^jis eyes. In those degenerate days an unseemly practice
prevailed in connection with the celebration of the Passover.
Victims were required — lambs for the paschal sacrifice as well
as the offering of purification, bullocks for the thankoffering,
and doves for the poor folk's offering of purification ; and
the greedy priests had found here an opportunity for swelling
AT THE PASSOVER 59
their revenues. Ostensibly for the convenience of the
worshippers but really for their own enrichment they had
instituted a cattle-market in the sacred court It was an astute
but disgraceful trick, securing them both price and purchase,
since the victims which they sold in the court were presently
returned to them at the altar. They had instituted also a
money-market on a double pretext. Since many of the
worshippers, Jews of the Dispersion, came from distant lands
and had only heathen money, which was reckoned unclean,
they must needs, ere they could purchase their ofTerings,
exchange it into Jewish currency. And so the money-changers
with their cash-boxes were there, exacting their agio} They
were employed also in another and more offensive transaction.
Every adult Israelite, rich or poor, had to pay an annual tax
of half a shekel to the Temple-revenue. On the first day of
the month Adar or March intimation was made that all should
have the money in readiness ; on the fifteenth the collectors
sat in every town receiving payment ; on the twenty- fifth they
sat in the Temple-court, and all outstanding payments must
then be made on pain of distraint It sometimes happened
that a poor man's garment was arrested.' It was a heartless
exaction, and it would grieve the Lord that God's poor should
thus be plundered for the enrichment of a luxurious and
irreligious priesthood.
Such was the scene which confronted Him when He Their ex.
entered the sacred precincts. The court was reeking with fcsv^"
the stench of cattle and resounding at once with their lowing
and bleating and with the vociferations of buyers and sellers
wrangling and screaming after the Oriental fashion. And
there sat the money-changers in their booths, their tables
loaded with piles of small coin, quarrelling loudly and bitterly
with their clients over the rate of discount or threatening
needy creatures with the legal penalty unless their half-shekels
were forthcoming. And all this in the court of the Lord's
House, which should have been a peaceful harbour, a quiet
retreat, whither the weary and heavy laden might betake
* St John employs two words for money-changers, which set the icene
▼JTidly before us: (l) xtpfiarurral from icipfta (icelptt), "small change." (a)
KciyXvPiirral from #c6X\u/3oi (said to be a Phoenician word), i.e. KaraXKay^, agi«. Cf,
Becker, CharicUs, p. 291 ; P. E. F. C. Ja°' >904i PP- 49-5>-
* Lightfoot on Mt. xxi. 12.
6o THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
themselves, sure of finding there, in communion with God,
rest unto their souls ! Centuries earlier a prophet had raised
his protest against a like desecration and sighed for the day
when there should be no more a trader in the House of the
Lord of Hosts ; ^ and it is no marvel that the spectacle should
have raised a storm of indignation in the breast of Jesus.
He had witnessed it before, but hitherto He had gone up to
the Passover as an ordinary worshipper : now He is the
Messiah and assumes the Messiah's authority. Among the
litter that strewed the court were pieces of rope, cast off
tethers and baggage-cords ; and, snatching up a handful of
these and plaiting them into a scourge, He herded the sheep
and oxen out of the sacred precincts. Then He assailed the
money-changers, overturning their tables and scattering their
ringing coins over the pavement The doves in their coops
could not be driven, and perhaps He had a feeling of tender-
ness for those " offerings of the poor." He used no violence
upon them, but bade their owners carry them thence. " Make
not," He cried, " My Father's House a market-house ! " *
Why they It may seem surprising that the traders should have given
resktanc^ way before Jesus when He assailed them single-handed and
armed only with a scourge, and that the rulers, with the
Temple-guard at their beck, should have suffered His audacity
to go unchallenged and unpunished.' Yet it is really no marvel.
For one thing, Jesus was assailing an abuse which, while it
enriched the Sadducean priesthood, must have been felt by
the people as a grievous wrong. The multitude would applaud
the bold reformer, recognising Him as their champion against
aristocratic tyranny and priestly exaction ; and, though the
rulers despised the multitude, they also feared them, knowing
the excitability and fierceness of their passions. Moreover,
in the conscious guilt of the offenders Jesus had a still stronger
reinforcement. They knew that they were in the wrong.
They might indeed have pled speciously that it was no pro-
fane traffic. If the victims might be sacrificed at the Temple-
altar, might they not be sold in the Temple-court ? And was
it not right that the worshippers, especially those from afar,
* Zech, xiT. 21 (Hebr.): "Canaanite," i.e. Phoenician merchant; Vulg. mtrcator,
I On the position of this incident in the Synoptics see Introd. § 15.
* Origen {In Ev. Mattk, zri. § 20) regards it as a miracle.
AT THE PASSOVER 6i
should find fit offerings ready to hand? Yet, gloze it as they
might, they knew that it was sacrilege and that their aim was
neither the glory of God nor the convenience of the worshippers
but their own enrichment Conscience made cowards of them
all. The traffickers retired tumultuously, and their masters
stood by, resentful yet making no interference. Their sin
had found them out. And they had another and more com-
manding reason for submission. They knew what had passed
at the Jordan several months earlier, and they would have an
uneasy misgiving that possibly John had spoken the truth and
Jesus was indeed the Messiah. Galilean peasant as He was,
He had a strange majesty about Him, and had He not called
the Temple " His Father's House " ? When He broke into their
midst and swept the desecrators before Him, they would re-
member that oracle of the last of the Prophets of Israel : " The m«l flL i.
Lord, whom ye seek, shall suddenly come to His Temple ;
and the Messenger of the Covenant, whom ye delight in,
behold. He cometh, saith the Lord of Hosts."
The real surprise is that Jesus should have performed Assertion
this audacious act of reformation at all. It was an open shi^tT'*'*^
assertion of His Messiahship, and it is remarkable that, know- J«T"ai«»t
ing how false was the Messianic ideal of His time, He was Gaiiu*.
accustomed to recoil from the Messianic honours which the
multitude would have thrust upon Him. His manner was to
walk among the people meek and lowly in heart, revealing His
grace by deed and word, and letting it steal into their hearts
and persuade them that He was of a truth the Redeemer of
Israel. This was indeed the course which He pursued in Galilee,
where He laboured month after month throughout His three
years' ministry ; but it is important to observe that He adopted
another method in Jerusalem. He paid only a few brief
visits to the sacred capital in the course of His ministry ; and,
since it was necessary that He should employ each oppor-
tunity to the utmost and present His claims to the rulers and
citizens with all emphasis and clearness. He never visited \
Jerusalem without in one way or another asserting His •
Messiahship.
And He never made a more startling assertion thereof Perplexity
than this at the outset of His ministry, when He entered the r^^^tn.
Temple and, claiming it as His Father's House, vindicated its
G
62 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
sanctity. Nor was its meaning misunderstood. "Can this
be the Messiah ? " asked the rulers, and they made two
approaches to Jesus in order to ascertain the truth. Since it
JohnviL 31. was expected that, when the Messiah came. He would work
miracles, there seemed to the rulers ^ a short and conclusive
method of settling the question whether Jesus were the
Messiah, and no sooner was order restored than they
approached Him and with all courtesy presented Him with a
(i) They challenge : "What sign showest thou unto us, forasmuch as
"''"sign* thou doest these things ? " It was the very temptation which
had presented itself to Him in the wilderness when the Devil
suggested that He should cast Himself headlong from the
Wing of the Temple in sight of the wondering throng. So
soon did the Tempter, who had departed from Him " till
Lk. iv. 13. further opportunity," return and renew the conflict. The
rulers were sincerely perplexed, and they made the proposal in
all good faith ; and Jesus met them graciously. He granted
them a sign, though not such a sign as they desired. " Break
up this sanctuary," He said, " and in three days I will raise it
again." He referred to His Death and Resurrection, and of
course His meaning was hidden from them. It was His wont
all through His ministry to utter such dark sayings, not to
mystify His hearers, but to provoke them to reflection. They
were all puzzled, the disciples and the rulers alike. Not till
the prophecy had been fulfilled did the former understand it ;
and as for the latter they were shocked, deeming it mad
arrogance and rank blasphemy. " During forty and six
years," they exclaimed, " hath this Sanctuary been abuilding,
and thou — in three days wilt thou raise it again ? " The
saying was much discussed and long remembered, and three
Mt. xxvi. years later, when He was arraigned before the Sanhedrin, it was
xiv.^7-8; raked up in a distorted form and made the basis of a false
</: Acts accusation.' Yet they might have guessed somewhat of His
' John ii. 18: "The Jews," according to Johannine usage, the unbelieving
lection of the nation, especially the rulers, in contrast to the friendly multitude.
' Criticism for the most part allows the genuineness of this singularly attested
logion and seeks to invalidate its testimony to our Lord's foresight of His end by
making it a prediction not of the Resurrection but of the abolition of the Jewish
system and the introduction of a spiritual religion. Cf. Strauss, Leb. Jes. iii. i.
§ 114. But (l) this is opposed to the Evangelist's interpreUtion (ii. 21-2). (2)
Jeius always insisted that He had not come to abolish but to fulfil the ancient
AT THE PASSOVER 63
meaning. He said, not "this temple," but " this sanctuary." The
Temple was the entire edifice, all that lay within the sacred
precincts ; the Sanctuary was the central shrine with its two
chambers, the Holy Place and the Holy of Holies ; ^ and, while
the former was always used literally, the latter often bore a figura-
tive meaning. " Know ye not," says St Paul to the Corinthians, i Cor.
" that your body is a sanctuary of the Holy Spirit that is in *'' **■
you ? " And it is this figurative sense that the word bore on the
lips of Jesus. " He was speaking of the sanctuary of His body."
The perplexity of the rulers was only increased by the
Lord's reply to their appeal, and, as the days went by, it was
increased still more. Though He would not show a sign in
attestation of His Messiahship, He wrought miracles which
produced a profound impression, convincing not a few that He
was indeed the Messiah. " Many," says the Evangelist, ** con-
fided in His title,' when they beheld the signs which He did ;
yet Jesus on His part would not confide Himself unto them."
He knew the thought that was in their hearts when they gave
Him the name of Messiah. They were dreaming of a
victorious King who should deliver Israel from her bondage to
the heathen and set up the fallen throne of David, and it
grieved Him that His gracious works should foster within
them that carnal delusion which dominated the minds of the
Jews in those days and more than aught else blinded them
to the Messiah's true glory.
So extreme did the perplexity of the rulers become that (a) Ther
they took counsel together and resolved to approach Him jj^te 10
once more in the hope of arriving at an understanding. ""°-
Whether He were the Messiah or not, it were well to attach
Him to themselves, and they proceeded as they had done in
the case of the Baptist. To the latter they had sent a
deputation of Priests and Levites ; to Jesus they sent a
single delegate, choosing him, with characteristic astuteness,
from the ranks of the Pharisees. ^ Since Jesus was a man of
the people, they deemed it expedient to entrust the errand
religion (Mt. v. 17-9). (3) He said Mvare, not \6vm, and the rulers would ne\-er
have dreamed of destroying the ancient order.
1 i-ait [poiw, inhabit), the Habitation of God, His presence-chamber ; toC foo8
in Ml xxiii. 3S = toO oIkov in Lk. xi. 51. Cf. Trench, N. T. Synon. pp. 10 sgi.
' iirlaTevaoLf elt ri 6vofta airrov. Cf. Mt xxiv. 5 = Mk. xiiL 6=Lk. Mi. 8: /»i
ry 6v6fiaTl fjLov, i.e. claiming the title Messiah.
• John iii. I : iK tup *ap. proves him a delegate. Cf. p. 42, n- 4-
64 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
to a representative of the popular party. And, moreover,
there was a prominent Pharisee who seemed well suited for
Nico- the delicate negotiation— one Nicodemus, a venerable Rabbi
^'™°*' and a member of the high court of the Sanhedrin.^ Albeit
somewhat timid, he was a man of judicial temper and kindly
John viL nature, and his rectitude, which offended his colleagues when
^**^ they were bent on injustice, commanded their respect
Scene of Since it was desirable that the negotiation should be
* '^ew' conducted secretly, Nicodemus waited till nightfall and under
covert of the darkness betook himself to Jesus. Where was
the scene of the memorable interview? It was not in the
city. When Jesus visited Jerusalem, He never passed the
night within its gates. During the festal seasons the capital
was crowded. There was no accommodation within its circum-
scribed area for the multitude that came up to worship in
the Temple, and many lodged in the open country. Such
Lk. xxi, 37 was the custom of Jesus. Every evening, weary of disputing
19 ; Lie! the livelong day with His adversaries and teaching the
xxii. 39. people in the Temple-court, He would bid the city farewell
and, crossing the Kedron, climb the slope of Olivet, and there
bivouac till morning beneath the star-lit canopy of Heaven.
Gracious Appreciating at its proper value the popular enthusiasm
reception. ^|^j^jj pj|g miracles had evoked, Jesus had received coldly
those who hailed Him as Messiah ; but to Nicodemus He
accorded a gracious welcome, hearing his errand and, late
though it was, seeking, in a long conversation whereof the
Evangelist has recorded only such fragments as clung to his
memory, to show him some glimmering of heavenly truth.*
His unerring intuition read the thoughts of the old Rabbi's
heart and perceived beneath the crust of years of formalism
the stirring of unrest and desire. Nicodemus was not merely
the Sanhedrin's delegate. The Holy Spirit had been at work
in his soul, and he came to Jesus with a hungry heart, an
earnest and anxious enquirer.
' Nicodemus is the Jewish name Nakdimon. Hellenic or Hellenised names were
▼ery common at that period not only among the time-serving Sadducees but among
the patriotic Pharisees and the common people ; e.g. Philip, Andrew. Cf.
SchUrer, H.J. P. II. i. 47 ; Wetstein on Mt. iv. 18.
'John iii. I ; " But there was a man," contrasting His reception of Nicodemut
with His distrust of the others. Cf. Acts v. i. Both our versions miss this, A.V.
omitting li and R.V. rendering it "now,"
AT THE PASSOVER 65
With studious courtesy he stated his errand. The rulers Th«
knew not what to make of the Lord's miracles, and Nicodcmus 'J'*^'**'
had been deputed by his colleagues to wait upon Him and ask
what they meant. Of this much they had no doubt, that Jesus
was a God-sent teacher, and they thought it probable that He
was indeed the Messiah. " Rabbi," said their delegate, " we
know that Thou art a teacher come from God ; for no one can
do these signs which Thou doest, unless God be with him."
Thus he opened the question, thinking to learn not only on
his colleagues' behalf but on his own whether the miracles were
" the works of the Messiah " ; but Jesus brushed the question Mt ri. «.
aside and brought Nicodemus face to face with a more urgent The^p'/-
and wholly personal concern : " Verily, verily I tell thee, un-
less one be born anew,^ he cannot see the Kingdom of God."
The Kingdom of God was the Messianic era. The Jews
were looking for it, and they thought that it would be signal-
ised by manifestations of power and pomp. Jesus here
declares it a spiritual order invisible to the eye of sense.
The Kingdom of God was in the midst of the unbelieving
Jews, yet they never saw it, because they were spiritually
blind. The light shone in the darkness, and the darkness
comprehended it not. When Nicodemus and his colleagues
wondered at His miracles and disputed whether they were
evidences of His Messiahship, they were on a wrong track.
They must be bom anew that they might see the Kingdom
of God.
The declaration amazed Nicodemus. It is true that Bewilder,
regeneration was a familiar idea to him. The Rabbis said of njco-
a proselyte from heathenism that he was " as a child newly <^™«»^
born." But regeneration was only for converts from heathen-
ism. " All Israel," they said, " has a portion in the world to
come." * It was incredible to Nicodemus that the Jews should
be required to enter into the Kingdom of Heaven by that
door of humiliation, on the self-same terms as the despised
* It is a question whether AyuOev here means " from above " or " anew.
CJhrysost. /« Joan. Horn, xxiii : ro dfuStr hravOa ol fiiy ix tow oiparov 4>affU, d M
ii ifrxvf- Not only is the latter sense stereotyped in theological language (dwi^^r-
ifirtf, regeneratw), but onr Lord's saying is thus quoted by Just. M. (W^A ii- p. 94
a) : KoX fb^ 6 XpuTTOf drw Ar fi.ii iforyeyyrie^, ti fii) e/<rA»ir« «'« '^' /J^^i-^''^
rir oiipaww. Nonnuj in !». 3 has ri itirepoi', and in ». 7 iripiif fiaXfii*
* Lightfoot 00 John iii. 3.
66 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
Gentiles. It never occurred to him that Jesns could mean
that The very idea was revolting to his Pharisaic instincts,
and he refused to entertain it Half resentful, half puzzled
he replied : " How can a man be born when he is old ? Can
he enter a second time into his mother's womb and be born ? "
Attempt of So unspiritual and slow of heart was Nicodemus, though
explain! versed in all the lore of the Rabbinical schools. Jesus dealt
very patiently with him and sought to open a way whereby
the truth might enter his mind through the barrier of life-
long prejudices. "Verily, verily I tell thee," He said,
explaining the idea of regeneration, " unless one be bom of
water and the Spirit, he cannot enter into the Kingdom
of God." It was an allusion to the Baptist's great word :
" I baptise you in water unto repentance, but He that cometh
after me shall baptise you in the Holy Spirit."^ The Lord's
attitude toward the work of John was identical with His
Mt v. 17. attitude toward the Mosaic Law : He came not to pull it
down but to complete it Repentance remained, and the
renewal of the Holy Spirit was added thereto, making a full
salvation. This is regeneration — repentance unto remission
of sins and renewal by the Holy Spirit ; and this two-fold
experience is the indispensable condition of entrance into the
Kingdom of Heaven. The unspirituality of his ideas, common
to him and his contemporaries, was the secret of all Nico-
demus' misunderstanding. When he heard of regeneration,
he thought of a carnal birth. And Jesus sought, after His
own exquisite manner, to bring the spiritual truth home to
his heart. As they sate there on the mountain, the cool
breeze, fragrant with far-wafted odours, whispered among the
foliage and kissed their brows, and Jesus made it a parable of
the operation of the Holy Spirit " Marvel not that I said to
thee : ' Ye must be born anew.' The wind bloweth * where it
will, and the voice thereof thou hearest, but knowest not
whence it cometh and where it goeth. So is everyone that is
born of the Spirit"
* There is thns no reference, as the Fathers and many modems snppose, to
Christian Baptism.
■tA rtrev/M TPtl, "the breath breatheth." rrtxifia,, like n^T and spiriiMtt
means both "breath" and "wind." The Holy Spirit is the breath of God.
Cf. Ezek. xxxrii. 9 ; John xx. 22. Vulg. : "Spiritus ubi vult spirat."
AT THE PASSOVER 67
Nicodemus was only the more puzzled. " How can these incraucd
things come to pass ? " he faltered. His bewilderment was SI?'
inexcusable. Had he never felt the stirring of God's Spirit ^"^**■
in his soul, or heard the whisper of the heavenly voice, " soft
as the breath of even," pleading, upbraiding, consoling ?
Such slowness of heart was amazing, and all the more that
Nicodemus was a Rabbi. " Art thou the teacher of Israel,"
Jesus exclaimed, " and recognisest not these things ? " Truly,
if Nicodemus were a fair representative of his order, it was
not from the wise and understanding that the Messiah must
expect recognition, but rather from " the people of the land,"
who, ignorant as they might be, had open minds void of pre-
possession and receptive of the truth. Such were the five
men who had already attached themselves to Him. Simple
Galileans though they were, they had understood what was
hidden from Nicodemus and the rest of his order. And
Jesus adduces them as witnesses to the truth of all that He
has said : " Verily, verily I tell thee, what we know we are
talking of, and what we have seen we are testifying ; and our
testimony ye do not receive." He had spoken of the common
and familiar operations of the Holy Spirit, and was it likely
that minds which had misunderstood such " earthly things,"
would understand " heavenly things " — the high truths of His
Kingdom ?
Jesus held much further discourse ere the interview Further
terminated, addressing Himself, it would seem, from this point of jesus.
onward rather to the disciples than to Nicodemus. When {^1^'
St John wrote his Gospel many years later, he retained an ducjpiei.
imperfect recollection of the wondrous things which had fallen
upon his ears that great night, and he made no attempt to re-
produce the discourse, merely indicating its trend. It would
seem that Jesus spoke of His Passion and Resurrection. Follow-
ing up, perhaps, what He had said in their hearing a few days
before in answer to the rulers' request for a sign. He told
His hearers that, " as Moses had lifted up the serpent in the
wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up." He
spoke of God's great love, how He had " so loved the world
that He had given His only-begotten Son, that every one
that believed in Him might not perish but have Eternal
Life." And He spoke of the solemn responsibility which
68 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
must rest on all who heard the message of salvation. Such
themes they could at that stage comprehend only very
imperfectly, but, while they listened, their hearts would be
stirred to wonder and enquiry ; and, as time passed and they
penetrated ever deeper into the mystery of their Lord, they
would recall His discourse and recognise the meaning of
much which at the moment was hidden from them. That
night in the Mount of Olives Jesus began a task which
employed Him all through His ministry — the instruction of
the men whom He had chosen to be with Him, and their
preparation for the trust which should devolve upon them
when He had returned to His Glory and left them to carry
His salvation to the ends of the earth.
Nicodemus would go away in utter bewilderment Yet
the good seed had been sown in his heart, and after many
days it sprang up and bore rich and abiding fruit.
CHAPTER VIII Johnirt.«.
56; Ml
xiv. 3-^«
AMONG THE SAMARITANS **''-,*V»?:
i9-ao; \K
" Quserens me sedisti lassus, , • ^'^}^
Redemisti crucem passus : 1^ ^T^"^
Tantus labor non sit cassus."— Thomas de CELANa John iv. i-
3 : John iv.
4-42.
When the Feast was over, Jesus let the train of Galilean Sojoum ••
worshippers depart and tarried with His disciples in Judaea. J"****-
It would seem that He betook Himself to the scene of His
Baptism down by the Jordan,^ on purpose, no doubt, to recall
the great experiences which had been vouchsafed to Him
there, to consecrate Himself afresh to the work which had
been given Him to do, and to enjoy a quiet season of
meditation and communion ere entering upon His Galilean
ministry. John was there no longer. The rulers had declared
war against him and had driven him away. Safe nowhere
within their jurisdiction, he had settled in Samaria near the
frontier of Galilee, and was continuing his ministry at a place
called vEnon, that is Springs^ situated, according to ancient
tradition, eight Roman miles south of Scythopolis and near to
Salim and the Jordan.* Bethany beyond Jordan was no longer
thronged by an eager multitude hanging on the prophet's lips
and crying " What must we do ? " and thither Jesus repaired
with His disciples. His miracles at Jerusalem had excited
no small wonderment, and a great crowd thronged after Him
exceeding, alike in number and in enthusiasm, that which
had gathered about John. It would seem that Jesus, busied
with His own high thoughts, left His disciples to deal much
as they would with the multitude ; and, since two of them
at least had been disciples of John, it is in no wise surprising
that they adopted his methods and administered to penitents
* Nowhere else in the arid land of Judaea was there a sufficiency of waicr for the
administration of Baptism (John iv. I -2).
• Jer. I^t L«(' Htbr. Cf. Sanday, Sacred SUes, pp. 33-5.
H
70 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
the rite of Baptism. Jesus, the Evangelist is careful to
mention, took no part in the administration. ^
TheBaptist Tidings of what was passing in Judaea reached John at
JEnon. His disciples had fallen into controversy with a Jew '
about ceremonial purification, the question at issue being
probably the validity and authority of their Master's Baptism,
John 1.25; a much vexed question at that crisis and for many a long
^=Mk ^ ^^y stftcJ" ; ^^^ i° the course thereof their opponent had
»9-33=Lk- twitted them with the decline of their Master's popularity,
^ * telling them of the stir which the new prophet was making
in Judaea. In sore discomfiture they betook themselves to
John and told him what they had heard. He did not share
their chagrin. He had all along declared that his ministry
was merely a preparation for the Messianic Kingdom, and he
rejoiced that the Greater than he had come and was winning
His rightful recognition. " Ye yourselves bear me witness that
I said, ' I am not the Messiah,' but ' I have been commissioned
in advance of Him.' He that hath the bride is the bride-
groom ; but the friend of the bridegroom that standeth and
heareth him, greatly rejoiceth by reason of the bridegroom's
voice. This then is my joy which hath been fulfilled. He
must increase but I grow less." It was a noble declaration,
revealing the greatness and generosity of the man. His own
honour was nothing to him ; the cause was all, and, if only
it prevailed he was content to be cast aside and forgotten.
Sudden Suddenly Jesus left Judaea and hastened northward,
of jMus*b7^^P^^^^d by two motives. One was that tidings of the new
reason of movement down by the Jordan had reached the rulers at
(i) appre- •' ■'
hension of Jerusalem to their no small perturbation. They had been
"from^the congratulating themselves that they were rid of John, and,
"^*" • behold, another and more powerful prophet had arisen and
was carrying on his work. Jesus foresaw that a deputation from
the Sanhedrin would presently appear on the scene ; and,
weary of bootless disputation and reluctant to precipitate the
inevitable crisis, He abruptly withdrew. And there was
(2) tidings another and more weighty reason for His sudden departure.
Baptist's Evil tidings had reached His ears. The Baptist had been
arrest.
^ The Christian Sacrament of Baptism was not instituted until after the Re-
sorrection (Mt. xxriii. 19). Jesus never baptised.
* John ill. 25 : fMri. lovSalou Tiscb., W. H.; fitrL TovSedup T. R.
AMONG THE SAMARITANS 71
arrested by Herod Antipas, one of the three sons of Herod
the Great among whom on the death of the latter his kingdom
had been portioned. Under the title of Tetrarch he ruled
over Galilee and Peraea. He had none of his father's
dexterity and none of his strenuous and indomitable energy ; *
but he had all his father's vices — craft, cruelty, and licentious-
ness. Josephus ascribes the arrest to political considerations.
Observing the excited crowds that gathered round the
Baptist, the suspicious tetrarch dreaded a popular insurrection
and deemed it prudent to avert the danger by removing the
leader of the movement' It is indeed likely that this is the
reason which Antipas alleged, yet he would hardly on the
strength of a mere suspicion have adopted so extreme a
measure, nor, had the Baptist been regarded as a plotter of
sedition, would his disciples have been allowed access tOMt. xi.*. 4
him in his prison, lest they should act as his agents. The |8^2a!*'
Gospel-story records the shameful truth, passing over the
flimsy pretext in contemptuous silence. The tetrarch had
married the daughter of Aretas, King of Arabia.' This
ill-fated union was probably nothing more than a stroke of
policy. Arabia bordered upon Peraea, and Antipas thought
by allying himself with Aretas to secure peace upon his
southern frontier. After a while he visited Rome, and, while
lodging with his half-brother Herod Philip,* who lived as a
private citizen in the imperial capital, became enamoured of
the latter's wife, Herodias, a daughter of their half-brother
Aristobulus. The ambitious woman encouraged the tetrarch's
advances and agreed to forsake her husband and marry
Antipas on condition that he would divorce the daughter of
Aretas. The stipulation was prompted by jealousy. There
was no occasion for divorce, forasmuch as the Jewish law
allowed the king eighteen wives.'
It was a monstrous transgression, combining heartlessness,
* Josephus {Ant. xviii. 7. % 2) describes him as dyarwr r^r iiwxia"-
• Ant. xTiii. 5. § 2. » Ibid. § I.
* Mt. xiv. 3 = Mk. vi. i7 = Lk. iii. 19 T. R- Josephus calls him limplj Herod,
the family name. Since they were only half-brothers, it is the less strange that two
of Herod's sons should have been named Philip, the other beinj the tetrarch c#
Itursea and Trachonitis (Lk. iii. i) who married Salome, Herodias' daughter. Cf.
Schiirer, ff./. P. I. ii. 22.
• Schttrer, H./. P. I. L p. 455-
72 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
treachery, adultery, and incest ; and John, after the manner
of the ancient prophets and prophetic men in all ages, had
sought out the guilty tetrarch and upbraided him to his
face. At the moment Antipas quailed before the withering
denunciation, and, had he been left to himself, he would have
endured the affront. But the incident was noised abroad.
It came to the ears of the Jewish rulers, and in pursuance of
their quarrel with the Baptist they fanned the flame of the
tetrarch's resentment.^ Above all, Herodias was concerned.
She had, in full measure, a bad woman's vindictiveness, and
it was doubtless at her instigation chiefly that the bold prophet
was arrested.
Through When He heard the heavy tidings, Jesus hurried north-
" ward. "It was necessary," says the Evangelist, " that He
should pass through Samaria." There was indeed an
alternative route, and, had He been bound direct for Galilee,
He might have followed it, setting out from Bethany beyond
Jordan, travelling up the eastern bank, and entering Galilee
by the ford of Bethshean.* And, had He followed this route,
it is likely that He would have fallen in with the Baptist by
the way. Antipas had despatched the prisoner to his strong-
hold of Machaerus to the east of the Dead Sea,' and it is
probable that, while Jesus was hastening northward, John was
being dragged in chains down the other side of the Jordan.
But it was not the Lord's purpose to meet with John and
snatch him from his doom. Not thus had the Messiah come
** to proclaim liberty to the captives and the opening of the
prison to them that were bound." He hastened northward
not to deliver John but because in the fall of that brave leader
He recognised a call to step into the breach and unfurl the
banner of His Kingdom in Galilee. And it was necessary
that He should pass through Samaria, since JEnon was in
Samaria, and He must visit the scene of the Baptist's labours
if perchance He might win his dispirited followers. And
there was yet another reason in the secret counsel of God.
As the event proved, great work awaited Him in Samaria,
The harvest was ripe for His sickle at the town of Sychar.
' From Mt. zvii. i2xMk. ix. 13 it appears that the rulers had a hand in John's
arrest. raptSoOriva Mt. iv. i2=:Mk. i. 14 perhaps implies ^j^ay'a/. Cf. Mt. xxri.
45=>:Mk. xiv. 41.
■ G. A. Smith, ff. G. p. 256. * Jm. Ant. zviii. $. § a.
AMONG THE SAMARITANS 73
The Galileans were accustomed to pass through Samaria Feud
when they went up to Jerusalem in companies at the festal uLTia
seasons,^ but for solitary or defenceless travellers the eastern ^*"'*^
route was safer. The Samaritans were hated by the Jews
and hated them in return with a bitter hatred. They were a
mongrel race. Their history began with the fall of the
northern Kingdom of Israel. In B.C. 721, when Shalmaneser
took Samaria, he carried Israel away into Assyria and brought
men from Babylon and Cuthah and Avva and Hamath and
Sepharvaim, and placed them in the cities of Samaria.*
Those heathen allied themselves with the remnant of the
children of Israel that had been overlooked in the deportation,
and blended their heathen religion with the worship of
Jehovah. Thus the Samaritans originated, and in B.C.
536 they would fain have aided the returned exiles in
rebuilding the Temple. Their offer was contemptuously Eir hr. i^
rejected, and ever after there was bitter animosity betwixt
them and the Jews. They set up a rival temple on Mount
Gerizim* and subjected the Jews to ceaseless annoyance.
They maltreated and sometimes slew Jewish travellers through
their territory.* One Passover-season during the governorship
of Coponius (a.d. 6-9), when according to custom the priests
had thrown open the gates at midnight, some Samaritans
stole in and polluted the Temple by scattering human bones
in the porches ; and ever after the perpetration of this wanton
outrage Samaritans were excluded from the sacred precincts.'
Of course thejews retaliated. " With two nations," says the EccIus. i.
Son of Sirach, " is my soul vexed, and the third is no nation :
they that sit upon the mountain of Samaria, and the
Philistines, and that foolish people that dwelleth in Sichem."
On Jewish lips " Samaritan " was a term of abuse. The john vui,
Samaritans were cursed in the Temple ; their food was ^^
reckoned unclean, even as swine's flesh.' Indeed the Jews
had a worse hatred of the Samaritans than of the heathen,
herein exemplifying that singular fact whereto the history of
religion bears abundant and deplorable witness, that quarrels
are ever bitterest where differences are least and grounds of
1 Jos. AnL XX. 6. § I.
' 2 Kings xvii ; Jos. Ani. ix. 14. § I ; x. 9. § ?•
» Lightfoot on John iv. 20. * Lk. ix. $1-6 ; Jos. Ant. xx. 6. S I.
» Jos. Ant. xviii. 2. § 2. • Lightfoot on John It. 8.
74 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
toleration most ample. The Samaritans had much in
common with the Jews. They accepted the Pentateuch, and,
if they rejected the rest of the Scriptures, so also, it seems, did
the Sadducees.^ They observed the Sabbath, practised the
rite of circumcision and all the other Mosaic ceremonies, and
celebrated the yearly festivals. And, however it might be
tainted, they had Jewish blood in their veins. And they
were proud thereof, though Josephus accuses them of claiming
kinship with the Jews in prosperity and disowning it in
adversity : they reckoned their descent from Joseph ' and
Johniv. xa. called Jacob their father.
Sychar. After a two days' journey Jesus and His disciples found
themselves about six o'clock in the evening' approaching
the town of Sychar which, if it be rightly identified with the
modern El 'Askar, lay under the southern slope of Mount
Ebal.* Less robust than His companions He was exhausted
with the long day's travel. Within a mile of Sychar there
was a celebrated draw-well which, according to local tradition,
had been dug by the patriarch Jacob and was called then, as
Jacob's it is to this day, Jacob's Well. The low parapet which
enclosed it, offered an inviting seat to weary wayfarers.
Jesus sank down upon it, and the disciples left Him to rest
and pushed on toward the town to purchase provisions.**
Jacob's Well was had in great repute not only for its sanctity
but for the quality of its water. There were other springs
in the neighbourhood, like that at El 'Askar which gushes
from Mount Ebal ; but, tainted by the calcareous soil, their
waters were unpalatable and injurious. Being over a hundred
feet deep, Jacob's Well was fed from the bowels of the
earth ; its water was cool and sweet and healthful, and it is
no wonder that the people of Sychar, like their descendants
> Cf. p. 404. • Ant. ix. 14. § 3 ; xi. 8. I 6 ; xu. 5. § 5.
» Cf. Append. II.
* See Hasting's D. B. under Sychar and Jacob's Well; Taylor, Say. of Fath.^
Additional Note 48.
* In consequence of their proximity to them and the necessity of passing
through their territory the Jews were compelled in practice to compromise their
theoretic estimate of the Samaritans as unclean. Their food, theoretically like
swine's flesh, was allowed unless mingled with their wine or vinegar ; their land
was clean, i.e. its fruits might be eaten ; their water was clean, i.e. it might be
nsed for drinking and washing ; their houses were clean, i.e. Jews might lodge io
them. Lightfoot 00 John iv. 4, 8.
AMONG THE SAMARITANS 75
at the present day, should have been wont to fetch their
drinking water thence.^ As Jesus sate on the parapet, a
woman approached with her empty pitcher, and He asked her The
for a drink. He was thirsty and needed refreshment, but He S^^j"
had a deeper reason for His request The woman was one
of the outcasts of society, and it needed not the eye of Jesus
to read her character. It was written upon her face and
advertised by her bearing. She was a sinner, and the heart
of the Sinner's Friend went out toward her. Therefore He
accosted her, if haply she would talk with Him and unbosom
her guilt
She answered, after the manner of her sort, impudently, The
and not without surprise. " How," she sneered, " dost thou, ~"°*'°y*
though thou be a Jew, ask drink of me, though 1 be a
woman, a Samaritan woman ? " " If," replied Jesus, " thou
hadst known ' the gift of God ' and Who it is that saith to thee
* Give Me to drink,' thou wouldst have asked Him, and He
would have given thee living water." Orientals called water,
that precious boon, " the gift of God " ; and " living water "
meant water from a running spring.' The Lord's speech
puzzled the woman ; yet there was that in His voice and look
which arrested her, and she answered with sudden courtesy :
" Sir, thou hast nothing to draw with, and the pit is deep :
whence hast thou ' the living water ' ? " Then, resuming her
tone of insolence, she added : " Art thou greater than our
father Jacob, who gave us the pit and himself drank from it
and his sons and his cattle ? " " Everyone," said Jesus, cf. Eccha
" that drinketh of this water will thirst again ; but whoso- ""'* ***
ever drinketh of the water which I shall give him, shall never
thirst ; but the water which I shall give him will become
within him a well of water springing up into life eternal.'*
This seemed to her sheer absurdity, stark insanity, and she
cried with feigned reverence, making a mock of Him : " Sir,
give me this water, that I thirst not neither come all the way
here to draw."
^ P. E. F. Q., Jan. 1897, pp. 67-8; Apr, 1897, pp. 149-SI » J«^ *^7, PP-
196-8. G. A. Smith, H. G. pp. 367-75.
' Cf. Didache, viL Jacob's Well is at th<; present day " not an *ain, a well rf
living water, but a ber, a cistern to hold rain water " (P. E. F. Q. JuL 1897,
p. 197) ; but it is choked with rubbish and the spring may have been diverted.
It was certainly an 'ain, tttyjj, originally. C/. Smith, //. G. p. 374.
^(, THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
Finding her impervious to gentleness, Jesus tried another
way. He laid His hand upon her sin. " Go," said He, " call
thy husband, and come here." That was a home-thrust.
She winced, and faltered : " I have not a husband." " Well
saidst thou : ' I have not a husband,' " He replied, casting
her sin in her face ; ^ ** for five husbands hast thou had, and
now he whom thou hast is not thy husband. This is true
that thou hast said." She was amazed. How could this
stranger be acquainted with her shameful story ? " Sir," she
stammered, essaying to divert the conversation into another
channel by raking up that old controversy betwixt Jew and
Samaritan, " I perceive that thou art a prophet Our fathers
in yonder mountain * worshipped ; and ye say that in Jeru-
salem is the place where it is necessary to worship ."
" Believe me, woman," Jesus interrupted, sweeping the quibble
aside and bringing the reluctant sinner face to face with God's
real demand, " that there is coming an hour when neither in
yonder mountain nor in Jerusalem will ye worship the Father.
Ye worship what ye know not, we worship what we know,
because salvation is of the Jews. But there is coming an hour,
and it now is, when the true worshippers will worship the Father
in spirit and truth ; for the Father seeketh such for His
worshippers. God is a Spirit, and they that worship must
worship in spirit and truth." Still she sought a loophole for
escape, an excuse for delay. When that hour arrived all
would be put right, and for the present what need to trouble ?
" I know that Messiah is coming. When He hath come. He
will declare unto us everything." " I," said Jesus with solemn
and startling emphasis, " am He — I that am talking to
thee."
Meanwhile the disciples had done their errand in Sychar,
and just as Jesus made that great announcement, they
Amaze- appeared on the scene in utter amazement " They were
disciples, marvelling," says the Evangelist, " that He was talking with a
woman." And they might well marvel. It was wonder
enough to find their Master in close and earnest converse with
a Samaritan, but it was a still greater wonder that He should
' How did Jesus know the woman's past? Was it revealed to Him by God?
Cf. John viii. 28. Or did He merely make a general allusion to her past, which
the Evangelist has particularised from fuller knowledge?
* I.e. Gerizim, towering behind them to the south-eastward.
AMONG THE SAMARITANS 77
talk with a woman. Among the Jews women were very
h'ghtly esteemed. A Jew might not greet a woman ; *
he might not talk with a woman on the street, even if she
were his own wife or daughter or sister.' In the Morning
Prayer the men blessed God "who hath not made me a
Gentile, a slave, a woman."* There was a strict sort of
Pharisee nicknamed the Bleeding Pharisee, because he went
about with closed eyes lest he should see a woman, and
knocked his head against walls until it bled.* It was impiety
to impart the words of the Law to a woman : sooner should
they be burned.* The disciples might well marvel when they
found their Master in converse with a woman, and such a
woman.*
They stood aghast, neither attacking her nor remonstrat-
ing with Jesus. And she never heeded them. She had
heard great tidings, and she hurried away to tell them, for-
getting her water-pot The disciples produced the provisions Emotion of
which they had procured, and invited Jesus to partake thereof. ^**^
They had left Him weary and hungry, but His weariness and cf. pji.
hunger were both forgotten in the rapture of that great hour. '"*• a; at
" I have food to eat," He said, " whereof ye know not " ; and,
as they questioned each other whether some one could have
brought Him food during their absence. He continued : " My
food is to do the will of Him that sent Me, and finish His
work."
The woman had meantime hastened with winged feet
to the town. " Come," she cried to the townsfolk,' " see a
man who told me all that I have done ! Can it be that this
is the Messiah ? " Her words made a great stir. That whole
region had of late been ringing with the Baptist's preaching,
and it may even be that some of the people of Sychar had
been at iEnon and heard his announcement that the Messiah
* Lightfoot on Lk. i. 29,
' Lightfoot and Wetstein on John iv.^27.
» Taylor, Saj. of Fatk. pp. 15, 26, 137-40. Cf. P. E. F. Q., Oct. 1905, p. 349.
* Lightfoot on Mt. iii. 7.
* Lightfoot on John i-r. 27. Sot. 21. 2 : " Whoso instructs his daughter in the
Law, teaches her evil ways."
« R. Chanina and R. Oschaja were shoemakers in a town noted for its immof-
aiity, and, when harlots came to them for shoes, they would not raise their aye*,
lest they should behold them (Pesach. 113. 2).
' T«f 4>'5p«irotf = "the folk," not roti drSpdtir.
H
78 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
had come. They caught at the woman's suggestion that this
wondrous Man who had come into their neighbourhood, was
none other than the Messiah, and they poured out to see
Him.
Reason Jesus espied them hastening toward Him, and the
^^° ■ spectacle excited within Him strong emotion. " Have ye not
a saying," He cried to the disciples, " ' It is yet four months
and the harvest cometh ' ? ^ Lo, I say unto you, lift up your
eyes and behold the fields that they are white for harvest ! "
It was the very outset of His ministry. He had hardly
begun to sow the good seed of His Kingdom, and, lo, a rich
harvest was before Him ! In that great hour when He sate
on Jacob's Well and beheld the throng of Samaritans hurrying
forth to hear the Word of His Salvation, the temptation which
had assailed Him in the wilderness, again rushed upon Him.
Already had He tasted the bitterness of Jewish unbelief;
and, when He saw that multitude and read in their eager
faces the hunger of their human hearts and their souls'
yearning after God, He chafed at the limitations of His mission
and questioned if it were indeed the Father's will that He
should confine His grace to Israel, while the great world
without was perishing for lack of knowledge. The harvest
was ripe before His eyes, and it grieved Him that He must
stay His hand and refrain from thrusting in the sickle. He
longed for the day when the river of His grace would burst
its bounds and stream abroad over the thirsty earth ; and, if
it may be said with befitting reverence, there is a tone of
envy in His congratulation of the disciples that for them
had been reserved this high ministry, this supreme consumma-
tion of which the prophets had dreamed and for which the
saints had toiled : " Already he that reapeth receiveth wages
and gathereth fruit unto life eternal, that both he that soweth
and he that reapeth may rejoice together. For herein is the
saying true : ' He that soweth is one and he that reapeth
another.' I have sent you forth to reap that whereon ye
have not laboured. Others have laboured, and ye into their
labour have entered."
Ministry at Very rich were the first-fruits which the Lord reaped
^^ "■ at Sychar. So eager were its people, prepared as they
* Simply a husbandman's proverb. There is here no chronological datum.
AMONG THE SAMARITANS 79
were by the preaching of John, to hear His word that, at
their entreaty, He tarried with them two days ; and, when
He took His departure, He left many of them, not marvelling
at His miracles — for it is not written that He wrought a
single miracle among them, — but rejoicing in His Salvation.
" It is no longer," they said to the woman, " because of thy
talk that we are believing. For we have heard for ourselves,
and know that this is in truth the Saviour of the World."
CHAPTER IX
John !v. 43- SETTLEMENT AT CAPERNAUM
54 ; Mt. IV.
13-6= Lie
IV ^1 ; Mk. M Clear silver water in a cup of gold,
j^J" [y ' jl" Under the sunlit steeps of Gadara,
It shines — His Lake — the Sea of Chinnereth —
The waves He loved, the waves that kissed His feet
So many blessed days. Oh, happy waves I
Oh, little, silver, happy Sea, far-famed,
Under the sunlit steeps of Gadara ! "— SiR Edwin Asnolix
Departure It was not without regret that Jesus bade farewell to those
Sychar. kindly Samaritans and turned His face northward. He knew
well what difficulties awaited Him in Galilee, It was His own
country, and was it not proverbial that " in his native place
a prophet hath no honour " ? ^ Already during His sojourn
in Jerusalem had He got a taste of Israel's unbelief and
unspirituality. The rulers had required a sign, and the faith
of the multitude had been mere wonder. What marvel
though He were loath to quit Sychar where, though He had
wrought no miracle, He had been recognised as the Saviour of
the World, and begin the weary conflict with Israel's
unbelief?
Arrival in No sooner had He crossed the frontier than He found His
forebodings realised. Those Galileans who had been at the
Feast, had witnessed His miracles and on their return had
spread the fame thereof. As He travelled through the
country. He was the object of gaping wonderment He
Mt It. 13. repaired first of all to His old home at Nazareth, proceeding
thence toward Capernaum, the headquarters of His future
ministry. On the way betwixt Nazareth and Capernaum lay
Cana, and it was natural that He should stop there, at once to
"^ Cf. p. 214. John iv. 44 seems a non sequitur. Should not "for" be
" although " ? (i) Grig. In Joan. xiii. § 54 : His own country was Judaea ; dishon-
oured there He went into Galilee. (2) Chrysost. In Joan, xxxiv : His own country
was Capernaum in lower Galilee ; He went to Cana in upper Galilee. (3) Euth.
Zig.: Nazareth was Hii own country (^. Mt xiii. 54) ; He "left " it (Mt iv. 13),
i.t. hurried past it Perhaps the idea is : just because Galilee was tinbelieving, Ho
went thither.
SETTLEMENT AT CAPERNAUM 8i
visit the friend whose wedding He had recently blessed with At Cana.
His presence and perchance to discover what impression had
been produced by the miracle which He had wrought At
seven o'clock in the evening a stranger arrived at the village
in hot haste, seeking Jesus. He was a distinguished personage, The
" a courtier " the Evangelist calls him, meaning probably an «>"'^«'-
official under Herod Antipas, the tetrarch of Galilee. He was
in sore trouble. His only son,^ a mere child, was lying sick
of a deadly fever at Capernaum. Galilee was ringing with
the fame of the Lord's miracles at Jerusalem, and the news of
His arrival in Galilee inspired the anxious father with a great
hope. He left the couch of his dying child and, seeking out
Jesus, implored Him to go down to Capernaum and heal his
darling.
The request grated upon the Lord's ears. It seemed to Hedutioe
chime in with the prevailing sentiment. Everyone was °^ ^'*°*'
wondering at His miracles and no one was giving a thought
to His message of salvation. Was it thus with the courtier ?
He had travelled all the way from Capernaum to seek healing
for his child ; but had he any sense of a still deeper need ?
If the shadow of death had not fallen upon his home, would
he ever have sought Jesus at all ? And, if the boon which he
craved were denied him, would he have any care for the
Kingdom of Heaven ? Thus Jesus questioned within Himself
when the eager suppliant approached Him. It seemed as
though unspiritual Israel were speaking through that man's
lips, and He exclaimed, addressing not the courtier but his
generation : " Unless ye see signs and wonders, ye will in no
wise believe." " Lord," cried the troubled father, " come
down ere my child die ! " That agonised entreaty broke open
the flood-gates of the Lord's compassion. It showed Him
that the courtier was no mere sign-seeker. Defective as his
faith might be, he had a great sorrow in his heart, and to
such an appeal Jesus never turned a deaf ear. He hastened
to grant the suppliant's prayer, exceeding what he had asked The
or imagined. He did not go down to Capernaum and lay
His hand upon the child and recover him of his sickness. He
sent His word and healed him on the instant across the inter- cf.i^ tyiL
vening distance. " Go thy way," He said. " Thy son liveth." **■
' Sach U the force of «S • vUt.
naum.
82 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
Since Capernaum was nigh twenty miles away and the
night was at hand, the courtier would rest till morning ere
setting out on his return-journey, and when he was still on the
way, he met his slaves hastening to meet him with the joyful
tidings that his boy had recovered. On enquiry he ascertained
that the fever had ceased in the very hour when Jesus said,
" Thy son liveth " ; and it is no marvel that he and his whole
household were won to faith. It has been suggested, not
without probability, that the courtier may have been Chuza,
Herod's steward.^ It is not recorded that Chuza ever
rendered any great service to the Kingdom of Heaven, but
his wife Joanna was one of that noble band of women who
ministered of their substance to the Lord and His Apostles,
Lk. viH. 3; and lingered, with love stronger than death, about His
"'"• '°- Sepulchre.'
Caper- From Cana on the uplands Jesus descended to the Lake
of Galilee and took up His abode at Capernaum. It is some-
what disappointing that the precise situation of this town,
so dear and sacred to the Christian heart, is unknown.
" The waters glass no sail ; the ways have shrunk
Into a camel-path ; the centuries
With flood and blast have torn the terrace bare
Where the fox littered in the grapes. Ask not
Which was * His City' 'mid this ruined life I
None surely knoweth of Capernaum
Whether 'twas here, or there."
For some thirteen centuries there have been two claimants
to recognition — Tell-Hum near the head of the Lake, and
Khan-Minyeh some three miles lower down ; nor has the
diligence of modern exploration succeeded in adjudicating
betwixt them. The balance of evidence would seem to
incline toward the latter, but the question still remains, and
probably must always remain, undecided.* Whatever its
* Godet on Lk. viii. 3.
* It is very generally assumed by modem critics and even by Wetstein, that this
•tory is the Johannine version of the miracle of the healing of the Centurion's servant
(Mt. viii. 5-i3 = Lk. vii. i-io). Ewald regards the Johannine narrative as the more
accurate, whereas Keim finds it replete with exaggerations designed to heighten the
wondrousness of the miracle and glorify Jesus. The theory is perhaps as old as the
2nd c. {(/. Iren. Adv. Hoer. ii. 33. §1), and Chrysost. argues powerfully against it
(In Joan, zxxiv),
»G. A. Smith, H. G. p. 456; Henderson, Palestine, § 113; art. Capernaum
in D. B. and E. B. ; Sanday, Sacred Sites, pp. 36-48; P. S. F. Q., July 1907,
pp. 220^.
SETTLEMENT AT CAPERNAUM 83
precise position may have been, Capernaum was exquisitely
situated. It stood on the north-west shore of the lovely
Lake of Galilee, called of old the Sea of Chinnereth. •* Seven Num.
seas," said the Lord, according to the Rabbis, "have i "*•*•":
created, but of them all have I chosen none save the Sea »/•
of Chinnereth." ^ It was an inland lake some thirteen miles
in length by eight at its broadest ; and it lay 682 feet below
the level of the Mediterranean, sheltered from the upland
breezes and basking in tropical heat. Its water was sweet
to the taste' and swarmed with fish. Its blue expanse,
girdled by crags of yellow limestone, "clear silver water in
a cup of gold," was in our Lord's day dotted over with boats
speeding to the breeze or hanging by their nets. The banks
were studded with populous and busy towns : on the West
Chorazin, Capernaum, Magdala, Tiberias, Sinnabris, Taricheae ;
on the East Bethsaida, Gerasa, Gamala, Hippos.
Since it is never mentioned in the Old Testament, it is Reoooi ot
likely that Capernaum came into existence after the Exile. "*
' ^ prosperuy :
The name means Village of Nahunt, and tradition makes it
the burial-place of the ancient prophet.' It was a most
prosperous place, and three circumstances conduced thereto.
First, it was the principal harbour of the fishermen who plied » Fishinj
their business on the Lake. And a very thriving business "*
it was. A little to the south lay the town of Taricheae, that
is Pickleries, where the fish were salted, and whence they
were exported in kegs far and near.* It would seem that
the fisher-quarter of Capernaum down by the water-side
was called Bethsaida or Fisher-home, in full Bethsaida of
Galilee, to distinguish it from the Peraean town of Bethsaida
Julias on the other side of the Lake. It was the home of
the fisherfolk, and there dwelt Simon Peter, Andrew hisjohni. 44;
brother, and Philip.*
» Wetstein on Mt. xiv. 34. • Jos. ZV Bell. Jud. iil la § 7.
• Ea^pvaoi//x= Q^rO "IQ3. Nahum means " consolation," and Origen (/»
Joan, X. §6) interprets "Field of Ginsolation. "
* G. A. Smith in E. B., art. Tratie and Commerce § 78.
» Caspari, Chronolog. and Geop-aph. Introd. § 95. It is certain, despite G. A.
Smith's argument to the contrary {H. G. p. 457 sq. ; art. Bethsaida in E. B.), that
there were two Bethsaidas, B. Julias on the E. and another B. on the W, ( I ) After tbe
feeding of the 5000 near Bethsaida Julias (Lk. ix. 10) Jesus sent the disciples " to
the other side unto Bethsaida " (Mk. tL 45). John vL 17 proTCS that Bethsaida
84 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
«. Fertility Moreover, Capernaum was enclosed behind and on either
Gen- side by the Land of Gennesaret. The Rabbis were bound-
Desaret. j^gs in their praises of this fair and fertile tract which ex-
tended along the north-west shore of the Lake, thirty fur-
longs in length by twenty in breadth. Its name, they said,
meant " Gardens of Princes." They identified Gennesaret
with Chinnereth, and it got this name, they said, because
" its fruits were sweet as a harp's sweet music." ^ And no
less glowing is the description which the sober historian
Josephus gives of this goodly land.* "It refuses not any
plant by reason of its fatness, and the well-tempered air
suits the different kinds. The hardy walnut flourishes in
vast plenty, also the palm which is nourished by heat, and
hard by the fig-tree and olive for which a softer air has
been appointed. One would call it an ambition of Nature,
which has done violence to itself to bring together plants
that are at enmity, and a generous strife of the seasons,
each, as it were, laying claim to the country. The royallest
sorts, grape-cluster and fig, it supplies during ten months
without intermission. For in addition to the good temperature
of the climate it is watered by a most fertilising spring which
the people of the country call Capernaum." This rich fruit-
fulness augmented the town's prosperity, and the scenes
and employments of the fair garden furnished Jesus with
many an apt and telling image: the ploughman, the vine-
dresser, the birds, the rain and the sunshine.
3. The Way Once more, the Via Maris, the great high-way which
.. . bore a heavy stream of traffic betwixt Damascus and the
Mt. IV. 15; ^
cf. Is. ix, r. Levant, now a caravan of laden camels, then a Roman
legion or a troop of Herod's soldiers on the march with
gleaming armour and measured tread, skirted the north of
the Lake. Capernaum was the first station on the route on
Mt ix. 9. the hither side of the Galilean frontier, and it had a custom-
^^ house with a staff of taxgatherers. There was also a Roman
was not distinct from Capernaum. (2) John (xii. 21) speaks of "Bethsaida of
Galilee," plainly by way of distinguishing it from another Bethsaida. Cf. art.
Bethsaida in D. B. ; Henderson, Palestine, §§ 1 12-3.
' Wetstein on Mt xiv. 34, Gennesaret, D*lb ^31. Chinnereth, i'i33
xAarp,
* DeBell.Jud. iii. 10. §8.
SETTLEMENT AT CAPERNAUM 85
garrison in the town, and one of the officers had built a Mt ?«. j,
synagogue and presented it to the people. 3-5.^
Capernaum was thus no obscure village but a busy hive Suiuwuty
of cosmopolitan life and multifarious activities. And it was ^tJui«i <d
excellently situated for the purposes of the Lord's ministry. "^ V°''*'«
Nowhere else could He have exercised so varied an influence i. c«atraL
or secured so extensive a hearing. Speaking in Capernaum
He spoke to the world. Southward lay the land of Palestine,
eastward populous Peraea, northward heathen Phoenicia ; and
St Mark affirms that, ere His ministry was far advanced. He ***^ "•
attracted hearers from all these quarters.
In reading the story of the Galilean ministry one marvels a. Nemr
at the number of sick folk that were continually being ''"""•'*'
brought to Jesus for healing ; and it may be a partial
explanation that some ten miles along the shore from
Capernaum, hard by Tiberias, the splendid capital which
Herod Antipas had recently built for himself and with
servile adulation had named after the Roman Emperor,^ was
the sanatorium of Emmaus,' whither to this day, especially
in June and July, the very season when Jesus began His
ministry at Capernaum, invalids resort in order to bathe in
the medicinal waters which there well up warm from the earth.*
The proximity of those springs was one reason for Herod's
choice of the site of his new capital. The fame of Jesus would
reach Emmaus, and the sufferers, fired with a new hope, would
have themselves conveyed to Capernaum, if haply the won-
drous Physician would lay His hand upon them and heal them.
When Jesus came to Capernaum, He found an expectant j^jj]|^ "*
audience. All Galilee was talking of His doings at the
Passover, and the people of Capernaum had special reason for
wonderment. John, Simon Peter, Andrew, and Philip were
their townsmen, and they had arrived before Jesus. It is
likely that they had parted from Him on the frontier of
Galilee and sought their homes while He repaired to Nazareth.
At all events they were already at Capernaum and had
resumed their occupations ere He appeared. And they
would talk of all that they had witnessed at Bethany and
Sychar. Moreover, the town had just been astonished by
1 Jos. yint. xviii. 2. § I. " G- ^- Smith, ff. G. p. 450.
» Plin. H. N.'f.iS; Jos. Ant. xTiiL 2.%Zi D* Btll. Jud. U. ai. | 6 ; iv. 1. 1 3.
86 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
the healing of the courtier's child and by that distinguished
family's profession of faith in Jesus. It is no wonder that
His appearance created a mighty stir and that He was
observed with eager curiosity.
His Initial His initial message was at once old and new. " The
.^^^^ time hath been fulfilled," He said, " and the Kingdom of
Heaven hath drawn nigh. Repent and believe in the Gospel."
When John the Baptist appeared in the wilderness of
Mt. ill a. Judaea, this had been the burden of his preaching : " Repent,
for the Kingdom of Heaven hath drawn nigh " ; and Jesus
deliberately took up his cry. His purpose was to associate
Himself with His forerunner and make it clear that He had
not come to overthrow his work but to carry it on. It was
no politic concealment of His claims in order to bring
Himself into line with John when He announced merely that
the Kingdom of Heaven had drawn nigh. It was ever thus
that He spoke. When He sent forth the Twelve, He charged
Mt. X. 7. them to proclaim: "The Kingdom of Heaven hath drawn nigh,"
Mt. vi. 10= and He taught His disciples to pray : " Thy Kingdom come."
■ "' "■ He was indeed the Messiah, and His advent was the advent of
the Messianic Kingdom ; yet the Kingdom of Heaven never
comes until it is recognised and welcomed. The Pharisees once
Lk. xvii. asked Him when the Kingdom should come, and He told them
' that it was " in their midst." It was in their midst, but not in
their hearts ; it had drawn nigh, but had not come to them.
He took up John's message, but He added thereto some-
thing wholly new when He bade His hearers not only " repent "
but " believe in the Gospel." The Gospel — the Good Tidings,
Mk. 1.14; "the Good Tidings of God," "the Good Tidings of the
L IV. 23. Kingdom " — is a word which was never heard from John's
lips, nor was the thought of it in all his preaching ; but it
was the keynote of the Lord's preaching from first to last.
And no word could more truly express what He wrought for
the children of men. " Removal of punishment," says St
Chrysostom,^ " absolution of sins, righteousness, sanctification,
redemption, adoption, inheritance of Heaven, and kinship
with the Son of God He came announcing to all, to His
enemies, to the unfeeling, to them that sate in darkness and
shadow. What could match these Good Tidings ? "
» In Mattk. I.
CHAPTER X
THE lord's choice OF THE MEN WHO SHOULD BE WITH Mt W. i».
HTM aa«Mk. i.
"*~ i6-«.; Lk.
▼. I-II ;
•• In simple trust like theirs who beard, iMall*Lk.
Beside the Sjriaa sea, iZj?^
The gracious calling of the Lord,
Let us, like them, without a word,
Rise up and follow Thee." — Whittikx.
Not the least important task which engaged Jesus in the ronnaiion
course of His ministry, was the formation and instruction of dpie^band.
an inner circle of disciples. All who believed on Him were Lk. tl 13;
called disciples ; and, though they did not follow Him whither- i^'JS)'6fr7'
soever He went, they rendered good service to His cause by
remaining in the places where His grace had found them and
testifying what He had done for their souls. But this waa
not enough. It was a great work that Jesus had undertaken,
and He needed helpers. He needed also faithful comrades
who would continue with Him in His temptations and afford
Him support and sympathy in His hours of weakness and
disappointment Above all, a day was coming when He
must depart, and, unless there were loyal hands to take it up
and carry it forward. His work would fall to the ground.
All this Jesus foresaw from the outset ; and no sooner had
He entered upon His active ministry than He set about
choosing the men who should be with Him continually. Since
the time was short and they would have much to leam, much
also to unlearn, it was needful that they should be chosen as
early as might be. Yet haste were perilous. Ere they were
called to a trust so high and solemn they must be tried and
evince their fitness.
There were four of the men of Capernaum whom, ere D^F||"
He settled there, Jesus had sufficiently approved — the two »oo.
brothers Simon and Andrew, John, and Philip. Down at
Bethany beyond Jordan they, as well as Nathanael of Cana,
•f
S8 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
had given their hearts to Him, and it had been so ordered by
the providence of God that they had been in His company
almost ever since. They were engaged once more in their
old employments, but the time had come when they must
leave all and cast in their lot with Jesus. It chanced one
morning that He was down by the water-side where the
fishermen beached their boats, and the people were pressing
upon Him to hear the Word of God from His lips and
Discourse almost, in their eagerness, thrusting Him into the Lake. He
Lake! espied hard by two skiffs which had come ashore after an
unsuccessful night's fishing. One of them belonged to Simon
and Andrew, who were washing their nets on the beach, and
the other to John and his brother James, who were in the
skiff with their father Zebedee, mending their nets. Jesus got
into the former and bade Simon push her out a little way
from the shore. And there He sate and discoursed to the
multitude ranged along the sloping beach down to the very
brink.
The haul His discourse ended, He addressed Himself to a greater
task. " Put out into the deep," He said to Simon, " and let
down your nets for a haul." It seemed a useless attempt
Night was the time for fishing, when all was still and there
was no glare upon the water.^ Yet such was the ascendancy
which Jesus had won over those men, that they immediately
complied. " Master," said Simon in fisher phrase,' " all
through the night we toiled and took nothing, but on the
strength of Thy word I will let down the nets." To their
amazement they made a huge haul. So many fish were in
the net that it was like to break.' They beckoned to their
mates, James and John, to put off to their assistance, and the
fish loaded both the boats well-nigh to sinking.
Simon's Simon was a big-hearted, impulsive man who always
blurted out the thought of the moment, often speaking un-
advisedly and immediately regretting it. He was amazed at
the miracle. He had indeed seen Jesus work greater miracles,
but never one which touched him so closely. " Depart from
» Cf. Plin. H. N. ix. 23.
* trurTirris, properly a sailor's word, "captain." Cf. Lk. viiL 24; Xen. (E*,
xri. 3.
• Sit/rfifffftro (Imperf.). C/m 6ot« pv$l^ef0<u airi, Vulg. : " ita \Apent mergerentur."
amaze-
ment.
CHOICE OF A DISCIPLE-BAND 89
me ; for I am a sinful man, Lord," he cried, no longer calling
Him " Master " but exchanging his fisher phrase for one
more reverential. Here, as on another and greater occasion,
he " knew not what he was saying." That the Lord should Lk. ii ,3.
depart from him was really the last thing that he desired.
" Fear not," said Jesus. " Henceforward thou shalt be a
catcher of living men."
The laden skiffs made their slow way to shore, and, when c*u of
Jesus had disembarked, He said to Simon and Andrew : a'^cw*"'*
" Follow Me, and I will make you to become fishers of men." J*™" "»»
Then, going along the beach to the other boat, he addressed ^°'*°'
a like call to James and John. They all obeyed. They
abandoned everything, and cast in their lot with the homeless
Son of Man. Their earthly employment was a parable of
their divine vocation.^ As David was taken from the sheep- a Sam. rJi
cote to be a shepherd to Israel, and Paul from his tent-f,^^--
making to be a maker of heavenly tabernacles, so they were 70-71 :
taken from their boats to be fishers of men.' 1-4.
Jesus was very careful in the choice of the men who a Scribe
should be with Him. In every recorded instance He made
the choice, and there are three incidents which exemplify His
procedure. Once He was accosted on the road by a Scribe,
one of the order of learned Pharisees, otherwise styled
Lawyers or Doctors of the Law. They were the Teachers of Cf. joha
Israel, and bore the honourable title of Rabbi.' " There
approached Him a single Scribe" says St Matthew, meaning
perhaps that the incident was unique or else depicting by a
graphic touch the manner of the great man's approach, not
amid a jostling multitude but in solitary state.* " Teacher,"
he said, " I will follow Thee wherever Thou goest."
It was a request for enrolment in the Lord's company, and
the motive which prompted it is very apparent. The Scribe
was persuaded that Jesus was the Messiah ; and, entertaining
the current ideal of the Messianic Kingdom, he was confident
that, when the Master came to His throne and dispensed
• Cf. Orig. In Num. xrii. § 4.
'ML and Mk. recount simply the call, but they imply Lk.'i miracle. Je«u
might have hailed Simon and Andrew out on the deep (cf. John xxi. 5), but it ii
incredible that He should have shouted His solemn call across the water. The
casting of the net (Mt. Mk.) implies the previous putting out into the deep (Lk.X
• Schurer, H.J. /». ii. i, pp. 313 sqq.
• See, however, Moulton's Gram, of N.T. Gk. i. pp. 96 '1>
lit 10.
90 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
honours and offices among His faithful followers, He would
award the chief dignity to one so distinguished in rank and
learning.^ It is no marvel that he should have reasoned thus.
Mt. XX. 20- Not many days before the Crucifixion James and John were
3S-4S- dreaming the selfsame dream. Jesus promptly dissipated
the illusion which was floating before the aspirant's imagina-
tion, showing in a single brief sentence what must be the
lot of such as followed Him wherever He went. " The
foxes," He said, " have holes, and the birds of the heaven
nests ; but the Son of Man hath not where to lay down His
head." The Scribe was dreaming of a golden future, but
behold the reality — a life of sacrifice, privation, contumely I
Was he prepared for this ?
A reluctant Jesus received no one into His company until He was
compelled? Satisfied of his fitness ; but, on the other hand, when He was
satisfied thereof. He would admit no excuse. Once He
addressed the great call to a disciple who, tradition says,*
was none other than Philip and who certainly resembled
Philip in his timorousness and diffidence. The man demurred
and pled a prior claim : " Lord, permit me first to go away
and bury my father." " Leave the dead," Jesus sternly
replied, "to bury their own dead, but thou — follow thou
Me."»
At the first blush the Lord's behaviour here seems very
cruel. Is it possible that the gentle Jesus detained a son
from the sacred duty of paying the last tribute of reverence
to his dead father? It was indeed the manner of the Rabbis
to trample on natural affection, arrogating to themselves the
first place in their disciples' regard and service. " If," they
said, " a disciple's father and his master have lost aught, his
master's loss has the precedence ; for his fiither indeed brought
him into this world, but his master, who has taught him
wisdom, has introduced him into the world to come. If his
father and his master be carrying a burden, let him remove
his master's burden first and then his father's. If his father
and his master be in captivity and he have not wherewith
to redeem both, first let him redeem his master and
» Cf. Chrysost., Jer., HiL
• Clem. Alex. Strom. III. ir. § 25.
' Chrysost. and Clem, quote the logion in this spirited and probably aathentk:
form : A^ct rodt rtxpuiH M^ot Toi% iavT&y ptKpvit, rd Si dl/c«Xol^« fUM.
CHOICE OF A DISCIPLE-BAND 91
then his father."* And they insisted that, unless there
were no other to discharge it, even the sacred office of
burying the dead should not interrupt the study of the
Law.'
It seems as though the behaviour of Jesus in this instance
fully matched the arrogance and inhumanity of the Rabbis ;
but a little consideration places it in another light and reveals
the disciple's plea as a palpable evasion. There is force in
St Chrysostom's observation that the work of burial was not
all. " It had been further necessary to busy himself about
the will, the division of the inheritance, and all the rest that
follows thereupon ; and thus wave after wave would have
caught him and borne him very far from the haven of truth.
Therefore He draws him and nails him to Himself,"' A
great issue was at stake, and even though the disciple's father
had been dead, it were no marvel that Jesus, apprehensive
lest he should be lost to the Kingdom of Heaven, should
have detained him. But in fact his father cannot have been
dead ; he cannot even have been dying. Immediate inter- cf. Acu ».
ment is necessary in the sultry East ; and, had his father ^
been either dead or dying, the disciple should have been at
home performing the funeral rites or closing the dying eyes ;
and it would have been utter shamelessness had he excused
himself from following Jesus on the score of a duty which he
was all the while palpably neglecting. And the truth is
that his excuse was a mere pretext for delay. He craved a
truce from following Jesus that he might tend his father in
his declining years, employing a phrase which is common to
this day in the unchanging East. It is told * that, when a
youth was counselled by a Syrian missionary to complete his
education by travelling in Europe, he answered : " I must first
bury my father." His father was in excellent health, and
the youth meant merely that domestic duties had a prior
claim. Jesus did not make light of those sacred duties, but
he declared that the claims of the Kingdom of Heaven arc
paramount, and those to whom the heavenly call is addressed
* Cf. Taylor, Say. ef Fath. vi. 17, n. ai.
" Introd. § I,
• Contact with a dead tx)dy made a Jew unclean for seren days (N«m. m. 1 1
tqq,\ and there were seven dayi of mourning (Ecclus. xxii. la).
« Wendt, Lehr.Jes. ii. 70, n. I, E. T.
9a THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
must obey it at every hazard, considering that, "if they
venture all for God, they engage God to take care of their
concernments."
A half. Another time there came a man to Jesus and said : •* I
voiuntwr will follow Thee, Lord ; but first permit me to bid farewell to
rejected. ^^ houschold." ^ Like the Scribe he volunteered, and like
Philip he craved respite. And his request seems most
reasonable. It resembles Elisha's when Elijah cast his mantle
iKingsxix. upon him : " Let me, I pray thee, kiss my father and my
^^"' mother, and then I will follow thee." Elisha was busy
ploughing, and it seems as though the ancient story leaped
into the mind of Jesus and suggested His reply. " No one,"
He said, adapting a familiar proverb,* '* having put his hand
upon a plough and looking backward,' ia well set for the
Kingdom of God." A disciple who hankers after the past
is like a ploughman who, instead of fixing his eye steadily
ahead, looks backward or aside, letting the share swerve and
drawing a crooked furrow.
It may seem strange that, while Elijah let Elisha go and
kiss his father and mother, Jesus should have dealt so sternly
with this man j but in truth the cases were very different
Elisha did not volunteer, and, when he was called, he instantly
left his oxen and ran after Elijah with eager alacrity ; but
this man took the first word and betrayed his half-heartedness
by accompanying his offer with a reservation. He was
persuaded that he ought to cast in his lot with Jesus, and he
proposed a compromise. Nor was Jesus for a moment
deceived. He read the man's thoughts. He perceived that
he was divided betwixt his home and the Kingdom of Heaven,
and clearly foresaw what the issue would be if he had his
way. Should he go home and announce his intention
of following Jesus, his friends would cry out against it,
and, overborne by their arguments and entreaties, he
would abjure the resolution which he had taken in an
hour of enthusiasm. Once let him taste the delight of
* iroT^aa-Bai rott eft rir oZkov /xov, either "take leave of those in xaj house"
{ef. 2 Cor. ii. 13; Acts zvilL 18); or "renounce the things in my hoase,"
renunciare negociis domtsticis {cf. Lk. xiv. 33).
' Cf. Plin. H. N. xviiL 49 : " Arator nisi incur vus praevaricatur."
* pxirup tls t4 irlffu. Some MSS., Orig., CyrilL, Chrysost., Athanas. have
rrpa^lt elt rd orlffu, "£acing right round."
CHOICE t)F A DISCIPLE-BAND 93
home, and it would happen with him as with the
lotus-eaters :
" Surely, surely, slumber is more sweet than toil, the shore
Than labour in the deep mid-ocean, wind and wave and oar ;
Oh rest ye, brother mariners, we will not wander more."
Jesus knew the peril of dallying with conviction and the
imperious necessity of instant obedience to the heavenly
vision which comes to a man but once and quickly fades.
CHAPTER XI
Mlc. i. 21 =
Lk. iv. 31 ; IN THE SYNAGOGUE OF CAPERNAUM
Mt. V. 17-
30 (Lk. xiL
58-9), " • Was it,' the Lord then said, ' with scorn ye saw
33-7 ; ^- }' The old law observed by Scribes and Pharisees ?
*'« • \lk! ^ ^^ ""'° ^°"' ***->'' ''^^P ^^^^ ^**^
i.2a^ = Lk. More faithfully than these.' " — MATTHEW ASNOLD.
iv. 32-7.
The Jewish ONE Sabbath Day soon after His settlement at Capernaum,
Syna- probably the first Sabbath thereafter, Jesus repaired to the
Synagogue. The synagogal system was an institution ot
later Judaism, and it was admirably adapted to foster the
religious life of the nation.^ Every town, nay, every village
had its synagogue, which exercised a powerful and beneficent
influence upon the community. It was controlled by ten
Officials, officials, who must be men of leisure and learning that they
might devote themselves to the administration of their offices
and the study of the Law. Eight of them had clearly
defined functions. Three composed a court for the settlement
of cases within their province, including debt, theft, loss,
restitution, seduction, the adnNssion of proselytes, elections ;
and they were called the Rulers of the Synagogue. Another
Lk. IT. ao. was the Officer of the Synagogue, and his business was to
lead the prayers, see to the reading of the Law, and on
occasion preach. He was styled also the Angel or Messenger
of the Church and the Overseer of the Congregation. There
were also three Deacons who cared for the poor, collecting
alms from house to house and at the meetings of the
congregation. These seven were known as " the Seven Good
Men of the Town." Then there was the Targumist or
Interpreter who, as the Scripture passages were read low in
his hearing, rendered them aloud in the vernacular. The
congregation assembled twice on the Sabbath — in the fore-
noon and again in the evening ; and there were also two
week-day meetings, on Monday and Thursday, the second and
* <y. Lightfoot on Mt ir. 23 ; SchUrer, ^. J, P. II. ii. pp. 52 s^q.
IN THE SYNAGOGUE OF CAPERNAUM 95
fifth days of the week. It was a pecuh'arity of the synagogal
system that any qualified worshipper might deliver the sermon ;*
and, when the Ruler of the Synagogue observed such an one
in the congregation, he would ask him if he had " any word Acu m.
of exhortation unto the people." This custom afforded Jesus **"
a golden opportunity, whereof He gladly availed Himself Lk, w. 15;
from the very outset of His ministry. ^- '*• "i*
On that Sabbath after His settlement at Capernaum Hejewuintbe
repaired to the Synagogue and at the Ruler's call discoursed dlc!^
to the congregation. It was the first formal sermon that He ■•"*^
ever preached, and happily a report of it has been preserved
by St Matthew, embedded in that precious collection of our
Lord's sayings commonly called " The Sermon on the Mount" •
It was a great discourse, and it is in no wise surprising that
it made a profound impression upon an audience accustomed
to the dreary ineptitudes of Rabbinical teaching. " They
were astonished at His teaching ; for He was teaching them
as one that had authority, and not as their Scribes."
It was in truth the Manifesto of the Messiah. Jesus hi«
knew what suspicion His teaching must arouse in minds •*™'*'""
jealous for traditional orthodoxy. His association with the
Baptist was in itself sufficient to create a prejudice against
Him. John had broken with the religion of his day. He
had kept aloof from Jerusalem and was never found in the
Temple ; and he had pictured the Messiah as a ruthless
reformer, axe and winnowing-fan in hand. It was therefore
needful that Jesus should at the outset of His ministry declare
His loyalty to the ancient faith. " Think not," He began, Assertioo
" that I came to pull down ^ the Law or the Prophets. I {jJ^JJ^^y y,
came not to pull down but to complete. For verily I tell you, »^ i-»»-
until the heaven and the earth pass away, a single iota or a
single tip* shall in no wise pass away from the Law until
everything come to pass." And thus indeed it was that
Jesus ever regarded the Scriptures and their sacred institutions.
He reverenced the Temple, calling it His Father's House. Lk. IL 49:
^ ** lohnii 16;
1 Cf. Lk. iv. 16 ; Phil. De Septen. yi. • Cf. Introd. § 8. Mt. xriL
» xaraXDcrat : cf. Mt. xxiv. 2 = Mk, xiiL 2 = Lk. xxL 6 ; Mt xxvi. 6isMk. xin "5
58 ; 2 Cor V. I.
* Proverbial, like "the dot of an i or the stroke of a /." Cf. Lightfoot and
WeLstein. In the early Church a momentous controTcrsy turned on the iM» o#
difference betwixt «/ioo«J<rtoj and i/wtoi><rwt.
96 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
He kept the Feasts. He loved the Old Testament It was
His armoury in His controversies and a never-failing fountain
of refreshment to His weary spirit. The Scriptures spake of
Him ; their every ordinance was a prophecy of His salvation ;
and He had come to complete them as the day completes
the dawn, as the substance completes the shadow. He gave
what they promised.
Enlarge- " Therefore," He continues, alluding evidently to John
™^° scope! the Baptist, " whosoever shall unloose one of these command-
Cf. Mt. xi. ments, even the least, and teach men so, least shall he be
'vu! 38. called in the Kingdom of Heaven ; but whosoever shall do
and teach, he shall be called great in the Kingdom of Heaven.
For I tell you that, unless your righteousness exceed that of
the Scribes and Pharisees, ye shall in no wise enter into the
Kingdom of Heaven." In this bold sentence He, as it were,
flings down the gauntlet; He strikes the first blow in the
conflict which He waged even unto death against that spirit
of externality and formalism which was the curse of con-
temporary Judaism. And in the remainder of His discourse
He makes good His claim that so far from relaxing the
obligation of the Law He required a fuller and deeper
obedience, citing three of its precepts and showing in regard
to each how the Rabbis narrowed it and how He widened it
and increased its content.
Thoughts " Ye have heard that it was said to them of old : ' Thou
'^acts! shalt not kill! " According to the Rabbinical interpretation this
(i) Hatred precept of the Decalogue took cognisance merely of acls, but
murder. Jesus extends its scope and comprehends within the sweep
of its prohibition thoughts as well, not only the deed of
violence but the disposition which prompts it. " It was said
to them of old time : * Thou shalt not kill ; and whosoever
killeth shall be liable to the Judgment! But I tell you that
everyone that is angry with his brother shall be liable to the
Judgment ; and whosoever shall say to his brother : * Raka ! '
shall be liable to the Sanhedrin ; and whosoever shall say :
• Thou fool ! ' shall be liable to the Gehenna of Fire."
Our Lord's meaning here is obscure only because He
employs certain terms which are no longer familiar. The
Judgment was the court of the Rulers of the Synagogue.
And what of *' Raka " ? The word has long been a puzzle to
IN THE SYNAGOGUE OF CAPERNAUM 97
interpreters,* It would seem that it was a mere interjection.
St Augustine learned this from " a certain Hebrew " whom
he questioned on the subject " He said it was a word
which had no signification but expressed the emotion of a
disdainful mind." And St Chrysostom further explains that
it was used in Syriac much like "you" in addressing a
servant or a beggar : " Begone, you I " ** Tell so-and-so,
you 1 " ' The Sanhedrin was the supreme court of the
Jewish nation, which took cognisance of cases of blasphemy
and which alone could pronounce sentence of stoning. Then
what was the Gehenna of Fire ? Gehenna is the Graccised
form of Ge-Hinnom, the Valley of Hinnom, which lay out-
side the southern wall of Jerusalem.' Once a pleasant spot,
it was profaned by the worship of Moloch, and at the Jer. »IL 31-
Reformation under Josiah it was defiled. Thither the re- iij* j^"*"'*
fuse of the city was conveyed and the bodies of the worst
criminals were cast out a prey to pariah dogs and carrion
birds. It was choked with putrefaction and stench, and fires
were kept burning to purify the poisoned atmosphere.* In
later days that horrid den, where the worm died not and the Mk.u.4t:
fire was not quenched, became a symbol of the place of^
doom. Here, however, it bears its literal and not its cschato-
logical significance.
And now the Lord's meaning is very plain. In terse and
graphic language which would arrest His hearers and strike
home to their consciences. He depicts a double crescendo of
sin and punishment. On the one side He set an ascending
scale of offences, each rising out of and including the last :
Anger, Contempt, Abuse.* Over against these grades of sin
stand their appropriate punishments : for Anger the Judgment,
for Contempt the Sanhedrin, for Abuse the Gehenn?. of Fire.
He that is angry with his brother is even as the culprit who
» Generally connected with Hebr. pn, tmpty. ]tt. : •'uuuiis »ut T»cnaj, qnem
DOS possumui vulgata injuria abique cerebro nuncuj)are." A.V. mazg. : " Vai»
fellow" ; (/. Ja. ii. ao : 6 iffpotr* xevi. Otherwif* deriTcd from Gk- ^c«, rv*
ef. Aug. Dt Strm. Dom. in Men. i. I 23.
• In Matth. xvi. This osc ef ^ ii a familiar classical idiom. <3^ Soph. (kT,
532. Lat Httis tu I
• D)n ^1, 7««»»* Cf. Orig. C. (Ms. yi. as-fi.
* C/. Lightfoot, iL /Ya/at. ad Ltrt.
* Cf. Aug. Dt Strm. Dtm. in Aftn. L | 24.
98 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
is arraigned before the Rulers of the Synagogue. He whose
anger passes into contempt is as guilty as the blasphemer
who is haled before the Sanhedrin. And he who adds abuse
to contempt is on a level with those vile criminals whose
bodies are cast forth mto the loathsome pit of Gehenna.
By such picturesque instances Jesus illustrates and
enforces His doctrine, so novel and amazing to Jewish ears,
that the thought of hatred is in God's judgment no less
heinous than the deed. The Jews were very scrupulous
about external purity, and it was laid down in their Law that,
if on his way to the Temple to offer his Paschal Lamb a man
should recollect that he had leaven in his house, he should
hasten back and remove it, and then, when he had purged his
house, carry his offering to the altar.^ But far more needful
is it, Jesus declares, that the worshipper should purge his
heart ere making his approach to God. "If therefore thou
art offering thy gift at the altar and there rememberest that
thy brother hath aught against thee, leave there thy gift
before the altar, and go thy way : first be reconciled to thy
brother, and then come and offer thy gift."
(a) Lust "Ye have heard," Jesus continued, adducing a second
adultery, instance of His doctrine, " that it was said : * Thou shall not
commit adultery' But I tell you that every one that eyeth
a woman with the intent to lust after her hath already
committed adultery with her in his heart." This sentence
is well weighed and scrupulously just.^ It is not said that
desire is sin. Desire visits every breast ; and only when it is
harboured and cherished, does it pass into sin and make the
man an offender. And truly the thought of lust is even as
the act. It is restrained only by the lack of opportunity.
And it is ever within a man's breast that the issue is
determined. The sin which puts him to an open shame, is no
sudden catastrophe but the climax of a long course of secret
sinning. He has already been defeated on the hidden battle-
field of his soul.
The consciences of His hearers would confess the truth of
this doctrine of Jesus. It needed no proof, and He followed
it up with a counsel which at first sounds very strangely on
» Cf. Wetstein, Lightfoot.
' Cf. Aug. De Scrm. Dom, in Man. i. iS 33-4.
IN THE SYNAGOGUE OF CAPERNAUM 99
His lips. "If thy right eye ensnare thee.Mear it out andCLW. 1$.
fling it from thee ; for it is expedient for thee that one of
thy members be destroyed and not thy whole body flung
into Gehenna. And if thy right hand ensnare thee, hack it off
and fling it from thee ; for it is expedient for thee that one of
thy members be destroyed and not thy whole body go away into
Gehenna." It is told of the ancient philosopher Democritus
that, lest he should behold vanity, he put out his eyes ; " nor
was Origen the only saint of early days who, in faithful
though erring obedience to the Lord's behest, mutilated his
flesh for the Kingdom of Heaven's sake.' It is difficult
to believe that this was indeed the Lord's requirement. It is
alien from the spirit of Him who came not to destroy the
body but to redeem it and to bestow upon the children of
men " more life and fuller " ; and is it not also inconsistent
with His doctrine that the supreme necessity is inward purity,
purity not alone of act but of thought ? A man might be a
thief at heart though he cut off his hands lest he should
steal ; and might still retain his passions, though he plucked
out his eyes lest he should behold vanity. The pure in heart
alone are guiltless in God's judgment ; and they walk
unscathed amid the world's allurements, and have no need to
seclude themselves either by closing the avenues of sense or
by repairing to a hermitage. " He that can apprehend and
consider vice with all her baits and seeming pleasures, and
yet abstain, and yet distinguish, and yet prefer that which
is truly better, he is the true wayfaring Christian. I cannot
praise a fugitive and cloister'd vertue, unexercis'd and un-
breath'd, that never sallies out and sees her adversary, but
slinks out of the race, where that immortall garland is to be
run for not without dust and heat"*
Self-multilation is in truth no heroic act Rather is it
the resource of one who, half cowardly, shrinks from the
moral conflict and, half unbelieving, will not yield himself
unreservedly to the grace which bringeth salvation. And
assuredly it was never in the thoughts of Jesus. "If," says
St Chrysostom,* " He had been speaking of members, He
'Such is the proper meaning of vKavSaXl^tir. rKai>Si\ri0pof = \ht t/^^f ot a
tiap. Suidas : (TKafidXTjOpa- ri i» tm rayltrv ixiKan^ {wXa. See WeUteift.
» Tert. A/»/. § 46 * Eus. //. ^. tL 8.
« Milton, Areopag. ' ^^ iiaitk. xviL
loo THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
would not have spoken of one eye nor of the right alone, but
of both. For the man who is ensnared by the right eye, will
obviously be likewise affected by the left also." St Augustine
aptly quotes the phrase " I love you more than my eyes." ^
iSaB). xi The right member was accounted superior; and, when Jesus
xxix. 20! spoke of the right eye and the right hand, He meant the
dearest and most precious possessions. His counsel is :
** Seek after purity of heart, and count no sacrifice too costly or
too painful that you may win it"
(3) Truth " Ye have heard that it was said to them of old : ' Thou
ward parts, shalt itot break an oath^ but thou shalt render unto the Lord
thine oaths' But I tell you not to swear at all." It is
surprising that Jesus should speak thus. All over the ancient
world the oath was held in high veneration, and not least in
Gen. xxii the land of Israel.* It is written in the Old Testament that,
Hebr^^! when the Lord made His promise to Abraham, " purposing to
16-8. show more abundantly unto the heirs of the promise the
immutability of His purpose," He confirmed it by an oath.
! Rom. i. 9- And not only was St Paul accustomed to support his
XT. 31; a asseverations by oaths, but Jesus Himself let the High Priest
Gai.'^i! ao! P"* YWzQ. on oath when He stood before the Sanhedrin. The
Mt. xxri. truth is that, when He bade His hearers in the Synagogue of
Capernaum abstain from the swearing of oaths, He was
speaking, if it may be said with befitting reverence, in a spirit
of playful raillery and, moreover, was condemning rather the
abuse of the practice than the practice itself.
It is an evidence of prevalent abuse that the pious
Essenes, like the Quakers, eschewed swearing, deeming it
worse than perjury.' And indeed the abuse was manifold.
It was a serious aspect of the case that custom had divested
the practice of its solemnity. Light use of oaths is ever
characteristic of a godless time. So it was in England in
Chaucer's day.
" Vengeance shal not parten from his hous,
That of his othes is outrageous.
* De Setm. Dom. in Mon. i. § 37. Cf. Deut. xxxii. 10 ; Ps. xvii. 8 ; ProT. vii.
2 ; Zech. ii. 6. 6<p0a.\pL6i and oculus frequently in classics in sense of " darling."
Cf. Catull. iii. 5.
• Cf. Josh. ix. 19; Jud. xi. 35; Herod, vi. 86; PlauL M. G. t. 21-4; Hor.
Sat. ii. 3. 179-81.
» Jos. De Bell. JuJ. u. 8. § 6.
IN THE SYNAGOGUE OF CAPERNAUM loi
By Goddes precious herte, and by his nailes,
And by the blood of Crist, that is in Hailes,
Seven is my chance, and thin is cink and treye :
By Goddes armes, if thou falsely pleye,
This dagger shal thurghout thin herte go." '
And even so it was among the Jews in our Lord's Day. In
their common intercourse they would invoke the most august
and sacred institutions with thoughtless and irreverent hearts.
They would swear by the heaven, forgetting that it was God's
Throne : by the earth, forgetting that it was His footstool ; is. UtL i.
toward Jerusalem, forgetting that it was the City of the Great P». «i*iii. -
King ; by their heads, never considering, says Jesus with a
stroke of humorous sarcasm, that they could not make a
single hair white or black.
It is a still more serious aspect of the case that the
Rabbis, like the Jesuits whom Pascal satirises in the Provincial
Letters^ had developed a monstrous system of casuistry,
distinguishing betwixt oaths w^hich were binding and oaths
which it was no sin to break. If a man swore by the
Sanctuary, it was naught ; but if he swore by the gold of
the Sanctuary, he was bound. If he swore by the altar, it
was naught ; but if he swore by the gift upon the altar, he
was bound. If he swore by Jerusalem, he was not bound
unless he looked intently toward Jerusalem as he swore.'
Such casuistry is ruinous to the moral sense ; and even where
there is no evasion, the practice of oath-taking is subtly
mischievous, being " apt to introduce into the laxer sort of
minds the notion of two kinds of truth — the one applicable
to the solemn affairs of justice, and the other to the common
proceedings of daily intercourse." • Jesus required " truth in
the inward parts." When the heart is simple and sincere,
then Yea and Nay are all-sufficient The man's word is as
good as his bond. It may be said of him as of the Essenes
of old that "everything that is spoken by him is stronger
than an oath."
From the exposition of His doctrine that God regards ^'^
thoughts as well as acts, Jesus proceeds by natural transition to '^pj*y ..
inculcate the necessity of heart-religion. And assuredly, if ever
• TTu Pardonerts Tale.
• Mt. xxiiL l6, i8. Lightfoot and Wetstein on Mt t. 33-7.
• Lamb's Essay on Imptrftct Sympatkits.
I02 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
the exhortation was needed, it was in that age. The reh'gious
teachers were the Pharisees, and they had made religion a
hollow and heartless form. By a single stinging epithet
Jesus pourtrays them. He terms them "hypocrites," and
hypocrite meant properly an actor on the stage of the theatre.
And truly the Pharisees were mere play-actors. Their
sanctity was a mask, their whole life an elaborate posturing
before admiring spectators.^
" Take heed," says Jesus, " not to do your religion ' before
men with the intent of being a spectacle unto them ; ' else
have ye no recompense in the judgment of your Father in
Cf. Toh. Heaven." Almsgiving, Prayer, and Fasting were the chief
"** ■ exercises of religion in those days, and Jesus in graphic and
vigorous language depicts the manner of the Pharisees in each
(i) in alms- of these. " When thou doest alms, sound not a trumpet
^^^^' before thee, as the playactors do in the synagogues and in
the streets, that they may be glorified by men. Verily I tell
you, they have their full recompense." The ancient Law,
ever humane and merciful, had a tender regard for the poor,*
and there are not a few truly noble sayings of the Rabbis
inculcating the sacred duty of ministering to their necessities.
" Let thy house," said R. Joses ben Jochanan of Jerusalem,
" be opened wide ; and let the needy be thy household." '
And almsgiving had a prominent place in the worship of the
Synagogue. It was a beautiful and truly pious usage, yet it
was grievously abused by the Pharisees. They made it an
occasion of self-glorification. See them as they deposit their
gift in the offertory-box in the Synagogue or drop it into the
beggar's hand in the street See how they court observation,
** sounding," says Jesus, " a trumpet before them." " R. EHezer
* Aug. De Strm. Dom. in Mon. ii. § 5.
' Reading iiKaiocirvr^v. h{.Kaio<rl}vi\ the generic term ; <Xe77|uo<rJnj, rptxrevxH,
rtfffTtla specific instances. 8iKaioavrt)= npli* often in the sense of alrru (Hatch,
^ T :
£ss. in Bib. Gk. pp. 49 sqq.) ; ef. Tob. ii. 14 ; 2 Cor. ix. 9; Acts x. 4. Hence
T. R. lker\fXJoavinjv.
• Tp6% t6 0ea&iii><u, "with the intent of being a fiiarpow." Cf. I Cor. iv. 9.
* Deut XV. 7-1 1 ; Ley. xix. 9-10 ; </. Ps. xli. I ; Prov. xxi. 13.
» Taylor, Say. of Path. i. 5.
• Cf. Achill. Tat. viii : aiJnj hk oix ^^ ffdXriyyi fiSrw dXXi /rol r^pvxt
fKHXf^crai. Greek proverb ai>rd» iavrov ai'/Xet (Erasm. Adag. under Adulatio).
Calvin thinks they actually blew a trumpet to summon the beggars, but the phrase is
meiely a vigoroiu metaphor. Cf. Chrysost. In Mattk. xix ; Lightfoot and Wetstein.
IN THE SYNAGOGUE OF CAPERNAUM 103
commended the chanty which was done in secret, the giver
knowing not to whom he gave nor the recipient from whom
he received ; ^ but not such is the manner of these play-actors.
They do not give their alms by Jtealth, as though they
would hide from the left hand what the right is doing.
They resemble the worshippers whom old Thomas Fuller
describes : " I have observed some at the church-door cast in
sixpence with such ostentation, that it rebounded from the
bottom, and rang against both sides of the bason (so that the
same piece of silver was the alms and the giver's trumpet) ;
whilst others have dropped down silent five shillings without
any noise."
The sacred exercise of Prayer furnished those play-actors (') '«>
with a great opportunity. Standing was the prescribed
attitude,^ and the face must be turned toward the Sanctuary.
Eighteen prayers must be offered daily ; ' and, if the hour of
prayer found the man riding on an ass, he must dismount and
assume the due posture ; if it found him in the street, he must
stand and pray on the spot* Here lay the opportunity of
the Pharisees. They would deliberately so arrange it that
the hour of prayer might find them at the comers of the Cf- Pror.
streets, the chief places of concourse ; and there they would
strike their ostentatious attitude of devotion." " When yc
pray," says Jesus, " ye shall not be as the play-actors ; foras-
much as they love to take their stand in the synagogues and
at the corners of the streets and pray, in order that they may
be a sight to men. Verily I tell you, they have their full
recompense. But thou, when thou prayest, enter into thy
chamber and after shutting thy door pray to thy Father that is
in secret ; and thy Father that seeth in secret shall grant thee
thy desire."
Moreover, the Pharisees delighted in long prayers. " Every
one," they said, "that multiplies prayer is heard."' This
notion also Jesus assailed with the sharp arrows of His
scorn. It was. He declared, a heathenish notion, and those
sanctimonious Pharisees with their endless iterations were
' Wctstein on Mt. ri. i.
• Bit. 26. 2 : " Stare nihil aliud fuit qaam oraxe.'*
" Lightfokjt on Mt. i. \^ and vL 9. * Btr. 16. I.
• Lightfoot on Mt. vi 5.
• Lightfoot on Mt vl. 7. Cf. Didatke, viiL
104 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
I Kings no better than the priests of Baal who cried from morning
iviii. a6, gycn until noon, " O Baal, hear us ! " God is no reluctant deity
to be wearied with importunate entreaties, but a gracious
Father. "In praying do not babble ^ like the heathen ; for
cf. Prov. they fancy that in the multitude of their words they will be
hearkened to. Be not then like unto them ; for your Father
knowethwhat things ye have need of ere ye ask Him."
(3) in The practice of Fasting also was very congenial to the
Pharisees. They fasted every Monday and Thursday ' ; and
since it happened opportunely that these were the days when
the Synagogue met, it was given them to display themselves
to the assembled worshippers in their guise of woe. Their
fasting was not merely abstinence from meat and drink.
They did not wash or anoint themselves, they went barefoot,
and they sprinkled ashes on their heads,' " making their faces
unsightly that they might be a sight to men in their fasting."
cy. Is. iviii. And thus, to win the praise of sanctity, they displayed them-
*■ selves in a mask of fictitious woe to the gaze of an admiring
world. " Fools," cries Thomas Fuller, " who, to persuade men
that angels lodged in their hearts, hung out a devil for a sign
in their faces 1 " " But thou," said Jesus, humorously prescrib-
ing a method of fasting which really meant the abandonment of
the usage, " when thou fastest, anoint thy head and wash thy
face." What manner of fast were this for which men array
themselves as for a joyous festival ?
Astonish- The sermoH made a profound impression upon the hearers.
ment ofthe _y, , . « , i i • • m i • i
congrega- What they chiefly remarked was the " authority wherewith
the Preacher spoke. This note rang out in every sentence : in
His criticism of the religion of the day and still more in His
definition of His attitude toward the Law. The very assertion
that He had not come to pull down the Law or the Prophets
was amazing to minds habituated to well-nigh idolatrous
veneration of the Scriptures ; and their wonderment would
increase when He proceeded to quote precept after precept and
* Jer., Aug. : •' Nolite multnm loqui." Cf. Ecclos. rii. 14. PaTroXoyttw
V " say the same thing oyer and ©▼er"; rariouslj derired : (l) from Battui, a
foolish poet who delighted in pompons iterations (Suidas). Ovid. Met. ii. 6S8 xf f .
(2) From the Libjran King Battus (Herod, it. 155), so named from his stammering
(fiaTTU^lietr). (3) Onomatopoetic (Hesychius). Cf. Lightfoot, Wctstein, Erasm.
Annttat. and Adctg. under Battelagia^ Laccnismus.
* Lightfoot on Mt ix. 14. Cf. p. 324. *Lightfoot on Mt. tL 16, 17.
IN THE SYNAGOGUE OF CAPERNAUM 105
oppose to each His " but I tell you." And with what masterful
confidence He spoke of the Kingdom of Heaven and prescribed
the conditions of entrance into it, calmly arrogating to Himself
the Messiah's prerogative I It is no marvel that " they were
astonished at His teaching."
In the congregation there was one of those unhappy creat- a d©-
ures who, in the language of that time, were called demoniacs. '"**°'^
Every age has its peculiar ideas which to after generations seem
often no better than grotesque superstitions ; and in our Lord's
day it was universally believed, not only by the Jews, but by
the Greeks and the Romans, that all sorts of ailments were
due to the operation of malignant spirits. According to the n^moni
Egyptians the human body was composed of thirty-six parts, *'^-^' p"^
and each part was under the dominion of a daemon, its health
depending on the daemon's good-will.^ The idea of demoniacal
possession originated in Persia,' and by the time of our Lord
it had rooted itself not only in popular belief but in science
and philosophy, despite the protests of certain physicians who
assigned diseases to natural causes.* It was a general opinion
that the daemons were the spirits of the wicked dead.* Body
and soul alike were believed to be open to their invasion,
moral excesses as well as physical distempers being ascribed
to their malign influence.' There were lying spirits, unclean
spirits, deceiving spirits.' Nowhere, however, was possession
so plainly and appallingly recognised as in raving madness
and in epilepsy with its paroxysms of foaming and choking.'
The idea is of course simply a fantastic notion of a dark Did jesm
age unskilled in natural science, and it was nothing strange ^ /'**'"
that the people of the New Testament should have entertained
it. But it is disconcerting that it seems to have been enter-
tained by Jesus also. When He healed a demoniac, He would
' Orig. C. Cels. viii. 58.
" Plin. H. N. XXX. 2 ; Plut. De Defect. Orac. % 10.
» Orig. In Matth. xiii. i6; cf. Wetstein on Mt, iv. 24, pp. 282-3.
* Philostr. A/xj/I. iii. 38 ; Jos. De Bell. Jud. vii, 6. § 3. According to Eno(h
rv. 8 (_cf. Just. M. Apol. i, ed. Sylburg., p. 44 B) the progeny of the ions of God
and the daughters of men (Gen. vi. 1-4).
* Lightfoot on Mt. xvii, 15 and Lk. viil 2. Cf. Jer. VU. Hil. Ertm. : a Ptf/t
Dei possessed by amoris daman.
* I Kings xxii. 20-3 ; Philostr. A/)ol/. iiL 38. ML i. 27 ; Mk. x. I ; etc. ; AcU
▼iii. 7 ; Rev. xvi. 13 ; Philostr. A/>oll. ir. 20. i Tim. iv. I ; 1 John i». 6 ; Philortr.
A/oll. iv. 2$.
^ Mt. viii. 28-34 = Mk. v. 1-20= Lk. viii. 26-39. Mt. xviL 14-21 = Mk. ix. i4-»9
bLIc ix. 37-43. Jos. Ant. vi. 8. § 2.
io6 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
address the supposed daemon, rebuking it and commanding it
to come out of the man That He should thus share the
limitation of His age is at the first blush somewhat of a shock
to faith ; yet, even if it be allowed, there is perhaps no real
occasion for disquietude. When the Lord of Glory came
Hebr. H. down to earth, He assumed the nature of the children of men,
*^' being " made at every point like unto His brethren " ; and it
might be accepted as a welcome evidence of the reality of the
Incarnation if He were found to have shared the scientific and
metaphysical conceptions of His contemporaries.
Evidence Nevertheless there are counter facts which demand con-
contrary : sideration. Not the least weighty is our Lord's singular
mem^of detachment from current theories. He never entangled His
Jesus from teaching with contemporary ideas ; He never made a statement
theories, which has been discredited by the progress of human know-
ledge.^ When the Inquisition condemned Galileo, it appealed
not to the Gospels but to the Book of Joshua in support of
the Ptolemaic astronomy ; when the evolutionary theory was
propounded, it was not with the teaching of our Lord but
with the cosmogony of Genesis that it seemed to conflict ; and
criticism may assign what date or authorship it will to the
Old Testament writings unchecked by His authority. If it
so be that Jesus gave His sanction to the idea of demoniacal
possession, it is the solitary instance where He involved
Himself with the passing opinions of His day.
(a) Differ- Moreover, there was a wide difference betwixt His treat-
twixt His ment of the demoniacs and the methods of His contem-
'and'^he poraHes, the exorcists. Exorcism was an elaborate art ; and
exorcists', indeed, grotesque and superstitious as it was, it is very
c/. Acts credible that it exercised a beneficent influence, at all events
XIX. 13-6. jj^ cases of mental derangement. Its practitioners and their
patients alike sincerely believed in the reality of demoniacal
possession and in the efficacy of the prescribed ceremonies ;
and it is in no wise incredible that frenzied minds were calmed
and their hallucinations dispelled by the potent influences of
a masterful personality and a strong faith.* Even a man of
letters and affairslikejosephus believed in thecraft Its principles,
he tells us, were ascribed to King Solomon ; and he relates in
* Cf. Romanes, Thoughts on Religion, p. 157.
* Jesos expressly attests the success of the exorcists (Mt. xii. Vj\,
IN THE SYNAGOGUE OF CAPERNAUM 107
all good faith a wonder wrought by a Jewish exorcist, Elcazar,
in presence of Vespasian, his sons, his officers, and a large
number of his soldiers. Eleazar applied to the nostrils of a
demoniac a ring which had under its seal one of the roots
prescribed by Solomon, and drew out the daemon through
the sufferer's nose. By way of attestation a basin full of
water was placed hard by, and in obedience to the exorcist's
command the departing daemon overturned it.^ The most
potent of the magical roots was named Baaras after the lonely
valley near Machaerus where it grew. In colour it resembled
fire, and toward evening it emitted a bright glow. When
approached, it shrank into the ground unless means were
taken to prevent it.' To grasp it was certain death, and it
was secured by a gruesome device. They dug away the
earth all round it, then tied a dog to it, and the animal's
struggles wrenched up the stubborn root The dog instantly
died, as it were, a substitute for the man. Thereafter the root
might be handled safely ; and, if applied to the possessed, it
drove out the daemons which had entered into them.*
Such were the methods of His day, but Jesus eschewed
them all. He employed neither root nor incantation. He
simply spoke His word of power, and straightway the
sufferer was healed, his frenzy calmed, his reason restored.
Surely He knew right well what the ailment was. He
approved as little of the theory of the exorcists as of their
methods ; and it is an example of His gracious wisdom that
He condemned neither. The idea of possession was rooted
in the minds of the men of that generation. The sufferers
were firmly persuaded that daemons lodged within them, so
much so that, when they spoke, they fancied it was not them- Mk. L «4"
selves that spoke but the daemons, even as a madman will **' ^
imagine himself some great person and deport himself accord-
ingly. When a physician has to deal with such a case, he
does not reason with the patient, but rather humours him.*
* Ant. viii. 2. § 5.
' rpiv if Tti oipov ywcuKbs 1) ro ^fifiipKm alfia xi-tj Kar (iMj^.
» De Bell. Jud. viL 6. § 3. Cf. Tob. vi-viii ; Philostr. Apoll. iv. I a
* Cf. Samuel Warren, Diary of a Pkysicuin, chap, xir ; Shak. Cm». tf Srr.
IV. iv:
•• Adr. Is't good to soothe him in these contraries ?
Pinch. It is no shame ; the fellow finds his vein,
And, yielding to him, humours well his frenzy."
io8 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
And Jesus dealt with the demoniacs after the manner of a
wise physician. He did not seek to dispel their hallucination.
He fell in with it and won their confidence. And, once
He had achieved this, He had gained the mastery over them
and could do with them what He listed. The yielding up
Mt. xiii. 58 of the will was ever the indispensable condition of the Lord's
1^^.^'^. miracles. Where faith was lacking, He could do no mighty
Acu xiv. 9. work.
(3) His There is another and conclusive evidence that, though
of thiftwm ^^ graciously accommodated Himself to the popular idea. He
'.'***t". did not Himself share it Demoniacal possession was not a
phrase of Jesus.^ Very significant is His message to John
the Baptist, when the latter sent from his prison asking if He
Lk. viL 21- were indeed the Messiah. " In that hour," says the
*" Evangelist, " He healed many of sicknesses and plagues and
evil spirits, and on many blind He bestowed sight" Then He
made His answer. " Go and report to John the things which
ye saw and heard : that blind men recover sight, lame walk,
lepers are cleansed, deaf hear, dead are raised, poor have the
Gospel preached to them." It seems as though, in this
enumeration. He omitted the demoniacs. In truth He in-
cludes them, but He employs another phraseology than the
Evangelist. All the sufferers perhaps whom Jesus mentions,
certainly the blind and the deaf,* were, in common parlance,
demoniacs, but Jesus deliberately eschewed the name. He
knew the truth. With gracious condescension He accommo-
dated Himself to the ignorance of men, but He did not share
it It is remarkable that St John never records an instance
of the healing of a demoniac. Yet he alludes to the idea of
rii. 9o;vii!. possession, telling how Jesus was thrice accused of "having a
* ■ ■ daemon " — once by the multitude and twice by the rulers.
And he relates how Jesus healed at least one who, in
▼. 1-14 : popular phraseology, was a demoniac and would probably
""■ have been so designated by the other Evangelists — the
paralytic at Bethesda. It is a striking coincidence, revealing
the Beloved Disciple's comprehension of his Master's mind.
Healing of The demoniac in the Synagogue of Capernaum on that
moniac in memorable Sabbath was evidently an epileptic His behaviour
the Syna-
gogue. 1 On Mt. X. 8 see p. 216, n. 2.
• Cf. Mt. xii. 22 ; Mt. ix. 32 = Lk. xi. 14 (Kwf>6s either ieufai dumb).
IN THE SYNAGOGUE OF CAPERNAUM 109
and the description of him as " in the power of an unclean Cf. Mk. u,
spirit " point to that distressing malady and its disgusting *'' '*"*•
concomitants. Like the rest he was powerfully affected
by the sermon. The excitement proved too much for him,
and he was taken with a violent fit. " Ha ! " he cried ; " what
have we to do with Thee, Nazarene Jesus? Didst Thou
come to destroy us ? I know who Thou art — the Holy One
of God." It was a characteristic piece of demoniacal raving.
It was the daemon, not the man, that spoke ; and, recognising
Jesus as the Messiah, the foe of the powers of Hell, it
trembled for itself and its confederates. Jesus after His wont
fell in with the delusion. " Be muzzled ! " He said sternly,
addressing the daemon in colloquial phrase,^ as though it were
a wild beast, " and come out of him." A violent paroxysm
ensued. The man wallowed on the floor and uttered a wild
scream. Then he lay still. The fit was past He was
healed.
The wonder of the congregation was boundless. The
sermon had astonished them ; the miracle amazed them.
By a simple command with neither ceremony nor incantation
Jesus had cast out the daemon. " What is this ? " they said
one to another. " A new teaching with authority ! And He
chargeth the unclean spirits, and they hearken unto Him 1 "
i^fui0r/ri. Cf. Mk. it. 39; Mt. xziL 34.
K
MtTUi.!*. CHAPTER XII
7«Mk. i.
89-34= Lk.
ji 3^-^^ • A MISSION THROUGH GALILEE
Mk. 1. 35-9.
= Lk. iy.
^* : ^^ " To ITiee they went— the blind, the dumb,
IV, 33-5 I J ' '
Mt viii a^ '^^^ palsied, and the lame,
4EMk. u The leper with bis tainted life,
40-s»=Lk. The sick with fevered frame."— £ H. PLtniPTRB.
V. 12-6.
HeaUng LEAVING the Synagogue, Jesus went home with Simon Peter,
mother^hi- accompanied by James and John. Peter and Andrew kept
law, house together, and not only the wife of the former but her
mother also was an inmate of the dwelling. On their arrival they
found that the elder woman had been stricken by the deadly
malaria so prevalent on the marshy shores of the Sea of
Galilee.^ The anxious friends appealed to Jesus, and He
Mt. viii. 26 approached the couch and rebuked the fever, even as He
=Mk. IV. afterwards rebuked the winds and the waves on the storm-
39 — Lk.
viii. stj. tossed Lake, and, grasping the sufferer's hand, raised her up.
The cure was instantaneous and complete. As the storm
sank to rest at His word and a great calm ensued without
the long, rolling swell which is wont to follow the subsidence
of a tempest, so the abatement of the fever was followed by
no lingering convalescence. She arose in full strength and
resumed her domestic offices. Jesus abode for the remainder
of that day under Peter's roof. Indeed it would seem that
Cf. Mt He lodged there ever afterwards while He sojourned at
*^- "4-5- Capernaum. The grateful inmates constrained Him, and
the benediction of His presence was their ample recompense,
(rf many of With the setting of the sun the Jewish Sabbath ended,*
^^ ^°ta^ ^^^ ^'^ sooner were they relieved of the obligation of the
Sabbath-law than the townsfolk congregated at the door
of Peter's house. The miracle in the Synagogue had been
noised abroad, and they brought their sick to Jesus. All
sorts of sufferers were there, but none so pitiable as the
* Cf. John iv. 52 ; Jo«. Vk. § 72. " C/. Lightfoot on Mt. viiL 16.
A MISSION THROUGH GALILEE xii
demoniacs with their wild cries. Jesus welcomed them all,
laying His hands on every one of them and healing them.
It would be late ere the gracious work was done, andRetiniof
Jesus would be weary when He went to rest Nevertheless JSJuS
He was early astir. While it was still night, He quitted the "* • ^""^
house and, stealing through the silent streets, betook Himself'
to a lonely spot, perhaps on the uplands behind the town ;
and there gave Himself to prayer. When the rest of the
household awoke, they missed Him. The tidings of His
disappearance got abroad, and a great search ensued. The
disciples, it would seem, were at no loss where to seek Him,
perchance because it was His habit to repair to that retreat
It was His accustomed oratory, and they pursued Him thither.
" They are all in quest of Thee," they said when they found
Him. They expected that He would hasten back and resume
His ministry in the town, but He had determined otherwise.
He had resolved to withdraw for a season from Capernaum
and make a tour through Galilee, carrying the glad tidings
of the Kingdom of Heaven. " Let us go elsewhere," He
said, " into the adjoining towns, that there also I may preach.
For it was in order to this that I came out here." ^
What moved Him to leave Capernaum so soon ? He Rooiutiaa
had just begun His ministry there, and, to all outward ^f^ (^
appearance, the tide of success was flowing strong. Certainly ^^'f^ ,
it was needful that the adjoining towns also should hear teason.
the Evangel, but might they not have waited a while until
He had satisfied the eager desire -of Capernaum ? Why did
He turn His back upon so great an opportunity ? It was
because He had a just appreciation of the situation, and rated
the multitude's enthusiasm at its proper value. They were
seeking Him not that they might hear His message of
salvation but that they might see His miracles, eager for
the healing of their bodies, unconcerned about the sickness
of their souls. They were hailing Him as the Messiah, but J^J^^*^
He knew what that sacred title meant on their lips.
Astonished by His miracles, they thought that their dream of
a worldly king and an earthly kingdom was about to be
realised. Therefore the enthusiasm of the multitude dis-
pleased Him, and He would leave Capernaum until it should
i S«e iDtiod. S 12, 3, (I).
112 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
Lk. !▼. 4a. subside. They would fain have hindered His departure.
They gathered round Him and hemmed Him in, but He
broke from them and went His way with His disciples.
Mission in In the course of that mission through Galilee He pro-
' ^ secuted an active ministry, and His fame travelled far. " He
Ml iv. 23- went about in the whole of Galilee, teaching in their
^ synagogues, and preaching the good tidings of the Kingdom,
and healing every kind of sickness and every kind of
infirmity among the folk. And His fame went abroad into
the whole of Syria ; and they brought unto Him all that were
ill with various diseases and holden with torments, possessed,
and lunatic, and paralytic ; and He healed them. And there
followed Him large multitudes from Galilee, and Decapolis,
and Jerusalem, and Judaea, and the other side of the Jordan."
It was a wondrous time, yet the Evangelists, perhaps since
their interest centred in Capernaum, have preserved only a
single incident, one drop of the plenteous rain which fell on
Galilee during that season of her merciful visitation. It
happened in one of the cities of Galilee. Jesus was apparently
within doors ^ when He was visited by a miserable creature,
A leper. " a man full of leprosy." This awful disease, fostered by
insanitary conditions and poor diet, is to the present a sore
scourge in the squalid East It was regarded by the Jews
with singular awe as a divine stroke. It was accounted
incurable, and the sufferer's only hope lay in the special help
Num. xii. of God.* He dragged on his wretched existence, a living
corpse. In the early Latin Church, when a man was stricken
with leprosy, they celebrated the last rites and read the
burial service over him ; and this ghastly usage was in entire
accordance with the Jewish sentiment " These four," says
the Talmud, " are reckoned as dead — the blind, the leper,
the poor, and the childless."* The leper was an outcast
iChr. xxvi Hq had to live apart Even as of old he had been banished
Kings XV. 5. from the camp of Israel, so in later days he was not suffered
Num. v. 1- to enter a walled town. He had to rend his garments, go
4«
* (i) Mk. says that Jesus "thrust him out" (^{f^aXo-) and he "went out"
{i^iXdiif), i.t. from the house. (2) The command of Jesus : " Tell no man,"
implies that the miracle was wrought within doors and not in public.
* 2 Kings T. 7 ; Jos. Ant. iii. 11. § 3 : tw St' t« i^iKeT€v<ras top Gfor droXv^
rfy roffov.
* Lightfoot on Lk. ix. 6a
A MISSION THROUGH GALILEE 113
bareheaded, wear a covering over his mouth, and cry : Lw
"Unclean! unclean!" If the wind blew from his direction/*
he must come no nearer, said R. Jochanan, than four cubits ; no
nearer, said R. Simeon, than a hundred cubits. He was admitted
to the Synagogue, but he must be the first to enter and the
last to leave, and must occupy a special enclosure ten hand-
lengths high and four cubits broad. The penalty, should he
transgress his limits, was forty stripes.^
It was one of these hapless creatures that visited Jesus in HU d
that city of Galilee. Regardless of legal restrictions, he "^'
entered the city and made his way along the streets. He
left pollution on his trail, yet his progress was unimpeded :
all stood aside, none would lay hands on him. Reaching the
house where Jesus was, he burst in, knelt before Him, flung
himself on his face, and cried : " Lord, if Thou wilt. Thou
canst cleanse me." He had no hope in man, but he had hope
in the Divine Physician. Had Jesus been a Rabbi, He would
have recoiled in disgust and indignation. R. Meir would not eat
eggs from a street where there was a leper. When R Eleazar
saw a leper, he hid himself When R. Lakisch saw one, he
pelted him with stones, crying : " Away to thine own place,
lest thou pollute others ! " * But Jesus treated this poor
suppliant after another fashion. A great compassion filled
His heart at the sight of the
" maimed form, swollen and scarred and bent
Out of all human semblance " ;
and He stretched out His hand and laid it on the wretch.
" I will," He said ; " be cleansed." And instantly the rotting
flesh became sound and sweet.
It was a perilous thing that He had done. Not only had Thtj^oftfi
He contracted ceremonial pollution, but He had trespassed
upon the province of the priest, with whom it lay to pronounce
a leper clean. Should it be noised abroad, it would confirm
the suspicion that He made light of the Law and its ordi-
nances, and give the rulers a specious pretext for accusing Him
and impeding Him in the prosecution of His ministry. Since,
however, the incident had happened within doors, it might be
kept secret, and Jesus addressed Himself to the man with the
» IJghtfoot and Wetstein on Lk, xvU. la. • WeUtein on Lk. btIL M.
114 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
profuse and energetic gesticulation which Orientals use. He
eyed him sternly, knitting His brows and shaking His head
after the manner of one who would enjoin secrecy.^ " See 1
say nothing to any one," He commanded ; " but go thy way,
Le\. nr. i- show thyself to the priest and offer for thy cleansing what
*"* Moses prescribed, for a testimony unto them." By repairing
to Jerusalem and submitting himself to the priest for examina-
tion the man would display all due respect for constituted
authority and would relieve his Benefactor of the suspicion
of encouraging violation of the Law. And it was necessary
that he should forthwith hasten on his errand and, meanwhile
at least, tell no one of his cure. Perhaps, if he lingered to
recount the wondrous story, the news might reach Jerusalem
before him, and then the priest might refuse to pronounce
him clean.2 Yet this was not the Lord's main apprehension.
He foresaw that, were it noised abroad, so remarkable a
miracle would excite wonderment and draw a curious throng.
He had quitted Capernaum to escape the applause of the
carnal multitude, and now He dreads a like outbreak of
enthusiasm. The man must forthwith begone, nor must any
in the city learn what had happened. Great issues were at
stake, and Jesus accompanied His energetic behest with
action equally energetic, laying hold upon him and thrusting
k*. 1. 43. him out of the house.
The man's Unhappily His importunities were disregarded. No sooner
obedience ^^ ^^^ ^^^ °"^ °^ doors than he published broadcast the
story of his healing. It may be that he was actuated by
gratitude and deemed it unmeet to hold his peace, reasoning
within himself that he owed it to Jesus to make His goodness
known, and forgetting that he could render to his Benefactor
no better tribute than obedience. His self-willed course was
a grievous error. It issued in the very consequence which
Jesus had foreseen. The tidings spread, and great was the
excitement. Large crowds assembled to gaze at the wonder-
worker, nor did He escape when He quitted that city. The
* Mk. L 43 : iftfiptfirjffdfiepos. See Euth. Zig. on Mt. ix. 30. The verb means
properly to sntri {c/. /Esch. Sept. c. Tktb. 461), the metaphor being a horse
champing its bit in rebellion against its load. Cyrill. Lex. Voss. : i*l Sk fiviSiVKtv lir
iiro fiera^pat tQw fuiffffwfiipuw x<i^'^ *'«v trrov Si' iyardjervaw roO fiiptvt Ktirtu
^ Xc'fiT. C/. Germ. anscknatUteiK
• Wetstein, Bengcl.
A MISSION THROUGH GALILEE 115
tidings had travelled far and wide, and, wherever He went,
He was beset " He could no longer openly enter into a
city." He kept to the open country, busying Himself with
prayer ; but even thus He could not escape. The curious
folk discovered His whereabouts, and from every direction
they thronged out all agape. Further prosecution of His
ministry was impossible. The disobedience of the healed
leper, albeit perhaps well meant, had this immediate conse-
quence, that it brought the mission in Galilee to an abrupt
and premature conclusion.
CHAPTER XIII
jjt. y},l 5. THE GATHERING STORM
13= Lk,
Mt. ix. 1-8 ** From thence read on the story of His life,
= Mk. ii. I- His humble carriage, His unfaulty ways,
za=Lk. V. His canker 'd foes, His fights, His toil, His strife,
*7-20. His pains, His poverty, His sharp assays,
Through which He past His miserable days,
Offending none, and doing good to all,
Yet being maliced both of great and smalL"
Edmund Spenser.
Return to It sccms probable in view of the extent of His circuit and
naum ^^^ abundance of His labours that our Lord's mission through
Galilee occupied a considerable period. Most likely the
summer was past ere He returned to Capernaum. During
His absence the aspect of the situation had changed. It was
indeed impossible that He should have been forgotten, since
the fame of His doings in the uplands would reach the
dwellers by the Lake ; but their excitement had subsided and
their life had resumed its accustomed routine. On the other
hand, the rulers had taken alarm. They had marked the
amazing popularity of Jesus and, recognising Him as a
dangerous rival, had resolved, without meanwhile proclaiming
open war against Him, to keep jealous watch over His every
act and word and movement
Theccn- Their new attitude speedily became apparent The
*^7°siavt rcturn of Jesus made no small stir. The word passed from
Mk. u. X. mouth to mouth, " He is home I " It was glad tidings to at
least one man in the town. He was a centurion in the army
of Herod Antipas, and, though a Gentile, he was well disposed
to the Jewish people. He belonged in all probability to
that class of Gentiles who, without actually becoming prose-
lytes and submitting to the rite of circumcision, reverenced
the Jewish faith and observed certain of the Jewish usages;*
» Schiirer, H.J. P. II. ii. pp. 3" 'fj?-
THE GATHERING STORM 117
and he had won the esteem of his fellow-citizens by building
a synagogue and presenting it to them — a not uncommon act
of generosity.^ And he was a kind-hearted as well as a
public-spirited man. In those days slaves were commonly
treated with monstrous barbarity. It is told of the freedman
Pallas, the wicked favourite of the Emperor Claudius and
brother to Felix, Governor of Judaea, that he was wont to sig- Acuinit
nify his pleasure to the slaves of his household by a nod or a '■* '^'
gesture ; and, if more were needed, he used writing, lest his
voice should be degraded by addressing creatures so abject*
Yet were there exceptions. " Live with your slave kindly,"
said Seneca, enjoining what he practised ; " courteously
admit him to conversation, to counsel, and to your board.
Let some dine with you because they are worthy, others that
they may be so."" And it sometimes happened that by
extreme fidelity and devotion slaves laid their masters under
obligation and won their confidence and friendship.* This
centurion had a slave whom he held in high esteem, and to
his grief the trusty retainer had been stricken with paralysis.
Like every one else in Capernaum, he had heard the fame
of Jesus ; and it may be that, since they were both in the
service of Herod Antipas, he had learned more of His grace
from the courtier whose son had been so wonderfully restored John w. 46-
a few months previously. The cry " He is home ! " reached ^
his ears, and he resolved to seek the aid of the mighty
Healer.
Learning his purpose, the elders of the Synagogue Embassy oi
volunteered to intercede with Jesus on his behalf It is no^fderk
mere fancy on St Chrysostom's part when he charges them
with sycophancy and pictures them compassing their patron
with observances and, pompous ecclesiastics as they were,
running his errand with obsequious alacrity.* Probably, how-
ever, they had a further motive for intruding their offices. It
chagrined them that the centurion should call in the aid of
one whom they viewed with jealousy and suspicion ; and,
1 Lightfoot on Lk, vii. 5. ' Tac. Ann. xiii. 23. ' Ep. xlviL
* For instances see Senec. Dt Bene/, iii, 22-7. Cf. Lightfoot on Lk. Tii. 2.
• In Matth, xxvii. Erasmus comments, satirising his btU noir$, the monkish
fraternity : "Ad eundem modum et hodie quidam quaestui practexcntcs pieutem
adulantur divitibas. Bcnigne largitur fratribos, extruxit nobis monasterii parten,
fjsvet ordini nostro, tantum iegavit, fraudatis etiam liberies."
ii8 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
not daring to protest, they sought to secure their prestige as
far as they might. They knew the modesty of the centurion
and his reverence for Jesus ; and, feigning approval of his
purpose, they professed to have influence with the wondrous
prophet and proffered their mediation. It was a cunning
stroke of policy. Should Jesus heal the slave at their desire,
to them would accrue no small measure of the glory. The
centurion consented, and they approached Jesus and required
His services, addressing Him with a brusquerie in striking
contrast to the reverential tone wherewith they referred to their
patron. " He is worthy," they explained, " that thou shouldst
do him this favour. For he loveth our nation and himself
built us the Synagogue."
Embassy It would have horrified the centurion had he heard how
urihe cea- they Urged his suit And indeed it would seem that he had
turion. misgivings. Scarcely had they departed on their errand when
he despatched a second embassy, some friends like-minded
with himself They met Jesus and the elders a little way
from the house, and delivered the centurion's message.
His " Lord," he had bade them say, " trouble not to come ; ^ for I
request ^^ ^^^ g^ ^^^^ Thou shouldst comc in under my roof.
Wherefore neither did I deem myself worthy to come unto
Thee. But command by a word, and let my servant be
healed." Surely it was in his mind how Jesus had spoken
His mighty word at Cana and the courtier's child had on
the instant been healed at Capernaum. That miracle had
revealed to him somewhat of the power of Jesus. He was a
soldier and his thought was cast in a military mould. " I," he
argued, " am a man ranked under authority with soldiers under
myself ; and I say to this one ' Go/ and he goeth ; and to another
' Come,' and he cometh ; and to my slave * Do this,' and he
doeth it" He pictured a spiritual hierarchy after the model
of the military organisation which he knew so well. Though
only a subordinate officer subject to his superiors, he had
authority over his soldiers ; and, if he had only to issue his
commands and they were executed, might not Jesus, whom
he recognised as the Lord of all principalities and powers, do
* /t^J riciWov. CKvXKtff$(uxlpxKr9<u with the added idea ol fatigue. Eas. H. E.
L 13 (Abgarus to Jesus): iS«i/jOT)p oov tr/cvX^cat rpin fu. " 9Kv\\«ff9a,i rp6t riwa
didtur qui longiua et molestius iter facit ad aliqvem " (Heinichea's Eus. ff, £.,
Index It). C/. £x/tsiUr, Apr. 1901, pp. 273-4.
THE GATHERING STORM 119
the like and much more ? There was no need for Him to
approach the sufferer : let Him but speak the word, and
ministering angels would hasten to fulfil it It may have
been a grotesque and somewhat heathenish conception, yet it
bespoke profound reverence and boundless faith, and it
gladdened the heart of Jesus. It was the fullest recognition
that He had yet received, and it was the more remarkable
coming, as it did, from a Gentile, a representative of that
great outer world which Jesus regarded with such exceeding
tenderness and earnest desire. He marvelled, it is written,
and, turning to the attendant multitude, exclaimed : '* Verily
I tell you, not even in Israel have I found faith like this 1 " *
Such praise of a Gentile was offensive to Jewish ears, and Jeaiomy ai
would the more embitter the rulers. They maintained their
attitude of jealous surveillance, nor was it long ere they
found an opportunity for joining issue with Jesus. He was
engaged teaching, apparently in the Synagogue of Capernaum,
though not on the Sabbath but at one of the week-day services.'
During His mission in Galilee His fame was noised all over
the land, and some of the attendant multitude were from Mt hr. ts.
distant Jerusalem. The Sanhedrin, it would seem, had
taken alarm, and deputies had been sent to Capernaum to
co-operate with the local authorities in controlling and, if
possible, suppressing the movement, just as Saul of Tarsus in AcundLs.
* Mt's narntire of this incident is simpler than Lk.'t, omitting the doable
embassy and representing the centurion as coming in person to Jesus. In early
times the theory was held that the Evangelists relate distinct incidents. " This
solution," Chrysostom drily obserres, "is easy, but the question is whether it be
true." The truth is that Mt.'s interest centres in the centurion's faith and the
Lord's commendation thereof, and he has omitted unessential deUils. Cf. bis
simplification of the narrative of the healing of the paralytic (ix. i-8«Mk,iL i-ia
aiLk. ▼. 17-26). It is no discrepancy that Mt. has xaU and Lk. SoO.oi (rait in
V.J). ira« was used for "slave," like ny3,/«<rr. C/". Wetstein. On ML viii.
1 1-2 c/. Introd. § 9.
' The scene cannot have been Simon's house, as is mostly assumed. No private
dwelling could have accommodated so many, and their intrusion would have been
a gross incivility. There is nothing in the narrative to countenance Ewaid'a
supposition that the people were outside and Jesus addressed them from th«
window. The synagogue seems to be indicated by (l) the presence of the Rabbk.
It is incredible that they should have pressed into the lodging of Jesus at the head
of a jostling crowd. (2) Mk. 's avr^Oriffap. C/. aupaywy^ and patristic rrfrafii » (om-
vtntus. Had it been the Sabbath, Jesus would have been charged with Sabbath*
breaking as well as blasphemy; e/. Mt. xiL 9-i4 = Mk. iiL l-6«Lk. n. 6-11 1
Lk. xiii. 10-7.
I20 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
after days was sent to Damascus, with credentials from the
High Priest and all the Presbytery, to bring the believers
there to Jerusalem in bonds. Hence it came to pass that the
Cf. Mt. foremost seats in the Synagogue were occupied by an impos-
"^' ^' ing array of official personages, and, as He taught, Jesus was
under the jealous scrutiny of their cold, stern eyes. There
was a huge congregation. The Synagogue was crowded, and
many who had failed to gain admittance were thronging
about the entrance and straining their ears to catch the
preacher's voice.
A paraJytic In the course of the service a company of four men
*^*^ foun approached the Synagogue, carrying a light couch whereon
lay a helpless paralytic. They were bringing him to Jesus.
On their arrival they encountered an unforeseen obstacle.
The Synagogue was packed, nor could they even get near the
door. It was a keen disappointment alike to the bearers and
to the invalid. But they were resourceful men and would not be
baulked. A bold device suggested itself to them. A flight
of steps gave access to the flat roof, and the stalwart bearers
ascended with their inert burden. They knew precisely where
the preacher sate, and, prising up several of the flag-stones
and digging through the substructure heedless what discomfort
or even danger they might inflict on the assemblage below,
they made a sufficient aperture and lowered the couch till it
rested on the floor in front of Jesus.^
•Thy sins It was a daring, indeed a lawless proceeding, yet it was
forgiven," very grateful to Jesus. It revealed what utter confidence the
bearers and the sufferer alike had in His power and pity.' As
He looked down on the wistful face. He read the man's story.
He was a sinner as well as a sufferer, his infirmity, it would
seem, being the penalty of unbridled excess.' But, though
* Lk.'s account is somewhat difTerent. He has in view a Roman building with
a tiled roof and an opening (impluvium) in the centre. Cf. Becker, Callus, pp. 64,
257. Through this and not through a rough breach he represents the couch as
being lowered. Cf, Ramsay, Was Christ Bom in Bethlehem ? pp. 57 sqq.
^ It has been maintained both in ancient and modern times that it is the faith
of the bearers exclusively that is alluded to (Mt. ix. 2 = Mk. ii. 5 = Lk. v. 20), the
sufferer, paralysed alike in mind and in body, being incapable of faith — an instance
of "the vicarious virtue of faith." So Jerome; Bernard. Super Cant. Serm.
Ixvi ; Bruce, Galilean Gospel, pp. 163 sqq. According to Chrysost. Strm.
txii it was the faith of the bearers and the paralytic both.
* Wetstein on Mt. U. 9.
THE GATHERING STORM
I2t
his body was crippled, his mind was active enough, and, as he
lay in helplessness, he was enduring the sharp stings of
remorse. He had secured the good offices of those four
friends to bring him to Jesus, not only for healing, but for
pardon. This was at once his chief need and his chief desire.
Jesus perceived his case and greeted him with the gracious
assurance : " Courage, child ! Thy sins are forgiven."
Thereat a murmur ran round the circle of Pharisees and Cham or
Rabbis. Jesus, they thought, had delivered Himself into their JjJUS^
hands. He had committed a grievous sin, nothing less than i"^
blasphemy, thereby rendering Himself liable to the extreme
penalty of the Jewish law. "Why," they muttered one to
another, "doth this fellow talk thus? He is blaspheming.
Who can forgive sins except God alone ? " Their whispered
thought was not hidden from Him. He turned uppn them,
and, with that quick resourcefulness which ever characterised
Him, demanded: "Which is easier — to say 'Thy sins are His reply,
forgiven,' or to say * Arise and walk ' ? " They made no
reply, yet they could be in no uncertainty. It was an article of
Jewish theology that, until a man was absolved of his sin, he
could not be healed of his sickness.^ Forgiveness was the
necessary preliminary of healing, and, if Jesus did the latter,
He would prove abundantly that He had done the former alsa
Therefore, that they might know that the lowly Son of Man
had authority to forgive sins. He bade the paralytic arise,
lift his couch, and go away home. The man obeyed. He
had been carried helpless into the Synagogue, and he
quitted it carrying his couch and sturdily jostling his way
through the throng. The rulers were silenced, and the awe-
stricken people glorified God, confessing that they had never
seen the like.
His argument in this encounter constitutes not the least The Lor«rt
significant of our Lord's testimonies regarding Himself. It is Huone-
widely alleged that in no authentic utterance did Jesus ever ^*"''
claim to be divine. It is only the Fourth Gospel that
represents Him as asserting His oneness with the Father. John «. j^
" The sentence ' I am the Son of God,' " writes one,« " was
^ Ntdar. 41. i : " Nullus aegrotus a morbb suo sanatar donee ipsi omnia peocaU
retnissa sunt." See Wetstein.
• Harnack, miat it Christianity t p. 145-
122 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
not inserted in the Gospel by Jesus Himself, and to put that
sentence there side by side with the others is to make an
addition to the Gospel." Surely, however, in this narrative, if
nowhere else, the allegation encounters a direct and emphatic
contradiction. His adversaries charged Jesus with blasphemy
forasmuch as He had usurped a peculiar prerogative of God ;
and how did He answer the charge? Did He hasten to
repudiate the imputation and disclaim all thought of putting
Himself on an equality with God ? On the contrary, He con-
fronted them with a demonstration of His right to forgive sins.
He allowed that absolution was God's peculiar prerogative and
He vindicated His title to exercise it, herein not merely
asserting but proving His oneness with the Father.^
^ Cf. Chiysost. In Matth, xxx.
CHAPTER XIV
THE OFFENCE OF BEFRIENDING SINNERS Ml, Ix 9-
S7-MIlU.
ij-aaaLk.
" A great sinner, when conrerted, seems a booty to Jesus Christ ; be (jets bjr saving ». 97-39.
such an one ; why then should both Jesus lose his glory, and the sinner lose bis soul at
once, and that for want of an inritation ? " — John Bunt an.
Thenceforth it was open war betwixt Jesus and the rulers. Tb« Lord'a
They set themselves to find occasion against Him, searching |'o"hII^
diligently for something in His conduct or speech which •***
might either bring Him within the grasp of their Law or
discredit Him with the multitude. One thing they observed
in Him which offended them much and afforded them a fair
pretext for assailing Him : He took to do with the outcasts
of society. There was no class in those days so obnoxious
to Jewish sentiment as the Tax-gatherers or, to call them Tb« Taj-
by their Latin name, the Publicans. The imperial govern- ** *^
ment farmed out the business of gathering in the revenues of
tributary provinces, the lessee undertaking to render so much
annually to the exchequer. Should his province yield less, he
must make good the deficiency, and whatever more it might
yield was his legal emolument Since only wealthy men
durst run the risk, the business was in the hands of powerful
capitalists of the equestrian order. It was their interest to
extort the utmost from their provinces. They did not
conduct the business directly but employed agents to collect
the revenue from the various districts ; and these underlings
are the tax-gatherers who figure in the Gospel-story. They
carried on the rapacious work, bearing the brunt of the
popular odium, while their superiors waxed fat securely in
the distant capital and were belauded as " an ornament of the
State, a bulwark of the Republic" *
All over the Empire there was a bitter cry against the neant.
local tax-gatherers. Plutarch complains thus ol tncir vcxa- ^fmum
1 Cic. /y« Pimm, i 9.
Ii4 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
tious impudence : " It is not when they tax obvious imports
that we are aggrieved and angry at the tax-gatherers, but
when they examine private articles and meddle with bags and
baggage which they have nothing to do with. Yet the law
permits them to do this, and they suffer if they do not" ^
They were regarded by their indignant victims as simply
" licensed robbers," " wild beasts in human shape." ^ " The
tax-gatherer gave the necklace to the merchant ! After this
will not wolves drop lambs from their mouths and lions let
fawns go free from their teeth to their dams, when even a
tax-gatherer has let go such a prize ? " *
Especially Nowhere was the indignation so hot as in Palestine,
Palestine where the payment of tribute to Rome was resented not
merely on the patriotic ground that she was a foreign tyrant
but on the religious ground that she was a heathen power. '
Acknowledgment of her dominion was disloyalty to the
theocracy. The tax-gatherers were regarded by the Jews
with bitter hatred and utter abhorrence.* Their cash-boxes
were objects of especial loathing. Their money was unclean,
and no Jew might accept it, whether as payment or as alms,
on pain of defilement. " Assassins, robbers, and tax-gatherers"
Mt ix. lo, was the Rabbinical category ; and the Gospels couple " tax-
"' ^xv. I ; gatherers and sinners," " heathen and tax-gatherers." They
Mt xviii. ^ere the pariahs of Israel. If a man swore an oath to a
tax-gatherer, he was under no obligation to keep it A tax-
gatherer was disqualified from serving as a witness. He was
excluded from religious fellowship.^ He was a sinner well-
nigh beyond redemption.' And indeed there was little
injustice in this estimate. No man with a shred of self-
respect would have engaged in an occupation which was held
in such ill repute ; and, since they were treated as outcasts,
it was inevitable that the tax-gatherers should set public
opinion at defiance and run recklessly to excess of riot The
* De Curia sit. § 7.
' Chrysost. In Maith. xxxi ; Sertn. in PubL et Phar.
* lamblichus in Suidas under riKij3ity\t.
* Cf. Lightfoot on Mt. v. 46, Mk. ii. 16, Lk. xix. 2 ; Wetstein on Mt t. 46 ;
Schiirer, H. /. P. I. ii. pp. 68-71,
* Hieros. Dem. 23. I : " Religiosos, qui evadit publicanus, pellendus est «
societate religiosa."
* Bo. Kam, 94. 2 : " Di£Ecilis est admodum poenitentia publicanonnn.**
OFFENCE OF BEFRIENDING SINNERS 125
Greek satirist did them no injustice when he classed tax-
gatherers in one vile category with whoremongers, brothel-
keepers, parasites, and informers and arraigned the villainous
gang in fetters before the judgment-seat of Minos in the
nether world.^
Such were the tax-gatherers. Being a frontier town on Jew «ib
that great artery of commerce, the Way of the Sea, Capernaum JJS^
had a large staff of tax-gatherers ; and it chanced that, as He ?•"**<*
passed by the custom-house, Jesus spied one, Levi the son of
Alphaeus, seated at his table. "Follow Me," He said, and
Levi instantly obeyed and joined the little band of the Lord's
comrades. A great future lay before the man. Like Simon
he got a new name, and he lives in the world's gratitude and
reverence as Matthew the Apostle and Evangelist'
It seems all too sudden, and long ago the Neoplatonist Lerr* pt»
philosopher Porphyry and the apostate Emperor Julian scoffed S'SJ^
at the story, arguing that it implied either mendacity on the
part of the Evangelists or folly on the part of the man who
followed a stranger at his beck.' But in truth it was not
so sudden as it seems. Levi must have heard the fame of
Jesus ; and, though he was an outcast from the Synagogue,
it may be that, when Jesus preached on shore or field, he cf. Lk. xix.
had stood and listened on the outskirts of the crowd. And ""*
his heart was accessible to the good tidings of the Kingdom
of Heaven. He was a tax-gatherer of the most obnoxious
type. He was, as his name indicates, a Jew, yet he had
hired himself to the Roman government to do the heathen's
work for the heathen's gold, profiting by the shame and
oppression of his countrymen. Such a man stood continually
on a pillory of scorn and execration, and he must have felt
the misery of his situation. Nor is it possible that the
memory of earlier and better days should have quite died
out of his heart ; and, when he heard the message and beheld
the works of the Messiah, he would realise what he had lost
by making himself an outcast from the hope of Israel. His
heart had thus been prepared, and it is no marvel that, when
* Luc. Menipp. § ii. Cf. Theophr. Char, xiii (ri).
• Ml. ix. 9=Mk. ii. 14= Lk. v. 27. Acc6rding to Clem. Alex. (Strtm. !▼. %
§ 71), Orig. {C. Cels. i. 62), Neander, Ewald, Keim, Matthew and Levi wer«
different persons.
' Jerome on Mt. ix. 9.
L
126 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
he heard the Lord's gracious call, he gladly and gratefully
obeyed it
Hegivesan And he forthwith did a grandly heroic thing. He gave
ment to his an entertainment in his house,^ assembling a great company
iricnds. Qf tax-gatherers and others of a like stamp and inviting also
Jesus and His disciples. His design is evident. He had
said farewell to his evil life, and he brought together his
old associates, his boon-companions at many a merry carousal
in that very hall, that he might confess Jesus before them
and tell what He had done for his poor soul. Thus quickly
had the tax-gatherer been transformed into a herald ol
salvation. The guests would gather eagerly, curious to know
Jesus what it all meant. And Jesus would very gladly attend-
w?th*His ^^ would seem that the hearts of the outcasts had been
disciples, stirred. " They were many," says St Mark, " and they were
^^' for following Him." ^ Yet they were shut off from Him by
an insurmountable barrier, excluded as they were from the
Synagogue and debarred from mingling with the multitude
which thronged about Him out of doors. The heart of
Jesus yearned for them, and Levi's entertainment afforded
Him an opportunity of getting into close quarters with them.
The The lynx-eyed Pharisees observed whither He went.
^^%c^- '^^^ banqueting-hall, after the fashion of the day, stood open,
daiised. and they stole in, forgetful of their dignity and heedless of
^' ^^^7 ^^^ pollution which they incurred by entering that unhallowed
house. With horror largely feigned they accosted the dis-
ciples : " With the tax-gatherers and sinners he is eating
and drinking ! " Wherefore did they thus surreptitiously
address the disciples instead of taking Jesus to task ? Were
they afraid to face Him after their recent discomfiture?
Or was it, as St Chrysostom suggests,^ that they thought
basely to discredit Him with His followers and detach them
from Him ?
* Lk. V. 29. Mt. ix. 10 has simply "in the house." Mk. ii. 15 : "He," i.e.
Jesus, "was reclining at table in his," i.e. Levi's, "house." Keim insists that ip
rp oUitf aCrrov must mean "in the house of Jesus." But it is inconceivable that
Peter's house should have accommodated so large a company, and a&rov may quite
well refer to Levi and airrby to Jesus in the same sentence. Cf, Lk. v. 29.
' Another reading (KBL) is Kal ijKokoidovi> airri^ Kal ypafifxartis twv ^apuralu*.
tal Woj/Tes, K.T.X., i.e. the Pharisees dogged His steps and observed whither He went
» Jh Matth. rxxx.
OFFENCE OF BEFRIENDING SINNERS 127
Jesu3 caught their hissing whisper, and, ere the embarrassed "n» La««%
disciples could utter a word. He flung His answer in His
accusers' faces : " They that are strong have no need of a
physician, but they that are ill." The terse epigram was
an unanswerable vindication of His attitude toward those
outcasts, and it involved at the same time a high claim on
His own behalf. He was the Physician of souls, and His
mission was the healing of their manifold distempers.* It was
therefore right that, wherever the plague was rife, there He
should be in the exercise of His ministry of mercy. " I came
not," He explained with manifest irony, "to call righteous
men but sinners." • He took His critics at their own valua-
tion. They were righteous ? Granted : then they were
naught to Him. They had no need of His gracious offices.
His irony pierced like a rapier through their mask of sanctity.
Despite their pretensions they were in a worse case than the
sinners whom they scorned. They too were sick, but they
did not know it And herein lay the desperateness of their
condition. The insidious disease was doing its fatal work
unperceived and unarrested.
Such was His defence, and He added a stem and Hi»
humiliating rebuke : " Go ye, and learn what this meaneth : "'^'•
'It is mercy that I desire and not sacrifice.' " Jesus loved Ho*. »l &
this quotation from the ancient prophet, so apposite as it cf. Ml dL
was to the Pharisaic spirit of His day. He spoke in keen ^'
satire. The Scribes were the official exponents of the
Scriptures ; and there, in presence of that despised company,
He accused them of ignorance of their own proper lore,
and contemptuously bade them begone and acquaint them-
selves with its very rudiments.
Again the Lord's adversaries had been worsted, and again a
they cast about for some way to be avenged. It chanced ^^
that there was a company of the Baptist's disciples at
Capernaum ; and they had this in common with the Pharisees,
that they were assiduous in their observance of the practice of
fasting. Jesus never fasted, and here His unscrupulous Th«
adversaries saw their opportunity. They conferred with ^SffSd
^ Cf. Diog. Laert. Antisih. vi. 6 : SftiSi^ofievot wori M ti^ rorripals fvyyeitif^mit
Ea2 ol larpol, ^■>]<^l, fieri, rQy voffowTwv (1<t\» dXX ov xvpirrowiv.
* Lk. V. 32 : "to repentance," a theological gloss, introduced Into T. R. of
Mt ix. 13 and Mk. iL 17.
128 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
John's disciples, and induced them to approach Jesus and
question Him about His neglect of a usage which had
scriptural sanction and was highly esteemed by the religious
world.^ It was an astute device. Evidently they not only
thought to embroil Jesus with the disciples of John and
prevent their accession to His cause, but hoped that He would
condemn fasting and furnish them with a pretext for denouncing
Him as a sacrilegious innovator. It argues great simplicity
on the part of those earnest men that they should have
been so easily entrapped. Fasting was the one thing which
they had in common with the Pharisees. And had they not
Mt. m. 7- heard their master's denunciation of that " brood of vipers " ?
^°' Did they not remember how those smooth-tongued ecclesiastics
had persecuted him and never rested till they had him
incarcerated in the dungeon of Machaerus ?
The Lord's Unconscious that they were the tools of the wily and male-
Answer*
volent rulers, they approached Jesus and propounded their
question. They came in all honesty, and Jesus, according to
His wont with earnest enquirers, received them graciously.
He began with a gentle reproach. It should have seemed
nothing strange to them that He and His disciples never
fasted. Did they not remember their master's declaration
johniiLa9. on the eve of his arrest? "He that hath the bride is
the bridegroom, but the friend of the bridegroom that
standeth and heareth him, greatly rejoiceth by reason of the
bridegroom's voice. This then is my joy which hath been
fulfilled." So John had told them, and, reminding them of
their master's words,^ Jesus asks them : " Can the friends of
the bridegroom' mourn so long as the bridegroom is with
them ? " With the glad tidings of the Kingdom of Heaven in
their ears sadness was no fitting mood for His disciples.
They were no band of mourners but rather resembled a
wedding company. " Yet," He adds with sudden solemnity,
" there will come days when the bridegroom shall be taken
away from them ; and then they shall fast." He knew the end
* According to Mt. it was the disciples of John that approached Jesus ; according
to Lk., the Pharisees ; according to Mk., both. Probably the disciples of John
interviewed Jesus at the instigation of the Pharisees.
' Chrysost. In Afath. xxxi : dvafiifw-fiffKUP aOrois tQv ludwov j^rnUrw.
' The Synoptic el viol rov wvft^Qwot it Hebraic for el ^IXet roi/ wfjL^ov, tl
rapinfiit>oi.
OUS (TM-
wiik
OFFENCE OF BEFRIENDING SINNERS 129
from the beginning, and saw the Cross before Him dark and
grim.^ The thought of it went to His heart like a sudden stab.
Then by a couple of homely metaphors He justified His
neglect ot fasting. His Gospel was a new thing and must not
be encumbered with remnants of the old economy. To accept
the new and withal cling to the old would be disastrous. It
would be like " stitching a patch of unfulled rag on an old
cloak " : when the patch got wet, it would shrink and tear the
rotten stuff, making a worse rent It would be like " putting
new wine into old skins " : when the wine fermented, it would
crack the unsupple leather and burst it, and wine and skins
would both be lost. Thus disastrous would it be to carry the old
usages of Judaism into the new life of the Kingdom of
Heaven. It would not save Judaism, and would perpetuate
the ancient bondage, annulling the glorious liberty of the
children of God.'
Jesus had nevertheless a generous sympathy with those Hii
who clung to their ancient traditions and had difficulty in
accommodating themselves to the new order ; and He spoke ^V*2d*
a deep and gracious word, intended, probably, rather for His order,
own disciples than for the disciples of John : " No one after
drinking old wine desireth new ; for he saith, ' The old is
excellent.' " ' It was no fresh metaphor. The Rabbis had
used it,* and in his exquisite book which our Jesus loved,
another Jesus, the son of Sirach, had written : " Forsake not Ecchn. ix.
an old friend ; for the new is not comparable to him. As
new wine, so is a new friend : if it become old, thou shalt
drink it with gladness." The Lord's language was not
original, but, as He used it, it taught a new lesson, and it
were well had the disciples laid it to heart Had the advocates
of Christian liberty remembered this large-minded word of
' On the ground of the a priori impossibility of an intimation of the Pastion that
early Keim puts this incident "between the Baptist's embassy and his death or
after his death," which, it is alleged, first revealed to Jesus His fate, "Th«
Gospels," he remarks with delicious nalveti, " though they quite agree amonc
themselves as to the early date of the controversy, do not agree with us."
• Chrysostom (/« MaUth. xxxi), in order to make room for hsting, Ingenioosly
supposes our Lord to mean that His disciples were still weak and bad oeed of
forbearance. They could not endure the burden of ordinances. The time would
come when they woald fast, but that time was not yet.
• Reading xpvrit- T. R. XPV^^'P**'
• C/. WeUtein on Lk. t. 39 ; Taylor, Saj>. t/FstJk. iv. «8-9.
la
I30 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
Jesus, it would have done much to soften the asperity of
that bitter controversy betwixt Judaism and Paulinism which
well-nigh rent the Apostolic Church asunder. It would have
taught them to sympathise with brethren who clung tenaciously
to usages endeared by life-long association, and to bear more
gently with their prejudice and slowness of heart
CHAPTER XV
THE OFFENCE OF SABBATH-BREAKING Mi. rt. i-
••It is better to plough upon holy days than to do nothing, or to do Ticiously." Ut.rl'i.ir
Jekemy Tayloh.
Of all their sacred institutions there was none which the Jews The
regarded with such veneration as the Sabbath ; and indeed, Su5"of
according to its original institution, there was none which ^2,^,^^^
was more worthy of veneration. The Mosaic Law, always
humane, had ordained that every seventh day should be given E«od. ra.
to holy rest for the refreshment alike of body and of spirit^*'
To devout Israelites it seemed as though even inanimate
nature shared in the Sabbath's repose, and they told of a
river which flowed for six days and ceased on the seventh,
hence called the Sabbatic River.^ Nay, even to Gehenna the
benediction extended, and, while the Sabbath lasted, the
doomed had rest from torture. It was a beneficent ordinance,
but the Rabbis had turned it into an oppressive bondage. ^*„^ ^
The Mosiac enactment was sufficiently stringent ; yet they R*btKn»c*i
deemed it too lax, and amplified and defined it with vexatious
ingenuity.' " In it," said the commandment, " thou shalt not
do any work " ; and they drew up a catalogue of forty works
save one which were forbidden and which, if done wittingly,
rendered the off^ender liable to the doom of stoning, and, if
done inadvertently, must be expiated by a sin-offering. Nor
did they stop here. Those thirty-nine works were primitive
or, in Rabbinical phrase, " fathers," and each had its subsection
of derivative works or '* descendants," Thus, ploughing was
one of the thirty-nine, and under it was classed digging. And
digging included much. For example, it was forbidden to
draw a chair along the ground lest it should make a rut ; and,
» Lightfoot, H. p. 416 ; Plin. H. N. xxxx. l% Josephus (Dt 8*11. Jud. rii. 5. 1 1),
differing from both Pliny and the Talmud, says it flowed only on the seventh day.
' See Lightfoot and Wcistein on Mt. xii. 2 ; Edcrshcim, Lift and Tim$ts,
Append. XVII; SchUrer, H. /. F. II. ii. pp. 96- 105.
132 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
though it was permissible to spit on a pavement and rub the
expectoration with the foot, it was debated whether it were
permissible to perform the operation on the earth, forasmuch
as the foot would scratch the surface. Another of the
" fathers " was carrying a burden, and it had a large brood of
" descendants." To walk with a crutch or a wooden leg was
permissible ; but to go on stilts was forbidden, since it was
not the stilts that carried the man but the man that carried
the stilts. Neither was it permissible to wear false teeth or a
superfluous garment. A tailor must not go abroad with his
needle nor a scribe with his pen toward sunset on Friday, lest
the Sabbath should begin ere his return and find him abroad
with his burden. Another " father " of work was reaping, and
this included the plucking of an ear or a blade. A woman
must not look into her mirror on the Sabbath Day, lest she
should discover a grey hair and be tempted to pluck it out.
This would be a sort of reaping.
Rabbinical These are but a few instances of the Rabbinical amplifica-
tions and definitions of the Sabbath-law, but they sufiice to
show how grievous a burden the holy Day of Rest had become
in our Lord's time. The worst of it all was that, since the
Rabbinical legislation was in practice impossible, it was found
necessary to have recourse to casuistry. A useful device was
the fiction of Erubhin or Connections. Thus, the limit of the
Sabbath Day's journey was two thousand cubits beyond the
city ^ ; but, if a man desired to travel further, he had only to
deposit food for two meals at the boundary on the Friday.
This made the boundary, by a technical fiction, his home, and
he might journey thence on the Sabbath two thousand cubits
further. Again, it was unlawful to convey anything from one
house to another on the Sabbath Day ; but, when several
houses surrounded a courtyard, the inhabitants had only to
depesit food in the courtyard on the Friday, and then the
whole area was reckoned as one dwelling. Like the Jesuits,
the Rabbis had recourse to the fiction of " intention " ; and
they found here an effectual method of evading the precepts
of Sabbath-observance. For example, it was unlawful to eat
an egg which had been laid on the Sabbath Day ; but let it be
understood that the hen was intended for the table, and then
^ Lightfoot on Lk. xxir. 50 and Acts i. 12.
OFFENCE OF SABBATH-BREAKING 133
the egg, being simply a part which had fallen from the hen,
might lawfully be eaten.
One Sabbath ^ toward the close of the first year of His The
ministry 2 Jesus was passing with His disciples along the JjI'.Ti,
path which, after the Jewish fashion,' led through the midst °' '^"*» «•
of a corn-field. The grain was fast ripening for the harvest, SabbMh.
and the yellow stalks were nodding on either hand. The
disciples were hungry, and they plucked the full ears and,
rubbing out the grain betwixt the palms of their hands, ate
it as they went. Their action was observed by certain
watchful Pharisees, who recognised in it their opportunity.
It was not indeed a theft, since it had the sanction of the
Law. " When," it is written, " thou comest into the standing dcul xjdu.
corn of thy neighbour, then thou mayest pluck the ears with '^
thine hand ; but thou shalt not move a sickle unto thy
neighbour's standing corn." The offence lay in this, that it
was done on the Sabbath. And it constituted a double
violation of the Sabbath law : when the disciples plucked
the ears, they were reaping ; when they rubbed out the grain,
they were threshing.*
All eagerness and gesticulation the Pharisees approached Jesus vindi-
Jesus. " See," they cried, " what they are doing on the "
Sabbath — a thing which is not allowed I " Not an instant
did He hesitate. He faced them contemptuously and once
more charged them with ignorance of the Scriptures : " Did « s»m. xzi
ye never read what David did when he had need and
hungered, himself and his company ? how he entered into the
House of God and ate the shew-bread." ^ There is no
evidence that this incident occurred on a Sabbath, and our
Lord does not cite it as an instance of Sabbath-breaking
but as an illustration of a broad and far-reaching principle.
What David did at Nob was a double violation of the Law.
He was a layman ; yet he intruded into the sacred shrine,
and he ate the consecrated bread which only the priests
• See Append. IV.
• It fixes the time of the year that the ears were ripe in the field. The harrot
began in April, early enough sometimes for the unleaTcned bread of the Passover
to be baked of new flour. Cf. Orig. In Joan. xiii. § 39.
» Cf. Lightfoot on Mt. xiu. 4. * Cf. Wetstein.
• Mk.'s " in the days of Abiathar the High Priest " is a gloss. The priest h
question was Ahimelech.
134 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
might eat This constituted a precedent, establishing the
principle that there are occasions when the Law may with
impunity be set aside. And, if a more directly pertinent
instance were desiderated, it was furnished by the constant
practice of the priests in the Temple. On the Sabbath Day
they slew and dressed the sacrificial victims and did much
other work. " There is," it was said, " no Sabbath-observance
in the Temple at all."* All this was reckoned no impiety,
since it was done in the service of the Temple. " And I tell
C/. Mt xii. you." says Jesus, " that something greater than the Temple
41-a- is here." He meant Himself, the Lord of the Temple ; and
His hearers would remember how at the previous Passover
He had called the Temple His Father's House and swept the
desecrators from its precincts.
Man more Since there were occasions which justified the setting
&bbath* aside of the Law, it did not forthwith follow that, because
they broke the Sabbath, the disciples were guilty. It must
first be considered whether occasion had arisen. Jesus
maintained that occasion had arisen, and it was nothing
else than their hunger. ** If ye had recognised," He says,
quoting once more that prophetic sentence which He loved,
" what this meaneth : * It is mercy that I desire and not
sacrifice,' ye would not have condemned the faultless." This
was no new doctrine of the Sabbath, but rather a reversion
to the original design of that humane and beneficent institu-
tion. " The Sabbath was made for man's sake, and not man
for the Sabbath's." And, forasmuch as He was the Friend
of man, Jesus claimed authority over it : " The Son of Man
is Lord even of the Sabbath."
Story of a Jesus was no rude iconoclast He revered the Law ;
'Sig'on^the ^^^ His desire was not to destroy it but to clear away the
Sabbath, rubbish of human invention wherewith it had been overlaid,
and disclose its divine simplicity and majesty, adding to it
withal fresh sanction and significance. Yet it was part of
His humiliation that He had to endure not only the con-
tradiction of sinners but their approbation. Even as in after
Rom. vi I. days His free mercy was made a pretext for " continuance in
sin, that grace might abound," so in the days of His flesh
such as were disposed to laxity would justify themselves by
1 C/, Lightfoot and Wetsteio on Mt xii. $.
OFFENCE OF SABBATH-BREAKING 135
His teaching and screen themselves behind His example. It
is said ^ that on that very Sabbath Day He observed a man
working, perhaps reaping his field. So flagrant a violation
of the Sabbath law, so audacious a defiance of religious
sentiment, must have excited general wonderment and
indignation ; and it is likely that the spectators would charge
Jesus with the responsibility. What but the example of the
disciples and the Lord's vindication thereof had emboldened
the man to that shameless profanation ? He sternly accosted
the offender. " Man," ' He said, enunciating a great principle,
" if thou knowest what thou art doing, blessed art thou ; but,
if thou knowest not, cursed art thou and a transgressor of the
Law." It was no light thing that the man was doing, and
the question was: Had he seriously considered the matter
and come to the deliberate conclusion that, in view of some
higher obligation, he ought to disregard the Law? Or was
he simply a godless worldling who had given the matter no
serious thought and cared for nothing but his temporal
Interest ?
On another Sabbath Day Jesus was teaching in the Jam hnb
Synagogue, and it chanced that among His hearers there was hand ooih«
a man whose right hand was atrophied. It is said that he s*bb«ih.
had been a mason, and he made his appeal to Jesus : " I was
a mason, winning a livelihood with my hands. I pray Thee,
Jesus, that Thou restore me to soundness, lest I have the
shame of begging my meat."' The Pharisees were sitting
round intent. Only when life was in danger, did the Law
permit healing on the Sabbath ; * and, since his life was in
no danger, it would be a breach of the Law should Jesus
grant the man's prayer and heal his hand. They watched
what He would do. He bade the man advance and take his
stand in the midst of the circle. Then He looked round on
His enemies and demanded : " Is it allowed on the Sabbath
to do good or to do evil, to save life or to kill ? " The
question was skilfully put Had they been asked whether it
> C/. Introd. § 6.
»4j»«P«t«, half contemptuous, half indignant. C/. Lk. xii. 14 ; xxii. 58, 6a
» TAt Gospel of tke Hebrew, quoted by Jerome on Mt. xii. 13: " OementariM
eram manibus victum quzhtuu ; precor te, Jeia, at mihi restituaa sauuteoit ■•
turpi ter mendicem cibos."
* Cf. Lightfoot aod Wctitein on Mt. xU. la
136 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
was lawful to heal on the Sabbath, they would unhesitatingly
have answered : " Not unless the man's life be in danger " ;
but to allow that it was lawful to do good would have been
to give their consent to the miracle. Yet to deny it were
monstrous. They discreetly held their peace. Jesus, grieved
by their inhumanity, swept an indignant glance round the
reverend circle. " What man of you will there be," He cried,
** who shall have one sheep, and, if it fall on the Sabbath into a
pit, will not lay hold on it and lift it ? How much then is a
man better than a sheep? Therefore it is allowed on the
Sabbath to do well."
It was an effective illustration. The Rabbis had decreed
that, if a beast fell into a pit on the Sabbath Day, its owner
should ascertain whether it had sustained injury. If it had
not, then he must supply it with bedding and food, and let it
remain till the Sabbath was past ; but, if it had, he must take
it out and kill it Since, however, this rule was found too
hard, they had recourse to casuistry and enacted that in any
case the owner should take out his beast with the intention of
killing it^ though he should not actually do so.^ It is no
wonder that Jesus was indignant They would strain the law
where their property was at stake ; but, where a poor fellow-
creature was concerned, they would not abate a jot of its
rigour. " Stretch forth thy hand," He said. The man obeyed,
and his hand was restored to soundness.
Alliance of The Pharisees had not a word to say ; yet they were
and enraged. It would cut them to the quick that they had been
Herodians. openly put to shame, and they left the Synagogue and held a
council with the Herodians. It was a monstrous confederacy.
The Herodians were apparently a northern sect of the
Sadducees, so called from their obsequious observance of the
Tetrarch Herod Antipas.* Herod was a vassal of Rome, and
Cf. Mt,xxiL it is characteristic of the Herodians that they acquiesced in
' riL 13.' the Roman domination and advocated the payment of tribute
to the heathen tyrant They were traitors alike to Israel
* See Lightfoot and Wetstein on Mt. xii. Ii.
' Orig. In Matth, § 26. Jerome on Mt. xxii. 16 makes them Herod's soldiers.
Cf. Chrysost. In Matth. Ixxl. TertuUian (Z>« Prescript. Haer. § 45) says they were
■o called because they regarded Herod as the Messiah. Certainly their adolation of
Herod amounted to hero-worship ; according to a scholium on Pers. v. 180 they kept
bis birthday like a Sabbath. They were Sadducees {cf. Mt. rri. 6 = Mk. viii. 15).
OFFENCE OF SABBATH-BREAKING 137
and to Israel's God. Betwixt them and the Pharisees, those
champions of patriotism and orthodoxy, there was a natural
and implacable feud, yet they both forgot their animosity for
the nonce and made common cause against Jesus. They
took counsel together and resolved that He must die. Had
He not been fenced about by the favour of the multitude,
they would have wreaked instant vengeance upon Him. It
was necessary that they should proceed cautiously, but from
that day they pursued their bloody purpose with unslacking
persistence, and never rested until they saw it, as they vainly
supposed, accomplished on Calvary.
CHAPTER XVI
johB^ THE POOL OF BETHESDA
"The Father worketh hitherto,
And Christ, whom I would serve in love and fear.
Went not away to rest Him, but to do
What could be better done in heaven than here,
And bring to all good cheer." — Walter C. Smuv.
Visit to Jesus had completed the first year of His mxnistiy. The
Jerusalem, pj^ssover had comc round once more, and He went ap to
Jerusalem to keep the Feast^ During His sojourn in the
Holy City He was narrowly watched. The Sanhedrin's
emissaries had brought a report of His doings in Galilee, and
it was a heavy indictment He had been found guilty of
blasphemy in usurping the divine prerogative of forgiving
sin ; of unseemly association with the outcasts ; of neglect of
fasting ; above all, of laxity in the matter of Sabbath-
observance. The first and the last were capital offences.
It mattered not that He had triumphantly vindicated Himself
on each count : their defeat only exasperated His adversaries
and whetted their resentment
The Pool They soon found occasion against Him. There was by
Be h sd°^ ^^® Sheep Gate a pool which, since it had medicinal properties,
Neh. iii. i ; ^^^ known by the beautiful name of Bethesda, " House of
^ 39- Mercy." * Its water had a reddish tinge, due probably to
chalybeate admixture, though tradition ascribes it to the
blood of the slaughtered victims which the priests washed in
it At the Passover-season the spring, full-fed by the Winter
rain, bubbled up periodically — a perfectly natural phenomenon,
occasioned doubtless by the action of volcanic forces in the
» C/. Append. V.
•T. R., Bethesda. Tisch., W. H., Bethtatha, "House of the Olive." The
variant Betksaida, " House of Fish," is due to the tendency to substitute a familiar
Dame for an unfamiliar. There cannot have been fish in a mineral welL
IS*
THE POOL OF BETHESDA 139
bowels of the carth.^ Of all the medicinal wells in Jerusalem ■
there was none so remarkable as Bethesda. It was accredited
with a powerful efficacy during its periodic ebullition, and it
had been surrounded with five porches, that the waiting
sufferers might not be crowded together and infect each other
with the ceremonial pollution of their various diseases.*
It was a wonderful pool, and the popular imagination
wove legends in its honour. One of these is very- familiar,
since it has intruded into the text of our English Bible and
is commonly regarded as a portion of St John's narrative.*
It ascribes the periodic ebullition to the visitation of an angel
who came down and stirred the pool. And there is another
which gives a yet more marvellous explanation.* When
Adam, it is said, was a-dying, he sent his son Seth to the
angel that guarded Paradise, to crave a portion of the Tree of
Life, that he might have health ; and the angel gave him a
bough. Ere Seth could return, his father was dead ; and he
buried him and planted the bough upon his grave. There it
flourished and became a tree. In course of time, when
Solomon's Temple was a-building, the tree was hewn down ;
but it would not be fitted to any part, and therefore it was
laid over a stream to form a bridge. By and by the Queen
of Sheba came with her offerings, and she would not walk
over that bridge because she saw the tree and recognised
that the Redeemer of the world would suffer thereon. Long
after the Jews took it and cast it into a stagnant pool, and
it imparted a wondrous virtue to the putrid water. And
there it remained until the day of our Lord's Passion, when it
was taken out and fashioned into a cross. And hence it is Acu ▼. j»:
that the Cross is called the Tree. 1 p^*^!^'
During His sojourn at Jerusalem Jesus visited Bethesda Heaiinj pf
on the Sabbath Day and found there a throng of sufferers, ^P*^r^
blind, lame, and palsied, waiting for the ebullition. One Beth«cU
* Jerome, De Loe. Hebr. Bethesda is most probably identified with the Virgin'*
Pool, the ancient Gihon. Cf. Conder's art. in Hastings' Z>. B. ; Sanday, S<ur. Sit.
PP- 55-8.
» Cf. Wetstein on John v. 4.
» Cf. Lightfoot on John v. 2 and Lk. rrii. la.
♦Vers. 4 om. nBC*D, Nonn., Tisch., W. H., modern critics generally.
iKdexo/J-ivwp Ti)y rov CSarot kIvtjvip is better attested ; om. Tisch., W. H.
•Daniel, Th4S. Hymnol. H. c, n. 3. Cf. Travels of Sir John Mmmdtvillt,
chap. ii.
140 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
particularly engaged His attention and elicited His com-
passion— an old man who, apparently as the result of early
Cf. 9. 14. excess, had been paralysed for eight and thirty years.^ All
that weary time he had persistently dragged himself to
Bethesda, but never had he succeeded in getting into the
pool at the efficacious moment He had none to help him,
and others less infirm had always forestalled him. Yet he
had never relinquished hope ; and on that great Sabbath he
was still at his station, crouching on a poor mat and eagerly
watching for the bubbling of the water. Jesus not only saw
his misery but read his shame. " Wilt thou be made whole ? "
He asked by way of arresting the paralytic's attention.
" Sir," was the answer, " I have no man to put me into the
pool when the water is troubled ; and, whilst I am going,
another steppeth down before me." He hoped that the
pitiful stranger would htlp him into the pool when the time
came, but Jesus purposed a better thing. " Rise," He said,
"lift thy mat, and walk." So entirely had the man's con-
fidence been won that he obeyed without demur, attempting
in faith an impossibility. In the act vigour pulsed through
his palsied frame ; and he left the porch hale and erect, and
walked homeward through the city, carrying his mat.
indigna- The rulers noticed him as he went, light of foot and
°Ruier& glad of heart They do not seem to have recognised him
as the erstwhile paralytic, so little care did those hireling
c/ Ezek. shepherds of Israel bestow upon the sick and broken of their
""'^" '** flock. But they observed that he was carrying his mat, and
they angrily challenged him for so flagrant a violation of the
Sabbath law.* He replied that the man who had made him
whole, had bidden him lift his mat and walk. It was news
to them that he had been healed, but for that they cared
nothing. They did not ask wonderingly : " And who is he
* In view of certain points of similarity, actual or alleged, — "the illness, the
culpability, the helplessness, the call of Jesus, the controversy with the Pharisees
on the subject of blasphemy, as well as the period — in the early part of Jesus'
ministry " — Keim makes this miracle a mere embellishment, Johanninc more, of
the Synoptic story of the paralytic at Capernaum (Mt. ix. i-8=Mk. ii. 1-12 = Lk.
T. I7-26). It seems to have escaped the ingenious critic that he had been fore-
stalled. Chrysostom {Serm. Ixii) refers to "inconsiderate readers" in his day,
" Greeks, Jews, and many of the heretics," who identified the incidents.
'Jer. xvii. 21-2; Num. xv. 32-6; Shabb. Per, 10: "Qui autem quidpiam
Sabbato dextrfi gerit aut sinistra aut in sinn suo aut super humeros, reus est "
THE POOL OF BETHESDA 141
that made thee whole ? " The breach of their law was their
sole concern. " And who is the fellow," they cried with
swelling indignation, "that bade thee, 'Take it up and
walk'?" He could not tell. Anxious to escape the
applause of the throng at Bethesda, Jesus had stolen away
and disappeared.
By and by the man repaired to the Temple. Jesus was jewi (ind.
on the outlook for him ^ and quietly accosted him. " Sec," 'J* •»" *•
He said, " thou hast been made whole. Sin no more, lest TempU.
something worse happen to thee." How mercifully the
Lord dealt with that poor sinner ! He did not open up
his shameful past at Bethesda. In the hearing of the throng
He spoke never a word which would have put him to shame ;
but, more solicitous for the salvation of his soul than for
the healing of his body. He sought him out and, taking
him apart, brought his sin to his remembrance and charged
him to have done with it
When Jesus let him go, the man repaired to the rulers The maa
and told them that it was Jesus that had made him whole. j^Sj^ **"
What prompted him to take this step ? Was he a monster
of ingratitude who, in order to clear himself of the guilt of
Sabbath-breaking, did not scruple to betray his Benefactor ?
It would seem that this opinion, which has still its advocates,'
was held in early days, and St Chrysostom argues strenuously
against it' The man, he points out, told the rulers, not
that it was Jesus who had bidden him carry his mat, but
that it was Jesus who had made him whole ; testifying to
the miracle of mercy which had been wrought upon him,
and thinking that it must needs evoke their wonder and
adoration. Had he deliberately betrayed his Benefactor,
he would indeed have been a veritable " wild beast," yet
even so fear must have restrained him. He had experienced
the power of Jesus, and the warning : " lest something worse
happen to thee," was ringing in his ears. And, it may b«
added, his presence in the Temple reveals what spirit he
was of. He had gone thither with a grateful and penitent
heart to give thanks for the mercy which had been vouch-
safed to him, and vow to lead thenceforth a new life.
» Vers. 14 evplffKti. Cf. John i. 41, 43, 4S-
« E.g. Farrar. * In/ean, xxxril,
M
142 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
Their Probably he knew nothing of the rulers' hatred of
Jesus. Jesus ; and it was in all simplicity and good faith that he
went and told them the name of the gracious stranger,
never dreaming what would ensue. The rulers swooped
down upon Jesus and accused Him of violating the Sabbath
His law. Knowing their fondness for doctrinal refinements, He
e ence. ^^^ them with an argument which, profound though it was,
closely resembled in form the theologising of the Rabbinical
schools. " My Father," He said, " even until now is working,
and I am working." God never ceases from His beneficent
operations. On the Sabbath even as on other days He
makes His sun to rise and His rain to fall. The Sabbatic
River of Jewish fable might stay its flood every seventh day,
but the river of His loving kindness is ever full and ever
flowing. And therefore, when Jesus wrought that work of
mercy on the Sabbath, He only emulated His Father.
His claim The argument involved a startling claim. The Son of God
wiS GoZ was a Messianic title, and, since the Jews never expected a
divine Messiah,^ Jesus might have called God His Father
without claiming deity. It would have been merely a claim
to Messiahship ; and, though it might have seemed audacity
or imposture, it could not have been reckoned blasphemy.
But Jesus claimed more than Messiahship : He claimed deity ;
and He made this plain to the rulers. " He called God His
peculiar Father, making Himself equal to God." And thus
in the eye of the Jewish law He stood guilty of two capital
ofifences — Sabbath-breaking and blasphemy ; and His adver-
saries were the more exasperated and the more resolute to
put Him to death.
Vindica- As was His wont whenever He visited Jerusalem, Jesus
of' boldly advanced His claims. He asserted His unique
relationship to God ; and, when the rulers cried out against
what they deemed His blasphemy, He reiterated and ampli-
fied His assertion. As the Son of God He stood in a unique
relation to the Father, a relation involving complete accord
of will and action ; and by the Father's appointment life and
judgment were at His disposal. " Verily, verily I tell you
* Cf. Just. M. DiaU c. Tryph,, p. 268 A, ed Sylbai^. : Koi fh.p T&vm rj/xtU rhw
Xpiarbw ArOpuwor i^ iu'OpiSrww TpocdouKfier ytp-fyrtad<u. Ligbtfoot on John T. 17
and Acts xlii. 33.
THE POOL OF BETHESDA 143
that he that heareth My word and bclieveth Him that sent
Me hath Eternal Life and into judgment cometh not, but hath
passed out of death into life. Verily, verily I tell you that an
hour is coming and now is when the dead shall hearken to the
voice of the Son of God, and they that have hearkened shall live."
Did it seem incredible that one so lowly should be Lord of
Eternal Life, the Resurrection, and the Last Judgment?
Nay, rather was it a revelation of the Father's mercy. " He
gave Him authority to do judgment because He is the Son
of Man" — because He is our Divine Brother, not one who
cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities, but
one who was in all respects tempted like as we are.
•* Thou knowest, not alone as God, all knowing ;
As Man our mortal weakness Thou hast proved ;
On earth, with purest sympathies o'erflowing,
O Saviour, Thou hast wept, and Thou hast loved."
"The Father judgeth none, but all the judgment hath He
given to the Son. And He gave Him authority to do
judgment because He is the Son of Man."
These were tremendous claims ; and, lest His adversaries lu three-
should, as on a subsequent occasion, quote their legal [.[foo"**"
maxim that testimony on one's own behalf counts for nothing, John rid.
Jesus pointed out that His claims had received very powerful '^'**
attestations. They had been attested, first of all, by John (1)87 job*
the Baptist. It was little more than a year since the rulers,*^''**'***'
profoundly impressed by the stern prophet's preaching, had john l 19-
sent a deputation to him, and he had testified to the Messiah- *^*
ship of Jesus. And His claims were attested also by His (a) By HU
miracles. He had wrought miracles in Jerusalem at the . ^^ .^
previous Passover, and Nicodemus, the Sanhedrin's delegate,
had confessed them an evidence that God was with Him. John uij.
The fame of His miracles in Galilee had reached the ears of
the rulers, and that very day He had wrought another in
their midst His miracles attested His claims. " The works
which I do testify concerning Me, that the Father hath com-
missioned Me." And, finally, there was the testimony of the (t) Br the
Holy Scriptures. Had the rulers had the Word of God S(Sp«««fc
abiding in them, they would have believed Jesus. Yet they
professed boundless reverence for the Scriptures. Among
those who have no part in the world to come, the Rabbis
144 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
reckoned those who said that the Law had not been given
from Heaven.^ They maintained that every word of it had
been written by God's own finger. It had been given out of
Heaven to Moses, and the only question was whether he had
received it book by book or all at once.^ They pored over
the Law with incessant and laborious diligence, counting the
words, nay, the very letters, and discovering in each a mystic
significance.' If ever men searched the Scriptures, it was the
Rabbis ; nevertheless, when the Redeemer came of whom the
Scriptures spoke, whose features were delineated on their
every page, and whose salvation was foreshadowed by their
every ordinance, they did not recognise Him. And the
reason is that they searched the Scriptures with prejudiced
minds, not to discover the truth but to buttress their own
opinions. They had a great controversy with the Sadducees
over the question of the hereafter, and they searched the
Scriptures for evidence of their doctrines of the immortality of
the soul and the resurrection of the body. They found what
they sought, but they missed the testimony which the
Scriptures bore to the Saviour who should come. "Ye
search * the Scriptures," said Jesus, " because ye think that in
them ye have * Eternal Life ' ; and it is those Scriptures that
testify concerning Me, and ye will not come unto Me that
ye may have Life." And truly it is no marvel that they
missed the supreme significance of the Scriptures. They
did not approach them as humble and reverent learners.
Their sole desire was to display their exegetical acumen and
win the applause of men. And those Scriptures which,
while professing to revere them, they so abused, would rise up
and condemn them at the last. Yes, Moses would be their
accuser. " For," says Jesus, " if ye had believed Moses,
ye would have believed Me. For it was concerning Me that
he wrote."
* Lightfoot on Acts iv, 2. ' Gitt. 66. i.
* Cf. Lightfoot on Lk. x. 25. tJ'HDhD, f"*^* meant literally " counters."
* (pavfare, best taken as Indie, not Impet. On the contrary see Wetstein )
Field, J^titi.
CHAPTER XVII uk.m.r
St; Ml I.
•■4-Mk.
THE TWELVE APOSTLES *" »6-9»-
Lk.vi.ijb-
i6(Aeu
" Gloriosus Apostolonim cborui.'* L ij).
When the Feast was over, Jesus returned to Capernaum and Back is
resumed His ministry. His popularity was greater than ever. ^^'
A vast multitude had gathered from the whole of Syria — not
only from Galilee and Judaea but from Peraea in the East,
Phoenicia in the North, and Idumaea in the South. And the
enthusiasm was boundless. " They were falling upon Him," Enthuri-
says St Mark, " that they might touch Him, as many as had ^„f„Jt
plagues." It was impossible for Him to preach amid such
wild confusion, and He had recourse to an expedient which Lk. ». >,
had already served Him. He bade His fisher disciples keep
a little boat in constant readiness that, when the crowd jostled
Him, He might get into it and, pushing out from the shore,
employ it as His pulpit. If the enthusiasm of the multitude
had swelled thus high, the hostility of the rulers had risen to HMtOftyof
an equal pitch. They had declared open war against Jesus. *'*•"''■"•
They had resolved upon His death, and it was only His
popularity that stayed their hands. He knew their purpose,
and His thoughts went forward to the time when they would
have wrought their murderous will upon Him.
He had foreseen that event from the first and had been cbofce of
making preparation for it, that, when He should fall, His '^'^•^'*
cause might not perish. From the ranks of His disciples He
had chosen a band of men to be constantly with Him, to aid
Him in the work of the Kingdom of Heaven, and to continue
it after His departure. Since it was the purpose of God that
the Gospel should be preached to Israel first, He had chosen c/. Mt. &
twelve, corresponding to the ancient tribes ; ^ and He gave
them a title expressive of their function, styling them
" Apostles," which means not merely messengers but delegates
« C/. Mt. xiju 2S ; Ban. E/. | 8.
J
146 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
bearing a commission and, so far as their commission extends,
wielding their Master's authority.^
Simon Who were those twelve men ? First come the two
Andrew, brothers, Simon, surnamed Peter, and Andrew. Their father's
John xxi. name was John, and they belonged to Bethsaida, the harbour
John L 44! town of Capernaum. They had both been fishermen on the
Mt. iv. 18 Lake, and they had met with Jesus down at Bethany beyond
=Mk.i.i6. Jq^jJj^q Jq jjjg morning of His ministry. Of Andrew
nothing very remarkable is recorded by the Evangelists,
but there is a steadfast and credible tradition that he was
crucified at Patrae in Achaia ; and it is said th: t he hung
alive on the cross for two days, teaching the people all the
while.' It would seem that, like Peter, James, and John, he
Mk. xiiL 3. enjoyed a special intimacy with the Master ; and, since he
John 1 35- brought Simon to the newly-found Messiah, he has the
*''■ distinction of being the first missionary of the Kingdom of
Heaven. It was truly a priceless service that he rendered
when he brought his brother to Jesus. Simon Peter was the
chief of " the glorious company of the Apostles." " The
mouth of the Apostles " St Chrysostom styles him,^ " the ever
ardent, the coryphaeus of the Apostle choir." In point of
intellect indeed he was in no wise comparable to John ; yet
he had a greatness of his own. If John was " the disciple
whom Jesus loved," Peter was the disciple who loved Jesus.*
That impulsive disciple, so prone to err, so quick to
repent, deserves to be held in admiration and reverence. He
was continually blundering, and in the panic of the last dread
crisis he was guilty of a dire infidelity ; nevertheless his very
blunders were born of the ardour of his love for Jesus, and in
Lk. xxii. the hour of his unfaithfulness a look from that dear Face broke
^^""- his heart. When all was over, he could lift his eyes and say :
^ "7] " Lord, Thou knowest all things ; Thou perceivest that I love
Thee." And right nobly did he vindicate his protestation.
For some forty years he did the work of an apostle, and then,
if tradition be true, he died a martyr's death at Rome in
the last year of Nero's bloody reign. He was sentenced to
> Lightfoot on Mt. x. i. Cf. J. B, Lightfoot, Gal. pp. 92-101.
' Abdise //itt, Apost. iii, § 41.
» In Matth. liv. CJ. Clem. Alex. De Div. Serv. § 21.
• Cf. Aug. In Joan Ev. Tract, cxxiv. § 4.
THE TWELVE APOSTLES 147
crucifixion and at his own request, since he deemed himself
unworthy to die like his Lord, he was fastened head-downward
to the cross.^
Next come other two brothers — James, presumably the Ji
elder, and John who had this double bond of fellowship with °^^
Andrew, that they had both been disciples of the Baptist and
were the earliest to attach themselves to the Messiah. Like
Simon and Andrew they had been fishermen on the Lake in
company with their father Zebedee and were called from .vfk. 1. 19.
their boats and nets at the commencement of the Lord's**"***" ''•
Galilean ministry. Since he employed several paid hands,
Zebedee had evidently a prosperous business. It nowhere
appears that he was in any wise a remarkable man, but his
wife was distinguished equally by the strength of her character
and by the earnestness of her piety. Her name was Salome ;
and, since, it would seem, she was a sister of the Virgin, her
sons were cousins of Jesus after the flesh.' She was an
ambitious woman, but her ambition was all for her sons ; and ml xx. ao>
this fault, if fault it were, was amply atoned by her devotion to **
Jesus. She was one of the brave women who surrounded the Mt nHL
Cross and visited the Sepulchre on the first day of the week. ^''^^'^
Her sons inherited her ardent spirit, and Jesus playfully ^^- «*•• «•
designated them Boanerges, that is. Sons of Thunder,* in
allusion probably to their fiery temper during the earlier
days of their discipleship.* It was they who would fain have
called down fire from Heaven, after the manner of Elijah, Lk. u. $»•
upon the unfriendly village of Samaria ; and was it not *
something of the old fire that blazed up in John long after-
1 Jer, Script. Eccl. under Simon Petrus ; Eus. H. E. iii. i.
/ " C/". Mt. xxvii. 56 = Mk. XV. 40withJohnxix. 25. John enumerates four woowa
at the Cross : (i) the mother of Jesus, (2) her sister, (3) Mary the wife of Clopas,
(4) Mary Magdalene. Perhaps modesty kept him from saying that (2) wrs his own
mother Salome (cf. Mt. = Mk.). Jerome in a doctrinal interest (see p. 18, n. 3) held
that only three women are enumerated by John, the second being " the sister of Jesos'
mother, viz. M. the wife of Clopas (Alphxus)," and that it is her children (Mk. x».
40= Mt. xxvii. 56), really His cousins, that are called " the Lord's brethren," But
(I) it is unlikely that two sisters were called Mary; (2) James the Little (Mk.
XV. 40) was an apostle, and none of "the Lord's brethren" were apostlM
(cf. AcU i. 13.4).
' 1^31 '•33. Sheva was popularly pronotmced m. Cf. Moasada fof Mttm
(mvp). See Lightfoot on Mk. iii. 17.
* Jerome regards the epithet as descriptive of their eloquence.
148 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
wards when, learning that Cerinthus was in the public baths
at Ephesus, he hurried from the building lest the roof should
fall and he should share the heretic's doom ? ^
The sons of Zebedee and Peter won the special confidence
of Jesus and enjoyed a peculiar intimacy with Him. They
were " the inner circle of the elect." ^ It was the privilege
of Peter and John to glorify their Lord by long years of
honourable and fruitful ministry, but for James it was ordered
otherwise. Herod Agrippa put him to a martyr's death.
The tragedy is recorded by St Luke in a single sentence :
hcta xii. 2. " He slew James, the brother of John, by the sword " ; but
tradition is more generous of details, whatever be their value.'
James, so runs the story, was accused by a scribe named
Josias. He was sentenced to death, and, as they were
dragging him along by a halter, his accuser, moved to penitence
by the apostle's testimony,* fell at his feet, crying : " Pardon
me, thou man of God ; for I have repented of the things
which I have spoken against thee." James kissed him and
answered : " Peace to thee, child, peace to thee, and pardon
for thy transgression." Josias avowed himself a Christian on
the spot, and they were beheaded together, the apostle and
his accuser.^
Philip and Next come Philip and Bartholomew. The former, like
Bar Andrew and Peter, belonged to Bethsaida, and he first met
Taimai. ^j^jj Jesus down at Bethany beyond Jordan. On that
"* '• 44- memorable occasion he evinced a retiringness which lends
Lk. ix. 59- credibility to the tradition that he was the disciple who would
viii.Vi-a. fain have excused himself from obeying the Lord's call on
the score of domestic obligations.'' It would seem from his
John xiv. remark in the Upper Room and the Lord's reply that he was
■ somewhat slow of heart and dull in spiritual understanding ;
yet he had his peculiar aptitudes which justified his election
to the apostleship. There is room in the Lord's service for
^ Iren. Adv. Har. iii. 3. § 4 ; Eus. H. E. iii. 28.
* Clem. Alex. De Div. Serv. § 36 : rCav (k\€ktwv eVXe/cToVepoi.
» Eus. ff. ^. iL 9 ; Suid. under 'H/)a557?s ; Abd. Hist. A^st. iv. §§ 8-9.
* According to later legend, by his healing a paralytic on the road " in the
name of Jesus Christ for whose faith I am being led to death."
* A legend, irreconcilable with the facts of history, has it that James preached
in Spain and was buried at Compostella. Daniel, ibid. ; Lightfoot on ..cts xii. 2.
The shrine of St James of Compostella was a favourite resort of medieval pilgrims.
« Cf. p. 90.
1
THE TWELVE APOSTLES 149
the exercise of all sorts of gifts, and it would seem that Philip,
being of a practical turn, was charged with the duty of
catering for the disciple-band.^ It appears that he was onJok«»it:
terms of special intimacy with Andrew.^ "^ "*"
And what of Bartholomew ? It is said that he wrote a
Gospel and that he preached to the Indians,^ but outside the
catalogues of the Apostles his name is never mentioned in the
New Testament It were strange indeed had one of the
Twelve been thus buried in oblivion ; and it is provocative of
speculation that Bartholomew is really not a name but a
patronymic, Bar Talmai, the son of Talmau* There is much
reasonableness in the suggestion that the Son of Talmau was
none other than Nathanael of Cana, that earnest Israelite so
well versed in the Scriptures whom Jesus found on the road
northward from Bethany beyond Jordan deliberating the
question of His Messiahship.^ The identification has no little
probability. Even as the other Evangelists never mention
Nathanael, so St John never mentions Bar Talmai. He intro-
duces Nathanael on two occasions : the first at the beginning, ^**" *• *^
when he met with Jesus on the way to Cana ; and the other John kzL
at the close, when with six others he witnessed the manifesta-*'**"
tion of the Risen Lord by the Lake of Galilee. Since the four
others who in the latter instance are mentioned by name, were
all apostles, it is a reasonable inference that Nathanael also was
an apostle. And it is a further confirmation that Philip and
Bar Talmai are coupled in the catalogues of the Apostles.
Since Philip was a friend of Nathanael and brought him to
Jesus, it was fitting that they should be sent forth in company
on their missionary labours.
Next come Thomas and Matthew. Thomas is not a name jmUs tk»
but an epithet, meaning, like its Greek equivalent Didymus, yJI^J^.
the Twin ; ' and it is credibly reported that the name of this John il
MX. Mi
^ Cj. Beng. on John vi. 5. ' Philip was buried at Hierapolis (Eui. H. £ . iii 31).
■ Jer. In Comm. super Mai th. Proam.; Script. Eccl.
* Cf. Bar Jonas, Bar Timaeus. Talmai (2 Sam. xiii. 37) Gnecised OaXi^iMiiw
Jos. Ant. xiv. 8. § I ; xx. I. § I.
• Lightfoot, Wetstein. The identification was unknown to Augnstine who Mg-
gested {/n/oan. Ev. Tract, vii. § 17) that Nathanael was excluded from the apottle-
ship because he was a learned man and Jesus chose unlearned men to coofooad th*
world. Cf. In Psalm. Ixv. § 4.
' D'lNn, Aram, with art. KDXTlj * ^vfun.
ISO THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
apostle was Judas.^ He was styled the Twin for distinction's
sake, since there were two others among the Twelve who bore
that unhappy name. The earlier Evangelists merely mention
xL 16 ; jriT. him as one of the Apo.stles, but St John has rescued him from
9'; xxi.*^ oblivion and revealed what manner of man he was. He
shared to the full the slowness of heart which characterised all
the Twelve while the Lord was with them ; but his predominant
characteristic was a disposition to look always at the dark side
and hug despair. He was gloomy and querulous, yet withal
he had a great devotion to Jesus. It was he who, when the
Master insisted on venturing again into hostile Judaea and the
rest were minded to let Him go alone, cried : " Let us also go,
that we may die with Him I" There was something of the
hero about that despondent apostle.
Tradition credits the Twin with the authorship of a
Gospel,^ and this adds interest to his association with the
Evangelist whose Sayings of Jesus is the basis of the first of the
canonical Gospels. Was it because the memory of his shame-
ful past had wrought in Matthew, the erstwhile tax-gatherer,
a spirit of meekness that Jesus assigned him a comrade whose
querulousness must have made him at times difficult to endure ?
In former days he had been called Levi, but, when he met
with Jesus and became by His grace a new man, he got, in
accordance with ancient custom, a new name — Matthew, the
Gift of the Lord. And it is very remarkable that, whereas St
Mt. ix. 9= Mark and St Luke, when they tell the story of his call, give
J^'^ "■^'^ him his old name of Levi, never hinting, in their tender
charity, who that tax-gatherer was, St Matthew himself, when
he tells the story, calls the tax-gatherer Matthew, publishing
his identity. And in their catalogues of the Apostles St
Mt. X. 3= Mark and St Luke call him simply Matthew ; but, when St
^=Lk vf Matthew comes to his own name, he says, " Matthew the Tax-
15- gatherer," deliberatfely blazoning his shame abroad in order to
magnify the grace of Jesus ; like John Bunyan when he put
on the title-page of his autobiography that poignant sen-
tence : " I have been vile myself, but have obtained mercy,
and I would have my companions in sin partake of mercy
too."
' Eus. H. E. I. 13 : 'louSoi 0 Koi Gw/uSt. Act. TTiom.
• The apocryphal Ev. Thorn, Cf. Jer. In Comm. sup. Matth. Prpcttn.
THE TWELVE APOSTLES 151
Next come James, the Son of Alphaeus, and one who is Umm ite
named by St Matthew Lebbaeus, by St Mark Thaddacus. and by A?Jii^
St Luke Judas, the Son of James.* In allusion doubtless to ''-^^
his stature James was entitled the Little' to distinguish him Libtiiar
from James the Son of Zebedee. If Alpha:us be indeed SttJ^^^
identical with Clopas,' then his mother was Mary, one of the {"^J^,
women who stood beside the Cross and visited the Sepulchre 40'; Mk.
on the Resurrection morning. It is possible that Alphaeus ***" **
the father of James was the same as Alphxus the father of Mk. il 14.
Levi the tax-gatherer.* Tradition says that James also had
been a tax-gatherer,^ and it is likely that he was one of the
company at that memorable feast which Levi made in his
house when he bade farewell to his old life and entered on his
new life of discipleship under his new name Matthew. If
these identifications be allowed, then great indeed was
the glory of that home which furnished to the Kingdom of
Heaven a father, a mother, and three sons, two of them c/. Mk. rt.
apostles. ***■
And what of James the Little's comrade ? His name was
Judas and his father's James. Since there were two others of
the Apostle-band named Judas, he bore two distinctive epithets.
To mark him out, on the one hand, from the despondent Judas
the Twin he was styled Thaddasus, the Aramaic Taddai, which
means " the Courageous " ; and to mark him out, on the other
hand, from the cold and worldly-minded Judas Iskarioth he
was styled Lebbaeus, the Aramaic Libbai, which means " the
Hearty."' Once only does he figure in the Gospel-story.
When Jesus in His farewell address in the Upper Room
promised to manifest Himself to such as loved Him, he ex-
»'IoJ}3a» laK(i/3oi/, not "the ^o/A*r of James" (Bez., A.V.)— «n arbitraiy
identification of the Apostle with the author of the "Epistle. C/. Jei. £/>. td
Paulin. : "Jacobus, Petrus, Joannes, Judas Apostoli septem epistolas ediderunt tam
mysticas quam succinctas." Nonnus, Paraphr, S. Ev.J^oh. xiv. 84-5 : 'laMu viit
' IkLKpiii cannot mean natu minor . Cf. Lk. xix. 3 : t^ ^X«i» >u«^.
» 'AX^atoj and KXwxaj both represent *B^n. In John xix. 2$ read CUpai aad
distinguish Cleopas (Lk. xxit. 18). KXeAwai = KXtirar/wt, as 'Arriwat = 'Arrirarpw.
* It is curious that for Lcoi some ancient authorities gwe James in Mk. ii. 14.
» Chrysost. In Matth. xxxiii : Suo TeXuixot, Mortfarot «aJ 'I<i««i»^of.
•Thaddjeus= n;^ ; Lebbaeus = '3^, for<W«j (Jerome). Dalman, W#rA if
Jesus, p. 5a Ughtfoot derives Lebbxus from the town of Lebba (Plia. H. S.
152 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
John ziT. claimed : " Lord, what hath come to pass that to us Thou art
^*' about to manifest Thyself, and not to the world ? " The
question merely shows that Judas cherished the same secular
ideal of the Messianic Kingdom as his fellow- apostles and the
rest of the Jews. He was dreaming of an earthly throne and
c/. John expecting that Jesus would presently " manifest Himself to the
world," casting aside His disguise and flashing forth in regal
splendour ; and he marvelled what could have happened to
prevent this consummation.
Simon the Last come another Simon and another Judas. To distin-
judas the guish him from Simon Peter the former is designated the
Kaioth^ Cananaean or Zealot. He was a member of that fraternity of
desperate patriots who, amid the commotion attendant on the
Acu T. 37. census of A.D, 7, had pledged themselves to undying hostility
against the Roman government ; ^ and it was a bold thing
that Jesus did when He enrolled him among His followers.
It exposed Him to the suspicion of the Roman authorities.
When the Jewish rulers arraigned Him at the last before the
procurator Pontius Pilate, it was on a political charge. They
Lk. xxiiL s. represented Him as a dangerous revolutionary. And it
would lend plausibility to their, allegation that one of His
intimates was a member of that seditious sect. The Zealots
were the extreme opposites of those Jews who, setting
patriotism and religion alike at naught, took service as tax-
gatherers under the Roman government ; and it is a striking
evidence of the wideness of the Lord's sympathy that Simon
the Zealot should have been enrolled with the tax-gatherers
Matthew and James in the apostolic brotherhood, and that
men so diverse should have found in His discipleship a
common meeting-place.
Simon's comrade was Judas, styled, to distinguish him from
Judas the Twin and Judas the son of James, Judas Iskarioth,
that is, the Man of Kerioth, a town in the south of Judaea.*
* Cf. p. 35. EoFayeuot:: K>JKJp. I^espite Lk.'s rbr KoXoifUfOP Ziiktariiv the
T- T :^
epithet has been greatly misunderstood, (i) Jerome, Bede, Tyndale, Coverdale*
Great Bible: "Man of Cana." (2) Bishops' Bible, A.V. : "Canaanite," con-
founding Eaf. with XavavoTos (ef. Mt. xv. 22).
"^ ni'ip E'^K, 'Iff«a/Hu>fl, 'l0-Ka/Mwn;i. Jerome (on Mt. x. 4 ; Ps. criii
(cix). 10 ; De Nom. Hebr.) doubted whether the name was derived from the town
of Judas or from his tribe, Issachar, explaining it in either case as connected with
THE TWELVE APOSTLES 153
His father was named Simon, and he also belonged to Kerioth.*
Judas was distinguished from his fellow-apostles in that he
was apparently the only one who was not a Galilean. Jesus
marked the various aptitudes of His followers, and assigned to
each the office for which he was fitted. He entrusted Philip
with the business of the commissariat, and, since Judas had
an aptitude for finance, He made him treasurer.
Judas turned traitor and sold Jesus to the priests, and his The Loctft
admission into the apostle-company presents one of the most judu •
perplexing problems of the Gospel-history. Long ago the vntimm.
philosopher Celsus made the treachery of Judas the ground of
an envenomed attack. Jesus, he sneered, inspired in His
deluded followers less loyalty than a general inspires in his
troops, aye, less than a brigand-chief inspires in his gang
of desperadoes.' And truly, though the infamy rests
with the traitor, it seems to imply a lack of discernment on
the part of Jesus that He should have trusted Judas and
received him into the circle of His intimates. The emphatic
declaration of St John that " He knew from the first who^*4:<-
should betray Him," is indeed a vindication of the Lord's
foresight, but it seems only an aggravation of the difficulty.
If He foresaw the issue, wherefore did He deliberately choose
Judas? And wherefore did He appoint him to an office
which would excite his cupidity ? " Who," it has been argued,
" places the weak in a situation which so constantly appeals to
his weak point as to render it certain that he will sooner or later
give way to the temptation ? No truly : Jesus assuredly
did not so play with the souls immediately entrusted to him,
did not exhibit to them so completely the opposite of what
he taught them to pray for, ' Lead us not into temptation,' as ml tL i>
to have made Judas, of whom he foreknew that he would
become his betrayer out of covetousness, the purse-bearer of his
society ; or, if he gave him this office, he cannot have had
such a foreknowledge." ^
From the earliest days the problem has pressed for a
^PB^» /'Vtf, wages— ti prophecy of the thirty pieces of silTcr. Keitn thinks of Ko
■tt
on the northern border of Jndwu Ewald, deeming it nnlikely th«t Jodw WM •
Jadaean, suggests Kartah (Josh, xxi 34).
1 According to the true reading of John tL 7»i ""• ^ ' ^f***'*' 'I#*V«*'^^
■ Orig. C. C*ls. ii. 12. • Strauss, Leh.Ju. III. ii. I ilS.
154 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
solution and has provoked much ingenious speculation. The
Cainites, that fantastic sect of the Gnostics, held that Judas
had advanced beyond the Jewish ideas of his fellow-apostles
and attained to the heavenly gnosis. He betrayed Jesus
because he knew that His death would break the power of
the evil spirits, the rulers of this world.^ Another theory of
early days is that Judas was indeed a covetous man and sold
his Master for greed of the thirty pieces of silver, but he never
thought that Jesus would be slain. He trusted that He would
escape from the grasp of His enemies as He had done before ;
and, when he saw Him actually condemned, he was over-
whelmed with remorse.' Akin to this is the more modem
theory that he calculated upon the multitude rising and
rescuing Jesus from the rulers.^ Like the rest of the disciples,
it is urged, Judas was discontented with the Lord's inexplicable
procrastination in proclaiming Himself King of Israel and
rallying the nation to His side, and he thought to force His
hand and precipitate the denouement. " His hope was that,
when at length actually arrested by the Jewish authorities,
Christ would no longer vacillate ; he would be forced into
giving the signal to the populace of Jerusalem, who would
then rise unanimously." * Again it has been supposed that
Judas' faith in his Master's Messiahship was wavering. If, he
reasoned, Jesus were indeed the Messiah, no worldly power could
harm Him : on the contrary, opposition would only serve to
bring out His glory ; while, if He succumbed, it would be an
evidence that He was not the Messiah ; God would have pro-
nounced againt Him, and His death would be merely His
desert^
According Those theories aim at justifying Judas and vindicating
Evangelists the Lord's election of him to the apostleship, but they are
traTad^ all mere fancies not only absolutely unsupported but directly
crime, discountenanced by the evangelic narratives. "Did I not,"
Ti. 7a said Jesus according to St John, " choose you the Twelve ?
xxii 3-4. and of you one is a devil." " And Satan," says St Luke,
" entered into Judas, that is called the Man of Kerioth, being
of the number of the Twelve ; and he went away and
^ Iren. Adv. Httr. i. 28. § 9 ; Epiphan. Htcr. xxxTiii. § 3.
• See TheophyL on Mt. xxvii. 4. • Panlas.
* De Qoincey, Rosegger. * Neaader, Leb. Jts. Ckr. % 264.
THE TWELVE APOSTLES ,55
conferred with the High Priests and the Captains how he
might betray Him unto them." The Evangelists represent
the betrayal as a horrible, nay, diabolical crime.'
And their representation should be simply accepted. The old
The Lord's choice of Judas with clear prescience of the issue dmSJtol
is indeed a dark mystery, but it is in line with the providential ^'»«^"«*««
conduct of human affairs and runs back to the ancient and fr««io«.
abiding problem of the relation betwixt divine foreknowledge
and human freedom. Even as Grod knew the issue when
He raised Saul to the throne of Israel, so Jesus from the
beginning perceived what was in Judas and knew the part
which he would play. And may it not be affirmed without
presumption that He recognised him as God's instrument
for the accomplishment of His eternal purpose of salvation ?
It was by the determinate will and foreknowledge of God
that Jesus was betrayed into the hands of sinners, and it was
by the determinate will and foreknowledge of God that the
traitor was numbered with the Twelve. Nevertheless Judas
was not chosen because he would turn traitor, but because
he had in him at the outset the possibility of higher things.
And this is the tragedy of his career, that he yielded to the
baser impulses of his nature and suffered them to usurp
dominion over him. Cupidity was his damning quality.
In common with the rest of the Apostles he entertained
the prevailing conception of the Messianic Kingdom ; and,
recognising Jesus as the Messiah, he joined His cause in the
expectation of attaining to worldly greatness and reward when
his Master was seated upon the throne of Israel. As time
went on, his hope grew dim ; and, when during the Passion-
week he perceived the inevitable issue, he resolved to abandon
what he deemed a falling cause and, in a spirit at once of
revenge and of despair, carry with him what poor spoil he
might, securing some small recompense for the sacrifices
which he had made. If he could not have a place beside
^ Volkmar regards the story of the betrayal as a tendency-fiction. "The motiTt
for inventing a traitor," says Strauss {.New Life, i. p. 376), " is considered by th«
acute author of this theory to lie in the wish of the Pauline party to make rooa
for the Apostle of the heathen in the college of Twelve, which could not be doM
except by ejecting one of them, the treason oif the Jewish people to Jetoi bdag
transferred to him." The theory was rejected by Strauss and Keim, bat It has beca
teviTeii in a modified form by Cbeyne, B. B. art. Judas | 10.
t56 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
the Messiah's throne, at least he would have the thirty
pieces of silver.
General It would sccm that the Apostles were all young men,
tLcTweive. SimoH Peter being apparently the only one who was married.
Certainly they were all younger than Jesus, who was as
a father among them in love and admonition.^ Some of them
came to Him from the houses of their fathers ; and He
required them to love Himself more than father or mother,
brothers or sisters. It was natural that He should choose
as His Apostles young men still unenslaved by custom,
still unpossessed by prejudice, still receptive of new truths,
still sensitive to wonder and hope.^ And most of them,
indeed all except, perhaps, Nathanael the son of Talmai,
Mt. xi. as ; were destitute of worldly learning, unlike their future com-
13'. peer St Paul. Yet they had better gifts. At least two of
them had been disciples of John the Baptist, and probably all,
except the two tax-gatherers, had led blameless if not pious
lives.' And all, except the traitor, nobly requited the
confidence which Jesus had reposed in them. They gave
themselves, in the power of the Holy Spirit, to their mission,
and some, perhaps most, of them sealed their testimony with
their blood.*
^ He styled them "children" (Mk. x. 24 ; John xiiL 33) and promised that He
would not leave them " orphans " (John xiv. iS).
* Darwin to J. D. Hooker (Li/e of Darwin^ p. 230): " Nearly all men past
a moderate age, either in actual years or in mind, are, I am fully convinced, incap-
able of looking at facts under a new point of view."
* Utterly erroneous is the inference from Mt. ix. i3 = Mk. ii. i7 = Lk. v. 32 that
the Apostles had all been great sinners. Bam. Ep. v. § 9.
* On the subsequent careers of the Twelve cf. Chrysost. Serm. in xii Apost.\
Ens. H. E. iii. i ; Abd. Hist. Apost. ; Daniel, Ties. Hymnol. II. ccxxiii. Papias
(Fragm. xi in Patr. Apost. Op. from Georg. Hamart. ) says that John as well as
James ^0 'Iovda^<i;i' i,vjip40ri in fulfilment of Mk. x. 38-9.
CHAPTER XVIII lit*.,.
Mk. ui. IV
S-Lk.»t
THE ORDINATION OF THE TWELVE !*:3»:
Lk. fi. lo-
9f. 41-9;
" Qui generosus miles est, *•• 33""*-
Sibi ducat honori *• ••»*'39^
43 44** '
Cum duce Jesu millies vji, J^ i^
In campo crucis mori. "—Med. Hyam, «S-«7-
The ordination of the twelve Apostles, His comrades and Tbt onto-
successors, was a momentous departure, and Jesus, according JlSSJ^
to His wont at every great crisis, betook Himself to His
upland oratory and spent the livelong night in prayer.^ In
the morning He called them about Him, and solemnly
ordained them ; and then He discoursed to them of their
high vocation, showing them how great was the trust which
had been committed to them and what manner of men they
must be. He began with congratulation. " Blessed are ye " The Beati>
was His opening sentence, and it would seem most natural to
the Twelve with their Jewish dream of an earthly Kingdom.
Extreme would their astonishment be when they heard Him
further. He pronounced them " blessed," not because they
would have places by His throne in Jerusalem, but because
they would be poor, lowly, sorrowful, despised, and persecuted.
Every sentence of His benediction was in Jewish ears an
astounding paradox.'
It is always the tendency of worldly prosperity to draw
the heart away from God, but it was especially so amid the
^ The site of the Mons Beaiitudinum has been much debated. Tabor, saji
Jerome in opposition to "nonnuUi simplicium fratrum " who thought of Olirel.
Ai5 early western tradition identifies it with the Horns of Hattin (KurUn HatHm^
at whose bases lies a level expanse, corresponding to the rbrwot wfStfit of Lk. tL 17'
C/. Caspari, § io8. Probably, however, Lk. vi. 17-9 is an editorial conflation of
Mt. viii. I and Mk. iii. 7-12. It interrupts and confuses the narrative. The like-
lihood is that rb 6pot (Mt. y. i) denotes no particular hill but the hifh land
bounding Gennesaret on the west C/. Josh. xvii. 16 ; xix. 50, where VlTIf LXX
rb 6poi, is not " the hill," but " the hill-country."
' On the differences between the parallel versions of the Beatitudes see I&trod.
a
•IT
158 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
disasters which pressed upon Israel almost without intermission
after the Babylonian Captivity. When the nation was under
heathen domination, disloyalty to Jehovah was the condition
of worldly advancement, and such as stood faithful sank into
obscurity and suffered contempt and persecution. And thus
it came to pass that " poor " was practically synonymous
Cf. Is. Uii. with " godly," and " rich " with " ungodly." The poor, the
^' needy, the meek, the humble were thus almost technical terms.^
They signified the godly remnant in Israel.* When Jesus
pronounced the Twelve "blessed," because they belonged
to that order, it was probably His purpose to dispel
their dream of worldly felicity in the Messianic Kingdom.
He told them what must be their lot as His Apostles, as
though challenging their courage to accept it. He would
have them at the outset clearly understand the conditions of
their ministry lest they should embark upon it in ignorance
and abandon it in disappointment. Yet withal He added
high encouragements. One was that, when they suffered, it
would be for His sake. Another was that, though persecu-
tion must be their earthly portion, their recompense would be
great in Heaven. And, moreover, it was a heroic calling.
They would be in the ranks with the prophets of old time
who had suffered persecution and often martyrdom. When
He thus spoke, Jesus advanced a high claim on His own
behalf " He hints here," says St Chrysostom, " at His own
dignity and His equal honour with the Father. As the
Prophets, He says, suffered for the Father's sake, so you
shall suffer all this for Mine."'
The calling It was not, however, of themselves and their fortunes but
Twelve of their mission that Jesus would have the Twelve think ;
and, alluding perhaps to the Essenes who forsook the world
and lived hermit lives, holy but unserviceable, in the seclusion
of the wilderness. He shows them, by two vivid metaphors,
whereunto they were called — not to pious repose but to
"The salt active and beneficent service.* "Ye," He says, "are the salt
earth." of the earth." This is a figure which our Lord loved and
Cf. Mk. ix. which He frequently employed. And it would go home to
^°' * TTwxo's, -wkvyii, irpaii, raireivdi. See Hatch, Ess. in Bib. Gk, pp. 74-7;
Harnack, What is Christianity t pp. 91-a.
• Cf. p. 5. » In Matth. xv.
* Cf. Ef>. adDiogn. vi : ire/) iarlv eV ffd/iari ^pvx'fi, tovt eialv iv KOfffuf Xpitrrtavol.
\
THE ORDINATION OF THE TWELVE 159
His fisher disciples. They knew how quickly in that sultry
climate their fish would spoil unless salted without delay.
And they knew also that nothing was more worthless than
salt which had lost its saltness and become insipid, as the
salt of Palestine readily does "when in contact with the
ground or exposed to rain and sun." "Such salt soon
effloresces and turns to dust — not to fruitful soil, however.
It is not only good for nothing itself, but it actually destroys
all fertility wherever it is thrown, ... So troublesome is this
corrupted salt, that it is carefully swept up, carried forth, and
thrown into the street. There is no place about the house
yard, or garden where it can be tolerated" ^ Even such arc
savourless disciples. " Ye are the salt of the earth ; but, if
the salt become insipid, wherewith shall it be salted ? For
nothing doth it avail any longer save to be flung out and
trodden down by the people."
"Ye are the light of the world," said Jesus again. That "TheUfhi
a light may serve its purpose it must be conspicuous, and ^^Jl*
the mistake of the Essenes was that they hid their light
They were indeed holy men, but they led secluded lives and
exerted no influence upon their fellows. Jesus required that
it should be otherwise with His disciples. The Lake of
Galilee was girt round by high-perched towns — Grerasa.
Gamala, Aphek, and Hippos — that stood like beacons and
caught the eye from afar. " A city," says Jesus, turning
the landscape into a parable, " cannot be hid when set
upon a hill,^ Neither do they light a lamp and put it
under the bushel-measure, but on the lamp-stand, and it
shineth for all that are in the house. Even so let your
light shine before men, that they may see your fair works
and glorify your Father in Heaven."
Such was the calling of the Twelve — not to dream of
honour and reward in an earthly kingdom, but to seek,
with utter self-forgetfulness, the glory of God and the
salvation of their fellow men. Thus early Jesus hints at
the universality of their mission and the world-wide destina-
^ Thomson, Land and Book, chap. xxvi.
" Cf. 1897 Oxyrhynchus Logia 7 : X«7" 'lr)<rovf wiXit ifKohotiipir^ n' Uptm
[«]pow vxjfi)\ov Koi iff-njpiyfuyv oOr« ■•«[«r>J> 3JroT(u oOrt Kpii[fi]ijpau Evidenlljr
amplified t'OXB Mt viL 24-5.
i6o THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
tion of His Gospel. He says, " Ye are the light," not of
Israel, but " of the world." Theirs was the privilege where-
Cf, Is. ix. unto Israel had been called of old, but whereof she had proved
''^' herself unworthy, declining into narrowness and isolation.
injunctioM Jesus had warned the Apostles that they must lay their
endurance: account for persecution, and He proceeded to instruct them
how they should comport themselves therein, adducing, after
the picturesque manner which He loved, several examples of
of insult ; the sort of treatment which they would encounter. Smiting
on the face was a common form of insult in the East.^ A
fine of two hundred zuzim or denarii was imposed for the
offence, and, if the aggressor inflicted a second blow with his
other hand, the fine was doubled.* The injury was insignificant,
but the indignity was extreme. Even a slave, says Seneca,
would prefer scourging to a buffet' Such contumely the
Twelve would encounter in the prosecution of their mission.
" Whoever," says Jesus, " smiteth thee on the right cheek,*
^ ^km • ^"'"'^ ^° ^'"^ ^^^ other also." Again, it was legal for a
Prov. XX. creditor to take his debtor's raiment in pledge ; but the
ancient Law, with its accustomed humanity, provided that the
Exod. xxii. poor man's cloak, which served also as his blanket, should be
^;. '^' restored to him at sunset, lest he should have no covering
while he slept. " Him," says Jesus, " that would go to
law with thee and take thy coat, let him have thy cloak
also." ^ Though their coats might be legally retained, they
were entitled to claim their cloaks at nightfall ; but He bids
them forego this right, cheerfully submitting to illegal
of tyranny, spoliation. Once more, there prevailed throughout the
Roman Empire a system of forced service which empowered
soldiers to employ both men and beasts as their baggage-
bearers.^ The outrage was bitterly resented, and by none
* C/. I Kings xxii. 24 ; Mt. xxvi. 67 ; Acts xxiiL 2 ; i Cor. iv. 1 1 ; 2 Cor. xL 20.
' Cf. Lightfoot on Mt. v. 39, and Mk. vL 37. • De Constant. Sap. § 4.
* The left cheek would naturally be first struck, and some MSS. omit right {if. Lk.
vi. 29). Its addition heightens the idea of contumely, the right hcivig pars potior {cf.
Mt. V. 29, 30).
* Lk. vi. 29, perhaps from unacquaintance with the Jewish law, puts the eloak
first — the order of stripping.
* d77o/)e/a, a Persian word ; originally a system of communication by relays of
mounted couriers. Cf. Herod viii. 98 ; Xen. Cyrop. viii. 6. § 17 ; Esth.vii. 10 ; ^Esch.
Agam. 273 ; Hatch, Ess. in Bib. Gk. pp. 37-8 ; Deissmann, Bib. Stud. pp. 86-7 ;
Taylor, Say. of Path. iii. 18, n. 3a
n
THE ORDINATION OF THE TWELVE i6i
more than by the proud Jews. " Do not resent it," says
Jesus to the Twelve. " Submit cheerfully. Whosoever shall
impress thee for one mile, go with him two." And then
He crowns those strange injunctions with another, the
strangest of all : " To him that asketh of thee give ; and
from him that would borrow of thee turn not away."
These are amazing counsels, and they have occasioned no DiOcuii to
little bewilderment. It was roundly asserted in St Augustine's '"*•'''*••
day that they were contrary to the ethics of the State. " Who,"
it was asked, "would suffer aught to be taken away from
himself by an enemy, or would not wish to requite their
mischief to the spoilers of a Roman province by the right of
war ? " St Augustine replied that " those precepts pertained
more to the preparation of the heart which is within than to
the work which is in the open " ; pointing out that, when
Jesus was smitten on the face by the High Priest's officer, He John xTiM.
did not actually turn the other cheek, but meekly remonstrated.^ ""*
And it is thus that interpreters mostly reason, smoothing away
the sharpness of the Lord's requirements and accommodating
them to what is deemed practical necessity. Some, however,
like the Quakers and Count TolstoT, accepting them literally
and fully, read here a condemnation of the existing order of
society. Non-resistance, Tolstoi maintains, is the very essence
of Christianity, and it is contrary to the Gospel for an individual
to seek legal redress or a nation to have recourse to war even
in self-defence.
It is, indeed, beyond doubt that the literal and universal Not
application of those precepts would involve the abolition of^^JJ
the magistrate's office and the soldier's profession ; yet it is ««**«*•
impossible to acquiesce in the conclusion that this was our
Lord's intention. He did not require the Centurion of
Capernaum to abandon the military profession. He granted
his prayer and eulogised his faith, nor was it any obstacle to
his entrance into the Kingdom of Heaven that he was a
soldier. And the Apostles were loyal to the existing order
of society. St Peter bade his readers "submit themselves i P«. 1
to every ordinance of man for the Lord's sake." St Paul
required that prayer should be offered " for kings and all • Ti^ *•
that arc in authority," and on one memorable occasion made
* Up. U MaritU, cxuviiL tf »-lii
i62 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
Acu xxT. his appeal as a Roman citizen to the judgment of the Emperor.
"' The early Christians, moreover, as the apologists frequently
point out in refutation of heathen accusations, led peaceable
and law-abiding lives. They prayed for the Emperor ; they
engaged in the multifarious pursuits of their communities ;
nay, they even enlisted in the Roman army and gave a good
account of themselves as soldiers.* In truth the adoption of
those precepts as general rules of life would end in disaster.
What, for instance, of the command, " Give to every one that
asketh of thee " ? The saintly William Law demoralised his
whole neighbourhood by giving away ;^2 500 every year.
Indiscriminate giving would be ruinous alike to the giver
and to the recipient St Augustine shrewdly observes :
" * Give to every one that asketh,* He says, not * Give
everything to him that asketh * ; that you may give what
you can honourably and justly give. To every one that
asketh of thee thou wilt give, although thou wilt not always
give what he asks ; and sometimes thou wilt give some-
thing better when thou hast corrected one that asks things
unjust." *
Addressed What then must be said of those precepts of our Lord ?
Aposti<s° ^^^ difficulty vanishes the moment it is recognised that they
were addressed, not to a promiscuous audience, but to the
Apostles. Jesus was not enunciating a general code of Christian
ethics but instructing the Twelve how they should comport
themselves as the heralds of His Kingdom.' Not indeed
that He required a loftier goodness of them than of the rank
and file of His disciples, but their vocation imposed upon
them a peculiar necessity for self-abnegation and self-
effacement St Paul acted on this principle when he
X Cor. vi. recognised that there were certain things which, though
la ; X. 23. lawful for him as a Christian, were not expedient for him
as an Apostle, and when, to silence malicious slanders, he
I Cor. ix. waived his title to claim maintenance of the Church of
Corinth according to the Lord's ordinance that "they that
preach the Gospel should live by the Gospel." And this
» Tert. Apol. §§ 30, 37, 42. Cf. Ep. ai Dusn. v ; Eus. H. £. v. $: the
Thundering Legion.
' De Serm, Dom. in Mtnt. i. §67.
' Jerome on Mt v. 39 : " Ecclesiasticas vir describitur, imitator ejus qui dicit :
* Discite a me, quia mitis sum et humiiis cordc' "
THE ORDINATION OF THE TWELVE 163
necessity, which was laid upon the first Apostles, is laid
equally upon their successors in each generation. " The a Tiai. a.
Lord's bond-servant must not strive, but be gentle toward ***
all." He is no true minister of the Gospel who is not ready
to endure meekly " the contradiction of sinners " after the
example of the Master " who, when He was reviled, reviled i pm. ii.ts
not again ; when He suffered, threatened not"
It is likely that, when Jesus gave those counsels. He had lUfcnaw
the Zealots in His eye. One of the Twelve was a Zealot, and '*'*^
the rest would all, except perhaps Judas, be in sympathy
with the wild schemes of those desperate patriots. The
military impressment would be especially galling to them,
and Jesus here seeks to win them to a calmer mood. Is it
irreverence to think that there is a tone of playful humour in
His counsels ? When He says : " Whoever will impress thee
for one mile, go with him two," He speaks after the manner
of the Rabbi who said : " If thy neighbour call thee an ass,
put a saddle on thy back." ^ He would have them recognise
their impotence and the futility of resistance, which would
only aggravate their misery by provoking the oppressor to
greater severity. " If," says the Stoic Epictetus,' " there be
an impressment, and a soldier arrest your ass, do not resist,
do not even grumble ; or else you will get beaten and lose
your ass all the same." Jesus spoke playfully, calming the
indignant hearts of His disciples ; yet beneath His smile lay
a serious purpose. Resistance was unavailing, and He
indicates a better way. " Fire," says St Chrysostom,' " is
not quenched by fire, but by water," and meek endurance
puts the oppressor to shame. " He will not inflict a second
blow, though he be more savage than any wild beast, but will
condemn himself for the first" It is not craven submission
that Jesus counsels here, but, on the contrary, that noble
dignity which meets insult and outrage with proud disdaia
There is, however, a still higher pitch of heroism. It is
no great achievement that a man should submit because he
is too weak to resist, his heart all the while afire with
indignation and athirst for revenge. It is a nobler attitude
when he disdains the injury, but noblest of all when he
regards the wrongdoer with a great compassion. And this
» Wetstein on Mt. v. 41. • Disstrt. it. I i. * /» Mattk, zviiL
|64 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
is the spirit which Jesus bade His Apostles cherish. " Love
your enemies," He said, " do good to them that hate you,
bless them that curse you, pray for them that despitefuUy
use you. All things whatsoever ye would that men should
do to you, so do ye also to them." ^
Incentives This is a great requirement, and, lest it should seem
"^°to them impracticable, Jesus sets before the Twelve strong
(i) the arguments and lofty motives. He reminds them of their
*"™God ^ heavenly kinship and the obligation which it imposed. It
was no great thing that they should love those that loved
them, and be affable to their brethren. The tax-gatherers,
the heathen did as much ; and a loftier virtue was demanded
of them, the sons of God. Their Heavenly Father should be
their example ; and He was kind towards the unthankful and
evil, He made His sun rise upon evil and good, and sent
rain upon righteous and unrighteous. Noblesse oblige,
" Show yourselves compassionate, even as your Father is
compassionate."
{a) the duty And it would slay resentment in their hearts and fill them
° |^n*an ^^^ ^ great compassion, if they remembered their mission and
enemy's rccogniscd even their persecutors as objects of apostolic
' solicitude, immortal souls to be won for God, " Heaven's
possible novitiates." And the worst might be gained if only
he were sought in patience, faith, and hope. " Love your
enemies, and do good, and lend, despairing of no man." *
(3) con- Then, adopting a lighter, almost playful tone, Jesus passes
'' oTone's to another argument. Remember, He says, your own faults,
own faults, a^fj yQ^ ^jj} JqqJ^ ^j^Jj kinder eyes on those of others, and find
it easier to make allowance for them. There was a Jewish
^ The Golden Rule is introduced in different connections in Mt. vii. 12 and Lk.
Ti. 31. So memorable a logion, being often quoted, would readily wander from its
place. Others had said something similar before Jesus. Cf. Tob. iv. if : '• What
thou hatest, do to none." To a Gentile who mockingly asked to be taught the
whole Law while he stood on one foot, Hillel replied : " What is hateful to thyself,
do not to thy neighbour. This is the whole Law ; the rest is commentary." See
Wetstein and Lightfoot on Mt. vii. 12 ; Taylor, Say. ef Fatk. pp. 142-3. Gibbon
{^Decl. and Fall, chap, liv, n.) denies the originality of the Golden Rule : "a rule
which I read in a moral treatise of Isocrates, four hundred years before the publica-
tion of the gospel. & Td<rxo»^<J i'^' hipuw ipyli^effOt, raCra rots dXXwt /lyf reietT€ " :
Dot observing that the rule on the lips of other teachers was negativ*, on IMi pcsitive.
' Lk. vi. 35: fiifUva iwtKTl^oirm. The reading fLijSir direXi/forret ("de-
spairing of nothing," " never despairing") is due to the elision of the first a. A.V.
"hoping for nothing again," an unwarrantable rendering.
THE ORDINATION OF THE TWELVE 165
proverb which frequently occurs in the Talmud : " With what
measure a man measures, others will measure to him.">
Jesus quotes it "Judge not," He says, "and ye shall not
be judged ; condemn not, and ye shall not be condemned ;
release, and ye shall be released ; give, and it shall be given
unto you ; good measure, pressed down, shaken together,
running over, shall they give into your bosom. For with Cf. Pm.
what measure ye measure it shall be measured unto you again, Sl'7!*
Why," He continues, quoting another proverb, characteristically
Oriental in its grotesque exaggeration, " seest thou the chip
that is in thy brother's eye, but the log that is in thine own
eye considerest not ? ' Or how wilt thou say to thy brother :
' Let me cast out the chip out of thine eye ' ? and, behold, the
beam is in thine own eye. Thou play-actor ! cast out first
from thine own eye the beam, and then shalt thou see clearly
to cast out the chip from thy brother's eye."
While Jesus would have His disciples look thus kindly N««ihy
even upon their persecutors, He would have them also, in ** "
the interests of their ministry, cultivate a spirit of discernment
And He bade them be on their guard against two sorts of
men whom they would encounter in the prosecution of their
mission. They would meet with some whom it were vain to
think of winning — obdurate men, wise in their own conceits or
wedded to their sins. These they must let alone. " Give not," Cf. a Pet.
He says apparently in proverbial language, " what is holy to prwr. xxn.
the dogs, neither cast your pearls before the swine, lest they "*
trample them under their feet, and turn and rend you." • Even
so had the wise man said of old : " He that correcteth a Pw. u. 7
scomer getteth to himself shame : and he that reproveth a
wicked man getteth himself a blot." And He bade them
also beware of false prophets — impostors who would call
themselves by His name and claim His authority only to
gain profit or honour, " ravening wolves in shecps' clothing,"
" such as for their bellies' sake
Creep, and intrude, and climb into the fold."
' Cf. Lightfoot and Wetstein on Mt Til. a ; Dalman, Wtrds f/Jtsuj, p. MS-
• Another Jewish proverb. Cf. Lightfoot. It has been niggested thai i^#aX^
here represents fj?, a well: "a chip in yofur neighbour's well, a log in your owm."
See Bruce in Exf. Gk. Tist. • Cf Wetftein.
i66 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
The Apostolic Church knew well the plague of the false
prophet, and branded him with the stinging epithet " Christ-
traflficker." * " Not everyone," it was said, " that speaketh in
the Spirit is a prophet, but only if he have the Lord's
manners." And even while Jesus lived, there were un-
authorised claimants to apostolic prerogatives. Such an one
was that unknown man who awoke the indignation of the
Mk. ix. 58- disciples by casting out daemons in their Master's name, albeit
^*~ 49^50! he followed not with them.* They were for interdicting him.
" Hinder him not," said Jesus ; " for there is none who will do
a mighty work in My name and will be able lightly to speak
evil of Me." Even such is the test which He proposes here.
" From their fruits ye shall recognise them. Do they gather
grape-clusters from thorns or figs from thistles " ?
The worth- All down their history lip-homage had been a besetting
essness_o^ Sin of the Jews. " This people," the ancient prophet had said,
homage, u (jf^w nigh unto Me, and with their mouth and with their lips
cf^u xi.' do honour Me, but have removed their heart far from Me " ;
^■^r^- and, if the accusation was just in Isaiah's day, it was ten-fold
more just in our Lord's. The holy men of that generation
were the Pharisees, and they were naught else than solemn
play-actors. Jesus foresaw that this baleful spirit would invade
His Church, and He warned His Apostles against its insidious
operation. He required not mere homage of the lips, be it
ever so effusive, but loyal obedience to the Heavenly Father's
will. And, says Euthymius, the good monk of Constan-
tinople, " the Son's commandments are the Father's will."
Since the Holy Spirit works in strange ways and pours His grace
Mt. xxiv. through what seem unlikely channels, a bad man may not
^li, 22. merely profess the Lord's name but do the Lord's work. The
Mt X. 4, 8. Twelve were commissioned to " heal the sick, raise the dead,
cleanse lepers, cast out daemons " ; and one of the Twelve was
Judas, the Man of Kerioth. But on the great Day of Judgment
their masks will be stripped off and the play-actors will stand
revealed. " Lord, Lord," they will cry, " did we not in Thy
name prophesy, and in Thy name cast out daemons, and in
> Didack. §§ ll-a.
* This isdubiubly authentic incident is of itself sufficient to discredit the theory
that the warning against false prophets is an interpolation of the apostolic age
(Hilgeofeld, Kcim, etc.).
THE ORDINATION OF THE TWELVE 167
Thy name do many mighty works ? " " And then," says Jesut,
" I will declare plainly to them : ' I never knew you. Depart
from Me, ye that work iniquity I ' "
There was an ancient proverb which likened vain and Tbetw«
unenduring work to building on sand ; ^ and, perhaps with it '^''**"'
in His thoughts, Jesus closes with a solemn and impressive
similitude. He depicts two builders. One was a prudent man ;
and, sparing no pains, he dug down to the bed-rock and laid
his foundation sure and strong. Winter came with its rain and
flood and tempest, and they spent their fury on the house ;
but it stood fast ; " for it had been founded upon the rock."
The other builder was a foolish man, and, taking the easy way,
he planted his house without a foundation upon the sand. It
looked as well as the other, perhaps better, being tricked out
for display ; and no harm befell while the fair weather lasted.
But winter came and the floods swept away the loose sand ;
and the house collapsed. " It fell, and the fall of it was
great." The prudent builder, said Jesus, represents the man
that heareth these words of Mine and doeth them ; the foolish
builder the man that heareth them and doeth them not
Jesus and His teaching are inseparable, and it is impossible
for a man to be loyal to Him and neglect it
^ tb fdfificr oUoSofuti. Erasm. Adaf. onder Iiumit Optrm.
CHAPTER XIX
Lk.Tl.i.13 A LESSON IN PRAYER
=Mt. VI. 9-
15, vii. 7-n
s=Mk. xi. «• o man, forgive thy mortal foe,
*^ Nor ever strike him blow for blow ;
For all the souls on earth that live
To be forgiven must forgive.
Forgive him seventy times and seven :
For all the blessed souls in Heaven
Are both forgivers and forgiven." — Tennyson.
Thus far It was of the utmost moment that the Twelve should be
"°aboiu prepared for the ministry whereto they had been chosen, and
the^tea'ch" J^^"^ ^^^ unremitting in the task of their instruction. It
ing of was in truth His supreme business ; and, whenever He had
' them alone, walking with them by the way, reclining at table,
sitting on the hill-side, or sailing on the Lake, He would
discourse to them of the things that belonged to His Kingdom
and to their vocation. There was, however, one omission
which they observed and wondered at. Amid all His teach-
ing He had never taught them how to pray. And this was
the more surprising forasmuch as He was Himself unwearied
in prayer. He would rise a great while before day and betake
Himself to His upland oratory. That was His constant
retreat ; and, whenever they missed Him, they sought Him
there, sure to find Him busy in communion with God. And,
moreover, other teachers instructed their disciples in the art
of prayer. The Rabbis prescribed eighteen forms of prayer
for daily repetition,^ and John the Baptist had furnished
Lk. T. 33. prayers to His disciples and enjoined diligent and frequent
use thereof.'
" Lord, The Twelve wondered at their Master's seeming neglect ;
teach us to
pray." 1 Qf. p. 103.
' One of the prayers which John taught his disciples was :
" God make me worthy of Thy Kingdom and to rejoice in it ;
God show me the baptism of Thy Son," i.t. the Messiah.
See Nestle, B. B.^ art UrtCx Prayer 9 i, n. 6.
A LESSON IN PRAYER 169
and once, finding Him at prayer, probably at daybreak to
His wonted retreat, one of them appealed to Him : " Lord,
teach us to pray, even as John also taught his disciples."
Jesus granted the request and furnished His Apostles with
that form commonly called " the Lord's Prayer." In the
primitive Church it was called simply " The Prayer," and was
held in high esteem, being repeated thrice daily.^
"Our Father that art in Heaven, Tb»
Hallowed be Thy Name ; ■^'*-
Thy Kingdom come ;
Thy Will be done,
as in Heaven, also upon the earth.
Our bread for the approaching day
give us to-day.
And forgive us our debts
as we also have forgiven our debtors ;
And lead us not into temptation,
but rescue us from the Evil One.*"
Jesus gave this prayer to the Twelve, not to be their Im«[j««
only prayer, but to serve them as a model and show them
what manner of petitions they should offer before the Throne
of Grace- "Thus pray ye." And the prayer has several ml ft ».
striking characteristics. It is brief, recalling the Lord's warnings J«t ^7^
against the babbling prayers of the heathen and the long .Lk .^
prayers of the Pharisees. It is simple, suiting the lips of a 47-
little child. It is catholic, addressing not the Lord God of
Israel but the Heavenly Father. It is spintual, concerning
itself primarily with God's Glory, His Kingdom, and H«
Will and only secondarily with the worshippers needs.
And what are the boons which it craves? Bread, pardon,
and deliverance from temptation. It concerns itself almost
exclusively with the things of God and the nods of the
soul, asking only the simplest provision for the body. Such
was the Lord's constant requirement Seek first. He said
r another occasion, "your Heavenly Father's Kmgdom M. ^«.
1 Didach. § 8. Lie's version (xL 2-4) i. briefer than Mt.". (vL 9-«3), oauttij.
accoritto tie approved reading, the third I-tiUon "«! ^^^* ^.^^J^ ^ ^
sixth besides minor variations. Mt's « the version which wai ""«" "'JT
AplucChnrch. agreeing almost <=-tlj. with the ve.ion^Uie f?^*^
doxologyofMt.vi. l3T.R.isa_liturgicaladdit.on. Cf.Dtdo.k.. FocTlua.
the power and the glory for ever." r/^ u. «iiL l«l Bpk
« roiJ tror^pcu may be neut. but it i. most probably m»3C Cf. ML «u. 19 » "Pi-
vL 16 ; I John u. 13-4. See Taylor, So,. »f Faik. pp. i86-9a
I70 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
and His righteousness, and all these things — food, drink, and
clothing — shall be added unto you." And like this is another
saying which is ascribed to Him : " Ask the great things, and
the little things shall be added unto you; ask the heavenly
things, and the earthly things shall be added unto you." ^
"Our The only difficulty which the Prayer presents is found in
*'7he ap^ the fourth petition, the solitary petition for temporal good ;
proaching ^^jj j^ ijgg jn ^q phrase which our English versions render
" our daily bread " with the marginal alternative " our bread
for the coming day." ^ It is certain that the latter is the true
rendering, and the difficulty is that it seems inconsistent with
our Lord's teaching elsewhere. " Be not anxious for the
morrow," He says in His discourse of worldly-mindedness ;
Ml. vi. 34. " for the morrow shall be anxious for itself. Sufficient for the
day is the evil thereof" ; yet here He puts on His disciples'
lips a prayer, as it seems, for the morrow's bread, nay, a prayer
that they may be furnished to-day with provision against the
morrow.
The Prayer It seems a Stark contradiction ; but, when the situation is
* "prayer^ apprehended, the difficulty vanishes. Jesus was accustomed
to rise " a great while before day " and betake Himself to
prayer, seeking in communion with the Father invigoration
for the work which lay before Him. At that early hour the
day which was just breaking, was in common parlance de-
signated indifferently " to-day " or " the approaching day." '
^ Orig. Select in Pss., Lommatzsch, xi. p. 432 : alreire rd fiey6\a, xal ri lUKp^
ifur rpoared-^fferou' alreire t4 ivovpania, koX to, iriyeia irpoffreO-^fferai v/uw. Cf,
Berac. 31. i: "Forsan homo precatur pro necessariis sibi, et postea orat."
Lightfoot on Lk. xi. i.
' k-Kw<)aw% is dro^ \eyhfuvoii. According to Origen (De Orat. § 27) a
coinage of the Evangelists. The Prayer was doubtless given in Aramaic. In
the Gospel of the Hebrews, ]&xovat found ^nD "quod dicitur crastinum," which
T T
attests the derivation of truy&viM from i) exioikra (ii/jJpa), "the on-coming day."
The alternative derivation from frl and ova-la {elvai) — "bread for our essential
being," i.e. spiritual bread, — which seems to have been first advocated by Origen
(/.f.), is etymologically impossible, since the t of erl was always elided in composi-
tion before a vowel. Cf. J. B. Lightfoot's J^resA Revision, Append.
' C/. Plat. Crit. 43A-44B : Crito comes to the prison " very early, at deep
dawn" {cf. Mk. xvi. 2= John xx. i = Lk. xxiv. l), and tells Socrates that the ship
from Sunium will arrive " to-day " {nfi/j^por), Socrates replies that it will not come
"to-day" {oi fUyroi ot/xai 1}^«iy oiVd r^fupoi'), and presently repeats his assertion,
substituting "the approaching day" for "to-day" (oi rolyvr t^t enowi/t iifiip*t
otfuu airi Ij^eiw dXXd r^ irepas).
A LESSON IN PRAYER 171
It was probably early in the morning when Jesus was found at
prayer by His disciples and gave them this lesson in prayer ;
and He conceived of them as following His example and
beginning each day before the Throne of Grace. The prayer
which He taught them, is a morning prayer, and it craves
not " the morrow's bread " but simply provision for the incom-
ing day : " Our bread for the approaching day give us to-day,"
or, as St Luke has it, " day by day." So far from lending
sanction to anxiety about the morrow the petition implies a
spirit of utter unworldliness. It conceives of the disciples as
not knowing when the day broke where they should find the
day's food and seeking it with filial confidence from their
Heavenly Father. It may be that there is an allusion to the
Manna, the bread which God rained from Heaven for the
Israelites in the wilderness. It came down morning by Exod. x*i;
morning, a gift from His hand, and they had no need to be avc^o^
anxious for the morrow. Each morning they gathered of it Jot" "J*-
every man according to his eating ; and, if they gathered more
and left it until the next morning, it bred worms and stank.
" Bread for the approaching day " was all they needed. The
morrow's provision was in God's hands.
It were, however, of no avail that the disciples had a model CondiiioM
after which to fashion their prayers, unless they had the spirit ^yer:
of prayer in their hearts ; and Jesus proceeded to inculcate
two great lessons. First, in explanation of the petition,
" Forgive us our debts as we also have forgiven our debtors," (x) a for-
He told them that, unless they forgave, they could not be ^^^^.
forgiven. The son of Sirach had written : " Forgive thy eccIi*
neighbour the hurt that he hath done thee ; and then thy sins "*^- *
shall be pardoned when thou prayest " ; and the Lord adds
His sanction to this doctrine. " If," He says, "ye forgive men
their trespasses, your Heavenly Father will forgive you also ;
but, if ye forgive not men, neither will your Father forgive
your trespasses." Even so had He spoken in His discourse in
tho Synagogue of Capernaum : " If thou art offering thy gift MtT.aj^
at the altar and there rememberest that thy brother hath
aught against thee, leave there thy gift before the altar, and
go thy way ; first be reconciled to thy brother, and then come
and offer thy gift" And in after days St Paul reiterated the
lesson, reinforcing it with the gracious compulsions of the
172 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
Eph. iv. 3a. Lord's finished redemption : " Show yourselves kind one
toward another, compassionate, forgiving each other, even as
God also in Christ forgave you."
(a) earnest- Then He inculcated the necessity of earnestness in prayer,
setting forth the lesson by a bold and striking parable.
" Which of you," He asked, " shall have a friend, and shall go
to him at midnight and say : ' Friend, lend me three loaves ;
since a friend of mine hath arrived at my house from a
journey, and I have nothing to set before him ' ? And the
other shall answer from within and say : ' The door is now
shut, and my children and I are in bed. I cannot rise and
give unto thee.' I tell you," said Jesus, " though he will not
rise and give unto him because he is his friend, yet because
of his persistence he will rise and give unto him as many
as he needeth. And I tell you, ask, and it shall be given unto
you ; seek, and ye shall find ; knock, and it shall be opened
unto you. For everyone that asketh receiveth, and he that
seeketh findeth, and to him that knocketh it shall be opened." ^
Of course Jesus did not mean that God is like a selfish
neighbour who must be plagued into complaisance ; nor would
He have His disciples besiege God with importunities and
insist on getting their desires, forgetful that their Heavenly
Mt. vi. 8. Father was wiser than they and " knew whereof they had
need ere they asked Him." His purpose was not to set forth
God's character, but to show after what manner men should
Cf. Eccius. pray. The parable is a warning against listlessness and half-
' heartedness. It teaches that prayer is not the mumbling over
of stereotyped formulae, but a serious and strenuous business
demanding the undivided energy of mind and heart, after the
manner of Onias, styled the Circle-maker, who, when the
people in time of drought asked him to pray for rain, drew a
circle and, standing in the midst of it, prayed thus : " Lord
of the world. Thy sons have turned their eyes on me, because
I am as a son of Thy house. Before Thee I swear by Thy
great name that from this circle I will not depart unless Thou
first have mercy on Thy sons. " ^
* Cf, Cromwell to his daughter, Bridget Ireton, 2Sth October 1646 : "To be a
leeker is to be of the best sect next to a finder ; and such an one shall every foithful
humble seeker be at the end. Happy seeker, happy finder I " Erasm. Adag, under
Qui instat extundit.
" Ottho, Hist. Doct. Misn. pp. 66-7.
A LESSON IN PRAYER 17^
How far it was from the Lord's purpose to liken God to a
selfish neighbour appears in the sequel, where He deduces
from the parable an a/^r//<?n argument : If even a selfish man
yields to entreaty, much more will God. "What man is
there of you who, if his son shall ask of him a loaf, will give
him a stone, or, if he shall ask a fish, will give him a serpent,
or, if he shall ask an egg, will give him a scorpion ? * If ye
then, being evil,^ know how to give good gifts unto your
children, how much more shall your Father that is in Heaven
give good things ^ to them that ask Him ? " Here is a repeti-
tion of the ancient prophet's moving argument : " Can a it. xiiz. ij,
woman forget her sucking child, that she should not have
compassion on the son of her womb ? Yea, these may foi^fct,
yet will not I forget thee."
It is indeed surprising that Jesus should have so long Nothinf
withheld from His disciples instruction in prayer, but it is l^lij^ia
still more surprising that the lesson which He at length gave p™^-
them at their request, should have been what it is. He
taught them nothing new. He simply reiterated certain
truths which other teachers had already enunciated ; and as
for the Prayer which He gave them for a model, beautiful as
it is, it is nothing else than a mosaic of snatches from the
Jewish liturgy, especially the Morning Service. There is not
a sentence, a phrase, or an idea in it which has not its Jewish
parallel.*
" Our Father that art in Heaven," says the Prayer : " Be
bold as a leopard, and swift as an eagle, and fleet as a hart,
and strong as a lion, to do the Will of thy Father that is in
Heaven," said R. Judah ben Thema. " Our Father," says the
Prayer ; and the Rabbis required that, when man prayed, he
should " associate himself with the Congregation," praying not
in the singular but in the plural number.^
" Hallowed be Thy Name ; Thy Kingdom come," says
> Proverbial phrases. C/. Sen. De Bene/, ii. § 7 : "Fabius Verrucosus bene-
ficium ab homine duro aspere datum panem lapidosum vocabat." Erasm. Adag.;
ivrl TipKr}t ffKopvlov. Wetstein on Mt. viL 10 : " For a fish a fisherman lOiM*
times catches a water-snake."
" Cf. Introd. § 12, 4.
» For Mt.'s i-yaOd Lk. has nrn/^ta 'ATtoi-, which is probably a tbeolo^cal glo«(
though Jesus might have so sp>oken : (/". Mk. iii. 29 ; xiu 36."
* See Wetstein on Mt. v. 16, vi. 9-13 ; Taylor, Say. of the Fa/A., Etc ».
* Lightfoot on Mt vi. 9.
O
174 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
the Prayer ; and in their prayers the Jews were wont to
couple the hallowing of God's Name and the coming of His
Cf. Zech. Kingdom. " Any benediction," said R. Judah the Holy,
"^" ^' " wherein no mention is made of the Name, is no benediction."
" Any benediction," said R. Jochanan, " wherein no mention
is made of the Kingdom, is no benediction."
" Thy Will be done, as in Heaven, also upon the earth,"
says the Prayer ; and it is written in the Talmud : " What is a
brief prayer ? R. Eliezer says : ' Do Thy Will in Heaven
above, and give rest of spirit to them that fear Thee
below.' "
" Our bread for the approaching day give us to-day," says
the Prayer ; and the Jews prayed : " We thank Thee for the
food wherewith Thou dost feed and sustain us continually
every day."
" Forgive us our debts as we also have forgiven our
debtors," says the Prayer, and Jesus the son of Sirach had
said the like. It is also written in the Talmud : " Let each
bethink himself how we every day pile up our sins before
God. It is our duty to forgive our neighbour also his tres-
passes after the pattern of the mercy which God shows
unto us."
" Lead us not into temptation," says the Prayer : " Never,"
said R. Judah, " let a man lead himself into the hands of
temptation ; for, behold, David, King of Israel, led himself
into the hands of temptation, and he fell." And it is a
petition of the Jews' Morning Prayer : " Lead me not into
the hands of sin, nor into the hands of transgression and
iniquity, nor into the hands of temptation." " Rescue us from
the Evil One," says the Prayer : " Be it Thy good pleasure,"
R. Judah was wont to pray, " to rescue us from shameless
ones and shamelessness, from the evil man and from the
evil assault, from evil affection, from an evil companion,
from an evil neighbour, from Satan the Destroyer."
The nattire It is indeed very remarkable that Jesus should not only
Christian have SO long withheld instruction in prayer from His disciples
prayer, ^uj.^ when they craved it, should, as it seems, have put them
off with a handful of excerpts from the Jewish liturgy and
a couple of precepts which other teachers had already
enforced. And the explanation is that the time for teaching
A LESSON IN PRAYER 175
them how to pray had not yet arrived. In His discourse to
the Eleven on the night of His betrayal He vouchsafed to
them an intimation which is full of significance He told
them that after His departure the Advocate, the Spirit of Johfi«*iy,
Truth, would come unto them and guide them in all the '^' '*'**
Truth ; and then He added : " In that day ye shall not
question Me at all. Verily, verily I tell you, whatever yc
may ask the Father for, He will give you in My Name.
Hitherto ye have not asked for anything in My Name : ask,
and ye shall receive, that your joy may be fulfilled."
This is the distinction of Christian prayer, that it is " in M;f
offered in the Name of Jesus, pleading His merit and claiming ^*'°**
acceptance on the ground of His infinite sacrifice. It is
written in the Epistle to the Hebrews : " Having therefore, «. i»-»*
brethren, boldness to enter into the Holy Place by the
Blood of Jesus by the way which He dedicated for us, a
new and living way, through the Veil, that is, His flesh ; and
having a great High Priest over the House of God, let us
approach with a true heart in full assurance of faith." By
His Death and Resurrection Jesus established a new relation
betwixt God and men ; He " finished transgression, and made
an end of sins, and made reconciliation for iniquity, andD«n.i«.«^
brought in everlasting righteousness " ; He gave to every
believing soul a sure pledge of acceptance with God. But
all this was hidden from the disciples while their Lord com-
panied with them in the flesh ; and not till He had finished
the work which had been given Him to do, and sent the
Holy Spirit unto them, did they perceive the difference which
He had made, and realise the wonder and blessedness of
their standing before God.
Mt. TiU. 1
»Lk. vi.
i7a=iMk.
iii. 3o; MIc
iii. 32-30 s •
Mt. xii. 23*
4)=&xt CHAPTER XX
14-5, 17-26;
Mt. xii. 38-
4S=:Lk.xi. RENEWED CONFLICT
16, 29-36,
24-6; Lk.
XI. 27-8; •♦Men spurned His g^^ce; their lips blasphemed
co=Mk. '^^^ Love who made Himself their slave ;
iii. 31, 31-5 They grieved that blessed Comforter,
3=Lk. viii. And turned against Him what He gave." — Fabek.
I9r2I.
Jesus re- AFTER Ordaining the Twelve Jesus descended from the ui>
sumes His ° •' . . *^
ministry in lands and entered into Capernaum to resume His ministry,
naum' No sooner had He got home to Peter's house than a crowd
gathered. The fame of His doings during the festal season,
His miracle at Bethesda and His encounter with the rulers,
had reached Galilee, and the excitement was greater than
ever. So insistent was the throng about the door, so eager
to see and hear Him, that, in the language of St Mark, Jesus
and His disciples " could not even eat bread." The acclama-
Hostiiity of tion, howevcf, was broken by a discordant and ominous note.
' His doings at Jerusalem had exasperated the rulers, and
the Sanhedrin had sent emissaries to co-operate with the
local authorities ; and they watched Him with jealous and
malignant eyes, angry at the enthusiasm of the multitude
and eager to find occasion against Him.
Charge of An occaslon soon presented itself. A blind and dumb
with Satan, lunatic was brought to Jesus, and He healed him.^ It was a
striking miracle, in truth three miracles in one ; and the
Mt. rii. 23. spectators were amazed. " Is it possible," they said one to
another, " that this is the Son of David." ' The Pharisees
were bitterly chagrined. The reality of the miracle was
beyond dispute, but some objection they must raise in order
to stay the tide of popular enthusiasm and discredit Jesus ;
and they devised an accusation whose palpable absurdity
*Only the dumbness is mentioned by Lk. xi. 14. It is probable that Mt. ix.
32-4 is an abbreviated duplicate of this incident assimilated to Llc'i rersion and
inserted where it stands in view of Mt x. 25.
* Lt. the Messiah. Some MSS. add •' Xpurrit.
RENEWED CONFLICT 177
betrays the despcrateness of their case. They asserted that
He was in league with the Devil : " This fellow does not expel
the daemons but by Beelzebul,^ prince of the daemons."
The insinuation reached the cars of Jesus, and He took Hto 1
up the charge and, with indignant contempt, tore it to Utters.
First, He demonstrated its absurdity. It was a common-
place, almost a proverb, that disunion was ruinous alike to
kingdoms, to cities, and to houses ; * and if Satan expelled
Satan, he was divided against himself, and how could his
kingdom stand? Then He retorted their accusation upon
themselves. What of the Jewish exorcists? " If it be by
Beelzebul that I expel the daemons, by whom is it that your
sons expel them ? Therefore they shall be your judges."
Finally, since the hypothesis of alliance with Satan was
absurd, it could only be by the Spirit of God that He
expelled the daemons, and it followed that the Kingdom of
God had made its appearance among them, that is to say,
He was the Messiah. He had proved Himself the triumphant
adversary of Satan. " How can one enter into the strong
man's house and plunder his goods, unless he first bind the
strong man ? And then he will plunder all his house." •
After thus refuting the foolish and malignant accusation HiteoMM
of the Pharisees, Jesus brought against them a counter charge, 55l|2S«L»
the most awful that can be imagined. He told them thatyf««^^
there was a sin which could never be forgiven, and they had
committed it They had blasphemed against the Holy Spirit.
They had witnessed that gracious miracle, and they had
known that it was a work of God ; yet they had hardened
their hearts and pronounced it a work of the Devil. It was
pardonable that they should speak against Jesus, since He
presented Himself in lowly guise as the Son of Man, and
they might despise and reject Him, not knowing what they
did. But it was another matter when they did despite to the
1 Beelzebub, " Lord of flies," the god of Ekron who had in early dafi
threatened to rival Jehovah in the affection of Israel. He was subsequently re^afdcd
as the chief of the evil spirits and designated contemptuously BeeUebul, " Lord of
dung." Lightfoot on Mt. xii. 24 and Lk. xi. 1$. Less probable ^ the ezplanatkio
" Lord of the mansion " (^p Lt. the nether world.
' WeUtein on Ml xiL 2$.
•Mt xiL 30 = Lk. xi. 23; Mt xii. 33-7 = Lk. vL 43-5: homelest ^c Cf,
Introd. I 9» °< !•
178 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
Spirit of Grace, refusing His testimony, stifling the voice of
conscience, and calling good evil. That was a sin which
could never be forgiven. It betokened that their hearts were
hopelessly hardened, fenced about with an impenetrable
barrier of malicious prejudice, and utterly impervious to
repentance ; and where there is no possibility of repentance,
John iii. i8. there is no possibility of forgiveness. The man " hath
already been judged." He is like Friar Alberigo in the
Divina Contmedia whose soul was in the Inferno while his
body still tenanted the upper world. " I tell you," says Jesus,
•' that all their sins shall be forgiven unto the sons of men,
and their blasphemies, however much they shall blaspheme.
And whosoever shall speak a word against the Son of Man,
it shall be forgiven unto him. But whosoever shall
blaspheme against the Holy Spirit, hath never forgiveness,
but is in the grip of an eternal sin."^ The sin is eternal
because it can never be forgiven, and it never can be forgiven
because the man can never repent.
Request for It was the emissaries from Jerusalem who had accused
a sign, jggyg Qf being in league with the Devil. He had put them
to silence and to shame, and they durst not renew the
attack. But they had allies in the local Pharisees, and some
of the latter presently approached Him, feigning perplexity
and asking Him to resolve their doubts regarding His
Messiahship by working a miracle in their presence. A
like request had been made by the rulers in the Temple-
John ii 18. court at the commencement of His ministry ; and, while
refusing it. He had dealt with it graciously, since it had
been made in all sincerity. It was, however, a very different
spirit that prompted these Pharisees. What need had they
of another sign after all that they had already witnessed ?
The truth is that they had no desire to be convinced.
They probably hoped that, should He accede to their pro-
posal. He would fail in the attempt ; and, if He succeeded,
they would have treated the sign as they had treated all
His previous miracles. It is no wonder that Jesus refused.
Even when the request was made in all good faith. He
would not work a miracle in attestation of His claims, for-
asmuch as they rested on a deeper and more spiritual sort
* KBL cL/ui/>n)^r4f. T. R. Kptfftut. Other variants : ifta/yrlat, Ktikirttn.
RENEWED CONFLICT ,79
of evidence. And, when it was made in the spirit of ^Hfttft
Pharisees, it was naught else than rank impiety. It was
like the challenge of the English man of science who
some while ago proposed a short and simple test of the
efficacy of prayer : that there should be two hospitals or two
wards in the same hospital, and the patients in both should
receive the self-same treatment ; but the one set should be
made the objects of special prayer by believers and the
others left to the operation of natural law ; the issue deter-
mining whether there be any efficacy in prayer.* What else
than blasphemy were such a proceeding ? God will not be
experimented upon. "Without faith it is impossible to belMw.sLC
well-pleasing unto Him ; for he that approacheth God must
have faith that He is and unto them that diligently seek
Him proveth a rewarder."
Jesus contemptuously refused the request of the Pharisees. Hi* nphr.
" It is an evil and adulterous generation," He said, " that
seeketh after a sign ; and no sign shall be given unto it
except the sign of Jonah the prophet."* The sign of
Jonah was his preaching, which, without any miracle, won
the men of Nineveh to repentance. They " believed God, Jo*. ■. ^
and proclaimed a fast, and put on sackcloth, from the
greatest of them even to the least of them." And no other
sign would Jesus grant to those obdurate Pharisees. Their
unbelief was without excuse. It proved them harder of
heart than the very heathen. The Ninevites had repented
at the preaching of Jonah : " and, behold," says Jesus, " some-
thing greater than Jonah is here!" The Queen of Sheba
had come from the ends of the earth to hear the wisdom
of Solomon : " and, behold, something greater than Solomon
is here!"
And truly that generation was in a very evil case.
Its bane was Pharisaism, which made religion a matter of
mere external conformity to the multitudinous observances
of the ceremonial law ; and what availed the show of sanctity
when the heart remained untouched and the soul unsatisfied ?
>C/: Kenan's "commission, composed of physiologists, phy«cJ«u, chemifts,
persons acctjstomed to historical criticism," who should sit in judgment oo a «••
of resurrection. Introd. to Vie dt Jts.
*Cf. Introd. f la, 7.
i8o THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
It sometimes happens that a sufferer finds temporary relief;
but, since the root of his distemper remains, it presently
recovers its vigour and breaks out more powerfully than
ever. The Jews had their explanation of this familiar
phenomenon. They believed that the sufferer was possessed
by a daemon. It had been driven out and banished to the
wilderness which was its proper haunt^ But it was ill
content there, desiring embodiment that it might work its
unholy desires ; ' and, watching its opportunity, it re-entered
the man, resuming its interrupted sway with intensified
ferocity. Such was the Jewish belief, and Jesus makes use
of it here. " When the unclean spirit is gone forth from
the man, it passeth through waterless places seeking rest,
and findeth it not Then it saith : ' Into my house will
I return whence I came forth ' ; and, when it hath come,
it findeth it unoccupied and swept and garnished. Then it
goeth and taketh with itself seven other spirits more evil
than itself, and they enter and dwell there. And the last
state of that man proveth worse than the first Thus shall
it be also unto this evil generation." It is an awful yet
familiar moral tragedy that Jesus here depicts. During
the Reign of the Saints ungodliness was repressed with a
strong hand, and it seemed for a season as though England
had been exorcised. But men's hearts remained unchanged,
and they fretted at the restraint The Restoration came,
and the nation, flinging off its bonds, plunged into a very
riot of excess. The unclean spirit returned in sevenfold
strength, and the last state of the nation proved worse than
the first Mere reformation is insufficient Unless the dis-
possessed soul be filled by the grace of the Holy Spirit,
there is no true and abiding salvation.
Acdama- The encounter attracted an ever-increasing throng of
bystanders, spectators. It seemed a very unequal contest Jesus stood
alone against the power and pride of the rulers ; yet He
stood undaunted, like St Ambrose confronting the sinful
Emperor in the porch of the Church of Milan, like Luther
proclaiming his resolution at the Diet of Worms, like Knox
declaring the truth to Queen Mary. It was a heroic scene,
* Is. xiii. 19-22 ; xzxiv. 13-4 ; Tob. viiL 3 ; Bar. iv. 3 J ; Rev. xviiL 9.
' ^em. Rom. Horn. ix. j( 10.
RENEWED CONFLICT ,8|
and the spectators would watch its progress with breathless
interest and would greet His triumph with a murmur of
applause. A voice was lifted in admiration — the voice of
a woman in the crowd. " Blessed," she cried, " is the womb
that carried Thee, and the breasts which Thou didst suck ! "
It was a womanly exclamation. " O that I had a son like
that!" was the thought of her heart The tribute, so
spontaneous, so eloquent of sympathy and goodwill, would
be very precious to Jesus ; and it was in no spirit of reproof
that He replied, telling her of a still higher blessedness :
" Nay rather, blessed are they that hear the Word of God
and keep it."
Hard after this interruption came another. Word was Aitempi of
passed to Jesus that His mother and brethren were standing ]^ \^
on the outskirts of the crowd and craved speech with Him. ■"** "•"
They had arrived while His controversy with the Pharisees ** "^
was in progress, and had been unable to push their way
through the dense throng. What had brought them thither ?
Tidings, no doubt exaggerated and perverted, of His doings,
especially His recent encounter with the rulers at Jerusalem,
had reached Nazareth and had seriously perturbed His kins-
folk, especially His brethren who all through His ministry Mk. m ,t
treated Him disdainfully and rejected His claims. His
doings seemed to them sheer madness, and they concluded
that their brother, always a dreamer in their eyes, had lost
His reason. Apprehensive perhaps lest the consequences of
His quarrel with the rulers might extend to themselves,
they determined to avert the danger by getting hold of
Him and keeping Him under control. With this design
they had come down to Capernaum, and they waited on
the outskirts of the crowd until they should have an oppor-
tunity of seizing Him and carrying Him off. The contro-
versy, however, continued long, and, waxing impatient, they
sent a message that they were there and desired to talk
with Him.
Mary was with them, but it is hardly possible that, knowing M«nr'«
the wonder of His birth, she should have shared their coarse yoa ib«*
opinion. Her feeling was probably solicitude for His safety. **•
She had heard of His quarrel with the rulers and, dreading the
issue, would gladly have had Him conveyed away from the
i82 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
scene of strife to peaceful Nazareth. Nevertheless her inter-
ference must have pained Jesus. A few moments previously
an unknown woman had envied the mother who bore Him,
and there was that mother in alliance, if not in sympathy, with
those who deemed Him mad ! Whatever her motive, Mary's
conduct betrayed an utter misapprehension of His Messianic
vocation and a culpable distrust of Him who, while her son
after the flesh, was yet, as she knew, her Lord. The Spartan
mother of old gave her son his shield as he went forth to
battle, and bade him either bear it home triumphant or fall
upon it on the stricken field ; and Mary should have cheered
the Son of her love in the prosecution of His holy warfare.
His re- Jesus divined the purpose of His mother and brethren.
o"e^hiy On the threshold of His ministry, when Mary would have
kinship, prescribed what He should do at the wedding at Cana, He
repressed her with the question : " What have I to do with thee,
woman ? " and now He meets the interference of His kinsfolk
with a fresh and more explicit repudiation of earthly kinship.
" Who," He asks, " is My mother ? and who are My brethren ? "
Then He stretched out His hand toward His disciples and
cried : " Behold, My mother and My brethren ! For whoso-
ever shall do the will of My Father in Heaven, he is My
brother and sister and mother." The Kingdom of Heaven is
not carnal but spiritual, and only such as know the Father's
love and seek His glory are of the kindred of Jesus.
CHAPTER XXI
TEACHING BY PARABLES Ml. rii. ■•
•J. 34-5.
" The simplest sights we met— jv.^^w.
The Sower flinging seed on loam and rock ; 4aBLk ^i.
The darnel in the wheat ; the mustard-tree «-(S> >'•
That hath its seed so little, and its boughs
Wide-spreading ; and the wandering sheep ; and netj
Shot in the wimpled waters, — drawing forth
Great fish and small :— these, and a hundred such.
Seen by us daily, never seen aright,
Were piaures for Him from the page of life,
Teaching by parable."— Sui Edwin Asnold.
It is remarkable that at the commencement of the second TcMhtaf
year of His Galilean ministry, when the rulers' hostility liad ^^^^
thrown off all disguise and the people's enthusiasm had grown
greater than ever, Jesus adopted a new method of teaching.
He " spoke in parables to the multitudes, and without a parable
would He speak nothing to them." It was indeed no novel
method. It had been employed by the ancient prophets, and cf. a Sua.
was much in vogue with the Rabbis.^ And this commended """jj^* **"
it to Jesus. He was always careful to accommodate Himself E««k. «»tt.
to the usages of His contemporaries, and the originality of His 3.5.
teaching lay less in the revelation of new truths than in the
disclosure of an undreamed of significance in truths already
familiar. "Every scribe," He said, "that hath been made aMtiii.s»
disciple unto the Kingdom of Heaven is like a householder
who flingeth forth out of his store things new and old."*
The Rabbis, those slavish repeaters of tradition, who prefaced
their every statement with " R. So-and-so saith," had in
their store only " things old " ; but the Christian teacher must,
after the manner of his Lord, combine the new with the old,
* R. Meir was specially distinguished in parabolic teaching. Cf. Ligbtfoot o«
Ml xiii. 3. Some of the Rabbis' parables closely resembled parables of Jesui, b«t
in the instances adduced they were the imitators, since He lived first
• The Kingdom of Heaven is here personifi^. Cf. Mt. xxrix. 57. The Fttbeo
generally understand /cat^A «a2 T«X<ua as the N.T. and the O.T. Cf. CbryioiC
In Matth. xlviii : The Jews brought forth roXaul but not xaw^, and the betetka
who rejected the O.T. (Maidonites), «au>d but not roXcii.
i84 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
recognising each fresh revelation as a development and enrich-
ment of the ancient heritage of truth,
A method It was primarily for the sake of the Twelve that Jesus
tbcTweiv^ adopted the parabolic method. He had chosen the men who
should continue His work after His departure, and it was of
paramount importance that they should be prepared for their
high vocation. His interest thenceforth centred in the Twelve,
and He devoted Himself more and more exclusively to the
task of their instruction. His parabolic teaching was a device
^^ ^f' M ^^^ ^^^ achievement of this great end. He would speak to the
xiii'. 36, 51 ; multitude in parables, and by and by, when He was alone with
-Mk!\du the Twelve, He would explain the parables to them. It was
'7- not an abandonment of the multitude. It was a partial and
temporary slackening of His efforts to win the world that
He might be at leisure to furbish the instruments whereby
that great work should be accomplished.
Its judicial At the Same time His adoption of the parabolic method
"^^ * of teaching had a judicial aspect For the most part, while
transported with wonder at His miracles, the multitude had
no heart for His teaching. Like their fathers in Isaiah's day,
Is. vi. 9. they " heard, but did not understand ; they saw, but did not
perceive." For a whole year Jesus had been seeking vainly to
win an entrance for His Evangel into their dull hearts, and He
would no longer essay the unprofitable task. When He spoke
in their hearing, it would thenceforth be by parables, " that,"
He says, quoting the language of the ancient prophet, " seeing
they might see and not perceive, and hearing might hear and
not understand, lest haply they should turn and be forgiven." ^
Jesus was weary of the unprofitable multitude, so enthusiastic
about His miracles, so impervious to His teaching, and He
adopted the parabolic method in order to chill their unspiritual
ardour. If they had missed the significance of His plain
teaching, much more would they miss that of His parables,
which even the Twelve needed to have interpreted to them,
and which would simply bewilder and offend the unthinking
multitude. His parabolic teaching was thus a dispensation of
* This has always seemed a hard saying. C/. Introd. § 12, 3, (l). It is
rejected by some modern critics as unhistorical : Keim (quoting Strauss approvingly)
speaks of "the paradoxical and astonishingly morbid meaning which the pessimist
Gospels, despairing of the Jewish people, have more or less introduced into his
^ord«." Schmiedel, £. B. «rt. Gotfels | laS (^ ; JttUcher, R. B. wt. Par«U>Uu
TEACHING BY PARABLES 185
judgment It was as a fan wherewith he purged His floor
separating the chaff from the grain.
His first parable was spoken by the shore of the Lake. Tht
A crowd had gathered about Him, so large and so eager that SiSUf.
He resorted to His old expedient of getting into a boat,
pushing out from the land a little way, and thence discoursing
to the multitude on the beach.* He taught them much, and
it was all in parables, whereof one was especially memorable,
" Hearken ! " He said. " Behold, the sower went forth to
sow." As he scattered his seed, some of it fell on the path
which ran through the midst of the field,* and lay on the
hard surface till it was trampled by the passers by or
devoured by the birds. Some fell on places where the soil
was shallow, a mere sprinkling of earth upon the rock-bed ;
and it took root and sprang up quickly, but, since it had no
deep loam to strike its roots into and draw nourishment from,
it as quickly withered away. Some fell on ground which
had not been cleared of weeds. The soil was good enough,
and, had it been clean, it would have grown a plenteous crop;
but side by side with the corn-blades thistles sprang up. It
was a struggle betwixt the two, and the rank weeds got
the best of it, and choked the tender blades. The rest of
the seed fell on good ground, soft and deep and clean ;
and it sprang up and produced ears of various fulness, one
grain multiplying itself thirty-fold, another sixty-fold, another
an hundred-fold.
" He that hath ears," said Jesus, challenging His audience Q^**""
to reflection, " let him hear." And indeed reflection was tw«j*«.
needed. Even the Twelve were puzzled, and, when they
were alone with Jesus, they asked Him two questions.
" Wherefore," said they, wondering at the novel method of
teaching, "speakest Thou unto them in parables?" and
Jesus told them of His resolution to give Himself thence-
forth to the task of revealing to them the mysteries of the
Kingdom of Heaven and leave the unreceptivc multitude
alone. Then they enquired what the parable meant They
should have seen some glimmering of its spiritual signifi-
» Chrysost. In Mattk. xlri : ««Wir<" "P* ^ eiXaatw^ iXttitm m2 J*\%»-.mr
• c/. p. 133.
i86 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
cance, and their dulness disappointed Jesus. " Ye know not
this parable ! And how will you read all the parables ? "
It seemed an unpromising beginning. Nevertheless He
interpreta- patiently expounded the parable to them. The seed repre-
*'°^°'j^5^! sented the Word, and the different kinds of soil different
(i) the kinds of hearers. First, there was the pathway where the
** ' seed could not strike root and was presently trampled down
by passing feet or devoured by birds ; and this represented
such as " hear the Word and do not take it in.^ " Their
fault may be stupidity, or it may be levity of mind, a fatal
lack of seriousness. No sooner has the voice of the preacher
ceased than they forget his message. They do not lay hold
of it and ponder it. It gains no lodgment in their souls.
" When any one heareth the Word of the Kingdom and doth
not take it in, the Evil One cometh and snatcheth away what
hath been sown in his heart This is the seed that has been
sown by the wayside."
(a) the The shallow soil represented a class only too common in
sou ; times of religious revival — hearers who, carried away by their
emotions, manifest great zeal and make extravagant pro-
fessions. Presently, however, they encounter difficulties, or
are called to suffer for their religion ; and they lose heart
and fall off. " When they hear the Word, immediately with
joy they receive it ; and they have no root in themselves, but
are temporary ; * then, when tribulation or persecution hath
arisen for the Word's sake, immediately they are made to
stumble." A time of persecution is ever a time of sifting.
When Pliny assumed the governorship of Bithynia during the
reign of Trajan, he found the ancient religion well-nigh
extinct and Christianity professed all over the province ; and
he took prompt and vigorous measures to repress " the
wicked and extravagant superstition." Some stood faithful,
but most bowed before the storm and reverted to their old
allegiance. The heathen temples, long forsaken, were once more
thronged with worshippers, the disused rites were celebrated
anew, and the traffic in sacrificial victims recovered its former
* ffw/ij/u like our colloquial "take it in," expressing both the reception of the
seed into the ground and the reception of the Word into the mind. Mt. ziiL 23 :
i rhf \iyop i.Kovuv xat (Ti/rieiisMk. iv. 30 : olru>€t dxovovfftr rhf Xoyor Kal rapaii-
* rpUKcufXH : rf. a Cor. It. 18 ; Hebr. xi. 35.
TEACHING BY PARABLES 187
activity.^ Jesus had no quarrel with enthusiasm, but He would
have men understand that discipleship was a high and heroic
enterprise, and would have no one enter upon it unless he had
counted the cost and was prepared to carry it out at all hazards.
Peculiarly tragic is the case of that third class of hearers (3) the on.
whom Jesus likens to uncleaned soil. They are men with sou'"
excellent possibilities. They hear the Word and receive it,
and it takes root in their hearts ; but side by side with it
there springs up a noxious growth — " the anxieties of the
world, and the deceitfulness of riches, and the lusts of other
things." * Sometimes it is the urgency of worldly affairs
that drives the thought of higher things out of the man's
heart He is too busy to care for the things that belong
to his eternal peace ; and soon his Godward aspirations,
unnourished by prayer and meditation, wither and die.
Or luxury enfolds him and eats like a canker into his
soul. Or there emerges a choice betwixt the Lord's
requirement and worldly interest, and the latter wins the
day. Or perhaps it is that some fleshly lust has taken
root in his soul, and he suffers it to retain its hold instead
of resolutely tearing it up and flinging it out of his life. And
it strikes its roots ever deeper and stronger, until it chokes the
tender shoots of heavenly grace and holds undisputed dominion.
There remains the fourth class of hearers, who are likened (4)ihegood
by our Lord to good soil. " These are such as in a true and
good heart,^ having heard the Word, hold it fast and bear
fruit" It is very noteworthy that they exhibit various
degrees of excellence. They all bear fruit, but some thirty-
fold, some sixty- fold, some an hundred-fold. " If," says St
Chrysostom,* " the ground was good and the sower and the
seeds all alike, why did it bear here an hundred-fold, here
» Plin. Ep. X. lor.
' Chrysost. In Malth. xlv: " It is possible, if yon will, to prevent this evil growth
and use riches aright. Therefore it is that He did not say ' the world ' but ' the
anxiety of the world,' not 'riches 'but 'the deceitfulness of riches.'" al r«/)i tA
XotTtt friSvfilai, a delicate allusion to things unnamable.
' Lk. viii. IS : iy KapSi<f. KaXi koI 070^^, wanting in Mt. xiii. 23 = Mk. iv. 20 j
an editorial addition to differentiate the fourth class of hearers more precisely. The
second and the third class no less than the fourth " hear the Word and uke it
in." The phrase betrays Lk.'s Greek culture. In the classics KoXbi Kiy<ie6i »
"a perfect gentleman." Cf. Arist. Af. Mor. ii. 9. f 2.
* In Matth. xWi.
i88 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
sixty-fold, and here thirty-fold ? The difference was due to
the nature of the ground ; for even where the ground was
good, the difference in it was great You see, it is not the
husbandman that is to blame, nor the seeds, but the land that
receives them. And here, too, the philanthropy is great,
because God does not require one measure of excellence,
but receives the first, and does not reject the second, and
gives the third a place." Believers have not all equal
capacities or endowments, but it is enough that each should
do what lies within him and prove faithful to the trust
committed to him, employing his faculties, whatever they
may be, with diligent hand and devoted heart. There is
room in the Kingdom of Heaven not only for a St John and
a St Paul but for the nameless multitude that love the Lord
and serve Him loyally in their obscure places.^
parabie^e Those types of hearers were sketched from life. They had
Lord's all come under the Lord's observation. In truth the parable
of His of the sower is nothing else than His estimate of His year's
mnistry. jjiinistry in Galilee. To a superficial observer it might seem
that the success had been very great. The whole land had
Mk. iii. 7-8. been stirred, and not only Galilee but Judaea, nay, the heathen
territories of Syrophcenicia and Peraea had contributed to the
throng that had poured into Capernaum to see His wondrous
works and hear His gracious words. But Jesus knew how
little all that enthusiasm was worth. Many were wayside
hearers, forgetting as soon as they heard. And many had
attached themselves to Him and called themselves His
disciples because they deemed Him the Messiah and expected
Him presently to take unto Him His great power and reign ;
and He knew that, when they discovered their mistake and
saw a cross where they had looked for a throne, they would
fall off. He appraised the popular enthusiasm at its proper
value. He knew that a day was coming when the multitude's
acclamation would turn to execration, and the faith even of
His Apostles would fail. He estimated the result of His
year's labour, and His verdict was : abundant sowing, scanty
fruit. Yet He did not speak in bitterness. His labour had
not been in vain. He had won His own, and they sufficed.
^ Mt. editorially appends to the parable of the Sower a gronp of eight parablet
about the Kingdom of Ueaveti.
CHAPTER XXn
" The winds were howling o'er the deep,
Each wave a watery hill ;
The Saviour waken'd from His sleep ;
H« spake, and all was still.
RETREAT ACROSS THE LAKE Mt.TiU. i8.
33— ix. 1 =
TTie madman in a tomb had made y. ao= LkT
His mansion of despair : viii, 22-39.
Woe to the traveller who strajr'd
With heedless footsteps there I
•• He met that glance, so thrilling sweet ;
He heard those accents mild ;
And, melting at Messiah's feet,
Wept like a weanW child," — Hebek.
Jesus did not remain long in Capernaum. Beset by the The em-
multitude and harassed by the rulers, it was impossible for^^'""°°'
Him to give Himself to the task of instructing the Twelve.
He resolved to create opportunity, and one evening He said :
" Let us cross over to the other side." In haste to set out,
He dismissed the multitude and, "just as He was," without
rest or refreshment after the day's labour, got into the boat cf. Mk. ia
The people were loath to let Him go, and some procured boats 9-
and put off along with Him.
Jesus sate in the stern-sheets while His fisher-disciples jcsus
managed the boat. It was a long sail of some seven miles ; ^^"'p**
and, weary with the labour of the day and lulled by the
gentle motion of the boat and the plash of prow and sides, He
sank into a profound sleep. His head pillowed on the steers-
man's seat.* The Lake of Galilee is liable to sudden storms. ^ sudden
It lies deep in its hill-girt basin, and after a sultry day the *'°"°'
cool air from the uplands will often rush down the ravines
with terrific violence.^ That evening, as the little fleet crept
along in the fading twilight, a storm of unusual severity burst
upon it, a hurricane of wind with black, driving clouds and
* Mlc. iv. 38 : rh rpoffKe<pi\<uop, properly a pillow for the head, then a euthioH
for sitting on. See Wetstein. It would be no laxurions pillow. £uth. Zig. i
^■SKi.vo¥ hk TovTo fj* (vl TTJt T/3i5/nrj;t KaTtOKevaafJulyor.
* Thomson, Land and Book, chap. xxv.
I90 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
pelting rain.^ Instantly the Lake was in wild commotion.
The waves smote the frail vessels, breaking over them and
filling them fast A little more and they must founder. All
the while Jesus was sleeping peacefully, undisturbed by the
howling wind, dashing waves, and beating rain. The terrified
/e«u«8iffls disciples woke Him. " Master, Master ! " they cried, " we are
perishing." He awoke and surveyed the scene undismayed.
" Why," He asked, reassuring them with gentle rebuke, " arc
ye cowardly, O ye of little faith ? " ' And then He addressed
the tumultuous elements as though they had been raging
beasts. "He rebuked the wind, and said to the sea : ' Silence !
Be muzzled ! '" * And they obeyed. When a storm subsides
naturally, the wind gradually abates, and long after it has died
away, the sea still heaves and swells. But at the word of
Jesus " the wind sank to rest, and there ensued a great calm."
The other boats shared the deliverance, and their crews were
stricken at once with wonder and with dread.* " What
manner of man is this," they asked one of another, " that even
the wind and the sea obey Him ? "
^^"•^^ They came to land on the eastern_shore near the town of
Gerasa, which survives in ruins to this day with its ancient
name modified to Khersa. " It Weis a small place, but the
walls can be traced all round, and there seems to have been
considerable suburbs. . . . It is within a few rods of the shore,
and an immense mountain rises directly above it." Save here
the whole eastern shore of the Lake slopes gently to the
water's edge, but here the mountain comes down abruptly
with a steep declivity. Hard by the ruins of the town are
the remains of ancient tombs hewn out of the face of the
mountain.'
* XaiXa^. Snid. : h fixi'ij'ifjiwv 6/jifipos Kal o-Jto'roj.
* Mt. : 6\ty6xi<rroi. Mk. : xwj ovk ^ere rlariv ; Lk. : tov i) rUrrts ifiiip ;
SKiyowirros was a favonrite word of Jesos. Cy. Mt. vi. 30= Lk. xLL 28 ; ML xiv. 31 ;
xvi. 8.
* Cy. p. 109. Verg. ^ft. L 66 : " et mulcere dedit fluctus et toUere vento."
Chrysost. In Matth. xxut : &airep eUbi Sfo-w&nir iTiTdrroyra BeparaiwlSi c«i
dyjfuovpybr KrlfffuarL.
* Mt. viii. 27 : oi df^pwrot, explained by Mk. iv. 36 : koX 2XXa tXom.
* T. R. gives Ta-iapTivuv in all the three Evangelists ; but W. H. with the best
authorities read Ttpa.<r-ijvwv in Mk. and Lk., TaiapTjvQv in Mt. Tisch. reads in Lk.
T€pytff^up, which is probably an alternative or mistaken form of rtpcurrjfwr. See
£. B, art. Gerasenes. Since Gadara lay several miles inland S.E. of the Lake,
RETREAT ACROSS THE LAKE 191
Jesus disembarked and took His way up the mountain, a audmu
His errand is hardly doubtful. It would be very early in thef,^^*^
morning when the storm-tossed voyagers came to land, and it
was His wont to betake Himself for prayer to some solitary
place " a great while before day." A favourite oratory of His cf. ml dr.
was the mountain-top. Such was His errand now ; and, as 46=jihn!!*'
He went His way up the hill-side, an appalling adventure *•• »s-
befell Him. He was passing the burial-place when there
rushed forth a man,^ liker a wild beast than a human being.
He was, in the parlance of that age, a demoniac ; that is to
say, he was a lunatic, but his lunacy was of a dreadful sort
He was a raging madman. In those days, ere Christianity
had imbued society with its humane and beneficent spirit,
there were no asylums, and such miserable wretches were
suffered to roam at large. They were wont to haunt burial-
places, tearing their garments and crouching during the night
in the open tombs.^ The Gerasene madman was the terror
of the neighbourhood. Attempts had been made to fetter
him, but with the strength of frenzy he had always burst his
bonds, and he roamed over the mountain, howling and bruising
his naked body against the sharp rocks.
When he espied Jesus, he uttered a cry not of fury but J«»" ea-
of fear, then ran to Him and prostrated himself before Him. him.
Forthwith there ensued an extraordinary scene. Jesus
addressed Himself resolutely to the task of healing the mad-
man. It was necessary first of all that He should gain the
mastery over him ; and, falling in, according to His wont,
Va.lit.fyt\v5)v is impossible. It is due to the tendency to substitute a familiar name foi
an unfamiliar. Besides Peraean Gerasa there was, according to Origen (/« Jocm.
vi. § 24) a Gerasa (Gergesa) on the eastern side of the Lake, "an ancient city on
the lake now called Tiberias, and in its neighbourhood there is a precipice flanking
the lake, from which, it is pointed out, the swine were thrown down by the daemons."
To Thomson {Land and Book, chap, xxv) is due the identification of Gerasa
(Gergesa) with the modern Khersa. Cf. Smith, H. G. p. 459 ; Sanday, Satred
Sites, pp. 25-9.
» Cf. Introd. § 12, I.
' Lightfoot and Wetstein on Mt. viii. 28. Cf. Jerome's description of the
spectacle which met the eyes of Paula when she visited the tombs of Elisha,
Obadiah, and John the Baptist at Sebaste {Ep. xxvii, AdEustock. Virg.): "Namque
cernebat variis dsemones rugire cruciatibus, et ante sepulchra sanctorum ululare
homines more luporum, vocibus latrare canum, fremere leonum, sibilare serpcnium,
mugire taurorum ; alios rotare caput et post tergum terram vertice tangere, suspen-
(isque pede foeminis vcstes defluere in faciem."
192 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
Ineffectual with the hallucination of the disordered brain, He sternly
* cifftThim? addressed the supposed dsemon and commanded it to come
forth from the man. It was an attempt to master the lunatic
by an assertion of authority. But it proved unavailing. It
only excited a paroxysm of frenzy. " What have we to do
Cf. Lk. i. with Thee, Jesus, Son of the Most High God ? ^ Hast Thou
32. 3Si 76. come here ere the time to torment us ? "
Foiled thus, Jesus made a second attempt " What is thy
name ? " He asked quietly, thinking to recall the madman to
himself. But this device also proved unsuccessful. The idea
that he was possessed had taken hold of the man. He
believed that not one daemon but thousands had entered into
him. Wherever Rome's invincible legions came, they seemed
the very embodiment of resistless tyranny. Their name had
Cf. Mt passed into a proverb among the Jews, and this poor creature
"VI. 53. conceived himself possessed by a legion of daemons. " My
name," he answered, speaking as their mouthpiece, " is a legion."
Incident of And then, still speaking for the daemons, he prayed : " Send
■ us not away into the wilderness." ^ The authority of the
Lord's calm personality was beginning to gain ascendancy
over him. He recognised that he must yield ; and, still
identifying himself with the daemons, he dreaded banishment
to the wilderness, the abhorred haunt of disembodied daemons.
It chanced that a huge herd of swine, numbering some two
thousand, was feeding at a distance, and an idea occurred to
the madman. " Send us," he cried, proposing a compromise,
" into the swine." It was an insane notion, yet Jesus welcomed
it. It furnished Him with an opportunity of getting the man
under His control. " Away ! " He cried, and forthwith an
amazing thing happened. The swine rushed wildly down the
mountain-side, over the precipice, into the Lake, and were
drowned.
Beneficent What was it that happened ? Intent on gaining ascend-
' ancy over him, Jesus had all along, like a wise physician,
humoured the madman's fancy ; and in this wild suggestion
He recognised an opportunity for achieving His beneficent
* I.e. the Messiah. This stamps the man as a Jew. The popolatioo on the
eastern side of the Lake was mixed, partly Jewish, partly Gentile.
' Mk. *|« T^j xwp*». outside of the cultivated land where men dwell, i.e. into
the wilderness, the haunt of disembodied daemons ; cf. Mt. xii. 43 = Lk. xi. 24. See
p. 180. Lk. has fit rV H^vvvoif, i.e. into HeU.
RETREAT ACROSS THE LAKE 193
purpose. He feigned acquiescence. " Away 1 " He said to
the supposed daemons, and therewith pressed the swine into the
service of His humane endeavour. He was Lord of man and
of beast, and, even as He directed a shoal of fish into the net Lk. r. 4^:
of His disciples, so He compelled the herd of swine to work ■''''*° "** *
His will. He smote the creatures with a sudden panic, and
they rushed down the incline to their destruction. The
stratagem was entirely successful. The man believed in his
possession by six thousand dxmons and in the feasibility of
their transference to the swine ; and, when he heard the Lord's
command and straightway saw the headlong rush of the
maddened beasts, he was assured of his deliverance. The
daemons had left him ; they had entered into the swine and had
been plunged into the Lake. And they could trouble him no
more ; for, since, according to Jewish ideas, the sea was one of
the three doors into Gehenna,^ they had been swept into the
Abyss, incurring the very doom which they had deprecated. Lt riii. jx.
He was dispossessed. There was no doubt about it : had he
not seen it with his own eyes ? His frenzy was calmed, and
he yielded himself to the will of Jesus.
It would seem that the man had previously had to do The mad-
with Jesus. No sooner did he espy Him than he recognised ^'^i*,;^
Him: he greeted Him by name, and hailed Him as the onesu**
Messiah.^ Nor is this inexplicable. It is impossible that
such a frenzy of madness should have been of long continu-
ance,' and ere his seizure the man must have heard the fame
of the wondrous Prophet ; nay, it is most likely that he had
crossed over to Capernaum and heard Him preach and wit-
nessed His miracles. He had been impressed, but he had
stifled conviction ; and now, when he espies Jesus, the idea
presents itself to his disordered mind that He has come in
haste to begin that terrible work of vengeance which, accord- c/. Mt.
ing to Jewish expectation, the Messiah would execute upon
the Devil and his minions at the Last Judgment*
* One door in the desert (Num. xvi, 33), the second in the sea (Jon. ii. 2), the
third at Jerusalem (Is. xxxi. 9). See Lightfoot on Mt, v. 22. C/. Rev. xiii. 1.
' In other cases where they recognised Jesus, the demoniacs obviously h.id pre-
vious knowledge of Him. C/. Mk. i. 24 = Lk, iv. 34.
' Lk. 's XP^'¥ ixayi^ is a vague phrase and may denote no more than sevenl
weeks or even days. C/, Acts xiv. 3 ; xxvii. 9.
* See Wetstein on Hebr. iL 14 ; Charlei on EnacA xvL i.
194 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
Ungra- When their beasts had perished, the swine-herds fled away
^'°*^"ihe and spread the news in the town and neighbourhood ; and
Gcrasenes. presently a crowd assembled at the scene of the disaster.
There they found Jesus and the maniac — a maniac no longer
but sitting at his Benefactor's feet, clothed and sane. They
learned what had occurred ; and what did they do ? They
should have rejoiced in their neighbour's deliverance ; they
should have bowed before the Deliverer and blessed Him with
reverent and grateful hearts ; and they should have hasted
and brought all the sufferers within their borders and besought
Him to heal them likewise. But they did none of these
things. They were seized with superstitious dread, and they
took alarm lest some further disaster should befall their
possessions. It was dangerous to have Jesus in their
midst, and they would fain be relieved of His presence.
" They began to beseech Him to depart from their
borders."!
Departure And He gave them their desire. He had sought the
of Jesus, eastern shore that He might be alone with His Apostles and
instruct them in the mysteries of the Kingdom of Heaven ;
and His design had been frustrated. He found Himself in
the midst of an excited and unfriendly multitude. To return
to Capernaum was His only course, and He repaired to His
boat The erstwhile madman followed Him and, as He was
embarking, craved permission to accompany Him ; but Jesus
refused. He had other work for the man to do. " Away
home," He said, " to thy friends, and announce to them what
great things the Lord hath done for thee, and how He had
mercy on thee."
Mission of When Jesus wrought a miracle, He was wont to enjoin
the erst- secrecy and command that " no man should know it " :
vhile mad- ^ , , '
man. and He departed from His custom in this instance be-
cause He was quitting the country and had no need to
dread the assembling of a gaping multitude, greedy of wonders
but regardless of His message. He desired that His miracle
should be published abroad, if haply it might speak for Him
when He was gone. With a heart full of gratitude the man
•* went away and began to proclaim in Decapolis what great
* Jerome thinks they were moyed by reverence like Peter when, after the
draught of fish, he cried : " Depart from me J "
RETREAT ACROSS THE LAKE
'95
things Jesus had done for him ; and they all marvelled." It
was not given him to bear Jesus company and be numbered
with His Apostles, yet he was appointed to another and no
less sacred ministry. He remained in his own land and
among his own people, a living monument of the grace which
had blessed him and would fain have blessed them all.
CHAPTER XXIII
^^•^f-'^ BACK IN CAPERNAUM
26= Mk. V.
21-43 =.Lk.
V}}' 40-56; " Veniet quidem mors: sed somnus erit dilectis Domini, et ecce haereditas ejus.
11 Erit janua vitae, erit initium refrigerii, erit sancti illius montis scala, et ingressus in
locum taberaaculi admirabilis quod fixit Deus et non homo." — S. BERNARD.
The return. When He came ashorc again at Capernaum, Jesus was
enthusiastically received. The people had been loath to let
Him go the previous evening, and, when His boat was sighted
steering homeward, they crowded down to the landing-place
and bade Him welcome. Among the rest came one who was
not wont to mingle with the jostling throng. It was Jairus,^
Therequest One of the rulers of the Synagogue,' and he was in sore
o jairus. ^^j-ouble. His only child, a daughter twelve years of age, was
dying,* and he implored Jesus to come and save her. Some
Lk. viL 2-s. time previously a deputation of the elders of the SjTiagogue
had waited on Him and interceded with Him on behalf of
the Centurion's loved slave, and it may be that Jairus had
been one of them. In any case he must have been
cognisant of their mission. And now, remembering what the
Lord had done, he turns to Him for succour in his own day
of need. Jesus at once complied and set forth for the ruler's
house, escorted by a large crowd. Their interest, excited by
the prospect of witnessing another miracle, was intensified by
the rank of the suppliant*
A woman It was certain that Jesus could heal the sick, but never
With &.X1
issue of yet had He been known to raise the dead, and it seemed of
blood.
^ The Hebr.yaiV (Num. xxxii. 41 ; Deut iii. 14; Jnd. x. 3).
* C/. p. 94. Mt.'s ipx*^ is synonymous with Mk.'s tU rQr ipx^ffway^iyttw
wid Lk.'s Apxf^ T^i rvraywyTJi. Cf. Schiirer, H.J. P. II. ii. p. 64,
* Mt, abbreriating the story (</. Mt. viii. 5-i3 = Lk. viii. i-io for a similar
abbreviation) makes Jairus say at the outset that she was dead. Chrysostom (/«
McUth. xxxii) supposes him to have inferred that she had died since he left home,
making his trouble as serious as possible in order to arouse the Lord's compassion.
* Chrysost. In Afatth. xxxii : 1iko\»v6ov» vo\Kol ws *vl Oaufiart fi(yi\<f koI did
r4 TpScorrof rh rapayeytyot.
«9*
BACK IN CAPERNAUM 197
the utmost importance that He should arrive in time. There
was not a moment to lose. The anxious father would fret at
the obstruction of the multitude, and what would be his con-
sternation when an incident occurred which brought Jesus to a
halt ? Amid the throng there was a woman who for twelve
years had been afflicted with a distressing malady, an issue of
blood which had baffled the skill of her physicians. " She had
suffered many things," says St Mark with a stroke of satire,^
" of many physicians, and had spent all that she had, and had
got no benefit, but rather had grown worse." Nor is this
at all surprising when one considers the methods of the
physicians of that period. Pliny mentions their prescriptions
for the ailment in question, specifying among the rest a
poultice of fresh ass's dung and a draught of goat's urine.* It
is little wonder that unflattering things were said about
physicians in those days. " To live under doctor's orders,"
said one Latin proverb, " is sorry living." " A doctor," said
another, "is worse than a robber. The robber takes your
money or your life ; the doctor takes both." And it is
written in the Talmud that " the best of doctors is ripe for
Gehenna." •
The woman had mingled with the crowd, and she crept The
up behind Jesus and stealthily laid hold of the tassel of HisdoaL
cloak.* " If," she said to herself, "I touch only His clothes, I
shall be saved." Like the citizens of Ephesus who carried Acts lit
home to their sick folk handkerchiefs and aprons which
had been in contact with St Paul's body, she thought
that there was a magical efficacy in the mere touch of
Jesus. It was indeed a superstitious idea ; yet there was
faith in it, and the faith was richly rewarded. "Straight-
way the fountain of her blood was dried up, and she perceived
in her body that she had been healed of the plague." She
^ Lk., himself a physician, pats it more gently (viii. 43).
' H. N. xxviii. 77. For the Jewish prescriptions see Lightfoot on Mk. t. 2d.
• Erasm. Adag. under Insalubritas and Solis rruduis licet impune tccitUre,
Kidduzck 4. 24. Cf. Erasmus' serio-comic description of what he endured at the
hands of doctors and his happy deliverance : "Iratus medicis Christo medico me
commendo. Stomachus intra tridaum restitutns est haosto pullo gallinaceo coDtoM
et cyatho vini Belnensis " (,Ep. t. 25 : Rhenan* sue).
* Every Jew wore a tassel, KpdffreSow, n^yVi 00 each of the four comen of his
Iftiriow in accordance with Num. xv. 3S-40; Deut xxii. 12. C/. ScbUrer, H.J.P,
II. ii. pp. III-I2.
198 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
purposed to steal away unobserved, rejoicing in her cure, but
a greater blessing was in store for her. Amid the pressure of
the jostling crowd Jesus had distinguished the nervous grasp
of that feeble hand clutching the tassel of His cloak.^ He had
recognised it as a claim upon His sympathy and succour, and
had promptly responded to the mute appeal. He knew
neither who the suppliant was nor what might be the trouble ;
but He felt the touch of trembling faith, and that sufficed. It
unlocked the flood-gates of His pity and His power, and, ere
He knew what the need was, He supplied it. " It seems
absurd," says Calvin, " that Christ should have poured forth
His grace, not knowing whom He was benefiting " ; but
surely it is rather an evidence of His compassion and His
willingness to bless all that come unto Him. In the days
of His flesh, when He shared the limitations of humanity, He
did not wait until He knew His suppliants ere He granted
their hearts' desires. It was enough for Him that they needed
His aid and were willing to receive it.
"Who The woman thought to steal away unobserved, but Jesus
*°"*^My insisted on discovering her. He turned round amid the throng
dothes?" and demanded : " Who touched My clothes ? " * The disciples
were astonished, and Peter, ever the spokesman, exclaimed :
" Thon seest the multitude pressing about Thee, and Thou
sayest, ' Who touched Me ? ' I " Jesus vouchsafed no answer,
but looked round with searching scrutiny to discover who it
was.' The woman, " trembling like a guilty thing surprised,"
came forward and avowed herself, telling the whole story.
" Daughter," He said, " thy faith hath saved thee. Go in
peace."
Discovery It was natural modesty that had made her court conceal-
wo°man* ment, and it seems cruel that Jesus should have dragged her
forward and compelled her to divulge her secret in presence of
the crowd. And, moreover, it seems contrary to His wont
He was accustomed to enjoin secrecy on the recipients of
* Aug. Serm. IxxTii. §6: "Nam isti premunt, ilia tetigit. Corpus ergo
Christi multi moleste premunt, pauci salubriter tangunt."
' Chrysost. {In Matth. xxxii) thinks that Jesus knew and desired that the woman
should confess of herself. Cf. Theophyl., Euth. Zig., Calv., Trench. But He
really did not know. " Anything like feigning ignorance ill comports with the
candour of His character " (Godet).
■ Cf. Introd. i 12, 7.
BACK IN CAPERNAUM 199
His miraculous grace ; and it would, one might think, have
accorded better with His practice to let the woman steal
away, content that a miracle had been wrought and pleased
that it should remain undiscovered. Assuredly His insistence
on knowing who had touched Him was not prompted by a
desire to be glorified in the sight of the people.^ For His own
sake He would gladly have let the miracle go unobserved by
the wonder-loving multitude, but for the woman's sake He
would not have it so. Had she been suffered to steal
away, she would have lost the chief blessing of her life. She
would have gained the healing of her body, but she would
have missed the healing of her soul ; she would have proved
the power of Jesus, but she would have remained a stranger
to His love. It was worth her while to be put to shame
before the multitude that she might hear that gracious word :
" Daughter, thy faith hath saved thee. Go in peace."
Tradition says that the woman's name was Veronica,' and The mona
that she came from the Phoenician city of Caesarea Philippi. caesarea
Early in the fourth century a house in the city was pointed ^'''^'pp'*
out as hers, and at the gates of the house stood a monument
— a lofty pedestal of stone and thereon the brazen image of
a woman kneeling with outstretched hands before the brazen
Image of a man wearing a mantle and extending his hand
toward her. At his feet, reaching up to the tassel of his
mantle, grew a strange kind of herb which cured all sorts
of disease. It was said that the images represented Jesus
and the woman, and that she had erected the monument in
commemoration of her Saviour's kindness.' And indeed it
seems in no wise unlikely that the woman was a Gentile. Had
she been a Jewess, she durst not have gone abroad in her un- Le*. it. 19-
cleanness, infecting everyone whom she touched with cere-
monial pollution. It may well be that she was a Gentile, and,
hearing the far-borne fame of Jesus, had sought Him in her Mk. UL r-i.
extremity.
Jesus was still speaking to the woman when a message Tye houie
was brought to Jalrus which extinguished the last ray of hope ing.
in his breast. " Thy daughter is dead. Make the Teacher
* C/. Chrysost. In Matth. xxxii : Kolroift nrh rwr ipatcO^w 4>oel W(^t *iri»
i^rra rovro s-otctir.
» £v. Nuod, viL ■ Eui. H. E. tu. i8.
200 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
travel no further." ^ Jesus overheard ' and said calmly : " Fear
not ; only believe." They reached the house, and Jesus
entered, taking with him only Peter, James, and John, the
favoured three. There confronted Him a scene of wild com-
motion. In accordance with ancient custom hired mourners
had been fetched in to lead the dirge with flute and voice ; '
and a crowd of acquaintances also had gathered, some for
friendship's sake with sorrow in their hearts, others with an
eye to the funeral feast* It was all very painful to Jesus. It
was not thus that He viewed death. In truth he wholly dis-
Lk. XX. 38 allowed it, forasmuch as " all live unto God," and " over the
ocean of darkness and death flows an infinite ocean of light
and love." He never spoke of " death " : His word was
" sleep." * He was pained by the scene. " Why," He ex-
claimed, " are ye making a tumult and weeping ? The child
is not dead but sleepeth."' His words were greeted with
derision. He expelled the scoffers and entered the chamber,
admitting only the parents and the three disciples. Then
He took the little hand and spoke as a mother would to her
"Taiitha, darling. " Talitha, Mm, My lamb, rise ! " And, lo, the
sleeper heard and woke. It was no lingering convalescence,
no protracted recovery. She arose in full health, retaining
no trace of the sickness which had brought her down to
death. " Immediately she arose and walked about." Jesus
bade the parents give her some food. The command recalled
* For the meaning of <r/n5XXeii' cf. p. Ij8.
' Mk. V. 36 KBLA rapaKoiffas. rapaKOJ^eip may mean (i) tugUci to htar ; cf.
Mt. xviii. 17 ; (2) make as though one did not hear ; see Field, Notes ; (3) overhear.
Only (3) is possible here. Had Jesus either neglected to hear or pretended not to
bear, He would have said nothing.
' The cnstom prevailed among both Jews and Gentiles ; tf. 2 Chron. xxxy. 25 ;
Jer. ix. 17-8 ; Am. v. 16 ; Lightfoot and Wetstein on Mt. ix. 23 ; Becker, Charules,
pp. 387 syq., Gallus, pp. 506 sqq. Cf. the modem custom {P. E. F. Q., Oct. 1905,
p. 349)' * Lightfoot on Mt. ix. 23.
' The primitive Christians learned both the phrase and the thought ; cf. Mt.
xxvii. 52 ; Acts vii. 60, xiii. 36 ; l Thess. iv. 13-5. Cemetery is Koifftrriipiov, " sleep-
ing-place." Chrysost. Serm. in Camet. Appellat.: " Before the Advent of Christ
death was called death. . . . But, since Christ came and died for the life of the
world, death is no longer called death but slumber and falling asleep {Jixvm xcU
* Interpreted as a declaration that the child had merely swooned by Paulas,
Keim, Schleiennacher, and even Olshaosen and Neander. Lk. is careful to explain
that she was really dead : m. 53, 55.
BACK IN CAPERNAUM
201
them from their amazement ; and, when they saw her eat,
they would be assured of the reality of her resuscitation.^
It was an astounding miracle, the greatest that Jesus hadTwoUiiw
ever yet wrought. It was the first time He had raised the dead, ™'°"
and, knowing what excitement it would occasion when it was
noised abroad, He quitted the house and hastened homeward.
As He passed along the street, two blind men besought His
aid. Eager to reach home, He hurried on, and they followed
Him clamorously. " Have pity on us," they cried, " Thou Son
of David ! " Still He paid no heed. They pursued Him to
the door, and, when He entered, they pressed in after Him.
Then He addressed them. " Have ye faith," He asked, " that
I can do this ? " " Yea," they replied. His heart was over-
flowing with pity. They could not see His kind face, but
they could feel His gentle hand ; and, anxious to make amends
for His apparent harshness and assure them of His sympathy,
He touched their sightless eyes. "According to your faith,"
He said, " be it done to you," and their eyes were opened.
He foresaw the result should the miracle get abroad. It would
add fresh fuel to the popular excitement and increase His em-
barrassment. And therefore He laid a prohibition on the two
men, enforcing it with all the emphasis of look and gesture.*
" See ! " He said. " Let no one get to know about it" His
prohibition, however, was unavailing. They went out and
told the story far and near.'
^ On the injunction to silence about the miracle cf. Introd. § il. '
' ivePpin-ijSrj : c/, p. 1 14.
' Chrysostom {/n Mattk. xxxiii), thinking that the prohibition was not seriously
meant but designed merely as an example of humility, praises them for disregarding
it and styles them " heralds and evangelists."
CHAPTER XXIV
Lk. vU. 36 IN THE HOUSE OF SIMON THE PHARISEE
-50
" Jesum quserens convivarum turbas non erubuit,
Pedes unxit, lacrimarum fluvio quos abluit,
Crine tersit et culparum veniam promeruit.
" Suum lavit mundatorem, rivo fons immaduit,
Piiim fudit flos liquorem, in ipsum refloniit ;
Coelum terrae dedit rorem, terra coelum compluit."
Med- Hymn. De B. Maria Magdalena.
Departure AFTER thosc thfcc miracles, especially the raising of Jalrus'
CapCT^ daughter, it was impossible for Jesus to remain in Capernaum,
•^aum. The excitement would be intense ; and, that He might prose-
cute His ministry, He must betake Himself elsewhither. He
had already sought to escape from the multitude by crossing
over to the eastern side of the Lake ; but He had found no
repose there, and He resolved, as He had done the previous
Mk. yL I, year, to strike inland and go on a missionary tour through
^^35^'i!k. Galilee. It appears that He quitted Capernaum immediately
^"- '• and betook Himself in the first instance to the town of
Magdala which lay a few miles southward on the shore of the
Lake.*
Invitation The raising of Jalrus' daughter had this peculiarity, that,
Pharisees whereas most of His miracles hitherto had been wrought
house, among the multitude, it was wrought on behoof of a leading
ecclesiastic, one of the principal men of Capernaum ; and it
procured Jesus consideration where hitherto He had been dis-
dained as a mere demagogue. The change speedily became
apparent On His arrival at Magdala He received an invita-
tion to the house of a Pharisee named Simon. Simon had
doubtless heard of the wondrous thing which had happened
to his colleague at Capernaum ; and, desiring to know more
about Jesus, who, he recognised, was certainly a great prophet
1 The modern Mejdel. Smith, H. G. p. 455 and E. B. art. Magdala.
HOUSE OF SIMON THE PHARISEE 203
and might perchance be more,^ he made a feast in his house
and invited Him to it. Jesus accepted the invitation. Such
gatherings were agreeable to Him, not because He relished
feasting, but because, unlike His ascetic forerunner, He loved
to mingle with men, and an entertainment afforded Him an
opportunity for converse about the things of the Kingdom of
Heaven. Hitherto His entertainers had belonged mainly to
the disreputable order of the Tax-gatherers, and His intimacy
with them had earned Him the nickname "the Friend of
Tax-gatherers and Sinners " ; but now it is a Pharisee that bids
Him to his house. It is St Luke that relates the incident,
and he has recorded two other occasions on which Jesus went Lk. ri. 37
to a Pharisee's house and accepted a Pharisee's hospitality, ^^l""'
thus rescuing from oblivion a striking feature of the Lord's
earthly ministry. It is a revelation of the wideness of His
sympathy that He should have been the friend at once of Tax-
gatherers and of Pharisees ; and it is a pleasant discovery that
the Pharisees were not all His enemies.'
Simon was a truly pious man, but he was not exempt Ducourtoj
from the prejudices of his order. He felt it an act of con- '° ^"^'
descension on his part to admit Jesus to his house and his
table ; and he stood upon his dignity, receiving Him with
supercilious hauteur and making a difference between Him
and the other guests. When the Lord entered, He got no
kiss of welcome from His host ; no slave unloosed His sandals cf. t s«m.
and bathed His dusty feet; and, when He had taken His^"^*' .^1
place at table, no cool, fragrant ointment was poured ^P^^I^^^^L.
His head.^ All these observances of common courtesy were i Tim. ».
omitted in His case, but He took no notice, comporting Him-,xiij. j;
self with characteristic dignity. ^^^ "• ^
When the company had taken their places, reclining after a sinful
the Oriental fashion on couches ranged slantwise about the J'^u,' feec
table, a singular incident occurred. While the guests were
arriving, a woman had stolen in amongst them * ; and it was
evident what manner of woman she was, since she wore her
1 According to the reading o rpo<p^i in v. 39 he thought He might be the
Messiah's forerunner. C/, p. 27.
a C/. p. 305.
• See Wetstein on Mt. xxvi. 7.
* C/. V. 45 : d<^' ijs elffTjXdoy. The reading tlffi}\0tp would imply that she had
entered in the course of the meal.
204 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
hair unbound, and this among the Jews was the harlot's
token.^ Had it been a tax-gatherer's house, her presence
would have been in no wise incongruous ; but a harlot in the
house of a Pharisee ! What did she there ? She had come
in quest of Jesus. The fame of His doings at Capernaum had
reached her ears, and perhaps she had heard Him preach
since His coming to Magdala She had discovered the misery
of her condition, and, when she heard the Evangel, her heart
kindled with hope. Might not Jesus do for her what He had
done for others as vile as she ? She learned that He was to
be the guest of Simon, and she resolved to go unbidden to the
Pharisee's house and cast herself at the Saviour's feet. And
she would not go empty-handed. The Friend of Sinners had
won her heart, and she must bring Him some tribute of love
and reverence. She procured an alabaster vase of fragrant
ointment,* and brought it with her to the Pharisee's house.
Stealing in among the guests, she observed how Jesus was
slighted ; and, when He had taken His place on His couch,
she approached and took her station by His feet The big
tears dropped upon them as she stooped, and she wiped them
away with her loose tresses, and fondly kissed those blessed
feet and poured the ointment over them, not daring to ap-
proach His head.'
Horror of The host was horrified. The touch, nay, the very sight
Pharisee, of the woman was, to his mind, a pollution.* " Had such a
woman," says St Augustine,^ " approached that Pharisee's
Is. ixv. 5. feet, he would have said, in the language of Isaiah : ' Depart
from me, touch me not ; for I am clean.' " He was speechless
with horror and vexation. To think that he had been so
deceived ! He had taken Jesus for a prophet and in that
capacity had invited Him to his house ; but certainly He was
no prophet, or He would have discerned the woman's character
and spurned her from Him. He said nothing, bearing himself
with perfect decorum ; for despite his Pharisaic pride he was
^ Jer. Ep. xxii, Ad Euztoch, : " laxius, ut crines decidant, ligatum caput."
Chetub. 72. I : A mark of evil character in a woman, "si prodeat in publicum capite
aperto." CJ. Lightfoot on John xiL 3.
' Plin. H. N. xiii. 3 : " Ungtienta optime servantnr in alabastris."
* Orig, In Matth. Comm. Ser. § 77 : " Non fuit ausa ad caput Christi venire scd
Ucrymis pedes ejus lavit, quasi vix etiam ipsis pedibus ejus digna."
* Cf. p. 77. • Scrm. xcix. § 2.
HOUSE OF SIMON THE PHARISEE 205
a man of good breeding and not ungenerous nature ; and it
evinces an unusual delicacy that, when he saw the woman
lavishing caresses on the feet of Jesus, he merely concluded
that He lacked discernment There were others of his order cf. Mt. >t
who would have put a worse construction on the incident JS.'^
He said nothing, but his thoughts were written on his face, and
Jesus read them there, thus proving Himself indeed a prophet
and more than a prophet " Simon," He said, accosting him The Lord',
courteously, " I have something to say to thee," 1 and Simon VnuJ"^,
answered with equal courtesy : " Teacher, say on." " A certain /»»*'»'".
creditor," said Jesus, " had two debtors. The one owed him *" ^"^
five hundred denarii and the other fifty ; and, as they had
nothing to pay, he freely forgave both. Now which of them
Jvill love him more ? " "I suppose," answered Simon with an
air of indifference, as though resenting the irrelevance of the
question, " the one whom he forgave the more." " A correct
judgment ! " said Jesus, and forthwith applied the parable,
showing Simon the bearing of his innocent admission. He
turned to the woman crouching at His feet, and said to the
host in speech rhythmic with emotion : " Thou seest this
woman ? I entered into thine house : water to Me upon My feet
thou gavest not, but she rained her tears upon My feet and with
her tresses wiped them away. A kiss to Me thou gavest not
but she^ ever since I entered, did not cease fondly kissing •
My feet With oil ' My head thou didst not anoint, but she
with perfume anointed My feet Wherefore, I tell thee, for-
given are her sins, her many sins, because she loved much.
But one to whom little is forgiven, little loveth."
For the argument's sake Jesus accepted Simon's estimate Shall we do
of the difference betwixt himself and the woman in point ofgoodnuy
sinfulness, likening him to a debtor who Owed fifty denarii znd *^°'°*'
her to a debtor who owed five hundred. Granting the justice
of this estimate, He pointed to the devotion of the poor out-
cast and the coldness of the proud Pharisee, and asked if it
was any wonder that He bestowed His regard where it met
so generous a response. It was a just argument and cxcel-
* Beng. : "Comis praefatio."
' ^CKijiJA, (taro^tXoOo-a. Cf. (pCK'fyfu*, KortipCKritn (Mt xxtL 4^^^Wl. xfr,
44-5).
* The rich ased ointment, the poor oil (Wetstein on ML xrrL 7). Eren \h»
Utter was withheld from Jesus.
2o6 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
lently adapted to beat down His host's pride ; but it seems
to lead to a very startling conclusion. If they that are little
forgiven love little, then were it not well that men should sin
greatly in order that, being greatly forgiven, they may greatly
Kom. iiL 8. love, " doing evil that good may come " ? It is incredible that
Jesus should have intended this ; and the fact is that He
accepted Simon's estimate of the difference betwixt himself
and the woman in respect of sinfulness simply for the sake of
Mt. ix. 12 the argument, even as elsewhere, in order to justify His care for
i7"1'lic! y! the sinful. He allowed the claim of the Pharisees that they
3^- were " whole and had no need of a physician," that they were
• • 7- « righteous and had no need of repentance." Simon was
superior to most of his colleagues in that he recognised that he
had some little need of forgiveness ; but he had much of the
Pharisaic blindness and very imperfectly perceived his actual
condition. It is ever characteristic of a true saint that, with
the vision of God's transcendent holiness before his eyes, he
realises his sinfulness and abases himself to the dust It is
told of St Francis of Assisi that one day an angry brother
pelted him with contumelious epithets — thief, murderer,
drunkard, and the like. The saint meekly confessed that it
was all true; and, when his assailant asked in astonishment
what he meant, he replied : " All these and still worse crimes
had I committed, had not the favour of Heaven preserved
me."^ Had Simon known the plague of his own heart, he
would have taken the sinner's place side by side with that poor
outcast. When Jesus said : " One to whom little is forgiven,
loveth little," He was allowing the Pharisee's assumption in
order that He might meet him on his own ground. Stated
absolutely, the law would stand : " One who thinks that he
needs little forgiveness, loves little."^ A man's love for Jesus
is ever commensurate with his sense of the debt he owes
Him.
Who was St Luke is the only evangelist who tells this exquisite
woman? story,* and it is remarkable that he has withheld the woman's
^ Erasm. Coll. Exeq. Seraph.
' Aug. Serm. xcix. §6: '* O Pharisaee, ideo panim diligis, quia panim tibi
dimitti suspicaris : non quia panim dimittitar, sed quia parum putas esse qaod
dimittitur."
' By many modern critics it is regarded as a Pauline adaptation of the story oi
the anointing in the house of Simon the Leper. The opinion is as old as Origen's
HOUSE OF SIMON THE PHARISEE 207
name. She must have been well known in the primitive
Church, and it is impossible that her name should have been
hidden from the evangelist who made research his especial Lt L 14.
care. He must have known it, and he doubtless concealed it
deliberately, reluctant to blazon abroad the shame of one who
had so greatly repented and been so greatly forgiven. Is it
possible to penetrate the secret and discover who she was ?
It is curious that, whereas the Greek Fathers seem to have
been content that she should remain unknown, the Latin
would not have it so and insisted upon a twofold identification.
First, they recognised that sinful woman, who by the identific«-
greatness of her love proved how greatly she had been M^ilf.
forgiven, as no other than Mary Magdalene ; and the idea d»iene.
won universal acceptance in Western Christendom and
has rooted itself ineradicably in religious art and literature.
Nor is it without justification. It seems indubitable that
Mary had been a sinful woman, and loved Jesus so well
because He had rescued her from shame. When first she
appears on the pages of the Gospel-story, she is styled " Mary, Lk, Tin. ^
the Magdalene as she is called, from whom seven daemons had
gone out." Immorality was reckoned a form of demoniac
possession,^ and, the number seven being the symbol of com-
pleteness, sevenfold possession meant utter abandonment
thereto. And so, when it is said that Jesus cast seven
daemons out of Mary, the meaning is that she had been the
slave of her passions and He rescued her from their unhallowed
dominion.^ Magdala was a wealthy city, being, says the
Talmud, one of three cities whose tribute was conveyed in wag-
gons to Jerusalem. It had, however, a shameful reputation : it
was destroyed, according to the same authority, for its harlotry.
When she met with Jesus, Mary had her abode at Magdala ; and
from the sinful town where she had plied her sinful trade, she got
day ; and the great scholar of Alexandria, while holding that the incidents were
distinct, regarded the identification as not unreasonable on the prindplei of spirit*
oalising exegesis. In Matth. Comm. Ser. § 77.
» Cf. p. 105.
• Cf. Mt. xii. 4S«Lk. xi. 26. The grace of the Holy Spirit is called "lerreii*
fold" ; e.g. S. Odo Qun. Dt S. Afar. Mag. :
" Qui sept em pufgat ritia
Per septiformem gratiam."
* l4^tfoot on John xii. 3.
2o8 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
the epithet which distinguished her ever after.^ Nor is it
without significance that St Luke first introduces Mary the
Magdalene immediately after the incident in the Pharisee's
house, albeit, loath to reveal her shame, he does not expressly
identify her with the sinful woman. This at least is certain,
that it must have been some wondrous experience of the
Lord's grace that inspired Mary with that love, stronger than
death, which she bore Him.
Identifies- ^^ Augustine carries the identification still further. He
tion with appeals to St John's parenthetical comment at the beginning
Bethany, of his narrative of the raising of Lazarus : "Now it was the
Tohn xi 2 Me^ry that anointed the Lord with perfume and wiped His
feet with her tresses, whose brother Lazarus was sick " ; taking
\ this as a reference to the anointing in the Pharisee's house
I already recorded by St Luke.' And, if this be indeed the
\ reference, the two-fold identification is certain. It must,
however, be acknowledged that the argument is somewhat
precarious. It is indeed possible that St John was alluding
I to the earlier anointing, unrecorded by himself but recorded
( by St Luke ; yet it is also possible and perhaps more probable
i that he referred to the subsequent anointing at Bethany which
he narrates in the next chapter, and to which, since it was
well known, he could refer by anticipation.
The If this were all the evidence, it would furnish a very pre-
t*B^th "*^ carious argument for the identification of the sinful woman with
a re-enact- Mary of Bethany. But in St John's narrative of the anointing
scene i*n the 2it Bethany there is a delicate and pathetic touch which seems
^^'^^^ to attest it beyond controversy.' As Jesus reclined at table
John xii ^^^' brought her precious nard and anointed His feet and
3- wiped them with her hair. There is here a double surprise :
that she should have anointed His feet and not His head, and v/
that she should have wiped them with her hair. And what ^
is the explanation ? Is it not that Mary's act was no mere y
tribute of affection and reverence to her Lord but a grateful
^ Lightfoot (on Mt xxyii. 56) suggests that Magdalene maj be the Talmudic
KTliD, " hair-braider," i.e. harlot {c/. i Pet. iii. 3 : ifirXofnjt rpixur), the epithet
which Jewish virulence applied to Mary, the mother of Jesus.
' Aug. Ds Cons. Ev. ii. § 154. On the contrary, Chrysostom {In Joan. Ixi),
expressing the Eastern opinion, says : oi'x o^n; irrlw ^ ripn] ij ir r^ Mar^o^y tiii
i^ h ri} AovKf, cLXX' iripa ret wtfif^
» Cf. Introd § 12, 3, (a).
HOUSE OF SIMON THE PHARISEE 209
reminiscence, of that day when, a weeping penitent, she had
tent over His feet in the Pharisee's house and witli her loose
hair wiped off the tears which dropped on them like rain ?
That scene she could never forget ; and, to assure Jesus that
she cherished it in lively and grateful remembrance, she acted
it all over again. It was indeed, as He designated it, " a Mt jmtI. m
beautiful work." Its significance was hidden from the rest of ^^'"^ "'*
the company, but He comprehended and appreciated it
Is not this a powerful, nay, an irresistible reinforcement of if other
the identification of Mary of Bethany with the sinful woman Jt}^.^*^
in the Pharisee's house ? And there is a reinforcement hardly <i«^«»«.
less strong of her identification with Mary Magdalene. IfBeSmr
Mary of Bethany be other than Mary Magdalene, then she fS^cJ^T
was not present at the Cross and the Sepulchre. Mary ?"'* '^f
Magdalene is mentioned among the brave women who, heed-
less of insult and violence, followed Jesus to Calvary and Mt xxYii.
stood, with breaking hearts, as near as they might until the itT^
tragedy was ended, and then escorted His mangled body to
Joseph's garden and saw it laid to rest And on the Resur- Mt xxw
rection-moming she returned " early, while it was yet dark," ^'47!
to the Sepulchre and was rewarded with the first vision of John zx. i,
the Risen Lord. But no mention is made of Mary of"'*i
Bethany. Is it possible that, dwelling hard by just over the
brow of Olivet, she should have sate at home securely,
heedless what befell the Master whom she loved so well and
to whom she owed so much ?
There is a further confirmation of the twofold identifica- The
tion in the curious silence of the earlier evangelists regarding si["n*J?r?
the family at Bethany. Once only are they mentioned, and fj^j"^!**"
by St Luke alone ; and he takes evident pains to prevent Bethany,
their recognition. He indeed makes mention of Martha and l^- «• 38-
Mary, but none of Lazarus ; nor does he tell where the sisters
dwelt. And St Matthew and St Mark exhibit a similar
reserve. When they tell the story of the anointing at
Bethany, they say merely that it occurred in the house of Mt. lanri. 6-
Simon the Leper and that the " beautiful work " was wrought J."
by " a woman." It is St John who explains that Lazarus was
one of the guests, that Martha served, and that the woman John ^ »•
was Mary. This reserve is remarkable, and the manifest
studiousness of it is a refutation of the modern contention
2IO THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
that the story of Lazarus is a Johannine fiction unknown to
the earlier evangelists.^ It is evident that they knew it and
took pains to conceal it, drawing a veil over that sweet home.
Perhaps their principal motive was apprehension for the
safety of Lazarus. When the rulers observed the effect of
John rii. his resurrectiou in disposing the populace to believe in Jesus,
*^^^*-they were minded to put him to death ; and, when the
Apostles fashioned the Evangelic Tradition, they made no
mention of him, lest they should exasperate his enemies
further. But this was not their sole motive. Mary had
sinned, and, with tender solicitude for that dear family, they
would not bruit her story — how Jesus had found her in her
shame at far northern Magdala and restored her forgiven and
cleansed to her home at Bethany. Notoriety would have
been at once perilous and painful to Lazarus and his sisters.
Many years elapsed ere St John wrote his Gospel ; and by that
time they had passed "to where beyond these voices there
is peace," and the aged Evangelist could speak freely with no
other concern than the exhibition of the grace of Jesus. Yet
even he was silent about Mary's sin forasmuch as her memory
was sacred in his eyes.
Modem It must be confessed that this identification of the sinful
the identi- woman with Mary Magdalene and then with Mary of Bethany
cation, gjjjjg little favour in these days.' In some quarters it is
pronounced baseless, and in others it is deemed an intolerable
outrage on Christian sentiment that one who had been an
harlot should be supposed to have stood so near the Lord and
been so beloved by Him." The latter contention assuredly
deserves no sympathy but, on the contrary, emphatic repro-
bation. It is nothing else than a revival of the ancient spirit
of Pharisaism. " It was even so that Simon spoke : " This
man, had he been a prophet, would have recognised who and
of what sort the woman is who is clinging to him, that she
is a sinner." A truly Christian heart would rather rejoice to
* E. A. Abbott, E. B. art. Lazarus § 3.
' Schmiedel, E, B, art. Mary % 26: "The identification of Mary Magdalene
with the sinner of Lk. 7 36-50 cannot be called felicitous. . . . Even less happy,
however, is the identification of Mary Magdalene with the sister of Martha." The
identification is powerfully advocated by Hengstenberg on John xi. 1-46.
• J. B. Mayor in Hastings' D. B. art. Mary ; Godet on Lk. viL 36-50 ; Andrews,
lift $f»ur Lord, p. 284. Cf. Orig. In Matth. Cemm. Str. % 77.
HOUSE OF SIMON THE PHARISEE 211
believe that one who had fallen so low was lifted so high,
seeing therein a radiant illustration of the grace of Him who
came to call not the righteous but sinners. So it seemed to
the holy men of medieval days who out of the fulness
of their faith and desire poured those sweet hymns which
were as springs of living water in a desert land. None
ever loved Jesus more passionately or worshipped Him
more reverently than St Bernard of Clairvaux ; and he
deemed it no offence but a soul-gladdening marvel that the
harlot who rained hot tears on His feet in the Pharisee's
house, was none other than Lazarus' sister Mary who anointed
Him at Bethany, none other also than Mary the Magdalene
who brought sweet spices to the Sepulchre.^
* Serm. In Fest. B. Mar. Mag. See Daniel, Thes. Hymnol. I. cxc ; ccccxxxis |
IL xl ; Append. LIII. Cf. Herbert's Marie Magdalene.
Lk. yil\. i-j
= Mt. ir.
35»Mk.
Ti. 6b ; Mt.
'^Mk^^r. CHAPTER XXV
6ft«Lk. ir.
16-30 ; Mt.
^■-$^Mk.' ANOTHER MISSION THROUGH GALILEE
vi. 7-13=
i^a ^ w' " ^^^^''^^ *^7 ^*^* ^7 loss instead of gain ;
40 xii. 'a-oi N°^ ^y ^^ ^'^^ dnink, but the wine poured forth ;
51-3, xvii. For love's strength standeth in love's sacrifice ;
33 : Lk. And whoso suffers most hath most to give." — H. E. H. KnTO.
ix. 6.
^'"womMf From Magdala Jesus proceeded on His projected tour through
Galilee, accompanied not only by the Twelve but by a band
of women who had experienced His loving-kindness and
followed Him with grateful hearts. Mary Magdalene was one
of them. She quitted the scene of her shame and went with
her Saviour, a witness to His redeeming grace. Another was
Joanna, wife of Chuza, the steward of Herod ; and, if it be a
true conjecture that Chuza was the courtier whose child
johniv. 46. Jesus had healed at the commencement of His ministry,^
^ it is no marvel that she should have attended Him in
loving ministration. Another was Susanna ; and, though
nothing is now known of her beyond her name and her
devotion, she must, since her name is mentioned without
designation, have been well known in the primitive Church.
Only these three are named, but there were many others. It
is likely that Joanna was not the only lady of means among
them, and they undertook the gracious office of ministering of
their substance to Jesus and the Twelve.^
At Thus attended Jesus struck inland and travelled to
Nazareth. It was apparently His first visit since the
beginning of His ministry to that town where He had
spent the Silent Years, and where His mother and the
rest of her family still resided ; and His appearance
excited much interest His fame had reached Nazareth, and
its people were curious about their distinguished townsman.
He experienced afresh, however, the truth of the proverb that
1 c/. p. 82.
« Lk. viii. 3 : airolt BD Tisch., W. H., R.V. airrv KALM, T. R.
MISSION THROUGH GALILEE 213
" a prophet has no honour in his native place." ^ They all
knew Him, and they knew His kinsfolk; and their knowledge
of Him after the flesh was like a veil that hid from them His
glory. He would fain have blessed them, but they lacked
faith ; and, where faith was lacking, His grace could find no
entrance. " He could there do no mighty work, save that on
a few infirm folk He laid His hands and healed them.
And He wondered by reason of their faithlessness." *
On the Sabbath Day He repaired to the Synagogue ; and Sermon io
when, according to custom, the Ruler invited Him to address ^okm."*'
the congregation,' He gladly availed Himself of the oppor-
tunity. According to the synagogal order of service the
sermon followed the Aphtarah or lesson from the Prophets;
and this was read by the preacher, who stood while he read it as
a mark of reverence for the Holy Scriptures, and then sat down
and delivered his discourse.* There was a prescribed lectionary,
and it chanced that the lesson for that Sabbath was from
the Book of Isaiah. The Officer handed Jesus the proper
volume, and He unrolled it and found the passage, which, as
it chanced, included the sixty-first chapter where the prophet
announces to the exiles in Babylon their approaching deliver-
ance : " The Spirit of the Lord is upon me ; wherefore He
anointed me to preach good tidings to the poor ; He hath
commissioned me to proclaim to the captives deliverance and
to the blind recovery of sight, to let the bruised go free,^ to
proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord." Jesus read those
gracious words ; then, rolling up the volume and handing it
back to the Officer, sat down. Every eye was riveted upon
Him, and He began His discourse. " To-day," He said, " hath
this Scripture been fulfilled in your ears." Nothing more of the
discourse is recorded, but it is plain that it was an assertion
of His Messiahship and a proclamation of the graciousness of
His mission. And it was a wondrous discourse. The fame
of His preaching had reached the people of Nazareth, but,
» Cf. p. 80.
* On the relation between Lie. iv: 16-30 and Mt xiii. 54-8= Mk. vi. I-O cf.
Introd. § 8.
* Cy. p. 95. * See Lightfoot on Lk. vt. 16.
" This clause : dToaretXat reSpavfffUvovt h i<f>ea(i is interpolated from Is. Iriii
6. Was the Evangelist quoting from memory, or did Jesus quote the words and
dwell upon them in His discourse ?
214 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
when they heard it, they confessed that it far surpassed what
had been told them. "They all testified to Him and
wondered at the words of grace that proceeded out of His
mouth." Grace was the keynote of the sermon from the first
sentence to the last.
The Their souls were stirred, yet they would not yield to the
aggr^cd, prompting of the Holy Spirit Prejudice asserted itself, and
their hearts rose up in rebellion. It was customary after a
sermon for the hearers, if they desired, to address questions to
the preacher ; ^ and presently the Synagogue was a-buzz with
excited conversation. The congregation had a double
grievance against Jesus. First, who was He that He should
advance such claims ? " Is not this man the carpenter,* the
son of Mary and brother of James and Joses and Judas and
Simon ? And his sisters — are they not all with us ? Whence
then hath this man all this ?" That He was singularly gifted
they durst not dispute ; but jealousy is strong in the human
breast, and they were angry at His manifest superiority to
themselves. And, further, had He not put a slight upon
Nazareth ? He had gone to Capernaum and there exercised
His marvellous gifts. Why had He not settled among His
own people and made His own town famous ?
Jesus Jesus listened to their questionings and upbraidings, and
with them, answered them gently and winsomely. Aggrieved at His
neglect of Nazareth and His preference for Capernaum, they
had quoted the proverb: "Physician, heal thyself";' and,
capping proverb with proverb, He answers : " Verily I tell
you, ' No prophet is acceptable in his native place,' " * Had
they not, by their attitude toward Him since His coming
amongst them, proved the truth of the proverb and justified
His action ? And there was precedent for what He had done.
Had not Elijah in the time of the great famine been sent to a
1 Kings widow in Zarephath, a heathen city, though there was many a
^^' widow in Israel ? And in the days of Elisha there was no
^ Cf. Lightfoot on Mt iv. 23 ; Wetstein on Mt. iv. 23.
• Cf. Introd. § 12, 3, (i).
' Freqaent in ancient literature. The Talmud has : "Medice, sana claudicationem
tuam." See Wetstein. The two proverbs here quoted by Jesus are combined in
1897 Oxyrhynchus Legia, 6 : Xf^ei 'Itjo-owi' oIik frrir Seicroi irpo<f>Tp~ifs if rj warplSt
avrov, mSi larpbs roMt OipartLat tit roin ywioCKoyrat airiv.
* varplt, " native town." See Field, Notes, on Mt xiiL 54.
MISSION THROUGH GALILEE 215
lack of lepers in Israel, yet the prophet had cleansed only ■ Kinci v.
Naaman the Syrian. Those ancient prophets had far outdone
Jesus. He had merely preferred one Jewish town to another,
they had passed Israel by and blessed Gentiles.
It was an almost playful argument, and it should have Uprow ia
soothed His hearers ; but it had precisely the opposite effect goguI°*
Aware of His singular tenderness for outcasts, they took fire at
His allusion to the grace which had of old been shown to the
heathen. Instantly the Synagogue was in an uproar. The
evil behaviour of the Nazarenes was proverbial, and they arose ^ ^°^° *"
and thrust Jesus outside their town, and dragged Him up the
hillside to a precipice, meaning to hurl Him over. It was The cuff oi
a shameful scene. Jesus had been at school with some ofuo^''***'
those men, and many a time, when they were playmates, had
He clambered in their company to the Cliff of Precipitation.
And now they are howling about Him and dragging Him to
a cruel death. Their murderous project, however, was un-
accomplished. Something arrested their fury. Was it the
memory of old days that stayed their hands and awoke
ruth in their hearts ? Or were they overawed by His calm
and dauntless bearing?
" Veluti mag^o in populo cum saepe coorta est
Seditio, szvitque animis ignobile vulgus,
Jamque faces et saxa volant, furor arma ministrat ;
Turn, pietate gravem ac meritis si forte virum quem
Conspexere, silent, arrectisquc auribus adstant ;
lUe regit dictis animos et pectora mulcet." *
By the time they had reached the summit, their fury had
abated, and " He passed through their midst and went His
way."
Jesus must have been deeply pained by His experience Gn|rf of tbe
at Nazareth. He had come to His own home and His own shepherd,
had not received Him. It would have been no marvel had John l 11.
He turned away in anger and abandoned that stiff-necked
and rebellious race. But no such thought visited His gracious
heart. Resentment was swallowed up by a great compassion.
He laid the blame not upon the people but upon their
teachers. These were the shepherds of Israel, and they had
neglected their charge, letting their sheep wander untendcd ^
1 Verg. ^m. L 148-54. ^f- Lac- ^'^- * ^
/
216 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
and unsought. The heart of the True Shepherd was grieved
within Him. " He saw the multitudes and He had compas-
Num.xxvii. sion for them, because they were weary ^ and scattered, ' as
'7* sheep that have no shepherd.' "
Commis- It was a piteous spectacle, and it moved the Lord not
"ap<mU^ merely to compassion but to more strenuous endeavour. It
was impossible for Him to cope with the work single-handed,
so short was the time and so wide the field ; and He resolved
upon a departure which He had all along contemplated. He
had ordained the Twelve to be not merely His successors
but His fellow-labourers, and they had already profited suffi-
ciently by His instruction to set their hands to the work.
Grieved by the sore need which He beheld on every side, He
turned to them. " The harvest," He said, " is great, but the
labourers few. Pray therefore of the Lord of the harvest that
He thrust forth labourers into His harvest." It was more
than an exhortation ; it was a challenge like that which had
l«. vL s been addressed to the prophet of old : " Whom shall I send ?
and who will go for us ? " and, as He spoke, Jesus would scan
the faces of the Twelve, hoping that the prophet's response
would leap from their lips : " Here am I ! Send me." What
availed it to pray for labourers, if they would not themselves
press forward into the service ? And who so fit as they, the
men who had been with Jesus, who had seen His heart and
heard His instruction ? Yet they stood irresponsive, knowing
well what the Master desired, yet each waiting for his comrade
to step forward. Jesus would not be baffled. Since they did
not volunteer, He pressed them into the service ; since they
did not hasten to the harvest. He thrust them forth. He
called them to Him and laid His command upon them. He
sent them forth in couples to travel through Galilee, preaching
and healing in His name.*
The Lord's Ere they went their various ways, He addressed to them
Address : ^qj-jJs of direction and encouragement* First, He defined
Limitation their mission. Their business in the meantime was with
missi'oiL Israel. To the north and to the east lay heathen territory
^ iffKvXfJi'oi, "fatigued by trayel." Cf. p. Ii8.
' Mt. X. 8 is probably an editorial version of Mk. vi. 7 = Lk, ix. 1-2, modelled
on Mt. xi. 5=:Lk. vii. 22. It does not appear that the Twelve raised the
dead.
• C/. Introd. $ 8.
MISSION THROUGH GALILEE 217
and to the south Samaria, but they must confine themselves
within the bounds of Galilee. " Into a road to Gentiles
depart not, and into a city of Samaritans enter not ; but
go rather unto the lost sheep of Israel's house." It is very
significant that such a prohibition should have been necessary.
No Jew would have dreamed of preaching to Gentiles or
Samaritans, and the idea would never have entered into
the Apostles' minds had not Jesus, by His sympathy with
aliens, set them the example. The time, however, had not
yet arrived for the world-wide proclamation of the Gospel,
and they must meanwhile preach to none but Jews.
Then He told them how they should equip themselves. ThHr
They must take nothing for their journey save a staff ; ^ and ^"'P'~="*'
this they would need, since they must travel far and would
^ oftentimes be weary and foot-sore. But nothing else must
they take : no bread, no wallet, no money. They must go
hardily shod with sandals * ; nor must they take a pair of
under-coats, as travellers were wont to do, whether for change
of raiment or for double clothing in cold weather.' Thus
unprovided must they go, and the reason was twofold. They
were going on an urgent errand, and they must not stay to
equip themselves nor encumber themselves with baggage ;
nay, they must not pause even to salute anyone by the
way after the elaborate fashion of Oriental courtesy.* And Cf. % Kinn
they were entitled to maintenance in requital of their service. '*' "''
" Worthy," said Jesus, " is the labourer of his food." Perhaps cf. i Cor.
too there is a deeper significance in the command. It was '*" *^
required that no one should set foot upon the Temple-mount
with staff or shoes or purse or with dust upon his feet ; ^ and it
may be that Jesus meant to impress upon His Apostles the
sacredness of their mission. They were entering, as it were,
upon holy ground.
They must go poor, but in no wise as mendicants. On Their
the contrary, they were the bearers of a priceless boon which ^[^
> Cf. Introd. § 12, I.
* It is unnecessary to suppose a discrepancy between Mt's ia\Zi vroH/tara and
Mk.'suVo3e8«/i^»ow traySiXia. Shoes were worn by well-to-do traTellerf, sandals by
the humbler sort. Cf. Lightfoot and Wetstein, ^
» See Wetstein on Mt. x. 2. Cf. the Baptist's injunction (Lk. iii. 11^
« C/. Hastings' Z). A, art Salutatum.
* Siee Weutein and Lightfoot
2i8 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
the recipients coald never repay, and whoever eallPtained
Mt. X. 40-I. them would win a rich reward. When therefore they arrived
at a town, they must not crave alms, but must discover who
was worthy to have them under his roof ; and when they had
made their choice, they must remain under that roof all the
Cf. Eccius. time of their sojourn in the town. " Pass not," says Jesus,
"^ *** " from house to house." Did He mean that they must not
waste in a round of social functions the precious time which
should be devoted to the prosecution of their mission ? or that
they must not vex their host by quitting his house for another
more luxurious ? And, while they were under his roof, they
must bear themselves graciously and considerately, " eating
what was set before them," finding no fault and accommodating
themselves in all respects to the customs of the household.
Sometimes, however, they would be ill received ; and, when
they and their message were rejected, they must take their
departure, but not without a solemn protestation. " Into
whatsoever city ye enter and they do not receive you, go forth
into its streets and say : ' Even the dust that hath stuck from
your city to our feet, we wipe off against you.^ Nevertheless
recognise this, that the Kingdom of God hath come nigh.'
Verily I tell you, it shall be more tolerable for the land of
Sodom and Gromorrha at the Day of Judgment than for that
city."
Persecution What had happened at Nazareth was a forewarning of what
' awaited the Apostles in the prosecution of their ministry.
" Behold," says Jesus, " I am sending you forth as sheep in
the midst of wolves. Prove therefore 'prudent as the serpents
and simple * as the doves.' " It was a proverbial maxim,*
warning against recklessness on the one hand and time-serving
on the other. They must lay their account for persecution,
and they must encounter it fearlessly, never playing the
coward and holding their peace, but confessing their Lord
openly and proclaiming at all hazards the message wherewith
He had charged them. " What I tell you in the darkness,
* <y. Actsxiii. 51. A graphic rejection of the unbelievers : they were as heathen.
A heathen land was onclesm, and a Jew wiped its dust from his feet when be passed
into the H0I7 Land. Cf. lightfbot and Wetstein on Mt. z. 14.
* i.Kipoxoi., literally unmixed, unadulterated, frma npdtfvfu. The rendering
harmless is based on a false derivation firom infdt^u, Kipm,t.
* See Wetstein on Mt x. 16.
MISSION THROUGH GALILEE 219
speak in the light ; and what ye hear in the ear proclaim
upon the housetops." What though they suffered ? They
had strong consolations. Their Master had gone that way
before them. " A disciple is not above the Teacher, nor a
slave above his lord. If they have styled the master of the Mk. ui m
house Beelzebul, how much more them of his household ? " ^^ "*•
And, though their enemies might slay their bodies, they could
not slay their souls. It mattered little what they might
sufTer, so long as they did not, by cowardice and unfaithful-
ness, yield themselves to the Devil. " Fear them not," says
Jesus ; " but I will warn you whom to fear : Fear him that
after killing hath authority to cast into Gehenna. Yea, I tell
you, fear him." And had they not in every strait the
assurance of God's wise and loving providence ? They were
in His hands, and He would watch over them. He cared for
the meanest of His creatures, even for the sparrows, so
insignificant that a penny ^ would purchase a pair, while if the
purchaser took twopence' worth, he got one extra.' " Are not
five sparrows sold for twopence ? and one of them ** — even the
odd one which is thrown into the bargain — " shall not fall on
the ground ' without your Father.* But as for you, even the
hairs of your head have all been numbered. Fear not ; ye
are worth more than many sparrows."
It is noticeable what pains Jesus took to disabuse His pe Lord't
1 t . • 1 • Challenge.
Apostles of any illusions which they might be cherishing.
He was calling them to strife, suflfering, and sacrifice ; and
He would have them recognise the fact and consider whether
they had courage to face the ordeal and go through with it
" Think not that I came to cast '^ peace upon the earth. I
came not to cast peace but a sword. For I came to set a
man at variance against his father, and a daughter against
her mother, and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law ;
and the man's foes shall be those of his household." And
He went further. He pointed to the dearest and holiest of
human affections, and claimed, not for God nor for the
^ iffffipiop, a. penny; KoSpirrrp, 2, farthing. Cf. Mk. xii. 42.
» Cf. Mt. X. 29 with Lk. xii. 6. Two sparrows were the offering at the
cleansing of a leper : Lev. xiv. 4. See Lightfpot on Lk. xii. 6.
» For iw\ T^r 7^ Chrysostom has tU To7t«a, " into a snare." ^
• Cf. Spanish prorerb : " A leaf stirs not on the tree without the will of God.
» The metaphor is from sowing seed. Cf. Wetstein.
220 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
Kingdom of Heaven, but for Himself, a prior devotion : " He
that loveth father or mother above Me is not worthy of Me ;
and he that loveth son or daughter above Me is not worthy
of Me." Nay, He went further still, and claimed that for
His sake they should be ready to endure the worst suffering
and the uttermost ignominy. In those days " cross-bearing "
was not, as in modem religious phraseology, a mere metaphor,
lightly applied to ordinary and often sentimental afflictions,
but a stern and terrible reality. Crucifixion was the doom of
the vilest criminals ; and the Apostles had often seen poor
wretches carrying their crosses to the place of execution, to
hang there in shame and agony, moaning out their lives.
Jesus knew that the world's enmity must be His portion, and
He claimed that His Apostles should be ready to share it :
** He who doth not take his cross and follow after Me, is not
worthy of Me." On the lips of a Socrates or an Alexander
such claims would have seemed the language of insanity and
would have been greeted with derision ; yet Jesus made them,
not once but constantly, and the men who stood nearest to
Him and knew Him best, acknowledged that they were just
The It is no wonder that the Lord's address, appealing as it did
response. *° *^^*^ noblest instincts, fired the hearts of His Apostles. It
was a challenge to chivalrous heroism. " He that hath found
his life," said Jesus in the language of a general exhorting his
troops on the eve of battle,^ " shall lose it ; and he that hath
lost his life for My sake shall find it." What though they
should fall on the field ? They would win immortality.
Better die a glorious death than purchase life at the cost of
honour. When Francis of Assisi heard the Apostolic Com-
mission read by the priest in the chapel of the Portiuncula, it
thrilled through his soul, and he threw aside his staff, wallet,
purse, and shoes and devoted himself from that hour to his
high mission. And it is no wonder that the Apostles re-
sponded to the appeal when they heard it warm and impas-
sioned from the Lord's own lips. They bade Jesus and the
women farewell and went their several ways two by two,
" preaching the Gospel and healing everywhere."
^ Wetstein on Mt x. 39 : " Proveibium est militaie." Cf. Xen. Anab, iii. I,
143.
CHAPTER XXVI
THE CLOSING SCENE OF THE BAPTIST'S LIFE Mt«J i-
Lk. Yil I'l.
"John, than which man a sadder or a Kreater a-ioa Lk.
Not till this day has been of woman bom, vii. iS-35 ;
John like some lonely peak by the Creator Mt. xiv. 6-
Fircd with the red glow of the rushing mom." — Mtxu. i«=«Mk.
VI. at -8.
The Apostles went their several ways, and Jesus, accompanied Scanty n-
by the faithful women, went His. Of the doings of the Si^'***
Twelve nothing is recorded, not because they did nothing
worthy of record, but because the task of the Evangelists was
to tell not of the Apostles but of the Lord. Had they known
the story, they would have recounted what He did and said
as He travelled through Galilee, teaching and preaching in its
cities ; but it was hidden from them. The Apostles were
absent on their own errands ; and, since they included in their
tradition only what they had seen and heard, they have left
at this point a blank page.
St Luke's research, however, has rescued one precious The mir
fragment from oblivion ; ^ and, if she was indeed the mother iJaiiu*
of the child whom more than a year before Jesus had
snatched from death, it is likely that his informant may have
been Joanna. An experience so like her own would appeal
to her. In the course of His mission Jesus came into the
south of Galilee and approached the town of Nain, which lay
seven miles south-east of Nazareth between ancient Endor
and Shunem.' He was attended not only by the women but
by a band of disciples, converts whom He had lately won, and
a crowd which followed out of curiosity. A mile eastward
from the town still lies the ancient burial-ground ; • and, as
' It is hardly doubtful that the Nain incident belongs to the mission in Galilee.
( I ) How else would He have been so far from Capernaum ? (2) Lk. puU it before the
message from John the Baptist, which in Mt. follows the departure of the Twelve.
Nothing can be inferred from Lk. vii. II, where ihe reading is «r ry ii^ {XP^¥)i
•'subsequently," not fV rj Unt (iJM*/)*), "next day."
» Jer. De Loc. Hebr.
» Sanday, Sacr. Sit. pp. 24-5. It was required that a Jewish btirial-place thoold
R »"
222 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
Jesus approached, He met a cortege wending its mournful way
thither. It was the funeral of a young lad, a widow's only
son ; and the broken-hearted mother was conspicuous among
the women folk who, in accordance with Jewish custom,
headed the procession.^ There was a large company of
sympathetic mourners ; and it is no wonder that the heart of
Jesus, that fountain of compassion, overflowed at the sight
" Weep not," He said to the sorrowful mother, and laid an
arresting hand on the open bier.* " Lad," He said, " arise ! "
and the boy sat up and began to talk.' The spectators were
stricken with awe. " A great prophet," said some, thinking
a K'mgs iv. of Elijah and his miracle in the village of Shunem hard by,
" hath arisen among us." " God," said others, " hath visited
His people."
Envoys Jcsus was still prosecuting His mission when two strangers
tbcT^pUst! approached Him and sought an interview. They were dis-
ciples of John the Baptist, who had been arrested by Herod
Antipas at the commencement of the Lord's ministry and had
lain a prisoner ever since in the fortress of Machaerus. It
was a weary time, and its protraction was due to the play ol
opposing influences on the mind of the vacillating tyrant In
the first flush of his resentment Antipas would have had him
executed had he dared ; but, knowing how greatly the multi-
tude revered the prophet, he dreaded an insurrection should
he destroy their idol.* He therefore kept John under arrest,
and presently a still more powerful dread took possession of
him. He had repeated interviews with the prisoner, and his
guilty soul quailed before that fearless man, so helpless yet
so majestic. " He was much perplexed ^ and gladly listened
be 8 stadia, i.e. a Roman mile, outside the town. Cf. Lightfoot on Lk. viii. 12 and
ToL ii, p. 582.
* Because woman had brought death into the world. Cf. Wetstein on Lk. vii.
13-
' Cf. Jos. Ant. xviii. 8. § 3.
* Philostratus {Apotl. iv. 45) tells a story which is evidently designed (i) to
rival this miracle of Jesus, and (2) to suggest that it was not really a case of resurrec-
tion from the dead but merely of resuscitation from a swoon.
* The popular sentiment is evinced by the fact that, when some eight years later,
in A.D. 36, Antipas wxs defeated by Aretas of Arabia, the Jews interpreted the
disaster as God's vengeance for the murder of the Baptist. See Jos. AtU. xviii.
S- § 2- *
»Mk. tL 20: XBL, Tisch., W. H., R.V. woWA iprtpti. ACD, T. R. xoXXd
CLOSING SCENE OF BAPTIST'S LIFE 223
to him." It was the supreme crisis in the tetrarch's life.
His conscience was stirred, and he was disposed to obey its
dictates and yield to the importunities of the Holy Spirit ;
but, alas, he was hampered by his evil past Herodias held
him back. For her sake he had sinned, and now that he was
minded to repent, he was fast bound by the fetters which he
had himself forged. She was bitter with all a bad woman's
bitterness against the Baptist for his denunciation of her in-
famous marriage, and clamoured for his death. Tom this
way and that, the tetrarch had neither executed his prisoner
nor set him at liberty, but had held him in durance all that
weary time. It seems that he showed him not a little indul-
gence and made his captivity as easy as possible, allowing his Mt ri. aa
disciples free access to their master. ^^ ^** '*•
And they had kept John acquainted with the progress of John's
events in the outer world and, more particularly, with thefothe"
doings of Jesus, whom he had hailed as the Messiah and *;f?*»>*b-
*=• "' ' ibip of
announced as such to the multitude at Bethany beyond ]««.
Jordan. He listened with eager interest to every report of
" the works of the Messiah " ; and, as time went on, misgiv- Mt. xi a.
ings arose within him. He began to doubt if Jesus were
really the Messiah after all, and he sent that deputation of
two of his disciples to request a plain declaration.
And wherefore did he doubt ? What had happened to Reason
shake his assured conviction? It has been supposed that "
he had lost heart His long imprisonment had broken his
spirit, and he was aggrieved at the neglect which he had
suffered.^ Jesus had busied Himself in Galilee, and had let
him lie in prison, never lifting a hand to deliver him or even
sending him a message of sympathy and encouragement
This, however, is a baseless opinion and one that does less
than justice to the brave prophet If he had lost heart, he
would hardly have appealed to Jesus. On the contrary, he
would have humbled himself before Antipas and endeavoured
to make peace with him. Nor was John the man to lose
heart He was of heroic stuff, the sort of man that holds his
own interest cheap so long as the cause which is dearer to
1 Lightfoot, Wetstein. According to Tertiillian (Adv. Marc. iy. § l8) John's
doubt was due to the passing of the prophetic spirit from him to Jesus, ut in
moisalcm iuatn summam.
224 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
him than life, is advancing.^ With noble self-abnegation he
John m. had stepped aside and left the field open for Jesus ; and he
^ ^ would have been well content to rot in the deepest dungeon
of Machaerus, had he only been assured that the Kingdom of
Heaven was winning its way.
HisMes- And it was precisely this that troubled him : it seemed to
•iamc ideal
him that the Kingdom of Heaven was not advancing. He
heard of the doings of Jesus, and, wonderful as they were,
they were not, in his judgment, " the works of the Messiah."
Like the rest of the Jews, John had an imperfect ideal of the
Messiah, and he doubted the Messiahship of Jesus because it
dia not square with his ideal. It is indeed true that he did
not share the Messianic ideal which commonly prevailed. The
Jews of that generation looked for a king of the lineage of
David, a conqueror who should crush the heathen and make
Israel once more a free nation ; and they could not believe
in the Messiahship of Jesus because He had not a crown on
His head and an army at His back. John had another and
nobler ideal. In fact, he had two ideals, more or less incon-
sistent, which lay side by side in his mind. On the one hand
he looked for a Messiah who should play the part of a
Mt Hi. M reformer : "Whose fan is in His hand, and He will thoroughly
~ 'x7. cleanse His threshing-floor, and He will gather His wheat
into the bam, but the chaff He will bum up with fire un-
Mt. m. lo quenchable." " Already the axe hath been set to the root of
* • !"• 9- ^g trees. Every tree therefore that bringeth not forth good
fruit, is being hewn down and flung into the fire." On the
other hand, building on the fifty-third chapter of Isaiah, he
looked for a suffering Messiah, not merely a martyr but a
John i. 29. Redeemer, a sacrificial Victim : " Behold, the Lamb of God
that taketh away the sin of the world." He heard of the
* Cf. Chrysost. In Matth. xxxvii. (i) Chrysostom's view is that John had
himself no doubt and asked the question for the sake of his disciples in order to
persuade them to cast in their lot with Jesus. So Jer., Hil., Isid. Pel., Theophyl.,
Euth. Zig., Calv., Beng, (2) John had really no doubt about the Messiahship of
Jesus but marvelled at His delay in assuming His rightful majesty and thought to
precipitate His self-manifestation (Fritische, Hase, Neander). (3) Strauss cuts the
knot by denjring the historicity of the earlier narratives, especially the Fourth
Gospel's, which represent John as recognising and announcing the Messiahship of
Jesus. He does not now begin to doubt whether after all Jesus is really the
Messiah, but rather begins to wonder if He may not be the Messiah. " We have
here not a decaying, but a growing certainty. "
.i— ft.
CLOSING SCENE OF BAPTIST'S LIFE 225
doings of Jesus, and he recognised the greatness and wonder
of them ; but they were not, as he conceived, " the works of
the Messiah." Jesus realised neither of his Messianic ideals.
He was not a Reformer. " He did not strive nor cry, neither Ml xii. 19.
did any one hear His voice in the streets." Where were the
winnowing-fan and the axe ? Neither was He a Sufferer ; for
these were the days of the Lord's popularity. He was the
idol of the populace, the hero of the hour.
Therefore was John perplexed. Had he heard of Jesus
inaugurating a crusade against the abuses of the day, he
would have been satisfied : " Behold, the Messiah with win-
nowing-fan and axe ! " Or had he been told that He was
undergoing persecution, that He had, like himself, been
arrested and thrown into prison, then also he would have
been satisfied : " Behold, the Messiah ! He is led as a lamb
to the slaughter." But he heard none of these things. Jesus
was neither a Reformer nor a Victim : could He be the
Messiah ?
What ailed John was not so much a mistaken ideal as His im-
impatience. His ideal was in a sense true. Jesus was a p*""****
Reformer : He had come to make all things new. And He
would be a Sufferer : the Cross was His goal. But the time
for these things had not yet arrived, and John was impatient
for the consummation. He did not, he could not, deny the
Messiahship of Jesus. There was much that seemed to attest
it, yet much was lacking which he deemed essential. He
wavered betwixt Yea and Nay ; and such was his con-
fidence in Jesus, such his inclination to believe, that he
resolved to refer the question to Him and accept His
decision.
His messengers sought Jesus and presented to Hira their The Lortfi
master's enquiry. " Art Thou the Coming One, or are we to ^^^ ^'
look for another?" The Lord was engaged with a throng
which included many sick folk desirous of healing. Vouch-
safing at the moment no reply, He continued His beneficent
work in the envoys' presence. Then He addressed them.
" Go," He said, " and announce to John the things which ye
hear and behold : blind are recovering sight, and lame are
walking, lepers are being cleansed, and deaf are hearing, and
dead are being raised, and poor are having the Gospel preached
226 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
to them.* And blessed is he who stumbleth not at Me." It
seems a stem, almost unfeeling reply. He spoke no word of
sympathy, He sent no message of cheer to that brave soul
languishing in prison and questioning whether the crowning
act of his heroic ministry had not been a fatal blunder. It
seems almost a cruel reply, but in truth Jesus spoke both
kindly and wisely. Had He answered categorically : " Yes,
I am the Messiah," the Baptist would have accepted His
verdict ; but he would have accepted it blindly, and his doubts
would have remained unresolved. He would have been
haunted still by harassing uncertainty. Jesus took a better
way. He bade the envoys tell their master what they had
heard and witnessed, and let him judge. The evidence was
overwhelming. It^jvas not indeed the sort of evidence
that John was looking for ; but it was his expectation that
was at fault, and Jesus had faith in his sincerity, his candour,
his open-mindedness, his willingness to reconsider his opinions
and abandon them if he found them untenable,
jjjg As soon as the messengers had taken their departure,
eulogy Jesus pronoffnccd a glowing eulogy on John. He knew what
the bystanders were thinking. They were charging the
Baptist with vacillation and cowardice. His faith, once so
assured, had been shaken ; adversity had broken his spirit
Such was their judgment, and Jesus assailed it and exposed
the absurdity of it, recalling those great days when they had
crowded down to the Jordan and listened spell -bound to the
inspired prophet's eloquence. It was impossible to remember
the scene and think John irresolute or cowardly. " What
went ye forth into the wilderness to behold ? A reed shaken
by wind ? " Nay, there had been no irresolution, no vacillation
about that stern preacher of doom. " But what went ye
forth to see ? A man clothed in soft raiment ? Behold, they
that wear soft raiment are in kings' palaces." Had John been
a cowardly weakling whom adversity could daunt, he would
not have followed that stem, ascetic life ; he would have been
a supple courtier. " But what went ye forth to see ? A
' Passive use of eiayytXl^ofiau Cf. Hebr. iv. 2, 6. Euth. Zig. takes it as *
Middle : The marvel was that poor men like the Apostles should preach, rt yiip
wtpforepop iXitvTiKijt ; ' ' Preaching the Gospel to the poor " {e/, p. 158) is coupled with
His miracles, because this also was « special work of the Messiah. Cf. Is. IzL 1 1
Lk. iv. li.
CLOSING SCENE OF BAPTIST'S LIFE 227
prophet ? Yea, I tell you, and something more than a
prophet. This is he of whom it hath been written : • Behold, Mmi. lii, t
I send My messenger before Thy face, who shall prepare Thy
way before Thee.' " John was indeed what he had claimed
to be — the Forerunner of the Messiah, the Elijah of Jewish
expectation who should come and restore all things.^ A
greater man had never lived.
Yet John had a serious limitation. He utterly mis- Johns
conceived the Messianic Kingdom. " Verily I tell you, there ''°"'*"''°'
hath not arisen among them that are bom of women a greater '
than John the Baptist ; yet one that is but little in the King-
dom of Heaven is greater than he." ' John conceived the
Messiah as a stern Reformer, and he was eager for the in-
auguration of the new and better era. He had broken with
the old order ; he had forsaken Temple and Synagogue, and
assailed the rulers with fierce denunciation. He had inflamed
the Zealot-temper and set the land afire.* Men were thinking
to establish the Kingdom of Heaven by violent and revolu-
tionary methods. They were like an army storming a city
and seizing the booty with wild and eager hands. " The
Law and the Prophets," says Jesus, "were until John the
Baptist ; but from his days until now the Kingdom of Heaven
is being stormed, and stormers are plundering it"' This
spirit and these methods Jesus viewed with profound dis-
approbation,' recognising as He did the value of the ancient
faith, as a preparation for His perfect revelation, and the
1 MaL IV. 5-6. See Lightfoot on Mt. xvii. lo. Cf. p. 27.
' irpo<p^rii in Lk. vii. 28 is an interpreUtivc addition, inconsistent with wtf-
uraortpov Trpo<f>riTOV.
' luKp6T(pos, not equivalent to Superlat. but a regular Comparat. : " one that
is comparatively little in the K. of H." C/. Mt. xxiii. II. "The expression U
used because all members of the Kingdom of God as Such are great, and becau.'^c
some can only be spoken of as comparatively little" (Wendt). Chrysosl., attach-
ing iv Txi ^aff. rQv ovp. to fiei^cov, takes the words as an assertion of the Lord's own
superiority to John : '* I that am less in age and in the opinion of the people, am
greater than he in the Kingdom of Heaven." Jerome says this was a commoo
mterpretation in his day. Erasmus approves it.
• This was the reason which Antipas alleged for arresting John. C/. p. 71.
• Mt. xi. 12-3 = Lk. xvi. 16. In Lk. this remarkable logion is an isolated
fragment, but more intelligible than in Mt. who reverses the cl.^uses. Commonly
interpreted as a description of the influx of all, sorts of disreputable people into the
Kingdom of Heaven— a welcome specUcle to Jesus but shocking to the Pharisee*.
Wetstein, Bruce.
• C/. Ep. ad Diogn. vii : /3ia yi-p ot> wplxxtcri ri^ ()«i^.
42S THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
spirituality of the Kingdom of Heaven. He had the Baptist
in His eye when He said at the outset of His ministry :
Mt. ▼. 19. " Whosoever looseth one of these least commandments and
teach_eth men so, least shall he be called in the Kingdom of
Heaven." And now He reiterates the declaration with still
greater emphasis : " One that is but little in the Kingdom of
Heaven is greater than he."
Unreason- The Lord's purpose in thus speaking was not to censure
thargenCT- John, but to bring home to His hearers their unreasonable-
ation. ness. God had tried first one way to win them, and then,
when they remained obdurate, He had tried another way, like
the huntsmen, says St Chrysostom, who, determined that
their quarry shall not escape, press upon it from all sides at
once. First John had arisen, and his austerity had displeased
them. Then Jesus came, and He was no wilderness-recluse.
He dwelt among them, a gracious friend, going, when they
bade Him, to weddings and feasts. But they were no better
pleased. John had been too austere, Jesus was too genial.
" Whereunto," says Jesus, " shall I liken this generation ? "
And He compares them to children playing in the sunny
market-place their game of charades in which one company
would act a part, and another company would sit by and, if
they guessed what it was, would join in with the actors.^ It
was bad enough that the men of that generation were like
children playing at religion, but it was worse that they were
like petulant children. First they were for acting a marriage,
and they were aggrieved because John would not dance to
their piping ; then they were for acting a funeral, and were
aggrieved because Jesus did not join in their wailing.
" Whereunto shall I liken the men of this generation ? They
are like children that sit in a market-place and call to one
another, saying : ' We piped to you, and ye did not dance ;
we chanted the dirge to you, and ye did not beat your
breasts.' ' For John the Baptist hath come neither eating or
drinking, and ye say : ' He hath a daemon ! ' The Son of
Man hath come eating and drinking, and ye say : ' Behold,
' Cf. Calvin.
^ Proverbial ; cf. ^sop, Fab. 27 : "The Piping Fisherman.** The irtu.Ua. repre-
sent the Jews, oi Irepot John and Jesus (Mt. xi. 16 : Mpois Tisch., W. H. ; iralpoit
T. R., Erasm.). Chrysost. understands ot irepoi as the Jews, John and Jesus being
the complainers ; but iOpi]vi)aa.n€v, k.t,\, must then precede ■qiiX-^ffa/xev, k.t.X.
CLOSING SCENE OF BAPTIST'S LIFE 229
a glutton and wine-bibber, a friend of tax-gatherers and
sinners ! ' " ^
His appeal to Jesus was the Baptist's latest act. Herodias Execution
at length got her desire, winning by craft what had been '*^
denied to her importunities and blandishments ; and the
blow so long impending fell on the heroic captive. The
birth-day of Antipas * had come round, and, to celebrate the
occasion, he summoned his leading nobles and officers to a
banquet in the princely castle of Machaerus.' In the midst
of the revel an unexpected diversion was introduced by
Herodias. She had, by the husband whom she had so
shamelessly abandoned, a daughter named Salome, who by
and by became the wife of Philip the tetrarch of Trachonitis.*
The young princess, a mere girl some seventeen years of age,
was sent by her wicked mother into the banquet-chamber to
entertain the wine-inflamed company by executing a lewd
dance before their lascivious eyes. It was a shameless
performance, unbefitting alike a princess and a maiden.'
Nevertheless it evoked rapturous applause, and the gratified
host assumed an air of maudlin magnificence. He was only
a humble vassal of Rome, but in popular parlance he was
styled " the King," a reminiscence of the days of Herod the Mk. Ti. 14.
35, a6, 87 ;
^ The sententiooi aphorism, Mt. xi. i9b=Lk. fu. 35, is probably an inter- Mt xir. 9.
poUtion. ^i?!'"*'''
' It is doubtful whether the occasion was his birth-day or the anniversary of his *^j^ ^if'
accession. 7ei'^^Xia was the proper term for the former, but ytviffui also was so
used (Suid.), and it is so understood here by Orig. and Chryiost Birth-day
celebrations were associated by the Jews with idolatry (Lightfoot) ; only Pharaoh
(Gen. xl. 20) and Herod Antipas are recorded in Scripture to have celebrated their
birth-days (Orig., Jer.).
* Josephus (An/, xviii. 5. § 2) fixes the scene of the execution at Machaerus, nor
does Mk. vi. 21 imply that the banquet took place at Tiberias, Antipas' northern
capital, ol rpOroi TTJt TaXiXalas would repair to Machaerus. The castle there had
been built by Herod the Great in magnificent style. It commanded a fine prospect
and had salubrious springs hard by (Jos. De Bell.Jud. vii. 6. §§ 2-3).
* Jos. Ant. xviiL 5. § 4. In Mk. vi. 22 Tisch. reads r^i 9\r(. ovr^i rrp 'Bpii>S.
W. H. read rijs 6vy, a(rrov 'BpuS., which makes her the daughter of Antipas and
her name Herodias. Keim finds this incident unhistorical. He puts the death of
John '* very shortly before the year 36." Philip the tetrarch died in the year 33-4
after living several years with Salome in barren wedlock. Therefore at John's
execution she was not a Kopdffiop but a widow. In truth, however, it is Keim's
chronology and not the Gospel narrative that is in error. John was executed
probably in A.D. 28. C/. Schilrer, //./. P. I. iii. 28, n. 29.
* Hor. Od. iii. 6. 21-4. Chrysost. In Alattk. xlix : Ivia. -yip flpX'J'»»» '*«♦ *
5uI/3oXm.
230 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
Great ; and his vain soul loved the title. He summoned the
girl before him, and, sublimely oblivious of the fact that he
durst not dispose of a single acre of his territory without the
Emperor's sanction, vowed, in a strain of Oriental munifi-
Q. Esth. cence, to grant whatever boon she might crave, were it half of
" his kingdom. She went out and consulted with her mother,
and that wicked woman, exulting in the success of her
stratagem, bade her request the head of John the Baptist
served up, like some dainty viand, ^ on a trencher. The
tetrarch was deeply distressed and would gladly have with-
drawn from his engagement; but, according to that age's
code of honour,^ he durst not, and sorely against his will he
sent an executioner to behead the prophet in his cell. The
deed was done, and the dripping head was brought on a
trencher into the banquet-hall and presented to Salome.
She bore the ghastly trophy to Herodias ; and it is said '
that, not content with feasting her eyes upon it, that she-
devil emulated the barbarity of Fulvia and pierced with a
bodkin the once eloquent tongue which had denounced
her sin.
^ Chrysost. : c^t Ttfi nwos iMafiaroi SiaXeyofi^vri,
• C/. Jud. xi. 30-5 ; Herod, ix. 109 ; Ovid. Mei. ii. 44'^s
•J«r. Adv. Ruff, iii.
Mt li*. It
CHAPTER XXVII H?*! JS".
Mk. vi. i4>
6-Lk.Lu
ANOTHER RETREAT ACROSS THE LAKE xi\i*j!*ia
Mk. vi. JO-
" Bone pastor, panis vere, 44 = Lk- »«
T "^ .' r 10-7= John
Jesu, nostn miserere. vi. i-ii •
Tu nos pasce, nos tuere, Mt. mv.'aa-
Tu nos bona fac videre 333Mk.
In terra viventium."— S. Thomas Aquinas. Y'v^S-^*"
John vu
15-ai,
John's disciples conveyed their master's mutilated corpse, it is Sorrow oi
said, to Sebaste, the capital of Samaria, not far from iEnon, "
the scene of his later ministry, and buried it there beside the
tombs of Elisha and Obadiah.^ And then in their desolation
they sought Jesus and told Him what had befallen. He was
deeply moved. He brought His mission to an end, and,
betaking himself to Capernaum, awaited the return of the
Twelve. Presently they arrived, brimming over with talk
about what they had seen and done ; but Jesus had no heart
to listen. No sooner had they all reassembled than He bade
them withdraw from Capernaum and accompany Him to the
other side of the Lake.
Wherefore did He depart so soon ? He and His company Here«oiT«t
needed a breathing-space after the labour of their mission, and astern
the people of Capernaum were overjoyed to have Him back in J^q**^
their midst. Wherefore did He not stay awhile ? For one
thing, shocked by the tragedy, He had no heart to engage in
His wonted employments. He craved a season of retirement (i) Hit
that He might give Himself to communion with God. And ^°^ '*'
there was no chance of repose at Capernaum. The town
was all excitement and enthusiasm. " Come ye yourselves
apart," He said to the Twelve, " into a lonely place and rest
a little." There was more than met the eye in the prevailing
excitement. A plot was on foot among the people, and the (a) a Me«-
disciples were privy to it It was nothing less than a design
to precipitate the Messianic consummation by compelling Jesus
*Jer. DtLot. Htbr. See p. 191, n. a.
232 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
to assume forthwith what they deemed His rightful dignity
and come forward as the King of Israel. The multitude and
the disciples both had long been fretting at His inexplicable
c/john procrastination, and they had resolved to seize Him and
^'" **• acclaim Him King. The ringleaders were intent on the
business, and Jesus observed them going to and fro, so eager
that " they had no leisure even to eat." The mad scheme
must be frustrated, and Jesus determined to escape to the
eastern shore.
(3) curiosity He had yet another reason for His sudden departure.
of Herod ^_ ,«.,,. ,, r r -r-r- • ••
Antipas re- Herod Antipas had heard the fame of His extensive activity.
^^Hm. I^ can hardly indeed have been the first rumour that had
reached his ears, but, arriving just after the execution of John
when the tetrarch's conscience was ill at ease, it greatly dis-
turbed him. He wondered who Jesus could be, and, when he
consulted his attendants, they informed him of the various
opinions which were in circulation : how some thought that
He was Elijah come back, according to Jewish expectation,
to prepare Israel for the Messiah's advent, and others that He
was simply a prophet like the great ones of old.^ Neither
theory satisfied Antipas. His crime haunted him. His guilty
soul was shaken by superstitious dread ; and, Sadducee though
he was, denying the doctrine of the Resurrection,* the idea
took possession of him that the murdered Baptist had risen
from the dead, endowed, as befitted a visitant from the unseen
world, with mysterious and miraculous powers. It came to
pass with Antipas as with many an unbeliever.
"Just when we are safest, there's a sun-set touch,
A fancy from a flower-bell, some one's death,
A chorus-ending from Euripides, —
And that's enough for fifty hopes and fears
' According to Lk. popular surmise was three-fold : yoAn raised from the dead,
Elijah, one of the ancient prophets redivivus; Herod was simply perplexed. Keim
pronounces this version " the more probable one," but it is likely that Lk, deemed
it impossible that the Sadducean tetrarch should have entertained the idea that John
had risen from the dead, and attributed it to the populace. Chrysost. suggests
harmonistically that Herod first (in accordance with Lk.) contemptuously rejected
the various theories, and then (in accordance with Mk. and Mt.), as the fame of Jesus
increased, adopted the popular opinion. If the reading (\tyov were adopted in Mk.
tL 14, the discrepancy would disappear, ^rtpbr yAp . . • efj tusp rpo<pi}Tur being
a parenthetical account of the popular opinion.
• Cf. Mt. xvi. 6 with Mk. viii. 15. See Lightfoot and Wetstein.
1
RETREAT ACROSS THE LAKE 233
As old and new at once as nature's self,
To rap and knock and enter in our soul.
Take hands and dance there, a fantastic ring,
Round the ancient idol, on his base again, —
The grand Perhaps I We look on helplessly.
There the old misgivings, crooked questions are."
It is a pathetic evidence of the human heart's profound
need of God, that, when it abjures faith, it becomes a prey to
abject superstition.
Antipas was anxious to see Jesus that he might ascertain
the truth ; and, since his capital of Tiberias stood on the
shore of the Lake within ten miles of Capernaum, it was
expedient that Jesus should withdraw. Though it is hardly
likely that the tetrarch would have done violence to Him,
thereby increasing his already intolerable load of guilt, it
would have been an unpleasant experience to be haled into
his presence ; and Jesus resolved to avoid the embarrassment
by crossing the Lake. On the other side He would be in
the territory of Philip beyond the jurisdiction of Antipas.
He embarked with the Twelve ; and, steering north-east- seu Beth
ward, they came to land near Bethsaida Julias on a level !^^
strip of well-watered and fertile land, covered, since it was
spring-time, with a fresh carpet of green grass. Jesus hoped john n. 4.
to find there a quiet retreat ; but His departure had been
observed, and a vast crowd set out from Capernaum and
travelled round the head of the Lake to join Him on the
other side.^ It was a considerable detour, and, ere they
arrived, Jesus and His disciples had landed and retired to
the upland behind the plain. Presently He espied them ap-
proaching, travel-worn and some in piteous plight ; for there
were sick folk among them who had dragged themselves all
that weary way in the hope of being healed. The heart of
the True Shepherd was smitten with compassion for the
shepherdless throng. He quitted His retreat and, bidding
them kindly welcome,* discoursed to them and healed their
sicknesses.
And He did more. When He beheld the long train defiling Peedta*
round the Lake and crowding the green champaign, Hejj^^
' C/. Introd. § 13.
•Lk. ix. II : ixoSeid/jityot. Cf. viii. 40. I Tim. i. 15 : wet(r»t lw\)ii>x¥ if**»-
Acta XV. 4 : wixp<iix^it*'»>'t »!• ^''^^X- ^
234 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
addressed Philip the purveyor.' " Wherewith are we to buy
loaves, that these may eat?" Philip was astounded. He
cast his eye over the multitude and, guessing their number,
estimated the cost of providing them with a meal. Perhaps
he calculated thus : A denarius, approximately a shilling, was
a fair day's wage at that period ; ^ and, taking five as an
average household and putting its expenditure for a day's
food, three meals, at a half denarius, he made a swift reckon-
ing. If a half denarius would provide three meals for five,
two hundred denarii would be required to provide a single
meal for six thousand. There was a crowd of five thousand
men besides women and children, all hungry with travel and
fasting. " Two hundred shillings' worth of loaves," said the
master of the commissariat in despair, " is not sufficient that
each may take a little." '
Five loaves There meantime the matter rested. While Jesus was
"^fishes, busy teaching and healing, the disciples investigated their
resources ; and, as it drew toward evening, they urged Him
to dismiss the multitude that they might procure themselves
food in the neighbouring villages. " Give ye them to
eat," He answered. They protested that it was impossible,
and Philip's friend Andrew * explained that all the available
provision was five poor barley-loaves'* and two little fishes
which a fisher-lad, attracted by the crowd, was offering for
sale.' " But these," he added, " what are they among so
many ? " Jesus vouchsafed no explanation, but bade the
disciples prepare for a repast ; and such was their confidence
in Him that they obeyed His behest without demur. They
disposed the people in hundreds and fifties over the grassy
sward, an arrangement which prevented confusion and en-
sured that none should be overlooked, besides making it easy
to calculate the number of the company. When all were in
1 Cf. p. 149.
^For a vinedresser (Mt xx. i-l6) ; for a Roman soldier (Tac Ann. L 17). Cf.
Wetstein on Mt. xx. 2.
* Carr in Expositor, Jan. 1890. Since, however, 200 denarii was a standing sum
among the Jews, being the fine frequently imposed for serious offences {cf. Lightfoot
on Mk. vL 37), it may be that Philip merely quoted it off-hand as an impossible sum.
< Cf. p. 149.
* A realistic touch preserved by John. Barley was food for cattle and slaves. C^,
Wetstein on John vL 9.
* Cf. Euth. Zig. on Mt. xir. 17
RETREAT ACROSS THE LAKE 235
place, Jesus blessed the food and doled it out to the disciples
for distribution among the people; and, behold, the scanty
store became an exhaustless fountain.^ He gave and gave,
and still the provision grew in the Creator's hands. " Two
hundred shillings' worth of loaves is not sufficient," Philip had
declared, " that each may take a little " ; but the five barley-
loaves and the two little fishes which Jesus blessed, afforded
an abundant meal. " They did all eat and were filled." Nay,
there was not merely enough but enough and to spare. When
a Jew went on a journey, he carried a basket with provision
lest he should incur defilement by eating strangers' meat
His basket was the Jew's badge, and it was the butt of
heathen ridicule.^ The wandering Apostles had their baskets,
and, at the bidding of their Master, who would have nothing
wasted and perhaps designed that they should retain evidences
of the miracle,^ they collected the fragments of the feast and
found enough to fill their twelve baskets.
There is a peculiarity about this great miracle which signiB-
furnishes a clue to its real significance. It was not the^*****
Lord's wont to exert His miraculous power unless it was minicie.
needed and there was no other way ; and it seems as though
in this instance He departed from His custom. There was
apparently no necessity for the miracle. The multitude could
easily have procured food in the neighbourhood. Such was mu. vL y.
the suggestion of the disciples, but Jesus disregarded it : He i^ts'ilt'^
was bent on working the miracle. And the truth is that He "•
had a purpose far beyond the relief of the multitude's hunger.
His soul had been stirred within Him by recent events,
especially the Baptist's death, and His emotion was more
than natural grief at the tragic end of one whom He had
loved and who had held a unique and intimate relation
toward Him. In that dark tragedy He recognised a pre-
monition of His own impending doom. They had wrought
on John all their will, and even so would the Son of Man ml joKL
suffer at their hands. He had indeed foreseen it all along and
shuddered at the dread prospect ; but now it had assumed, as
it were, a palpable shape, and the horror of it swept over Him
^ Chrysost. In Matth. 1 : oZ trivri i* rw -xtpcl tQv aio^jjtui' Iri^aio*. Jei. :
*' Frangente Domino seminarium fit ciborum."
"Juv. iiL 14 ; vi. 542. * Chrysost. In Mattk. L
236 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
like a great flood. Already He was tasting the bitter cup
which He must presently drink to the dregs. The Psalmist's
Pi, w. s-8. plaint was the language of His stricken soul : " Fearfulness
and trembling are come upon Me, and horror hath over-
whelmed Me. And I said : O that I had wings like a dove I
Then would I fly away, and be at rest. Lo, then would I
wander far off, I would lodge in the wilderness. I would
haste Me to a shelter from the windy storm and tempest"
A prophecy It was no slight aggravation of His anguish that, while
°L^^ the Cross was in His view. His disciples were dreaming of a
Supper, throne and conspiring with the multitude to acclaim Him
King. He had retreated to Bethsaida that He might be
alone with the Twelve and perchance convey to their dull
minds some higher and truer conception ; and it vexed Him
when the inevitable multitude appeared on the scene. Yet
He would not relinquish His purpose, and, as soon as He
John vi. 5, espied them. He formed a design and resolved upon the
miracle ere the occasion for it had arisen. The Passover, as
St John significantly observes, was near, that sacred feast
which all down the ages had pointed Israel backward to the
redemption from Egypt and forward to a still grander
redemption. A year later the great consummation was
accomplished, and the Redeemer instituted the new Passover-
feast which has ever since commemorated His infinite sacrifice.
It was no unpremeditated impulse that moved Him when, on
His betrayal-night. He took the bread and blessed it and
brake it and gave it to His disciples, saying : " Take, eat ;
this do in remembrance of Me." Long before He assembled
His followers in the Upper Room, He had planned what He
Lk. xxii. would do, and " with desire had desired to eat that Passover
^^ with them ere He suffered." For a whole year at least He
had purposed it ; and, when He fed the multitude at Beth-
saida, the sacrament was before His mind. The miracle
was a prophecy thereof; and, though its significance was
hidden at the moment, it was revealed ever more clearly as
the issue unfolded.
Sacra- Can it be accidental that in narrating the miracle each of
'^^ga^ge^f the Evangelists employs sacramental language ? Recounting
the Evan- ^he miracle St Matthew says : " He took the five loaves and
gelists. ^
Mt, xiT. the two fishes, and blessed and brake and gave the loaves to
X9-aos
I
RETREAT ACROSS THE LAKE 237
the disciples and the disciples to the multitudes ; and they Mk tL 41.
did all eat." Describing the scene in the Upper Room, he t^^ ^
says : " Jesus took a loaf, and blessed and brake and gave "^^ ^"
to the disciples, and said : • Take, eat.' " " Jesus," says St aa^Lt
John in his narrative of the miracle, " took the loaves, and '^lu^
blessed them, and gave to them that sate at meat." " The
Lord Jesus," says St Paul, delivering the tradition of the 1 cor. xi.
Supper, " took a loaf and, having blessed it, brake." Next *^''*"
day, when they had all returned to Capernaum, Jesus dis-Joh"**-
coursed in the Synagogue on the Bread of Life, disclosing ** ^
the thoughts which had been in His heart when He wrought
the miracle. " I am the Bread of Life, the Living Bread
that came down out of Heaven. If any eat of My ^ Bread,
he shall live for ever ; and the Bread which I shall give for
the world's life, is My flesh."
The miracle added fuel to the enthusiasm of the multitude. Attempt to
Jesus was certainly the Messiah, and they were more bent Him'King
than ever on carrying out their wild project. The moment °^ ^"^^
seemed auspicious. The Passover was at hand. Jerusalem
would be thronged with worshippers ; and they had only to
escort Him thither in triumphal procession and acclaim Him
King, and He would be hailed by a myriad of voices and
installed amid the nation's applause on His ancestral throne.
Perceiving their intention. He peremptorily bade the Twelve
re-embark and set sail for Bethsaida, the harbour of
Capernaum ^ ; and then, eluding the multitude. He stole
away to His retreat on the hill-side, and gave Himself to
prayer.
The evening deepened into night and a storm arose, but J««"» walks
Jesus, engrossed in communion with the Father, was all Lake,
unconscious of the elemental strife. The dawn was breaking '
when He rose from His knees ; and, looking down upon the
Lake, He descried the boat more than half-way across,*
battling with wind and wave. In sore jeopardy the disciples
^ John vi. 51 : rov i/Mv N, Tisch. tovtov tow T. R., R.V., W. II.
' C/. p. 83.
» Tht fourth watch, between 3 and 6 a.m. The Jews divided the night into
three watches, but after the time of Pompeius they adopted the Roman division.
See Lightfoot and Wetstein on Mt. xiv, 25.
* John vi. 19. The Lake was 40 furlongs (j/arfiw) broad. Jos. De HeU, Jud. iU.
10. § 7.
S
238 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
were wishing that their Master was with them, when to their
amazement they beheld Him hard by. He was walking on
the water. He made as though He would have passed them
by, and they did not hail Him. When a Jew met a friend by
night, he would not greet him lest it should be a daemon in
his friend's shape.^ Thinking that it was a ghost that they
saw, the disciples would not hail Him ; but they were unable
to repress a cry of alarm, and it reached Jesus. " Courage ! "
He said. "It is I. Fear not." Peter, " ever ardent, ever
leaping before his fellows," * made reply : " Lord, if it be Thou,
bid me come unto Thee upon the waters." " Come," said
Jesus. No sooner had he set foot on the waves than fear got
the better of the impetuous disciple, and he began to sink.
" Lord, save me ! " he cried, and Jesus reached forth a helping
hand and grasped him.* The alarm of the disciples had by
this time been allayed, and they welcomed their Master on
board.* The wind sank to rest and they sped lightly on their
way, and in their wonder and gladness it seemed but a
moment till they got to shore. " When Christ is absent from
his people, they go on but slowly, and with great difficulty ;
but when he joins himself unto them, oh ! how fast they steer
their course ! how soon are they at their journey's end ! "
Signific- This IS a very amazing story, and all down the centuries it
miracle, ^as been a trial to faith and a jest to unbelief. It seems so
palpably impossible. " The peculiar difficulty of the narrative,"
says Strauss, " lies in this, that the body of Jesus appears so
entirely exempt from a law which governs all other human
bodies without exception, namely, the law of gravitation, that
he not only does not sink under the water, but does not even
dip into it ; on the contrary, he walks erect on the waves as
on firm land." And it seems also so grotesque. It has been
the jest of unbelievers ever since the latter half of the second
century, when Lucian pelted it with the pitiless artillery of
» Wetstein on Mt. xiv. 26. Cf. P. E, F. Q., Jan. 1906, p. ifi.
' Chrysost. /« MaiiA. li.
* Peter's adventure is recorded by Mt. alone. This at least may be said, that it
is just the sort of thing that Peter would do.
*John vi. 21 : IjOcXoy XajStiv, they had been afraid, now they were willing.
Strauss, bent on making out a discrepancy between John and the Synoptists : " they
wished to take him on board, but their actually doing so was rendered superfluous by
th«ir immediate arriral at the land." This, however, would require d\X tii&iat^.
1
i
RETREAT ACROSS THE LAKE 239
his keen and biting satire.^ What must be said about it?
The eighteenth century naturalism thought to explain it away.
Under stress of the storm, it was alleged, the boat had kept
close to the land, and, when the disciples saw Jesus, He was
not really walking on the water but merely walking along the
shore. And ever since the time of Strauss it has been the
fashion with unbelievers to regard the miracle as a myth and
discover prototypes of it not only in the Old Testament stories
of the passage through the Red Sea and the parting of the a Kingi h.
Jordan before Elisha when he smote its waters with Elijah's *^***
mantle, but in the bold imagery of Hebrew poetry. " Thy
way," the Psalmist had said, " is in the sea, and Thy path in JJ '*^'*
the great waters, and Thy footsteps are not known."'
It is impossible, however, to dismiss the story in this easy ^ prophecy
fashion ; and the truth is that, like the Feeding of the Multi- °^^^ !*«-
tude, the miracle had a great prophetic purpose. The Lord's
mind was occupied with anticipations of the future — " the i pet l h,
sufferings that should befall Him and the glories that should
follow these " ; and He desired to lead the thoughts of the
Twelve thereto and prepare them for what would soon come
to pass. From the day when He heard of the Baptist's death,
His steadfast aim was to apprise them of the final issue — of
His Death and His Resurrection. The miracle of the Feeding
of the Multitude had been a picture of the Last Supper, a
prophecy of His Death ; and this miracle is a prophecy of
His Resurrection. It is indeed impossible for a mortal body
to walk upon the water, but an ethereal body is subject to
other laws ; and, if it„was possible for the Risen Lord to pass
through the closed door aiid appear in thexhamber where His johno.
disciples were assembled, it was possible for Him, assuming ^'' "^
by the power of God the ethereal condition, to walk upon the
water. The disciples could not at the time comprehend the
ineffable mystery. Enough if they realised the wonder of
their Lord and were assured that, even when it seemed
victorious, the world's hostility could have no power over
Him.
> Ver. Hist, ii § 4 : the Corkfect (*eXXiToJ«) whom he saw in his wonderfirf
Toyage iv\ rou vf\dyovi Siae^otnas. Cf. Philopt. § 13. " Walking on the water"
was a proverb, denoting an impcisibility, Cf. Wetstein.
* Cf. Job ix. 8 LXX : vef ixarwr wi tr' ili4>9\i% irX eaMffOift.
CHAPTER XXVIII
Mt xi». CONTROVERSIES IN CAPERNAUM
34-6=*
Mk. vi. 53-
6 ; John vi. " Habet Jesus multos amatores regni sui coelestis, sed paucos bajulatores suae crucii.
22 — vii. I ; Plures invenit socios mens<e, sed paucos abstinentiae. . . . Multi sequuntur Jesum usque
J!vf^' 3.d fractionem panis, sed pauci usque ad bibendum calicem passioats. Multi miraoila
viU 1-23 ^J^ venerantur, paud ignominias crucis sequuntur." — ZV Inutat. Chr. II. xL § i.
(Lk. vi. 39).
Perplexity WHEN the disciples embarked, the multitude did not all dis-
oTOpiir P^rse. Observing that Jesus did not put off in the boat, some
of them lingered in the hope that He would reappear ; and
not till the morning broke did they think of returning home.
During the night a fleet of boats belonging to Tiberias had
come to land hard by, driven doubtless by stress of weather ;
and in these they took passage for Capernaum. On arriving
there they found to their astonishment that Jesus had returned
before them.
What they should think about Him they knew not.
They had been convinced of His Messiahship, and the miracle
of yester-eve had strengthened their conviction. It was a
current expectation among the Jews that, as Moses, the first
Redeemer, had fed the Israelites with bread from Heaven, so
would the Messiah, the second Redeemer ; nay more, that
He would lead them forth into the wilderness of Bashan, and
Cf. John there make the manna descend for them ; and was not the
* wilderness of Bethsaida in Batanea, the ancient Bashan ? ^
Surely Jesus was the Messiah, yet wherefore had He refused
the Messianic dignity, eluding their grasp and fleeing to the
mountain when they would have acclaimed Him King ?
They were honestly perplexed, and it so happened that an
opportunity presented itself that very day for arriving at an
understanding. It was one of the two week-days, whether
Monday or Thursday, on which there was service in the
John Ti. 59. Synagogue.* Jesus attended and preached, and, in accord-
* Lightfoot on John tL 31.
* It cannot have been the Sabbath, or they would not have journeyed across the
XakCi the distance being greater than a Sabbath Day's journey.
CONTROVERSIES IN CAPERNAUM 241
ance with the custom of the Synagogue, they plied Him with
questions.
To a superficial observer it might have seemed at that iM»cotim
crisis that Jesus had achieved signal success. He vfASgo^^^
surrounded by an admiring multitude, persuaded of His
Messiahship and eager to witness His recognition by the
nation. In His eyes, however, it was an hour of bitter dis-
appointment, of well-nigh utter failure. The multitude's
enthusiasm was inspired by a false ideal of His mission.
They regarded Him as the Messiah, but they conceived of
the Messiah as an earthly king who would free them from
bondage and give them abundance of bread. It was this
false ideal which had all along made the multitude's applause
so distasteful to Him ; and now that the crisis had been
reached, it was necessary that He should at all hazards dis-
abuse their minds and repudiate the r61e which they would
fain thrust upon Him. This He set Himself to accomplish.
First of all, He upbraided them with their unspirituality :
" Verily, verily I tell you, ye are seeking Me, not because ye
saw signs, but because ye ate of the loaves and were filled."
And then, interpreting His miracles of yester-eve and yester-
night, He spoke in mystic language of His Death and His
Resurrection. They were dreaming of a Messiah who would
feed them with bread from Heaven. " The Bread of God," He
» says, " is He that cometh down from Heaven and givcth life
to the world. I am the Bread of Life. He that cometh unto
Me shall never hunger and he that believeth in Me shall
never thirst. Verily, verily I tell you, unless ye eat the flesh
of the Son of Man and drink His blood, ye have not life in
yourselves. He that feedeth on My flesh and drinketh My
blood hath Eternal Life, and I will raise Him up on the last
day."
Such language would sound less strange in Jewish than A test of
in modem ears, since, alike in the Scriptures and in the to j«ut.
Rabbinical literature, sacred instruction is called irtaii and
those who eagerly absorb it are said to eat it " Thy words,"
says the prophet Jeremiah, " were found, and I did eat them." n. 16.
And it is written in the Talmud : " ' Feed him with bread,'
that is, Make him labour in the warfare of the Law, as it is
said : ' Come, eat of my bread.' " Yet stronger and closely P»w- ««. >
242 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
similar to the language of our Lord is the Talmudic figure of
•* eating the Messiah," which meant receiving Him joyfully
and, as it were, devouring His instruction.^ Nevertheless it
was impossible that any of His hearers, even the Twelve at
that stage, should understand the Lord's mystic discourse.
Nor indeed did He mean that they should understand it
He designed it as a test of their faith. Would their loyalty
stand the shock of disillusionment ?
Wide- He deliberately made the experiment And what was the
•lieaaUo^ result ? It IS in no wise surprising that the rulers and their
party among the people were horrified and indignant. " Is
not this man," they cried, " Jesus the son of Joseph, whose
father and mother we know ? How is this man now saying :
' I have come down from Heaven ' ? " " How can this man
give us his flesh to eat ? " It was natural that they should
assume this attitude, and Jesus would be in no wise dis-
appointed. But there were others of whom He expected
better — the great mass of people who had espoused His
cause and went by the name of His disciples. How would
they stand the test ? He had hope of them, but to a large
extent, alas, they belied His confidence. " This is a hard
word," they said ; " who can hearken to it ? " and many of them
•* drew back and would no longer walk with Him." He was
left alone with the Twelve ; and He turned to them and,
wistfully scanning their troubled faces, addressed to them the
The pathetic question : " Are ye also wishing to be gone ? " It
ren^Jn appears that they were wavering in their allegiance ; and
faithful, perchance they might have forsaken Him, had they seen any
door of escape. But they had committed themselves too
deeply. They had left all and followed Jesus, dreaming of a
royal recompense when He should win His kingdom and His
throne ; and, had they abandoned Him, they would have been
a public jest and scorn. For very shame they durst not
And they had a nobler reason for standing faithful. For all
their misconception they loved their Master and had made
great discoveries of His grace. " Are ye also," He asked,
" wishing to be gone ? " Peter, always the spokesman of the
Twelve and the lover of Jesus, made reply ; and his answer
was strangely blended, beginning with a sob of despair and
^ Ligbtfoot and Wetstein on John tL 51.
CONTROVERSIES IN CAPERNAUM 243
swelling out into passionate and triumphant faith. " Lord,"
he cried, " unto whom shall we go away ? Thou hast words
of Eternal Life. And we have believed and recognised that
Thou art the Holy One of God. " ^
It was a poor, faltering confession, and it showed Jesus a traitor
how feeble was the faith even of His Apostles, and how great mi!£f '
their need of instruction in the things of the Kingdom of
Heaven and of preparation for the approaching ordeal.
Peter was the bravest and most devoted of them all ; and, if
this were the utmost reach of his faith, what could be
expected of the rest? He knew what the issue would be,
" Did not I choose you the Twelve ? " He said ; " and of
you one is a devil." Yes, there was one of them who even
then was meditating a worse crime than defection. " He was
speaking," the Evangelist explains, " of Judas the son of Simon
Iskarioth. For this man was about to betray Him, being one
of the Twelve."
The people had taken offence at Jesus, but they soon je«ii con-
found how greatly they needed Him. He continued His m'Sr"'*
ministry of mercy in their midst. What though their dream
of a throne in Jerusalem had been dispelled ? Their burden
of suffering and misery remained, and they found the Lord
still merciful and mighty. They brought their sick as hereto-
fore to His blessed feet, that, like the woman with the bloody cf. Mt. ix.
issue, they might merely touch the tassel of His cloak.* The "^^^
Passover came, but Jesus, aware of the murderous designs of
the rulers, remained in Galilee. He was ready to die in due John rix. i.
season, but He still had work to do. His hour had not yet
come. The rulers were disappointed when He did not
appear, and, bent on His overthrow, they sent a deputation of EmUsane*
Pharisees and Scribes to co-operate with the authorities at ^ifcdrin.
Capernaum. Encompassed as He was by the goodwill of the
multitude, those malignants durst not lay hands upon Him,
but they kept a jealous watch over Him, hoping to discover
some pretext for calling Him to account
Nor was it loner ere they discovered one which promised Offence of
^ ■> * eatiDf with
unwaibed
* T. R. : 6 X/Ma~rit i \Ahi tov Qeov rod i;u}i>Tot is an assimilation to Mt. xvi. 16. *»»n<i».
It is a singularly anfortunate theory (Keim and others) that this is the Johannine
version of Peter's Confession at Caesarea Philippi.
' C(irysost. In MeUth. li : ii yitp aluofipoovffa dxarrai iSlSa^t ^i\offo<f>€tf.
244 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
success. No requirement of the Rabbinical law was more
stringent than that of ceremonial ablution, especially the wash-
Cf. Lk, xL ins: of the hands before and after meat. To eat with un-
■97-8
' washed hands was accounted a foul pollution/ and the penalty
was excommunication.' Moreover, the terrors of superstition
were brought in to reinforce the requirement. There was
a daemon named Shibta ; and, should a man touch his food
with unwashed hands, he was exposed to its nocturnal assaults.
It was a truly ridiculous requirement, and it shows how low
Jewish religion had fallen that so puerile a ceremony should
have been deemed essential. Yet even so abject a super-
stition may be raised almost to sublimity by the enthusiasm
of its votaries ; and it is told that R. Akiba was once im-
prisoned by the Romans, and was provided daily with a
supply of water, sufficient for the purposes of ablution and
drinking. One day, by order of his gaoler, a less supply was
provided. " Give me water for my hands," said the Rabbi.
" My master," said the disciple who waited upon him, " there
is scarce enough water to drink." " What shall I do ? " Akiba
answered. " It is better for me to die than to transgress the
ordinances of my ancestors." '
The Lord's Prosecuting a course of espionage, the Lord's enemies
defence, observed that His disciples neglected this momentous rite.
It was a grievous offence, not indeed against the Law of
Moses, but, which was far more heinous in their eyes, against
the Tradition of the Elders.* They approached Jesus and
demanded an explanation, and He answered with a bold and
contemptuous defiance. He flung in their faces a counter
accusation of monstrous and incredible impiety. " Why,"
they asked, " do thy disciples transgress the Tradition of the
Elders ? " " Why," He retorted, " do ye on your part transgress
the commandment of God for the sake of your Tradition ? "
It was a heavy charge, and Jesus made it good by citing an
amazing instance of Jewish casuistry. Whatever was vowed to
Cf. Mt. God was sacred to the uses of religion. It was corban^ an offer-
xxvu. 6. j^g^ ^^ J must pass into the hands of the priests. With perverse
^ Sot. 4. 2: "Quicunquc panem edit illotis manibus est instar concumbentis
cum scorto."
' Lightfoot on Mt. xv. 2.
» Wetstein on Mt. xv. 2 ; Ottho, Hiit. Poet. Misn. p. 134.
« C/. Introd. j| i.
CONTROVERSIES IN CAPERNAUM 245
ingenuity this pious ordinance was pressed into the service of
irreligious and often wicked ends. Suppose a debtor refused pay-
ment : the creditor would say, " What you owe me is cordan."
He dedicated some portion of it, much or little, to the Temple-
treasury, and should the debtor still persist in withholding it,
he would incur the guilt of robbing God.^ This was innocent
enough, but it was a monstrous iniquity when a son played
the trick upon his needy parents, answering their appeal by
the very formula which our Lord quotes : " Whatever of mine
thou mightest be profited by is corban." * It was frequently
done, and the rulers encouraged it for the sake of the profit
which it brought them. The peculiar odiousness of it lay less
in the inhumanity itself than in the circumstance that it was
perpetrated in the name of God. " Ye play-actors ! " exclaims
Jesus, " admirably did Isaiah prophesy of you, saying : * This "**• «>
people with the lips honoureth Me ; but their heart is far
away from Me. But in vain they worship Me, teaching as
doctrines men's commandments.' "
It was a crushing reply, and Jesus turned from His d'S- '^*»
comfited assailants and addressed the bystanders who had files.
witnessed the rencontre. " Hearken," He said, " and take it in :
It is not what goeth into his mouth that defileth the man ;
but what cometh out of his mouth, this it is that defileth the
man." Meanwhile the Pharisees took themselves off in high
dudgeon, and the Twelve, dreading their vengeance, remon-
strated with Jesus on His temerity. He set their fears at
naught " Every plant," He said, prophesying the doom of
the Pharisaic system, " which My Heavenly Father did not
plant, shall be rooted out. Let them go!" He cried,
surveying His retreating assailants. " They are blind guides ;
and, ' if a blind man guide a blind, both shall fall into a ditch.' "
It was a common proverb,' and it served at once as a just
characterisation of those proud ecclesiastics and a warning to
the bystanders lest they should be misled.
It was the custom of the Twelve to question Jesus by and ^
DofaMM
tbc
by about the parables which He had spoken to the multitude Twelve,
in their hearing ; and when they got home after the encounter ^^^^^ »
with the Pharisees, they appealed , to Him. " Explain to us ,iii. jfr
So Origen {In Matth. xi. S 9)> Ihs authority being r(at 'l^^ptdutv nt.
See Lightfoot on Mt. xv. 5. » S<e Wetstdo.
246 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
the parable," said Peter, referring to His sentence about what
really defiled a man. It was in truth no parable at all, but,
wedded to their Jewish prejudices, they supposed that there
must be some hidden meaning in it The distinction between
clean meat and unclean still seemed to them vitally important,
and it never occurred to them that Jesus would contemn it
And indeed it is no marvel that they failed to receive His
doctrine that nothing defiles a man save impure thoughts.
Acts X. 9- Years after Peter still clung to his Jewish prejudice. Jesus
was grieved by their slowness of heart " Even yet," He ex-
claimed, " are ye also without understanding ? "
Their in- 'Yhc incident confirmed Him in a momentous resolution
struction
henceforth which He had formed. The time was short, and the Twelve
the
Master's were ill prepared for the task which would devolve upon them
ronceriT ^hen He was gone. They were still very ignorant and un-
spiritual, and He had resolved to devote Himself thenceforward
to the business of their instruction in the things of the Kingdom
of Heaven. His ministry at Capernaum was ended. He
would quit that town which had so long been blessed with
His presence, and seek some retreat where He might be alone
with His Apostles and, in close and unbroken converse, reveal
to them what they had so much need to know.
CHAPTER XXIX
RETREAT INTO PHCENICIA ***• *^ "*
9=Mk. yiL
"O qvuim mire, Jesu, ludis hU quibus diligeris I
Sed cum ludis non illudis, nee fallis nee falleris,
Sed excludis quos includis, notus non agnosceris. "
Med. Hymn.
Jesus desired to be alone with the Twelve, Whither should R«r«t to
He betake Himself? He might have crossed to the eastern ofT^cMd
side of the Lake, or He might have retired to the interior of ^**°°"
Galilee ; but experience had proved that in neither direction
would He find the seclusion which He desired. He must
seek a new retreat To the north-west of Galilee lay the land
of Phoenicia, once the chief maritime country of the world, but
now a portion of the Roman province of Syria. Its people
were the survivors of the Canaanites, the sinful and idolatrous
race which the Israelites had dispossessed on their entrance
into the Land of Promise. It was an unclean land, abhorred
in Jewish eyes, but for that very reason it seemed to promise
retirement. Thither Jesus turned, and found a lodging in the
district adjacent the once famous sea-ports of Tyre and Sidon,
thinking to sojourn there unrecognised and undisturbed.
Herein, however. He was disappointed. His fame had Aiuppiiftni
travelled thither. Visitors from Tyre and Sidon had witnessed '*°™*°-
His works in Galilee, and on their return they would tell what Mk. ul 7-
they had seen and heard. His arrival was soon noised through
the country, and presently, as He walked abroad with the
Twelve, He was approached by a suppliant — a widow^ who
had a lunatic daughter. " Have pity on me. Lord, Thou Son cf. Mt u.
of David ! " she cried, giving Him the title wherewith the Jewish „.' w, 31
populace loved to hail Him. It was a pathetic appeal, and ^"'^^a^'Lk.
might have softened a harder heart than the gracious Son of "'^"j^J^-
Man's. " It was a piteous spectacle," says St Chrysostom, xA. 9.
* Mk. vii. 26 in Sinaitic Palimpsest: "That woman was a widow from the
borders of Tyre of Phoenicia." According to Clem. Rom, {Uom. iii. | 73 ! "• I *9 ;
xiii, § 7) her name was JusU and her daughter's Bcrnice, and she was a Jewish
proselyte.
248 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
** to see a woman crying with so much feeling, and that woman
a mother, and praying for a daughter, and that daughter so ill
bested." But Jesus heeded not He walked on and let her
cry. The disciples were moved, and they assumed the office
of intercession. They called their Master's attention to the
suppliant and besought Him to grant her petition, urging, lest
they should seem to accuse Him of heartlessness, the embar-
rassment of the situation. " Send her away," they said, " for
she is crying after us." ^ Silent to her. He answered them :
" I was not sent but unto the lost sheep of Israel's house."
Her per- It seemed as though the answer closed every door of hope,
sistence. -pj^^ disciples Said nothing further, but the woman would not
be repulsed. She followed on, and, when they reached their
lodging, she entered ' with them. They took their places at
table and she knelt at His feet and prayed : " Lord, help me ! "
Then at length He took notice of her and answered her in lan-
guage suggested by the surroundings : " It is not seemly to
take the children's bread and throw it to the whelps." She
caught up the word and retorted : " Yea, Lord ; for even the
whelps eat of the crumbs that fall from the table of their
masters." Her insistence prevailed. " O woman ! " He cried,
" great is thy faith. Be it done unto thee as thou wilt" She
went home, and found her daughter healed.
DifBcuities There is no incident in our Lord's earthly ministry more
f°ory! puzzling than this. His behaviour here appears strangely and
painfully out of character. Were it related of a Rabbi, it
w^ould excite no surprise, and might be quoted as an example
of Jewish exclusiveness, strikingly contrasting with the large
comprehensiveness of our Lord's attitude toward the heathen.
But it is disconcerting to hear such language from the lips of
Jesus and see Him behaving to this poor heathen after the
very manner of a Pharisee. Some explanation there must be
of behaviour so alien to His manner and so contrary to the
spirit of His Gospel, which recognises no distinction between
Jew and Gentile, embracing every child of Adam with
impartial love.
I. The The main difficulty lies not in His reluctance to grant the
Lord's
' The Lord's reply shows that they desired, not that she should be peremptorily
dismissed, but that she should be granted her request.
• Mk. viL 35 : tUtXeoiva NLD, Titch.
RETREAT INTO PHCENICIA 249
suppliant's petition. This is easily enough accounted for,
though the common explanation is but partially satisfactory.
Jesus, it is argued, was not here obeying the promptings of
His heart but accommodating Himself to the requirements of
His mission. He had a definite method in the prosecution
thereof, and He faithfully adhered to it, developing it in due
course and taking each step in order. It was the method Mu xUi jj
which He explained in His parable of the Leaven. His ^^
design was to place the Gospel in Israel as in the midst of
humanity and let it permeate the whole mass. The insuf-
ficiency of this explanation lies here, that, while throughout
His earthly ministry Jesus adhered to the principle that He
had been sent only to the lost sheep of Israel's house and
never sought the aliens, still, whenever aliens crossed His path,
like the Samaritan woman and the people of Sychar, or came
in quest of Him, like the Centurion of Capernaum, He had
no scruple in lavishing His grace upon them as freely as if
they had been Jews. And, had He acted in this instance
after His wont. He would have received the suppliant
graciously and forthwith granted her the desire of her heart
The truth is that His reluctance was not due at all to the Due to Hi*
fact that the woman was a Gentile but wholly to the circum- '*"''* '°'
' privacy.
stance that He had gone to those parts in search of seclusion.
He desired to be alone with the Twelve and impart to them
the instruction which they so much needed ; and it was with
a feeling of dismay that He observed the approach of a
suppliant. He foresaw the consequence of granting her
petition. The fame of the miracle would go abroad, and He
would presently be surrounded by a crowd — sufferers craving
relief and others who came only to gaze and admire.
Therefore He would fain work no miracle, and He would
have been no whit less reluctant had the suppliant been an
Israelite.
The main difficulty lies not here but in the harshness ,. hu
wherewith He sought to repel the woman. Various con- j;^^« ^
siderations have been put forward which doubtless go a
certain way toward alleviating it One is that His harshness
was only assumed, and He had two ends in view when He
put on that mask of churlishness. He desired, on the one
hand, to try the woman's faith and make its triumph more
250
THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
signal ; ^ and, on the other hand, to show the disciples what
even a heathen was capable of, and thus conquer their Jewish
prejudice and prepare them for His world-wide purpose of
salvation.' Though it surrounds the incident with a theatrical
air, yet surely this interpretation is preferable to that which
regards our Lord as here awaking for the first time to
consciousness of the universality of His mission. It is at
once offensive to the religious instinct and inconsistent with
fact to suppose that He had until that crisis shared the
narrow prejudices of His time and race, and then had it borne
in upon Him, to His surprise and delight, that the heathen
also were worthy of His grace.'
Again, it has been pointed out that, while Jesus speaks
here after the manner of Jewish insolence, styling the heathen
" dogs," * He nevertheless employs a diminutive form of the
word — a diminutive of endearment, it is alleged, denoting,
not the unclean pariah dogs which prowled about the streets
after nightfall and devoured the garbage of the gutters, but
the little house-dogs which played about the table at meal-
times and got occasional scraps from their masters.' Perhaps
one was in the room where Jesus and the Twelve were
supping. It may be so, yet it is equally possible that the
word is a diminutive of contempt, meaning wretched curs?
His Whatever force these considerations may possess, they
prowls "merely soften the harshness and do not obliterate it There-
fore one gladly welcomes another which seems to have
hitherto escaped notice, and which divests our Lord's words
of every semblance of harshness and transforms the seeming
insult into a good-humoured pleasantry. He had quitted
Jewish soil and come where the language of Jewish bigotry
was unknown and could not have been understood. It was
not the brutal epithet of Pharisaic insolence that He employed,
but a familiar proverb. The Greeks had a saying : " You
starve yourself to feed dogs." ' " It was said," explains
Erasmus, " of one who, while too poor to procure the neces-
saries of life, endeavoured to maintain an establishment of
• Chrysost. In Mattk, liii ; Aug. Serm. IxzYii. { I.
• Neander. * Keim. * Cf. Lightfoot and Wetstein.
• Wetstein, Laidlaw. • It is contemptuous in Plat Euthyd. 298 D.
» Erasm. Adag. under Ahsurda : OLiT^v 01/ rpti^um Kdvca Tp44>€it.
I
RETREAT INTO PHCENICIA 251
horses or servants. It will be appropriately employed against
those who, by reason of the narrowness of their means, have
scarce enough to maintain life, yet ambitiously endeavour to
emulate the powerful and wealthy in fineness of dress and
general ostentation. In short, it will be suitable to all who
regard the things which belong to pleasure or magnificence,
neglecting the things which are more necessary." And they
had another proverb : " Never be kind to a neighbour's dog,"
or otherwise : " One who feeds a strange dog gets nothing but
the rope to keep."^ "The proverb," says Erasmus, " warns
you against uselessly wasting kindness in a quarter whence
no profit will accrue to you in return. A neighbour's dog,
after being well fed, goes back to his former master." And
it was some such familiar adage that Jesus quoted when He
said : " It is not seemly to take the children's bread and
throw it to the whelps." It was a playful reply. It was as
though He had said : " You are a stranger to Me, and why
should I give away to a stranger the blessings which belong
to those of My own household ? "
And now observe the woman's retort. It also is a Her retort
proverb, as appears from a passage in Philostratus' Life ofy„\^^
Apollonius of Tyana} ApoUonius was attended wherever
he went by an admiring disciple, Damis of Nineveh, who
served as his Boswell, recording his movements, his doings,
and his discourses, and taking note even of little things and
obiter dicta} Once some one sneered at him for this. " When
you collect such trifles, you are acting just like the dogs
which eat the scraps that fall from the feast" " If there be
feasts of gods," answered Damis, "and gods eat, certainly
they have also attendants who see to it that even the scraps
of ambrosia are not lost." Here is the very figure, almost the
very language, of the woman's retort : " Yea, Lord ; for even
the whelps eat of the crumbs that fall from the table of
their masters." The resemblance is too close to be acci-
dental, and it is most reasonable to recognise the words as
a familiar proverb.* Have they not indeed a proverbial
1 Erasm. Adag. under IngratUtulo : lofwv^ €9 tpitw yttroi^t niwa. 6t irfra rpifm
iifoy, rovTifi fibvov Xivoi fih'ei.
» I. 19. * tt Ti Kal To^pKpd^^aro.
* The Arabs have a proverb : "It is better to feed a dog than to feed a ■*■,"
meaning that the dog is more gratefiiL
25? THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
ring ? The woman caps proverb with proverb, pleasantry with
pleasantry.^
The It may seem, however, that this interpretation merely sub-
wrnment stitutcs a new difficulty for the old one. It relieves us indeed
"^swict" ^"^^^^ ^^^ necessity of imputing to the gentle Jesus the insulting
language of Jewish bigotry, but in the unhappy circumstances
was not banter well-nigh as cruel as insult? He met the
prayer of the grief-stricken mother with playful raillery ; and
what was this but mockery of her sorrow ? What was such
" patching of grief with proverbs " but to " charm ache with air,
and agony with words " ? And how should she have replied
to such untimely jesting? Surely after the fashion of the
courtier when Jesus met his request that He should come to
John iv. Capernaum and heal his dying son, with the rebuke : " Except
■ ye see signs and wonders, ye will in nowise believe." " Sir,"
he cried, vexed and impatient, " come down ere my child
die ! " The woman, however, answers raillery with raillery.
Was not her behaviour as unnatural as His was cruel ?
If, however, the circumstances be considered, the difficulty
will disappear. There was indeed raillery in our Lord's reply,
but there was no flippancy. There would be a twinkle in His
eyes as He spoke, but neither in look nor in tone the faintest
suggestion of mockery ; and the poor mother would read the
kindness of His heart in His gentle face. Nor, though the
situation was distressing, was it at all desperate. The cour-
tier's son was dying ; but this poor girl was a lunatic, and it
was no question of life or death. And there was a world of
difference in temperament between the courtier of Capernaum
and the Syrophoenician woman. He was an unsmiling Jew,
a stranger to " the saving grace of humour " ; she was a Greek,
nimble of fancy and keen of wit, delighting in quips and
v^ cranks, and responding, even in the midst of sorrow, to a
playful assault. Our Lord's treatment of her is an instance
of His wondrous insight into human character. He perceived
at a glance what was in everyone with whom He had to do,
and knew exactly how to handle him.
Ministry The incident had the untoward issue which Jesus had
*^eaUien? foreseen and dreaded. It spread His fame abroad and made
* "Wisdom's scholars," says Rutherford, "are not fools: Grace is a witty and
understanding spirit, ripe and sliarp."
RETREAT INTO PHCENICIA 253
seclusion impossible ; and thus He was compelled to seek
some other retreat where He might hold uninterrupted con-
verse with the Twelve. Eager as He was to address Himself
to the urgent task of their instruction, He tarried awhile in
Phcenicia. In the providence of God a door had been opened
for the Gospel in that heathen land, and Jesus obeyed the
call. Instead of retracing His steps southward, He visited
Tyre, then travelled northward along the shore of the Medi-
terranean to Sidon, and, thence fetching a compass, He skirted
the southern slopes of Lebanon and Hermon and travelled
down the eastern bank of upper Jordan until He reached the
Lake of Galilee. It was a memorable episode in the ministry
of our Lord. In no other instance did He pass the borders
of Israel, and one would fain know what befell in the course
of this His solitary mission to the Gentiles. What did the
Saviour of the World, what said He, how fared He, in sea-
girt Tyre, that far-famed city, " the mart of nations," " the is. «xiii. g ;
merchant of the peoples unto many isles," " whose antiquity ^^^ ^^ j
was of ancient days," and in her mother, Sidon ? Unhappily 7, xa.
the story is unwritten. Was it distasteful to the Jewish
Evangelists that the Lord showed such grace to the Gentiles ? *
Or were they so distraught by the unfamiliar scenes that
they retained no distinct remembrance of aught that they saw
or heard ? Whatever be the explanation, they have told
nothing. The sole record of that wondrous mission is St
Mark's brief note of the Lord's itinerary : " And again He ^*- *"• 3«-
went forth from the region of Tyre and went through Sidon
unto the Sea of Galilee through the midst of the region of
Decapolis.'" It nevertheless appears that His labours were
crowned with abundant success. His kindness to the Syro-
phcenician woman had opened the hearts of her countrymen ;
and in after days Jesus quoted the reception which Tyre and ^J!|* ""
Sidon had accorded to His Word, as a melancholy and 13-4.
damning contrast to the unbelief of the cities of Galilee.
^ Lk. fails us here. There is a lacona in his narrative between the Feeding of the
5000 and the Great Confession at Oesarea Philippu
» Assimilated in T. R. to Mt, xv. 29, which obliterates the Phaenidan ministry.
CHAPTER XXX
Mt. XV. 29-
xvi. 12= WANDERINGS
Mk. vii. 31-
viii. 26.
"When he showed himself to Israel, thej drove him sometimes into the wilder-
ness, sometimes into the desart, sometimes into the sea, and sometimes into the
mountains, and still in every of these places he was either haunted or hunted by new
enemies."— John Bunyan.
Quest for a Amid His missionary activities in PhcEnicia Jesus never lost
retreat, gigh^ of His main purpose ; and from the moment when He
quitted Sidon and turned His face southward, His hope was
to find some sequestered nook where, free from intrusion, He
might resume His converse with the Twelve. His design,
however, was frustrated. A crowd escorted Him on His
way, increasing as He went until eventually it numbered
upwards of four thousand.
Miracles It was an urgent necessity that He should rid Himself of
on the ^jjg embarrassment : and, when He reached the Lake of
eastern ' '
•ide of the Galilee, He made an effort to escape. Somewhere on the
' eastern side He ascended to the uplands and there sat Him
down, thinking that the multitude would respect His desire
for privacy and withdraw. But herein He was disappointed.
The people of the district welcomed His arrival and brought
their sufferers to Him for healing — lame, deaf, maimed, and
many other sorts. He had gone up the mountain, but,
nothing daunted, they climbed after Him bearing their piteous
burdens, and dropped them at His feet It was not in the
Lord's heart to withhold His succour, and He healed them
all. One case there was which attracted special notice — that
of a deaf stammerer. Since he did not come to Jesus but was
carried to Him,^ it would seem that he was stricken also in
mind. To give him hearing and speech without repairing his
shattered intellect would have been a small boon, and Jesus
made the lesser blessing the means to the greater. He took
' Mk. viL 32. Cf. p. 493, a. 4.
«54
WANDERINGS 255
the man aside, thrust His fingers into the choked cars as
though Doring them, and moistened the stammering tongue cf. Mk.
with saliva, which in those days was believed to possess ^ti^\l 4,
medicinal efficacy.^ It was a device to stir the torpid mind to
expectancy, and it was furthered by an involuntary but effec-
tive reinforcement. The piteous spectacle smote the heart of
Jesus, and " He looked up to Heaven and groaned." The
operation of those kind hands arrested the poor creature's
attention, and the look of that pitiful face won his confidence.
He yielded himself to the gracious stranger and let Him do
with him what He would. " Be opened," said Jesus ; and the
miracle was wrought. The deaf ears were unstopped and the
stammering tongue unloosed, and he talked aright.
The miracles on the mountain increased at once the Second
enthusiasm of the multitude and the embarrassment of Jesus, l!^i^***
and He resolved what He would do in order to escape. He
would fain be rid of them ; yet a multitude was always a
pathetic spectacle in His eyes, and, as He surveyed that vast
assemblage, a great compassion filled His heart. Some of them
had followed Him a long distance, all the way from Phoenicia;
and they were now weary ; their provisions were spent, and,
since they were in a lonely region, they could procure none.
If He left them so, they must perish of hunger. " I have
compassion on the multitude," He said to the disciples,
" because they have now been with Me three days ; and I will
not let them go away fasting, lest they faint on the road."
Remembering how He had already fed a still greater multi-
tude, the disciples referred the matter to Him. " Whence
have we in a wilderness so many loaves as to satisfy so great
a crowd ? " It is as though they had said : " It is impossible
for us ; we leave it to Thee." Jesus bade them produce
what provision they had. It amounted only to seven loaves
and a few small fishes, the customary fare of the Galilean
peasantry. He took the scanty store and blessed it and
served it out to the company, which numbered above four
thousand. And it sufficed ; nay, the fragments which
remained, filled seven maunds.*
» Cf. p. 344. .
' It is widely alleged that the two miracles of feeding are only varying veisioot
of the same incident (Schleier., Strauss, Ewald, Keim, Wright) ; but it is remarkahU
256 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
Escape by The multitude would fain have held by Jesus still, but He
^cink/of ^*d devised a way of escape. He had procured a boat,^ and
Magadan ^s soou as the miracle had been wrought, He went down to
and Dal-
maniuha. the Lake and, putting off, left the wistful multitude on the
shore. Whither He betook Himself is uncertain, but it would
seem that He steered southward and, landing at the lower end
of the Lake, took His way inland until He reached a spot
which promised seclusion. " He went," says St Matthew,
" into the region of Magadan " ; * " He went," says St Mark,
" into the parts of Dalmanutha." Both these names are un-
known save for their mention here, but there is a place called
Ed Delhemiyeh situated on the Jordan a mile north of the
point where it is joined by the tributary Yarmuk, the ancient
Hieromax ; and it may be that this is Dalmanutha, Magadan
being an adjacent village.* Their very obscurity justified the
Lord's expectation that in their neighbourhood He would find
an undisturbed retreat
Arrival of Again, however, He was doomed to disappointment. His
^'^^'a^ presence with that huge following on the eastern shore could
Sadducees. not bc hid, and His enemies hastened to dog His steps.
Scarce had He reached His retreat when a band of Pharisees
and Sadducees, probably from Capernaum, appeared on the
scene. They had tracked Him thither in order to ply Him
with captious questions and perchance betray Him into some
fatal declaration. They opened the attack with a renewal of
their now hackneyed demand for a sign. In truth they had
witnessed signs enough, nor did they dispute the reality
thereof, but they pretended that they needed one more con-
Demand vincing. They asked a sign from Heaven, " that He should
from Stop the sun," suggests St Chrysostom, " or rein in the moon,
.leaven." ^^ j^yj.| ^Jq^j^ thunder, or the like." The demand stirred more
sorrow than indignation in the breast of Jesus. It was a
that the narratives have difierent words for basket (</. Mt. xvi. 9-10= Mk. viu. 19-20)
— xlxfKvoi and ff<f>vpU {<rxvpU). K6<f>. was the Jew's bread-basket and a-tp. a Gentile term
[cf. Epict. iv. 10). The verbal difference corresponds to a difference of nationality,
the first multitude being Jewish, the second at least mainly Gentile.
» C/. Introd. § 11.
• MayaSdf XBD, Tisch., W. H., R.V. ; Magedan Vulg. Mo^SaXd T. R, it
merely a familiar name substituted for an unfamiliar.
' Henderson, Palestine, § 114 ; arts. Dalmanutha and Magadan in Hastings'
D. £. Rendal Harris and Nestle suggest that Dalmanutha is simply the Aramaic of
(It t4 lUpi) mistaken for a proper name. Cf. Dalman, Words of fetus, pp. 66-7.
WANDERINGS
257
veritable tragedy that was being enacted in His presence
The Pharisees and the Sadducees were natural and herediUry
rivals, wide as the poles asunder in creed and policy ; yet.
blinded by a common enmity, they had laid aside their mutual
antagonism and conspired in this monstrous and unholy
alliance.^ It was surely the very extremity of obduracy, the
furthest reach of that sin against the Holy Spirit which hath
never forgiveness. " He groaned in His spirit."
It was the third time that our Lord's adversaries had Th« ijxft
asked for a sign, and it is noteworthy how He received each "'"**'•
successive demand. The first was made in Jerusalem during john ii. i».
the Passover at the outset of His ministry ; and He acceded *•
to it, albeit the sign which He granted was unintelligible to
the rulers and even, at the time, to His disciples. It was the
sign of the Resurrection. The second demand He met with Mt «<l js.
indignant contempt, yet to it also He acceded after a fashion, \l'^^!^
reminding His adversaries how the Ninevites had repented at
the preaching of Jonah and bidding them beware lest, with a
greater sign than the preaching of Jonah before them, they
should remain impenitent. Now, when the demand is a third
time made, He meets it with an absolute and contemptuous
refusal : " Why doth this generation seek a sign ? Verily
I tell you, there shall no sign be given to this generation."*
It was impossible for Jesus to hold converse with the Fii^hi
Twelve in the presence of those malignant adversaries. He "o*^*"*
must quit the scene and seek elsewhere a retreat. Whither
should He turn? Galilee was closed against Him, and so
was the eastern side of the Lake. He had no choice but to
betake Himself northward once more and look for a hermitage
on heathen soil. He travelled back to the shore and, re-
^mbarking, steered for the upper end of the Lake.' It was a
sail of some thirteen miles ; and, as the craft slipped gently on
» C/. Orig. /ft Matlh. xii. § I.
' Mk.'s report of this incident is much superior to Ml's. The Utter is obnootljr
usimilatcd to the narrative of the second demand for a sign (Mt. xiL 38-42 = Lk.
xi. 16, 29-32). It is further vitiated by the intrusion of the Uunt about their &kiU
in reading the signs of the weather and their blindness to the signs of the tioMl
(w. 2b-3]i— no doubt an authentic Ugicn but belonging elsewhere. Cf. Lk. vL
54-6. See W. H. 's note.
• Much confusion has resulted from the idea that W» rh v4peu>, " to the other side,"
must mean across the Lake from W. to E. or from E. to W. It majr, bowcvar,
equally w«U mean acrou the Lake from S. to N.
[
258 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
her way, He embraced the opportunity of instructing the
"The Twelve in the things of the Kingdom of Heaven. " See ! " He
the Phari- Said. " Beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and Sadducees."
*^ddu^ ^® ^^^ thinking of the scene which had been enacted a little
cees." before, and He meant to warn them against the blind tradi-
tionalism of the Pharisees and the worldliness of the Sadducees,
Cf. Mk. those aristocratic sycophants of the Herodian court The sen-
^*" ^^' tence was a prelude to a discourse on the true nature of His
Messiahship ; and, had He been suffered to continue, He would
I Pet. L zx. have unfolded to them what they must anticipate — " the suffer-
ings that should befall Messiah and the glories that should follow
these." His discourse, however, was interrupted. It chanced
that in the haste of their departure the disciples had neglected
to procure a store of provisions and had only a single loaf on
board. When He spoke of " leaven," they took Him literally
and supposed that He was giving them directions about getting
bread, forbidding them to purchase it of people with Pharisaic
or Sadducean sympathies.*
Duiness of It was a revelation of the dulness and unspirituality of the
the Twelve.
Twelve. The metaphorical use of the word " leaven " was
common among the Jews,' and their misunderstanding of it
was the more inexcusable after all that they had recently
Mt. XV. heard and seen. Had they profited by the Master's lesson
* TiTrs-aa! about what really defiled a man, they would never have im-
puted to Him that absurd objection to bread which had
passed through Pharisaic or Sadducean hands. And how
could they fear want when He was in their midst who had
twice fed thousands with a handful of bread ? " Why," He
cried, " are ye debating within you, O ye of little faith, because
ye did not take loaves ? Do ye not yet understand, neither
remember ye the five loaves of the five thousand, and how
many baskets ye took? Neither the seven loaves of the
four thousand, and how many maunds ye took ? How
do ye not understand that it was not with reference to loaves
that I said : * Beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and
Sadducees ' ? "
* Euth. Zig. : Ku\v9h'rei dri tww lovSaiKur iprwr, J»j rpoatS6KriiTap. Mt. xvi. 5
confasedly represents the incident as occurring after their arrival at the other side.
Mk. viii. 13 states the situation accurately.
' C/. Lightfoot on Mt. xvL 6.
WANDERINGS
259
The incident brought home to Jesus afresh how sorely Healing ol
the Twelve needed instruction. Meanwhile He desisted. The ' "n']f,
boat sped on her way, and by and by they reached the j*^******^
northern end of the Lake and put in at the embouchure of
the upper Jordan. On the left bank of the river a little way
inland stood the fine town of Bethsaida. Once a poor village,
it had been enlarged and embellished by the tetrarch Philip
and styled Bethsaida Julias in honour of Julia, daughter of
the Emperor Augustus.^ Jesus was bound northward and
would fain have escaped observation ; but, as He passed
through the town. His progress was arrested. A blind man
was brought to Him for healing.' Apprehensive lest a crowd
should gather and follow Him on His way, He laid hold of
the man's hand and led him outside the town ere addressing
Himself to the miracle. Since the avenue of sight was closed,
He approached his soul by that of touch. After the manner of
the physicians of that age He spat on his eyes, handled them,
and inquired if he made out anything. The man looked up.
The touch and the voice of Jesus had enkindled his faith, and
it leapt forth to meet Him. That instant the miracle was
wrought. " I make out the men," he said, " for as trees I sec
them walking about." An English philosopher tells how a
blind man, being asked what was his idea of the colour scarlet,
answered that he conceived it to resemble a loud blare of a
trumpet And this blind man, descrying the bystanders, said
that he saw men, and he knew that they were men because
they walked about, but they were like the fancy which in his
darkened mind he had formed of trees. The Lord laid His
hands on the bewildered eyes, and they made out everything
distinctly.
It seems that the man lived in the country, and Jesus, Escape
anxious to avoid publicity, sent him straight home, forbidding ^'S;.ja*
him to enter the town. Thus He succeeded in getting clear
away and pursuing His journey without a following.
^ Jos. /*«/. xviii, 2. § I. Though Philip had raised it to the rank of a dty, wiiKtm
rapoffx^p i^lufia, Mk. still calls it a village (viii. 23, 26). So enduring is custom.
CJ. the retention of the title of " king " by Herod Antipas (p. 229). It may be ihrt
the old village had been left side by side with the new city.
' Mk. has assimilated his narrative of this ihddent to viL J 1-7.
CHAPTER XXXI
Mt. m.
i3-9=Mk.
viii. 27-9 =
Lk. ix. 18-
so.
THE GREAT CONFESSION
•• Tu beams es, Bariona,
Cui aspirat sua dona
Quasi nato Spiritus.
Quod caro sanguisque nesdt
Per Patrem tibi patescit
Revelatum ccielitus." — Mti. Hymn,
AtCaesarea JusT beyond the frontier of Galilee at the base of the majestic
Hermon lay the town of Caesarea Philippi. It was a lovely
district There the Jordan takes its rise. Two springs, says
St Jerome ^ propagating an etymological fancy which long
maintained its ground and survives to this day among the
native Christians, the Jor and the Dan, blend together, and
the confluence of their waters makes the stream of that sacred
and historic river as the combination of their names forms its
name. When the Greeks came thither, they built a shrine in
honour of their god Pan and called the town Paneas ; and
the tetrarch Philip in his turn adorned it and named it
Csesarea after Caesar Augustus and Caesarea Philippi after
himself to distinguish it from the other Caesarea, Csesarea
Stratonis, on the Palestinian sea-board.^
"Who say There Jesus found the retreat which He had sought so
th^Ahe long, and addressed Himself to the task of instructing the
Manis?°" ^^^^'^^ ^" ^^ things of the Kingdom of Heaven and prepar-
ing them for the impending dMouement. He began with a
matter of supreme moment, a question which demanded
immediate settlement Ever since He had entered on His
public ministry men had been debating about Him, and He
would fain ascertain what opinion the Twelve had formed and
what judgment they had arrived at regarding Him. He lost
no time in eliciting an avowal. He walked abroad with them
' On Mt xtL 13.
« Jos. Ant. xviiL 3. 1 1 ; Z>« Bell. /ud. iL 9. §. I. Cf. SchUrer, H.J. P. II. L
pp. 132-5.
THE GREAT CONFESSION 261
in the neighbourhood of Caesarea,* and it was evident from
His prayerful abstraction that some great concern was on His
mind. At length He spoke. " Who," He asked, " say the
people that the Son of Man is?"« He had a purpose in
employing that sobriquet, "the Son of Man." It was His
title of humiliation, and He desired to learn whether they had
discovered His hidden glory and recognised in any measure
what He really was. He did not enquire what the rulers
thought about Him. All too plainly had they avowed their
opinion that He was an impostor and their determination to
compass His destruction. But what was the judgment of
the people? They were indeed full of admiration for His
heavenly teaching and of wonderment at His miracles, but
was that all ? Had they attained to any just conception of
His person and mission ? " Who," He asked, " say the people
that the Son of Man is ? " and the Twelve told Him the
various opinions which they had heard. Some thought, like cf. khl h
Herod Antipas, that He was John the Baptist; some that M"*"^"^
He was Elijah ; some that He was another of the old prophets,
perhaps Jeremiah.
Jesus doubtless knew better than the Twelve what the "Who «>
people were saying about Him ; and it was not for informa- J^r
tion that He asked, but in order to open the way for a
question of greater import. Such were the popular opinions.
" But ye," He continues, " who say ye that I am ? " It was
a searching and momentous question. Their answer would
define the disciples' attitude toward Him and reveal what
profit they had derived from His teaching and whether they
were fit for the trust which would by and by be committed to
them. Prompt and unwavering came the response : " Thou Petw'i
art the Messiah."' It was Peter that spoke — Peter. "thcSST"'
mouth of the Apostles, the ever ardent, the coryphaeus of the
Apostle choir." And it was a great confession. To call
Jesus the Messiah is in any circumstances a great confession,
since it implies the recognition of Him as the Saviour whom
* Mk.'s «ii tAj KiifiAi K. is a Hebraism meaning much the same as Mt's Wr tA
yApi\ K. Cf. Num. xxi. 32 ; Josh. xt. 32, 36, 41, etc.
" Mt, xvi. 13. A*« om. KB, Tisch., W. H., R.V. For rt» vUr roC i»9h Mk.
and Lk. giTc /it«, obliterating a significant and essential touch-
» Mt's i vMn Tvi ^tdi fwrrtt is a mere expansion, inserted probably as M
antithesis to ri^ Uov toO dvSpurov.
262 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
prophets foretold and righteous men desired to see, the
Fulfiller of Israel's long hope and humanity's eager desire.
But circumstances invested Peter's confession with a peculiar
significance and made it very precious in the eyes of Jesus.
At the dawn of His ministry the first disciples had attached
themselves to Him believing Him to be the Messiah on the
strength of the Baptist's testimony and their initial acquaint-
ance with Him. But they were Jews and cherished the
Jewish conception of the Messiah and His mission, and their
subsequent intercourse with Jesus had proved naught else
than a continuous disillusionment He had deliberately set
Himself to combat the prevailing ideal of Messiahship, He
had steadfastly trodden the path of humiliation, and they had
known Him day by day as the lowly Son of Man, shunning
applause and rejecting the regal dignity which misguided
enthusiasm would have thrust upon Him. Even John the
Baptist, to whom had been vouchsafed such singular attesta-
tions of the Lord's Messiahship, had been shaken in his mind ;
and it is no marvel that the Twelve also doubted. It was
a great confession when the response came prompt and un-
faltering : " Thou art the Messiah." It meant that, though
indeed they still clung to their Jewish ideal, the Twelve had
drunk so deep of their Master's grace and perceived so much
of His glory that they could not doubt In face of all that
seemed to contradict their faith, they were persuaded that He
was the Messiah, the Saviour of Israel.
Exaltation Jesus hailed the confession with exultant rapture. It
o jesuj. furjijsjjgj Him with welcome evidence that His labour was
not fruitless nor His confidence vain. " Blessed art thou,
Simon son of John ! " He cried ; " for flesh and blood did not
reveal it unto thee, but My Father in Heaven." The names
which He uses are significant Simon was the name which
the apostle had borne in the old days ere he had met with
Jesus, and John means " the grace of the Lord." His con-
fession proved him a new man, a true son of God's grace.
That great faith had been taught him by no human wisdom
Mt xi. 27 but by revelation from the Father. " No one," says Jesus
"^^^- elsewhere, " recogniseth the Son but the Father, neither doth
any one recognise the Father but the Son, and he to whom
the Son may will to reveal Him."
THE GREAT CONFESSION 263
It evinces what worth that great confession had in the Hn
Lord's eyes that, not content with pronouncing this bcne-KS"**
diction on the disciple who made it, He promised him a
wondrous reward. " I tell thee," He said, making symbolic
use in turn of the surname which He had bestowed upon him
on that memorable day when first they met, " that thou art )««»■ L 4*
Peter, the Rock, and on this rock will I build My Church and
the gates of Hades ^ shall not prevail against it I will give
unto thee the keys of the Kingdom of Heaven ; and whatso-
ever thou shalt bind on earth shall stand bound in Heaven,
and whatsoever thou shalt loose on earth shall stand loosed to
Heaven." Of all the sayings of Jesus this is the most sorely
vexed and the most grievously abused. It is the Papacy'f
grand proof-text ; and it is surely no less than a tragedy, a
pathetic evidence of human perversity, that on a saying of
Him who combated the priestcraft of His day even unto
death, a new priestcraft should have been built, more endur-
ing than the old, more wide-spread in its dominion, and
more malign in its influence. Suffice it to observe that the
Romanist interpretation is sanctioned by none of the great
Fathers. Origen insists that the promise was made not to
Peter alone but to every disciple who joins in Peter's con-
fession.' St Chrysostom holds that the rock was not Peter
but Peter's faith, " the faith of his confession." » According
to St Jerome* the rock was Jesus Himself. "Even as He
granted light to the Apostles that they might be called ' the
light of the world,' so also upon Simon who believed in the
Rock Christ, He bestowed the name of Peter, the Rock."
And he goes on to speak reprovingly of Presbyters and
Bishops who, "not understanding this passage, assume some-
what of the arrogance of the Pharisees." St Augustine,
influenced by a hymn of St Ambrose, once thought tiiat the
rock was Peter ; but subsequently, while not condemning his
earlier opinion outright, he preferred the view that the rock
was Christ Himself.'
It hardly, however, admits of reasonable doubt that, Umvntti
when Jesus said : " Thou art the Rock, and on this rock will ■ymoiie
» A proverbial phrmse. C/. I*. XHtriii. TO ; Horn. /L ix. Jia-J.
• In Mattk. xiu 58 lo-l. * In Atattk, It. C/. Uidor. Pdoi. ^ L S35.
« On Mt xtL 18-9. • Xttrmtt i. ll.
264
THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
I. The
Church a
living
temple.
IL X9-82.
Ix xzriii.
16.
U.4S.
a. The
union of
Christ and
btlievers.
I build My Church," He meant Peter,* His words, so highly
figurative, so strongly emotional, are a glowing eulogy of
the Apostle who had gladdened His heart by that great
confession ; and their meaning, hidden from flesh and blood,
has been revealed by the inspiration of the Holy Spirit
There are two apostolic conceptions which, though they may
not comprehend its entire significance, are yet its best
interpretation.
The first is that sublime ideal of the Church as a living
temple built of living stones. " Ye are no more strangers
and sojourners," wrote St Paul to the Ephesians, " but ye are
the saints' fellow-citizens and members of God's household,
Christ Jesus Himself being chief corner-stone ; in whom all
that is built, being fitly framed together, groweth into a holy
sanctuary in the Lord ; in whom ye also are being built into
an habitation of God in the Spirit" This is one of the
master-thoughts of apostolic days ; and it is very noteworthy
that it laid hold on St Peter and kindled his imagination.
Had he the Lord's promise at Caesarea Philippi before his
mind when, echoing the ancient prophet's language, he wrote
in his first epistle : " Coming unto the Lord, a living stone,
by men rejected but with God chosen, precious, yourselves
also, as living stones, are being built a spiritual house."
Here is the very conception of Jesus. His Church was a
living Temple and her stones living men. And it was the
peculiar and inalienable honour of Peter that he was the
first stone ever built into that spiritual house. Others would
follow him in his confession and share in his reward ; yea,
and others might prove worthier than he and shine with
brighter lustre ; yet this was his unique and abiding honour,
that his had been the earliest confession of the glory of
Jesus ; and none could ever wrest from him that proud
distinction. In that great hour at Caesarea Philippi the
Church of the Lord Jesus Christ was bom ; the first stone of
the Living Temple was laid.
There is further the magnificent Pauline conception of
the corporate union between Christ and His believing people.
* Aug. : " Non dictnm est illi, Tu es Petra ; sed Tu es Petrus" Bnt our Lord,
•peaking in Aramaic, would use the same word, K&^3 « i° \ioih cases, rirpa, is due to
the idea that K&''2 '^ ^'^m. ^ "
THE GREAT CONFESSION 265
How marvellous, how audacious is the Apostle's language
when he sets forth this ineffable mystery I " We are Epk. * «.
members of His body." "Your bodies are members of'Cor. »t
Christ" " We that are many are one body in Christ, and I^
severally members one of another." " As the body is one s.
and hath many members, and all the members of the body, * ^^- "*•
being many, are one body, so also is Christ ... And whether
one member suffer, all the members suffer with it ; or a
member be glorified, all the members rejoice with it" " Now CoL L a^.
I rejoice in my sufferings for your sake and fill up on my
part the deficiencies of Christ's afflictions in my flesh for th«
sake of His body, which is the Church." Here, though
clothed with different imagery, is the very thought which
Jesus expressed when He said : " I will give unto thee the c/.i%.ndL
keys of the Kingdom of Heaven ; and whatsoever thou shalt ""
bind on earth, shall stand bound in Heaven, and whatso-
ever thou shalt loose on earth shall stand loosed in Heaven." *
The promise was made to Peter, since at that moment he was
the sole realisation of the Church, the first and as yet the
only stone of that Living Temple. By and by, however,
when others had been added, the promise was repeated, and ml zr'jL
it was then addressed not to Peter alone but to the whole '**
brotherhood. It is an amazing promise, and what is the
principle which underlies it, the basis on which it rests ? Is
it not that profound truth of the corporate unity of the whole
Church in Heaven and on earth ? One spirit, one life per-
vades it all. His saints on earth are Christ's witnesses to the
world ; they are His representatives, and whatsoever they do
in His name has His sanction. When they speak, it is ml z. »
not they that speak but His spirit that speaketh in them. ri-Lk.**
Their decisions are ratified in Heaven. " Verily I tell you, ^^ ^*-
whatsoever things ye shall bind on earth shall stand bound
in Heaven, and whatsoever things ye shsdl loose on earth
shall stand loosed in Heaven."
Such is the Church's prerogative, but it is hers only as a two-Md
she abides in the unity of the mystic Body. And that
unity is twofold. On the one hand there is the unity betwixt
the members. "God," says St Paul, "hath tempered the *^^^
» '• Bmd and loose," a Rabbinical phrase for fnhilnting mmd permUting. Set
Lightfoot and Wetitein on Mt. xti. 19.
266
THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
body together, that there may be no schism in the body, but
that the members may have the same care one for another."
Mt xviH. And Jesus expresses this very truth when He says : "If two
19-20. ^^ ^^^ shall agree on earth concerning anything which they
may ask, it shall be done unto them of My Father in Heaven.
For where there are two or three assembled in My name,
there am I in the midst of them.' On the other hand there
is the unity of the members with their Living Head, and her
high prerogative belongs to the Church only as she belongs
to Christ, drawing her life from Hira and breathing His spirit
CoL u. 19. « Holding fast the Head," says St Paul, " from whom all the
body, being supplied and knit together through the joints and
John »▼. bands, groweth the growth of God." " Abide in Me," says
Jesus, " and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit from
itself, unless it abide in the vine, so neither canye unless ye abide
in Me. I am the vine, ye are the branches. Apart from Me
ye can do nothing." The instant the Church is severed from
Christ, she ceases to be His representative ; her life is no
longer His life, nor her acts His acts. Very strikingly was
this truth declared to the disciples on that ever memorable
first day of the week when the Risen Lord appeared in their
midst " Whosesoever sins ye forgive," He said, " they have
been forgiven unto them ; and whosesoever ye retain, they
John XX. have been retained " ; but first " He breathed upon them and
^^ said : ' Receive ye the Holy Spirit.' "
CHAPTER XXXII
SUFFERINGS AND GLORY
" Record are sanctae cruda
Qui perfectam viam ducii,
Delectare jugiler.
Sanctae crucis recordare
Et in ipsa meditare
Insatiabiliter." — S. BONATXNTUSA.
•o-svii. 13
aMk. vill
^ix. 13.
Lk. 11. ai>
36.
It was a glad moment for Jesus when He heard from the Fir«t db-
lips of Peter the confession of His disciples' faith. But no^'"^*^""*
sooner had the flood of exultation subsided in His breast p»»««o»
than, fearing lest their testimony should reanimate the rectioo.
popular enthusiasm, He charged them to tell no man that
He was the Messiah. Thereafter He made a momentous
announcement. Already had He thrown out vague hints of
the doom which awaited Him,^ but the disciples, dreaming
their Jewish dream of a worldly kingdom, had missed them
all. It was time that they should know the truth, and their
confession emboldened Jesus to declare it He told them
that " He must go away to Jerusalem and suffer many things
of the Elders and Chief-priests and Scribes, and be killed,
and on the third day * be raised up."
The announcement fell like a thunder-bolt on the ears Peter't
of the Twelve. They were aghast, and Peter, the lover of JJ^||^
Jesus, could not endure it^ Horrified and distressed, he
clutched his dear Master and broke out into remon>rtrancc.
" Mercy on Thee,* Lord ! " he cried. " This shall in no wise
JJohnii. 19; iii. 14; Mt. ii. i4-S = Mk. ii. i8-20=Lk. ▼. 33-5; John tI 51,
55. It is remarkable that those intimations of His Death, though made in their
hearing, were not addressed to the disciples.
' Mk.'s "after three days" is, according to the inclusire reckoning of tbt
ancients, identical with Mt.-Lk.'s "on the third day." C/. Mt. xxvii. 63-4.
» In Mk. viii. 32 the Sinaitic Palimpsest reads : " Then Simon Cepha, M
though he pitied Him, said to Him, * Be it far from Thee.'"
* tXewt <ro«, sc. eltt 6 Qt6s, probably a colloquialism. C/. 3 Sam. MtiiL 17
(LXX). See Wetstein.
268 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
befall Thee." It may have been an ill-advised speech, very
characteristic of Peter, yet it was prompted by tender love,
Agitation and for that very reason it distressed Jesus. All the days
jesus. ^^ jj.^ ministry the Cross had been before Him, and the
prospect had been very awful to Him ; and, though He had
set His face like a flint and pressed forward on His way,
His heart had oftentimes failed within Him. It was the
Father's will that He should die, a sacrifice for the world's
redemption ; yet His flesh had shuddered at the grim ordeal,
and the temptation had been ever present with Him to turn
aside and choose an easier path. At the outset of His
ministry it had assailed Him in the wilderness when the
Devil displayed before Him the Kingdoms of the world and
the glory of them with the promise : " All these things will I
give Thee, if Thou wilt fall down and do obeisance unto me."
And it had pursued Him all along, conjuring up the horror
of the Cross before His eyes and suggesting some smoother
way. But He had always turned from the Tempter's allure-
ments and, hearkening to the voice which called Him to
self-abnegation and self-sacrifice, had set Himself to do the
Father's will and accomplish the Father's work. And now
the temptation assails Him afresh with powerful reinforce-
ment It was the Devil that spoke, but he spoke through
the lips of that loved disciple who a little ago had made the
great confession. It was as though the Tempter had assumed
Peter's form and were urging his suit with all the moving
importunity of tender affection. It is no wonder that Jesus
His reply was shaken, but not for a moment did He hesitate. He
recognised the temptation under its specious disguise.
First He glanced round at the other disciples, questioning
what tAet'r thoughts might be, and then from those gracious
lips whence blessing was wont to flow, there flashed the
sentence : " Get behind Me, Satan ! Thou art a stumbling-
block to Me ; forasmuch as thou dost not side with God but
with men."^
Oblivious- This is the Lord's first distinct intimation of His Death
"^Twelve! ^^^ Resurrection, and it was followed by two others, each
Mt xxii. more circumstantial than its predecessor. It seems at
" ov ippoffis tA toC OtoO, ncH seciaris partes Dei. Cf. Plut. Brut, xxvL i 2 : «rol
To;>t 'AjroXXfcfMJTaj ■^ff$rro tA BpoArov ^poywrrat. See Wetstein.
SUFFERINGS AND GLORY 269
the first blush a great marvel that, after such plain and n-j-Mk
reiterated forewarnings, the catastrophe should have taken u.'a*"
the disciples by surprise. The Crucifixion appeared to *^* ■ "*•
them a crushing disaster ; and, when they heard from the Mk. 1. jb-
women what had befallen on the Resurrection-morning, they Jwu. 31.5.
were incredulous and deemed it an idle tale ; nay, when
Peter and John saw with their own eyes the empty Sepulchre, John «e.
they were amazed. The event astonished them. They had *"'*"
never, apparently, anticipated it.
Their obliviousness of such forewarnings is indeed surpris- Blinded br
ing, yet is it in no wise incomprehensible. There is nothing j^c«. ''^
more difficult than to change men's ideals, and the disciples
clung with blind and dogged pertinacity to their Jewish Lk. i«».
expectation of an earthly kingdom. Even after Jesus had ^^'"'
twice announced His Passion, they disputed which of them Mt. xriH. »
should occupy the chief places about His throne. When He ^^ll*,,.
started on His last journey to Jerusalem, they believed that ♦*•
He was going up at last to claim His Kingdom ; and after
His third and most solemn intimation the sons of Zebedec Mt. 11. 10-
conspired with their mother to extort from Him a pledge 3^^ *"
that they would sit on His right and left. They simply
could not comprehend what He meant when He spoke of
His Passion. It was, they conceived, beyond the bounds
of possibility that the Messiah should die, and they listened
amazedly and went on hugging their Jewish ideal So the
Evangelists testify : " They were grieved exceedingly." Mt. ivB.
" They were ignorant of this saying, and it was veiled from [^ ,^
them that they should not perceive it ; and they were afraid
to question Him about this saying." "And they took in
none of these things, and this saying was hidden from them, Lk. itUL
and they did not recognise the things that were spoken."^
The very fact that it was necessary for Jesus to reiterate the
announcement with ever-increasing emphasis, as though
striving to force it home, is an evidence of their invincible
dulness.
It is strange, but it is not unparalleled. It is n^^^^hed ^r^
by the obstinacy wherewith, despite the Lord's plain ut. rr. t»
declaration, they clung to their Jewish prejudice against ""^
unclean meat; by their confident anticipation of His im->^».r
mediate return despite those parables wherein He had Uught
U
270 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
that the progress of His Kingdom would be slow and gradual,
like the operation of leaven or the growth of seed ; ^ and
by their hostility to the admission of the Gentiles into the
Church on equal terms with the Jews notwithstanding the
Lord's kindness to the outcasts, His preaching at Sychar, and,
above all, His ministry in Phoenicia. And herein is revealed
not only the disciples' slowness of heart but the depth of
their trust in Jesus. They retained their Jewish notion of
the Messiah ; yet, though His every word and act conflicted
therewith, they clung, with a splendid inconsistency, to their
faith in His Messiahship. He was the very opposite of all
that, as they believed, the Messiah should be ; yet they had
seen His glory, they had tasted of His grace, and, in defiance
of reason, they rendered unto Him the trust and homage of
their souls.
Call to The announcement that their Master must die was a
^ °in His heavy blow to the Twelve ; and what did He do as they
sufferings. g^Qod amazed ? * He dealt them, as it seems, another blow.
He told them that not only must He suffer but they must
share His suffering. There are two claimants to the throne
in every man's heart — Self and Jesus ; and, if the man
would be a disciple, he must yield the throne to Jesus ;
and he must say No to Selfs blandishments, must take
up the cross and lay it on Selfs back and send Self away
to death, " If any one is minded to come after Me, let
him say No to Self, and take up Selfs cross, and escort
Me on My way." Already, when He sent them forth on
Mt. X. 38, their apostolic mission. He had spoken of " cross-bearing " ;
but now, with the announcement of His Passion in their
ears, they would recognise it as no mere metaphor but a
dread reality. It meant for them what it meant for
Him.
An inspir- It may Seem strange that Jesus should thus add blow
ing appeal. ,, <-.»• «•« • 1 t
to blow. Surely it was enough m the meantime that they
should learn what awaited Him. Surely they needed re-
assurance rather than fresh alarm. In truth, however. He
dealt with them very wisely. He invoked their manhood,
their chivalry, and their faith. It was a heroic ordeal where-
unto they were called, and He challenged their courage
» Cf. Introd. § 12, 6. *Cf. Introd. \ 1 1.
SUFFERINGS AND GLORY 271
to encounter it. He appealed to the love which they bore
Him, to the confidence which He reposed in them, and to
the sacred cause wherein they were enlisted. Could they
not endure the utmost " for His sake and the Gospel's " ?
He bade them, moreover, beware lest, in seeking to save
their life, they should lose it, "preferring," in the language
of the Roman satirist, "life to honour and for life's sake
losing the ends of living." " What," He asked. " shall a man
be profited, if he gain the whole world but forfeit his life ?
or what shall a man give as the price of his life's redemption ? "
A man has only one life to live ; and, if he forfeit it,
wherewith shall he buy it back ? His final argument was
the most moving of all. According to Jewish theology the
Messiah would appear in glory at the end of the world and
execute judgment ; ^ and Jesus availed Himself of this
familiar doctrine. If His disciples failed in the hour of trial
and played a craven part, how would they meet Him on that
great Day? how bear the scrutiny of His blessed face?
" Whosoever is ashamed of Me and My words in this
adulterous and sinful generation, the Son of Man also shall
be ashamed of him when He cometh in the glory of His
Father with the holy angels." It was an awful sentence.
The thought of that face which they knew so well, turning
away at the sight of them for very shame and leaving them
there, a scorn to men and angels, must have haunted them
and incited them to labour that they might be found worthy
on that great Day.
Such was the prospect which lay before the Apostles, A promite
and Jesus did not conceal it from them. Yet He closed with *^**y'
a great word of promise and reassurance. Sharp though
the conflict would be, victory was certain, and some of them
would live to see it "Verily I tell you, there are some
of those that stand here who shall not taste of death until
they see the Kingdom of God come in power." And the
promise was fulfilled. One of the marvels of history is the
rapidity wherewith the Gospel won its way. Scarce three
centuries had elapsed ere it conquered the Roman Empire
and a Christian was seated on the throne of the Caesars.
None of the Twelve witnessed this consummation, yet they
»Schttrer^i5r./. P. II. fi. pp. 165-8, 181-3 ; Hastings' D. B. art. EtckaUle^.
272 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
witnessed much. In the course of a single generation the
message which they preached in the power of God, had
sounded over the known world. Far beyond the borders
of Palestine, in Asia Minor, in Greece, in imperial Rome,
the Gospel had free course and was glorified. In the year
Rom. xY. A.D. 5 8 St Paul could make this claim : " I will not dare
^ ^ to write of any things save those which Christ wrought
through me, for the obedience of the Gentiles, by word and
deed, in power of signs and wonders, in power of the Holy
Spirit ; so that from Jerusalem and round about even unto
lUyricum I have fulfilled the Gospel of Christ." *
On the A week elapsed,' and, though nothing is recorded of
°^ ' the employments of those days, they would in no wise slip
idly away. Weary with His task Jesus took Peter, James,
and John and, retiring with them to a mountain, " was trans-
figured ' in their presence." According to ancient tradition
the mountain was Tabor ; * and the Greek Church still
abides thereby, celebrating the Feast of the Transfiguration
under the name of the Thaborion on the sixth of August.
It is, however, an impossible fancy. Tabor was situated
far away in the south of Galilee well-nigh fifty miles from
Caesarea Philippi ; and, moreover, since its summit was
occupied by a fort called Itabyrium,' it was no fit scene
for the enactment of a heavenly mystery. The mountain
was plainly in the neighbourhood of Caesarea Philippi ;
and probably it was one of the lower heights of Hermon,
whose snowy summit' towered aloft a little distance north-
ward.
The Trans- He Went thither to refresh His soul by communion with
' More specific references have been assigned to this saying: (i) The Trans-
figuration (Aug., Chrysost, Euth. Zig., Theophyl.). (2) The Resurrection and its
eficcts (Calvin). (3) The Destruction of Jerusalem (Lightfoot, Wetstein). (4) The
Second Advent, regarded in the primitive Church as imminent (Meyer and others).
Its interpretation as referring to the Second Advent probably accounts for the form
which the saying has assumed in Mt.
' Mt and Mk. " after six days " ; Lk. vaguely " after these sayings about eight
days." Jer. : " Hie medii ponuntur dies, ibi primus additur et extremus."
' fterefiop^ddrj. Lk., writing for Gentiles and knowing what the word would
suggest to minds familiar with classical fables of the metamorphoses of deities,
paraphrased it into iyhero rh eUot rmi Tpoailnrov tkxnov trepoD.
* Jer. Ef. zxvii, Epitaph. Paul. : " montem Thabor in quo transfiguratus est
Dominus."
» Polyb. V. 70 J Jos. DtBilLJud. iv. i. § 8. • Cf. Mk. ix. 3 T. R. : «it x*"*-.
SUFFERINGS AND GLORY 173
the Father, and it was while He prayed that the ineffable
wonder was wrought. " His face," says St Matthew, " shone
as the sun, and His garments became white as the light"
" His garments," says St Mark, " became glistering, exceeding
white, as no fuller on the earth can whiten." " His raiment,"
says St Luke, "became flashing white." And two men
appeared in His company. They were Moses and Elijah, and
they talked with Him of " the decease which He was about
to accomplish at Jerusalem." The weary disciples had fallen
asleep, but their slumber was disturbed and, wide awake, they
beheld the wondrous scene. Presently the vision began to
fade, and Peter, ever impetuous, thought to stay the heavenly
visitants. " Rabbi," he cried, " it is well that we should be
here ; and let us make three tents, one for Thee and one for
Moses and one for Elijah." It was indeed a foolish speech.
" He knew not," says St Luke, " what he was saying " ; and,
had he paused to consider, he would have held his peace.
Nevertheless he had a purpose in his mind ; and, wild as it
may have been, it was one which only a generous and loyal
heart could have conceived. He was haunted by the Master's
announcement of His Passion, and the scene on the mountain-
top suggested to him a way of escape. " Wherefore," he
asked himself, " depart from this holy place ? Wherefore
descend to the plain and resume the weary conflict ? Where-
fore go away to Jerusalem and endure that awful doom ? Let
us abide here on this hallowed mount and prolong this
heavenly fellowship." While he spoke, a cloud overshadowed
them, and, even as at the Lord's Baptism when the heavens j^^ ,j, ^.
opened and the Holy Spirit descended upon Him, they heard =*'"^'- .
a voice. " This is My beloved Son," it said, " in whom I am ut ai^
well pleased. Hearken unto Him." They fell on their faces
for fear, and lay prostrate until Jesus laid His hand upon them
and bade them arise. When they looked about them, Moses
and Elijah were gone, and they were alone with Jesus.
The real import of this wondrous incident emerges only Aa antie*-
when it is recognised that, like the Lord's miracle of walking SeR^w-
upon the Lake, it was an anticipation of the Resurrection. '**•****•
By the power of God the body of Jesus assumed for a season
the conditions of the resurrection-life. It became, in the
language of St Paul, " a spiritual body," and He appeared to
274 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
the three even as when He manifested Himself after He had
risen from the dead on the road to Emmaus, in the room at
Jerusalem, on the shore of the Lake. And the miracle had a
Its pur- twofold purpose. It was designed, in the first instance, to
^)^o strengthen Jesus and nerve Him for the dread ordeal which
strengthen awaited Him. It was as though the veil had been drawn
Jesus ; °
aside and the eternal world for a little space disclosed to His
view. It was like a vision of home to the exile, like a fore-
taste of rest to the weary traveller. He was granted a glimpse
of the glory which He had resigned that He might tabernacle
among the children of men, winning redemption for them, and
an earnest likewise of the joy that was set before Him. From
the vantage-ground of the Mount of Transfiguration He
descried the consummation which awaited Him beyond the
Hill of Calvary. Nor was that the only consolation which
was vouchsafed to Him. His heart had been grieved by the
dulness of the Twelve, the folly of the multitude, and the
hostility of the rulers, and in that transcendent hour it was
revealed to Him how His work was viewed by God and the
glorified saints. Though He stood alone on earth, misunder-
stood, forsaken, and persecuted, He had Heaven's sympathy
and approval.
(t)tore- And the Transfiguration had a purpose also in relation
'^isdp^*^ the disciples. It was designed to reconcile them to the
the glory incredible and repulsive idea of Messiah's sufferings by reveal-
Passion, ing to them the glories that should follow. What did they
hear as they listened to the converse betwixt those two
glorified saints who bore the greatest names on Israel's roll of
honour ? They heard them talking of " the decease," or, as
Cf. a Pet. it is in Greek, " the Exodus, which He was about to accomplish
at Jerusalem." In the judgment of Moses and Elijah that
issue, which seemed to the disciples an intolerable ignominy
and a crushing disaster, was a splendid triumph, like the
mighty deliverance which Grod had wrought for Israel when
He brought her by the hand of Moses out of the land of
bondage and made her a free nation. It is very significant
that in the copies of St Luke's Gospel which were in use in
St Chrysostom's day, this sentence ran : " They spake of the
glory which He was about to accomplish at Jerusalem." ^ And
* Chiysost. In Maiih. lyii : tV 86{ar •))r I>mXX« "rkinxw h 'ItpQWvCK-fiit' Ttwrirrv,
SUFFERINGS AND GLORY 275
such was the conception of her Lord's sufferings which was by
and by revealed to the Church. " We behold Jesus," it is
written in the Epistle to the Hebrews, " by reason of the ii. 9.
suffering of death crowned with glory and honour."
Refreshed by communion with the Father and nerved to TU d»
the ordeal by that glimpse of the glory which awaited Him on UulSl
the other side of Calvary, Jesus on the following day »et His
face toward the plain. Knowing that, if the story got abroad,
it would be misconstrued, He charged His companions that
they should not divulge what they had seen until He had
risen from the dead. Thereat they fell a-wondering. Though
He had already spoken of His Resurrection, linking a prophecy ml rw. at
thereof to the announcement of His Passion, they had in their «L^liJ***'
amazement missed the promise of hope ; but now it is forced •*• "^
upon their attention. It was a dark saying, and they
pondered it, questioning one with another what His rising
from the dead might signify. Did they, amid their musing
and debating, at all connect it with the scene which they had
witnessed on the holy mount ?
They talked much as they made the long descent, and The «».
there was one problem especially which engaged their Jewish euj^
minds. It was commonly expected that, ere the Messiah's
advent, Elijah would reappear on the earth and work a mighty
reformation, preparing Israel to welcome her Redeemer ;
and, in view of what they had witnessed, the disciples
knew not what to make of this doctrine. Elijah had indeed
come, but wherefore had he come so late and so soon departed ?
He should have preceded Jesus the Messiah and ere His
advent accomplished the promised reformation. They re-
ferred the problem to the Master. Elijah's reappearance was
of course only a Rabbinical fancy ; but Jesus always dealt
kindly with the ideas of His contemporaries, and already, on
that memorable day when the Baptist's delegates had visited
Him, He had given a felicitous interpretation to this Jewish
notion. "If ye are willing to receive it," He had said in the M«- >i «♦
course of His eulogy of John, " he is Elijah that should
ri raffoi koX t6w rravpbv. o6tu yi,p airb KoXotwi* 4</. Euth. Zig. on Ml. svil. J i
TW^ Si TUP pipUww oiiK i^oSop dXXi Sd^ar ypd4>ov<n. 34£o y6.p KoXttroi «*i i rmpiiu
Vossius connects h io^v, not with 6<pdiyT*t, but with Ao'cr. ip W{f t\tyw, Lt.
<J6{afo», r^p t^oiop airm, " they glorified His decease."
276 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
come." John had actually done what was expected of Elijah.
He had come and prepared the Messiah's way before His
face.^ It was an apt and novel application, but the
disciples, absent on their apostolic mission, had not heard it.
And now He repeats it, taking occasion to make a fresh
intimation of the doom which awaited Him. " Elijah," He
said, " cometh and will restore all things ; but I tell you that
Elijah hath already come, and they did not recognise him, but
wrought on him all their will. Thus also the Son of Map is
about to suffer by them."
* Chrysost. In Maith. Iviii: oiK c?retS^ 'HXios %v dXX' iwtii^ t^v SuikovUw erXi^pov
iKtlfOV.
CHAPTER XXXIII m^I!**
^lk. iz. i4>
33= Lk. ix.
THE RETURN TO CAPERNAUM 37:45 : Mt
zviu 24-7 ;
Ml zviii.
"An vcro atilius aut eflScacius auxilium aliquod est quam ut ores devote pro tuo ? "'4 = ^^11.
firatre, non dissimules redarguere cjilpas ejus ; ut non modo nullum ei offendiculum Lk.^^'l&.
ponas, sed et soUicitus sis, quantum praevales, tanquam angelus pads de regno Dei 50, xviL i-
scandala toUere et occasiones scandaJorum penitus dimovere." — S. Berna&O. Dt a ; Mt,
Advent. Dom. Serm. iii. xviii. 15.^
= Lk. xvu.
3-4.
Much had happened on the plain while Jesus and the three invasion
were absent on the Mount Even as the Pharisees and Saddu- ?' ^^^.
Lord s re-
cces had pursued Him to His retreat in the neighbourhood "^^at by
of Magadan and Dalmanutha, so, when He escaped northward, a muiti-
a band of Scribes followed in His track with an attendant *"****
multitude and presently discovered His retreat at Caesarea
Philippi. He was absent when they arrived, but they found the
nine and, it would seem, harassed them with petty malignity.
An incident occurred which afforded them a welcome oppor- a lunatic
tunity. A man appeared on the scene in quest of Jesus.
He had a son who was a lunatic, deaf and dumb, and subject
withal to violent fits of epilepsy ; and he brought the unhappy
lad for healing. In the absence of Jesus he appealed to the impotence
disciples ; and, since they had been empowered by their ml «. 1=
Master to work such miracles, they readily undertook the task. ^^^ ^ l^
They failed, however, in the attempt. Great was the glee of
the Scribes. They exulted over the crestfallen disciples, and
doubtless employed their failure to discredit Jesus with the
multitude, alleging that, had He been present. He would
have proved equally impotent
In the thick of the dispute Jesus appeared ; and there was ^^ J**^
something about Him which amazed the multitude. Was it
that His face, like that of Moses when he came down from Exod.
Mount Sinai, still shone with the glory of His transfiguration ? ^** "^
They ran to greet Him, He enquired the tause of the com-
motion, and the unhappy father told Him the story. *' O
ft
278 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
faithless and perverse generation ! " He cried when He heard
of the failure of His disciples. " How long shall I be with
you? how long shall I suffer you? Bring him unto Me."
They brought the lad, and, overcome with agitation, he fell
into a violent fit and lay struggling and foaming on the ground.
The poor father's distress was even more piteous than his
child's suffering. " How long time is it," Jesus asked him,
bent on succouring both, " that he hath been thus affected ? "
" Since childhood," was the reply. " And often it hath flung
him into fire and into waters to destroy him. But, if Thou
canst do aught, have compassion on us and help us." He was
almost hopeless. The disciples' impotence had shaken his
faith. Where they had failed, he scarce expected Jesus to
succeed. " ' If Thou canst ' ! " returned Jesus, echoing the
despairing appeal. " All things ' can ' be for one that be-
lieveth." The reproach and yet more the tone of that
gracious voice and the look of that blessed face dispelled his
despondency. " I believe," he cried ; " help my unbelief ! "
Having thus won the father's faith, Jesus addressed Himself
to the healing of the child. " Thou dumb and deaf spirit,"
He said, " I charge thee, come out of him and no more enter
into him." A wild cry and a fierce convulsion, and the child
lay, to all appearance, dead, till Jesus took him by the hand
and raised him and gave him to his father healed.
Reason of It was a Striking manifestation of the Lord's power, and
cipies' im- it made a profound impression. There were, however, two
potence. groups that participated neither in the gratitude of the father
nor in the adoration of the multitude. One was the Scribes,
who would stand confounded ; and the other the nine disciples.
It was a rebuke to them that the Master had succeeded where
they had failed, and on the way home they debated what it
might mean. Their dread, thinks St Chrysostom, was that
they had lost the grace wherewith He had entrusted them when
He " gave them power and authority over all daemons and sent
them forth to preach and heal." Perhaps such was their
secret fear ; but they were loath to allow it, and, it would
seem, they devised an excuse, flattering themselves that they
were in no wise to blame. It was, they alleged, an exceptionally
difficult and obstinate case, demanding for the mastery of it a
higher power than they possessed. When they reached the
THE RETURN TO CAPERNAUM 279
secrecy of their lodging, they appealed to Jesus, and He ruth-
lessly swept their excuse aside. " This kind of spirit," they
had been saying, " goeth out by naught but by some special
power." " This kind," He retorted, " goeth out by naught
but by prayer."^ It was a sharp home-thrust. During His
absence on the Mount they had employed themselves amiss,
dreaming perhaps of the honours of the Messianic Kingdom
and debating about pre-eminence in it. They had refrained
from prayer and had suffered the heavenly flame to bum low
in their souls. And therefore they had failed. The spirit of
the Lord had departed from them.
It was now time for Jesus to quit His retirement ; nor Journey is
indeed, even had He been minded to protract His sojourn at tlvm'
Caesarea Philippi, was it any longer possible for Him to be
alone there with the Twelve. His retreat had been discovered,
and He was beset once more by an importunate multitude and
malignant adversaries. He set out for Capernaum, seeking,
as He travelled through Galilee, to escape recognition, since
His disciples still needed instruction and much might be im-
parted to them by the way. As they journeyed through that
pleasant land. He reiterated the dread announcement of His Another
Passion, seeking by dint of emphasis to drive it home and mem"of*«h«
pierce their impervious incredulity. " Set into your ears," Passion.
He said, " these words : The Son of Man is about to be be-
trayed into men's hands, and they will kill Him, and on the
third day He will be raised." There is here added to His
former announcement the grim detail of betrayal. It is no
wonder that they " were grieved exceedingly " and " feared to
interrogate Him." Did they recall the bitter word which He
had spoken in Capernaum on that dark day of desertion : *' Did John vi 70
I not choose you the Twelve ? And of you one is a devil " ?
Did it dawn upon them that there was a traitor in their midst ?
At length they arrived at Capernaum and went their The un-
. paid tq«,
several ways to their abodes. Jesus lodged in Peter's house ;
and, ere they reached it, the disciple was summoned from his
Master's side. It was a matter of business that craved his
1 Mk. ix 29 : Kal rritrrel^. is an interpolatioi^. Mt., omitting this striking lo^^,
makes Jesus assign 6\iyoiriffTLa as the reason of the disciples' failure, introducing
here that saying about the power of faith which was spoken in connection with the
withering of the barren fig-tree (Mt. xxi. 21 =Mk. xi. 23).
28o THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
Exod. XXX, attention. Of every Israelite twenty years old and upwards
' an annual tax was exacted for the maintenance of the Temple,^
It fell due on the fifteenth of Adar or March, and defaulters
were required to make payment in the Temple on the twenty-
fifth or suffer distraint.^ Jesus was liable to the tax and had
paid it year by year hitherto ; but, ever since the tidings of
John the Baptist's execution had reached His ears, He had
been wandering far and wide and had made only a single
visit to Capernaum. It was now toward the end of August,'
and His tax was still unpaid. The collectors observed His
return and immediately set about recovering the debt It is
an evidence of the reverence wherewith Jesus was regarded,
that they did not accost Himself, but drew Peter aside and
broached the matter with studious courtesy * : " Doth your
Teacher not pay the half-shekels ? " " Yes," faltered Peter,
and hurried home to tell Jesus.
Peter's dfa- An inimitable scene ensued, and it is surely pathetic that
"* *™^'' an incident which is unique in the Gospel-story and reveals a
hidden trait of our Blessed Lord, should be little else than a
jest for unbelievers and a stumbling-block to faith. It was
one of the rare moments in the Master's ministry when no
censorious eye was upon Him and He might freely unbend.
He was alone with one who loved Him, and, secure from
misunderstanding, He indulged His kindly humour and
laughed away the discomfiture of that impulsive and w^arm-
hearted disciple. It is no wonder that He was amused.
Picture the situation. The demand of the collectors had
taken Peter aback. And it was certainly embarrassing.
Jesus and the Twelve had just returned from a long journey.
Their resources, never abundant, must have been at a very
low ebb, and here was a claim requiring immediate settlement
Peter hurried home and burst in to communicate the dis-
* A half sheie/^t'wo (Syrian) drachmae, t6 ilSpax/i^. Cf. Exod. xxx. 13 (LXX) :
rh Ijiiurv rm SiSpdxMov S im /card rb SLSpaxM^f rb iyior. A shekel, corresponding
to a Syrian stater {yix. xvii. 27), was worth about 2s, 6d. See Schiirer, H.J. P. II. u
pp. 249 sqq. It is noteworthy that the story of the tax is recorded by Mt. alone.
It would appeal to the quondam tax-gatherer.
« Cf. p. 59.
' The Greek Church celebrates the Feast of the Transfiguration on 6th Aug., and
that this date is at least approximately correct is proved by the fact that the Feast of
Tabernacles, to which He repaired after no very long stay at Capernaum, fell at the
beginning of October. * Cf. Chrysost In Matth. lix.
THE RETURN TO CAPERNAUM 281
concerting intelligence. It is no wonder that Jesus was
amused. He knew all. He had seen the approach of the
collectors, and, even had He not guessed their errand. His
disciple's face would have told the tale. It might well have
vexed Him that, after the solemn things which he had
recently seen and heard, Peter should have been so lightly
discomposed ; yet the situation had an aspect of absurdity,
and Jesus was rather amused than vexed.
He took the first word and accosted Peter in a tone ofTheLord*
gentle raillery. "What thinkest thou, Simon? The kings ^^ipi""'
of the earth — from whom take they custom or tribute ? From
their own sons or from other men's ? " " From other men's,"
was the reply. " Then," said Jesus, " their sons are free."
The words were playfully spoken, yet they carried a serious
significance. In truth they constitute one of the most striking
assertions which Jesus ever made of His divinity. He was
the Son of God, and the Temple was His Father's House.
For His glory it existed, and not on Him rested the obligation
of supporting it by pious offerings. He might have claimed
exemption from that sacred impost ; yet He would not, lest
His action should be misconstrued. To such as did not
recognise His lordship, it would have seemed a mere violation
of the Law, and He dreaded that imputation. At the outset
of His ministry He had asserted the sanctity and permanence Mt. r. 17-
of the Law ; and to the last He manifested a high reverence
for its doctrines and institutions, participating in the worship
of Synagogue and Temple and appealing to its testimony in
vindication of His Messianic claims. Year by year hitherto
he had paid the Tenr.ple-tax, and He would pay it now, " lest
we make them stumble."
But wherewithal ? That was the problem which was The shekel
distressmg Peter. It never occurred to him that lie might mouth,
resort to his long disused craft. Were there not fish in the
Lake and a market to sell them in? Such was the plan
which Jesus recommended, but, looking at His disciple's
rueful visage, He smiled and plied him with pleasant banter.^
Stories were rife in those days about lucky fishermen who had
found treasures inside fishes. , It was in this remarkable
fashion, according to Jewish fable, that Solomon recovered his
' Cf. His reply to Martha (Lk. x, 41),
282 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
lost signet.^ And there is a Rabbinical story about one
Joseph, a devout Jew remarkable for his strict observance of
the Sabbath. He had a wealthy neighbour who was warned
by fortune-tellers that his riches would pass into Joseph's
possession. Alarmed by the prophecy and determined to
prevent its fulfilment, he sold all his property and, purchas-
ing a pearl with the proceeds, took ship and put to sea. The
pearl was lost overboard, and was swallowed by a fish. The
fish was caught, and it chanced that Joseph bought it and
found the pearl in its inside.* " Away and cast a hook into
the sea," said Jesus with some such story in His thoughts ;
" and the first fish that riseth, up with it, and open its mouth,
and thou shalt find a shekel. That take, and give it to them
for Me and thee." Of course it was a piece of raillery, nor
was Peter so dull as to miss the Master's meaning.'
Teaching That day, perhaps toward evening,* the disciples assembled
house, in Peter's house, and Jesus talked with them, continuing His
instruction. They had need not only to be apprised of high
mysteries like His Passion and Resurrection, but to be purged
of the old leaven of worldliness and imbued with the spirit of
the Kingdom of Heaven ; and in that season of quiet fellow-
ship and lofty discourse He discovered and reproved the
A lesson In thoughts of their hearts. First He taught them a lesson in
* humility. He convicted them of worldly ambition, not
flinging the charge in their faces but making them, as it were,
their own accusers. On the way from Caesarea Philippi the
disciples had fallen a little behind and, leaving the Master
Cf. Mk. X. to His own high thoughts, had conversed among them-
^' selves. It is a pathetic evidence of their slowness of heart
that, with the emphatic announcement of His Betrayal and
Passion still echoing in their ears, they persisted in their
* Sale's Koran, zxxviii, n. «.
* Wetstein on Lk, xiv. I. Cf. story of Polycratcs* ring in Herod HL 42 and
Augustine's anecdote in De Civit. Dei, xxii. 8. § 9.
' Against the supposition of an actual miracle observe : (i) Mt does not teU
what happened at the Lake, and, when the Evangelists record a miracle, they relate
not only the Lord's command but its fulfilment Cf. Mt. xii, i3 = Mk. iiL 5 = Lk.
tL 10. (2) If this were a miracle, it would be the only one which Jesus wrought
on His own behalf. (3) It would be a grotesque miracle, meriting the gibes of
Paalus and Strauss. Even Neander is disconcerted and talks vaguely about "aa
unusual blessing of Providence."
* bf^ in Mt. xviii. i, not A^acr, bat S4€utn, Orig. : ilfUp^
THE RETURN TO CAPERNAUiM 283
carnal expectation, and pictured the splendid future which
awaited them when their Master should take unto Him His
great power and reign a King in Jerusalem. Such was the
prospect which floated before their imagination ; and, as they
journeyed, they beguiled the way with talk thereof, whispered
talk not meant for His ears. Ambition and jealousy are ever
nigh to one another, and a dispute had arisen " which of them
should be greatest ^ in the Kingdom of Heaven."
Nor had it escaped the Master's notice. He said nothing
at the time, but, when they were all seated in the house, He
enquired what had been the matter of their dispute. They
held their peace for shame, and He proceeded to read them a
very effective lesson. " If any one desireth to be first," He
said, laying down a spiritual law, " he must be ' last of all
and servant of all " ; and then He gave them an illustration.
There was a child, doubtless Peter's, in the room,' and He
brought the little fellow into the midst of the circle, and,
taking him in His arms after His fond manner with children, Cf. Mt «
made him a living parable. It was an apt illustration. A *
child is a stranger to ambition and the selfishness which it
breeds. " If," says St Chrysostom,* " you show him a queen
with a crown, he does not prefer her to his mother albeit
clothed in rags, but would choose rather his mother in such
attire than the queen in her bravery." And such must all
be who would be citizens of the Kingdom of Heaven. " Verily
I tell you, unless ye turn about and become as the children,
ye shall in no wise enter into the Kingdom of Heaven." The
error of the Twelve lay not in their desire to be great in
the Kingdom of Heaven but in their ideal of greatness.
What makes a man great in the world's sight is superiority
to his fellows ; but in the Kingdom of Heaven he is the
greatest who is the readiest to serve and who has ever a
large tenderness for such as need service most — the weak and
helpless whom the world despises and tramples under foot.
' IkdXw a regular Comparat They were all to be great bat one greater than the
rest. Cf. p. 227. See, however, Moulton's Gram, of N.T. Gk. i. p. 78.
' ^<7Toi, Fut. almost equivalent to Imperat. Cf. Mt. v. 48 ; vi. 5.
» A medieval tradition (Anast. Bibliothec, Sym. Metaphr.) makes the child St
Ignatius. The fancy is founded on the saint's title 6*o^opo», earriid by God\
otherwise 0«o(^6^, carrying God, »'.*. having Christ within him.
* In Matth. Ixiii.
284 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
Such was the spirit of Jesus, and only as they shared it were
His disciples true to Him. " Whosoever," He said, " receiveth
a child like this in My name, receiveth Me."
A lesson in It was a heavy rebuke. John plucked up courage to
^' reply. That phrase of the Master " in My name " reminded
him of an incident which had happened recently, perhaps
while he and James were prosecuting their apostolic mission
in Galilee. " Teacher," he said, " we saw a man in Thy name
casting out daemons, and we tried to stop him, because he
was not following us." What prompted the reminiscence?
Apparently John desired to change the subject and divert
the conversation into another channel ; and probably he
would fain prove to Jesus that, much as they merited His
censure, they were active in His service and very jealous for
His honour. Nevertheless it was an ill-advised speech, and
earned a fresh rebuke. Whoever that unknown man may
have been,^ he was doing the Lord's work, and his efforts were
owned of Grod. Of this, however, the disciples took no
account It was enough for them that he did not belong
to their company, and they regarded him as an unauthorised
usurper of their prerogatives. In fact their grievance was a
personal one, as John confesses with naive simplicity. They
interdicted the man, not because he was dishonouring Jesus,
but because, though doing the work of Jesus, he did not
belong to their company. It was really not for the Master's
honour but for their own that they were jealous.
" Try not to stop him," said Jesus ; " for there is no one
who shall do a mighty work in My name and be able soon
to speak evil of Me." Then He enunciated a far-reaching
principle : " One who is not against us, is for us." * What
though that man were outside the Apostle-company ? The
* Lightfoot conjectures that he was a disciple of the Baptist and wrought
miracles in the name not ol Jesus but of tlu Messiah. It was not from contempt
but from ignorance that he did not follow Jesus.
" There is no real contradiction between this and that other logum which Mt
includes in the Lord's refutation of the Pharisaic insinuation that He was in league
with Beelzebul: "He that is not with Me is against Me" (Mt xii. 30) — a con-
demnation of those who, though recognising His claims, yet, for prudential con-
siderations, adopt an attitude of neutrality. Cf. Solon's enactment in the days when
Athens was distracted by dvil strife, that such as, when a tumult arose, cautiously
held aloof until they saw which faction prevailed, should on the restoration of peace
be punished as rebels. Mk- ix. 41 an interpolated logion, Cf. Mt. x. 42.
I
THE RETURN TO CAPERNAUM 285
Kingdom of Heaven had need of more ministers than the
Twelve ; and it may be that this was one who had himself
been healed by Jesus and, being forbidden like the Gerasene Mk r. is.
demoniac to follow in His train, had returned to his home STjii
and his people and was there glorifying his Saviour. And,
even if he should have joined their fellowship and was holding
aloof for unworthy reasons, he still was the Lord's and was
doing the Lord's work in the Lord's name. This is the sole
and all-sufficient test of discipleship, and John should have
recognised it, even as St Paul did in after days when he
rejoiced that, though some did it " for envy and strife, thinking Phu. i. ,5.
to add affliction to his bonds," nevertheless " in every way, '•
whether in pretence or in truth, Christ was being preached."
Jesus was deeply pained by John's story. In that un- a lesson in
known man He recognised a representative of a class which uon'forthe
always engaged His peculiar sympathy and which He called ^^^'^
" the little ones," meaning not children merely but all that
were weak and needed kindness, help, and patience.^ It
grieved Him that instead of " receiving that little one in His
name" the disciples had driven him away, and instead of
lending him a helping hand had put a stumbling-block in his
path. The ancient law reckoned it a crime to put a stumbling- Ler, nx.
block before the blind or make him wander out of the way ; l^i ,^*
but in the Lord's sight it was infinitely more heinous to put
obstacles on the way to the Kingdom of Heaven. " Whoever
maketh one of these little ones that believe in Me to stumble,
it is better for him if a heavy mill-stone were put round his
neck and he were flung into the sea." * The gravity of the
offence lay in contemning what God accounted infinitely
precious. " See," says Jesus, making felicitous use of the
lovely Jewish fancy that the heirs of salvation were attended
by ministering angels,* " see that ye despise not one of these c/. HeW
little ones. For I tell you that their angels in Heaven always '^
* Chrysost. /« Matth. lix : ratJ/or fitp iyravOa rovt ipOpiiirovt rodt oOrvt
6.<f>f\ets iprtffl Kcd raireivoiii Kcd iirt^pifiixivoxn rapii roit roXXott xaX tiiKa,Ta<ppwfyTovt.
Cf. Mt. X. 42 = Mk. ix. 41 ; Ps. cxix. 141.
' Cf. Jos. Ant. xiv. 15. § 10. The phrase had become proverbial : cf. Lightfoot
on Lk. xvii. 2. Mt. xviii. 8-9 = Mk. ix. 43-8 ao' interpolation : cf. Mt. v. 29- 3a
* A development of the post-exilic idea that every nation had it$ guardian angeL
Cf. Dan. X. 13, 20, 21 ; Deut. xxxii. 8 (LXX) : hrt Su/jJpi^€P i Cfwrroi Wnj, *ti
SUaveipo' vioi/i 'A54/x, (<rTifaey Spio. idvwv kotA d.pi6/ibf dyy^'^ Otov,
X
286 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
behold the face of My Father in Heaven. It is not a thing
desired in the presence of your Father in Heaven that one
of these little ones should perish." ^ Since it is thus precious
in the sight of God and an object of such jealous solicitude
to the denizens of Heaven, what else than a crime is light
esteem of a human soul ?
A lesson in John's story led to the inculcation of another lesson. The
^Juh interdict had been a piece of high-handed tyranny. It was
offenders. ^^^ ^.j^^g ^^^^^ Jesus would have His disciples deal with offenders,
and He laid down a rule of Church-discipline. Although our
Blessed Lord never ordained a precise system of ecclesiastical
government, He contemplated the rise of a sacred community
which should abide from generation to generation. His witness
in the world, the guardian of His truth, and the repository of
His grace. It was unnecessary that He should legislate for it,
since it would have the guidance of His Spirit in the ordering
of its affairs, and in the Jewish economy there existed ready
to hand an ecclesiastical order of divine appointment The
Rabbis taught that, " when the Messiah came. He would
neither abolish nor change aught of the Mosaic rites, but
would advance and raise them all to more splendid form and
dignity " ; ^ and in a sense the expectation was fulfilled.
Jesus accepted the Jewish order. He styled His new com-
munity the Church, which is the Septuagint rendering of the
Old Testament Congregation ; ' and such rules as He laid
down were, for the most part, reinforcements, with more
august sanctions, of the synagogal order.*
Here is an instance. Jesus desired to preclude the recur-
rence of such rash and irresponsible tyranny ; and what did He
do ? There was a Rabbinical precept : " If thy neighbour have
done thee an injury, convict him betwixt thyself and him alone.
For, if he hearken to thee, thou hast gained him. But, if he
do not hearken to thee, speak to him in the presence of one or
two, that they may hear it. If even so he do not hearken, let
' Ml xviii. 12-3 an abrupt interpolation of the parable of the Lost Sheep (Lk.
*^' 3-7)» V. \\ being inserted by some copyist in T. R. to relieve the abruptness.
' Lightfoot on l Cor. xi. 21. * eKitXi^irfa, ^T\Q, Ps. xxii. 23, 26.
♦ This refutes the theorj' that the reported sayings of Jesus about the Church are
later rules of ecclesiastical order put unhistorically in His mouth. Schmiedel,
M. B, art. GospeU § 136.
/
THE RETURN TO CAPERNAUM 287
him be worthless in thine eyes." ^ This rule of Jewish Church-
discipline Jesus reiterated and reinforced : " If thy brother sin,
go, convict him betwixt thee and him alone. If he hearken
to thee, thou hast gained thy brother.' But, if he do not
hearken, take with thyself one or two besides, that ' at the Deut iii.
mouth of two witnesses or three every word may be established.' ***
And, if he refuse to hearken to them, speak to the Church.
And, if he refuse to hearken even to the Church, let him be to
thee as the Gentile and the Tax-gatherer." Nothing is lack-
ing in the Jewish precept to make it word for word identical
with our Lord's injunction except " Speak to the Church " ;
but neither was this lacking in the Jewish practice. When,
after due admonition, an offender continued obstinate, he was
proclaimed publicly in the Synagogue and branded with in-
famy. ^ It is therefore no new law which Jesus here lays
down. Such was the accustomed order of Jewish discipline.
And it was a wise and gracious method in complete accord
with the Master's spirit. Even so would He have offenders
treated — with patience, with brotherly kindness, with an
earnest desire to win them, with a resolute determination to
exhaust all means to that end and a great reluctance to own
defeat and give them over to impenitence.*
The lesson elicited a question from Peter. " Lord," he asked, The in«t.
" how often shall my brother sin against me, and I forgive him ? j*^ of for-
Until seven times?" The Rabbinical rule was that after p»™«-
three offences the duty of forgiving ceased ; ^ but Peter thought
to be generous and suggested " seven times," seven being the
number of completeness and withal a good round number.
"Nay," answered Jesus, "the duty of forgiving is inex-
haustible. I tell thee not until seven times but until seventy- Cf. Gen.
seven times. If thy brother repent, forgive him. And, if
seven times a day he sin against thee and seven times turn
unto thee, saying, ' I repent,' thou shalt forgive him." And
then He enforced the requirement by one of the most striking
parables that He ever spoke. He told how a king had a
slave who had run up a huge debt of over i^2,ooo,ooo.
1 Wetstein on Mt. xviii. 17.
« Chrysost. In Matth. Ixi : " He did not say, ' Thou hast sufficient revenge,' bot,
•Thou hast gained thy brother ' ; showing that the loss from the quarrel is common."
•Lightfoot on Mt. xviii. 17.
* Mt. xviii. 18-20 interpolated legia. • Q^. WeUtda.
288 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
It was an impossible sum, such a debt as man never owed to
man ; but for this very reason it is the more fitting to
represent our debt to God. When the day of reckoning
arrived, he could not discharge it, and the king ordered his
goods to be seized and his wife and children sold ; but, moved by
the wretch's entreaties and promises, he revoked the sentence.
The man went out and, meeting a fellow-slave who owed him a
paltry ;^3, los., took him by the throat and demanded payment.
The luckless debtor fell at his feet and, in the very language
which had just come from his own despairing lips, prayed :
*' Have patience with me, and I will pay thee." But not a
moment's respite would he grant. He hardened his heart and
flung the poor creature into prison. The king heard the story,
and, summoning the ruffian before him, addressed him with
indignant severity : " Thou wicked slave ! All that debt I
forgave thee when thou didst entreat me : shouldest not thou
also have had mercy on thy fellow-slave as I had mercy on
thee ? " And he handed him over to the torturers.^
" So," adds Jesus with solemn emphasis, pointing the moral,
" My Heavenly Father also will do to you, unless ye forgive
every one his brother from your hearts." " My Heavenly
Father" He says significantly. An unforgiving man is no
son of God.
* Cf. Ecclus. xxxiii. 26; Jos. De Btll.Jud. L 30. §§ 2 sqq. ; Ant. xvi. 8. § I.
CHAPTER XXXIV
Lk. X. I :
LINGERING IN GALILEE Lk. x. ij-s
= Mt. xt.
30-4; Lk.
•*Non potestis, O miscri servi Mammonse, simul gloriari in cruce Domini nostri ^'- *3:«»:
Jesu Christi et sperare in pecuniae thesauris, post aurum abire et probare quam tuavis est ?i'' '**
Dominus."— S. Bernard. Dt Dilig. Deo. ^r^..\'l'
Jtiii. 1-17.
Jesus had returned to Capernaum, but not to remain. " The JJ^^^,.
days for His being received up were being fulfilled, and He Lk. 1*. 51.
steadfastly set His face to go to Jerusalem." His Galilean
ministry was ended, and His heart was stirred within Hira
as He looked back and reckoned what had been accomplished.
It was truly a saddening retrospect. How generous had been
His love, how cold the response ! How abundant His sowing,
how meagre the harvest ! He was indeed the hero of the
populace ; but it was His miracles rather than His message
that evoked their enthusiasm and won their applause, and
His true-hearted disciples were as a drop of a bucket amid
Galilee's teeming thousands. Judged by the world's standard
His ministry had ended in utter failure. It is no marvel that,
as He surveyed that land where He had loved so well and
been so ill requited, a cry of mournful upbraiding broke from
His lips : " Woe unto thee, Chorazin ! ^ woe unto thee,
Bethsaida I For, if in Tyre and Sidon had the mighty
works been done that were done in you, long ago in sackcloth
and ashes they had repented. But I tell you, for Tyre and
Sidon it will be more tolerable at the Day of Judgment than
for you. And thou Capernaum — shalt thou be ' exalted unto la. xiv. i^.
Heaven ? Unto Hades thou shalt be brought down.' For, *"
if in Sodom had the mighty works been done that were done
in thee, it had been standing even until to-day. But I tell
you that for the land of Sodom it will be more tolerable at
the Day of Judgment than for thee."
The Lord's design was to travel slowly to Jerusalem, jht
SevMty.
^ According to Jer. De Lm. Htbr. two miles from Capernaum.
290 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
passing through Samaria and preaching as He went. In
every instance it would be His final appeal, and He desired
that it should prove effective. And what did He do, thinking
to ensure success ? Out of the throng of His converts He chose
seventy ^ and, ordaining them as apostles in addition to the
Twelve, sent them two by two in advance along the route,
•* unto every city and place where He Himself was about to
come." His primary object was to prepare the people for
His advent and incline their hearts to welcome His message ;
but He desired withal to apprise His disciples of a great fact
which their Jewish minds were slow to receive. When He
elected the first Apostles, He fixed their number at twelve,
signifying, since there were of old twelve tribes in Israel, that
their mission was to the Jews. He began with the Jews, but
He had a larger purpose. He was the Saviour of the world.
The time had come for declaring the world-wide destination
of His Gospel, the universality of His salvation. According
to Jewish reckoning mankind was composed of seventy
nations, and Jesus appointed those seventy apostles to signify
that His message was for all the nations of the earth.^
Thedivi- That the Seventy might get fairly on their way
inherit- He lingered awhile, travelling about Galilee, it would
*°"- seem, and revisiting the scenes of His ministry. He was
Lt xiL X. attended everywhere by an eager multitude, and once after a
* i^ioft.'fiKovra SC, Tisch., W. H. ^/S5o|t. 5i5« BDMR, Chrysost. {In Joan,
xvii), Jer,
^ Clem. Rom. Horn, xviii. § 4. The calculation was based on Gen. x. Some-
times the nations were reckoned at serenty-two. On the grounds mainly of its
slender attestation and its universalistic implication it is alleged that the appoint-
ment of the Seventy is a Pauline fiction. But (l) this is not the sole omission of
Mt. and Mk. at this point. Their narratives leap from Galilee to Judaea (Mt. xix.
i = Mk. X. i), and but for Lk.'s research all that happened in the interval would
hare been lost. He has rescued from oblivion a series of incidents which, though
mostly isolated traditions difficult to arrange in chronological sequence, are exceed-
ingly precious. (2) It is no evidence of invention, but merely an example of the
freedom wherewith the evangelic editors handled their material, that Lk. has
transferred hither part of the address to the Twelve. Cf. Introd. § 8. (3) There
were other apostles besides the Twelve in the primitive Church (i Cor. xv. 7).
Who were they if not the Seventy? (4) Though Jesus concealed the universal
destination of Ills Gospel at the outset, He knew it all along and revealed it as His
disciples were able to receive it. Cf, Mt. xxiv. i4 = Mk. xiii. 10. It is a sheer
Incredibility that He who has broken down every wall of division betwixt the
fiimilies of the earth and revealed the universal brotherhood of mankind, should
never have guessed whither His labour was lending and whereunto it would prow.
LINGERING IN GALILEE
291
discourse a voice from the throng addressed Him. What
ailed the man? Was it concern about the great matter of
salvation ? Nay, that was not in all his thoughts. " Teacher,"
he said, " tell my brother to divide the inheritance with me."
Jesus was deeply pained. It was not that the man meant any
dishonour to Him. On the contrary, he had addressed Him
with studious courtesy and after his own fashion had paid
Him a compliment. It was the function of the Rulers of the
Synagogue to settle such disputes ; ^ yet so high was his
esteem of Jesus that he desired Him to arbitrate, styling Him
withal Teacher or Rabbi. Nevertheless Jesus was pained.
Worldly matters lay outside His province, and the request
revealed how utterly the man misunderstood Him. It jarred
upon Him the more cruelly that His mind was at that crisis
occupied with solemn anticipations and His heart was yearning
for a response to His last appeal. " Man," He answered half
in contempt, half in pity, " who appointed Me a judge or a
divider over you ? "
Then, turning from him disdainfully, He addressed Him-
self to the multitude and taught them a lesson from the
incident. First, He stated a truth : " Take heed and beware
of every sort of grasping greed ; because it is not so that,
when a man hath abundance, his life is derived from his
possessions." Then, by way of illustration. He spoke a
parable. He described a husbandman who waxed richer year
by year until one plenteous harvest-tide he found himself
confronted by a difficulty. So abundant was his harvest that
his granaries could not contain it. " What shall I do ? " he
cried. He thought it over and made up his mind. "This
will I do : I will pull down my bams and build greater, and
will gather there all my fruits and my goods. And I will say
to my soul : ' Soul, thou hast many good things laid up for
many years. Take thine ease, eat, drink, make merry.' "
Jesus does not represent this husbandman as in any
respect a wicked man. He was rich, but in that there was no
wrong. Nay, it was rather to his credit that he had made so
much of his farm. There is no suggestion that he had
amassed his wealth unrighteously, by keeping back the hire of
his labourers or withholding his corn from the market and
' Cf. p. 94.
Pmrableof
the Rich
FooL
Cf. Lk.
xvi. 3-4.
Lev. iix-
13: Deot
Mi»- M-$ 1
492 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
Prov. xi. selling it at famine-price. All that is charged against him is
■ that he had been so taken up with worldly affairs that he had
neglected the great concerns ; he had left out of his reckoning
the supreme facts — God, death, judgment, eternity. He
seemed to the world and to himself a shrewd, clever man, yet
in God's sight he was a fool, and he discovered at the last
that he had made a fool's bargain. He said to his soul :
" Soul, thou hast many good things laid up for many years.
Take thine ease, eat, drink, make merry." But God said to
him : " Thou fool ! this night thy soul is required ^ from thee."
Consider the pathos and irony of the situation. He had
been a hard-working man all his days, toiling late and early,
denying himself ease and pleasure, and hoarding every shekel.
He had prospered exceedingly, and, when that difficulty about
his granaries arose, he discovered how rich he was. He called
a halt and reviewed the situation. It was time, he concluded,
that he should forbear his drudgery and enjoy a little hard-
earned repose ; and he could well afford it. He said to his
soul : " Soul, thou hast many good things laid up for many
years. Take thine ease, eat, drink, make merry." Observe
the significance of his speech. He addressed his souly and
what did he say to it ? Did he say : "Soul, thou hast long
enough given thyself to the world, and it is now time that thou
shouldst bethink thee of the things that belong unto thine
eternal peace" ? It may be that at the outset he had pur-
posed that one day he would rally himself thus and apply his
heart unto wisdom ; but the years had brought their inevitable
change. The canker of worldliness had eaten into his soul ;
his very faculty for religion had suffered atrophy ; and he now
conceives naught better for kis soul than taking ease, eating,
drinking, making merry. He seemed a successful man, one
who had achieved his ambition ; but presently he had a rude
awakening. All those years he had been filling the cup of
his pleasure till it was full to the brim, and he was just putting
it to his lips when an unseen hand dashed it from his grasp.
All those years he had been building a palace for his soul, and
* Literally "they require thy soul." This indefinite use of they is common in
Ae Rabbinical writings. Cf. Taylor, Say. of Fath. ii. § 2, n. 7. It is unnecessary
and contrary to the purpose of the parable to understand with Wright {Synopi.) :
" The peasants, whom you have irritated beyond endurance by your selfishness, are
rising in mass against you."
I
LINGERING IN GALILEE 293
he was surveying it with pride when a breath out of eternity
blew upon it, and it collapsed like a house of cards. He said
to his soul : " Soul, thou hast many good things laid up for
many years. Take thine ease, eat, drink, make merry.*
But God said to him : " Thou fool I this night thy soul is
required from thee ; and the things which thou hast prepared — p^ xxsit,
who shall have them?" Ay, who should have them? His*"
heirs mayhap would quarrel over them like those two brothers
whose dispute about their inheritance had occasioned the
parable. A disputed will and a lost soul I Surely a sorry
end. " So," Jesus concludes, " is he that layeth up treasure
for himself and is not rich toward God."
This parable Jesus spoke to the multitude, and by and by, i^eswn to
according to His wont, when He was alone with the Twelve, *^*^*'^**-
He expounded it to them in ampler discourse. " Be not ^l^
anxious," He said, " for your life what ye shall eat, nor for
your body what ye shall put on." It was an admonition
which was very needful. The Twelve were exposed to such
alarms. They had left all for Jesus' sake. They were
comrades of One who had nowhere to lay down His head, and
oftentimes, when they woke in the morning, they knew not
what they should eat or where they should shelter at the close
of the day. These were questions which must frequently have
pressed upon them : " What shall we eat ? What shall we
drink ? Wherewithal shall we array us ? " Such was their
condition while their Master was with them, and it continued
after He was gone. *' Even unto the present hour," says St x Cor. h,
Paul, " we both hunger and thirst, and are naked, and are "•
buffeted, and have no certain dwelling-place,"
In this immortal discourse Jesus says three things regard- Anxi^y
ing anxiety about worldly matters. First, it is unreasonable, worldly
" Look at the fowls of the heaven : they do not sow nor reap J^"^^'
nor gather into bams, and your Heavenly Father feedeth sonabie;
them. Are not ye worth more than they ? Mark the lilies
of the field how they grow : they labour not nor spin. Yet I
tell you that not even Solomon in all his glory was arrayed
like one of these.^ And if the grass of the field, which to-day
is and to-morrow is flung into an oven, God doth thus dress,
^ Jos. Ant vii. 7. § 3 : Solomon was wont to ride forth in his chariot X«wrV
^l/Kpita fid fos iffdifni.
294 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
how much more you, O ye of little faith ? " Jesus here throws
His disciples back on the providence of God, His wise and
almighty government of the world. He made everything and
He cares for everything. Everything, great or small, has a
place and a portion in the Creator's beneficent care. It is an
Cf. Mt. vii. argument a fortiori^ such as Jesus loved. If God cares for
t37Mt.xii! lesser things, the birds, the flowers, nay, the very grass, will
"• He not much more care for you. His children ? It was indeed
a mighty and convincing argument on the lips of Jesus, yet it
lacked its highest sanction while the Cross was still future
and its revelation of the love of God and man's infinite value
in His sight yet undiscovered ; and it is stated in the fulness
of its triumphant and unanswerable cogency in St Paul's great
Rom. viii. question : " He that spared not His own Son but for us all
^' delivered Him up, how shall He not also with Him freely
give us all things ? "
(a) useless, Again, anxiety about worldly matters is useless. " Which
of you, though ever so anxious, can add to the length of his
life a single cubit ? " ^ It is unavailing to fret about the
future. If there be trouble in store for us, it will come, and
our part is to do the present duty and leave the future in
God's hands. Worry about the future simply embitters the
present and does not avert trouble. The trouble which one
anticipates, seldom comes. The morrow may have trouble in
store, but it will not be the trouble which one anticipates.
" Therefore," says Jesus, " be not anxious against the morrow ;
for the morrow will be anxious for itself. Sufficient for the
day is the evil thereof."
(3)irre- Finally, anxiety about worldly matters is irreligious,
po'"- » After all these things the heathen seek." And it is
nothing strange that they, not knowing the Heavenly Father,
should be anxious about food and raiment ; but His children
should be otherwise minded. " Your Heavenly Father knoweth
that ye have need of all these things." Anxiety about worldly
matters is in truth practical heathenism, and Jesus bids His
disciples decide which God they will worship.* " No man can
^ T\KiKia is here not "stature" but "age." A cubit would be an enormous
addition to one's stature, and not i\6.xiL(jrw (Lk. xii. 26). With the use of cubit as
a measure of time cf. a similar use of handbrcadth in Ps. xxxix. 5 ; also Herbert, 115 :
"My inch of life " ; Rdiq. Baxt. I. L 16 : "This hasty Inch of Time." Cf. Wetstein.
' Law, S«r. Caili chap. L : " It is as possible for a man to worship a crocodile.
ofGalt-
LINGERING IN GALILEE 295
serve two lords ; for either he will hate the one and love the
other, or he will hold to one and despise the other. Ye cannot
serve God and Mammon/ Therefore I tell you, be not
anxious." This is the sovereign remedy : to believe utterly
in the Heavenly P'ather's love and wisdom and make His
Kingdom and His righteousness the supreme concerns, leaving
all lesser interests in His hands. " Seek ye first His Kingdom
and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added
unto you." Here is the secret of a quiet heart " Nothing,"
says St Chrysostom,* " makes men light-hearted like deliverance
from care and anxiety, especially when they may be delivered
therefrom without suffering any disadvantage, forasmuch as
God is with them and stands them in lieu of all."
Jesus was still lingering in Galilee when tidings of a a
terrible tragedy reached His ears. A company of Galileans icawln the
had gone up to Jerusalem and had betaken themselves with "^""P'*-
their offerings to the Temple. They were evidently a devout
and peaceable company, but the Galileans were a brave race,
always ready for resistance to the Roman tyranny,' and those
northern strangers had somehow incurred the suspicion of the
procurator Pontius Pilate. He set upon them while they were
presenting their sacrifices at the altar, and cut them in pieces,
mingling their blood with that of their victims. The tragedy
seemed the more appalling inasmuch as another had recently
happened. A tower at the Pool of Siloam had fallen and
killed eighteen persons, probably sick folk who were seeking
health from the medicinal waters.*
Some of that ill-fated band had escaped the swords of According
J to the Jews
Pilate's ruffians and fled northward. They came m hot haste, a providen-
and told Jesus. It is no wonder that they were horrified. What mJt.
they had witnessed was in itself sufficiently dreadful, but they
and yet be a pious man, as to have his affections set upon this world, and yet be t
good Christian."
* /ta/xwaj = K3iOD, Aram, for ruhes, Jen: "Mammona scrmone Syriaco
T T
divitia nuncupantur." It is a mistaken fancy that there was a Syrian deify called
Mammon.
' In Mattk. xxxiii.
» Jos. Ant. xvii. 9. § 3, 10. § 2 ; xx. 5. § 3, 6. § 1.
* Cf. Jerome on Is. viii. 6.
• Tap^<r<u., not " were present," but " had come," " arrived." Cf. Mt. xxvL JO \
John xi. 28.
296 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
were Jews and entertained a Jewish notion which greatly
increased their dismay. It was a rooted conviction in the
Jewish mind that prosperity was a token of God's favour and
misfortune, on the contrary, an evidence of His displeasure.
Jobiv. 7. If a man suffered, he must needs have sinned. " Who," asked
Eliphaz the Temanite, " ever perished, being innocent ? or
cf. Pss. where were the righteous cut off? " The idea appears
*i^||' frequently in the Old Testament and in the Talmud, and in
the latter it sometimes takes an amusing form. It is told in
one place how four hundred casks of wine belonging to a rich
scholar went sour, and his friends, like the friends of Job, saw
in his misfortune the hand of Providence and bade him inquire
into his conduct and discover wherefore the judgment had
overtaken him. " Do you then," he asked, " suspect that I
have done something wrong because this evil has befallen
me ? " They replied : " Can we accuse God of having punished
thee without a cause ? " " Well, then," he returned, " if any
one has heard evil of me, let him say so." " We have heard,"
they alleged, " that his honour keeps back the share of the
vineyard that belongs to his gardener." "Has the gardener,"
he cried, " left me anything ? He steals all I have," They
disallowed the plea, and insisted that he had defrauded the
gardener, quoting the proverb : " Who steals from a thief is no
better than the thief."^
According Such was the Jewish theory of the providential govem-
OTo^i^* ment of the world, and it was a cruel aggravation of the
tiai warn- distress of those Galileans. The sting of the disaster lay in
' their conviction that it was an evidence of divine displeasure.
Their brethren were sinners, and the hand of God had smitten
Cf. Mt. ▼. them. Jesus did not hold the theory of His contemporaries,
*^'^^^and He gave it an emphatic repudiation. He did not indeed
deny that the disaster had a providential aspect It was not,
however, a judgment It was a warning, and the nation would
do well to give heed thereto. " Think ye," He said, " that
these Galileans were found sinners beyond all the Galileans
because they have suffered these things ? No, I tell you ;
but, unless ye repent, ye all shall likewise perish- Or those
eighteen upon whom fell the tower at Siloam — think ye that
tJuy were found debtors beyond all the people that dwelt at
* Dditxtch, J«w. Art. Lift^ p. 3S.
LINGERING IN GALILEE 297
Jerusalem ? No, I tell you ; but, unless ye repent, ye all shall
likewise perish."
This prophecy was fulfilled at the destruction of Jerusalem i»r««J par-
some forty years later, when the towers of Jerusalem wereMi^Sj,
overthrown by the Roman battering-rams and multitudes of j*^'^'***
her citizens slaughtered in the Temple, their last refuge. Is it
really so that, had they repented, they would have averted that
disaster ? Yes, it is literally true that they perished because
they disbelieved Jesus and disregarded His call to repentance.
They persisted in their wild dream of a Messiah who should
" restore the Kingdom unto Israel." They were continually
hailing some impostor as the national Deliverer. The land
was throbbing with unrest and seething with rebellion ; and at
length Rome was provoked beyond endurance, and crushed the
turbulent nation as a man might crush a troublesome wasp.
It was her false ideal of the Messiahship that destroyed Israel.
She rejected the true Messiah when He came " meek and lowly
in heart," " not striving nor crying nor causing His voice to be
heard in the street" Had she received Him and obeyed His
gracious teaching, she would never have incurred Rome's ven-
geance. She would have remained unmolested, and might
have continued a nation unto this day.*
In order to drive home to the hearts of His hearers this Th« pu.
solemn premonition of imminent doom, Jesus spoke a parable, barren fig-
He told how a proprietor had a fig-tree planted in his vine- ^**'
yard. It was contrary to the rules of husbandry that trees
should grow among vines, but an exception was made in
favour of the fig-tree.' It was a reasonable expectation that
a tree so advantageously situated should yield a plenteous
crop, yet this fig-tree proved barren. For three years in
succession the owner sought in vain for fruit upon it. It
took three years for a fig-tree to attain maturity,* and there
was cause for complaint when as long again elapsed and still
no fruit appeared. The owner lost patience. ** Behold," he
said to the vine-dresser, " for three years I have come seeking
fruit on this fig-tree and found none. Hew it down. Why
should it keep the ground idle ? " " Sir," interceded the vine-
dresser, " let it alone for this year also, until I dig about it
» Cf. Jo«. De Bell. Jud. n. 5, 1 4. " ^^*^ ^- ^- «^ *••
• Wetstein.
298 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
and scatter dung. And, if it produce fruit next year, — ; but,
if not, thou shalt hew it down."
Cf. Is. ▼. The fig-tree was Israel, which had been favoured above
ixxZ 8-16! every other nation. The proprietor was God, and the vine-
dresser His mercy which refrained His wrath. The three
years were Israel's long day of grace culminating in the
Redeemer's advent ; ^ and the year of respite was the term
which would elapse ere the blow fell. It was a solemn
declaration. Israel was on probation. Her doom was
hanging in the balance. The axe was uplifted, and God was
staying His hand until He should see the issue of the final
appeal. It proved unavailing, and the blow fell. Jerusalem
was overthrown and Israel scattered over the face of the
earth.
Healing of Another incident occurred while Jesus lingered in Galilee.
* ^rTthe The scene seems to have been some obscure place, probably
Sabbath, gome village where He had preached in the course of His
ministry. On the Sabbath Day He attended the synagogue,
and saw among the worshippers a woman bent almost double,
no doubt with rheumatism. For eighteen years she had been
thus afflicted, and Jesus ^ook pity on her. He called her to
Him and laid His hands upon her, and immediately her
crooked form was straightened. The Ruler of that rura^
synagogue was a different sort of personage from the astute
ecclesiastics of Capernaum and Jerusalem. He was a dull
and narrow-minded man, a blind stickler for traditional
Complaint orthodoxy ; and he was vexed ^ at what he quite sincerely
of the deemed a heinous sin. Not liking to upbraid Jesus, He
the Syna- remonstrated with the people. " There are six days," he
^°^*^' said, " whereon it is right to work. On them therefore come
and be healed, and not on the Sabbath Day."
The Lord's Jesus hastened to interpose, but, sparing the bigot for his
defence, sincerity, assailed not him but his order. " Ye play-actors ! " '
He cried. " Doth not each of you on the Sabbath loose his
ox or his ass and lead it away to watering ? And this
^ More specific references have been assigned to the three years, (i) God came
seeking fruit by Moses, by the Prophets, by Jesus (Theophyl,). (2) The three
roXtTtiat under the Judges, the Kings, and the High Priests (Euth. Zig.), (3) The
three years of Jesus' ministry. These are needless subtleties.
' d>a*'<uru)i', " vexed," "irritated"; less strong than "angry," "indignant."
» inroKpiT&l KBL. Tisch., W. H., R.V. vroKptrd T. R,
LINGERING IN GALILEE 299
woman, being a daughter of Abraham, whom Satan hath
bound,^ behold, for eighteen years — ought she not to have
been loosed from this bond on the Sabbath Day ? " It was a
just and damning charge which He brought against those
Jewish bigots. They were scrupulous where they should
have been lax, and lax where they should have been scrupulous.
They were very punctilious about Sabbath-observance when
it cost them nothing ; but, whenever their worldly interest
was involved, they found a pretext for contravening the Law.
" Thou shalt do no work on the Sabbath," said the Law, and
of course the watering of cattle was work. But the
Rabbis found a way out of the difficulty and salved their
consciences by ridiculous refinements. It was permissible,
they said, not only to lead away a beast to watering on the
Sabbath, but to draw water for it, if only the water were not
brought to the beast and placed before it. The beast must
be led to the water and must drink of its own accord.'
When their property was involved, they had no scruple in
setting aside the Law ; yet, when it was a question of
succouring a poor, afflicted fellow-creature, they insisted on its
rigid and literal observance.
^ The Jewish theory of disease. Cf, Lightfoot on Mt. xvii. 15. Jesui her*
speaks the language of His time : He does not accept the theory.
» Cf. Lightfoot and Wetstein.
CHAPTER XXXV
John tU. >-
lo; Lk.
xiii. 22-30
=Mt. viu
I3;4, viu.
II-2 ; Lk.
xiii. 31-3;
xiv.-xv.
(Lk. xvii.
5-6; Mt.
xviii. 12-3) ;
xvi. 1-12,
14-S. 19-31-
Advice of IT
the Lord's
brothers.
THE JOURNEY THROUGH GALILEE
" O Shepherd with the bleeding Feet,
Good Shepherd with the pleading Voice,
What seekest Thou from hill to hill?
Sweet were the valley pastures, sweet
The sound of flocks that bleat their joys,
And eat and drink at will.
Is one worth seeking, when Thou hast of Thine
Ninety and nine?" — Christina G. Rossetti.
His reply.
was time for Jesus to bid Galilee farewell and turn His
steps toward Jerusalem. The Feast of Tabernacles, which
began on the fifteenth of Tisri or October, was at hand, and
the train of Galilean pilgrims would presently be setting out
for the Holy City. Among the rest the brothers of Jesus
were getting ready for the journey, and they came to Him
and urged Him to accompany them. They were unbelievers,
nay, they had derided His claims ; yet His fame was pleasant
to them. It was no small distinction to have the great
prophet for their brother. They were apparently somewhat
coarse-minded men ; and, sharing the Messianic ideal of their
day, they were impatient that He had not come forward as
King of Israel, and would fain bring His procrastination to
an end. Let Him go up to the approaching feast, and there
amid the multitude of worshippers declare Himself and rally
all who believed in Him and called themselves His disciples.
" Remove hence," said they, " and begone to Judaea, that thy
disciples also may behold the works which thou doest For
no one doeth aught in secret and seeketh to be himself known
openly. If thou doest these things, manifest thyself unto the
world."
It was an insulting speech. They assumed that Jesus was
as eager as themselves for notoriety and had been restrained
by cowardice.^ He answered with indignant contempt
* Chrysost. In Joan, xlrii • roXX^t W roifrjplat fjv ra, Xeyifttra, tfravOa yap airtii
3»Q
THE JOURNEY THROUGH GALILEE 30!
" My time hath not yet come, but your time is always ready.
The world cannot hate you, but Me it hateth, because I
testify concerning it that its works are evil. Go ye up to the
feast. I am not going up to this feast, because My time
hath not yet been fulfilled." Jesus was indeed going up to
the feast, but the feast to which He was going up was not the
Feast of Tabernacles : it was the Passover six months later.
That was the Lord's goal, the one fixed point in His outlook.
He knew that it was the Father's will that He should go up to
that great feast and offer Himself, the true Paschal Lamb, a
sacrifice for the sin of the world ; but the time had not yet
come, and He would not forestall it. Unlike His brothers
after the flesh, whose time was always ready, He ever abode
God's time, observing the indications of His will and following
where it beckoned. It was a light thing for them, who had
naught to fear, to go up to Jerusalem ; but for Him, who had
incurred the hostility of the rulers, it was very perilous, and
He durst not fling away His life until His time had come.
There were still six months ere the Feast of the Passover, Hii de-
yet He must forthwith set His face toward Jerusalem. His p*^""
purpose was to make a gradual progress southward, preaching
as He went, and to reach the sacred Capital in time for the
great denouement. When His brothers had left Him and set
out upon their journey. He also took His departure, " not
openly but in secret," not with a pilgrim throng but with the
escort of His twelve disciples. Betwixt Capernaum and the
frontier of Samaria lay a long expanse of Galilean territory,
thick-set with towns and villages ; and, as He passed from
place to place, He preached to the folk. Surely there would
be a great tenderness in His heart and an exceeding urgency
in His tones. It was the last appeal that they would hear
from His lips, and never more would they see His face until
that awful Day when He shall come in His glory and sit
upon His great white throne to judge the quick and the
dead.
Somewhere in the course of His journey through Galilee a th«oio(ri-
an incident occurred. He had preached; His theme had been *'"'
salvation, and He had pressed His claims upon His hearers and
kqX ZeCKlav koX <t>i\o8o^iay ivetJ/fowi. He thinks that they were in league with tb«
rulers and designed out of jealousy to betray Him to them.
y
302 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
challenged them to decision. There was one in His audience
who was deeply impressed yet would fain evade the issue.
And what did he do? He acted precisely in the manner of
the woman of Samaria, When Jesus probed her conscience,
she essayed to raise a side-issue. She dragged in a theological
question, the old controversy betwixt the Jews and the
John iv. Samaritans. " Sir," she said, " I perceive that thou art a prophet.
'5*° Our fathers in yonder mountain worshipped ; and ye say that
in Jerusalem is the place where it is necessary to worship."
This man resorted to the self-same device. " Lord," he asked,
" are they few that are being saved ? " It was one of the vexed
questions among the theologians of that day. Some held that
every Israelite would have " a portion in the world to come,"
while others held a less hopeful opinion. One Rabbi argued
that, as only two of all that came out of Egypt entered the
Promised Land, so would it be in the days of the Messiah.^
The question was an attempt to shirk the real issue. The
man had been impressed, but he shrank from the great
surrender, and, thinking to create a diversion, he essayed to
raise that unprofitable controversy,
rhe Lord's It was a palpable evasion, and Jesus brushed it aside
' and set the real issue before His hearers. " The question is
not whether the saved be few or many, but whether you be
of the number. Strive to enter through the narrow door.
Enter through the narrow gate ; because broad is the gate and
spacious the way that leadeth to destruction, and many are
they that enter through it ; because narrow is the gate and
straightened the way that leadeth to life, and few are they that
The Two find it" The significance of the reply lies in this, that Jesus
*^rTwo ^^^^ quotes an idea whereof the ancient moralists had made
Ways, great use and which had passed into a common-place, almost
a proverb. It is as ancient as the poet Hesiod ; ' and it
appears in Kebes' quaint allegory The Tablet, a sort of Greek
Pilgrim's Progress, purporting to be an account of a pictorial
tablet which hung in the temple of Kronos and emblematically
depicted the course of human life. Kebes saw it and had it
explained to him by an old man who kept the temple.
* Lightfbot on Lk. xiiL 23.
' O. tt D. 287-92. Pythagoras (B.C. 570-504) elaborated it. Cf. Coaington 00
Peis. iiL 56-7.
THE JOURNEY THROUGH GALILEE 303
" ' What is the way that leads to the true Instruction ? *
said I.
" ' You see above,' said he, ' yonder place where no one
dwells, but it seems to be desert ? '
" • I do.'
" * And a little door, and a way before the door, which is
not much thronged, but very few go there ; so impassable
does the way seem, so rough and rocky ? '
" * Yes, indeed,' said I.
" • And there seems to be a lofty mound and a very steep
ascent with deep precipices on this side and on that ? '
" * I see it'
" ' This, then, is the way,' said he, ' that leads to the true
Instruction.' " ^
The allegory of the Two Ways had passed into a sort of The Lord',
proverb, and Jesus here applies it to the great business of^°[^
salvation, throwing His hearers back on the broad principles
of life. It was recognised that, if a man would attain to
Virtue or Wisdom, he must face a steep and toilsome way,
and climb it with resolute heart "All noble things," said
the proverb, " are difficult " ; and salvation, being the noblest
of all, is the most difficult It can be attained only by
resolute endeavour, and every man must face the ordeal for
himself. It is folly to stand gazing at the height and
wondering whether few or many will win it. " There is the
narrow gate ! " cries Jesus ; " yonder is the rugged path 1
Enter and climb."
He was speaking to Jews and He gave a Jewish turn to The Feast
His exhortation, passing abruptly from the image of the Two Messianic
Ways to another which the Rabbis loved and which Jesus Kingdom,
frequently employed in those later days — ^the image of the cf. Lk.
great Feast in the Messianic Kingdom. " When once the '^X 23?* '
Master of the House hath arisen and shut the door, and ye J!j;"i';^.
have besrun to stand outside and to knock at the door, saying : 1-13: .
' Lord, open to us ! ' and He shall answer and say to you : 1 39=m)i.
know you not whence ye are ' ; then « shall ye begin to say : "'' **•
1 Ceb. Tab. § 15.
' Tlsch. makes koX AroKpiefU ipel the apodoSis. W. H. connect d^'oJ «.r.X.,
with the preceding verse and begin a new sentence with r&rt dp^taS*. Thi«
involves a very abrupt change of meuphor. Perhaps w. 25-30 are an interpolation.
C/. ML vil. 22-3; viii. 1 1 -2.
304 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
* We ate in Thy presence and drank, and in our streets Thou
didst teach.' And He shall say : ' I tell you, I know you not
whence ye are. Withdraw from Me, all ye workers of
unrighteousness ! ' There shall be the weeping and the
gnashing of teeth, when ye shall see Abraham and Isaac and
Jacob and all the Prophets in the Kingdom of God, while ye
are flung outside. And they shall come from east and west
and north and south and take their places at the feast in the
Kingdom of God. And, behold, there are last who shall be
first, and there are first who shall be last" These were terrible
words for Jewish ears to hear. Jesus had already announced
the doom of impenitent Israel, but here He prophesies a further
dispensation wherein, when it was executed, even St Paul
Rom. jd. could scarce acquiesce — the ingathering of the Gentiles and
their investiture with Israel's forfeited privileges.
A warning. As He travelled southward, Jesus would find Himself in the
vicinity of Tiberias, the capital of the tetrarch Herod Antipas,
and He was approached by a company of Pharisees. They
brought Him a warning. The tetrarch had taken alarm at
the popularity of Jesus, and, apprehending a tumult, had re-
Mt.xvii. 12 solved, probably at the instigation of the Jewish rulers who
' 13. had hounded him on to the arrest of John the Baptist, to dis-
sipate the enthusiasm of the populace by removing their hero.
Those Pharisees had discovered his sanguinary purpose.
They were not indeed believers, yet they were friendly to
Jesus and did not wish to see Him fall a victim to the
tetrarch's cruelty. They came to Him and bade Him hasten
on His way till He was across the Galilean frontier and
beyond the tyrant's jurisdiction. " Begone," they cried,
" and take thy way hence ; for Herod is wishing to kill
thee."i
The Lord's Jesus met their alarm with calm contempt. He bade
^^' them carry a message of defiance to the wily tyrant. " Go
* So Hausrath. The prevailing interpretation, ancient and modern, is that
their friendship was feigned. They were in league with Antipas, who wished by
" this masterpiece of artful, bloodless, pacific stratagem to get Jesus out of the way "
(Keim). They thought to " firighten Him firom Galilee into Judsea, where He
would be more in the power of the Sanhedrin" (Eaton in Hastings' D. B., art.
Pharistes). Wetstein aptly compares Am. vii. 10 ; Neh. vi. 10 ; Ecclus. xxxvii. 7-8.
Had they been traitors, however, Jesus would have hurled His scorn at them and not
at Antipas.
I
THE JOURNEY THROUGH GALILEE 305
your way, and say to this fox : » ' Behold, I cast out daemons
and accomplish healings to-day and to-morrow, and on the
third day I am perfected.' " " To-day and to-morrow " was a c/. i Saa.
Hebrew phrase for " a little longer." * A little longer must Jesus "* ***
ply His ministry in Galilee, and He would continue until the
appointed end, fearless of threats. " Nevertheless," He adds
with mournful irony, "it is necessary that to-day and to-
morrow and the next day I should go My way, because it is
not possible that a prophet should perish outside of Jerusalem."
His visitors had counselled Him to depart ; and depart He
would, but not for fear of Herod. In Jerusalem had all the
prophets been slain, and there it was fitting that the greatest
of the prophets and their Lord should die.*
The intervention of those friendly Pharisees is a pleasant Friendly
incident. They belonged to an order which bears a very ^'**"****
evil reputation. Their name is a by-word for hypocrisy, and
they were our Lord's bitter and unscrupulous adversaries.
Nevertheless there were good men among the Pharisees.
They were Israel's religious teachers, and, though the majority
were narrow-minded and hypocritical, there were noble excep-
tions. Though it does not appear that a single Pharisee
attached himself to Jesus during His ministry, there were re-
presentatives of the party in the Apostolic Church. Nicodemus acu «▼. 5.
and Joseph of Arimathaea were both Pharisees, and it may
be that they were not the only members of their order who, Cf- John
though afraid to confess Him, were disciples at heart The
Jewish Evangelists St Matthew and St Mark saw naught else
in the hated order than black malignity, but the kindly eye
of the Gentile St Luke discovered even there some soul of
goodness, and he has rescued from oblivion other instances
besides this which prove that there were Pharisees who were
well disposed to Jesus. Thrice he tells of Jesus being bidden "•• 3^5»:
to the houses and tables of Pharisees ; and, though in each xiv. 1-24.
instance the host was a proud personage and showed scant
courtesy to the man of the people whom he had deigned to dis-
tinguish by an invitation to his board, yet the mere invitation
evinced a measure of goodwill.
» r^ iXwireKi ra-irr-Q, fem. (cf. Mt. viii. 20=Lk: ix. 58), as in Engluh "the cow;"
So ^ KOiiiv. Cf. the proverb : Kaddrtp rJjr er tj ^irrg Kwa (Luc. Tim. | 14).
" C/. Wetstein:
•On the position of Lk; xiii. 34-5=Mt. xxiii. 37-9 </ Introd. 1 15.
3o6 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
A Sabbath- One of these instances of friendship on the part of
p^isM's Pharisees occurred in the course of that last journey through
house. Galilee. He got an invitation to a Sabbath entertainment
in the house of a leading Pharisee. Curiously enough the
Sabbath was the great day for social gatherings ; and, though
the viands were cooked on the previous day and served cold,
it was deemed fitting that they should be specially sumptuous.^
Indeed St Augustine alleges that, down to his own time, the
Jews made the Sabbath a day of unseemly revelry.* The
host had invited a company of Lawyers and Pharisees to
meet Jesus, and they came all agog with curiosity. Nor were
they disappointed in their anticipation of witnessing some-
Heaiing of thing unusual. There was a man in the neighbourhood who
* ™dropsy^ suffered from dropsy, and, like Mary of Magdala, he betook
cf. Lit. viu himself to the Pharisee's house and, entering the dining-hall,
^^" ■ planted himself with mute appeal before Jesus, hoping that He
would observe him and take pity on him. And so it proved.
" Is it right," asked Jesus, addressing the company, " to heal on
the Sabbath or not ? " The Rabbinical law ordained that
only if the patient's life were in danger, was it allowable to
apply remedies on the Sabbath ; ^ and they would naturally
have replied that, since there was no immediate likelihood of
a fatal issue, the man should wait until the morrow for healing.
But they knew how Jesus had already handled the question,
and they kept silence. He took hold of the sufferer,
healed him, and sent him away ; and then He justified His
action after His wonted manner by an appeal to the instinct
of humanity. " Which of you," He asked, " if his son * or his
ox fall into a well, will not immediately draw him up on the
Sabbath Day ? " The argument was apt and cogent. There
was an obvious analogy between dropsy and submergence in
a well,^ and the law permitted the rescue of a beast, much
more a human being, from the latter predicament
The Lord's It proves the friendliness of those Pharisees that they
ubie-taik. raised no protest, unlike their colleagues at Capernaum who,
when Jesus met them with a precisely similar argument,
^ Cf. Wetstein and Lightfoot. ' De Com. Ev. ii. § 151. * O^ P- 135.
* liif is the best attested reading, tvo^ K^L, Vulg., T. R. ; Tpi^aTOP D.
' So Jesus compares the loosing of the rbeamalic woman from her bond to the
loosing of a beast from a stall. Lk. xiiL IS-^.
THE JOURNEY THROUGH GALILEE 307
" went out and took counsel against Him, how they might Mt xu. 14.
destroy Him." The entertainment went on, and Jesus plied
the company with kindly yet incisive raillery. The place of Tb« chief
honour at a feast was next the host, and there had been some ?/*Mt.
contending for the coveted distinction. The scene had "''*• *•
amused Jesus, and He now alludes to it good-humouredly,
ridiculing the self-aggrandisement which courts humiliation.
"If thou covetest honour," He says, quoting a cynical maxim Pror. x%r.
of the wise man of old, " feign humility. Take the lowest ''
place at the feast, and thine host will say to thee : ' Friend,
come up higher.' Then shalt thou have glory in the presence
of thy fellow-guests." For the host also He had a counsel.
" When thou makest a feast, call not thy friends nor thy Whom to
brethren nor thy kinsfolk nor thy rich neighbours, lest haply "'*'*'^
they on their part invite thee in return, and a requital be
made thee. But invite poor folk, maimed, lame, blind ; and
blessed shalt thou be, because they have nothing to requite
thee with ; for it shall be requited thee at the resurrection of
the righteous." It was a playful satire on the ways of
fashionable society with its round of complimentary enter-
tainments which have no friendship in them, and which
squander on pride and luxury what, were it bestowed on the
poor, would profit the recipient and win for the giver the
blessing of God.
With such trenchant table-talk did Jesus enliven the Oar Lorft
diriik^ of
banquet His satire pierced home, and one of the company, -piooi
thinking to pass it off, caught at the phrase " the resurrection '*"^
of the righteous " and ejaculated sententiously : " Blessed is
he who shall eat bread in the Kingdom of God I " It was
a mere religious common-place, and hardly anything was
more distasteful to Jesus than pious talk which was mere
breath. On one occasion the Apostles, conscious perhaps of
some remissness, said to Him : " Increase our faith " ; and He
answered, quoting: an Oriental proverb : " If ye have faith as r/. Mt
a gram of mustard seed, ye would say to this sycamme tree : Mk. i». 31.
' Be uprooted and be planted in the sea,' and it would obey •»*-^ «*•
you." ^ It was a stern and contemptuous rebuke. Their
lack was not faith but devotion. Let them gird themselves
to their task, and God would not fail them. Jesus could not
* I<k. xrii. 5-6 : an iiolated fragment of the Evangelic TrMlition.
3o8
THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
endure such talk, and He answered that sententious ejacula-
tion at the Pharisee's table with a scathing parable. He told
how a man made a great supper and invited a large company.
When all was ready, he sent them word, according to Oriental
custom,^ but " they all with one consent began to make
excuse." One had bought a field, and must go and see it ;
another had bought five pairs of oxen, and must go and try
Cf. Deut. them ; a third had married a wife, and therefore he could not
'"*' ^ come.2 The excuses, at all events the first and second, were
palpable pretexts. The men simply did not wish to come,
and each pled the first excuse that occurred to him. Their
language was exceedingly polite, but that was no extenuation,
it was rather an aggravation, of the insolence of their be-
haviour. What worth is there in lip-homage ? " Why,"
Lk. vi. 46. asked Jesus on another occasion, " do ye call Me ' Lord !
Lord ! ' and do not the things which I say ? "
The master of the house was indignant when he learned
how his hospitality had been scorned. He resolved that the
entertainment should go forward, but he would have guests of
another sort. He sent abroad to the streets and alleys of the
city, and brought in the poor and maimed and blind and lame
to the banquet. Still there was room, and He commanded :
" Go forth to the roads and hedges, and constrain them to
come in, that my house may be filled." Is there not a stroke
of humour here ? The host was resolved that his preparations
should not be wasted, and he took a mischievous pleasure in
crowding his festal-chamber with that motley assemblage ; as
it were, saying to the men who had insulted him : " I need
you not, and I count these outcasts worthier than you." The
significance of this latter part of the parable is very plain.
It is another premonition of the impending judgment. The
denizens of street and alley were Israel's outcasts, the tax-
gathers and sinners who made so ready a response to Jesus ;
and those outside the city, who wandered on the highways and
sheltered beneath the hedges — who were they but the Gentiles ?
* Cf. Thomson, Land and Book, chap, ix : "If a sheikh, beg, or emeer invites,
he always sends a servant to call you at a proper time. This servant often repeats
the very formula mentioned in Luke xiv. 17 : 'Come, for the supper is ready.'"
" A humorous touch. Cf. Kidd. 29. 2 : " Dicit Samuel, ' Traditio est ut ducat
quis uxorem et postea applicet se ad discendam Legem.' At R. Jochanan dicit,
' {fon moli coUo ejus appensi addicet se ad smdium Legis.' " i Cor. viL 32-3.
THE JOURNEY THROUGH GALILEE 309
Jesus went on His way, and, as He went. He was fol- Tbe tcrmt
lowed by great crowds. What was their thought ? He SLJ!*^'^
was going up to Jerusalem, and, sure that He was going
thither to declare Himself King of Israel, they designed to
follow Him all the way and share His triumph. Had they
known what was really His destination — not a throne in
Jerusalem but a cross on Calvary, their enthusiasm would
have evaporated and their applause ceased. Suddenly Jesus
wheeled round and, facing the eager throng, told them the
terms of discipleship. " If any one cometh unto Me and
hateth not his father and mother and wife and children and
brothers and sisters, yea, moreover, his own life, he cannot be
My disciple. Whoever doth not carry his cross and come
after Me, cannot be My disciple." Ruthless surrender of all
that is dearest to the human heart when it conflicts with
loyalty to the Master, and resolute endurance for His sake of
the utmost suffering and ignominy that the world can inflict :
such are the terms of discipleship. Were they prepared for
an ordeal like that ? Had they counted the cost ? Let them
do so ere they went further. " Which of you, wishing to
build a tower,* doth not first sit down and count the cost ? lest Cf. Mc
haply, when he has laid a foundation and is not able to finish '
it, all that behold should begin to mock at him, saying :
' This man began to build and was not able to finish ! ' Or
what king, setting out to engage with another king in battle,
will not sit down and first consider whether he is able with
ten thousand to meet one that is coming against him with
twenty thousand ? And, if he be not, while the other is still
at a distance, he sendeth an embassy and asketh terms of
peace. Even so, then, everyone of you who doth not bid
farewell to all his possessions, cannot be My disciple." Such
are the terms of discipleship. " If ye would follow Me," says
Jesus, " first count the cost, and do not, in a fit of inconsiderate
enthusiasm, embark upon an enterprise which you will never
have the courage to carry through."
It would seem that this stem declaration cooled the ardour E»»i«f
with tax-
of the multitude. They fell back. Jesus, however, was not fatbercn
aad
^ Wright, Palmyra and Zenohia, pp. 332-4 : "To-day,in Syria, every vineyard ,
and garden has its tower. ... In the neighboarhood of Damascui men (it in these
maniaras all day, watching a few roods of melon, or a field of maixe, or a rineraxd,
and they sleep in them during the nij^ht."
3IO THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
left alone. The tax-gatherers and sinners of the neighbour-
hood who had not dared to mingle with the crowd, saw their
opportunity and approached Him. One of them apparently
offered Him hospitality ; and Jesus accepted the invitation
and took His place at table with a company of outcasts. It
Mt. ix. 9-13 was a repetition of the scene in Levi's house at Capernaum ;
13-7 =Lk. and now as then the Pharisees were horrified and cried out
V. 27-32- against the scandal : " This man receiveth sinners and eateth
with them ! "
The Lords In answer to their complaint Jesus spoke three parables —
the Lost Sheep, the Lost Drachma,^ and the Lost Son — which
constitute His supreme defence of His attitude toward sinners.
He advanced a great claim : Though condemned by the
Pharisees, His attitude was approved in Heaven. Even as
men sorrow for what they lose and rejoice when they find
it, so God sorrows for lost sinners and rejoices at their
recovery.
^* ^st «« What man of you, having a hundred sheep and having
lost one of them, doth not leave the ninety and nine in the
Mt xviu. pasture and hie him to the mountains and search for the
wanderer until he find it ? And, when he hath found it, he
layeth it on his shoulders, rejoicing. And on getting home he
calleth together his friends and his neighbours, saying to them :
' Rejoice with me, because I have found my lost sheep.' I
tell you that even thus there shall be joy in Heaven over a
single repenting sinner rather than over ninety-nine righteous
men who have no need of repentance." * It was not so much
the value of the sheep as the misery of the poor lost creature
that excited the shepherd's solicitude ; and Jesus here declares
that the sinner's misery moves compassion in the heart of God.
The Lost " Or what woman, having ten drachmce, if she lose one,
rac ma, ^^^ ^^^ light a lamp and sweep the house and search
diligently until she find it And, when she hath found it, she
calleth together her friends and neighbours, saying : ' Rejoice
* The Greek drachma was about equivalent to the Roman datarius, i.e. 8Jd.
There were four drachma in a shekel or stater. Cf. Mt. xvii. 24-7, where the
SLSpaxp^ow or double drachma is the ha//-shekel of the Temple-tax.
^ Here, as in Mt. ix. 12-3, Jesus ironically takes the Pharisees at their own
valuation. They were *' perfectly righteous " according to the Rabbinical distinction
between t'ustas tantum and justos perfecte. One of the latter was the young ruler
(Mt. xix. »o). Cf. Lightfoot
THE JOURNEY THROUGH GALILEE 311
with me, because I have found the drachma which I lost'
Even thus, I tell you, there ariseth joy in the presence of the
angels of God over a single repenting sinner." It was the
value of her drachma^ which she could ill afford out of her scanty
store, that moved the peasant woman ; and Jesus here declares
that a sinner is precious in God's sight and his loss is a loss to God.
In the third parable He makes a still more amazing de-TULost
claration. A sinner is not merely a lost possession, he is a lost '
child of God ; and the Father's heart yearns for his recovery.
A man, says Jesus, had two sons. It was common for a father EccIim.
to distribute his inheritance in his life-time ; and the younger a^""' ''^
of those two sons requested his portion, which, according to the ^*"^ "*•
Law, amounted to half of the first-born's. When he got it, he
went away to a far country and squandered it in prodigality.
He was reduced to want, and, to aggravate his distress, the
country was visited by a severe famine. To save himself
from starvation he hired himself out as a swine-herd, the
most degraded of occupations in Jewish tyts} He was
fain to fill his belly with the swine's bean-pods ; and in
his wretchedness he remembered his father's house where the
very hirelings had bread enough and to spare. " I will arise,"
he said, " and go to my father, and will say to him : ' Father,
I have sinned against Heaven and in thy sight ; no more am
I worthy to be called thy son : make me as one of thy
hirelings.' " It was truly a base speech, revealing the prodigal's
degradation. Had things gone well with him, he would have
felt never a qualm ; and, when he came to himself, it was not
his sin but his misery that troubled him. He did not say :
" I have acted shamefully. I have broken my father's heart.
I am a vile, undeserving wretch." All that he desired was
the bread of his father's house. " How many hirelings of ray
father have bread enough and to spare, and I am perishing
here with famine I I will arise and go to my father." Selfish
in his sin, he was selfish in his repentance. In truth he did
not repent at all until he was in his father's embrace, and then
his heart melted. And is not this the lesson that Jesus here
teaches, that it matters not what brings a sinner to God ? It
is enough that he should perceive his need and lift up his eyes
to Heaven. Once he has returned to the Father's House and
^ C^, Lightfoot on Mt riii. jo.
312 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
discovered the Father's love, he will understand what sin
means and will sorrow over it with a godly sorrow.
His wei- Base though his motive may have been, the prodigal arose
home, and went homeward. His father had all the while been
mourning in desolation of heart and ever hoping for the
wanderer's return. One glad day he descried him afar off.
He ran to meet him and clasped him, ragged and filthy, in
his arms. " Father," said the penitent, " I have sinned
against Heaven and in thy sight ; no more am I worthy to be
called thy son — ." He got no further. Ere he could make
his petition for a hireling's place, his father was shouting to
the slaves : " Bring forth a robe, the best in the house,^ and
put it on him, and give him a ring on his hand and shoes
on his feet ; and bring the fatted calf, slay it, and let us eat
and make merry ; forasmuch as this my son was dead and
is alive again, was lost and is found."
The elder The villain of the story is not the prodigal but his elder
^°' brother. He was out in the field when the wanderer returned,
and, as he approached the house, he heard the din of merry-
making and enquired of a servant what it meant When he
was informed, he was indignant and would not enter, though
his father came out and besought him. " Behold," cried the
churl, " all these years have I been a slave to thee, and I
never transgressed a command of thine 1 And to me thou
never gavest a kid that I might make merry with my friends ;
but, when this thy son that devoured thy living with harlots
came, thou didst slay for him the fatted calf." He was no
brother. He disowned the prodigal : " this thy son." And
he was no son. He had the spirit of a bondsman and
regarded his father as a hard taskmaster. Of course he
GaL V. I. represented the Pharisees, who made religion " a yoke of
bondage," and would fain have thrust away the tax-gatherers
and sinners and made them outcasts from the Father's love.
Yet even the Pharisees, Jesus would have it understood, were
in God's sight objects rather of pity than of wrath. They
were still His sons, though destitute of the filial spirit ; even
as the outcasts whom they contemned, were still their brethren.
" Child, thou art ever with me, and all that is mine is thine.
* oToK^v TijK irpiim)v, pjerhaps "his former robe," the robe which he had worn in
former days. Cf. Lighifoot on Lk. xx. 46 ; Aug. Quast, Ev. ii. 33 : " Stola
prima est dignitas quam perdidit Adam."
THE JOURNEY THROUGH GALILEE 313
It behoved us to make merry and rejoice, forasmuch as this
thy brother was dead and is alive, was lost and is found."
There was room in the heart of Jesus not only for sinners but
for Pharisees. He looked on both with kind and pitiful eyes,
and would fain have gathered both into the Father's House.
He followed up His apology for befriending sinners with a Lesson on
parabolic discourse on the use of riches. It was addressed to JiSi^ ^
His disciples — not the Twelve who, being poor men, had no
need to be instructed in the use of riches, but all who had
received His message and owned Him as their Lord,^ especially
the tax-gatherers whose hospitality, to the indignation of the
Pharisees, He had accepted. These were rich men, and it
was appropriate that He should discourse to them on this
theme.
There was, said He, a certain rich man. In true Oriental The par-
fashion he allowed his factor absolute control of his estate, shrewd'*^
It was the story of Potiphar and Joseph over again : " he made P»ctor.
him overseer over his house, and all that he had he put into his ^^ *"'*■
hand. And he knew not aught that was with him, save the
bread which he did eat." The factor abused his trust, and
his lord, hearing a report of his malfeasance, took him to task.
" What is this that I hear of thee ? Render the account of
thy factorship ; for thou canst not any longer be factor." The
luckless wight, thus thrown upon the world, debated what he
should do. " To dig I have not strength ; to beg I am Cf. Lie xU.
ashamed." A happy inspiration came to him. " I know *^' "
what I will do ! " he cried. It is the Oriental fashion for a
proprietor to farm out his estate ; and whatever, over and
above the proprietor's due, the agent may be able to extort
from the tenantry, he appropriates. It is an evil system,
inevitably involving oppression unless the agent be a righteous
man ; and this factor had been ruthless. Here lay his oppor-
tunity. Many of the tenants were overwhelmed with debt,
and he summoned them before him. " How much owest thou
to my lord ? " he asked the first, keeping up the fiction that
the debt was due to the proprietor and not to himself " A
hundred baths * of oil," was the answer ; and he bade the man
enter fifty in his account " And thou — how much dost thou
* •• The Apostles " in xvU. 5 are contrasted with " the disciples " in xru 1.
* A biUh was about 8} gallons ; a cor abont lo bnshels.
314 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
owe ? " he asked another. '* A hundred cors of wheat," was the
reply ; and he bade the man put down eighty.
It was a clever trick. The tenants would suppose that
the factor had used his influence with the lord and procured
them those liberal abatements ; and his hope was that they
would remember the good turn which he had done them, and,
when they learned that he was thrown out of his office,
would come to his assistance and give him shelter under
their roofs. He was a shrewd rogue. He knew his men
and offered each his price, abating here fifty per cent., there
twenty. The transaction came to the lord's knowledge,
and it greatly amused him. He could afford to be amused.
The manipulation cost him nothing, since the abatements
were made not on his rental but on the factor's extortion.
He laughed and complimented the rascal on his shrewdness.^
Its appiica- " Leam a lesson," says Jesus, " of this clever knave.
*'°°- Make a wise use of your money. Spend it in charity ; '
and, when you leave this world and reach the gate of Heaven,
you will be greeted there by those whom ye have succoured
here. Make yourselves friends with the mammon of un-
Cf. Ps. XV. righteousness, that, when it fails, they may welcome you
' ' ^ v.°i'. into the Eternal Tents."
mammon What is the meaning of that phrase " the mammon of un-
of unright- righteousuess ? " If it meant " money unrighteously acquired,"
It might be a stmgmg epithet for the ill-gotten gains of the
tax-gatherers ; but there were others than tax-gatherers in the
audience, and, moreover, when ill-gotten gains are devoted to
charity, it is not meritorious beneficence but simple reparation.
Our Lord furnishes the interpretation of the phrase when
*^ *»• He presently contrasts " the unrighteous mammon " ' and
" the true." It is a Hebrew phrase. When the Psalmist
Pa. xxiii 3. speaks of " the paths of righteousness," he means paths which
lead to the desired goal in contrast to " delusive tracks which
lead nowhere ; " * and even so, when Jesus speaks of " the
^ 6 «n//»0T in V. 8 is the steward's master \ ef. w. % 5. According to some
(Erasm., Luth.) it is Jesus, But Ilis comment b^ins at ». 9 : koX iyo> v/uv \4yw.
Sri ol viol, K.T.X., a parenthetical explanation of (ppovlfiuts eirolri<rei',
" C/. the Rabbinical saying : " Alms is the salt of mammon."
' fiafiuvd ri/s aSucLat and to ASikov /xa/xuva are identical, r^t iSiKlas a descriptive
Gen. ; c/. Lk. xviii. 6 ; 2 Thess. ii. 3.
* Cheyiie.
THE JOURNEY THROUGH GALILEE 315
mammon of unrighteousness," He means earthly riches which
delude and disappoint The phrase recalls that other ofMt. «UL
His, "the deceit of riches," and St Paul's "the uncertainty "•^J.'""'
of riches." It is a prudent speculation to purchase with Lk. xri, 9 ;
earth's failing treasure a treasure unfailing in the heavens. "^ ^
The Fathers loved to quote a saying of Jesus which -show
is reported by none of the Evangelists : " Show yourselves J°"^J^
approved bankers." * And does it not find here a very k*nker«."
appropriate setting, at once illumining the aphorisms wherewith
the parable closes, and borrowing illumination from them ?
" Show yourselves approved bankers. He that is faithful
in a very little, in much also is faithful ; and he that in
a very little is unrighteous, in much also is unrighteous.
If therefore in the unrighteous mammon ye proved not faithful,
the true mammon who will entrust to you ? And if in what
is another's ye proved not faithful, what is your own who will
give you ? " It is indeed thus that God deals with men.
There is a beautiful Rabbinical story, that, when Moses
was tending Jethro's flocks in Midian, a kid went astray.
He sought it and found it drinking at a spring. " Thou
art weary," he said, and lifted it on his shoulders and carried
it home. And God said to him : " Since thou hast had
pity for a man's beast, thou shalt be the shepherd of Israel,
My flock." 2
Jesus addressed this discourse to His disciples ; but there The par-
T^ . ,. . , . 1 LI t- able of the
were Pharisees listenmg, and it was very unpalatable to them. Rich Maa
Love of money was a characteristic of their order, and they J^^gn,,.
reckoned their prosperity a mark of God's special favour, cf. \fk. kIL
The Lord's discourse touched them to the quick, and they^'^^
sneered.' He marked the curling of their lips. "Ye are
they," He cried, " that make themselves out righteous in the
sight of men ; but God rcadeth your hearts ; forasmuch
as what is high among men is an abomination in the sight
of God." * And then He spoke a parable. " There was,"
He says, " a certain rich man " ; and with a few graphic
touches He depicts, in St Chrysostom's phrase, "his life
baptised with luxury " : his robe of purple and his under-
' Cf. Introd. \z. ' • Wetstein on Lk. sr. S*
• iKfiVKTripL^ew, naso suspendere aduncd.
•Lk, xvi. i6-8 interpolated logia. Cf. Mt. si. 13 ; t. 18, sa.
3i6 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
clothing of fine linen,^ his sumptuous and glittering table.'
And there was a certain poor man named Lazarus. The
name, which is a shortened form of Eleazar, meant " God
hath helped," and Jesus chose it to characterise the man.'
The godly Lazarus was not only poor but diseased, and he
lay, a mass of loathsome sores, at the rich man's gateway,
longing for scraps from that sumptuous board. No human
heart had pity on him, yet was he not unbefriended. God
was his helper ; angels hovered round him unseen ; and the
dogs, prowling for garbage, would lick with their soft, warm
tongues his festering sores, the only dressing they ever got*
And it came to pass that the poor man died and was carried
away by the angels ^ to Abraham's bosom ; and the rich man
also died, and was buried. " It was a very splendid funeral
in the sight of men that was furnished to that purple-clad
rich man by his crowd of retainers ; but a far more splendid
one in God's sight that was afforded to that beggar full of sores
by the ministry of the angels, who did not carry him forth to
a marble tomb but carried him up to Abraham's bosom." •
Thus ends the contrast of their earthly lives, and Jesus
lifts the veil and displays their conditions in the here-
after. The Jews and the Greeks had a like conception of
the unseen world. The former called it Sheol, the latter
Hades, and both conceived it as the common abode of all
souls, good and bad alike, where they received the due reward
of their deeds. It was a bitter aggravation of the misery of
the unrighteous that they continually beheld the felicity of
^Chrysost. Serm. de Las. tt Div. pi<r<ros, linen of a finer sort than Xivor,
chiefly Egyptian, C/. Rev. xix. 8, 14.
3 ev<ppaiv6nevot, cf. Lk. xii. 19 ; xt. 33, 29. Xa;iir/>b>f, in allnsion perhaps to
the gold and silver plate.
' Since nowhere else does Jesus give a name to a parabolic personage, it has
been supposed that this is not a parable but an actual history (Tert. De Anim. § 7 ;
Iren. Adv, Hctr. iv. 3. § 2) ; and a nair.e, Ninevis, has been found for the rich
man. Cf. Euth. Zig. Jesus, however, was wont to employ names significantly.
Cf. " Simon, son oljohn" i.e. "the Lord's grace" (Mt. xvi. 17 ; John xxi. 15-7).
* Chrysost. : " The dogs nobler than the rich man, kinder than his inhumanity."
Wetstein quotes a proverb : (xofter Kiva t<^ rrbixv /SoTjtfoGrro. Others regard
their licking as an aggravation of his misery : he was unable to drive away the
unclean creatures.
* Tar^. Cant. iv. 2 : " Non possunt ingredi Paradisum nisi justf, quorum animae
eo feruntur per angelos. "
'Aug. D* CivU. Dn, L 12. $ i.
THE JOURNEY THROUGH GALILEE 317
the righteous, knowing the while that they could never share Cf. Eaock
it^ Such was the prevailing conception of the state of theK^^^*
departed in our Lord's day, and He makes use of it here, not »*
as being true but as serving to enforce the lesson which He
desired to teach. It is a startling reversal which meets the
eye when He draws aside the veil and displays the dooms
of those two men. The rich man died and was buried ; and
in Hades he lifted up his eyes, being in torments. Afar off
he saw Lazarus, no longer a beggar, hungry and loathsome,
but a guest at the Heavenly Feast, occupying the chief place
and reclining on Abraham's bosom,* even as in the Upper john >itt.
Room the beloved disciple reclined on Jesus' breast " Father '*
Abraham ! " he cried ; " have pity on me, and send Lazarus to
dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue ; for I
am in anguish in this flame." " Child," Abraham replied,
" remember that thou receivedst thy good things in thy life-
time, and Lazarus likewise the evil things ; but now here he
is being comforted, but thou art in anguish. And in all this
region betwixt us and you a great chasm hath been fixed,
that they that wish to pass over from this side unto you may
not be able, nor those on that side cross over unto us."
According to the Rabbis the abodes of the blessed and the
doomed were nigh one to the other. According to one there
was only a span betwixt them, according to another the
boundary was a wall.' But Jesus sets a great chasm betwixt
the twain, as though He would say that the sentence is
irrevocable, the separation eternal.
Moreover, He vindicates the justice of the doom. " I
pray thee, father," pled the rich man when the ministration
of Lazarus had been denied him, " that thou send him to the
house of my father — for I have five brothers — that he may
testify unto them, lest they also come into this place of
torment" ** They have Moses and the Prophets," Abraham
answered ; " let them hearken to them." " Nay, father
Abraham," urged the wretch, " but if one from the dead go
unto them, they will repent" " If," came the inexorable and in-
* Wetstein.
'There were three Jewish phrases descriptive of the condition of the »oal« of the
righteous after death : (i) /« Horto Edenis or Parodist ; (a) Sub Tknm GUnm
[cf. Rev. vi. 9) ; (3) /w sinu A&foAami.
» Cf. Lightfoot.
Z
3i8 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
disputabk response, " to Mosob and the Prophets they did not
hearken, not even if one rise from the dead, will they be
persuaded." It is not, Jesus here declares, for lack of
opportunity that men perish. Even under the ancient dis-
pensation the way of life was clear to all who would walk
therein. In the Holy Scriptures, which were "read in the
Synagogues every Sabbath," God spake with strong authority
and gracious importunity ; and, if any continued impenitent,
it was not for lack of knowledge but by reason of the
obduracy of their hearts. Not even if one rose from the
dead, would they be persuaded. Had the Lord's adversaries
been persuaded by the raising of Jalrus' daughter or of the
son of the widow of Nain ? Were they persuaded when He
raised Lazarus of Bethany ? Nay, were they persuaded when
He Himself rose from the dead on the third day according
to the Scriptures?
lu twofold The parable had two audiences and, corresponding to
^^UcmT: these, a double purpose. On the one side there were the
(i) to the (ji3j.jpigg j^j^jj ^.j^g parable was for them an enforcement of the
disciples ; ^ '■
precept wherewith Jesus had concluded His parable of the
Shrewd Factor : " Make yourselves friends with the mammon
of unrighteousness, that, when it fails, they may welcome you
into the Eternal Tents." Well for the rich man had he be-
friended the beggar at his gate and won his gratitude !
When he passed into the unseen world, Lazarus would have
(a) to the met him and welcomed him to the Heavenly Feast On the
' other side there were the Pharisees, and the parable was for
them an illustration of the aphorism wherewith Jesus had
answered their sneers : " What is high among men is an
abomination in the sight of God." ^ Despite their profession
of sanctity the Pharisees were steeped in worldliness. When
they made feasts, they invited their friends, their brethren,
Lk. xiv. their kinsmen, and their rich neighbours, regardless of the
^"^ starving poor at their gates ; and in this grim picture they
would recognise their own portraiture and a prophecy of the
doom which awaited them.
* Wetstein thinks that Jesus had the wealthy and worldly Saddacees in His eye.
Schldermacher suggests that the rich man was Herod Antipas, v. i8 alluding to
his matrimonial relationships and z/v. 29-31 to his Sadducean scepticism. The
Pharisees, howerer, were, in their own way, as worldly as the Sadducees.
THE JOURNEY THROUGH GALILEE 319
It is remarkable that the parable imputes no actual
wickedness to the rich maa. He did not refuse Lazarus the
scraps from his table, nor did he drive him from his gate ;
neither is there any suggestion that his wealth had been ill
acquired. What then was his offence ? Was it simply that
he was rich?^ Nay, in the Lord's eyes there was neither
crime in riches nor merit in poverty. Lazarus was not
received into Abraham's bosom because he had been poor,
but because God had been his help. And the rich man's
offence was not that he was rich, but that he lived an easy,
selfish, luxurious life, oblivious of the misery around him.
He did not use his riches for the glory of God and the good
of his fellow-creatures. He did not show himself an approved
banker, a shrewd factor of the mammon of unrighteousness.
'The parables of the Shrewd Factor and the Rich Man and Lazarus are
adduced as instances of Lk.'s alleged Ebionitic tendency (Strauss, Keim,
Schmiedel in E. B., art. G«sp«ls § lio). It is noteworthy that our Lord's severest
saying about riches is recorded also by Mt. and Mk. (Mt. six. 33-4 =Mk. z. 33-5
■tLk. xviii. 24-5).
CHAPTER XXXVI
LicxvU. THE JOURNEY THROUGH SAMARIA
II-3I ;
jcviiL 1-14; . ^ ^
ix. 51-6 : X. Quam despectus, quam dejectua
tj-90 ; 25- Rex ccelorum est effectus,
37« Ut salvaret seculum?
, Esurivit et sitivit.
Pauper et egenus ivit
Usque ad patibulum." — S. Bovaventuha.
The ten At length Jcsus reached the borders of Samaria,^ that despised
^^^^' and hostile territory. His coming was expected, since the
Seventy had gone two by two before Him, preparing His
way ; and, as He approached a certain village, He found a
company of ten lepers awaiting Him. They knew that He
would pass that way, and had stationed themselves there in
the hope that He would heal them. " Jesus, Master," they
cried when they espied Him, standing in their uncleanness
afar off, " have pity on us ! " And it was indeed a piteous
spectacle. In ordinary circumstances "Jews had no dealings
with Samaritans " ; but in that company there was at least
one Samaritan. Partners in affliction, Jew and Samaritan
herded together in a brotherhood of misery. Jesus responded
to their appeal, and bade them go and show themselves to
their respective priests. Such was their confidence in Him
that they obeyed, and, as they went, they were cleansed.
They all held on their way save one ; and when he felt the
blessed change in his flesh, he hastened back, loudly glorify-
ing God the while ; and, when he reached Jesus, prostrated
himself before Him and poured out the gratitude of his heart.
Only one returned to give thanks, and he was a Samaritan.
** Were not the ten cleansed ? " Jesus exclaimed. " The nine
— where are they ? Were none found that returned to give
glory to God except this alien ? "
^ Lk. zrii. 11 : 9<& /jJvoi' 2a^ xal FoX., "through the borderland between S.
ud G."
THE JOURNEY THROUGH SAMARIA 321
The incident was painful to Jesus, exemplifying as it did
the characteristic ingratitude of the Jewish people. Yet it
had its more pleasing aspect It afforded a fresh evidence
that the despised Samaritans were open to His grace ; and it
was especially welcome at that crisis. He was just entering
Samaria with the design of travelling through it and preach-
ing as He went ; and the behaviour of that poor alien,
coupled with the remembrance of what had befallen at Sychar
at the commencement of His ministry, seemed a fair augury
of success.
Since it had its Pharisees, that border village was plainly Mocking
Jewish. Chagrined perhaps by His commendation of the p*'*™***
grateful Samaritan, they approached Jesus and asked Him :
" When Cometh the Kingdom of God ? " It was a mocking
question. They believed that the Messiah would appear in
pomp and triumph ; and, when Jesus came to their village,
a wanderer, almost a fugitive, with His little retinue of Jowly
followers, they laughed at His Messianic claim and asked
Him derisively when He purposed setting up His Kingdom.*
He answered with a terse and scornful epigram : " The
Kingdom of God cometh not with observation." Observation
was a technical term of astrologers and weather-prophets,* and
Jesus used it perhaps in allusion less to the skill of the Galileans iJk. xn ^•
in discerning the signs of the sky than to the rulers' reiterated ,j^ *^
demand for " a sign from Heaven." " The Kingdom of
God," He says, " cometh not with observation. You cannot
foretell its approach as in the crimson of the evening sky ye
read the promise of a fair morrow. Nor will men say,
* Behold, here ! ' or ' yonder ! ' for, behold, the Kingdom of
God is among you." • They were asking when the Kingdom
would come, all unconscious that it had come already. They
were in a like case with those delegates of the Sanhedrin to
whom John the Baptist had said : " In the midst of you john l •&
standeth One whom ye know not" *
1 Cf. Euth. Zig.
' Diod. S. i. 28 : va(M,T-fipij<n% rww Arrpw. Euth. Zig. nsdentands tutward
and visible pomp.
• (wrh% vftuw. The rendering " within you," i.t. in your hearts (</. P«. ciil. I s
rivra tA ^rrit fiav) is inadmissible here. The Kingdom of God was not in the
hearts of those Pharisees. C/. Euth. Zig.
* Dc. xvii. az-37 is part of the Lord's eschatological discouri* to the Twc1t«
(Mt. zxiTsMk. xiiimLk. xzi. 1-36).
322 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
Parable of The Pharisees had their answer, but their sneer would
righteous rankle in the hearts of the disciples. It chimed in with their
the'^Per^N own thoughts. They shared the prevailing opinion of the
ent Widow. Messianic Kingdom, and their Master's lowly estate was a
grievous stumbling-block to their faith. And He knew what
searching of heart was in store for them. When they saw
Him hanged on the Cross, it would seem to them as though
God had declared finally against them and refused to vindi-
cate their cause. And therefore Jesus addressed a parable to
them with the design of reassuring them in the face of God's
apparent neglect and encouraging them to persistent and
importunate faith. In a certain city, He said, there was a
judge, and a widow who had been wronged appealed to him
for redress. It was precisely the sort of case which should
have excited a judge's sympathy and enlisted his prompt
and energetic assistance ; ^ but this was an unrighteous judge.
There was no chance of his getting a bribe from a poor
widow, and he dismissed the appeal. She would, however,
take no denial, but kept coming to him and pressing her suit,
until at last, simply to be rid of her, he yielded to her im-
portunities. Jesus humorously represents him as soliloquising
thus : " Though I fear not God nor regard man,' yet, because
this widow is a nuisance to me,' I will redress her grievance,
lest she keep on coming and end by giving me a black eye." *
" And God — shall not He," Jesus asks, " give redress to
His elect that cry to Him day and night, though He keep
them waiting that sinners may have space for repentance ? " '
Who but Jesus durst have spoken thus, comparing God to a
wicked and heartless man ? ^ The exceeding graciousness of
* Maim. Sanhedr. i enumerates seven qualifications of a judge : "prudentia,
mansnetudo, pietas, odium mammonse, amor veritatis, atque ut sint dilecti ab
hominibos, et bonx famae." Lightfoot.
' A proverbial description of an unconscionable and unprincipled man. Sec
Wetstein.
» rapix^iv Klnrop, "bother." C/. Mt. xxvi. lo = Mk. xiv. 6; Gal. vL 17.
* ixuTiA^tu', sugillare, "hit under the eye" like a pugilist. Suid. : (nru)TM'
n inrb roiii 6ipda.\fioi>i reXidvilifiLaTa, 1j rd i^ avrdv i^ibvra, rva. Cf. I Cor. iz. 27.
' ItAKpoBuf/JU i-r' a^o»t, "is long-suffering where they are concerned." C/.
Rom. ix. 22.
* An evidence, according to Keim, of the " late date " of the parable. There are,
however, three similar parables in Lk. : (i) the Selfish Neighbour (xi. 5-8) ; (a)
the Shrewd Steward (xvL 1-9) ; (3) the Thankless Master (xvii. 7-10).
THE JOURNEY THROUGH SAMARIA ^2^
His doctrine of the Heavenly Father made it possible for Him
to speak thus without any risk of being misunderstood. And
in truth it is the very villainy of the judge that lends the
argument its irresistible force. It is an argument a fortiori,
like that other : " If ye, being evil, know how to give good Mt. Wi. u
gifts unto your children, how much more shall your Heavenly ^}f^ "*
Father give good things to them that ask Him?" If that
unrighteous judge, out of sheer selfishness, yielded to the
suppliant's importunities and granted her desire, how much
more will God, in the fulness of His love and the tender-
ness of His sympathy, give ear to His people's prayers and
at length, in His own good time, bring them out of their
distresses ?
Wherever He went, Jesus proclaimed the good news of Parabieoi
His Kingdom, nor would He forbear during His brief sojourn ^^'^ji,
in that border village. It was there apparently that He Tax-
spoke His memorable parable of the Pharisee and the Tax- **
gather. It was a Jewish village, and their proximity to
Samaria would foster a spirit of Pharisaism in its people.
" They had confidence in themselves that they were righteous
and set the rest of men at naught " ; and the aim of the Lord's
parable was to humble their pride and show them what was
their standing in God's sight. The Feast of Tabernacles was
nigh, and troops of pilgrims were on their way to Jerusalem ;
and Jesus described two men going up to the Temple to pray.
A very striking contrast they presented. One was a Pharisee,
and it was nothing strange that he should repair to the sacred
shrine ; but the other was a tax-gatherer, and it was a great
marvel that he should go thither and that he should pray.
With elaborate ostentation the holy man took his stand in
the posture of devotion. He struck an attitude ^ and prayed :
" O God, I thank Thee that I am not as the rest of men, ex-
tortioners, unrighteous, adulterers, or even as this tax-gatherer.
I fast twice in the week, I tithe all that I get" * This would
not indeed be the language of his lips. Very seemly and
edifying would be the prayer which he uttered in the ears of the
* rraOeis as distinguished from imis (v. 13) implies deliberatt posturt, "having
struck an attitude." Cf. Lk. xix. 8. Standing'at prayer : p. 103.
' Pir. Ab. ii. 13: "Quando oras, noli in precibus bona tua enamerare wd (ac
preces miscricordianim et pro gratia impetranda coram Deo."
324 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
admiring bystanders ; but, whatever his h*ps may have spoken,
that was the thought of his heart "He prayed thus to him-
self." Nor were his professions unjustified. It was char-
acteristic of the Pharisees that they strove to outdo the rest
of men in " works of righteousness." Fasts were appointed
for the Congregation when any occasion arose calling for
humiliation before God — war, pestilence, locusts, blight,
scarcity, drought, and the like ; ^ but the stricter sort of
Pharisees fasted every Monday and Thursday.* The Law
Lev. xTvii. required the tithing of the produce of lands and herds ; but the
Num.^iii! Pharisees went beyond the legal requirement and tithed all
"> '»4. their income, with ludicrous scrupulosity bringing even their
kitchen herbs under levy.' All that this Pharisee professed
was true, and the fault of his prayer was that it breathed
a spirit of self-righteousness. And therewith went a spirit of
cruel contempt for others. He alone was righteous, and all
his fellow-mortals were included under one sweeping con-
demnation. " Descend," apostrophises St Chrysostom,*
" from thine insolent words. Say even that ' some men ' and
not * the rest of men ' are extortioners, unrighteous, adulterers.
Are all extortioners except thee, O Pharisee? Are all un-
righteous, and thou alone righteous ? Are all adulterers, and
hast thou alone achieved chastity ? "
Meanwhile the tax-gatherer was standing at a distance, the
very image of contrition. The Pharisee had observed him
and utilised his presence as a background to his own re-
splendent righteousness, recking nothing of the struggle which
was going on within that troubled breast. The sinner " stood,"
but not like the Pharisee with elaborate and ostentatious pose.
His eyes were downcast So indeed were the Pharisee's, for
such was the Jewish manner in prayer ; * but it was a sense
of guilt that bowed the sinner's head. His iniquities had taken
hold upon him, so that he was not able to look up. He
durst not lift his eyes to Heaven lest, says St Chrysostom,
" the very stars should accuse him, and he should see his
sentence written across the sky. His prayer was a sob of
* Lightfoot. ' Cy: P- 104. * Cy. p. 413.
* Serm. in Puhl. et Phar.
* Maim, in Tephill. 5: "Orans velct caput suum et spectet deorsum." Q'.
ghtfoot.
THE JOURNEY THROUGH SAMARIA 325
contrition, a cry for mercy : " O God, be merciful to me the
sinner ! " Even as the Pharisee deemed that he alone was
righteous, so it seemed to the tax-gatherer that there was no
sinner on the earth that could be compared with himself.
" I tell you," says Jesus, " this man went down justified to
his house rather than the other." Of course it was not his
sin but his penitence that commended him to God. It is not
said that he left the Temple rejoicing in the mercy which had
been vouchsafed to him. Perhaps he would go home with
drooping head and continue sorrowing for many a day.
Nevertheless in that hour when he confessed his sin and cried
for mercy, he was accepted of God, and in due time he would
attain to the glad assurance of salvation. Some other day he
would go up to the Temple with light step and lighter heart,
and declare what God had done for his soul. " Verily God
hath heard me ; He hath attended to the voice of my prayer.
Blessed be God, which hath not turned away my prayer, nor
His mercy from me."
From the border-land Jesus struck into Samaria, and. Rejection
following the preconcerted route, reached a Samaritan village.^ sLi Ji-
lt had already been visited by two of His seventy forerunners, **^
and He expected as the result of their ministry to find a
welcome for Himself and His message. His expectation,
however, was disappointed. The inhabitants, apprised of His
approach, were up in arms against Him and refused Him
admission, " because," explains the Evangelist, " His face was
in the direction of Jerusalem." It is evident that their un-
friendliness was more than the habitual antagonism betwixt
Jew and Samaritan, and a reasonable explanation lies to hand.
When the Galileans went up to the Holy City at the festal
seasons, they travelled through Samaria, and their passage
was resented by the populace, and frequently occasioned
hostile demonstrations.* The caravans of pilgrims to the
Feast of Tabernacles had lately passed that way ; and it is no
* Lk. ix. 53-6 ; x. 17-20 ; 25-42 shonld follow xviii. 14. Cf. Introd. f la
Ix. 51-2 an anticipation of the departure from Galilee (xiiL 22) and the tending of
the Seventy two by two before His face (x, i). According to Euth. Zig. the
''messengers" in ix. 52 were James and John who, as Jesus and Hit company
approached the town, were sent on in advance to procure a lodging (irM/ii««*)
and returned indignant in iriftM^diyros rci Stdo^^rdXev.
• Jos. Ant. XX. 6 ; De Btll./ud. ii. 12. §§ 3-7.
326 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
wonder that, when Jesus and His disciples arrived, they wers
ill received. They were Galileans, and their faces were in
the direction of Jerusalem. The disciples were indignant,
especially James and John, the fiery-spirited Sons of Thunder,
a Kings L " Lord," they cried, recalling the ancient story of Elijah,^ " wilt
' Thou that we bid fire descend from Heaven and consume
them ? " Jesus turned upon them sharply. " Ye know not,"
He said, " what manner of spirit ye are of. For the Son of
Man came not to destroy men's lives but to save them." * And
they went to another village.
Return The Lord's rejection by the people of that town was only
Seventy! ^ foretaste of what awaited Him. A wave of anti-Jewish
sentiment was sweeping over Samaria, and He found no
entrance for His word. He was compelled to abandon His
project of a mission in Samaria and hasten on His way toward
Judaea.' Somewhere in the course of His journey He met
the Seventy, who had accomplished their mission and were
returning in a body to tell Him how they had fared. Since
they had preceded the pilgrim travellers through Samaria, they
had encountered no hostility ; and, when they met Jesus, they
were brimming over with wonder and exultation. " Lord,"
they cried, " even the daemons submit to us at the mention
of Thy name ! " Their speech was little pleasing to Jesus.
Did it not evince a spirit of faithlessness? He had sent them
forth to do mighty works in His name, and their wonderment
at their achievements proved how ill they had realised what
their commission meant They were amazed that they had
achieved so much because they had expected so little. And
in truth their achievements were but insignificant. Jesus had
• dn Kal 'HXe£ai iiro'nj<rey, an interpretative gloss.
• Kal eliTfv oiK otSare toIov (v.L olov) rveifiardi irre i/iett omitted by best MSS.,
Tisch., W. IL, supported by D, Chrysost. (/« Matth. xxx, Ivii) ; probably genuine
and omitted, as Wetstein suggests, because it was employed as a proof-text of the
Marcionite heresy that the O.T. was the work of the Demiurgus. Cf. Tert. Adv.
Marc. iv. § 23. h yiip vlbt rov ivdp. oiiK fi\B., r.r.X., very weakly attested, but a
genuine logion of Jesus and very suitable here. The Vulg. has both clauses.
• On the ground of Mt. xix. I and Mk. x. i (where read : " cometh into the
borders of Judsea and beyond Jordan ") Keim conceives that Jesus avoided Samaria
and, crossing the Jordan in the north (Lk. xvii. 11), travelled by the alternative route
through Peraea, entering Judtea from the eastern side of Jordan. But between
Herjjptf ixb -nji PaXiXoiat and 1j\$er elt tA 6f>ia rtjt 'lovSaUas xipcm t»v 'Io^5di'ov(Mt.
xix. l) come (l) the journey through Samaria (Lk.)> (*) ^e visit to Jerusalem (John
Tii. 10 — X. 39), (3) the retreat to Bethany beyond Jordan (John x. 40-2).
THE JOURNEY THROUGH SAMARIA 327
anticipated greater things. "I had a vision," He says, " of c/, u. ^t.
Satan fallen as lightning from Heaven.* Behold, I have given **•
you authority to trample upon serpents and scorpions and on cf. ?%. kL
all the power of the Enemy,' and nothing shall in any wise **■
hurt you." Though armed with such authority, they had yet
expected little and achieved little. Their exultation revealed also
a disposition to spiritual pride, and Jesus reminded them that
they had a greater reason for rejoicing. " Ye have indeed been cf. Exod.
endowed with wondrous powers ; nevertheless in this rejoice mJII'^jJ*''*
not, that the spirits submit to you, but rejoice that your names .»6; PhiL
have been enrolled in Heaven." To have his name inscribed He^', lU.
in God's Book of Life is the proudest dignity whereto a mortal |[J "J***"
can attain, and to realise it is the surest safe-guard against
pride and the strongest incentive to devoted service.
When He had passed the southern frontier of Samaria a lawyo't
and entered Judaea, Jesus arrived at a town, perhaps Jericho.' ^^^^i!^
Apparently He repaired to the Synagogue* and preached,
and, when He had finished His discourse, one of His hearers,
according to the custom of the Synagogue, rose and addressed
a question to Him. The man was a Lawyer, one whose
business it was to expound and interpret the Sacred Law and
determine its meaning. He was versed in subtle dialectic ;
and he rose, not to seek enlightenment, but to puzzle Jesus, put
Him to confusion before the assemblage, and perhaps betray
Him into some unorthodox pronouncement which might serve
as a ground of accusation.^ It was a foretaste of the manner
of conflict which Jesus must thenceforth maintain against the
astute intellects of Judaea, and which reached its height in that
memorable series of dialectic encounters during the Passion
* A bold fignre descriptive of the triumph which Jesus had expected to follow the
preaching of the Seventy. It is simply an importation of alien ideas t>) discoTer
special allusions in this saying : (l) Satan's fall when he sinned and was cast do wo
from Heaven : Orig. (/« Matth. xv. § 27 ; /« Ma//h. Comm. Ser. f 49), Theophyl.
(2) His overthrow by the Incarnation : Greg. Naz., Euth. Zig. (3) His defeat by
Christ at the Temptation : Lange. There was an early opinion that it*iifx>vp is
plur. : "they, i.e. the dsemons, beheld." Erasm. : "in quodam Latino codice
repperi videbant." The idea would then be : "No marvel the dsemons mbinit
to you, since their chief has fallen."
" Cf. Wetstein.
» He is next found at Bethany which lay on the route between Jericho and
Jerusalem.
* His hearers were seated (r. 25). • Cf, Euth. Zig.
328 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
Week. It would seem that He had been discoursing of
Eternal Life, and the Lawyer asked : "' Teacher, what shall I
The Lord's do to inherit ' Eternal Life ' ? " Jesus perceived his crafty
* intent, and, with that amazing resourcefulness which never
failed Him in sudden emergencies. He declined to commit
Himself and made His assailant answer his own question,
thus assuming at the outset the critic's vantage-ground.
" What stands written in the Law ? " He asked. " How
readest thou ? " The answer came glibly and confidently :
" Thou shalt love the Lord thy God from thy whole heart and
with thy whole soul and with thy whole strength and with thy
whole mind, and thy neighbour as thyself." It was a felicitous
combination of two Mosaic precepts,^ and would seem to have
c/.M\i. been the approved summary of religious duty in the Jewish
»"• 32-3- schools of the period. The Lawyer quoted it with complete
assurance and with all the greater alacrity that it promised, as
he foresaw, to furnish an opportunity for disputation. It was
agreed among the Rabbis that " neighbour " meant a fellow-
Jew, but he had a shrewd suspicion that Jesus would give the
term a wider comprehension. Jesus approved the answer.
" This do," He said, " and thou shalt live." The Lawyer
clutched at his opportunity. " And who," he asked, " is my
neighbour ? "
Parable of It was a clever ruse, but Jesus proved more than a match
Samarium. ^^^ ^^s wily antagonist. He refused to be entrapped into a
barren controversy and answered with a parable. He told
how a traveller, going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, was
set upon by the brigands who infested that precipitous road
of evil name, the Ascent of Blood.' They plundered him,
maltreated him, and left him half dead. The twenty-four
courses of the Jewish priesthood ministered by turns in the
Temple, and, since half the officiating course lodged in the
City of Palm-trees where food and water were abundant,' there
were continually priests passing to and fro betwixt Jerusalem
* Deut. tL 5 ; Ley. xiz. l8. ir 8X17 r^ duicoff vw is an addition to the verse as
U stands in the Hebrew text, due perhaps to the LXX rendering of ?|33f)"^33,
t^ Sktft rijt tuwoias wmi.
" <^ P- 34* J<r- on Jer. UL 2: "Arabas, quse gens latrociniis dedita usque
hodie incursat terminos Palsestinse et descendcntibns de Hierusalem in Hiericho
obtidet vias."
■ Lishtfoot.
THE JOURNEY THROUGH SAMARIA 329
and Jericho. As the plundered traveller lay weltering in
blood, a priest came down the road and spied him, but he
passed by on the other side. Next came a Levite, and he
also passed by on the other side. Presently there came a
Samaritan, jogging on his ass to Jerusalem, a merchant
probably and no stranger on that road.* He spied the un-
fortunate man and made haste to succour him. He dressed
his wounds, according to the medical prescription of the day,
with oil and wine, and bound them up.' Then he set the
traveller on his beast and conveyed him to an inn and tended
him there. He rose betimes in the morning ' to push forward
on his journey, and at the door of the inn gave the host two
denarii and charged him to tend the invalid. A denarius was
a day's wage for a labouring man, and the two would probably Mt. ««.
suffice till the traveller was fit for the road again ; but it
was possible that more might be needed, and the Samaritan
bade the innkeeper spare no expense. " Whatever more
thou spendest, I will repay thee on my way back."
" Now," says Jesus, " which of these three seemeth to thee
to have proved ' neighbour ' to the man that fell in with the
brigands ? " There was but one answer possible. The Lawyer
should have answered " The Samaritan," but he could not
bring himself to utter the hated word and reluctantly faltered
out : " The one that took pity on him." " Go thy way," said
Jesus ; " do thou also likewise." His triumph was complete.
He had declined to be entangled in a bootless controversy,
and with admirable dexterity had compelled His reluctant
antagonist to own himself in the wrong.
^ Cf. V. 35 : known to the innkeeper, and his credit good.
* Colum. vii. 5. § i8 : " Fracta pecudum non aliter quam hominnm cnini mat-
antur involuta lanis oleo atque vino insuccatis et mox circumdatis feralis coiligaU."
See Wetstcin.
* ticX -rijr oi(/H«i', •• towards the morrow."
CHAPTER XXXVII
Lk. X. 3»-
43; John
vii. 11-52
(Mt. xi.
28-30);
viii. 12-X.
39 ; Mt.
xxiii. 37-9
= Lk. xiii.
34-S; Mt.
XL 25-73
Lk. X. 21-3.
MINISTRY IN JERUSALEM
•* Then is it nothing to thee ? Open, sec
Who stands to plead with thee.
Open, lest I should pass thee by, and thoa
One day entreat My Face
And howl for grace,
And I be deaf as thou art now.
Open to Me."— Christina G. Rossettu
At When Jesus left Galilee, He had no thought of being present
thany. ^^ ^j^^ Feast of Tabernacles. He meant to travel slowly
through the land, preaching as He went, and arrive at
Jerusalem in time for the Feast of the Passover. But it had
been otherwise ordained in the providence of God, and Jesus,
walking ever in the days of His flesh by faith and not by
sight and taking each step in obedience to the indication of
the Father's will, acquiesced in the dispensation ; and, arriving
in Judaea while the Feast of Tabernacles was in progress,
repaired to the Holy City. Travelling up the Ascent of
Blood, He reached Bethany, a village within two miles of
Jerusalem just over the brow of Mount Olivet. There dwelt
Lazarus and his sisters, Martha and Mary, and Jesus broke
His journey in order to visit them. His kindness in
rescuing Mary from her life of shame in the northern city of
Magdala and restoring her, forgiven and cleansed, to her
home, had won Him their gratitude, and He received a glad
welcome.
The joy of The Feast of Tabernacles was the most joyous of all the
the Feast. Jewish festivals. " He who has not seen its joy," said the
Rabbis,* " knows not what joy is." It commemorated in the
Lev. xxiii. first instance the Exodus from Egypt, and in remembrance of
Neh.^ mi! the tents wherein their fathers had dwelt during their wander-
^s- ings in the wilderness, the people built them booths of the
branches of thick trees intertwined with boughs of olive and
» Tosafh, Succ. 4. 2.
MINISTRY IN JERUSALEM 331
myrtle. At tbo same time it waa the Coast of harvest, and Dwl ni
celebrated th« ingathering of the fruits of field and vineyard. |^ am.
The citizens built their booths on the flat roofs or in the '^
courtyards of their houses, and the strangers built theirs in
the streets or round the city walls. And, sitting under those
pleasant bowers, they kept holiday for a livelong week.
It was a season of feasting and hospitality. They " ate the Neh. tUL
fat and drank the sweet, and sent portions unto them for *"'''
whom nothing was prepared, and made great mirth."
It was at this joyous season that Jesus came to Bethany. The good
Martha, the mistress of the house, was busy making ready the " P**^**^**
festal cheer, and His arrival would increase her anxiety that
nothing might be lacking to the entertainment. Mary, on
the contrary, oblivious of all else, seated herself at Jesus' feet, c/. Lt u.
the disciple's posture, beholding His dear face and drinking Jjoi. j.*^
in His discourse. It angered the busy housewife, "distracted
about much service," to see her sitting thus. Reverence for
the Master restrained her a while, but at length she could
contain herself no longer and broke in : ^ " Lord, dost Thou not
care that my sister left me alone to serve ? Tell her then
that she lend me a helping hand." " Martha, Martha," He
replied, "thou art anxious and bustled about many things,
but a few are all we need." It was a gentle remonstrance
against the sumptuousness of the repast which His hostess
was preparing. Far simpler fare would have sufficed. What
need of all those viands ? "A few things are all we need, or
rather," He adds, passing suddenly, after His wont," from the
earthly to the heavenly, " one thing ; • for it is the good
' portion ' that Mary chose, one which shall not be taken away
from her." At that joyous season they were all feasting and
sending " portions," but Mary had no thought for the meat
that perisheth. She had chosen a better " portion " and w^s
feasting her soul on heavenly manna.*
^ ixuTToUra of sudden iHttrvention. Cf. Lk. ii. 9 ; xx. I.
' Cf. Mt. viii. 22aLk. ix. 60 : ftKpout, tUad first spiritu&llj, »hea phjsically.
Mt. xvi. 25-6 = Mk. viiL 35-7 : ypvxh, first H/e, then soul.
» m-yup ii i<mp XP*^ *! ''^t ^^^f W. il. Simplified to Mt i4 irrtw xftfm
AC, T. R. , Tisch., R.V., and still further, in several ancient •uthoritiet, to M4^#«,
M(i/>0a, BopvpdtV' MoptAy rin- iy. /ttp. k.t.X.
* titpU, a poilion of food ; ef. Gen. xliii. 34. Specially associated with the F«Mt
of TabernaclM 1 tf. Neh. viii. lo(LXX): AxtartCKaTt -"tlSca rtit ftii IxovfUf.
*
332 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
Expect- From Bethany Jesus took His way to Jerusalem. It was
jerus^em. a bold thing to do. On the occasion of His last visit to the
Holy City He had incensed the rulers by His miracle at the
Pool of Bethesda which they deemed a violation of the
John V. i8. Sabbath ; and they had sought to kill Him. Nor had their
hostility abated in the interval ; rather had it grown more
John vU. I. bitter. For eighteen months He had kept away from Jeru-
salem, shunning, until His time should come, their murderous
grasp. It had been a disappointment to rulers and people
alike when feast after feast passed by and He never appeared ;
and, as the worshippers gathered to the Feast of Tabernacles,
the hope of seeing Him revived. It may be that some of the
northern pilgrims had observed Him with " His face in the
direction of Jerusalem " and brought word that He was on
the way. Expectation passed into impatience when the
feast began and He did not arrive. " Where is that fellow ? "
said the rulers,^ disdaining to utter His name and concealing
their hatred under a mask of contempt.* And the people,
though they durst not talk freely about one who was in such
ill favour with the rulers, were all agog with curiosity and
discussed the question of the hour in animated whispers.
" He is a good man," said some. " No," said others ; " he
leadeth the multitude astray."
His arrival At length, on the fourth day of the Feast' when the hope
of seeing Him must have well-nigh been abandoned, He
appeared and began to teach in the outer court of the Temple.
His discourse produced a profound impression. The rulers
were astonished. Never had they heard such teaching, and
their wonder was how one who had never sat at the feet of the
Rabbis in the House of the Midrash,* could possess such
His self- wisdom. Jesus replied to their questioning that His teaching
tion. was not His own but God's. And, He said, " if any one
willeth to do His will, he will discover in regard to the
teaching whether it be of God or whether I speak from
» "The Jews": cf. p. 62.
■ iKtifos is contemptuous. Cf. John ix. 12, 28. Chrysost. In Joan, xlviii : vri
roi' ToXXov ftlcom koX dvexOelai oiSi ivofuiarl airrhy xaXeiv e'^ovXorro.
' John vii. 14. There were properly seven feast-days. According to Wetstein
"the middle of the Feast" included sdl the days between the first and the
last.
* Cf. p. 21.
MINISTRY IN JERUSALEM 333
Myself." ^ Here lay the secret of their unbelief Because they
were not faithful to the lesser truth which they already knew,
they could not comprehend the greater truth which Jesus
revealed. " Did not Moses give you the Law ? and none of
you keepeth the Law. Why are ye seeking to kill Me ? "
The multitude, whereof only a few were citizens of Jerusalem
and knew the designs of the rulers, were surprised and cried
out after the coarse manner of their kind : " Thou hast a
daemon. Who is seeking to kill thee ? " Jesus let the inter-
ruption pass and elaborated His indictment of the rulers.
He accused them of unreasonable inconsistency. They were
wroth with Him for healing a man on the Sabbath Day, never
considering that they regularly committed a breach of the
Sabbath-law quite as flagrant. The Law directed that a child
should be circumcised on the eighth day, and, when the
eighth day chanced to be a Sabbath, they had no scruple in
circumcising him despite the command that they should do
no work on the Sabbath Day. It was a conflict of ordinances.
And surely healing was more important than circumcision. " If
a man receiveth circumcision on a Sabbath, that the Law of
Moses may not be broken, are ye wroth with Me because I made
a man every whit whole on a Sabbath ? " * There was indeed
no written ordinance for healing as for circumcising, but there
was the unwritten yet imperative requirement of humanity.
Very keen was the discussion which ensued among the Opinions <rf
multitude. Here is a group of the citizens of Jerusalem, tude.
They know the fell purpose of the rulers, and they marvel
that it is not being put into execution. "Is not this," says one,
" he whom they are seeking to kill ? And, see, he is speaking
boldly, and they are saying nothing to him. Can it really be
that the rulers have recognised that this is the Messiah ? "
" Nay," says another, scouting the idea, " we know this man
whence he is ; but the Messiah — when He cometh, no one
recogniseth whence He is." Such was the current idea.
* Cf. Aug. In Joan. Ev. Tract, xlviii. § I : " Fides enim meritum est, intellectus
praemium." Hamerton, Intell. Life, p. 303 : " Hoogstraten, who w»s a pupil of
Rembrandt, asked him many questions, which the great master answered thus : —
• Try to put well in practice what you already know ; in so doing you will, in good
time, discover the hidden things which you now inquire about.' "
• This very argument was used later by R. Eleasar ben Aariab («, A.D. 100-30).
Cf. WeUtein on Mt. xil. la
2 A
334 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
c>: Mt. ii. It was indeed allowed that, according to the Scripture, the
^ ■ Messiah would be born at Bethlehem ; but, said the Rabbis,
even as the first Redeemer, Moses, was concealed in the
wilderness of Midian, so would the second Redeemer be
revealed and caught away and then reappear.^ And His re-
appearance would be sudden and unexpected. " Three things,"
it was said, " come unawares : the Messiah, a treasure-trove,
and a scorpion." ^ Apprised of their disputing, Jesus cried :
" Ye both know Me and know whence I am 1 And on My
own errand I have not come, but He that sent Me is true,
whom ye do not know. I know Him, because from Him I am
and He it is that commissioned Me." Thus reasoned those
citizens of Jerusalem, versed in the theology of their day ; but
they were only a small proportion of the multitude which
thronged the Temple-court during the festal season ; and there
were many who, unbiassed by theoretical prejudice, considered
the Lord's claims with open minds and believed on Him.
" The Messiah," they reasoned, " when He cometh, will He do
more signs than this man hath done ? "
Embar- It was not indeed because they had been persuaded of
"^thera^ers. ^^^ Messiahship that the rulers stayed their hands. They
would fain have apprehended Him and wreaked their ven-
geance upon Him forthwith ; but they durst not The multi-
tude were on His side. Though they did not all acknowledge
His Messiahship, they were all profoundly impressed. He was
c/. Acts, the hero of the hour. The rulers knew the excitability of the
^MtTsfv' ^^^t ^^^ tl^® ^^^^ of provoking a tumult restrained them.
4-5= Mk. They perceived that so long as He retained the popular affec-
=Lk, tion. He was impregnable, and from that hour they made it
XXII. 2. their endeavour to discredit Him in the eyes of the multitude.
If only they could effect that, they would have Him at their
mercy and might do with Him what they listed.' It ex-
asperated them when so many confessed their faith in Him in
the Temple-court. The situation was intolerable, and they
recognised that they must take action. On the initiative of
the Pharisees, who were ever the dominant party in the national
council,* they convened a meeting of the Sanhedrin and, after
* Lightfoot and Wetstein. " Bai. Sankedr. 97, I.
' John ignores the immediate canse of the Lord's immunity and refers it to the
purpose of God (vii. 30). * Cf. p. 42.
MINISTRY IN JERUSALEM 335
due deliberation, instructed the officers of the court to watch
for an opportunity and arrest Jesus and bring Him before
them. Thus far, they reckoned, could they go without
exciting the wrath of the populace.
Preaching still in the Temple-court, Jesus appealed to the a call to
waverers. He warned them that the time was short ** For
a little while longer am I with you and I go away to Him
that sent Me. Ye shall seek Me and shall not find Me, and
where I am ye cannot come." It was a call to immediate
decision, but, when it came to the ears of the rulers, it pro-
voked them at once to wonder and to mockery. What could
He mean ? Plainly, they thought in their unspiritual fashion,
that He was about to quit the land of Israel and go where they
would never see or hear Him more. But whither would He
go ? It did not occur to them that He might betake Him-
self to the Gentiles : that were too monstrous. But there was "Will He
another course which they conceived possible. All over the Disj^r-
world, chiefly in Babylonia, Egypt, Syria, Asia Minor, Greece, «°°'"
and Italy, there were colonies of Jews who had settled in
those heathen lands and, with the commercial aptitude of their
race, had usually attained to wealth and influence. They
clung tenaciously to their ancestral faith and came up to
Jerusalem at the great festivals to worship in the Temple ;
yet it was impossible for them to remain unaffected by the
atmosphere of the lands where they dwelt They learned the
language of their neighbours and all unconsciously imbibed
their ideas and acquired their manners. Those Jews of the
Dispersion were regarded with no great kindness by the proud
Judfeans ; and, when the rulers heard that dark saying of
Jesus, they wondered if He meant to go to the Dispersion cy: 1 pet.
among the Gentiles and teach the Gentiles. " What is this |- ' : J*- "•
word which he spoke : ' Ye shall seek me and shall not find
me, and where I am ye cannot come ' ? "
The Feast of Tabernacles lasted a week, but the eighth The Great
day also had its solemnities, albeit on a lesser scale. On the P^°^ ^®
first day thirteen bullocks were offered and one fewer each Num. xxix.
succeeding day until the seventh — seventy in all. On the "'^'^
eighth only one bullock was offered. On each of the seven
days two rams and fourteen lambs were offered ; on the eighth
one ram and seven lambs. The eighth day was properly
336 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
distinct from the Feast,^ nevertheless it was popularly accounted
not only one of the feast-days but the most important of all.
It was " the great day of the Feast," and its seeming inferiority
was construed by a quaint Rabbinical parable as a proof of
its superiority. The seventy bullocks were offered for the
seventy nations of the world, the eighth day's bullock was
Israel's offering for herself; and it was, said the Rabbis, as
though a king made a seven days' feast and bade thereto all
the people of the city, and on the eighth day said to his
friend : " We have now done our duty by the people of the
city ; let us now return, thou and I, to whatever may be had,
though it be but a single pound of flesh or fish or herbs." '
Prayer for The Feast of Tabemacles was the Jewish Harvest Home,
^*raSi. and the worshippers gave thanks for the ingathering of the
fruits. At sunrise on the sixth day a priest, bearing a golden
pitcher and attended by a joyous company, went down to the
Pool of Siloam and filled the pitcher, returning just as the
sacrifice was conveyed to the altar, and amid a blare of
trumpets entering the Temple by the Water Gate, which
hence derived its name. On the eastern side of the altar
stood a silver basin into which the wine-offering was poured ;
and on the western side another silver basin, and into it was
poured the water from the pitcher. The ceremony was a
thankful remembrance of the showers wherewith Grod had
refreshed and fertilised the earth. Nor did the worshippers
merely give thanks for the harvest which had been gathered
in. They sought also a blessing on the husbandry of the
ensuing year. During the seven days of the feast they prayed
for dew, on the eighth they prayed for rain.'
•• Rivers On the eighth day, while they prayed for that " gift of
water.^ God " SO precious in the arid East, Jesus stood and cried aloud :
Is. iv. I. " If any thirst, let him come unto Me and drink. He that
% ^•^ believeth in Me, as the Scripture hath said, rivers out of his
xxxu. 3 ; ^ '
xiiv. 3; heart* shall flow, rivers of living water." It was not a quota-
Ezdc xb^v! tion but an echo of Scripture, and it was like the word which
^ He had spoken to the Samaritan woman at Jacob's Well :
John iv. « Whosoever drinketh of the water which I shall give him
14.
' Smcc. 48. I : " Dies octavns est festum per seipsum."
• ligbtfoot on John tiL 37. * Wetstein on John vii. 37.
* <K rijn KoOdus, 4X e0rdt. Cf. the N.T. use of rrXctTx*^ visctra.
MINISTRY IN JERUSALEM 337
shall never thirst ; but the water which I shall give him, will
become within him a well of water springing up into life
eternal." Nothing else that He said is recorded by the
Evangelist ; but He must have said much more, or the multi-
tude would hardly have been moved as they were. He
would discourse of the thirst of the soul and the living water
which alone can assauge it ; and perchance it was here that
He uttered that gracious invitation which St Matthew has
preserved in an alien setting : " Come unto Me, all ye that Mt. xL 28-
labour and are heavy laden, and I will refresh you.^ Take ^cius. u.
My yoke upon you and learn from Me, because meek am I "3. 26-7.
and lowly in heart; and ye shall find refreshment for your
souls. For My yoke is kindly ^ and My burden light" It
is the image of a weary beast, thirsty and galled ; and the
promise is threefold : a refreshing draught of the living water,
a kindly yoke, and a light burden. " The yoke of the Law "
is a phrase which was much on the lips of the Rabbis,^ and
truly they had made the Law naught else than a galling yoke. cf. Mt
Observe the blessing which Jesus bestows. He does '^'^^^^'^\
remove a disciple's burden ; for a burden is appointed to
every man in the wise providence of God. But He gives the
disciple a new burden and a new yoke — His own burden and
His own yoke. He shares both with His disciple, and it is a
burden which does not tire and a yoke which does not chafe.
The twain are yoke-fellows. The self-same yoke is on their
necks, one end on the neck of Jesus and the other on the
disciple's, and they drag the self-same burden side by side,
partners in labour and in reward.
If it was thus indeed that He spoke on that great day of Diverse
the Feast, it is no marvel that the hearts of His hearers were °^e°miUti-°*
stirred. Often had such discourse been heard in Galilee, but tude.
most of the multitude that thronged the Temple-court on that
memorable morning, had come from other parts and had
never heard aught like this. They were filled with wonder-
ment Some surmised that He was the prophet who should
arise and prepare the way for the Messiah. Others said that
* dyaxai^o-w, Vulg. reficiam, Erasm. rtfocillabo, Wycl. refresche. Cf. I Cor. xvu
18; 2 Cor. Yii. 13; Philem. 7, 20; ML xii. 43 = Lk. xi. 24.
* xpv<rr6s. Cf. Lk. tL 35 ; Eph. iv. 32 ; Tit. iii. 4 ; i Cor. xiii. 4.
* Lightfoot; Wetstein ; Taylor, Say. of Fath. iii. 8.
338 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
He was the Messiah Himself. " Nay," objected others, " doth
the Messiah come out of Galilee ? Did not the Scripture say
that of the seed of David and from Bethlehem, the village
where David was, the Messiah cometh ? " They knew the
Lord only as Jesus of Nazareth, and, thus ignorantly object-
ing, they unwittingly bore witness to Him.^
AfatHe It seemed to the Lord's adversaries that this division
Sr&mh^*^^ opinion offered a favourable opportunity for effecting His
drin. arrcst. The officers of the Sanhedrin were present, yet they
let the opportunity slip, not because they feared a tumult but
because they had been impressed by the Lord's discourse.
They betook themselves to the Hall of Hewn Stone, and the
expectant councillors demanded why they had not brought Him.
" Never," was the reply, " did a man so speak." The Pharisees,
ever foremost in the Sanhedrin, retorted with an angry sneer :
" Have ye also been led astray ? Did any of the rulers
believe in him or any of the Pharisees ? But this multitude
that doth not understand the Law — accursed are they." It
was a bitter sneer, breathing the Pheirisaic spirit of contempt
for the common folk, " the people of the land," as they were
styled.* What marvel that Jesus had been moved with com-
passion when He saw the multitude like shepherdless sheep,
nay, worse than shepherdless in that they had such shepherds
as these ?
Feeble pro- Only a Single voice was raised on the Lord's behalf.
dennL^"^° There was a Pharisee who, all unknown, believed in Him —
Nicodemus, who had visited Him under cover of night at the
outset of His ministry as the Sanhedrin's delegate. The
memory of that interview had haunted him ever since, and he
was a disciple at heart ; but he feared to confess his faith,
knowing what a storm of wrath and obloquy would burst
upon him. He was present at that meeting of the Sanhedrin
and ventured upon a feeble protest He merely raised a
point of order, asking whether it were legal to condemn a
man unheard. Did his colleagues suspect his secret inclina-
tion ? They turned upon him with withering scorn. " Art
* This is the irony of the passage, and it is surprising that critics like Keim
should miss it and find here an evidence of the onhistoricity of the birth at
Bethlehem.
' pKH Dp. Cf. Taylor, Stsy. 0/ Fath. ii. 6.
MINISTRY IN JERUSALEM 339
thou also of Galilee ? " they sneered. " Search, and see that
out of Galilee a prophet ariseth not " ; overlooking in their
blinded prejudice the many names which Galilee had contri-
buted to the prophetic roll.^ The taunt silenced Nicodemus,
and never again was his timorous voice raised in the Sanhedrin
on the Lord's behalf.
When the Feast was over, the throng of pilgrims took The Feast
their departure, but Jesus remained. The providence of God remamrat^
had brought Him, contrary to His own purpose, to Jerusalem, J«f"^em.
and He would minister there a while and appeal to His
enemies ere they embrued their hands in His blood. The
men of Jerusalem were widely different from the Galileans.
Their city was the centre of Jewish life and religion, and they
prided themselves upon their pre-eminence. And this proved
their undoing, They looked askance at Jesus at once because
He was a Galilean and because He had never sate at the feet John vji.
of the Rabbis. They were versed in Rabbinical lore ; and ^^'
ever and anon, as He taught, they would raise some theological
objection and reject His doctrine because it did not square
with their theory. Compassed by the goodwill of the
populace, the Lord was immune from violence, yet at every
turn He was watched and harassed by His malignant
adversaries.
The scene of the first encounter was the Temple Treasury. Contro-
In the Women's Court, so named not because the women xT^llry. '
alone might enter it but because they were suffered to proceed
no further, stood thirteen boxes, from their shape called
Trumpets, whereinto the worshippers cast their offerings.*
The place was much frequented, and it would seem to have c/. Mk.
been a favourite resort of Jesus. As H« taught there one lL'^xxL i.
day, He said : " I am the Light of the world. He that
followeth Me shall not walk in the darkness but will have the
light of life." It may be that there is here an allusion to the
scene which was enacted on the last day of the Feast of
Tabernacles, when at the close of evening the golden candel-
abra in the Women's Court were lighted and the worshippers
danced before them with blazing torches in their hands.
> C/. p. 17.
' ri'llDIJ^', The narrow end was uppermost to ensare the safety of the contents.
C/. Lightfoot, ii. pp. 405 s^f.
340 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
In any case Jesus here advances a great claim. " The
Light" was a Jewish title of the Messiah,^ and, when Jesus
said " I am the Light of the world," He asserted His
Messiahship. The Pharisees broke in with an objection. It
was a principle of Rabbinical law that a man's testimony on
his own behalf was incompetent ; ^ and they cried : " Thou
art testifying regarding thyself: thy testimony is not true."
It was a sorry quibble, revealing the petty pedantry of their
minds ; and Jesus answered it with calm contempt, emitting
withal a great declaration. Their legal rule, He told them,
was wholly inapplicable. It was necessary that He should
testify concerning Himself; for He alone knew whence He
had come and whither He was going, and no other could
testify truly concerning Him. Nor was His testimony un-
supported. " I am not alone, but I and the Father that sent
Deut. xix. Me. Yea, and in your Law it stands written that the
^^' testimony of two men is true. There is I that testify con-
cerning Myself, and the Father that sent Me testifieth con-
cerning Me." "Where is thy father?" they asked, half-sneer-
ing, half-bewildered, revealing their utter unspirituality. Had
they been at all spiritually minded, they must have recognised
the heavenliness of Jesus and known that He was speaking
of God.
Another As He taught on another occasion. He said : " I am going
deSion! ^iway, and ye shall seek Me, and in your sin ye shall die.
Where I am going, ye cannot come." It was a reiteration of
the warning which He had spoken during the Feast, and
which the rulers had taken as an intimation that He would
Gross mis- betake Himself to the Dispersion. They understood the
standing of second warning no better than the first and attached a grosser
the rulers, significance to it, led astray by their theology. They leaped
John viii. to the conclusion that Jesus, whom they suspected of insanity,
* ' m, M. meditated suicide. It was a Jewish belief that such as laid
violent hands upon themselves, were not received into the
common abode of the departed in the unseen world, but were
consigned to a place of deeper darkness ; * and, when Jesus
' JSch. Rabb. 68. 4 : " Lux est nomen Messbc, sicut dicitiir ' Lux com illo
habitat' (Dan. ii. 22)."
" Cf. Weutein on John v. 31 ; Lightfoot on John viii. 13.
•Jos. Dt B<n.JucL iiL 8. § 5. Cf. Wetstein.
MINISTRY IN JERUSALEM 341
said : " Where I am going, ye cannot come," they supposed
that He referred to the suicides' hell. It was a coarse and
insulting idea, and it filled Him with disgust and despair.
Those men and He belonged to different worlds, and com-
munion was impossible. " O wherefore," He cried, " do I
speak to you at all ? " * Naught remained but to go forward
to the bitter end ; and, when they had wrought their will
upon Him, they would read, in His Resurrection and the
wonders that would follow, His vindication by God. " When Cf. Acts w
ye have lifted up the Son of Man, then shall ye recognise that ^^'^-s^-
I am He,2 and of Myself do nothing, but, as the Father
taught Me, speak these things."
Painful though it had been, the encounter was not unprofit- Ruieri that
able. " While He spake these things, many believed in Him." Him,'"^*'
These were true converts, abiding fruits of His ministry in
Jerusalem. And, besides these, there were actually some of Cf. John ix.
the rulers who had been impressed. They did not " believe 31/ ^^ '^
in Him " but merely " believed Him," that is, according to
the New Testament's succinct distinction, they did not sur-johnvui.
render themselves to His grace but hearkened to His teaching ^°"^'
and owned its reasonableness.' It was possible that these
men might be brought to discipleship ; and one day Jesus
addressed Himself to them, thinking to win them outright
His exhortation, however, displeased them, and there was one
sentence which touched them to the quick and transformed
them into angry enemies. " If," He said, " ye abide in My Cf. John
vii. 17.
Word, ye are truly My disciples, and ye shall discover the
Truth and the Truth shall make you free." That offended
their pride. Their Jewish spirits were fretting under the
Roman yoke ; and, missing His spiritual meaning, they took
* viii.25 : 2,crux interpretum. Cf. Meyer, Westcott, Moulton's Winer, pp. 581-2,
Field's A'b/w, Abbott, yijA. Gram. pp. 142-4, The choice lies between (i) "even
that which I have also spoken unto you from the beginning " {r^v ipxi' *» '"' k"^
XoXu vfix»). So both Engl, versions. The objection is that this would require \iyv
for XaXui. (2) "To think that I am talking to you at all 1" Metu omnino vobiseum
loquit The objection is that r^y ipx^" or ipx^" bad the sense oi omnino only after
a neg., but this rule was not observed in later Greek. Cf. Clem. Horn. vi. § 1 1 : e^ n^i
TapaKoKovOtli oh X^w, rl koX tt)*- ipx^" iidkiyofjAi j It seems decisive that the
sentence was so understood by Chrysost. while Greek was still a living language : S 6i
X^et TOiovrdy itrri' rod 6\us a/cot/eiv tup X6y«v rQy vap' ifxov dyd^iot tare, fi-qrl yt
Kal fiadtif iffTLi iyu elfu.
' iyili elfu, sc the Messiah, the great One who was in the thoughts of every Jew
and did not need to be named. Cf, John iv. 26 ; viiL 24 ; xiii. 19 ; Mk. xiv. 62.
* Cf. Moulton's Winer, p. 267 ;. Moulton's Gram, of N.T, Gk. i. pp. 67 /^.
34^
THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
•' We are
free."
"We are
Abraham's
seed."
"We are
children of
God."
"Thou art
a Samari-
tan and a
demoniac."
the Lord's words as an allusion to their national degradation
and resented the fancied insult. Ignoring the Egyptian
bondage, the Babylonian captivity, the Greek conquest, and
the Roman domination under which they were even then
groaning, they retorted that they were Abraham's seed and
had never been slaves. Jesus gently explained the spiritual
significance of His words. It was the bondage of sin to which
He had alluded. So long as a man committed sin, he was a
bondsman, and had no standing in the House of God. And
this was the boon which He offered — to give them, in St Paul's
phrase, " the spirit of adoption " and make them, like Himself,
sons of God. " I know," He said, " that ye are Abraham's
seed ; but," He added, marking the menace of their looks, " ye
are seeking to kill Me, because My word hath no place within
you. What I have seen in the Father's presence, I speak.
Do ye also therefore what ye heard from the Father."
Their indignation was kindled, and they would not listen
to reason. " Our father is Abraham," they repeated. " If,"
said Jesus, using some severity, " ye are children of
Abraham, do tlie works of Abraham. But, as it is, ye are
seeking to kill Me for telling you the truth which I heard from
God. This Abraham did not. Ye are doing the works of
your father." " We are not bastards," they vapoured ; and,
thinking to improve upon their claim, they advanced a higher :
" One father have we, even God." "If God were your Father,
ye would love Me," Jesus retorted, and told them plainly that
they were children of the Devil and were bent on doing their
father's work — seeking to kill Him and refusing to believe
the truth.
That roused their fury, and they fell to coarse abuse.
" Say we not well that thou art a Samaritan and hast a
daemon ? " Samaritan was a common term of abuse in
Jerusalem. It was one of the Rabbis' epithets for such as did
not sit at their feet,^ and, as the Galileans had nicknamed Him
" Friend of Tax-gatherers and Sinners," the Judaeans in their
pride of intellect termed him " Samaritan" and " demoniac."
'* I have not a daemon," He answered, " but I honour the
^ Sot. 22. I : " Qui Scripturam et Mischnam tantum didicit nee magistris
serrit, R. Eleazar dicit eum esse plebeium ; R. Samuel filius Nacbmani esse rusticum ;
R. Jannai esse Samaritanum ; R. Acha filius Jacobi esse Magum. "
MINISTRY IN JERUSALEM 343
Father and seek His glory, heedless of My own. Verily,
verily I tell you, if any one keep My word, he shall never
behold death." " Now," they cried, " have we found that thou
hast a daemon. Abraham died, and the Prophets ; and thou
sayest : ' If any one keep My word, he shall never taste of
death ' I Art thou greater than Abraham and the Prophets ?
Whom makest thou thyself?" "Abraham your father," c/Hcbr.
answered Jesus, " exulted to see My day, and he saw it and ' *^
rejoiced." " Thou art not yet fifty years old," ^ they cried,
" and hast thou seen Abraham ? " " Verily, verily I tell you,"
He replied, "ere Abraham was born, I am."^
They had called Him mad, but this was worse than mad- Attempt to
ness. It was rank blasphemy. Stoning was the penalty of ^*°°*""°*
blasphemy, and they snatched up stones, finding plenty to
hand, since the Temple was still a-building and the rough
material lay around them.' They would have pelted Him
to death, but, ere they could execute their purpose. He was
gone. He mingled with the multitude which, being friendly,
would cover His retreat, and quitted the Temple.
Amid such controversies the days sped by ; and one A man
born blind.
Sabbath, when the Feast of Dedication was nigh at hand,^
Jesus was passing along in His disciples' company and His
eye rested on a spectacle of misery — a young man stone-blind Cf. John
who sate by the way-side begging alms. Since the Temple-
gate was a favourite station for mendicants, it was there be- c/. Acta
like that he sate and, as the worshippers passed, published his
* His burden bad aged tbe Man of Sorrows, and He looked ten years older
than He was. Enth. Zig. thinks that they judged His age by "the richness of His
experience." Irensens {Adv. Har. ii. 33), controverting the opinion that the Lord's
ministry lasted only a year, asserts that He lived to be upwards of forty (which
Keim thinks possible), alleging this passage and the testimony of the Ephesian
elders who had been associated with John. Irenaeus, however, was not without
dogmatic bias. Since Jesus, he argues, came to save all, it was necessary that He
should pass through every age : infans, parvulus, juvenis, stniar. A man was a senior
from forty to fifty. Chrysost. read TeffffapiKovra. "Audacter ita correxit," sayi
Matthsei in his note on Euth. Zig.
' tlfu, pregnant pres. : " I was and still am. " Cf. John xiv. 9 ; xv. 27.
* Cf. Lightfoot. Jos. AnL xviL 9- § 3 : during an insurrection in the Temple
the worshippers drop their sacrifices and stone the soldiers.
* The interpolation in riii. 59 : Su\9wt> Jtd fuivov aiiTuif koX waprjyti> otrun makes
the miracle of the healing of the blind man happen as Jesus quitted the Temple after
His controversy with the rulers. This is impossible. His departure on that occasion
was a hasty retreat from a murderous assault, and He would not linger by the way.
344 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
condition and craved charity, The spectacle arrested Jesus.
It awoke compassion in His breast, but in His disciples it
merely provoked speculation. According to the current
theology suffering was always penal and betokened antecedent
sin. Nor did it invalidate the theory that this man had been
born blind. It merely threw the sin further back. The Jewish
Exod. XX. theology recognised the grim fact of heredity, and taught
?. 7 ; Ezek! moreover that a child was not only conceived in sin and shapen
*^^ *• in iniquity but might actually sin while still in the womb.^
The disciples, forgetting, if indeed they had heard, the Master's
Lk. xiu, pronouncement regarding the massacre at the altar and
''^ the disaster at Siloam, assumed that sin was the cause of this
man's blindness and wondered whether it had been ante-natal
or hereditary.
Jesus heals Jesus rejected both alternatives. The man's blindness was
'™' no punishment at all. It was a providential visitation, " that
the works of God might be manifested in him." And there
was no time for idle speculation. " We must work the works of
Him that sent Me - while it is day. The night cometh when
no one can work." The sight of need had ever aroused the
Lord's compjission, but, as the end drew near, it was as though
He hasted to save. The time was short, and He would fain
crowd it with deeds of mercy. Forthwith He addressed
Himself to the task of healing the blind man, and He set to
work after a curious fashion. He spat on the ground and,
making clay of the spittle, smeared therewith the sightless
orbs, and bade the man go and wash in the Pool of Siloam.
Clay and saliva were accounted efficacious remedies for
ocular affections,^ and Jesus was following the medical pre-
scription of His day when He performed that operation so
unpleasing to modem taste. Of course He did not follow it
because He believed in its efficacy. It may be that, as in the
Mk. viu, case of the blind man at Bethsaida Julias whom He treated
%ii.' 3^ similarly, He desired to awaken hope in the sufferer's breast ;
but He had a further design. It was the manner of the
^ Lightfoot oo John ix. 2. Cf. Lk. L 41.
' i\isAi iti Tisch., Vf. H. ToO rifi\f/avT6i /xe W. H. ; tow rifiyj/ourros iifiSis Tisch.
The former is preferable. Jesac always kept His own mission distinct from that
of the Twelve : the Father had sent Him ; He sent them.
' See classical and Rabbinical quotations in Wetstein; amusing stoiy of R.
Mctr in LightfooU
MINISTRY IN JERUSALEM 345
prophets of Israel, when deeply moved, to enforce their pro-
clamations by symbolic enactments. When Ezekiel would
intimate the impending destruction of Jerusalem, he took a
tile and pourtrayed upon it a city and all the enginery of a E«ek, n.
vigorous siege — towers, mound, camp and battering-rams. ^'^'
And, when Agabus would warn Paul of the doom which
awaited him at Jerusalem, he took the Apostle's girdle and
bound therewith his own hands and feet, announcing : " Thus Acts xxi. xo
saith the Holy Spirit : ' The man whose is this girdle, the Neh. (. 13.
Jews shall so bind in Jerusalem.'" Such symbolic actions
are characteristically Oriental. Grotesque as they seem
now-a-days, they were congenial to the Jewish mind and
served their purpose well. They startled the spectators and
compelled them to reflect. And it is remarkable that Jesus
repeatedly adopted this prophetic method during those last
days when He was making His final appeal to Jerusalem.*
So did He when He smeared that blind man's eyes with clay
and sent him through the city to the Pool of Siloam. It
was a parable of the blindness which had happened unto
Israel, and a satire upon her teachers, those blind guides c/. John
of the blind. They professed that they gave light to those '*' ^'*^'
that sate in darkness, but they simply put a veil upon a Cor. la.
men's hearts and seeled their eyes.
The man obeyed the Lord's behest He went to the The man
Pool and, when he had washed the clay from his eyes, he saw. b3bre"the
When he got home his neighbours were amazed, and wondered Piiarisee*,
if it were indeed the blind beggar. Some said : " It is he."
"No," said others, "he is like him." "I am he," said the
man, and told them how it had come about : " The man that
is called Jesus made clay and anointed my eyes and said to
me : ' Away to Siloam and wash.' So I went away and
washed, and I got my sight" " Where is he ? " they asked.
" I know not," he replied, perchance mistrusting them. And
thereupon they did a shameful thing. The rulers had
published an edict that any one who confessed Jesus as
Messiah should be excommunicated.' The terror of the ban
> C/. the Triumphal Entry, the blasting of the Fig-tree, the feet-washing in the
Upper Room.
• There were three degrees of excommonication : (i) >^tj, »uspension from re-
ligious and social privileges for thirty days. (2) KnaK% continuance of the saa-
346 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
was hanging over the city, and those base caitiffs, eager to
evince their loyalty and clear themselves of suspicion, laid
hold on their neighbour and brought him before the Pharisees.
Of course his offence was that he had suffered himself to be
healed of his blindness on the Sabbath. He was the accom-
plice of Jesus.
His exam- The Pharisccs interrogated him, and then conferred with
rnauon. ^^^ another. Opinion was divided. Some of them declared
that Jesus could not be from God inasmuch as He did not
Cf. John observe the Sabbath. Others dissented : " How can a sinner
"^ "' do such signs ? " Unable to agree they turned again to the
man : " What sayest thou regarding him, forasmuch as he
opened thine eyes ? " " He is a prophet," was the stout
reply. Thereupon the question was raised whether a miracle
had really been wrought. Perhaps the man was in collusion
with Jesus and had never been blind. Accordingly his
parents were summoned in the hope that their evidence might
expose the imposture, and three queries were addressed to
them : Is this your son ? Was he bom blind ? If so, how
does he now see ? Dreading the doom of excommunication,
they would not commit themselves. The first questioh and
the second they answered in the affirmative, but cautiously
disclaimed all knowledge of the last. " Question him" they
said. " He is of age : he will speak for himself." The
baffled rulers, still suspecting collusion, resorted to another
stratagem. They consulted together, then summoned the
man once more before them, and, as though they had mean-
while ascertained the fact, sternly accosted him : " Make
full confession.* We know that this fellow is a sinner."
HUspirited Very Striking is the contrast betwixt the old paralytic at
" Bethesda who, out of sheer stupidity, betrayed his Benefactor
to the rulers, and this quick-witted and courageous youth.
He faced his judges undaunted. " Whether he be a sinner I
know not. One thing I know, that, whereas I was blind, now
I see." Foiled anew, they asked feebly : " What did he unto
pension for thirty days more, if the offender remained impenitent (3) If still
impenitent, the carse, £nn* Cf. Lightfoot ma. I Cor. t. 5.
' Wj ibl^ay rif 6«^, not " Ascribe the miracle to God i>% rap' oArm laffels xal fiii
vapi. rev Itf^ov" (Eath. Zig.), bnt "Give glory to God by telling the truth and
eonfessijig the imposture." Q^. Josh. vii. 19; Ezr. x. II (LXX): Mre afrco-u' Ev/>(y.
MINISTRY IN JERUSALEM 347
thee ? How opened he thine eyes ? " The answer was a
quick flash of mingled contempt and sarcasm : " I told you
already, and ye did not hearken. Why do ye again wish to
hear it ? Can it be that ye also wish to become disciples of
his ? " It was a galling taunt, and, forgetting their dignity,
they broke into reviling : " Thou art a disciple of the fellow ;
we are disciples of Moses. We know that to Moses hath God
spoken ; but this fellow — we know not whence he is." They
gained nothing by thus losing their tempers. They simply
demeaned themselves and exposed themselves afresh to their
clever adversary's artillery of scorn. Undismayed by their
wrath, he plied them with biting sarcasm. Why, here was a
marvel ! A miracle had been wrought, and they, the wise
men of Israel, confessed that they knew not whence the
worker of it was. With fine irony he proceeds to enlighten
them. " We know that to sinners God doth not hearken ;
but, if any one be godly and do His will, to him He hearkeneth.
From eternity it was not heard that any one opened the eyes
of one bom blind. If ' this fellow ' had not been from God,
he could have done nothing." The audacity of the speech
infuriated them. "In sins," they cried, "thou wast bom Hisexcom.
entirely, and thou teachest us ? " And they excommunicated {te*n.'*^*
him.^
In that hour when the door of the Synagogue was closed jesus
against him, the gate of the Kingdom of Heaven was opened *^ '""'"™»
to him.^ Jesus sought him and claimed him. " Dost thou
believe," He said, " in the Son of Man ' ? " He did not say
" the Son of God," since that was a Messianic title much on
the lips of the Pharisees and would have repelled one who
had been so hardly treated by those proud ecclesiastics.
Familiar as that title which Jesus loved, was in Galilee, it was
strange in Jerusalem, and the man was puzzled. " And who is
he, Lord," he asked, " that I may believe in him ? " " Not only
hast thou seen Him," Jesus answered, " but it is He that is cf. John
talking with thee." Then the man perceived that it was for '^* *^
^ i^4pa\ov avrir t^u, not simply " they cast him out of doors," ejecerunt eum/oras
(Vulg.). Cf. Euth. Zig.
'Aug. In Joan. Ev. Tract xliv. § lo : "Jam non erat malum fieri extra syna-
gogam. Illi expellebant, sed Christus excipiebat."
• NBD, Tisch., W. H. rip U6r t»Z ifOfxlnrov. T. R. rir vUp toO 9«ov is very
ancient, being the reading of Vulg., Tert., Aug., Chrysost. (with Tariant iyOp.).
34S THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
Himself that Jesus was claiming his faith, and he gladly
yielded it Had not that gracious One proved Himself
worthy of all trust and adoration ? "I believe, Lord," he
cried, and did obeisance to Him. His darkness was all
dispelled. His blind eyes had already been opened, and
t Cor. jT. now " the illumination of the knowledge of the glory of God
in the Face of Christ" poured into his soul. Was it not
strange that, while one man was thus visited, others should
reject the light ? " For judgment," exclaimed Jesus, " I came
into this world, that they that see not may see, and they that
see may become blind." Some Pharisees were by, apparently
spying upon Him,^ and they demanded : " Are we also
blind ? " " Had ye been blind," Jesus answered, " ye had not
had sin ; but, as it is, ye say ' We see ' : your sin remaineth."
This was their condemnation, that the Light had come into
John iiL 19. the world, and they loved the darkness. Well for them had
they known their blindness ! They would then have sought
the Physician who could give them sight*
^the^*ru' Grieved at the high-handed procedure of those ecclesiastics
Shepherd, who had driven the man out of the Church and shut the
door against him, Jesus spoke a parable. He described a
sheep-fold such as His hearers had often seen out in the
wilderness of Judaea, where the flocks pastured which furnished
sacrifices for the Temple and wool for the market.' The fold
was a spacious enclosure whither the shepherds conducted
their flocks at night-fall. It was in charge of a porter who
would admit none but such as had a right to admission.
Within its shelter the flocks rested together till the morning,
and then they were led out to their several pastures. The
shepherds had no difficulty in separating their own. Out on
the lone wilderness a shepherd had no other companions than
his sheep, and a tender relationship was formed betwixt him
and them. He knew every sheep of his flock and had a name
for it ; and it knew its name and would answer to it In the
morning he would call his own, and they would leave the herd
and follow him out to the pasture. He did not need to drive
* Chrysost thinks that they were snperficial followers, easily turned aside.
'Aug. In Joan. Ev. Tract. xUt. § 17: "Quia dicendo Vidcmus mcdicum non
qozritis, in csecitate restra remsmetis."
'Jerusalem had a sheep-market and a wool -market. Bab. Kam. 10. 9.
I
MINISTRY IN JERUSALEM 349
them. " He goeth before them, and the sheep follow him,
because they know his voice ; and a stranger they will in no
wise follow, but will flee from him, because they know not the
voice of the strangers." The shepherd's office demanded
tenderness, courage, and devotion.^ " He shall gather the is. xU iz.
lambs with his arm, and carry them in his bosom, and shall
gently lead those that are with young." He must oftentimes i sam.
imperil his life to snatch a lamb from the jaws of a ^SL^^^i^g Am. m.za.
bceist and traverse the mountains in weary quest of a lost ^^- ^^^
wanderer. There was no image more attractive to Jewish xv. 3-6.
minds. The saints of old had loved to think of God as the
Shepherd of His people ; and the Christian tombs in the
Catacombs are adorned with rude sketches of the True
Shepherd carrying His lost lamb upon His shoulder.
The immediate purpose of the parable was to console that
excommunicated man. " I am the Door of the sheep," says
Jesus. What did it matter that the man had been thrust out
of the Synagogue ? He had found the door into God's Fold.
" I am the Door. Through Me if any one go in, he shall be
saved, and shall go in and out and find pasture." This,
however, was not the sole purpose of the parable, and Jesus
gives it another interpretation. " I am the True Shepherd," *
He says. Those high-handed rulers were no shepherds.
They lacked the essential qualities of love and devotion.
They were mere hirelings, and they cared not for the sheep but
only for their hire. When the wolf appeared, they would flee
and abandon their flock to his devouring jaws. " I am the
True Shepherd," says Jesus ; and this was the evidence thereof,
that He loved His sheep, yea, and the lost sheep were very
dear to His heart. He was the Shepherd not only of Israel
but of all mankind. " Other sheep I have which are not of
this fold. Them also must I lead, and to My voice they
shall hearken ; and there shall come to be one flock, one
Shepherd." And He was ready to lay down His life for His
sheep, a willing sacrifice. " No man taketh it away from Me,
* Wetstein quotes Gilura. vii. 6 : " Magister antem pecoris acer, durus, strenuus,
laboris patientissimus, alacer atque audax esse debet ; et qui per rupes, per
solitudines atque vepres facile vadat : et non, at alterius generis pastores, sequatar
sed plerumque ut antecedat gregem."
^ 6 TTOifjiTjy 6 Ka\6i, Euth. Zig. : d iXrjd^s. icaXds, genuine and perfect of its kind |
Suid, : TO fti TdpvKtvai xpos ri litov iprfov. Cf. Introd. § 2, n. 4.
2 B
350 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
but I lay it down of Myself. I have authority to lay it down,
and I have authority to receive it again. This command-
ment received I from My Father."
The rulers' The parable set the rulers once more at variance. " A
J^us^the cleavage again arose among them." The general verdict was
i^ica-^ that He had a daemon and was mad, but there were some who
tion. dissented from the truculent majority. " These," they said,
" are not the words of a demoniac. Can a daemon open blind
men's eyes ? " They resolved to approach Him and perchance
arrive at an understanding. The days had sped by, and the
Feast of Dedication had come round. It was celebrated in
the month of Chislev or December, beginning on the twenty-
fifth and extending over eight days, and commemorated the
purification of the Temple under Judas Maccabaeus after its
defilement by Antiochus Epiphanes.^ It was a joyous festival.
While it lasted, mourning and fasting were prohibited, and
lamps were lit each night in front of the houses.* It differed
from the feasts of Passover, Pentecost, and Tabernacles in
this, that, since it was celebrated all over the land, it brought
no troops of pilgrims to Jerusalem. Along the eastern side
of the outer court of the Temple ran a portico which bore the
name of Solomon's Cloister, since it was the only part of
Solomon's Temple which had escaped the devastating fury of
the Babylonian army in B.C. 586.^ It afforded a pleasant
shelter from the cold, and one day in the course of the Feast,
as Jesus was walking there, the rulers appeared on the scene
and, as though determined that He should not escape until
they had satisfaction from Him, ringed Him round and
demanded : " How long dost thou keep us in suspense ? If
thou art the Messiah, tell us plainly." It was no honest
question. The majority of them, at all events, had sought
Him with malignant hearts, hoping to extort from Him some
declaration which might serve as a ground of accusation.*
His He perceived their intent and would not be ensnared,
answer. « j ^^j^ y^^,, j^^ answered, " and ye do not believe." And
had they not the testimony of His works ? The explanation
* I Mace. IT. 52-9 ; Jos. Ant. xii. ii.
■ Hence the Feast of Dedication (rd iyKalvia. nSlH \^ as called also t4 ^iln-a. Cf.
Lightfoot. ^ ""''
* Jos. Ant. XX. 9. I 7. * Aug. In Joan. Ev. Tract, xlviii. § 3.
MINISTRY IN JERUSALEM 351
of their unbelief, He tells them, reverting to the parable
which had occasioned their disquietude, was simply that they
were not of the number of His sheep. " My sheep hearken to
My voice, and I recognise them, and they follow Me ; and I give
them eternal life, and they shall never perish, and there is not
any that shall snatch ^ them out of My hand." It was an
allusion to their sentence of excommunication. The True
Shepherd's flock was safe from all alarm. The thief would
not carry them off nor the wolf devour them. His flock was
very precious in His sight. " What My Father hath given
Me is greater than all, and none can snatch it out of the
Father's hand." Then, explaining the alternation " My hand,"
" the Father's hand," He added : " I and the Father are one."
This enraged them. They deemed it rank blasphemy. Another
and, hastening from the Cloister, they got them stones from stonTHim.
the builders' litter and bore them back, meaning to pelt Him
to death.2 He confronted them with a dauntless bearing
which overawed them and stayed their wild hands. " Many
good works," He said with calm irony, " did I show you from
the Father. For which of them are ye stoning Me ? "
•* It is not," they replied, " for a good work that we are stoning
thee but for blasphemy and because thou, being a man,
makest thyself God." Jesus met this charge with one of His defence
those deft turns of dialectic wherewith, in the course of His ^^^' of"
final conflict at Jerusalem, He was wont to parry the assaults blasphemy.
of His captious adversaries. He appealed to the Scripture,
quoting the eighty-second Psalm where, in accordance with
Hebrew usage,^ the judges of the people are styled gods,
" If," He reasoned, " they are called * gods ' in your Law,* why
should you count it blasphemy that I call Myself the Son of
God ? Those judges were corrupt men, whereas the works
which I have wrought, prove that the Father hath sanctified
* ipvdffti. Cf. V. 12 ; 4 \iicoi apxij^ei airri,
* f^affTaaap, "carried." Contrast viii. 59: ^pop, "picked up." The Cloister of
Solomon, being an ancient structure, had no rubble lying about it This delicate
distinction betrays the eye-witness.
' Cf. Exod. xxi. 6; xxii. 8, 28: D\n^Nn-i5«, R.V. : "to God," A.V., R.V.
marg. : "unto the judges."
* In common parlance " the Law " meant simply the Scriptures, the Prophets
and the Hagiographa as well as the Books of Moses. Cf. I Cor. xiv. 21. See
Wetstein and p. 420, n. I.
352 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
Me and sent Me into the world." It was a genuine piece of
Rabbinical argumentation. Jesus here borrows His assailants'
methods and routs them with their own weapons ; and His
irony is very keen. They regarded the Scripture with a
veneration nothing short of idolatrous, and He presents them
the embarrassing dilemma of either acquitting Him or con-
demning it. "If it called them ' gods,' and the Scripture
cannot be loosed." Of course it was no serious argument ;
nevertheless it involved, and He meant it to involve, a
high claim. Their grievance was that, being a man. He
made Himself God ; and He does not repudiate the imputa-
tion. On the contrary, He allows it and justifies it. His
argument amounts to nothing less than an assertion of His
deity.
Departure They durst not stone Him. They would have arrested
^°^Jiem. Him, but He eluded their grasp, and the friendly multitude
would cover His retreat. He left Jerusalem, to return
no more until He returned to die. He took His way
westward across the valley of the Kedron and up the climbing
ascent of Olivet ; and, as He went, solemn emotions struggled
in His breast Ere He crossed the brow of the hill, He
looked back on the city, and a cry of poignant and impassioned
Mt. xxiii. farewell broke from His lips : " Jerusalem, Jerusalem ! that
^jau.^4'-s! killeth the Prophets and stoneth them that have been sent
unto her. How often would I have gathered thy children
together even as a hen gathereth her brood under her wings,
and ye would not ! Behold, your house is being left unto
you desolate. For I tell you, ye shall never more see Me
until ye say : ' Blessed is He that cometh in the name of the
Mt. xxi. 9 Lord ! ' " And so it came to pass on that day when He rode
^io=Lk". I'" to the city amid the plaudits of the attendant throng,
Tohifxir avowing Himself her King and making His last appeal.
13. Already He had planned the final denouement.
He left Jerusalem, grieved by her unbelief yet in no wise
disappointed. The rulers had rejected Him and sought His
q: John life, yet He had won His own. All that the Father had
^' ^^* given Him had come unto Him. They were indeed a little
flock, numbering none of the wise or noble or mighty after
the flesh ; but they suflficed. It was the Father's good
Lk. xiL 3a. pleasure to give them the Kingdom. Perchance it was here
MINISTRY IN JERUSALEM 353
that He spoke that great word which St Matthew and St
Luke have inserted at random in their narratives : " I thank Mt. xi 35
Thee, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because Thou didst IZ-a.
hide these things from wise and understanding, and didst
reveal them to babes ; yea, Father, because thus it seemed
good in Thy sight. All things were handed over to Me by
My Father ; and no one fully recogniseth the Son except the
Father, nor doth any one fully recognise the Father except
the Son and the man to whom it may be the Son's will to
reveal Him." *
* See Introd. § 15.
John X. 40«
2=Mt. xix.
ib-2=Mk.
X. I ; Mu
xix. 3-12=
Mk. X. 2-
12; Mt
xix. 13-5=
Mk. X. 13-
6=Lk.
xviii. 15-7 ;
Mt. xix. 16-
30=Mk. X.
17-31 = Lk.
xviii. 18-30
(xvii. 7-10) ;
Mt. XX. I-
16.
At Bethany
beyond
Jordan.
xxii. 31-2.
Q: John
zi. 41-3.
Ministry
there.
CHAPTER XXXVIII
RETREAT TO BETHANY BEYOND JORDAN
" I want a sober mind,
A self-renouncing will,
That tramples down and casts behind
The baits of pleasing ill :
A soul inured to pain.
To hardship, grief, and loss ;
Bold to take up, firm to sustain,
The consecrated cross." — Charles Weslet.
When He left Jerusalem, Jesus went away down to Bethany
beyond Jordan. It was natural that He should turn thither.
There John had preached ; and there Jesus had been baptised,
there He had been manifested unto Israel, there He had met
His first disciples. The spot was evermore sacred in His eyes ;
and now, when the end is near. He repairs thither to refresh
His soul in communion with God and win strength and forti-
tude for the last, grim ordeal. But His concern was not for
Himself alone. He was troubled about His disciples. He
knew their weakness, and He would intercede for them that
their faith might not fail in the day of trial. And He still
yearned over Jerusalem. Though her rulers had rej'ected
Him, He had not forsaken her nor utterly despaired of
winning her. He purposed addressing to her yet another
appeal, and He would pray that God might incline her to
hearken, granting perchance some convincing attestation, some
overwhelming vindication of His claims.
Nevertheless He did not go to Bethany merely to commune
with God. Learning whither He had gone, a multitude
followed Him, and He ministered to them by teaching and
miracle. It was a wondrous season. The people recalled the
mighty work of grace which they had witnessed there three
years before, and confessed that this was a mightier work by
far. " John," they said, " did no sign ; but everything that
354
RETREAT TO BETHANY 355
John said regarding this man was true." And it was a
fruitful season. " Many believed in Him there."
The rulers had doubtless flattered themselves that they Question of
were rid of Jesus, and, when they learned that He had left ^es^b^j
Jerusalem only to establish Himself at Bethany and there divorce,
continue His labours, they were greatly perturbed. Presently
the Pharisees, ever vigilant, appeared on the scene. They
approached Jesus with a captious question cleverly devised :
" Is it allowable for a husband to divorce his wife for every
cause ? " That was a burning question in those days. The
Mosaic Law permitted divorce when a wife proved faithless ; Deut xxW.
but the Rabbinical interpreters after their wont disputed over *'**
this enactment The school of Shammai, adhering to the
letter of the Law, held that a wife should not be divorced
except for unfaithfulness ; ^ whereas the school of Hillel, with
a laxity very agreeable to the general inclination, allowed a
husband to put away his wife " for every cause" — if he dis-
liked her, if he fancied another woman more, if her cookery
were not to his taste.^ The doctrine of Hillel was the
common practice in our Lord's day, and it operated dis-
astrously. It violated the sanctity of domestic life ; and there
is a hideous passage in the Talmud which shows what havoc
it made of the obligations of morality. It was customary for
a Rabbi of the school of Hillel, when he visited a strange town,
to make public advertisement for a woman who would serve as
his wife during his sojourn there.* It was an inhuman system
and inflicted cruel wrong upon womankind. It put the wife
at her husband's mercy. She could not divorce him, but for
any whim he might divorce her and cast her upon the world.*
Jesus was ever the friend of the oppressed, and His
heart was hot within Him at this foul injustice.^ The
' Gift. 9 : " Schola Shammseana : Non dimittenda est uxor nisi ob tnrpitudinem
solum."
' Maim : " Si quis uxorem odio habeat, dimittat." R. Sol. : " Uxorem dimittere
praecipitur si in ocuiis mariti gratiam non assequatur." Gitt. 9: "Dixit R.
Akibah, Si quis mulierem videat uxore formosiorem, uxorem dimittere licet." Ibid.
"Si esculenta mariti nimia salsedine aut nimia tostione male conficiat uxor, est
dimittenda."
' Lightfoot on Mt xiz. 3.
*Maim. Gerush. i: "Non dimittebatur uxor nisi libenter volente marito ; re-
Inctante enim non erat repudium : at, velit, nolit uxor, repudianda, si vellet
maritus," » Cf. Introd. § 9, n. I.
356 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
Pharisees expected that He would answer their question with
an uncompromising and indignant denial, and thereby offend
the general sentiment Facility of divorce was a cherished
privilege. It is amazing how the Jews prized it. They
accounted it a singular grace vouchsafed to Israel and with-
held from the Gentiles.^ The Pharisees knew that, if He
condemned the system, Jesus would estrange the populace,
and perhaps they contemplated the possibility of embroiling
Him with Herod Antipas. Might not His condemnation of
divorce be represented as a direct and intentional affront to
the guilty tetrarch? It was his denunciation of Herod's
matrimonial offence that had brought John the Baptist to
the dungeon and the block, and might not Jesus be involved
in a like doom ?
The Lord's Such were their secret designs when they propounded
answer, ^^j^gjj. ensnaring question : "Is it allowable for a husband to
divorce his wife for every cause ? " With that consummate
skill which He ever displayed in encounters of this sort,
Jesus avoided entanglement in the Rabbinical controversy
and appealed to the Scriptures. " Have ye not read," He
Cf. Mt. xii. asked, ironically charging them with ignorance of those
25=Lt vi^ Scriptures whereof they were the official guardians and inter-
s' preters, " that the Creator ^ from the beginning made them
male and female?' Therefore shall a man leave his father
and his mother and cleave unto his wife, and the twain shall
become one flesh. What therefore God joined together, let
man not separate." Such was marriage according to the
Creator's design — not the subjection of the woman to the
man's caprice, but their union on equal terms as mutual
helpers. There was no need for argument The simple
setting forth of the Scriptural ideal was a sufficient condemna-
tion of the prevailing practice.
And this the Pharisees perceived. They made no
attempt to justify the doctrine of Hillel, but they clutched at
a fresh opportunity which the Lord's answer seemed to
present He had said : " What God joined together, let man
' Lightfoot on Mt. v. 31.
• o rrf<rai Orig., W. II. ; d xotijs-ai Chrysost., Tisch.
* Chrysost. In Matth. Ixiii : " Had He meant that he should put away one and
take another in her room, when He made one man, He would have fashioned many
RETREAT TO BETHANY 357
not separate " ; but did not the Mosaic Law expressly
sanction divorce? Here was indeed a promising snare.
Should Jesus condemn the ordinance of Moses, He would
stand condemned as a heretic, and would forfeit the
popular sympathy and render Himself liable to judicial
procedure. There seemed no way of escape ; nevertheless
Jesus not only extricated Himself triumphantly but turned
His assailants' weapons against their own breasts. Yes,
Moses had permitted divorce ; but that was a departure from
the primal ordinance, necessitated by Israel's inability to rise
to the height thereof. "In view of your hardness of heart*
he permitted you to divorce your wives." Solon once said
that his laws were not the best that could have been devised,
but they were the best that the Athenians could receive ; and
even so was Moses constrained to accommodate his legislation
to the capacity of the Israelites.
The Pharisees had their answer. They said no more, Discomfi-
but the disciples pursued the theme. It seemed to them, dl^cipL^
being Jews, an intolerable hardship that the fetters of matri-
mony should be thus firmly riveted ; and, when they reached
their lodging, they protested that, if such were the conditions
of marriage, it were better not to marry at all. Ignoring
the petulance of the speech, Jesus assented. It is indeed
better not to marry, but only if the sacrifice be dictated by
devotion to the Kingdom of Heaven. Not all who abstain
are praiseworthy. " There are eunuchs who from their
mother's womb were bom thus, and there are eunuchs who
were made eunuchs by men, and there are eunuchs who
made themselves eunuchs for the Kingdom of Heaven's sake."
These last Jesus commends, thinking, however, not of mutila-
tion of the flesh, but of freedom from worldly entanglements,
voluntary surrender, for the Kingdom of Heaven's sake, of
indulgence which a man might enjoy. Such " eunuchs for
the Kingdom of Heaven's sake " are all who, like St Paul,
abstain from marriage that they may care for the things of i Cor. tiH.
the Lord. This is indeed a noble self-abnegation, but "^**°'
* ffK\i)poKapila, imperviousness te spiritual truths, Cf. Mk. xvi. 14 ; Acts rii. 51.
Chrysost (/« Mattk. xvii) understands skK. as hardhearttdmss^ i.t. craelty, and
thinks that the Mosaic permission of divorce was designed to save wives who had
lost favour from being murdered by their husbands : tmovtm* yi^ run '\ovhaim» ri
kOvn. So Jerome; Isidor. Pelus. F.p. iii. 76.
358 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
in such a cause what sacrifice is too great ? Michelangelo
never married because, as he used to say, " Art is a sufficiently
exacting mistress " ; and surely the Kingdom of Heaven may
claim an equal devotion from its true-hearted votaries. Jesus
was not laying down an absolute law of celibacy. He was
thinking of emergencies which would require of His followers
that, " by reason of the present necessity," those that had
wives should be as those that had not. "It is not every
one," He says, "that can receive this saying, but they to
whom it hath been given." Incapacity to receive it is
apparent alike in those who set self-indulgence above the
claims of the Kingdom of Heaven and in those who, with
heroic yet mistaken devotion, have mutilated themselves for
the Kingdom of Heaven's sake. " He that is able to receive
it, let him receive it"
"Suffer the Presently there approached Jesus another company of
rome mito visitors very different from the last — a troop of parents, fathers
Me." and mothers both,^ bringing their children to the gracious
Teacher to receive His benediction. They brought them
reverently and adoringly. " They offered ^ them unto Him,"
say the Evangelists. They presented their little ones like
gifts at the altar. It was a solemn act of dedication, and it
was well-pleasing to Jesus ; but it displeased the disciples.
Ruffled, perhaps, by His condemnation of divorce, they were in
an irritable mood, and they resented the intrusion. Jesus was
vexed at their churlishness. " Suffer the children," He cried,
" to come unto Me ! Hinder them not ! For of such is the
Kingdom of Heaven." And then He took them in His arms,
laid His hands upon them, and blessed them. It was a
wondrous experience for those unconscious babes. Would
they not talk of it in after years, and tell it to their children
and their children's children ?
The young One day during the Lord's sojourn at Bethany a stranger
■ came in quest of Him. He was a young man,^ and he was
* Fathers, because roh irpoa^tipowTiv (Mk.) is masc. ; mothers, because the
children were ^piifyii (Lk.). The reading airrois for toTi vpofftp, is probably an as-
similation to Mt. and Lk.
" irpo<r€<i>epov, Cf. Mt. ii. ii ; v. 23-4 ; viii. 4 ; Hebr. ▼. I, 3, 7 ; etc
• Mt. xix. 22 : veoi-fff/coi. Cf. Mk. xiv. 51. A vague word ; at all events Saul
of Tarsus is called veavior, though he must have been quite thirty (Acts vii. 58),
and Agrippa I, though about forty (Jos. Ant. xviii. 6. § 7).
RETREAT TO BETHANY 359
a personage of importance, being a ruler of the synagogue.*
As he approached, he saw Jesus just leaving His abode with Mk. x. 17.
His disciples, and he ran toward Him, knelt down before
Him, and asked : " Good Teacher, what shall I do to inherit
' eternal life ' ? " It was the very question which the captious
lawyer had addressed to Jesus in a synagogue, probably at Lk, x. 25.
Jericho, where Jesus had preached some three months previ-
ously on His way up to Jerusalem ; and it may be that this
man was a ruler of that synagogue and had heard the Lord's
discourse on Eternal Life and His controversy with the lawyer.
The arrow of conviction had pierced his soul, and had been
rankling there ever since ; and, on learning that Jesus was at
Bethany, he had travelled the few miles from Jericho to un-
burden his troubled heart. He was a Pharisee, but a Pharisee
of the nobler sort, one of those who were facetiously styled the
" Let-me-know-what-is-my-duty-and-I-will-do-it Pharisees." *
Like Saul of Tarsus in the days of his ignorance, he was a Acts xxH.
zealot for God, as touching the righteousness that is in the p ...
Law blameless ; yet, for all his diligence in the performance
of works of righteousness, he had found no rest. His soul
was still unsatisfied. He had done everything, and something
was still lacking. " Good Teacher," he cried, pouring out the
trouble of his soul without preface or explanation, " what shall
I do to inherit * eternal life ' ? "
It was precisely the sort of appeal which always " Why
gladdened Jesus and won from Him a ready and gracious c^i Me°
response. The ruler was a young man and he was an anxious ' 8°°^ ' "
enquirer, and in either capacity he had a special claim upon
the Lord's sympathy. Nevertheless he met, to all appearance,
with a very chill reception. Jesus answered his impassioned
enquiry with a carping objection. He fastened on the epithet
wherewith, in all sincerity and reverence, the man had
addressed Him. " Why dost thou call Me ' good ' ? ' No one
' Lk. xviii. l8 : ipxojv. Cf. Mt. ix. i8: 4/>xw»' = Mk. v, 22: th rCw
ipXi-owa'y(j)y(i}v = 'L\i. viii. 41 : apx^v t^j avvayorYrji.
" One of the seven kinds of Pharisee enumerated in the Talmud is " Pharisaeus
qui dicit : 'Noscam quid sit ofi5cium meum, et praestabo.'" Cf. Lightfoot and
Wetstein on Mt, iii. 7. Jerome classes the Young Ruler with the Pharisees who
had asked the question about divorce : •* Non vote discentis sed tcntantis interrogaw"
•' Mentitur adolescens."
» C/. Introd. § 12, 3, (i).
36o
THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
is * good ' save God alone." Wherefore did He raise so trivial
an objection ? It was in no wise that, conscious of moral
imperfection, He was constrained to disclaim the attribute ;
for many a time He accepted more lavish homage without
demur. Nor was His objection prompted by His characteristic
dislike of pious phrases which meant nothing ; for the man
did not use the word lightly. It was no phrase of conven-
tional courtesy. " Teacher " or " Rabbi " was the common
style, and was employed without addition ; ^ and it evinces
what reverence the man had conceived for Jesus that he
deemed the common style insufficient and addressed Him as
he would never have thought of addressing a Rabbi. In
truth the Lord's objection was a challenge. He read the
enquirer's heart, and, perceiving whereunto he had already
attained. He desired to lead him further. " Consider," He
said, " what your language implies. You have given Me a
title which belongs to God. ' Do you mean it ? "
"Keep When He had flashed this challenge upon the man,
mand- Jesus answered his question. "If," He said, "thou wishest
ments." |-q gQter into life, keep the commandments." It was a vague
prescription. There were many commandments in those
days, not only the commandments of Moses but the
multitudinous requirements of the Rabbinical law. Was it
those commandments that Jesus meant, or did He allude to
new commandments of His own ? " What sort of command-
ments ? " asked the man ; and Jesus repeated certain familiar
precepts of the Decalogue, all belonging to the second table
which has to do, not with the worship of God, but with the
duty of man to man : ' " Thou shalt not kill : Thou shalt
not commit adultery : Thou shalt not steal : Thou shalt
not bear false witness : Honour thy father and thy mother." *
* Rahbi, Afar, Mnri are common, but Rabbi bone ox Mar bone nowhere occurs in
the Talmud. Lighifoot on Lk. xviii. 19.
^ Not that Jesus denied human goodness. Chrysost. In Matth. bdv : " He says
it, not by way of robbing men of goodness, but in comparison with the goodness
of God." Cf. Mt. vii, ii = Lk, xL 13.
* It is noteworthy that, when the whole Law is mentioned in the N.T., it is
commonly the second table that is meant. Cf. Rom. xiii. 8-9 ; Ja. ii. 8, 11.
*Mk. adds /n^ dTo<rre/)i}<r^7i, an interpolation summarising Exod. xx. 17, the
only commandment of the second table which Jesus omits. Mt.'s "Thou shalt
love thy neighbour as thyself " is also an interpolation (Orig. In Matth. xv. § 14),
It was a favourite saying of Jesus. Cf. Mt. xxii. 39 = Mk. zii. 31 ; Lk. z. 27.
RETREAT TO BETHANY 361
The answer was a grievous disappointment to the enquirer.
Those commandments and many more he had faithfully
and laboriously observed, thinking thereby to attain to peace ;
and, finding no rest for his soul in the way of legal righteous-
ness, he had come to Jesus, hoping to be shown some better
vay. And, behold, his hope had been disappointed I The
teacher of whom he had expected so much, pointed him
to the old unprofitable way. Sadly and wearily he replied :
" All this I observed from my youth. What lack I yet ? "
It was no idle boast; and, when Jesus heard the-seiiaii
pathetic protestation, His heart was moved, and He stepped ^j '^'j^jj*
forward and, after the manner of the Rabbis when a disciple K'^* '^ ^°„
pleased them, kissed his brow.^ His purpose was to reveal
to the man the inexorable stringency of God's requirements ;
and, since he had stood one test. He subjected him to
another more severe. He set before him a sacrifice which he
had never contemplated, and challenged him to face it. " If,"
He said, " thou wishest to be perfect, go, sell all that thou hast,
and give it to the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in
Heaven ; and come, follow Me." This staggered the man.
He was very wealthy, and he recoiled from the sacrifice. He
had believed that eternal life was his supreme desire, but all
the while there was something which he prized more, and
Jesus revealed it to him. " His face fell, and he went
away grieving."
Jesus made the demand in good earnest, but to suppose
that He here makes poverty a universal condition of disciple-
ship were a profound misconception. He dealt with men
after the manner of a skilful physician, discovering their
diverse plagues and administering to each the appropriate
remedy. Had Herod Antipas come to Him, enquiring what
he must do to inherit eternal life. He would, like John the
Baptist, have laid His hand on the plague-spot and answered :
" Put away thy brother's wife." Had Nicodemus come to
Him with a like enquiry. He would have said to him : " If
thou wishest to be perfect, go, conquer thy craven fear and
confess Me before men." And even so, when the young
ruler came to Him, He discovered what was the plague of his
* Mk. X, 21 : i^yiinjaev airrov, Lightfoot on Mk. x. 21 and John xiii. 23. Field,
Notes. Orig. In Ev. Matth. xv. § 14 (vet. interpr.): "dilexit cum, vel, osculatus
est cum."
362 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
heart, the canker that was eating into his soul. It was his
wealth, and Jesus laid His hand upon it and declared that
it must go. "If thou wishest to be perfect, go, sell all that
thou hast, and give it to the poor, and thou shalt have
treasure in Heaven ; and come, follow Me." Such is ever
the Lord's requirement. Whatever it be that a man prizes
most, He lays His hand upon it and claims for the Kingdom
of Heaven a prior devotion ; and " that man who has any-
thing in the world so dear to him, that he cannot spare it
for Christ, if He call for it, is no true Christian."
"How As the young ruler withdrew with downcast face and
shall a^ich sorrowful heart, making " the great refusal," Jesus spoke one
man enter ^f ^g stemest words that ever fell on mortal ears. " How
into tne
King- hardly," He exclaimed, " shall they that have riches enter into
the Kingdom of God ! " Then, marking the disciples' amaze-
ment, He reiterated the assertion, refusing to qualify it and
quoting a common proverb to lend it still greater emphasis :
" Children, how hard it is to enter into the Kingdom of God ! ^
It is easier for a camel to pass through the needle's eye than
Constema- for a rich man to enter into the Kingdom of God." ' The de-
*"Tweive^ claration fell like a thunder-bolt on the disciples. " They were
amazed at His words " ; " they were astonished exceedingly."
And no wonder ; for Jesus had struck a blow at their fondest
hope. They clung still to the Jewish ideal of the Messianic
Kingdom. What was it that had attached them to Jesus
at the outset and nerved them to endure the sacrifices and
hardships of discipleship ? It was chiefly no doubt the love
which they bore Him, yet mingled therewith they had an
ignobler motive. They looked for rich amends. When their
Master gained His throne. He would, they confidently antici-
pated, recompense His faithful followers who had continued
with Him in His days of humiliation. He would load them
with honours and award them the chief places at His royal
^ Mk. X. 24 T. R. : toi>j TetroiBitras ivl roit xMmo"'"'. * frigid gloss.
' Attempts have been made to tone down the metaphor (i) by substituting
ici/u\oi, "cable," for Kd/iTiXoi, and (2) by understanding the "needle's eye "as a
postern-gate. Cf. Shak. K. Rich. II, V. v :
" It is as hard to come as for a camel
To thread the postern of a needle's eye."
The monstrous exaggeration, however, is thoroughly Oriental. Cf. similar pro.
verbs in Lightfoot, all denoting impossibilities. The proverb occurs in Koran, viL
RETREAT TO BETHANY 363
court. They would have lands and houses, and they would
sit, in accordance with that generation's carnal dream of the
Messianic Kingdom, like the council of the Sanhedrin with
Him as their president, judging the nations of the world.^
Nor, when they saw the storm gathering, did they relinquish
their hope. They reasoned that it would merely precipitate
the consummation and compel their Master to cast aside His
inexplicable delay and, flashing forth in His rightful glory,
take unto Him His great power and reign.
Hence their consternation at that declaration of Jesus, peter's
They were dreaming of riches in the Kingdom of Heaven, 'i^^'io"*
and He told them that a rich man would hardly enter
into it. The announcement sounded like the death-knell
of their hopes. Were their sacrifices after all to go unre-
quited ? Was the recompense whereon they had confidently
reckoned, to be snatched from their grasp ? Was the hope
which had lured them to forsake their possessions and cast in
their lot with the homeless Son of Man, to prove all a delusion ?
Peter, ever the spokesman of the Twelve, gave voice to their
dismay. " Behold," he said, pointing the contrast betwixt
the Apostles and the young ruler, " we have left all and have
followed Thee. What then shall we get ? " ^ And how did
Jesus answer? On another occasion, with the design of
beating down in the hearts of His disciples that mercenary
spirit which serves God for the hope of glory and reward. He
had spoken a stern parable.' " Who is there of you," He Lk. xviL y.
said, " having a slave ploughing or shepherding, who on the "•
latter coming in from the field will say to him : ' Come aside
straightway and take thy place at table ' ; and will not rather
say to him : ' Get my supper ready, and gird thyself and wait
upon me while I eat and drink, and thereafter thou shalt eat
and drink ' ? Is he grateful to the slave for doing what was
commanded ? Even so ye also, when ye have done all that
* Lightfoot on John iii. 17. Cf. Enoch cviiL 12.
• Orig. Jn Matth. xv. § 22 : " Like an athlete after the contest enquiring of the
umpire if he knows not the prizes of the contest."
' The occasion of the parable is lost. Lk^ introduces it abruptly in an alien
setting. Cf. the precept of that ancient Rabbi, Antigonus of Socho : "Be not
as slaves that minister to the lord with a view to receive recompense ; but be
as slaves that minister to the lord without a view to receive recompense ; and let
the fear of Heaven be upon you." Taylor, Say. of Fatk. i. 3.
364 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
was commanded you, say : * We are unprofitable slaves :
only what it was our duty to do have we done.' " It is
not thus indeed that God deals with His people. He calls
them not slaves but sons ; He longs for their love and
requites their poor service with a rich recompense. Yet
such must ever be their attitude toward Him. They are His
bondsmen. He has bought them with a great price, and His
love constraineth them. They owe Him a debt which they
can never pay, and they gladly acknowledge it, realising
that, when they have done their utmost, they are still unpro-
fitable slaves, and, though they had done a thousand-fold
more, they would be still His debtors.
The Lord's Jesus might have answered Peter's question : " What then
"^ ^* shall we get ? " after this fashion ; but for very pity He
refrained Himself, touched by their distress. Nor did He smile
at His apostle's protestation : " Behold, we have left all and
have followed Thee." To any one but Jesus it might have
seemed a foolish boast. For what had Peter left for the
Master's sake ? Not lands and gold, but a life of toil and
poverty, the reeds by the Lake, his net, his boat, and his
fishercraft^ In the world's sight it was but little that the
disciples had left ; but it was all that they had, and Jesus did
not make light of their sacrifices for His sake. He made
answer in great pity and kindness, and spoke a gracious word
of reassurance. He told them that they would in no wise
lose their reward. All that they had anticipated, yea, and
more than they had anticipated, would come to pass.
" Verily I tell you," He says, employing the imagery
wherewith they decked their dreams, and surveying them the
while with that wondrous face of His,* " that ye that have
followed Me, in the Regeneration, when the Son of Man shall
sit upon His throne of glory, shall yourselves also take your
seats upon twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel.
And everyone who hath left brethren or sisters or father or
mother or children or lands or houses for My name's sake,
sheill receive manifold more and inherit eternal life." And the
» Orig. In Maith. xv. § 22 ; Chrysost. In Matth. Ixr.
2 Mt xix. 26 ; Mk. x. 27 : ifi^\t\pas. Cf. Chrysost. In Matth. Ixiv : Wpv
ifiHari Kal rp6.(fi <f>pirrov<raM ai^uy rif^ biAvoiav vapafivdrjad/jiepot Kal ri)w d'ywfiair
RETREAT TO BETHANY 365
promise was abundantly fulfilled, though after another fashion
than they expected, when they entered into the large and holy
brotherhood of the Church and inherited, not land and gold,
but the priceless possessions of righteousness, peace, and joy
in the Holy Ghost.
" But," Jesus added, gently insinuating a word of warning, Parabie of
there shall be many first last and last first " ; and in 1^* ^^'
' ' ourers in
explanation of this epigrammatic sentence He spoke a parable, t^e vine-
He told how a master went out to the market-place one
morning at day-break and hired men to work in his vineyard
at the usual wage of a denarius a day. About nine o'clock,
when three hours of the day were gone, he found others
standing idle in the market-place, and sent them also into the
vineyard ; in their case, however, making no stipulation about
wages but simply promising fair payment. Glad to get
employment, they agreed. He did the like about twelve
o'clock, and again about three. About five, when only one
working hour remained, he once more visited the market-place
and found others standing unemployed. They were the poorest
sort of labourers, and they had stood there the livelong day,
seeing others hired and hoping that their turn would come ;
but no one would have them. Their dejected aspect aroused
the compassion of the kindly farmer. " Go ye also into the
vineyard," he said, never mentioning wages ; and they obeyed
with ready alacrity, trusting to his benevolence and glad of the
chance of earning something, however little.
When six o'clock came and the day's work was ended,
the master told his factor to pay the men, bidding him begin
with those who had been hired last. They got a denarius a-
piece, a full day's wage, though they had worked only an hour
and shown themselves but sorry workmen. The first hired made
sure that they would get more, but to their disgust they got
only a denarius. To be sure, it was what they had bargained
for ; nevertheless they felt aggrieved. They all grumbled,
and one of them, letting his denarius lie, protested insolently,
addressing the factor but speaking out so that the master,
who was standing by, might hear : "These last fellows put in
a single hour,^ and thou hast put them on an equality with us
that have borne the burden of the day and the burning heat"
* liioM upaf fTolijaa.i', not dpydaarro. Cf. Ja. iv. 13 ; Acts xv. 33 ; xx. 3.
2 C
366 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
The master interposed. " Mate," he said, " I am doing thee no
injustice. Didst thou not bargain with me for a denarius ?
Take up thy pay, and begone ! It is my pleasure to give to
' this last fellow ' even as to thee. May I not do what I please
with my own ? Or is thine eye grudging because I am
generous ? " ^
Purpose of " Thus," said Jesus, " shall the last be first and the first
able : "(liTo last." The parable was designed, in the first instance, to
mCTcenary correct the mercenary spirit of the Twelve. If they worked
spirit of the for wages, they would get their wages, but they would be
' accounted mere hirelings. God would have His workmen
serve Him with no thought of recompense, not like those first
hired labourers who made their bargain ere they went into the
vineyard, but like those that went simply at the master's
bidding, leaving it to him to pay them whatever was just ;
nay, like " these last " who fell to work with never a thought
of requital, thankful that he had regarded them and trusting
to his generosity.
(2) to abate The parable was designed, moreover, to beat down the
^'gance. arrogance of the disciples. Did that sentence : "It is my
pleasure to give to * this last fellow ' even as to thee," never
ring in the ears of " the men who had been with Jesus " when,
because he had been hired late, they denied the apostleship of
St Paul ? And did the Jewish Christians never think of this
parable when they despised the Gentiles whom the Lord had
pitied and received into His service, making no difference
betwixt them and the Jews who had been hired at the first
hour? It is a lesson which the Church had need to learn in
apostolic days and which she still has need to lay to heart,
that the Lord will be served for love and not for wages, that
He has a special tenderness for the despised and the neglected,
and that He looks not at a man's work but at the spirit where-
with he labours.
* Qr. lotrod. ( 12, 4.
CHAPTER XXXIX
THE RAISING OF LAZARUS John xi. i.
S3.
"Ille suscitavit hominem, qui fecit hominem. Plus est hominem creare quam
resuscitare." — S. August.
Jesus was thus employed at Bethany beyond Jordan when sickness of
tidings reached Him from the other Bethany. Lazarus had ^*^™5-
fallen sick, and his anxious sisters had bethought them of the
dear Master and sent Him word. So absolute was their con-
fidence in Him that they made no request. They neither,
like the courtier of Capernaum, implored Him to hasten to John iv. 47.
the rescue, nor, like the centurion, suggested that, abiding Mt. viii. a.
where He was, He should send forth His word and heal their
brother. They simply informed Him how matters stood,
believing that, if only He knew, He would help, and leaving
it to Him to do whatever He might deem best.^ " Lord,"
their message ran, " he whom Thou lovest is sick."
The tidings moved Jesus. He recognised the hand of An answer
God in the sickness of Lazarus. He had been praying that ^Zl^^
some occasion might arise which would attest His divine
commission and serve at once as a final appeal to Jerusalem
and a confirmation of His disciples' faith ; and, behold, His
desire was fulfilled. " This sickness," He declared when He
heard the message, " is not unto death but for the glory of God,
that the Son of God," that is, the Messiah, " may be gloiified
through it." He recognised the Father's purpose, and, that
it might come to pass, remained for two days where He was.
Meanwhile the faith of the sisters was suffering a severe Death of
trial. No succour came ; Lazarus died ; ' their messenger ^■'***™*'
^ Aug. /« Joan. Ev. Tract, xlix. § S : " SuflScit ot noveris ; non enim amas et
deseris."
' The two Bethanies were some 20 miles apart. If the messenger set out early
in the day, he would reach Jesus that night. Jesus tarried two days and started the
next. He would arrive that evening. Since Lazarus had then been three full days
in his grave {v. 39), he must have died soon* after the messenger's departure, burial
following immediately {cf. P. E. F. Q.^ Oct. 1905, p. 349).
567
368 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
returned alone, and it would be a cruel aggravation of their
distress when they learned what Jesus had said. " This sick-
ness," He had declared, " is not unto death " ; nevertheless
His promise had been belied. Contrary, as it seemed, to His
assurance their brother was dead. They did not know the
Lord's purpose nor the love which was hidden beneath His
apparent neglect "Jesus loved Martha and her sister and
Lazarus. Therefore, when He heard that he was sick. He
remained in the place where He was." Yet so absolute was
their confidence in Him that they believed in Him still despite
His seeming coldness and the seeming falsification of His
prediction.
"Let us go After two days' tarrying Jesus bade the Twelve accompany
"'"ag"^" Him back to Judaea. All the while Lazarus had never been
out of His thoughts, but so little concern had He manifested
that they had forgotten the sickness of their friend. Moreover
His assurance, as it seemed, that it would not have a fatal
issue, had prevented them from feeling any alarm ; and, when
He proposed to return to Judaea, they never guessed His
errand but naturally supposed that He meant to adventure
Alarm of Himsclf once more in Jerusalem ; and they were alarmed for
TweiTC? His safety and no less for their own. " Rabbi," they cried,
" it is but now that the rulers were seeking to stone Thee,
and art Thou again going there?" He calmly replied,
apparently quoting a proverb : " Are there not twelve hours
in the day? If one walk in the day, he doth not stumble,
because he seeth the light of this world ; but, if one walk in
the night, he stumbleth, because the light is not in him."
" God's children," says old Thomas Fuller, " are immortal
while their Father hath anything for them to do on earth " ;
and, since the Father called Him thither, Jesus would return
to Judaea, confident that, until His time should be fulfilled.
His enemies were powerless. Then, thinking to reassure
them, He told the Twelve that Bethany and not Jerusalem
was His destination. " Lazarus our friend hath fallen asleep,
but I am going to awake him." They misunderstood the
beautiful metaphor, afterwards so familiar, and clutched at
the announcement as an argument against making the perilous
journey. Sleep, they represented, betokened returning health ; ^
1 Cf. Wetstein.
THE RAISING OF LAZARUS 369
and, if Lazarus had fallen asleep, he would recover, and there
was no need for Jesus to risk His life and theirs by going to
Bethany.^ Their reluctance convicted them of stupidity,
cowardice, and selfishness, and Jesus answered sadly and
not without severity : " Lazarus died ; and I rejoice on your
account that I was not there, that ye may believe. Nay,
let us go unto him." They were half disposed to let
Him go alone, but for very shame they durst not ; and
Judas the Twin, ever despondent yet a brave man and a
lover of Jesus at heart, determined their vacillation. " Let
us go too," he cried, " that we may die along with
Him."
The home at Bethany was plunged in woe. It was the Mourning
Jewish fashion that, when a man died, his friends should come Ek:cius.*°''
and condole with the survivors for the space of a week. Not ""• ^'^
till three days had elapsed was hope abandoned. It was
believed that for three days after death the soul hovered
round the sepulchre, fain to re-enter and reanimate its fleshly
tenement ; and stories, very credible in view of the fact that
in that sultry climate immediate interment was necessary,
were told of buried men awaking and coming out of their
graves. For three days the mourners clung to hope, and
would visit the grave, if haply they might find their dead
alive. But on the fourth day decomposition set in, and, when
they saw its ghastly disfigurement upon the face, their hope
perished, and, returning home, they abandoned themselves
to unrestrained lamentation.* There was no lack of mourners
in the house of Lazarus. He was beloved for his goodness
and gentleness by the folk among whom he dwelt, and even
in the adjacent capital he was had in honour. Despite his
intimacy with Jesus a large deputation of the rulers had come
to condole with his sisters.^
On the fourth day Jesus arrived. He would be descried Arrival of
afar off climbing with His disciples the Ascent of Blood, and ^""**
Martha was informed of His approach. She hastened out
and met Him ere He entered the village. " Lord," she cried, jesus atd
Martha.
' Chrysost. In Joan. Ixi : iyxS^ai povKSfierot r^r ixti irapoviriai>.
' See Lightfcx)t on John xi. 39.
* When R. Ismael's sons died, four Rabbis came to comfort him. Lightfoot on
John xi. 19.
370 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
" if Thou hadst been here, my brother had not died." Such
had been the plaint of the sisters all those heavy days. It
seemed as though Jesus had failed them in their sore need,
yet had they not utterly abandoned hope. They remembered
the daughter of Jalrus and the son of the widow of Nain, and
they deemed it possible that their brother might be restored
in like manner. Such was Martha's thought No sooner
had she exclaimed reproachfully : " Lord, if Thou hadst been
here, my brother had not died ! " than she added : " Even
now I know that all that Thou askest of God, God will give
Thee," She hoped that He would recall Lazarus to life, and
her heart sank within her when He answered : " Thy brother
shall rise again." She would have rejoiced had He said,
" Thy brother shall live again " ; but when He said " He
shall rise again," she thought of the Resurrection at the Last
Day, and supposed that He was offering her merely one of
the trite consolations of religion. She did not indeed disdain
that glorious hope ; but the Resurrection seemed far away,
and her heart craved present succour. Jesus hastened to
uplift her drooping spirit, and vouchsafed to her a great
reassurance. " I," He said, " am the Resurrection and the
Life. He that believeth in Me, even if he die, shall live ;
and every one that Hveth and believeth in Me shall never
die.^ Believest thou this ? " It was impossible for Martha
to comprehend then the full significance of that declaration,
yet it was not wholly hidden from her. It was a doctrine of
the later Jewish theology that, when the Messiah came. He
would summon Israel, at all events the righteous, from their
graves to share His glory.* Perhaps this doctrine occurred to
her, and her confidence in Jesus would reinforce it, emboldening
her to believe, on His assurance, more than she could under-
stand. " Yea, Lord," she answered ; " I have believed that
Thou art the Messiah, the Son of God, He that cometh into
the world." '
* This use of " life " and " death " in a double sense, natural and spiritual, was
characteristic of Jesus. Cf. Mt. viii. 22 = Lie ix. 60. Aug. In Joan. Ev. Tract.
xlix. § 15 : " Unde mors in anima? Quia non est fides. Unde mors in corpore?
Quia non est ibi anima. Ergo animx tax anima fides est."
' Cf. Charles on Enoch U. i.
• Simply a strong confession of the Messiahship of Jesas, 6 vlbt rol Qeoi and i tU
rbp KbafL. ipx- being variations of i Xpivrdt.
lamenta*
tion.
THE RAISING OF LAZARUS 371
Therewith she returned to the house where Mary sate ^ Jesus and
mourning, ignorant of the Lord's arrival ; and, knowing the **^*
enmity of the rulers, whispered to her : " The Teacher hath
come and is calling for thee." Mary started up and sped
away with winged haste. She found Him outside the village
where Martha had left Him ; and, more impassioned than her
sister, she fell at His feet, those blessed feet which she had
bedewed with tears on that great day when He cleansed her lic vii. 38.
soul from its defilement in the house of Simon the Pharisee. ^°^ ",':? •
' ZX. 17 (Ml.
and which were ever after sacred in her eyes. Like Martha xxviii 9).
she cried : " Lord, if Thou hadst been here, my brother had
not died ! " but she said no more. The dear Lord's presence
sufficed her. She sobbed out the sorrow of her heart at His
feet and left it all with Him.
The company of mourners had marked Mary's hasty Jewish
departure, and, surmising that she was going to weep at the
sepulchre, they had followed after her. They found her
weeping at Jesus' feet, and, with the wild abandonment of
Oriental grief, they mingled their lamentations with hers.
Examples of Jewish lamentation are found in the Talmud,
and one marvels at their utter hopelessness, more befitting
heathen than worshippers of the living and true God. When
the sons of R. Ismael died, four Rabbis came to condole
with him. " Should we not," said R. Tarphon, " argue by
the less and the greater ? If it was necessary to bewail
Nadab and Abihu, much more the sons of R. Ismael." Then Lev. x. 6^
Joses of Galilee took up the refrain : " Should we not argue
from the less to the greater ? If all Israel mourned for
Abijah the son of Jeroboam, for the sons of Ismael should we x Kings
not weep much more ? " ' Such lamentation would now "*• ^3-
assail the ears of Jesus, and He was greatly displeased, even
as on that like occasion when he entered the house of Jalrus
and, finding a company of mourners " weeping and shrieking," mic y. 38 :
cried : " Withdraw ! Why are ye making a tumult and weep- *^'* ** '^
ing ? The child is not dead but sleepeth." A storm of grief
and indignation swept His soul. His brow was knit, His lips
quivered, His breast heaved, His breath came quick and
' iKOLOiitTo {v, 20), iydpereu {v, 29). Daring the days of moorning the beds
were lowered and the mourners sat on them, the comforters sitting on the ground,
lightfoot on John zL 19. ■ /Hd, Cf. p. 300.
372 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
short.^ " Where have ye laid him ? " He demanded. " Lord,"
they answered, " come and see."
•'jesu5 According to the Jewish requirement the burial-place was
*^^ ' situated at least a mile outside the village,^ and on the way
thither the Lord's emotion found relief in tears. What made
Him weep ? It was not simply His resentment of that out-
burst of heathenish lamentation. Neither was it sorrow for
the death of His friend. It was natural that Martha and
Mary should weep for their bereavement, but wherefore should
Jesus weep, knowing that Lazarus would presently be restored
to life ? In truth it was naught else than this knowledge
that occasioned His tears. " He was about," said one long
ago,' " to raise him for His own glory ; He wept for him,
almost saying : ' One that has sailed within the haven, I am
calling back to the billows ; one that has already been
crowned, I am bringing again to the contests.' " If St Paul
Phil. L 83. had the desire to depart and be with Christ, since it was very
much better, what marvel that Jesus, who knew the felicity
of Heaven, should grieve to summon Lazarus thence and
bring him back to the strife and sorrow of this mortal state ?
Remembering the gladness of the Father's House where He
had dwelt from everlasting and whence He had come on His
errand of redemption. He recognised it as no disaster but an
exceeding gain to fall on sleep and wake in that home of bliss
and inherit the glory which God hath prepared for them that
love Him.
Diverse The rulers in the company were watching Jesus narrowly,
™o/the and the spectacle of His emotion set them talking and dis-
miers. puting. Once more there was a diversity of opinion among
ix. i6° X. them. Some exclaimed : " See how he loved him ! " but
'9- others jeered. This was the man who had passed for a
miracle-worker and only the other week had created such a
stir in Jerusalem by pretending to have opened a blind man's
' iyePpin^ffaro t<^ rvejifiari Kcd iTdpaiev iavrhy : an energetic and picturesque
description. For the meaning of evi^pifi. cf. p. 114. Chrysost understands : " He
checked His emotion," mastering it with a violent eflfort. But ry Tt-fu/iart cone
sponds to iv iavrif {v. 38), which discountenances also Wright's rendering {Syrwps.
P- '39)» "sighed deeply in His breath." eVd/). iavr.'. cf. Pss. xlii. 5, il ; xliii. 5
(LXX). " He threw Himself into a state of agitation," the indignation of His -rvivfia
appearing in His bodily movements. There is a touch of docetism in Augustine's
comment : " Quis eum posset, nisi se ipse, turbare ? "
* Cf. p. 231, n. 3 * Isidor. Pelus. E/. iL 173.
THE RAISING OF LAZARUS 373
eyes ; and here he was shedding unavailing and impotent
tears ! " Could not this fellow," they sneered, maligant even
in the presence of death, " the opener of the blind man's eyes,
have prevented this man also from dying ? " ^ Thus they
exulted in what they deemed the Lord's discomfiture.
Their sneer reached His ears, and, stifling the indigna- The
tion which anew swelled within Him, He approached the ™'" ^
sepulchre. It was a cave hewn out of the rock, and the
entrance was closed with a great slab of stone. " Take away
the stone," He commanded. Martha remonstrated. It was
the fourth day since the burial, and decomposition had set in.
She was sure of it, since she had that morning visited the
sepulchre and seen on the dear face the loathsome change
which warned the mourners to relinquish their last fond hope ;
and, thinking that Jesus meant merely to take a last look at
His friend's remains, she would fain dissuade Him from dis-
closing the ghastly spectacle, " Said I not unto thee," Jesus cf. w. 4,
replied, " ' If thou believest, thou shalt see the glory of God ' ? " ^^'^
He knew well the dead man's condition, yet it in no wise
dismayed Him. On the contrary. He rejoiced that things
had gone thus far, since the miracle would carry the greater c/. v. 15.
conviction. Had He arrived a day earlier, the Jews, deeming
it always possible, until decomposition appeared, that the soul
might reanimate its clay, would have pronounced it no miracle
at all. It had been thus ordered by the providence of God
and not by the design of Jesus, who did not discover until
He arrived at Bethany that Lazarus had been four days in Cf. v. 17.
his sepulchre. And Jesus recognised all this as no happy
chance but the operation of God and an answer to His prayer.
Standing by the open sepulchre He poured out His gratitude
to the Father whose hand had opened up His way before
Him and led Him to that great hour, vouchsafing the oppor-
tunity which He had craved for the manifestation of His
* Cf. Chrysost. In Joan. Ixii. The adversative ii, contrasting the second
speech with the first {cf. v. 46), and the consequent indignation of Jesos prove de-
cisively that the question was a sneer. According to Strauss their reference to "this
heterof^eneoas and inadequate example " and their silence about the two earlier re-
suscitations of the dead prove that the latter were unknown to the Fourth Evangelist.
It was, however, natural that they should quote the recent miracle, the immediate
ccuus belli. Doubtless they had heard the fame of the two miracles in distant
Galilee {cf. Lk. vii. 17) ; but it was an old story, nor was it their policy to revive it«
374 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
glory. Not for Himself had He sought it, since He had the
assurance of His Father's approbation ; but the disciples and
the Jews needed such a manifestation. " Father," He said, " I
thank Thee that Thou didst hearken unto Me. Yet I knew
that Thou always hearkenest unto Me, but for the sake of
the multitude that standeth round I spake, that they may
believe that Thou didst commission Me." ^ Then He cried :
Cf. Mt. « Lazarus, come forth ! " He cried, says the Evangelist,
Mk. XV. 37 " with a great voice." It was the shout of Death's Conqueror,
=Lk.xjuH. ^j^j ^^ dead man heard His voice, and, when he heard it, he
Cf. John V. lived and came forth, all wrapped in his grave-clothes.^
' " Loose him," said Jesus, " and let him go his way."
Resolution There was already a division of opinion among those
Sanhedrin rulers who had come from Jesusalem to condole with Martha
^^uTdeSh^ and Mary ; and the miracle made it more decided. Many of
them believed in Jesus ; but there were others who " would
Lk. xvi. j^Q^ J3g persuaded though one had risen from the dead," and
they betook themselves to Jerusalem and reported to their
colleagues of the party of the Pharisees, being probably
Pharisees themselves, what had transpired. The story made
a great sensation among the rulers, and, convening the
Sanhedrin, they debated what course they should pursue.
They foresaw that a miracle so amazing must procure Jesus
a vast access of popularity ; and, knowing the jealous
surveillance which Rome exercised over turbulent Palestine,
they dreaded the consequences, should the multitude rally
round Him and acclaim Him the Messianic King of Israel.
" What are we doing," cried the panic-stricken councillors,
* forasmuch as this fellow is doing many signs ? If we let
him thus alone, they will all believe in him ; and the
Romans will come and take away our place " and our nation
both." They shuddered at the storm of vengeance which
would sweep over the devoted land, destroying their holy
Temple and obliterating every vestige of Jewish nationality.
The president of the assemblage was the High Priest
'Origen (/«y<7a«. xxviii. % 5) thinks that Jesus gave thanks because He had
observed that the soul of Lazarus had returned into his body.
"Augustine (/«yi9a». Ev. Tract, xlix. § 24) thinks it a further miracle that he
should have been able to walk forth thus swathed. But, if the swathings were
wrapped about each limb separately, they would not interfere with his movements.
•The Temple. Cf. AcU vL 13-4.
THE RAISING OF LAZARUS 375
Caiaphas, a member of the Sadducean order, and he broke in
upon the excited deliberations of his colleagues. The course
was clear : Jesus must be got out of the way. It was indeed
a violent measure, but what was a single life in comparison
with the interests at stake ? " Ye know nothing whatever,"
he blustered with Sadducean insolence ^ and the air of a strong
man who sees what the occasion demands and will not palter,
" nor do ye reckon that it is in your interest that one man
should die for the people and that the whole nation should
not perish."
When he thus spoke, the truculent Sanhedrist uttered a The pro-
deeper truth than he knew. " This he said not of himself," cJapiuL
observes the Evangelist, " but, being High Priest that event-
ful year,2 he prophesied that Jesus was about to die for the
nation, and not for the nation only but to gather together
into one all God's dispersed children." It was an uncon-
scious prophecy, and it is the more striking that it was
spoken by the High Priest All unwittingly he proclaimed
Jesus the true Paschal Lamb. There was tragic irony in the
situation. In his masterful pride Caiaphas was working out
God's eternal purpose ; and, when his colleagues acquiesced in
his policy, they were defeating the end which they thought to
compass, and bringing upon their nation the very disaster
which they strove to avert. In that hour when they decreed
the death of Jesus, they sealed the doom of Israel.
ic/. p. 43.
' The office of High Priest was originally held for life, but in our Lord's day the
High Priests were appointed and deposed at the pleasure of Ilerod and the
Romans. Strauss, following Chrysostom and Augustine, imputes to the Evangelist
the erroneous notion that it was a yearly office ; but apx^ptiis Stv rov tviaxnoZ iKtlpov
{yv. 49, 51 ; c/I xviii. 13) does not imply that Caiaphas was High Priest only fo*
that year, but that that memorable year fell during his pontificate.
John x\. 54
7; Mt. XX
i7 9=Mk CHAPTER XL
X. 32-4=
Lie xviii.
Vx^^= GOING UP TO THE PASSOVER
Mk. X. 35-
xxii.25-6)'; "Allin the April evening,
Mt XX. 29- April airs were abroad ;
34= Mk. X. The sheep with their Utile Iambs
4^"5^.fr ^ ■ Passed me by on the road,
xviu. 35-
43 ! L-^' " The lambs were weary, and crying
Ml xxvi' With a weak, human cry ;
6-13= Mk. I thought on the Lamb of God
xiv. 3-9= Going meekly to die."— Katherine Tynan.
John xii. i-
II.
Retreat to AWARE of the Sanhcdrin's resolution Jesus would not
Ephraim. ^dventure Himself in Jerusalem. His time to die had not
yet come, and, until it came. He would avoid the rage of His
enemies. Had He returned to Bethany beyond Jordan, He
would have been within their grasp, and He betook Himself
to the town of Ephraim, twenty miles north of Jerusalem and
five north-east of Bethel, on the margin of the wilderness of
Judaea.^ Ephraim is unknown to fame.* It was situated in
a wheat-growing district, and the Jews had a proverb " Carry
straw to Ephraim," much like our " Carry coals to Newcastle." '
What took Jesus thither ? For one reason, Ephraim was
close to the Samaritan frontier,* and, in the event of any
attempt on the part of the rulers to arrest Him, He could
have escaped over the border. The Samaritans had indeed
Lk. ix. 51- shown themselves unfriendly when He was travelling south-
3- ward ; but the self-same animosity against the Jews which had
made them His enemies when His face was in the direction
of Jerusalem, would have procured Him their good offices had
He come amongst them a fugitive from Jewish violence.
• Jer. De Lee. Hehr. ; Schiirer, H.J. P. I. i. p. 246.
' The very name is uncertain. Some MSS. read 'Eippefi. Chrysost: E^^pari.
• Menach. 85. I : " Dixerunt Jannes et Jambres Mosi : * Tune stramen affers in
Ephraim ? ' " Cf. Lightfoot, ii. p. 43.
• It had been a Samaritan town antil B.C. 145, when it was granted by Demetrius
II. to the Maccabean High Priest Jonathan and united to Judaea, i Mace. xi. 34.
37*
GOING UP TO THE PASSOVER 377
Moreover, Ephraim was nigh to the wilderness where at the
outset of His ministry He had been tempted of the Devil ;
and it may be that during His sojourn there He would revisit
the scene of His early conflict, fortifying Himself by remem-
brance of His triumph for the last, dread ordeal.
There He tarried till the Passover was at hand, and then Departur*
He set out with the Twelve for Jerusalem. They did not ^em?*
strike direct across the wilderness of Judaea but travelled
south-eastward for some twelve miles until in the neighbour-
hood of Jericho they joined the highway from the north,
Ephraim sent its contingent of worshippers to the Feast, and
these went in company with Jesus and the Twelve. It was
customary for the pilgrims to sing glad songs as they journeyed Ps. xIH. 4.
to the Holy City, but that train marched in silence. Jesus
strode on in advance, and His companions followed after Him,
the disciples in amazement and the rest in fear.^ It was His
bearing that so impressed them. He knew what was His
journey's goal, and, as He travelled amid the sunshine, the
shadow of death was upon His soul. Yet He did not bear
Himself as one dismayed, else had the disciples gathered
about Him and sought to comfort Him. He walked majestic.
Never had they seen Him so kingly.
Thus they went their way, and presently Jesus took the Third an-
Twelve aside and for the third time forewarned them of His ||fJJ,"*^ofjj,e
Passion. On the first occasion He had announced simply Pfssion.
^ •' Mt. XVI 21.
that He must suffer many things at the hands of the rulers, =Mk. viu.
and be killed, and on the third day be raised. On the second 32"
He had added the tragic particular of His betrayal. Here He j^.'" f^'^ik
unfolds the whole of the grim drama : His betrayal, His jx. 3i=Lk.
condemnation. His surrender to the Romans to be mocked,
insulted, spat upon, scourged, and crucified, and His resur-
rection on the third day. Again He spoke to uncomprehend-
ing ears. The thoughts of the Twelve were occupied with the
miracle which they had lately witnessed at Bethany. At last,
they imagined, the crisis so long postponed had arrived.
Their Master could no longer hold back. He must manifest c/. Lk.
Himself in His rightful glory and inaugurate His Messianic "^ ***
reign. They received the announcement in bewildered silence.
> Mk. X. 32 : ol Si dKoXovOovvres, " the others, as they followed " T. R. rai cucoX.
abliteiates this significant touch.
378 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
Ambition How far it was from dispelling their worldly dream
° and^^r appears from an incident which presently occurred. They
"""• had, it would seem, reached the highway from the north
and, probably by appointment, joined company with a train
of Galilean pilgrims.^ Among the latter was Salome, the
mother of James and John. The fame of the miracle at
Bethany had been noised abroad and must have reached
Capernaum. She would eagerly question her sons regarding
it, and betwixt them they arranged a cunning plot* Probably
they had long cherished the design, and now, they thought,
. the time had arrived for carrying it into effect. The mani-
festation of the Kingdom of Heaven was imminent, and there-
after would ensue the distribution of honours among the Lord's
faithful followers. The Twelve had frequently debated who
should be greatest in the Kingdom, and James and John had
been not the least loud in the assertion of their claims. And
Salome, with maternal solicitude for her sons' advancement, had
fanned the flame of their ambition. Since the chief honours
must indubitably fall to the favoured three, Peter seemed
their only rival, and their plot was to oust him by extorting
from Jesus a pledge that they should have the pre-eminence.
It must, they recognised, be now or never ; yet, when the
moment for action came, they held back. They shrank from
approaching Jesus and unfolding their ambition before Him.
Did they remember His severity whenever the Twelve had
betrayed their worldly imaginations? Did they recall the
•* Get thee behind Me, Satan ! " which He had hurled at Peter,
and dread lest they should suffer a like rebuff? It is indeed
no marvel that, when the moment arrived, they hesitated to
approach Him and prefer their ambitious request. Salome,
however, less acquainted with the Master's spirit, felt no
scruple. She would rally them on their cowardice.
" Was the hope drunk
Wherein ye dress'd yourselves? hath it slept since?
And wakes it now, to look so green and pale
At what it did so freely ? . . . Are ye afeard
To be the same in your own act and valour,
As ye were in desire ? "
* Unless indeed Salome had been with them at Ephraim.
' Ml (xx. 20 ; cf. Mk. z. 35) mentions Salome's intervention, moved perhaps by the
same solicitade for the Apostles' credit which made Lk. omit the incident altogether.
GOING UP TO THE PASSOVER 379
Her remonstrances proved unavailing, and there was nothing
for it but that she should herself undertake the office of
approaching Jesus and negotiating with Him on their behalf.
And she discharged it with consummate skill. She Her
approached Jesus, so soon to be a King, in the fashion of^""*°*
a suitor,^ even as Esther approached Ahasuerus, and prayed ^^' **
Him to pledge Himself beforehand, after the large manner of c/Mtij».
Oriental despots, to grant whatever she might request. " What ^^'^ ***
dost thou wish ? " He enquired, brushing aside her artful
ruse ; and she unfolded her plan. " Say the word that these
my two sons may sit one on Thy right and the other on
Thy left^ in Thy Kingdom." It was Salome that spoke, but
she was only the mouthpiece of her sons ; and to them Jesus
made answer, not in anger but in sorrow that they should still
be so worldly-minded. " Ye know not," He said, " what ye c/. Ps. ri.
are asking. Can ye drink the cup which I am drinking, ^^^i. 3,.
or with the baptism wherewith I am being baptised, be c/. Lie
baptised ? " ' With light-hearted assurance they returned : "'" *°'
" We can." They imagined that Jesus was going up to Jeru-
salem to claim His throne, and they allowed that it could not
be won without a struggle. When He asked if they could
drink His cup and be baptised with His baptism, they con-
ceived that He was challenging their courage to bear their
parts in the preliminary struggle ; and, believing that, though
the ordeal might be severe, the issue was certain, they assured
Him of their resolution. Far otherwise had they spoken, had
they known whereto they were pledging themselves, had it been
revealed to them that a week later He would be lifted up, not
on a throne but on a cross, with a cross on His right and a
cross on His left. Their love for their Master would surely
have kept them faithful ; but they would have spoken with
faltering lips, and their answer would have been a trembling
prayer for strength to drink that bitter cap and endure that
bloody baptism.
Jesus foresaw the stem reality, and He knew that, how- The Loni'«
' TDoaifyxjcadoA. of (l) a worshipper approaching God : cf, Hebr. iv. i6 ; vii. aS;
xi. 6 ; (2) an inferior approaching a superior : cf^ Mt. xiii. 27 ; Mt. xxvii. 58 = Lk.
xxiii. 52 ; (3) a candidate approaching an elector : Wetstein on Mk. x. 35.
' The places of honour. Cf. Wetstein on Mt xx. 21.
* According to Mk.'s report (for xb-w Mt. has ft<XX« rffcv) Jesas speaks as
though the Passion had already begun.
38o THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
ever they might quail at the outset, the Apostles would
ultimately emerge victorious from the ordeal. " The cup
which I am drinking," He said, " ye shall drink, and with the
baptism wherewith I am being baptised, ye shall be baptised ;
but to sit on My right or left is not Mine to give, but it i?
for them for whom it hath been prepared." ^ The Apostles
pictured the Kingdom of Heaven after the pattern of the
corrupt kingdoms of the earth, where the honours were
bestowed upon the prince's favourites ; and Jesus tells them
that its honours must be won. They are not gifts but rewards.
" Let us suppose," says St Chrysostom, "that there is an umpire,
and many good athletes enter the lists. Two of the athletes,
who are very intimate with the umpire, approach him and say:
'Cause us to be crowned and proclaimed victors,' on the
strength of the goodwill and friendship betwixt them. But
he says to them : ' This is not mine to give, but it is for them
for whom it has been prepared by their efforts and sweat' "
The Lord's words sank into the hearts of the twain, and,
though hidden at the moment, their meaning was afterwards
revealed. Were they in John's thoughts when he wrote :
Rev.iii.2i;" He that overcometh — I will give to him to sit with Me on
^i. 12. My throne, as I also overcame and took My seat with My
Father on His Throne " ?
Greatness The incident was abundantly distressing to Jesus. It was
Kingdom ^° untimeous, following hard after that solemn intimation of
of Heaven. His Passion. And the actors belonged to the inner circle of His
chosen. They had enjoyed His especial favour and fellowship,
yet they remained unpurged of worldly and selfish ambition.
Moreover, their petition kindled resentment in the breasts of
their comrades, and this grieved Jesus. He marked the in-
dignation of the ten, and, calling them all about Him, He read
them another lesson in self-abnegation, the fundamental law
Mt. xviii. of the Kingdom of Heaven. On a previous occasion He had
ijj'^~.7_; set a child in their midst and bidden them take him for their
Lk. IX. 46- model ; but now He sets Himself forth as their example. If
they would be great in the Kingdom of Heaven, let them be
as its King. " Ye know that the princes of the Gentiles lord
it over them, and the great men exercise authority over them.
Not thus is it among you ; but whosoever desireth among you
^ Mt.'s inri rou Ilarpds fuu is a gloss which spoils the argument.
I
GOING UP TO THE PASSOVER 381
to become great, must be your servant ; and whosoever desjreth
among you to be first, must be your slave ; even as the Son of
Man came not to be served but to serve and to give His life a
ransom for many."
This great saying has a priceless value. Though He"Aransom
continually emphasised the supreme importance and the °' ™^^'
absolute necessity of His death, Jesus never taught a doctrine
of the Atonement, leaving it to His Apostles, under the
guidance of the Holy Spirit, to penetrate that sacred
mystery and discover its significance. Nevertheless He let
fall several pregnant suggestions, and the apostolic teaching
is naught else than an explication of these. He spoke in
sacramental language of Himself as "the living bread that John vi. 50.
came down from Heaven, that a man might eat thereof and ^' ^^'
not die," of His flesh as " true food " and His blood as " true
drink." Again, He called Himself the True Shepherd and
specified it as the characteristic of the True Shepherd that john x. n-
He laid down His life for the sheep, to rescue them from 3- '7-8.
the devouring wolf. And now He speaks of " giving His life
a ransom for many." What image would this conjure up in
the minds of the disciples ? It might suggest the half-shekel
which every Jewish adult paid yearly at the Passover-season
into the Temple-treasury, " a ransom for his soul unto the Exod, xxx.
Lord " ; ^ but there was another application of the word ^^ *
which could hardly escape them. Her stormy history had
familiarised the Jewish nation with the usages of war ; and
when, hard after His allusion to the tyrannous princes of the
Gentiles, Jesus spoke of a "ransom," the disciples would
think of the redemption of captives taken in war and held in
bondage by the conqueror.* Here is, in germ, the apostolic
doctrine of the Atonement. " As many," says St Paul, " as GaL ui 10.
are of the works of the Law, are under a curse. Christ ^^'
bought us out from the curse of the Law, having been made
a curse for us." And surely St Peter had this great saying
^ Brace, Kingd. of Cod, pp. 238 sqq. Ritschl makes out a reference to Job
xxxiii. 23-34 ; Ps. xlix. 7.
* Suid. : X«>r/ja* fuc6b%' tj rd rapexifieya inrip i\tv0eplai irl t<^ XvrpuaaaOau fiap-
^dpup SovXtlas. X&rpop occurs nowhere else in N.T. ; but dvTtkvrpo* in I Tim.
ii. 6 : XvTpovaOm, Lk. xxiv. 21 ; Tit. ii. 14 ; I Pet. i. 18 : Xiw/wirr^i Acts vii. 35 :
"kCrrpuHiit Lk. i. 68 ; ii. 38 ; Hebr. ix. 12 : dvoX&rpwffis Lk. xxi. 28 ; Rom. iii.
24; etc.
2 D
1
\
382 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
I Pet. L i8 of the Master in his thoughts when he wrote : " Not with
corruptible things, silver or gold, were ye ransomed, but with
precious blood, as of a lamb blameless and spotless, even the
blood of Christ." It is only a metaphor,^ but it expresses a
truth which is the very heart of the Gospel and without
which there is no Gospel at all : th^t Jesus died for the sin
of the world and by His death won eternal life for all
believers.^
At the gate Proceeding on their way, Jesus and His retinue reached
o jenc o. jgj,jj,jjQ which, though it bore the ancient name, stood
Deut. about a mile and a half from the ancient City of Palms.
""'^* ^' It was a fine city, one of the triumphs of Herodian archi-
tecture, yet withal a heathenish sort of place with its theatre,
its amphitheatre, and its hippodrome. As He approached
the gate. He was greeted with importunate cries. They
Blind Bar- came from a blind man, named Bartimaeus,^ who sat by
imaius. ^j^g wayside craving alms of the passers by. It was an
excellent station, especially when the troops of pilgrims were
arriving at the city on their way to Jerusalem. He heard
the tramp of many feet and the acclamation of many voices,
and, enquiring what it all meant, learned that Jesus the
Nazarene was passing by. The name awoke in his breast
the hope of a better boon than alms, and he cried lustily :
" Son of David, have pity on me ! " It is significant that he
should have given Jesus this Messianic title which the
common folk loved. The miracle at Bethany had served its
purpose. The fame of it had gone abroad, carrying con-
viction that Jesus was none other than the Messiah, and
Bartimasus was simply echoing the cry which was in every
^ It is simply riding the metaphor to death to raise the question to whom the
ransom was paid. Origen (/« Matth. xri. § 8) answered : To the Devil ; and
Gregory of Nyssa represented the Atonement as a trick practised on the Devil, who
accepted Christ as a ransom for mankind but found that he could not retain Him,
thus losing both the price and the purchase. Peter Lombard puts the theory in
one gruesome sentence : " The Cross was a mouse-trap baited with Christ's blood"
(Sent. ii. 19). In spite of occasional protests the revolting theory held the field
nntil Anselm ( 1033- 1 100) dealt it its death-blow in his Cur Deus Home? the
greatest book on the Atonement ever written,
" Jerome on Mt. xx. 28 : '* fro multis, id est, pro his qui credere voluerint."
* Mk. X. 46. 6 vlos Ti/jmIov is an interpretation of the patronymic Bartimaeus {cf.
Bartholomew), whether an explanation of the Evangelist for the sake of his
Roman readers {c/. xiv. 36 : a/3^a 6 ran}/)) or a marginal gloss imported into the
text. On the discrepancies of the three narratives c/, Introd. § 12, i.
I ^
GOING UP TO THE PASSOVER 383
mouth and which was soon to ring through the streets of ml zzl 9.
Jerusalem, Resenting the interruption,^ the bystanders bade
him hold his peace, but he only redoubled his clamour.
Jesus stopped. He might have healed the man where he
sate, but He would fain have larger dealings with him.
" Call him," He commanded ; and instantly they ceased from
their chiding. " Courage ! " they said to the blind man ;
" rise ! He is calling thee." Eagerly Bartimaeus obeyed and,
casting off his cloak, made his way through the crowd in the
direction whence that gracious voice had come. " What wilt
thou," asked Jesus, "that I do to thee?" " RabbQni," he
answered, using the most honourable title that he knew,*
" that I may recover sight." " Go thy way," said Jesus ; " thy
faith hath saved thee." Forthwith sight came to the blind
eyes, and Bartimaeus attached himself to the throng that
followed Jesus, another trophy of His grace, another voice to
swell the chorus of His praise.
Jesus entered the city, and the acclamations of His followers Progress
attracted an ever-increasing throng. It was toward evening, cu^."^ ' '
and the travellers must halt at Jericho. Jerusalem was some
fifteen miles distant, and not only was the road perilous after
nightfall, being infested by bandits, but the next day, it would
seem, was the Sabbath.^ It was toward evening, and at six
o'clock the Sabbath began. Jesus took His way through the
streets in quest of a lodging. It was a priestly city,* but the
priests were His bitter enemies, and none of them would re-
ceive the Redeemer and minister to His necessities. Per-
chance, however, amid that acclaiming throng there might be
one who would think of befriending the weary Son of Man
and bid Him welcome to his house. He went his homeless
way through the city, making His mute appeal.
Jericho was a prosperous place. Situated in a fertile z&cchxus
plain 820 feet below sea-level, it enjoyed a tropical climate ga'hew.
and was surrounded by rich groves of palm and balsam trees.
' Euth. Zig. : els r^jf rifiiif rod 'I»j<roC us evox^ovTas avrfw. Hilary supposes
that the rebuke came from unbelievers who did not like to hear Jesus styled the
Messiah. To them He was only " Jesos the Naiarene." Cf. Chrysost. Serm. <U
Cac, et Zacch.
» Rabbi= " my Rab" ; Rahb&ni^ " my Rabban." Rabbi was greater than Rab
and Rabban than Rabbi. Cf. Taylor, Say. of Path. ii. i, n. I.
» Cf Append, VI. « Cf p. 328,
384 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
The revenue which accrued therefrom required the presence
of a large staff of tax-gatherers ; and, when Jesus came thither,
one of the chief of that hated fraternity was a man called
Uc ziz. 9. Zacchaeus.^ He was a Jew. A Jew and a tax-gatherer, he
was doubly odious in the eyes of his countrymen. He was
rich, and he might have brazened it out, enjoying his wealth
and scorning public opinion. But he had a heart for better
things. His conscience was ill at ease and his soul unsatisfied.
He had heard the fame of Jesus, and what appealed to him
most would not be the miracles of the wondrous prophet but
His kindness to the outcasts. He was nicknamed " the Friend
of Tax-gatherers and Sinners," and He had actually admitted
a couple of tax-gatherers into the company of His disciples.
Perchance He might do for Zacchaeus what He had done for
Levi and James, lifting him also out of the slough of sin and
helping him to a better life,
fiis deteiv He heard the tramp of many feet and the murmur of
""^jesus? "lany voices, he saw the crowd, and learned, like Bartimaeus,
that Jesus the Nazarene was passing by. Eagerly he joined
the throng and strove to get near to Jesus and see His face
and haply engage His attention. But his efforts were unsuc-
cessful. The multitude knew him. It was seldom that they
had the tax-gatherer in their midst, and they would welcome
the opportunity of venting their hatred. When he tried to
push in, they would jostle him and pelt him with insults. It
was impossible for him to get near Jesus, and he would fall
back breathless and dishevelled to the outskirts of the crowd.
Yet he would not desist. Jesus was there, and he was re-
solved to see Him. He was a little man and could not see
over the heads of his neighbours. What should he do ? A
happy thought struck him. Jesus had passed through the
city and was approaching the southern gate. Just outside
stood a sycamore tree, overshadowing the road with its spread-
ing boughs.^ Zacchasus darted ahead and, climbing the tree,
^ The O.T. Zaccai, i.e. "pure." Cf. Ezr. ii. 9. The father of R. Jochanan,
himself a Rabbi, was called Zaccai, and he lived at Jericho about the time when
Jesus visited it See Lightfoot. Clem. Alex. (Strem. iv. 6. § 35) says that some
identified our Zacchaeus with Matthias. This is, of course, impossible, since
Matthias had companied with the disciples firom the beginning of the Lord's
ministry (Acts i. 21-2).
' See art. Sycamore in Hastings' D. B, The sycamore is a lai^e tree, "some-
GOING UP TO THE PASSOVER 385
waited till the procession came up. From that coign of vantage
he could see Jesus. And Jesus saw him. He had witnessed
the behaviour of the crowd and His heart had warmed to the
man. He comprehended the situation, and, when He came
abreast of the tree, He looked up. " Zacchaeus," He cried, jesus
" make haste and come down ; for to-day I must stay at thy h^^^''-
house." It was past six o'clock ; the Sabbath had begun,
and Jesus would spend it beneath the tax-gatherer's roof.
It was a double surprise. It was a surprise to Zacchaeus. Surprise
He had desired to see Jesus, hoping that the Friend of Tax- ^cLaeu*.
gatherers and Sinners might observe him and take pity on him.
And Jesus far exceeded his hope. He called him by his
name and, as though He had come to Jericho for no other
purpose, told him that He was going home with him. This
was indeed good news for Zacchaeus. He hastened to de-
scend and give his guest a joyful welcome. And it was no
less of a surprise to the bystanders. When they heard Jesus (2) the
not only greeting the outcast but proposing to go home with " *
him and lodge beneath his unholy roof, they were aghast
They followed in mute amazement till they reached the tax-
gatherer's house. It would be a stately mansion. Zacchaeus
would dwell as remote as he might from the unfriendly citizens,
and his house would most likely be situated outside the city-
wall on the fair champaign.^ Thither he conducted Jesus to
the horror of the multitude. " He has gone in," they ex-
claimed, " to lodge with a sinful man ! " Their murmuring
reached the ears of Zacchaeus, and he turned and faced them
defiantly, divided betwixt scorn of them and reverence for
Jesus. " Behold ! " he cried, " the half of my property ,2 Lord, zacchsew
I give to the poor, and whatever I took from any one by ^^•
false accusation,' I give back fourfold." It was at once an
answer to the crowd and a vow to the Lord. And truly it
was a heroic restitution to which Zacchaeus pledged himself,
far exceeding the legal requirement and evincing his utter
penitence and his absolute determination to lead thenceforth
times shading an area of 60-80 ft. in diameter," aD4 it is impossible that such a tree
should have grown within the cramped circumference of a walled city.
' Strabo xvi. 763 : the Palmttum was *' full of houses."
' I.e. what he possessed apart from his ill-gotten gains, perhaps his patrimony.
Cf. Chrysost. Serm. dt Cac. tt Zaeeh.
* i9VKixf>ii'rn9Ci : c/. Lk. ilL 14. On the exactions of the tax-gatherers cf. p. 124.
386 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
a new life. The Law claimed only a fifth for the poor,^ but
Lev. tL I- he vowed a half In cases of fraud the offender was required
^'v. 6™. to restore the amount and a fifth more ; but he vowed, as in
Exod. xxiL the case of theft, fourfold restitution. Already he was a new
^' creature, and the heart of Jesus rejoiced. " To-day," He cried,
" salvation came to this house, forasmuch as even he is a son
of Abraham." His faith had saved him, and they that are
GaL iii. 7. of faith are sons of Abraham. It is no marvel that Jesus
was glad. " The Son of Man came to seek and save what is
lost," and in the salvation of Zacchaeus He saw of the travail
of His soul and was satisfied.
Parable One would fain know what passed betwixt Jesus and
Pounds! Zacchaius in the course of that Sabbath which they spent
together — the last Sabbath of the Lord's earthly life ; but, in
the providence of God, it is unrecorded, and the tax-gatherer
appears no more on the page of history.^ Jesus would
Lk. iv. 16. certainly, as His custom was, go into the Synagogue, and He
would be called upon to address the congregation. He knew
the thought that was in every mind. " They were nigh to
Jerusalem, and they opined that the Kingdom of God was
presently about to be manifested." Their worldly dream was
not hidden from Him, and He essayed to dissipate it He
spoke a parable.' Some thirty years before King Herod had
died and bequeathed the Kingdom of Judaea to his son
Archelaus, and the latter had repaired to Rome to have his
title confirmed by Augustus. Ere the Emperor had given
his decision, an embassy from Judaea appeared and, urging
the misdeeds of Herod, pled that the nation should be
delivered from that odious dynasty and suffered to govern
itself under the suzerainty of Rome.* With evident allusion
to this incident Jesus told how a nobleman went to a far
country to get him a kingdom, and ere his departure entrusted
to ten of his slaves a pound apiece wherewith to trade during
his absence. But he was hated by his citizens, and they sent
an embassy after him, declaring that they would not have him
for their king ; and on his return he reckoned with his slaves
> Cf. Lightfoot.
• There is a tradition that he was ordained bishop of Caesarea by Peter, sore '
against his will. Clem. Rom. ffom. liL §§ 63 sff. ; Recog. iii. § 66.
• qf. Introd. S II ; § 12, 2. ^ Cf. Schiirer, H.J. P. I. U. 6.
GOING UP TO THE PASSOVER s^y
to whom he had entrusted his money, and took vengeance on
his enemies who had conspired against him.
The nobleman was Jesus, and the parable was designed
to dispel the delusion which His hearers were cherishing.
It "was addressed primarily to His disciples. They were
dreaming of reward and glory ere many days should elapse,
and Jesus showed them what really awaited them. He was
going away to a far country. He would indeed one day
return in glory and take unto Him His great power and
reign ; but a long time must elapse ere that consummation,
and He would meanwhile entrust His affairs into their hands
and leave them to trade in His absence. Not glory and
honour but labour and responsibility were their immediate
portion. The parable was also a prophecy. Jesus knew how
His Gospel would fare when He was gone. His claims would
be rejected, and many, even of those who were now acclaiming
Him, would say : " We will not have this man to reign over us."
When the Sabbath was ended, the travellers set forward At
on their journey. Climbing the Ascent of Blood, they ^^*^*"y-
reached Bethany, and there Jesus stopped with the Twelve
while the rest went on to Jerusalem. He received a great
welcome. The Sanhedrin had decreed His death and had
published an edict that anyone who knew where He was should
give information in order to His arrest ; but the miracle
which He had wrought there the other week, had filled
Bethany with wonder, and, in defiance of the rulers, He was
received with all reverence. One of the principal men of the
village made a banquet in His honour and invited a large Banquet in
company of guests. His name was Simon. It was a f^^-^^^
very common name among the Jews, and, as one Simon was house,
sumamed Peter, another the Zealot, a third the Man of
Kerioth,^ and a fourth the Cyrenian, so this Simon was Mk. xv. at.
distinguished as the Leper. He had once been afflicted with
that loathsome disease, and it may be that he was one whom
Jesus had cleansed. It was fitting that he should act as host
on this great occasion ; yet others must participate in the enter-
tainment, and Martha was entrusted with the superintendence
of the banquet. Lazarus, of course, had a place at the table.*
' Cf. p. 153-
' Cf. Introd. § lO ; § 1 2, 3, (2). The idea that the scene of the banquet was
388 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
Mary And what of Mary ? Being a woman, she was not one
"Tds^eet of the guests, nor did she, like her sister, bear a hand in setting
forth the feast and waiting on the company ; nevertheless she
played a conspicuous part in the entertainment Her heart
was full of gratitude and love, and she had resolved to do
honour to her dear Lord. She procured an alabaster vase ^
of precious ointment, and, while the feast was in progress, she
entered and approached the couch whereon He reclined. It
was customary to anoint the head of an honoured guest, and,
had Mary done so, she would have occasioned no wonderment
But she did not thus. She poured her ointment on His
feet. Nor was that all. She had come into the room with
her hair unbound ; and that was a scandal in Jewish eyes,
since unbound hair was the token of an harlot^ And, after
she had poured the ointment on those dear feet, she wiped
them with her loose tresses. Though the company must
have known the story of Mary's shame, they would not
understand her strange behaviour. But Jesus would under-
stand it. It was a reminiscence of the day when He was
reclining at table in the house of another Simon, the Pharisee
in far northern Magdala, and Mary, a trembling penitent,
Lk. vii. 36- stole in with an alabaster vase of ointment and, standing
^ behind Him, rained tears over His feet, wiped them with her
loose tresses, kissed them, and anointed them with the
ointment. And now she comes, weeping no longer, since the
Lord had wiped away every tear from her eyes, and re-enacts
the scene, anointing His feet as she had anointed them then,
and wiping them with her hair, though there were no tears to
wipe away. She cared not what men might think, for love
knows no shame.
Protest of The company were surprised and shocked. They
'^ "■ whispered one to another and frowned on Mary,' and one of
them spoke out It was Judas, the Man of Kerioth. What
angered him was not the seeming immodesty of Mary, but
the house of Lazarus has given rise to fancies about Simon. Theophyl. mentions
the opinion that he was the father, recently deceased (Ewald), of Lazarus.
' aXapaarpov \l6ivoi ftvpoff-^Kti. So called, says Suidas, either because it had
no handles (Xa/Saj) or because it was difficult to grasp (Kapia-dai) by reason of its
smoothness. Cf. Luc. Meretr. Dial. 14. § 2 : iXafioffrpor ftupov ix ^owUcns, Wo koI
Tovre ipaxiJiCsr (a present to a harlot).
' C/. p. 204, n. I. » Mk. xiv. 5 : ivtPpifuJrTO mirrg. Cf. p. 114.
GOING UP TO THE PASSOVER 389
what he deemed her wastefulness. He was the treasurer of
the disciple-band. " He was a thief," says St John with
burning contempt, " and, having the purse, was in the habit
of pilfering the contributions." That poor purse not only
supplied the necessities of the Master and the Twelve but John xiii.
afforded charity besides. It was chiefly furnished by the q: lu.
generosity of devout women, and, when Mary poured her ^''- 3-
costly ointment over the Lord's feet, it was a sore vexation to
Judas, and he protested against the loss — he the Son of
Loss ! ^ " Wherefore," he demanded, " was not this ointment
sold for three hundred denarii and given to the poor ? "
In the eyes of Judas, nay, of the whole company, Mary's The Lord'i
offering seemed mere waste ; but it was very welcome to ation.
Jesus, and brought gladness to His heart. In His eyes
it was "a beautiful work," and He attached to it a greater
significance than Mary intended. She had designed it simply
as an expression of her grateful love ; but Jesus had the
Cross in view, and it seemed to Him as though her gentle
hands had performed the last office of affection, anointing
His body for the tomb, " as the manner of the Jews is to bury."
" Suffer her," He cried, " to observe the rite against the day
of My burial ! For the poor ye have always with you, but
Me ye have not always." And then He added a great word
of promise : " Verily I tell you, wherever the Gospel is pro-
claimed in the whole world, the thing also which she did
shall be spoken of for a memorial of her." Very grandly
was Mary rewarded. The promise of Jesus has been fulfilled.
" The memory of what she did," said St Chrysostom long
ago,* "did not fade, but Persians, Indians, Scythians,
Thracians, Sauromatians, the race of the Moors, and the
dwellers in the British Isles blaze abroad what was done in
Judaea by stealth in a house by a woman that had been
an harlot"
* Ml xxvi. 8 ae Mk xiT. 4 : tU rl ^ driiXeia ; Cf. John xvii. 12 : i vlhi t^i drwXe/at.
'/» Matth. Ixxxi. Chrysostom regarded Mt. xxvi. 6-i3a:Mk. xiv. 3-9 and
John xii. i-ii as distinct incidents, accounting the nameless woman of the Synoptics
as a penitent harlot.
CHAPTER XL'i
THE ENTRY INTO JERUSALEM
" Sis pius SLScensor tu, nos quoque simus asellus.
Tecum nos capiat urbs veneranda Dei.
Gloria, laus, et honor tibi sit, rex Christe, redemptor
Cui puerile decus prompsit Hosanna pium. " — S. Thkodulph.
JohnxiL
ia-9=ML
. xxi. 1-11=
Mk. xi. I-
ii = Lk.
xix- 29-44 ;
Mt. xxi. i8-
9=Mk. xi.
ii-4; Mc
xxi. 12a, 14-
7=Mk. xi.
15a, 18-9=
IJc. xix. 47-
8 (xxi. 37-
8).
Excitement The raising of Lazarus had advanced the fame of Jesus to
^saiMn" «in unprecedented pitch. The worshippers who gathered
to the Passover, could scarce talk of aught else. They hoped
that He would come to the Feast and impatiently expected
His appearance in their midst, apprehensive lest He should
again absent Himself as He had done the previous year.
John xi 56. " What think ye ? " they would ask each other as they stood
in the Temple-court discussing the question of the hour.
" That He will not come at all to the Feast ? " Presently
their doubt was set at rest. Word was brought, not only
by the pilgrims who had accompanied Him from Jericho
but by some who had gone out to see the wondrous sight
John xii. 9. of a man raised from the dead, that He had arrived at
Bethany and would come to Jerusalem on the morrow.
The intelligence fanned the flame of the rulers' wrath, and
they determined to put Lazarus also to death ; ^ but it in-
creased the enthusiasm of the multitude, and it was resolved
John xii. that they should go forth to meet Jesus on the morrow and
"'^ escort Him into the city.
The Lords All this lent itself to the Lord's design. He had left
Jerusalem with a determination to make a final appeal to
the impenitent city, and it had been given Him to work the
miracle at Bethany in answer to His earnest prayer for some
striking cUnouentent which should excite wonderment and win
acceptance for His claims. And He was resolved to improve
* Probably Lazarus was compelled to flee ; and this may be the reason why he
does not appear in the narratives of the Cnicifixion and the Resurrection.
3»»
THE ENTRY INTO JERUSALEM 391
this advantage. A device presented itself to Him. During
His recent sojourn at Jerusalem He had adopted the histrionic
method which the prophets had employed and the people
loved ; and He would pursue it once more. He would do
violence to His own instincts and, availing Himself of the
enthusiasm of the populace, would invest Himself before their
eyes with Messianic dignities. There was a prophecy
which was much discussed by the Rabbis and which, at the
least suggestion, would leap into men's minds : " Rejoice Zech. ix. 9^
greatly, O daughter of Zion ! Shout, O daughter of Jerusalem !
Behold, thy King cometh unto thee : He is righteous and
victorious ; lowly, and riding upon an ass, even upon a colt,
a she-ass's foal,"^ In the East the ass was, as it still is,
a fine creature, as large as a small horse, and often very
handsome with its rich saddle, its dangling tassels, and its
bridle studded with shells and silver. Great men rode
upon asses. Jair the Gileadite, the judge of Israel, had jud. x. 4.
thirty sons who rode on thirty ass-colts. When kings went
forth to war, they rode upon horses ; when they went on
peaceful errands, they rode upon asses ; and that ancient
oracle made the King of Zion come riding upon an ass zecb. ix
because He was the Prince of Peace. The prophecy presented ^*''
itself to Jesus, and He determined to enact the Messianic
r61e which it pourtrays, and so enter the city.
A little way from Bethany just on the brow of the hill The ass.
stood the village of Bethphage,* and Jesus, it would seem, had ^°
an understanding with some friend who dwelt there, perhaps
a gardener in that district of fig-trees, palms, and olives.
When he was setting out for Jerusalem on the morrow, He
bade two of His disciples proceed thither. At the entrance
to the village, He told them, they would find tethered at a
^ This was recognised as a prophecy of the Messiah's advent, and the question
arose how it should be reconciled with Dan. vii. 13. The answer of the Rabbis
was that, if Israel were righteous, the Messiah would come with the clouds of
Heaven ; otherwise, He would come, according to Zechariah's prophecy, riding
on an ass. It was argued also from Exod. iv. 20 that He would come on an ass.
Cf. Lightfoot and Wetstein.
' Cf. P. E. F. Q., Apr. 1897, pp. 116 sfq. Beth phage, according to Orig. and
Jer., was a priestly village : tup {cpewr ^c x'^p/oi', fa^«r<ib/Mm viculus erat. Since
Jerusalem could not accommodate all the worshippers who came up to the Passover
and the Paschal bread must be prepared "within the walls," all the district east-
ward as far as Bethphage was reckoned as " within the walls. " Lightfoot, ii. p. 198.
392
THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
door an ass-colt ^ which had never been ridden and was
therefore suitable for sacred use.* " Loose it," He said,
•' and bring it unto Me." As they did so, they would be
challenged, and they must reply : " The Lord hath need of it"
Such was the watchword which He had arranged with the
owner. The two disciples went their way. They found the
colt and, being challenged as Jesus had said, they gave the
watchword and were allowed to lead the beast away. The
disciples spread their cloaks on its back by way of saddle,
and, when Jesus had mounted, they set forward on the way
to Jerusalem.
The pro- The multitude had come out from the city to escort Him
thither, and they recognised the part which He was acting.
Their exultation was boundless. Here was the Messiah
approaching His capital according to that ancient prophecy,
and they must accord Him a fitting welcome. After the
fashion of royal processions ' they strewed the road with their
garments, and cut boughs from the palm-trees which lined the
road, and, waving those emblems of triumph, escorted Him on
His way. As they descended the western slope of Olivet, they
shouted their acclamations :
Pss. cxviii.
35-6;
odviiL I.
" Hosanna to the Son of David !
Blessed is He that cometh in the name of the Lord.
Hosanna in the highest ! "
Thus literally was the word fulfilled which Jesus had spoken
Mt. xxiii. when He took His departure from Jerusalem : " I tell you,
^xx^. 35. yc shall never more see Me until ye say : ' Blessed is He that
cometh in the name of the Lord.' "
Protest of It was a royal progress ; yet amid the jubilation murmurs
Pharisees, were heard, prophetic of the coming storm. The rulers, ever
vigilant, had observed the multitude trooping out from the
city, and some of the Pharisees had accompanied them to
mark what passed. They were bitterly provoked, and they
^ C/. Introd. S 12, 5 ; S 13. For Mt.'s 6yot and John's iripwy Mk. and Lk.
substitute twXo*-, "a colt." They knew how the ass was despised by the Greeks
and Romans, and, writing for Greeks and Romans, aroided provoking ridicule. Cf.
the deliberate elimination of the ass from the O.T. by LXX. See Wetstein's interest*
ing note on Mk. xi. *.
» C/. Deut. xxi. 3 ; i Sam. ▼!. 7. For classical quotations see Wetstein,
' See Wetstein on Mt. zzL 8 for illustrations from Jewish and classical literature.
THE ENTRY INTO JERUSALEM 393
were withal surprised at the complaisance of Jesus who had
ever borne Himself so humbly, rejecting the Messianic honours
which His followers would fain have thrust upon Him.
" Teacher," they cried, " rebuke thy disciples ! " "I tell you,"
answered Jesus, " that, should these men be silent, the stones
will cry out" It was a rebuke to the Pharisees whose obdur-
ate hearts had resisted His appeals. Their protest was
ominous in His ears. It reminded Him of the implacable
enmity which encompassed Him and would never rest until
it had shed His blood. And He knew full well what the
multitude's enthusiasm was worth. A few days more, and
those very mouths which were shouting " Hosanna ! " would
be clamouring " Crucify him ! crucify him I " As the pro- The Lord's
cession wound its way down the mountain-side, the Holy City ^™'°''
lay full in view glittering in the sunshine across the ravine,
and the spectacle stirred mournful emotion in the Lord's breast.
A lament ^ broke from His lips : " O that thou too hadst
recognised during this day the things that make for peace !
But, as it is, they have been hidden from thine eyes. For
there will come days upon thee when thy foes will embank a
trench against thee, and ring thee round, and hem thee in on
every side, and dash to the ground thee and thy children within
thee, and not leave a stone on a stone within thee ; forasmuch
as thou didst not recognise the season of thy merciful visitation."
All this came to pass some forty years later when the army
of Titus blockaded the city. And truly it needed no prophet's
eye to foresee what must be the issue, if the Jews persisted
in their provocation of imperial Rome. It must happen to^. is.xxbL
Jerusalem even as it happened in the past. ^'^'
When the multitude surged through the gate, " all the Astonish-
city," says St Matthew, " was shaken as by an earthquake." Jerusalem.
" Who is this ? " they asked, and the multitude answered :
"This is the prophet Jesus, the man from Nazareth of Galilee. Mt. xxi.n;
He called Lazarus out of the sepulchre and raised him from 17. ° "**
the dead." The Pharisees gnashed their teeth in impotent
vexation. " Ye behold," they said one to another, each laying
the blame on his neighbours, " that ye are doing no good.
See ! the world hath gone away after him."
^ fK\avatv, "wailed," as distinguished from liiKpvatv, "shed tears" (John
«• 35).
394
THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
The Entry That day Jcsus did nothing.
His heart was heavy within
hile. That royal progress
It is commonly called the
hui^iiaUon Him, and He would fain rest awhile. That royal progress
than a jj^d been a sore trial to Him
triumpb.
Triumphal Entry, but in truth it was rather a humiliation than
a triumph. It was a piece of acting ; and, pleasing as it
was to the multitude, it was very distasteful to Jesus. He
submitted to it in the hope of winning them and persuad-
ing them of His Messiahship, loathing all the while the
painful necessity. It is a revelation of His grace that He
should thus do violence to Himself and humble Himself to
the level of their carnal imagination in order to win men's
faith.
The He had no heart that day for aught else, and He betook
oB^Bg. Himself to the Temple. The court was thronged, and He
Mk. xi. II. surveyed the animated scene with wistful eyes. Perchance it
was then that an incident occurred which, observed by no
Mk. xii. 41- other, appealed to His tender sympathy.^ He had seated
~ 1^4! Himself in a favourite place over against the Treasury,^ and
was watching the worshippers as they dropped their contribu-
tions into the Trumpets. There came a poor widow with her
poor offering in her hand — two lepta or halves of a guadrans,
the fourth of an assarion which was the sixteenth of a denarius.
It was a very small sum, and it looked all the smaller in
comparison with the contributions which the rich worshippers
were casting into the Treasury ; but in the eyes of Jesus it
was a rich offering. It is evident that the widow was no
stranger to Him. The troubled ever found their way to
Jesus ; and it may be that He had blessed her during His
late sojourn at Jerusalem, and this was her thankoffering. It
was a poor gift in the world's estimation, but it cost her much :
it was all that she possessed. " Verily I tell you," said Jesus
to His disciples, observing, perhaps, a look of derision on their
faces, " that this poor widow hath contributed more than all
they that are contributing to the Treasury. For they all of
their superfluity contributed, but she of her penury contributed
all that she had, even her whole living."
* The position of the incident in Mk. and Lk. after the denunciation of the
Pharisees is obviously unsuitable and may be due to verbal association with the
allusion to widovsrs in Mk. xiL 40= Lk. xx. 47.
' Cf. p. 339-
THE ENTRY INTO JERUSALEM 395
At night-fall Jesus left the city and retraced His steps up Hisiodging
the slope of Olivet. He did not, however, return to the°"°"^'^*-
village of Bethany. That night and on each succeeding night
until the end He repaired to a garden called Gethsemane on
the side of the mountain, and there He lodged in the open
amid the olive trees with only the blue Syrian sky above His
head.^ In the morning He betook Himself back to Jerusalem.
As He went. He espied a fig-tree at some distance off, con- The fruU-
spicuous by reason of its luxuriant leafage, and, being hungry, *^ s-**"^
He approached in the expectation of finding fruit upon it.
It was a reasonable expectation. It is a peculiarity of the
fig-tree that it forms its fruit ere it puts forth its leaves,^ and
therefore foliage is a promise of fruit. It was not indeed the
season for figs, but that tree, perhaps because its soil and situa-
tion were good, had matured early. Since it was in leaf, it was
reasonable to expect fruit upon its boughs ; but, when Jesus
approached. He found nothing but leaves. In that fig-tree so
advantageously situated, so abundant in promise, yet fruitless,
Jesus saw an emblem of Israel. He had already likened her to
such a tree and warned her of the doom which would overtake Lk. xiii. 6-
her ; and now He reiterates His warning. He pronounces '"
sentence on the tree. " Nevermore," He says, " let any one
eat fruit of thee." It was an acted parable after the manner
s which He had of late assumed.
He passed on with the Twelve, leaving the fig-tree to its Ministry lo
doom ; and, entering the city. He repaired to the Temple. Tanpie.
That day was crowded with beneficent activities. He taught
in the Temple-court ; and blind folk and lame, hearing the
testimony of Bartimaeus and recalling what the Lord had done
at the Pool of Bethesda, repaired to Him and were healed.
The enthusiasm was boundless. His praises were on every
lip, and the very children joined in the acclamation, repeating
the refrain of yesterday : " Hosanna to the Son of David ! "
The rulers were bitterly chagrined. They would fain have
seized Him and executed their murderous resolution ; but
they durst not. They knew well that any attempt upon the
' Cf. Lk. xxi. 37. ouX/feo-^o*, " bivouac sub dio " ; cf. Ecclus. xiv. 26. Geth-
cemane was His habitual resort : Lk. xxiL 39 ; John xviii. 2. According to Mk:
xi- II Jesus " went forth eii Bij^ovfoj'," but the name was given both to the village
and to a tract of the mountain- See Lightfoot, ii 202, Cf. Mt. xxi. 17.
'Plin. H, N. xvi. 49 : " Ei demum serius folium nascitur quam pomum."
396 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
hero of the hour would provoke an outburst of popular fury.
Yet they could not refrain themselves, and they found fault
where they deemed it safe. They durst not rebuke the
enthusiasm of the multitude, but they had naught to fear from
the children, and, affecting horror that the stillness of the
sacred precincts should be broken by their voices, they ap-
proached Jesus and remonstrated : " Hearest thou what
these are saying ? " " Yea," He replied, retorting upon them
with the disdainful formula wherewith He loved to put those
P«. yiii. a. teachers of Israel to shame ; " did ye never read : * Out of
the mouth of babes and sucklings Thou didst perfect praise ' ? "
Therewith He left them to their discomfiture, and, as evening
was closing in, sought His retreat in the garden.
John vii. «!•
viiL a ; M Ic
xi. ao-5 • Ml
xxi. 30-9 ;
Ml xxi. 33-
;«Mlc.xi.
87-33 -Lk.
XX. 1-8: Mb
xxi. 18-33 ;
Mu xxi. 33-46
»Mk. xii. I-
.».. . .^.^.^ir^ .... .. la-Lk. XX.
CHAPTER XLII 9-19. John
viii. 3-1 1 ; Ml
xxiL i^-aas
Mk. xu. 13-
ENCOUNTERS WITH THE RULERS 7-Lk.xx.
•o-tf: Ml
xxiL a;i-33"
" Superbientium JJ^- {^- ^J"
Terat fa^tigia, 97-^ ; Ml
Colla sublimium *?•'• 31-4o-
_ , Mk. xu. 38-
Calcet VI propna 34 ; Mt. xxH.
Potens in prcelio." 4i;6=MJ«.
PKTR. ABiELARD. Lk. ^^^41^
On their way to Jerusalem next morning they passed by that The
fruitless fig-tree, and the disciples observed with astonishment fig-tree
that it was withered from the roots/ " Rabbi," cried Peter,
" see ! The fig-tree which Thou cursedst, hath been withered
up." Why should they have been surprised ? Their Lord's
words were not wont to fall to the ground, " Have faith in
God," He answered. " Verily I tell you, if ye have faith and
do not doubt, not only what is done to the fig-tree shall ye
do, but even if ye say to this mountain : ' Be lifted up and c/. x Cor.
be cast into the sea,' it shall come to pass." * ""' ^
Passing on to Jerusalem, Jesus repaired to the Temple En-
and resumed His teaching in the court. Presently the rulers i. The
appeared on the scene and interrupted His teaching with ^aUenge
a haughty demand : " By what manner of authority art thou His
doing these things ? and who gave thee this authority ? "
Their design was evidently two-fold. On the one hand, they
thought to impress the multitude by thus asserting their
official dignity and jurisdiction ; and, on the other hand, they
hoped to elicit from Jesus, not merely an assertion of His
Messiahship, but some bolder claim, like that declaration of
His oneness with God which had brought His last sojourn at
* Mt., after his wont (</". viii. 5-9= Lk. vii. 2-8; ix. 1-8 = Mk. ii. 1-12 = Lk. ▼.
17-26), condenses the narrative, making the blight and the disciples' comment
follow immediately up)on the cursing of the tree.
' C/. similar proverb in Lk. xvii. 6. The more distinguished Rabbis were
called "uprooters of mountains." Lightfoot on Mt. xxL 21. Mk. xi. 24-5 [6] =
Mt. xxi. 22 : alien lo^'a about prayer. C/. John xiv. 13 ; xv. 7, i6, xvi. 23 ; Mt.
Ti. 14-S
2 E ^
398 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
John X, 3a Jerusalem to an abrupt conclusion. He perceived their malig-
nant design, and, with that amazing resourcefulness which
never failed Him in the most trying emergency. He retorted :
" I also will ask you a single question. Answer Me, and I
will tell you by what manner of authority I am doing these
things. The Baptism of John — was it from Heaven or from
men?" They stood mute in utter embarrassment. What
answer should they make ? John had proclaimed Jesus the
Messiah and had administered the rite of baptism in prepara-
tion for His advent ; and, if they said : " From Heaven,"
Jesus would retort : " Then why did ye not believe him ? "
On the other hand, they durst not say : " From men," inas-
much as John was universally accounted a prophet and they
feared to provoke an uproar by offending the popular senti-
ment. " Answer Me," Jesus insisted as they hesitated, debat-
ing what they should say ; and they blurted out helplessly :
** We do not know." Quick came the contemptuous and
humiliating rejoinder : " Neither do I tell you by what
manner of authority I am doing these things."
It was a masterpiece of dialectic, but it was very much
more. Jesus did not drag in the Baptism of John at hap-
hazard, grasping at it on the spur of the moment as the first
controversial question which presented itself to His mind. He
adduced it deliberately that He might bring home to His
assailants the reason of their antagonism against Him. They
had at first, like the rest of the nation, been stirred by that
mighty revival which had swept over the land in the days of
John. For a while they had been seriously impressed. They
John T. 35. had acknowledged the Baptist's power and had been " minded
for a season to rejoice in his light" But in their pride they
had rebelled against his demand for repentance, and had dis-
dained to take their places among the multitude that were
baptised by him in the Jordan, confessing their sins. They
had stifled conviction, closed their eyes to the light, and fought
against the truth. Had they hearkened to the Baptist, they
John L 35- had hearkened to Jesus and passed, like John and Andrew,
^' by easy and natural transition into the ranks of His disciples
When He spoke of the Baptism of John, He probed to the
root of their unbelief, and they would wince at the home-
thrust.
ENCOUNTERS WITH THE RULERS 399
" What think ye ? " He continued, pursuing His baffled Parable of
assailants with a parable. " A man had two children. He ^^**°
came to the first and said to him : ' Child, go, work to-day in
the vineyard.' ' Yes, sir,' answered the lad, and did not go.
He came to the second and said to him likewise. * I will not,'
he answered ; afterwards he repented and went. Which of
the two," Jesus asked, " did the will of the father ? " The
rulers did not perceive the drift of the parable, and indeed
only one answer was possible. " The latter," they replied, all
unconsciously pronouncing sentence upon themselves, inasmuch
as the former of these two lads represented the Jewish people,
who, in the prophet's language, " honoured God with their lips
while their hearts were far from Him," and the latter the out-
casts. " Verily I tell you," said Jesus, " that the tax-gatherers
and the harlots are going before you into the Kingdom of
God. For John came unto you in the way of righteousness, Cf. i.k. viL
and ye did not believe him ; but the tax-gatherers and the
harlots believed him ; but ye, when ye saw it, did not even
repent afterwards that ye should believe him." Jesus seemed
an innovator, and their rejection of Him was so far excusable.
But they had no excuse for their rejection of John. He had
come to them " in the way of righteousness," that is, on the
lines of Jewish legalism, proclaiming no novel message but
simply reinforcing the moral requirements of the ancient Law
and insisting upon faithful observance thereof.
When He had thus discomfited His assailants, Jesus Parable of
turned to the multitude again and resumed His instruction, dressers"
The rulers lingered to hear what He might say, and He spoke ^^- ^'^^ "*
a parable which, though not addressed to them, concerned
them very deeply. He told how a landlord planted a vine-
yard, furnishing it with hedge, wine-press, and watch-tower,
let it out to husbandmen, and went abroad. At the season of
vintage he sent for his share of the fruit, but his messenger
was ill received. The husbandmen scourged him and sent him
away empty-handed. He sent others, and each in succession
was worse treated than the last. Some were scourged, others
were killed. He had a well-beloved son, and he resolved to
send him, thinking : " They will reverence my son." But,
when they spied him, they exclaimed : " Here is the heir I
Come, let us kill him, and take his inheritance." And they
4cx> THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
seized hira, and cast him forth outside the vineyard, and killed
him.
" Now," said Jesus, " when the lord of the vineyard cometh,
what will he do to those husbandmen ? " The multitude had
Mt. xxi.41. followed the story with keen interest, and they cried : " Miser-
able men ! he will miserably destroy them, and will let out
the vineyard to other husbandmen who will render him the
fruits at their seasons." They did not perceive the drift of
Nft. V. 12= the parable, but the rulers perceived it They understood the
Muxxmi reference to the prophets who had been sent in long succession
..j37=Lk. ^Q impenitent and rebellious Israel ; and they knew that, when
xxiii. 29-35 Jesus spoke of the heir. He meant Himself. The multitude's
~ 47-51.' inconsiderate reply was a confession of Israel's guilt and of
Lk. xiii. 6- the justice of that doom which Jesus had already an-
g nounced ; and they broke in with a protest : " Perish the
"* ' ■ thought ! "
"Thestone Jesus tumed and, fixing upon them those wondrous
builders ^y^s which lookcd men through and through and read the
rejected." gecrets of their hearts, asked : " Have ye never read : ' A
„ ^^' ^J.' stone which the builders rejected, this hath been made the
Ps. cxviu. ■' '
22-3. head of the corner. Of the Lord was it made, and it is
wondrous in our eyes ' ? " It is a quotation from the hundred
and eighteenth Psalm which belongs to the post-exilic period,
being a song which was sung by the worshippers as they went
up to the restored Temple at one of the great festivals. As
they entered, their attention was arrested by a stone over the
gateway. Perhaps it was the lintel of the old Temple. All
battered and defaced, it had been deemed useless by the
builders when they were restoring the ruined House, but the
priests had valued it for its sacred associations and retained it
in its ancient place. In that pathetic memorial the Psalmist
had seen an emblem of Israel despised and persecuted by the
nations but chosen and preserved by God ; and now Jesus
gives it a new application. The Jews are now the persecutors
cy. Actsiv. and despisers, and He is Himself the stone which the builders
have rejected but which God will make the head of the corner.
It was a tragic reversal. The words which on the Psalmist's
lips had been a parable of God's grace to Israel, were on the
lips of Jesus a parable of Israel's rejection. " Therefore I
tell you that the Kingdom of God shall be taken away
ENCOUNTERS WITH THE RULERS 401
from you and given to a nation producing the fruits
thereof." ^
The rulers were indignant They would fain have arrested x The cast
Jesus, but He was encompassed by the enthusiastic multitude adulteress
and they durst not harm Him. They left Him and went
their way, but they had in no wise abandoned their deadly
purpose. They left Him only to consider what they should
do. Debarred from violence, they would essay strategy. It
happened that they had a culprit on their hands — a woman
who had been detected in adultery.' Here was their oppor-
tunity. They knew the Lord's kindness for sinners, and they
perceived the possibility of eliciting from Him a judgment
antagonistic to the Law. The affair was entrusted to the
Pharisees, the interpreters of the Law and the champions of
orthodoxy ; and, with that stinging sentence : " The tax-
gatherers and the harlots are going before you into the Kingdom
of God " rankling in their memories, they haled the offender
into the Temple-court and set her before Jesus as He sate
teaching, the multitude meanwhile looking on with curious
eyes and listening with greedy ears. " Teacher," they said,
" this woman hath been caught in the very act of adultery ;
and in the Law Moses commanded us to stone such. Now
what sayest thou ? " '
It was an ingenious snare. Should Jesus, as they pro- His verdict
bably anticipated, oppose the execution of the legal sentence,
they would raise a cry of blasphemy and arraign Him on that
count. Should He, on the contrary, approve the stern enact-
ment. He would alienate the popular sympathy,* nor would the
rulers have been slow to convict Him of inconsistency and self-
condemnation. Was not Mary Magdalene one of His followers ?
And had He not, only the other evening, suffered her to
' Lk. XX. 18 (Mt. xxi. 44 is an interpolation) sounds rather like an apostolic com-
ment than a logion of Jesus. Cf. Rabbinical parallel in Wetstein on Mt. xxL 47
On Mt. xxii. 1-14 cf. Introd. § 12, 2.
' On John vii. 53 — riii. 11 cf. Introd. § 6.
' The Law required merely that an unfaithful wife should be put to death (Lev.
XX. 10; Dent. xxii. 22), i.e., according to the Rabbinical interpretation, strangled.
But the punishment was stoning in two cases : (i) if the culprit were a damsel be-
trothed but yet unwed ; (2) if she were a married woman who was a priest's
daughter. If the latter were only betrothed, she was burned. Lightfoot on John
Tiii. 5'
* C/. Ang. In Joan, Sv. Tract, xxxiii. 1 4.
402 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
caress His feet without remonstrance, nay, with commenda-
tion? Jesus made no reply. He did not, after His wont,
confront them with the calm scrutiny of His great, deep eyes.
Indignant at their heartlessness and hypocrisy. He stooped
and with nervous finger scribbled on the ground.^ They sup-
posed that He was confounded and knew not what to say ;
and, exulting in their triumph, they pressed for an answer,
even as, when they and their colleagues the Sadducees stood
confounded by His question about the Baptism of John, He
had demanded : " Answer Me." They were quickly unde-
ceived. Mastering His emotion, He lifted His glowing face
and hurled His answer at them : " He that is without sin
among you, let him first cast a stone at her." Then He
resumed His attitude. It was like a rapier-thrust. They
hung their heads and, conscience-stricken, took themselves off
one by one. The elder went first and the younger followed,
reversing, in their confusion, the order of voting in the San-
hedrin where, in capital cases, the youngest gave his decision
first* They came as accusers, and He arraigned them before
that stern tribunal which holds its assize in every human
breast. When they were all gone and Jesus was left alone with
the culprit, incarnate Pity with that pitiable one,* He lifted
Himself up and asked : " Woman, where are they ? Did none
condemn thee ? " " None, Lord," she answered, expecting re-
proof. But no word of blame came from those gentle lips.
He would not break the bruised reed. " Neither do I con-
demn thee," He said. " Go ! Henceforth sin no more."
Her condemnation was all the concern of the Pharisees ; her
salvation was all the concern of Jesus.
^ Cf. Euth. Zig. : dxcp dw^aci ToXXd/ctt roieif o2 ft!^ BiKovTt% iwoKpbretrdai Tpot
toiJt iptirruvras iKaipa jcat iyd^ia. Two more specific explanations of our Lord's
action have been suggested : (i) In His writing on the ground Lightfoot finds an
allusion to "the trial of jealousy" (Num. v. 11-31) — the dust which the priest took
from the floor of the Tabernacle and mingled with the water, and the curses which
he wrote in a book. It is vain to inquire what Jesus wrote. He wrote nothing.
He merely scribbled abstractedly on the ground. (2) "He was seized with an
intolerable sense of shame. He could not meet the eye of the crowd, or of the
accusers, and perhaps at that moment least of all of the woman" {Ecce Homo, chap,
ix). This, however, is hardly borne out by His dealings either with them or with
her.
" Cf. p. 472.
• Aug. In Joan. Ev. Tract, xxxiii. § 5 : " Relicti sunt duo, isera et mitericordia."
ENCOUNTERS WITH THE RULERS 403
Resolute to destroy Him, the Lord's adversaries devised 3- The
another snare, evincing no less skill than villainy. Not^builfc°
daring to resume the attack in person, they sent deputies —
several disciples of the Pharisees, young men who, like Saul
of Tarsus, were being trained in the Rabbinical schools, and
along with them several of that courtly Sadducean order, the
Herodians.^ It was not the first occasion on which their
common antagonism to Jesus had united the Pharisees and Cf. Mk. ijL
the Herodians, naturally so wide asunder, in unhallowed
alliance. The deputation watched for a fitting opportunity
and, approaching Jesus with feigned reverence and unctuous
flattery, submitted a question to His decision : " Teacher, we
know that thou art true, and teachest the way of God in
truth, and carest not for any one ; for thou regardest not the
person of men. Tell us, therefore, what thou thinkest : Is it
right to give tribute to Caesar or not ? " It was a clever trick.
The Jews were groaning under the Roman yoke, and the
necessity of paying tribute to the conqueror was very grievous
to their proud spirits. It was in truth a burning question of
the day, and it came with an appearance of much sincerity
from the lips of those enquirers. The Pharisees were the
patriotic party, and it might seem natural that these disciples
of the Pharisees, in their youthful ardour, should be actuated
by a noble solicitude for their nation's honour ; while the
Herodians, worldly time-servers though they were, had a
jealous regard for the dignity of the native dynasty and
resented its subjection to the foreign despotism.
It seemed a reasonable question, but in truth it was a a grave
cunning trick. They evidently expected that Jesus would '^''*^'"'^
pronounce against payment and thereby expose Himself to
the ruthless vengeance which the Romans, steeled by experi-
ence of Jewish turbulence, ever wreaked on rebels. Was He
not from Galilee? and Galilee was a veritable hot-bed of
sedition. And had He not among His intimate adherents a
member of the desperate sect of the Zealots ? Suppose, on
the other hand, that He should pronounce in favour of
payment : He would alienate the popular sympathy, and,
bereft of that bulwark of defence. He would be at the rulers'
mercy. The multitude recognised Him as the Messiah, and
» Cf. p. 136.
404 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
they followed Him with hosannas because they believed that
He was about to ascend the throne and emancipate Israel
from the Roman tyranny. Should He counsel submission to
the imperial imposition, it would be tantamount in their eyes
to a repudiation of the Messiahship, and they would forthwith
desert Him.
His escape. It was a clever plot, excellently disguised, but not for an
instant was Jesus deceived. " Why are ye tempting Me ? "
He cried. " Show Me the tribute-coin." It would seem that
the imperial taxes were paid not in Jewish but in Roman
coinage, and they handed Him a denarius bearing the
Emperor's medallion and the superscription : TI. CAESAR
DIVI AUG. F. AUGUSTUS PONTIF. MAXIM. " Whose,"
He demanded, " are this image and superscription ? "
" Caesar's," they replied. " Then pay what is Caesar's to
Caesar, and what is God's to God." It is not without signi-
ficance that, whereas they had asked : " Shall we give ? "
Jesus answered : " PayT The tribute-coin was not theirs
but Caesar's, and they had no right to withhold it Was it
not a principle of Jewish jurisprudence that, wherever any
king's coinage was current, there that king's sovereignty was
recognised ? ^ There is an accent of contempt in His
language. The debt which they owed to God was other and
greater than they conceived.
4. The The plotters were baffled, and they withdrew without a
''th^ Re°iu^- word, marvelling at the Lord's dexterity. Presently He was
recuon. approached by another group. They were Sadducees,
members of that aristocratic order which stood in direct and
bitter antagonism to the order of the Pharisees, separated
from the latter alike in politics and in creed. The Sadducees
rejected the oral tradition, so sacred and precious in the eyes
of the Pharisees, and recognised only the written Law. It is
said that they rejected also the Prophets and the Hagiographa
and, like the Samaritans, accepted only the books of Moses ; *
and it is at least certain that they acknowledged the Penta-
teuch as their rule of faith and set less store by the other
^ Euth. Zig. : 3t4 toDto 74p o^ic elwe "Sore" dXX' *■* i.-KoZorTt" in CKelvov Sirra.
Maim. Gez. 5: " Ubicunquc numisma regis alicujas obtinet, illic incolse regem
istum pro domino agnoscuni."
■ Orig. C. Ceh. i. 49 ; Jer. on Mt. xxii. 31.
ENCOUNTERS WITH THE RULERS 405
Scriptures.^ The latter teach the doctrine of the Resurrection,
and this the Sadducees denied, their denial thereof being the Acts xxiiu
chief article of controversy betwixt them and the Pharisees.
It was a company of Sadducees that now approached Scoffing
Jesus. They were not in league with the group that had just ^ ""**
retired. On the contrary, they relished the discomfiture of
the latter and approached with a pretentious air, confident of
their superiority. Their design was to confound Jesus and
the Pharisees both by exposing the absurdity of that ridiculous
idea of the Resurrection. Though they had succeeded, no
serious consequence would have ensued. They would not
have embroiled Jesus with the Roman governor, and just as
little would they have alienated the multitude from Him.
Rather would they have brought fresh odium upon them-
selves. Their scepticism was far from popular. Indeed
it is said that, when a Sadducee held office, he had to pretend
agreement with the doctrine of immortality, or he would not
have been tolerated by the people.'
It seemed to them so easy to refute the doctrine of the An
Resurrection. In truth it was a ridiculous notion unworthy |J^^sinary
of serious argument ; and, thinking to laugh it out of court,
they came to Jesus and propounded to Him an imaginary
case.' There were seven brothers. The first died childless
and, in accordance with the levirate law, the second took the j^^^ ^^^
widow in order to raise up seed for his brother, " that his s-**
name might not be blotted out of Israel." Neither did she
conceive by him, and on his death she passed to the third
brother. All the seven in succession had her to wife, and she
remained childless to the last. Then she also died. The
question was : " In the resurrection-life of which of the seven
shall she be wife ? "
Jesus might justly have brushed it aside, answering levity his
with scorn. It was not only an imaginary but an impossible answer,
case, one which had never arisen and never could arise. St
* Ligbtfoot on John iv. 25 and Acts xxiiL 8 ; Taylor, Saj^. of Fath,, Exc iiL 4.
' Jos. Ant. xviii. i. § 4.
' Mt.'s Tap' iifuf makes them state a professedly actual case, but the words are
omitted by Mk. and Lk. In fact the levirate law had fallen into abeyance in our
Lord's day. Cf. Edersbeim, Life and Times, ii. p. 400. Chrysost. /« Matth.
\xx\ : Xoyof ii rwa rXdrrouci ud Tpdyfta vvrrLdtaffiP, wt tyvy* tt/M*, ovU
ytyttnifUpw
4o6 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
Chrysostom remarks with appropriate jocularity that, when
the first two died, the rest of the brothers would have regarded
the woman as ill-omened and had nothing to do with her.
And the Rabbis held that a woman who was married twice in
this world, would in the world to come be restored to her first
husband.^ In fact, according to the levirate law, she remained
his wife even when she had been taken by his brother. The
latter was not her husband. He merely " performed the duty
of an husband's brother unto her." Jesus would have been
warranted in treating the question with contempt, but He
answered it It was unlike the question about tribute in that
Cf. Lk. xii. it did not relate to that secular domain from which throughout
'^'*' His ministry He resolutely held aloof, but to that spiritual
world which was His home and which He would fain make
real and sure to His disciples' faith. It did not excite
indignation in His breast. He did not brand those Sadducees
as " play-actors," since they did not approach Him veiling a
sinister design beneath a mask of courtesy. Neither did their
self-assurance provoke Him. It rather moved His compassion.
He pitied those vain men who, unconscious of their ignorance,
scoffed at the mysteries of that eternal world which He knew
so well. " Ye err," He cried, " not knowing the Scriptures
nor the power of God."
The The source of their scepticism was ignorance, and their
™of the *g'^o''«i°ce was twofold. They were ignorant of the life to
Sadducees. come ; and this was their supreme mistake, that they imported
into it the conditions of the present and reasoned that what is
inconceivable here is impossible there, " not knowing the power
of God." Had they known the power of God, they would
have hesitated to limit the possibilities of the future. What
is is no measure of what may be. "In the resurrection-life,"
says Jesus, " they neither marry nor are given in marriage, but
Cf. Enoch as God's angels are they in Heaven." Assuredly He did not
"*■ '** mean that the life to come will be less rich than the present,
or that any relationship which has made the heart glad here,
will there disappear. The present relationships will abide, but
they will be so transfigured and ennobled that they will need
other names. Even as of old, when a man became " a new
creature in Christ Jesus," he got a new name, so, when all
> Cf. WeUtein.
ENCOUNTERS WITH THE RULERS 407
things are made new, they will get new names. In the Re». IL 17.
resurrection-life they will not marry. It will be no longer
marriage, but something so immeasurably nobler that another
name will be needed. What Jesus here counsels is a prudent
suspense of judgment, an utter confidence in the power of
God, and an assured faith that, whatever the life to come may
be, it will be unspeakably fuller, richer, and more beautiful
than the life that now is : " things which eye saw not, and ear i cor. li. 9.
heard not, and which entered not into man's heart, even all
the things which God prepared for them that love Him."
In a tone almost of banter Jesus proceeds to convict those Argument
arrogant men of ignorance on another score. They recognised scr'iptures.
the Pentateuch as their rule of faith, and it contained the
doctrine which they denied. " As regards the Resurrection
of the dead, have ye not read what hath been spoken to you
by God : ' I am the God of Abraham and the God of Isaac
and the God of Jacob ' ? He is not a God of dead men but
of living. Ye greatly err ! " How significant this iteration :
" Ye err ; ye greatly err ! " It is the impassioned protestation
of One who knew that unseen world whereof in their ignorance
they reasoned so ill. How foolish their confident talk sounded
to Him whose home was the bosom of the Father ! Of
course there is here no serious argument for immortality. Jt
was not thus that Jesus handled the Scriptures ; but it was
thus that the Jews handled them,^ and Jesus with masterly
strategy meets His adversaries on their own ground and routs
them with their own weapons. His triumph was complete.
It exalted Him in the eyes of the multitude : " they were
amazed at His teaching." Some of the Scribes were standing
by, and even they were unable to withhold applause.
" Teacher," they cried, " thou hast spoken well." Exegesis
was their business, and that felicitous stroke compelled their
admiration. It was a veritable masterpiece.
The Lord's adversaries had been worsted in each 5. The chief
encounter, and, had they been wise, they would have acknow-
ledged their defeat and troubled Him no more. But the
Pharisees, exulting in the discomfiture of their natural enemies
the Sadducees and hoping to succeed where they had failed,
were minded to make yet another attempt They deputed
> Cf. Schttrer, H. J. P.Vl.x,^. 349.
coraraand-
ment.
4o8 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
one of their order, a Scribe versed in the Sacred Law, to
approach Him and submit a vexed question to His decision.
It was reckoned by the Rabbis that the Law contained six
hundred and thirteen precepts ; and these were distinguished
as " heavy " and " h"ght," and very keen was the disputation
betwixt the strict school of Shammai and the more Hberal
school of Hillel which precepts were " heavy " and which
Cf. Gen. " light." ^ It was commonly agreed that those were heavy to
E^od. xti." which the penalty of death was attached ; and, since these
IS. 19: were in the main laws regarding circumcision, the eating of
Lev. vi'i. 20! unleavened bread. Sabbath-observance, sacrifice, and purifica-
^^ 'xix.'so! tion, the consequence was that exaltation of ceremonial which
was the curse of later Judaism.
His Thinking to entangle Him in this wearisome and unprofit-
ecision. ^i^ig controversy, the Scribe approached Jesus and asked :
" What manner of commandment is first of all ? " " First,"
Deut. vi. 4- answered Jesus, " is : * Hear, Israel : The Lord your God is
^' one Lord ; and thou shalt love the Lord thy God with thy
whole heart and with thy whole soul and with thy whole mind
Lev. xix. and with thy whole strength.' Second this : * Thou shalt love
thy neighbour as thyself.' Greater than these is no other
commandment. On these two commandments the whole
Law hangs and the Prophets." It seems that the combination
of these two precepts as summarising religion in both its
Cf. Lk. X. aspects, the Godward and the manward, was the latest achieve-
ment of the Rabbinical theology of that day ; and, when Jesus
answered thus, He showed that He was acquainted with the
doctrine of the schools and, even on that field, was no mean
antagonist But there was that in His look and tone which
went to the heart of His questioner. The Pharisees, even as
when at the outset of His ministry they had sent Nicodemus
to interview Jesus, had been unfortunate in their selection of a
representative. They had chosen one versed in Rabbinical
theology, but he was an earnest man. Like Saul of Tarsus
he was seeking to be justified before God and had realised
the futility of legal observances. His soul leaped up in
response to the Lord's verdict " Of a truth, Teacher," he
cried, " thou hast well said that He is one and there
is none other besides Him ; and to love Him with the
* Cf. Wetstein on ML xxiiL aj. .
27.
ENCOUNTERS WITH THE RULERS 409
whole heart and with the whole understanding and with the
whole strength and to love one's neighbour as oneself is exceed-
ing more than all the whole burnt offerings and sacrifices."
Jesus was touched by the wistfulness of the reply. " Thou
art not far," He said kindly, " from the Kingdom of God." It
was an invitation to cross the intervening space ; and one
would fain know what became of the Scribe. Did he obey
the gracious invitation and take the decisive step ? *
The long controversy, so skilfully conducted, so per- 6. David •
sistently renewed, is ended, and Jesus stands victorious. " No i^^^,'*
one dared to interrogate Him any more." Hitherto His ^^'^
enemies have been the aggressors and He has sustained
assault after assault, repelling each with infinite dexterity ;
now He changes from defence to attack. He adduces the
hundred and tenth Psalm, which is the work of some unknown
psalmist and celebrates the invincible prowess of some un-
known king, the psalmist's " lord," who owed his triumph to
Jehovah's help. It was written during the later period of
Israel's history, when the king was, " after the manner of
Melchizedek," both king and priest. Such is the plain
meaning of the psalm, but it was otherwise interpreted by the
Rabbis. Disliking anonymity, they were wont to bring
everything under the shadow of some great name, and they
ascribed the bulk of the Psalter to David, regardless of pro-
bability and sometimes even of possibility. They entitled this
a Psalm of David, conceiving that he had written it propheti-
cally of his Lord, the Messianic King of Israel. Knowing
their interpretation of the psalm, Jesus made use of it to put
His adversaries to shame. " What think ye," He asked, <7-.****
addressing the Pharisees and echoing their own phrase,
"about the Messiah? Whose son is He?" It seemed an
easy question to those learned doctors, and they answered
glibly : " David's." " Then," Jesus retorted, " how does David,
speaking by inspiration, call Him ' Lord ' ? * The Lord said
' Straass, followed by Keim and Wright, identifies Mt. xxii. 34-40= Mk. xii.
28-34 with Lk. X. 25-37, finding here an instance of "the freedom which was used
by the early Christian legend in giving varioils forms to a single fact or idea."
The only points of similarity are that in both narratives rhe interrogator is a lawyer
or scril>e and the same quotation is made ; bat the difTerences are numerous and
distinctive. The idea of identification is far older than Strauss : Augustine mentions
aod rejecU it {Jk Cons. Ev. ii. g 75).
4IO THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
unto my Lord : Sit at My right hand until I put Thine
enemies under Thy feet' If then David calls Him ' Lord,'
how is He his son ? "
It was a genuine piece of Rabbinical casuistry, just such a
theologicalis qucBstio as the Scribes loved to debate in their
schools.^ What was the Lord's purpose in thus adopting the
method of His opponents ? It was not simply to humble
those insolent men and put them to shame before the multi-
tude by meeting them on their own ground and routing them
with their own weapons. It was rather to bring home at
once to the rulers, to the multitude, and to His disciples the
erroneousness of their Messianic ideal. They loved to think
of the Messiah as the Son of David, picturing Him as a
victorious prince who should deliver Israel from her oppres-
sors and restore her to more than her ancient glory ; and the
marvel is not that so many rejected Jesus but that any
accepted Him, when He presented Himself before them — a
Galilean peasant, meek and lowly in heart. He made many
a protest against that worldly dream, but of all His protests
there was perhaps none so effective as His reductio ad
absurdum of the Rabbinical interpretation of the hundred and
tenth Psalm. That psalm was His adversaries' grand proof-
text for their Messianic ideal, and He demonstrated that
their interpretation of it was a preposterous mistake.'
* Cf. Lightfoot on Lk. ii. 46.
' The notion that Jesus here puts His seal to the Davidic authorship of the
psalm, so that to question it is to impugn His authority, is an utter misconception
of His ailment and involves a startling consequence : If He asserted the Davidic
authorship, then He denied the Davidic sonship. The Rabbis acknowledged the
force of His argument and — as Jerome says, "ad deludendam interrogationis veri-
tatem " — revised their interpretation of the psalm. They should have abandoned
its Davidic authorship, but they preferred to deny its Messianic reference, applying
it variously to Abraham, David, and Hezekiah. Cf. Lightfoot on Lk. xx. 42.
CHAPTER XLIII
THE GREAT INDICTMENT Mtxjtiii. i-
7. 13-36 ;
Mk. xii. 38-
" Sinner, here thou dost hear of love, prithee do not provoke it, by turning it into 40= Lk.
wantonness. He that dies for slighting love, sinks deepest into hell, and will there be xx. 45-7;
tormented by the remembrance of that evil, more than by the deepest cogitation of ; ^'■^'^
all his other sins. Take heed therefore, do not make love thy tormentor." — John xii.'a(>.eo
BUNTAN.
Jesus had put His enemies to silence, and, as they stood con- "TheCom
founded, He addressed them for the last time, exposing and ™/^g^''°°
satirising their corruption and perversity. It was a scathing Scribes and
indictment, the most terrible that ever fell on human cars ; '^^
yet, as it poured from His lips, pity struggled with indignation
in His breast. It is justly entitled by an ancient commen-
tator a " commiseration of the Scribes and Pharisees." ^ Even
while He pronounced their doom, He yearned over them with
a great compassion.
He began with a stroke of biting satire. " On Moses' Their p«
chair," He said to His disciples and the multitude, " are the *^*"^*'
Scribes and the Pharisees seated.^ All therefore that they
say unto you do and observe ; but according to their works
do not ; for they say and do not" ' This distinction betwixt
the men and their office, this requirement of deference to their
authority coupled with reprobation of their example, was a
heavy indictment of those teachers of Israel. " Their seeming
honour," says St Chrysostom, " He makes a condemnation. For
what case could be more miserable than a teacher's when it
saves his disciples to give no heed to his life ? " It was a
damning charge, and Jesus proceeded to establish it. The
improbus astutus was a byword in those days — the teacher
who " enjoined * light ' things upon himself and ' heavy '
* Enth. Zig. : TtpX toO TaXavia/Mv tuw Tpaftfi. xal ^apitr. oval Si vfuf, eight
times reiterated, is an exclamation no less of commiseration than of condemnation.
'/.«. as successors of the legislator of Israel.
• Cf. Paul's recognition that respect was due to the High Priest in virtue of hit
office. Acts xxiii. 2-5.
4«»
412 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
things upon others." * And Jesus imputes this offence to the
Scribes and Pharisees. Like a merciless camel-driver, they
" bound heavy burdens and put them on men's shoulders, but
would not themselves move them with their finger." They
hungered for praise ; they were consumed by petty ambition.
They made their phylacteries broad and their fringes long ; ^
Cf, Lk. xiv. they loved the chief places at feasts and the front seats in the
^' synagogues, and, when they walked abroad, it gratified them
that the passers by should do obeisance to them and greet
them with the reverential salutation : " Hail, Rabbi ! " '
Their The rulers were standing by in angry discomfiture, and,
oflfences : ^j^gjj pjg jj^d thus with a few graphic strokes pourtrayed
them for the admonition of His disciples and the multitude,
He addressed them with burning indignation and overwhelmed
them with a torrent of accusation. It was a terrific indict-
ment, and each count was prefaced with a half indignant, half
sorrowful *' Woe unto you ! "
I. Shutting " Woe unto you, Scribes and Pharisees, play-actors ! foras-
Kingdom niuch as ye shut the Kingdom of Heaven in men's faces. For
»f Heaven. ^^ ^Jq jjot enter, neither them that are entering do ye suffer to
enter." Their very teaching blocked the way into the King-
dom of Heaven. They had overlaid the Word of God with
their traditions ; they had choked the living fountain with the
rubbish of their inventions. John had sought to open up the
way into the Kingdom of Heaven, and they had hunted him
to death ; and now they were plotting against Jesus.
a. Proseiyt- " Woe unto you. Scribes and Pharisees, play-actors ! foras-
'*™' much as ye scour sea and land to make a single proselyte ;
and, when he is gained, you make him twice more a son of
Gehenna than yourselves." Scant courtesy was shown to
proselytes. The Rabbis declared that they "hindered the
advent of the Messiah" and called them "a scurf upon
* Cf. Lightfoot.
• The ^vXaxTijpto, ppDJI, " prayers," were strips of parchment inscribed with four
passages (Exod. xiii. 3-10; 11-6; Deut. vi. 5-9; xi. 13-21) and fastened to the
forehead and left arm in literal obedience to Exod. xiii. 9, 16 ; Deut. vi. 8 ; xi. 18.
Originally 0i;Xo<cTi)pta meant observatoria, i.e. remembrancers, but latterly conserva-
toria, i.e. amulets to put evil spirits to flight. See Lightfoot, iii. p. 31. Jerome
and Chrysostom compare the little Gospels and bits of the Cross worn by supersti-
tious women in their day. On iht fringes see p. 197, n. 4.
' On the position of Mt. xxiii. 8-12 cf. Introd. § 9.
THE GREAT INDICTMENT 413
Israel." ^ Nevertheless the Jews were zealous proselytisers.^ Not
only was it a triumph for the true faith when converts were
won from heathenism, but wealthy proselytes, like the cen- Lk. vu. 5,
turion of Capernaum and Cornelius of Caesarea, by their ^^" ^ '*•
munificent liberality augmented the ecclesiastical revenues.
And it is remarkable that the proselytes surpassed the
Jews in superstition and fanaticism.' " Ye make them
twice more sons of Gehenna than yourselves." There lay the
guilt of the Scribes and Pharisees : they scoured sea and land
to make a single proselyte, caring nothing for his soul, eager
only for their own aggrandisement and enrichment
" Woe unto you, blind guides ! " With crushing contempt 3. Casuis-
He exposes their moral obliquity, adducing specimens of the "^'
casuistry wherewith, after the manner of the Jesuits, those
teachers of Israel played fast and loose with the moral law
and corrupted the moral sense.* " Swear," they said, " by the
Sanctuary : it is naught ; swear by the gold of the Sanctuary :
it is binding. Swear by the altar : it is naught ; swear by the
gift that is on it : it is binding. Swear by Heaven : it is
naught ; swear by the Throne of God : it is binding." As
though the greater did not include the less I " Ye fools and
blind ! "
" Woe unto you, Scribes and Pharisees, play-actors ! for- 4. Scmpu-
asmuch as ye tithe your anise and mint and cummin." It IriflM.*"
was the very climax of scrupulosity when men tithed their ^""y.'"
' ^ ^ essentials.
kitchen-herbs,* There was indeed no harm in the practice ;
the sin was that they " neglected the weightier things of the
Law — judgment and compassion and faith," compounding for
their laxity in matters essential by scrupulosity in matters of
no moment "Blind guides !" cries Jesus with infinite scorn,
hitting them off with a proverb characteristically Oriental in its
grotesque exaggeration, "ye that strain out the midge but
gulp down the camel."
" Woe unto you, Scribes and Pharisees, play-actors I for- s- Rapacity
asmuch as ye cleanse the outside of the cup and the platter tinence
* Bafyl. Nidd, 13. 2 : "Tradunt Rabbini nostri : ' Proselyti et psederastae im-
pcdiunt adventum Messise. Proselyti sunt scabiles Israeli.'"
' Cf. Taylor, Say. of Path. i. 13, n. 29.
' Acts xiii. 43, 50 ; Tac Hist. v. $ ; Juv. xiy. 96-106.
* CJ. Lightfoot on Mt. v. 33. Mart. Ep. xi. 97. 78.
» Cf. Lightfoot.
2 F
414 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
while inside they are full of rapacity and incontinence."
Rapacity and incontinence ! These are strange things to lay
to the charge of grave and reverend men who posed as
paragons of sanctity. Yet Jesus spoke in all seriousness and
truth. During the dark ages which preceded the Reformation,
it was the custom in our own land, when a peasant died, for
the priest to visit the stricken dwelling, not to comfort the
widow and orphans, but to claim the " cors-presant " — the
best cow and the coverlet of the bed or the deceased's outer
garment. There is indeed no evidence that the rapacity of
the Scribes and Pharisees reached such a pitch, yet it was
sufficiently monstrous. " The stroke of the Pharisees has
touched you," said R. Eleazar to a widow whom R. Sabbatai
had plundered.^ The iniquity enkindled the Lord's indignation,
and He branded those faithless shepherds of Israel as hirelings
John X. lo, who cared not for the sheep, nay, thieves who came only to
*3- steal and kill and destroy. And it was an aggravation of
their iniquity that they practised it in the name of religion
and behind a mask of piety. " Woe unto you, Scribes and
Pharisees, play-actors ! forasmuch as ye devour widows'
houses, even while by way of pretext ye make long prayers.
Therefore shall ye receive more abundant condemnation."*
Thrice daily they prayed for an hour ; and an hour before
and an hour after they spent in meditation, thus devoting
to prayer nine hours daily. " Long prayer," they said,
" lengthens life." ^
And it is a deplorable fact that beneath their cloak of
sanctity the Pharisees too often hugged in their bosoms the foul
lusts of the flesh. Jesus read their secret thoughts, and He
needed no other evidence ; but the pages of the Rabbinical
literature abound in testimonies that His judgment was just.
Their very protestations of an unearthly chastity smack of
lasciviousness. It is written that R. Simeon delighted to
behold fair women, and the spectacle of their beauty moved
him to praise God. R. Gidal and R. Jochanan were in the
habit of sitting at the women's bathing-place ; and, when
they were admonished of the danger of lasciviousness, R.
* Cf. Wetstein.
' The best authorities omit MU xxiii. 14, but it is certainly part of the discourse.
Cf. Mk. xii. 40= Lk. xx. 47. » See Lightfoot.
THE GREAT INDICTMENT 415
Jochanan replied : " I am of the seed of Joseph over whom
lust could have no dominion." ^
" Woe unto you, Scribes and Pharisees, play-actors ! " He 6. Fair
continues ; " forasmuch as ye resemble whitewashed tombs, fo^ °"*'
which outside look beautiful but inside are full of dead men's ^^^^i^-
bones and every sort of filth." Contact with the dead involved
ceremonial defilement, and therefore, lest a man should
stumble upon them unawares, Jewish tombs were whitewashed.
They stood conspicuous, giving warning like the lepers who
stood afar off, crying : " Unclean ! unclean ! " They got
weather-stained during the rainy season, and at the close
thereof, just before the Passover, they received a fresh coating
of whitewash.^ There they stood around Jerusalem as Jesus
spoke, clean and fair to the eye, fit emblems of the Pharisees,
so fair without, so foul within. " Even so ye also outside
look righteous to men's eyes, but inside ye are stuffed with
hypocrisy and lawlessness."
This allusion to the tombs leads on to the final and most 7. Guilty of
damning count in the indictment. " Woe unto you Scribes onhe°°**
and Pharisees, play-actors ! forasmuch as ye build the tombs Prophets,
of the Prophets and adorn the sepulchres of the righteous, and
say : * If we had been in the days of our fathers, we would not
have been partakers with them in the blood of the Prophets.' " •
And was not their protestation justified ? Yonder on the
southern shoulder of Mount Olivet stood the Tombs of the
Prophets glistering in the sunshine, monuments which the Jews
of later days had reared with penitent hearts and generous
hands to the honour of those martyrs whom their fathers had
slain. Yet Jesus disallowed their claim. They were like that
savage chief who, when he heard the story of the Crucifixion,
brandished his weapon and exclaimed : " Ah, had I been
there, I would have cut those wicked Jews into a
thousand pieces ! " Yet he would not give his heart to Jesus or
for His sake abandon his wicked ways. What availed it that
» Talm. HUros. in Ber. 12. 3 ; Baby I. Ber. 20. I. Hieros. Chall. 58. 3 :
" Calcaneum mulieris aspiciens est ac si uterum aspiceret ; uterum autem aspiciens
est ac si cum ea coiret." Babyl. Ber. 24. i : *' tntuens vel in minimuin digitam
foeminse est ac si intueretur in locum pudendum." See Lightfoot on Mt. v. 28. Cf.
Susanna and the Elders. ' Cf. Lightfoot.
' Mace. I. 17: "R. Tarphon et R- Akiba dixetunt : 'Si nos fuissemus in
Synhedrio, non esset nnquam de eo qaisqnam interfectns.' "
4i6 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
the Jews deplored their fathers' deeds when their fathers' spirit
was in their hearts and they were doing to the new prophets even
as their fathers had done to the old, proving themselves their
fathers' sons and filling up the measure of their fathers' guilt ?
Jesus knew what awaited Himself, and He knew also how it
would fare with His Apostles. " Some of them ye will kill and
crucify, and some of them ye will scourge in your synagogues
and chase from city to city, that upon you may come every
drop of innocent blood shed upon the earth, from the blood
of Abel the righteous even to the blood of Zechariah ^ whom
ye murdered betwixt the Sanctuary and the Altar."
The The words would send a thrill of horror through the
^char^ah^ listening multitude. They knew well the awful story — how,
nigh nine hundred years ago in the days of King Joash after
the death of the good priest Jehoiada, Judah and Jerusalem
fell into idolatry, and, when Zechariah the son of Jehoiada,
a. Chron. raised his protest, they " stoned him with stones in the court
■ of the House of the Lord." It was a horrid crime, and, eager
to expiate it, the Jews had reared a shrine in honour of
Zechariah just across the Kedron ; but still the memory of it
haunted them. It was, they said, a seven-fold crime : the
victim was at once a priest, a prophet, and a judge ; innocent
blood had been shed ; the sacred court had been defiled ; the
day on which it was perpetrated, had been the Sabbath and
the Day of Atonement " The Lord look upon it and require
it ! " had been the martyr's dying words, and generation after
generation they had kept ringing in the nation's ears. Tradi-
tion told how, long after, on the desecrated spot blood had
bubbled up from the pavement and would not cease.^ The
very name of Zechariah was fateful in Jewish ears, and the
Lord's allusion would fill His hearers with shuddering dread.
It was indeed an ancient crime, and much innocent blood
had since been shed in Jerusalem ; but the story is told in
the second Book of Chronicles, and in the Hebrew Bible that
book stands last. It was as though the Lord had said : " All
the crimes that your history records from the first page of the
Scriptures to the last will be visited on you. Ye are the
heirs of all the guilt of all the centuries, and on you the ac-
cumulated vengeance will fall. Verily I tell you, all this will
come upon this generation."
» Cf. Append. VIL • Cf. Lightfoot.
THE GREAT INDICTMENT 417
It was a dreadful prophecy ; yet it merely exasperated a deput»-
the rulers, and they went away and consulted how they might cheeks,
compass the death of Jesus. The day was declining, and Mt. xxvi. 3-
Jesus, it would seem, rested in the Temple while His disciples iiv.*^l^=
were busy here and there ere they should quit the city and ^^ ""'• *
repair to their lodging on Mount Olivet As Philip went his
errand, perhaps to the market-place, he was accosted by a
company of strangers. They were Greeks,* and they re-
quested him to procure them an interview with the Master.
" Sir," they said, " we are wishing to see Jesus." Who were
they ? A curious story is told by the ecclesiastical chronicler
Eusebius. Abgarus, King of Edessa in Mesopotamia, was
sick with a painful and incurable disease, and, when he heard
the fame of Jesus, he sent to Him and entreated Him to come
and heal him. Eusebius found a record of the incident in
the archives at Edessa, and he gives both the letter of
Abgarus and the reply of Jesus, literally translated from the
original Syriac. The former runs thus :
^^ Abgarus, prince of Edessa, to Jesus the good Saviour who
hath appeared in the district of Jerusalem, greeting. The story
hath reached my ears of Thee and Thy healings as wrought
by Thee without drugs and simples. For, it is said^ Thou
makest blind men to see, lame to walk. Thou cleansest lepers,
and castest out unclean spirits and dcemons, and them, that are
tormented with long sickness Thou curest, and Thou raisest
dead men. And when I heard all this about Thee, I inferred
one or other of the twain : either that Thou art God and,
having come down from Heaven, art doing these things, or
Thou art a Son of God in that Thou doest these things. For
this reason then I have written and prayed Thee to trot el unto
me and cure the sickness which I have. For I have heard
that the Jews also are murmuring against Thee and wishing to
do Thee damage. My city, however, though but small, is a
goodly one, and it is sufficient for us both."
Jesus replied that He must remain at Jerusalem and accomplish
^ The fact that they had " come up to worship at the Feast " does not imply that
they were either proselytes or Hellenistic Jews. It was a singular provision of the
Jewish Law that a Gentile might bring an offering to Jerusalem, and men of cosmo-
politan spirit frequently availed themselves thereof. At the Paswver of A.D 37 the
Syrian governor interrupted his march to go up to Jerusalem and offer sacrifice. Jos.
AtU. xTuL S- S 3- Of- Lightfoct 00 John ziL 19 ; SchUicr, H.J. />. iL I, pp. 299-305.
4i8 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
His mission, but He promised that after He had been received
up He would send one of His disciples to heal Abgarus and
give life to him and his people. And in fulfilment of this
promise Thaddaeus was sent to Edessa.^
Emotion of It IS a curious story. Though the authenticity of the
J*^'" • correspondence is very questionable, there is no reason to
doubt the fact of the embassy ; and there is much probability
in the suggestion that those Greeks who came in quest of
Jesus, may have been the messengers of Abgarus. Uncertain
johnvi.7-8; what he should do, Philip consulted with Andrew, always the
""■ ^ man of his counsel and a favourite with the Master, and the
two went and told Jesus. Their story excited a storm of
(i) exuita- emotion in the Lord's breast. It inspired Him with exultant
^°^ • gladness. He recognised those Greeks as harbingers of that
innumerable multitude out of every nation and all tribes and
peoples and tongues that should believe in His name and call
Him Lord. Already those other sheep which were not of
Israel's fold, were hearkening to their Shepherd's voice and
gathering unto Him. It was an earnest of greater things to
come, a pledge that His sacrifice would not prove unavailing.
" The hour hath come," He cried, " that the Son of Man should
be glorified. Verily, verily I tell you, if the grain of wheat do
not fall into the earth and die, by itself alone it remaineth ;
but, if it die, much fruit it beareth." Not in vain had He
trodden His weary path ; and it was the path which His
disciples must tread, winning the world by sacrifice. " He
that loveth his life loseth it, and he that hateth his life in this
world unto life eternal shall guard it If any one serve Me,
let him follow Me, and where I am, there My servant
also shall be. If any one serve Me, the Father will honour
him."
(a) per- Presently His exultation was checked. There rushed
* upon Him that old temptation which had assailed Him in the
wilderness at the outset of His ministry and pursued Him
throughout the course thereof. Was it necessary that He
should die ? Had not a door of escape been opened before
Him in the providence of God ? Should He not obey the
call which had been addressed to Him, and, quitting impeni-
tent Jerusalem and His bloodthirsty foes, go away with those
* Eos. M. E. i. 13.
THE GREAT INDICTMENT 419
kindly Greeks and establish the Kingdom of Heaven in their
midst ? Such was the counsel of His frail humanity, trembling
and shrinking in the near prospect of the Cross. " Now," He
cried, " hath My soul been troubled ; and what am I to say ?
Father," He prayed, "save Me from this hour." And His
prayer was answered. It was the eternal purpose of God
that He should die, a sacrifice for the sin of the world. That
was His mission, and He would not flinch from it. " Nay,"
He exclaimed, rallying Himself from His momentary irresolu-
tion, "it was for this that I came unto this hour. Father,
glorify Thy name."
It was a momentous crisis. On the issue of the conflict a voice
which was being waged in the Redeemer's breast, hung the Heaven.
hope of the world's salvation, and all Heaven watched the
event. It is no marvel that again, as on the bank of theMt.iiLi7=
Jordan and on the Mount of Transfiguration, the silence was ^iJ^j^- ^^^.
broken by a voice from Heaven. God answered the prayer Mt. xvii. 5
of His beloved Son : " I both have glorified it and will glorify =Lk. be.
it again." Jesus needed no audible assurance of the Father's ^^
approval of His past ministry and sympathy with Him in the
ensuing ordeal ; but the multitude needed it, and the voice
should have told them what was passing in their midst
But they did not understand it. Some thought that it was
thunder, others that an angel had spoken to Jesus. " Not for My
sake," said He, " hath this voice come, but for yours. Now is
this world on its trial ; now shall the Prince of this world be
cast out. And I," He added, exulting afresh in anticipa-
tion of the day when there should be no longer Jew and
Greek but a universal brotherhood of redeemed men, " if
I be lifted up from the earth, will draw all men unto
Myself."!
" This He said," explains the Evangelist, " signifying by Bewilder-
what manner of death He wzis about to die." Their acquaint- ™",'i,*j[di!*
ance with Rabbinical theology was always a stumbling-block
to the men of Jerusalem, a hindrance to their comprehension
and acceptance of the Lord's claims. Their minds were pre- c/: John
possessed, and, whatever He said, they raised some scholastic ]riii.*i3. '
quibble. So it happened now. " We have heard out of the
* According to Strauss John xiL 20-32 is a blending together of "the two
Sjnoptical anecdotes of the Transfiguration and the Agony in the Garden."
420 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
Cf. Pss. Law," ^ they objected, " that the Messiah remaineth for ever,
"^^cx. 4I and how dost thou say that the Son of Man must be lifted up ?
Who is this ' Son of Man ' ? " Jesus had said " I " : wherefore
did they substitute " the Son of Man " ? Was it that He had
often repeated in their hearing His declaration to Nicodemus :
johniiL 14. " The Son of Man must be lifted up " ? They had understood
that, when He spoke of the Son of Man, He meant Himself.
They knew that He claimed to be the Messiah, and they be-
lieved it ; and, sure that the Messiah would " remain for ever,"
they thought that they must have erred in thinking that by
the Son of Man Jesus meant Himself. " Who," they asked in
bewilderment, " is this ' Son of Man ' ? " He did not stay to
resolve their perplexity. A greater business claimed Him.
Those Greeks awaited Him, and He must hasten to them.
" A little time longer," He said, " is the Light among you.
Walk as ye have the Light, lest darkness overtake you ; and
he that walketh in the darkness knoweth not where he goeth.
As ye have the Light, believe in the Light, that sons of Light
ye may become," It was His last word to the men of
Jerusalem. " This spoke Jesus, and went away and was
hidden from them."
Discourse In that retreat where Jesus hid from the multitude. He
Greeks! ^ccordcd to the Greeks the interview which they desired.
They would have much to ask of Him, and He would vouch-
safe to them an abundant disclosure of His mind and heart.
Yet only the barest outline of His discourse has been pre-
served, and the reason is doubtless that the Evangelist was
not present and did not hear it Probably Philip and Andrew
were the only representatives of the Twelve that heard it, and
St John has reported only so much as he learned from them.
It is a mere summary, yet it reveals much, Jesus spoke with
Cf. John deep emotion : " He cried and said." He set forth the Gospel
"■ * ' '^' in all its fulness, omitting none of the great truths which He
had proclaimed in the course of His ministry : His oneness
with the Father, His errand of redemption, the guilt of reject-
ing His revelation, His gift of Eternal Life. And, speaking
not to Jews but to Gentiles, He proclaimed the universality of
* The Law is the Scripture generally in opposition to the teaching of the Scribes.
Lightfoot : " Frequeiilissime occurrit Hoc est ex Lege: cui appositum Hoc est e*
Habbinis." C/". p. 351, n. 4.
THE GREAT INDICTMENT 421
His salvation : " I have come a light into the world** ; " I came
not to judge the world but to save the world," ^
* It was John's manner to introduce discourses of Jesus abruptly {cf. the inser-
tion of chaps, xv-xvii between the exit from the Upper Room and the departure
from Jerusalem with no indication where they were spoken) ; and the recognition of
xii. 44-50 as the Lord's address to the Greeks removes a crux ititerprttum. This
additional address ("quite isolated and introduced without locality, without one
new idea") after Jesus "went away and was hidden from them " is pronounced by
Keim "an impossibility, in truth only the reflection of the Evangelist continued in
a pretended utterance of Jesus." Several explanations have been suggested: (l)
After his departure Jesus returned and again addressed the Jews (Cbrysostom, followed
by the older expositors). (2) Over against the unbelief of the Jews {w. 37-43) John
gives(vc. 44-50) " an energetic summing up, acondensed summary of that which Jesus
has hitherto clearly and openly preached " (Meyer). (3) The section has got mis-
placed and should stand between 36a and 36b (Wendt),
Mt.xxiT
(x. 17-33)=
Mk. xiii. !•
33= Lk.
xxi. s-36,
xviL 22-37,
xji- 39-53:
Mt. XXV. I-
13 (Lk. xii.
3S-8): Mt
XXV. i4-3a
(Lk. xix.
11-28 : Mk.
xiii- 34-7) :
Ml XXV.
31-46.
Retiral to
Olivet.
CHAPTER XLIV
DISCOURSE ABOUT THINGS TO COME
' Judex ergo cum sedebit,
Quidquid latet apparebit.
Nil inultum remanebit.
" Rex tremendae majestatis
Qui salvandos salvas gratis,
Salva me, fons pietatis.
Magnifi-
cence of the
Temple.
Prediction
of its over-
throw.
Things to
come.
" Inter oves locum praesta
Et ab baedis me sequestra,
Statuens in parte dextra." — Thom. de Cel.
Evening came on, and Jesus and the Twelve retired from
the city and betook themselves to the Mount of Olives. As
they quitted the Temple, the disciples remarked upon the
grandeur of the sacred edifice. It was indeed an imposing
spectacle for those northern peasants. When King Herod
embellished his capital, the old Temple of Zerubbabel accorded
ill with its surroundings, and the astute Idumsean, thinking
thereby to ingratiate himself with his subjects, rebuilt it in
magnificent style. It was an imposing pile, a triumph of
architecture, justifying the Rabbinical eulogy that one who
had never seen Herod's Temple, had never seen a beautiful
edifice.^ It was built of marble, some of the blocks measuring
five and forty cubits in length, five in height, and six in
breadth, and all set with gold. Crowning a steep hill, it
looked from afar like a mountain of snow ; and, when it
caught the first beams of morning, it shone with a splendour
which dazzled the eyes.' " Teacher," exclaimed one of the
disciples, " see what manner of stones and what manner of
buildings ! " " Thou art looking," returned Jesus, " on these
great buildings? There shall not be left one stone upon
another which shall not be pulled down."
It was a startling announcement ; and, when they reached
their retreat, four of the disciples, Peter, James, John, and
^ Wetitein on Mt. xxiv. i.
• Jo*. D» BelLJud. t. 5 ; Ant. xr. 11. Nonn. Parapkr. S. Ev./oan. t. 1-2 :
iifLot alffepi ytLruf
DISCOURSE ABOUT THINGS TO COME 423
Andrew, ventured to approach Jesus, as He sate apart, and ask
Him for an explanation. " Tell us, when will this be ? And
what is the sign when all this is about to be consummated ? "
He acceded to their request, and there in the still evening on
the mountain-side, with City and Temple full in view across
the valley. He discoursed to the Twelve of things to come,
foretelling two tremendous crises — the destruction of Jerusalem
which befell in A.D. 70, and His Second Advent which after
the lapse of nearly nineteen centuries is still future.^ His
purpose was not to gratify the curiosity of His disciples, but
to prepare them for the ordeal which awaited them, lest their
faith should fail in the day of trial. The doom of Jerusalem Destruo
was plain to every eye which could read the signs of the ^5^?"*
times, and it was ever a cause of wonderment to Jesus that
His contemporaries should be so blind to the impending
catastrophe. They could read the tokens of the sky, but not Lie xii. 56.
the signs of the times. The moral order of Providence was
the key that opened the future to Jesus. Jerusalem must fall
because she was ripe for judgment. The cup of her iniquity
was full. She was as a dead carcase, and the law stands
written on the page of history that " wheresoever the carcase Mt xnv. a
is, there shall the eagles be gathered together." ' And there ^'^**"'
could be only one issue of the smouldering disaffection, ever
and anon bursting into flame as the gusts of Messianic
fanaticism swept over the land. Jesus understood the temper
of His countrymen, and He knew that Rome would ere long
lose patience and with her iron heel crush the rebellion of the
turbulent province. All this He foresaw, and it was very
grievous to Him. He loved Jerusalem. She was to Him
the City of the Great King. Her Temple was His Father's
House. She was the centre of Israel's faith, the stage
whereon the mighty drama of redeeming love had been
enacted. Hers were the saints who all down the long
centuries of Israel's history had prayed and toiled and poured
out their martyr blood. She was dear and sacred in His eyes.
Her unbelief was the bitterest ingredient in His cup of sorrow,
and the thought of her doom lay like a heavy burden on His
• Cf Introd. g 12, 6 and 7.
• C/. Wright, Palmyra and Zenobia, p. 383. The scavenger- bird is properly the
vnltore (71/^). Jesus probably says dcroi in reference to the Roman oquiLt.
424 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
heart It is no marvel that, when He spoke thereof to the
Twelve, there swelled within Him a great flood of emotion.
In the spirit of the ancient prophets He depicts the Jewish
state going down amid storm and thunder and eclipse. It is
no precise picture of the things which actually came to pass.
Wars and rumours of wars, nation rising against nation and
kingdom against kingdom, earthquakes, famines, and pesti-
lences : these are not historical events announced in literal
detail ere they came to pass, but lurid strokes of prophetic
imagery designed to bring home to His hearers the horror of
the approaching desolation.* It was a terrible prospect, and,
lest it should surprise and overwhelm them, Jesus set it before
the imaginations of His disciples in all its grim terror. He
warned them that not only would they share those national
calamities but they would suffer peculiar distresses as Apostles
of the Kingdom of Heaven. They would encounter perse-
cution and martyrdom ; they would be hated of all men for
His name's sake ; nor would they be spared the pain of wit-
nessing wide-spread defection in the hour of trial : " the love
of most would wax cold." And deceivers would arise — false
prophets and false Messiahs,^ and deceive, if it were possible,
even the elect. " Be not dismayed," says Jesus. " Behold, I
have foretold you."
The With the signs of the times before His eyes Jesus clearly
Adnent P^rceived that the issue of the protracted conflict betwixt the
Jews and their conquerors could not be long delayed. The
nation was hastening to its doom, and, ere that generation had
passed away, Jerusalem must fall. But regarding the date of the
supreme crisis of His Second Advent He was less explicit
He expressly declared that it was hidden from Him. In the
John T. 20, days of His flesh the Lord walked by faith and not by sight,
3°- knowing only what was revealed to Him by the Father ; and
Mt xxiv, " of that day and hour none knew, neither the angels in
if 3^; c/. Heaven nor the Son, but the Father alone."' Of this, how-
cts . 7. 1 q^^ J J jjjj|_ g j^^^ . ^^^^ jg ^^^^ . jgj,^ j^^ 22 ^^^ . E2g]j^ xxxii. 7 Iff. ; Joel
iii. 9 sff. i Am. viii. 9.
' It was the outbreak of Messianic fanaticism that precipitated the disaster. C/.
Jos. De Bell.Jud. vi. 5. § 4.
' On dogmatic grounds T. R. of Mt. om. oWi 0 v\(n. " These words," says
Origen (/« Matth. Comm. Ser. % 55), "seem to convict those who profess that they
have knowledge of the end and the destruction of the world, and make announce-
cents as though the Day of the l^rd were at hand."
Xill
DISCOURSE ABOUT THINGS TO COME 425
ever, He assured the Twelve, that the great consummation
might lie in the remote future, and the Church must lay her
account for long waiting. " When ye hear of wars and
rumours of wars, be not dismayed. It must so come to pass,
but not yet the end." " These things are the beginning of
the birth-pangs." "And this Gospel of the Kingdom shallbe
preached in the whole world for a testimony unto all the
nations, and then shall come the end."
And, as though to lay this lesson home to the hearts of Two
His disciples, He spoke two parables — the Ten Virgins and^^*^'*"*
the Talents — which sum up His teaching about the Second
Advent* Watch ! Work I are the precepts thereof, and the
Church, weary of waiting and full of heaviness, has need in
every generation to have them sounded in her ears. The
former depicts a scene very familiar to the disciples — a i. The Ten
wedding. Eastern weddings are celebrated after night-fall, "^^""*
and their principal features are the procession and the
banquet Jesus tells how a company of virgins, the friends of
the bride, fared forth with lighted lamps to meet the bride-
groom and escort him to the house of the bride's father, the
scene of the wedding.^ Something, however, detained him,
and they sat waiting for him by the way. The slow hours
passed, and still he tarried ; and the weary virgins all grew
drowsy and fell asleep. At midnight the cry was raised :
" Behold, the bridegroom ! Come forth to meet him." They
started up. Their lamps had burned low, and they must
needs replenish them with oil. Then it appeared that five of
them were prudent and five foolish. The former, apprehensive *
of emergencies, had carried oil-flasks with them ; but the
latter, never dreaming that the bridegroom's advent would be
delayed, had merely filled the cups of their lamps. All had
gone well had the bridegroom come betimes ; but he had
tarried, and during the weary hours of waiting the thirsty
> Mt. alone records these parables, but they both appear in Lk. in a confused
form, blended with other parabolic sayings (xii. 35-8 ; xix. II-28). Mk. xiii. 34-7
is a mutilated version of the parable of the Talents.
• Sometimes the wedding ceremony was in the bride's home, the bridegroom
providing the feast (Jud. xiv. 10). Sometimes it was in the bridegroom's house, and
he escorted the bride thither from her home (l Mace ix. 37-41). The Utter
arrangement is implied by the reading of some MSS. in v. I : tit urdm/o^tv rov
rvfupLov Kal rijt rCfiiffis.
426 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
flame had been drinking up the scanty supply ; and now the
cups were empty. The prudent virgins replenished their
exhausted lamps from their flasks, but their improvident
companions had no such resource. " Give us of your oil,"
they cried, " because our lamps are going out." " Perhaps," was
the reply, " there will not be enough for us and you. Go
rather to the sellers and buy for yourselves." Whatever the
oil may signify, the fact remains that on that great Day each
will have need of all the grace that he has, and " none will be
able by any means to redeem his brother." It evinces the
folly of the foolish virgins that they followed their companions'
advice and hurried away to buy oil at midnight, never be-
thinking themselves that the merchants would have gone to
rest and that, ere they could return, the bridegroom would have
passed by. Improvident at the first, they were improvident
to the last. " As they were going away to buy, the bridegroom
came ; and they that were ready went in with him to the
wedding-feast ; and the door was shut." By and by the foolish
virgins came knocking at the door. " Sir, sir," they cried,
" open to us." " Verily I tell you," came the answer from
within, " I do not know you."
" Kee{) « Keep awake therefore," says Jesus, pointing the lesson
of the parable, " because ye know not the day nor the hour."
He would fain at His coming find His disciples standing with
Lk. xiL 35- their loins girt and their lamps burning like men that are
^' waiting for their lord ; but He foresaw how it would fare
with them when He was gone. As the generations passed
Cf. 3 Pet. and the promise of His coming remained still unfulfilled,
' expectancy would flag and ardour burn low. The Church
will be asleep when the Lord returns ; but well for such as
carry in their souls a deep spring of faith and love, and, when
the cry is raised at midnight, awaken with glad surprise to
greet Him. It will be too late then to think of making ready.
" In whatsoever condition I find you," Jesus is reported to
have said, " therein will I judge you." ^ We may be asleep
when the Lord comes, yet, if our hearts be true to Him
and leap up in gladness to bid Him welcome, all will be well
'Just. M. Dial, cum Tryph., Sylburg. ed. p. 267 A: iih Ka\ 6 iiyArepoK K^pios
'Iri<rovs Xpt<rrbt elirep' iv oU h> v/xas KaraXd^u, ip rovroit Kal KpwQ, Clem. Alex.
De Div. Serv. § 40 : ^^' oTi yhp hn eOpu v/xas, i>v<rb', irl tovtms Kal KptMd,
DISCOURSE ABOUT THINGS TO COME 427
with us ; we arc ready and we shall go in with Him to
the feast.
Jesus spoke another parable. He told how a man went a. The
abroad and, ere he left home, summoned three of his slaves, ^^
the most trustworthy of his household, and put them in charge
of his property. To the first he entrusted five talents,^ to the
next two, and to the third one, according to his knowledge of
their abilities ; and charged them to trade therewith during
his absence. He was a long time away, and on his return he
called them to account. The first and the second had
acquitted themselves well. No sooner had their master gone
than they set to work : and their enterprises had prospered
greatly. Each had doubled the sum entrusted to him.
" Well done, good and faithful slave ! " cried the delighted
master, as he heard the account of each. " Thou hast been
faithful over a few things : over many things will I set thee.
Enter into the joy of thy lord."^ The third had a very
different story to tell. A man of less ability than his fellows,
he had been entrusted with a proportionately smaller sum,
and he had taken offence thereat and conceived hard thoughts
of his master. There was no pleasing such an unconscionable
tyrant, he had said petulantly to himself. Whatever he might
gain would be deemed insufficient, and, should his speculations
miscarry, he would suffer for it. The safest course was to run
no risks. So he had deposited his talent in the ground, that
primitive repository of treasure ; ' and now he produces it
intact, and, conscious how ill a part he has acted, tries to
brazen it out. " Sir, I recognised that thou art a hard man,
' reaping where thou didst not sow and gathering where thou
didst not thresh ' ; * and I was afraid, and went away and hid
thy talent in the ground. See ! thou hast thine own."
" Ungenerous slave and slothful ! " cried the master, convicting
him on his own admission. " Thou knewest that I * reap
where I did not sow and gather where I did not thresh * ?
Thou shouldst therefore have deposited my money with the
bankers, and on my coming I would have received my own
* A talent was about ;^2I3,
• I.e. "Be no longer my slave but my friend." C/. John xv. ii, 15.
• C/. Wetstein on ML xiii. 44.
* A proverbial description of a grasping man.
428 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
with interest Therefore take away from him the talent and
give it to him that hath the ten talents ; and cast forth the
useless slave into the outer darkness."
•• Do busi- " Do business till I come " is the Lord's behest in view of the
'^'^come." uncertainty of His Second Advent How needful it was appears
Lk. xix. 13. from what befell at Thessalonica ere many years had elapsed.
The idea that the Day of the Lord was at hand took posses-
sion of the believers there and wrought grievous mischief.
The excitement was intense ; the Church was in confusion ;
the business of life was at a standstill. So serious was the
situation that St Paul wrote to them and sought to recall
■ Thess. Hi. them to sobricty. "We hear," he says, "of some that walk
"''^' among you disorderly, that work not at all but are busybodies.
Now them that are such we command and exhort in the Lord
Jesus Christ, that with quietness they work and eat their own
bread." And precisely similar is the Lord's exhortation in
this parable. He would have His disciples watch for His
appearing, but meanwhile there was much work to be done :
Mt. xxiv. " This Gospel of the Kingdom shall be preached in the whole
^xiu.^o! world for a testimony unto all the nations, and then shall
come the end " ; and they would best prepare to meet Him
and most effectually hasten His advent, not by scanning the
sky for the sign of His appearing, but by addressing them-
selves strenuously to their mission and carrying His Gospel to
the nations of the earth. Since the work is great, the very
uncertainty of the Second Advent should serve as an
incentive to activity. There is much to be done, and the
time may be very short. " The Last Day," says St Augus-
tine,^ " is hidden that all days may be observed."
Reckoning The parable is fraught with far-reaching and profitable
reward ^ruth. It shows how the Lord will reckon with His servants
at His appearing. He will consider their capacities and
reward them not so much according to their achievements as
according to their zeal and faithfulness. Since the first slave
had larger ability than the second, he received a larger trust ;
yet, since they displayed equal diligence, each doubling his
deposit, they got the self-same commendation and the self-
same reward. And, had the third done business with his
single talent and made it two, he would have had a like
^ Strm. xxxix, § I.
DISCOURSE ABOUT THINGS TO COME 429
recompense ; yea, had he earned three talents, tripling his
trust, he would have been greeted with the loftiest eulogy of
all. His condemnation was not that he earned less than his
fellows but that he earned nothing. And what is meant by
the Master's remonstrance : " Thou shouldest have deposited
my money with the bankers, and on my coming I would have
received my own with interest " ? It is surely an admonition
to such as hold positions of trust, that, if they have not the
heart to be faithful, they should stand aside and resign their
places to others who will diligently improve the sacred oppor-
tunities. The man who hid his talent in the earth, was
doubly guilty, forasmuch as he neither traded with it himself
nor suffered another to trade with it. And, finally, the parable
teaches that the reward which the Lord will bestow upon His
faithful servants, is not discharge from labour but a call to
further and larger service. *' Take away from him the talent,
and give it to him that hath the ten talents. For to every
one that hath shall be given, and he shall have more abun-
dantly."^ And this is the prayer of every true-hearted
disciple :
•' Dismiss me not Thy service, Lord,
But train me for Thy will ;
For even I, in fields so broad,
Some duties may fulfil :
And I will ask for no reward
Except to serve Thee stilL"
The secret of devotion to the Lord's service is recognition
of His goodness. His service may be heavy, demanding
unwearied labour and boundless sacrifice, yet it is a blessed
service. Jesus is no hard master. If the way which His
disciples must take be difficult, it is the way which He trod
before them ; and, if they must share His suffering, they shall
enter into His joy.
The discourse closes with a picture of the Last Judgment. The Last
Since He was speaking to Jews, Jesus employed Jewish Judgment,
language, and, borrowing a familiar image from the Book of 0^0. viL
Daniel, told how " the Son of Man would come in His glory, ^3-
^ A favourite saying of Jesus. R. Hillel said : '• He who increases not decreases,"
meaning that knowledge unimproved perishes. Cf. Taylor, Say. of Fath. i. 14.
The Lord's maxim is similarly applied in Mt. xiii. 12 ; Mk. iv. 25 = Lk. viii. 18.
2 G
430 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
and all the angels with Him." ^ Perhaps He was thinking of
the repeated demand of the Pharisees and Sadducees for a
sign from heaven. When last they made it, He had refused
Mt. xvi. I it with indignant contempt, but now He declares that on
~ "il that great Day they will have their desire : " Then shall
Mt. xxiv. appear the sign of the Son of Man in heaven, and all the
z^.'jm! tribes of the earth shall mourn, and they shall see the Son of
'^ Man coming on the clouds of heaven with power and much
glory." Still employing prophetic imagery, He proceeds to
cy. Joel iii. depict the solemn Assize: "He shall sit on His throne of
^' '' 14.' glory, and there shall be gathered before Him all the nations."
Only for Who are they that shall be thus arraigned before the
have"nev^ Judgment-seat of the Son of Man ? From ancient times it
^^^ ^^i ^^^ been generally supposed that they are all mankind.^ So
early, however, as the third century this assumption was
challenged ; ' and in truth it is more than doubtful. It is
distinctly said that " all the nations " shall be gathered before
that dread tribunal, and in the Scriptures " the nations " are
ever ihg heathen. Indeed the imagery of the parable is
borrowed from Joel's prophecy of the judgment of the nations
in the Valley of Jehoshaphat, and the nations are there dis-
tinguished from Israel, Jehovah's people and heritage. Nor is
it without significance that the Judge is styled the King. He
is the Messiah of Israel, but He is the King of the nations.
It might be concluded that what is here depicted is the judg-
ment of the Gentile world, were it not for the wondering
question wherewith the Judge's sentences are greeted : " Lord,
when saw we Thee an-hungered ? " This is the language of
utter strangers to Jesus, and it seems indubitable that what is
here depicted is the judgment of those who have never heard
His name. No Christian will be there, and no Jew, since
neither Christian nor Jew is a stranger to Jesus. No heathen
who has known the Gospel will be there ; none but heathen
who have never heard the name of Jesus and never had the
^ In a curious passage {De Bell. Jua. v. 6. § 3) Josephus saj-s that during the
siege of Jerusalem at every discharge of the Roman catapults the watchers on the
ramparts shouted by way of warning : 0 wtor (pxerai^ " The Son is coming ! " i6t,
missilt, is a suggested emendation of vloi.
' Chrjrsost. : rcura 7; twv dvOpuvuv ipvffu,
• Cf. Orig. Jn Matth. Comm. Ser. § 70. Lactantius held that what is here de-
picted is the iudgmcQt of Christians. So Euth. Zig., Neand., Mey.
DISCOURSE ABOUT THINGS TO COME 431
offer of His salvation. In truth such is our Lord's constant
representation. According to His teaching the judgment of
such as know the Gospel is not reserved to the Last Day. It
is not future but present. "God sent not His Son into the John iu. 17.
world that He might judge the world, but that the world ''
might be saved through Him. He that belie veth in Him is
not being judged ; he that believeth not hath already been
judged, because he hath not believed in the name of the only
begotten Son of God. And this is the judgment, that the
light hath come into the world, and the men loved the dark-
ness rather than the light." Judgment implies the possibility
of acquittal, and such as have rejected the Saviour will be
arraigned before Him at the last not for trial but for sentence,
not for judgment but for condemnation.
What then shall be the judgment of such as have never Thesepara-
heard the Gospel? "He shall separate them from one right^S^
another, as the shepherd separateth the sheep from the goats, ^ro™ ^*»
and shall set the sheep on His right and the goats on His righteous.
left." The significance of the similitude does not lie in some
fancied superiority of sheep over goats,^ but in the separation
of the promiscuous multitude into two well-defined and plainly
recognisable companies. Like sheep and goats in one pasture,
like tares and wheat in one field, like good fish and bad ml xiii. 24-
in one net, men are mingled during this life ; but on the ^'J^^'^'
Day of Judgment, in presence of that Face which discerns the
secrets of the soul, they will be parted according to their
moral affinities.
The test is character evinced by deeds of kindness, but Th" ^e**
Jesus attaches thereto a profound and wonderful significance.
Sitting on His throne the King addresses first the multitude
on His right, hailing them as His Father's blessed ones and
bidding them inherit the Kingdom which, all unknown to
them, has been prepared for them since the world's founda-
tion. And this felicity they have earned by kindness to
Himself. He was hungry, and they gave Him food ; thirsty,
and they gave Him drink ; a stranger, and they showed Him
hospitality ; naked, and they clothed Him ; sick, and they
^ Chrysost. : Sheep more profitable than goats, yielding wool, milk, lambs. Jer. :
" Hxdos, lascivum animal et petulcum, et ferrens semper ad coitum." Euth. Zig. :
Goats malodorous like sin. The distinction is not of quality but ot kind.
432 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
visited Him ; in prison, and they came to Him. It is an
amazing announcement Never till this hour have they seen
Him, and how have they done Him all these kindnesses?
The King explains. There are poor folk in the throng who
have suffered such ills, and they have crept near His throne
attracted by the grace which ever shone in His blessed face
and drew the wretched to Him.^ With such the Son of the
Fallen always claimed kinship ; and, pointing to them. He re-
plies : " Verily I tell you, inasmuch as ye did it unto one of
these My brethren, even the least, unto Me ye did it." Then,
turning to those on His left and charging them with neglect
of all those deeds of charity. He calls them " accursed " and
bids them depart from Him. They have steeled their hearts
against the miseries of their fellow-mortals, and in neglecting
them they have neglected Him.
Un- It is a wonderful claim that Jesus here advances ; no less
thsdpie- than this, that He is everywhere present, even where He is
siup- unknown, observing whatever befalls ; and so tender is His
sympathy, so deep His entrance into human ill and so utter
His appropriation thereof, that it is as though He were incar-
nate in every sufferer, presenting Himself to the world and
claiming its succour and service.^ There is no spot on earth
without His presence. " Raise the stone," He is reported to
have said, " and there thou shalt find Me ; cleave the wood,
and I am there." ' There is no human soul that is not en-
compassed by His love.
"Nor bounds, nor clime, nor creed thou know'st,
Wide as our need thy favours fall ;
The white wings of the Holy Ghost
Stoop, seen or unseen, o'er the heads of all."
Each striving against evil, each yearning after good, each
generous emotion that stirs in the human breast, is an inspira-
tion of that Saviour who is near even to such as do not know
Him, compassing their path and their lying down, besetting
them behind and before, and laying His hand upon them,
* Keim conceives the " brethren" to be the Christians, who surronnd the throne,
spectators of the scene, the heathen being judged according to their treatment of the
Church. C/. Acts ix. i, 4-5.
* Cf. Lowell's Vision of Sir Launfal and Tolstoi's Where Love is, God is also.
Saying of R. Abin : " Remember, when a poor man stands at your door, the Holy
One stands at his right hand."
* One of the 1897 Oxyrhynchus loffia : iyeifiw rhr \l$or tcdxet tipi^eis /xe, rxj^op
DISCOURSE ABOUT THINGS TO COME 433
How gracious are the Lord's thoughts towards the dark
world of heathendom I How righteous His judgments !
Unlike the Rabbis, who comprehended the Gentiles in one
indiscriminate condemnation and reckoned them mere " fuel
for Gehenna," He claims as His disciples all who, though they
have never heard His name, are actuated by a Christ-like
spirit and do Christ-like deeds.^ Some of the early Greek
Fathers shared His humane and large-hearted attitude. In
marked contrast to the Rabbis, who banned the Chokmath
Javanith^]\x&\xi\ Martyr recognised how much of truth and
goodness there is in the writings of the Greek philosophers,
poets, and historians, and claimed for them a share in the
inspiration of Christ, speaking of a " seminal divine Word,"
which was His, implanted in their minds. ^ And Clement of
Alexandria regarded Philosophy as a preparation for Chris-
tianity. It was the paedagogue that led the Greeks to Christ
even as the Law led the Jews.* Plato, though he never knew Gai iu. 14.
Jesus, was His disciple, and all the truth that he knew was
revealed to him by the Holy Spirit. It is indeed plain from
many declarations of Jesus that the test for such as know Him
is their attitude toward Himself, their acceptance or rejection
of His claims ; but none will be condemned for not believing
in a Saviour whom they never knew or not accepting an
invitation which they never heard. It is required of every
man that he be faithful to the trust committed to him and
obedient to the truth revealed to him — that and no more, that
and no less.
The kindness of Jesus to the heathen world appears not Mercy
merely in His recognition of its righteous sons as His un- d<J^^°'
conscious disciples, but in His attitude towards the un-
righteous. It is true that the latter have not followed the
light which they had ; yet, had they seen " the light of the
knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ,"
they might have welcomed it ; and therefore it is just that
their judgment should be more lenient and their doom less
avi^ul. And it is even so. They are indeed sent away into
the Eternal Fire prepared — not for them, since God would Cf. Enoch
liv. 5.
^ Cf. Aug. Soliloq. i. 2 : " Deus qaem amat omne quod potest amare, sive sciens,
sive nesciens,"
' They pronounced the same malediction on one who reared swine and one who
taught his son Greek. See Ottho, Hist. Doct. Misn. pp. 68-70 ; Welstein on
Acts vi. I. • Apol. i, Sylburg. ed. p. 51 C * Strom. L 5. § 28.
434
THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
have all be saved, and, if any perish, it is contrary to His pur-
pose ; but — for the Devil and his angels ; yet even this awful
Lk. xii. 47- doom has its alleviations. " That slave," said Jesus, in
*■ another connection, " that knew his lord's will and did not
make ready or do according to his will shall be beaten with
many stripes ; whereas he that knew it not and did things
worthy of stripes shall be beaten with few. And every one to
whom was given much, much shall be required from him ; and
with whom they deposited much, exceeding more shall they
ask of him." ^ Such is the Lord's judgment, and the heart
rises up and confesses at once its righteousness and its mercy.
^ Mt. XXV. 46 {jcf. Dan. xii. 2-3) is a gloss, probably catechetical. Cf. Introd.
§ 12, 7-
Joha jriii. x ; Mt.
xztL 1-5 "Mk.
xiv. i-«aLk.
uiL i-a; Mt.
xxvi. i4-ao«Mk.
xiv. lo-yvLIu
xxii. 3-14 ; Lk.
CHAPTER XLV SfjoKk'V-
30 (Mt. xxiii. g.
i») ; Mt. xxvi.
»j-S»MU. xiv.
THE UPPER ROOM iS-si-Lk. xxii.
• i-3>iJohii xiii.
•I-3S ; Ml xxvi.
" I will remember all Thy Love divine ; aJ-lrilA. «iL
Oh meet Thou with me where Thy saints are met, 3i-8" loho xi>i.
Revive me with the holy bread and wine, 3^^ • jJt "■'"'
' • 36-9 sMk. XIV.
And may my love, O God, lay hold on Thine, 33-5 -Lk. xxii.
And ne'er forget."— Walter C. Smith. i9-«> d Cor. xi.
■3-5) ; John xir.
As the Lord sate thus on Olivet and discoursed to the Twelve The eve of
of things to come, the end was nigh. That evening, according j^a'tioo.
to Jewish reckoning, had ushered in the fourteenth day of
Nisan, and the morrow would be the Day of Preparation when
all must be got ready for the Paschal Supper, that sacred
feast which commemorated the deliverance of Israel from her
bondage in Egypt, and which was celebrated in the Holy City Exod. xu.
after nightfall at the commencement of the fifteenth day. On
the ensuing evening Jesus would eat the Passover with the
Twelve, and immediately thereafter the tragedy of the Passion
would be enacted, beginning with the Betrayal in the Garden
of Gethsemane and culminating in the Crucifixion on the Hill
of Calvary.^
So nigh was the end. The following night Jesus would The Lord's
be in the grasp of His malignant foes ; and He knew it ''^^''S-
How was He affected by the prospect? St John, remembering
well his dear Lord's every act and word and look, has added
to the picture some significant touches which show how He
bore Himself at that dread crisis. He did not blench or
falter. Where the world saw only defeat. He saw triumph ;
and, when He spoke, there was exultation in His tone. " Now John xiiL
hath the Son of Man been glorified, and God hath been glorified ^^'
in Him." And, as the end drew near, the disciples observed in
His bearing toward them an access of unwonted tenderness.
" Before the Feast of the Passover Jesus, knowing that His
> C/. Append. VL
436 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
hour had come to pass out of this world unto the Father,*
having loved His own that were in the world, loved them to
the utmost" * It was the tenderness of imminent farewell ;
nor was there wanting a generous recognition of the steadfast
Lk. xxii. loyalty of the men who, amid much weakness, had stood by
" ' Him in all His conflicts and privations.
Consuita- The storm was fast gathering. The succession of defeats
''°°ruiers* which they had sustained in their encounters with Jesus and
the heavy indictment which He had brought against them in
the hearing of the multitude, had enraged the rulers beyond
endurance, and they had met in the High Priest's palace and
consulted how they might put Him to death. They were
still confronted by the difficulty that He was the hero of the
populace and His arrest would have excited a dangerous
tumult The issue of their deliberation was a two-fold
resolution : they must arrest Him by stealth, and they must
wait until the Feast was over and the throng of worshippers,
especially those turbulent Galileans, had departed from the
city.
Their It was with extreme reluctance that they recognised the
witbjud^! expediency of delay, and great was their exultation when
an unexpected turn of events brought an opportunity for
immediate action. A man presented himself at the High
Priest's palace and craved audience. It was Judas, the Man
of Kerioth, and he came on an infamous errand. He was
a disappointed man. He had attached himself to Jesus
because he deemed Him the Messiah and expected reward
and honour in the Messianic Kingdom. Gradually the truth
had come home to him, and he had discovered the vanity of
his expectation. His disillusionment was complete when he
realised that what awaited Jesus was not a crown but a cross.
He perceived that he had embarked on a ruinous enterprise,
and to his worldly judgment it appeared the wisest policy to
come out of it on the best possible terms. It may be also
* Cf. Augustine's beautiful fancy f^lnjoan. Ev. Tract. Iv. § i) : " Pascha, quod
latine transitus nuncupatur, velut interpretans nobis beatus Evangelista, ' Ante
diem,' inquit, ' festum Paschse, sciens Jesus quia venit hora ejus ut transeat ex hoc
mundo ad Patrem.' Ecce Pascha, ecce transitus."
' tU Tf Xoi not to the end but to the utmost, as He had never loved them be/ore.
Cf. Chrysost. In Joan. \x\x ; Euth. Zig. -fyYairijirey implies demonstrations of affection.
Qf. p. 361.
THE UPPER ROOM 437
that he was actuated by a desire to be avenged on the Master
who, as he deemed, had fooled him ; and a plan had presented
itself which promised at once profit and revenge. While
Jesus was engaged with the Greeks, Judas betook himself to
the High Priests and offered, if they would adequately
remunerate him, to betray their troubler into their hands.
They joyfully welcomed the proposal and offered him thirty
shekels of silver. It was the price of a slave,^ and, when Exod. xxL
they named it, the insult was aimed less at Jesus than at Judas. ^*'
It was the traitor that they purchased at a slave's price, and,
conscious of the degradation of trafficking with the wretch,
they salved their consciences by treating him with undisguised
contumely. Lost to self-respect and impervious to contempt,
he accepted their offer, and they paid over the money on the
spot as though in haste to be done with him.*
The next day was the Preparation ; and, never doubting The Lord't
that Jesus according to His wont would eat the Paschal regard?ng
Supper in the evening, the disciples asked Him where He prepara-
would have them make ready. He had arranged the matter
with a friend in the city ; and in view of subsequent develop-
ments it is a tempting conjecture that the friend was John
Mark afterwards the Evangelist. He was cousin to Barnabas, Col. w. 10,
R.V
a wealthy believer, and resided in Jerusalem with his widowed
mother, Mary, who threw her hospitable door open to the AcuxU. la.
Apostles in after days.' He had a large upper room in his
house, and he had granted the use of it to Jesus that He
might eat the Supper there with His disciples, promising to
furnish it with table and couches. Jesus might have named
the house to His disciples, but, cognisant of the traitor's
purpose, He would not have Judas know the place, lest he
should reveal it to the rulers and bring them in upon Him in
1 C/. Wetstein.
• Mt. xxvi. IS : fmiffaf, "weighed." C/. P. E. F. Q. Apr. 1896, p. 152 : "To
this day it is usual in Jerusalem to examine and test carefully all coins received.
Thus a Medjidie (silver) is not only examined by the eye, but also by noticing its
ring on the stone pavement, and English sterling gold is carefully weighed, and
returned when defaced." Mk. and Lk. represent the money as merely promised,
but Mt. xxvii. 3-10 proves that it was paid. There is no good reason for regarding
Mt's graphic details (rrrjffav, rpidKovra dpyiipia, and the Potter's Field as borrowed
from Zech. xi. 12-3 (Mt. xxvii. 9-10).
* So Ewald. Theophylact (on Mt. xxvL 6) quotes the opinioD that the friend
w^s Simoo the Leper. Keim suggests Joseph of Arimathxa.
438 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
Lk. xxii. the midst of the Supper. He would fain eat that Passover
^^ with His disciples ere He suffered and commune with them
undisturbed ; and therefore He had laid a plan with His host.
He chose Peter and John for the errand. " Go into the city,"
He said, " and there shall meet you a man carrying a pitcher
of water. Follow him ; and, wheresoever he entereth, say to
the master of the house : ' The Teacher saith : Where is My
room where I am to eat the Passover with My disciples ? ' "
Since drawing water was a woman's office, a man carrying a
pitcher would be sufficiently noticeable ; and, since he was
evidently one of their host's slaves, he would be known to the
disciples. The direction afforded Judas no clue, and he
durst not track the messengers.^
Dispute in Their task included the conveyance of the lamb to the
*^^ Room^ Temple,^ its offering at the altar, and the roasting of its flesh,
besides the procuring of the wine, the unleavened cakes, and
the bitter herbs and the preparation of the charosheth, a paste
of crushed fruits moistened with vinegar symbolising the clay
wherewith the Israelites had made bricks in Egypt. When
all was ready, they returned to Jesus, and toward evening the
whole company repaired to Jersualem and took possession of
the apartment. Their host had furnished it bravely. It
was seldom that Jesus and the Twelve had enjoyed such
state, and even at that solemn crisis the unaccustomed
grandeur provoked contention among the disciples, and,
each anxious to vindicate his superiority in view of the
impending distribution of rewards and honours, they fell
Cf. Lk. xiv. a-disputing about the places which they should occupy at
7-"- table.3
The first Jesus paid no heed at the moment They took their
"^"P' places, and the Supper began. By the aid of the Talmud it
is possible to follow with comparative certainty the course of
* Cf. Euth. Zig. on Mt. xxvi. i8.
' It had already been procured on loth Nisan. Cf. Exod. xii. 3.
• The primitive fashion had been to eat the Supper standing {"ExoA. xii. Il) ; but
this had fallen into abeyance, and they reclined at table in token that they were no
longer slaves but the Lord's freemen. Cf. Hieros. Pcsach. 37. 2. The contention
is implied by John, but it is expressly mentioned only by Lk., who erroneously inserts
it after the announcement of the betrayal (xxii. 24-30), evidently suggesting that the
matter of dispute was which was least capable of treachery. At that moment, how-
ever, they were unfit for contention. They were stricken dumb. Lk.'s account is
farther defective in that it is obviously assimilated to Mt xx. 25-6 = Mk. x. 42-3.
THE UPPER ROOM 439
that memorable feast. ^ It began, according to the paschal
rubric, with the mixing of a cup of wine' and the giving ofLk. uu.
thanks. Anxious to awaken His disciples to the solemnity *^'
of the occasion, Jesus preluded this with the announcement
that never again would He eat the Passover with them on
earth, and, as the cup went round, He added : " I tell you,
I shall not hereafter drink of this fruit of the vine until that
day when I shall drink it with you new in the Kingdom of
My Father." ^ Then the various viands were brought forward
— the bitter herbs, which symbolised the bitterness of the
Egyptian bondage, the unleavened bread, the charosheth, and
the lamb already carved. After a blessing had been asked
the herbs were dipped in the paste and eaten, and then a
second cup was prepared.
At this point it was customary for the head of the house- Lesson in
hold to explain the origin and significance of the Passover ; "™ '^*
and probably it was here that Jesus found occasion to refer to
that unseemly contention, administering to His disciples an
effective rebuke and teaching them a memorable lesson in
humility. He did it in a very remarkable manner. " He An acted
riseth from the Supper and layeth aside His robes, and took p^**"*
a towel and girded it about Him. Then He putteth water
into the basin and began to wash the feet of the disciples and
wipe them with the towel wherewith He was girded." * What
did He mean ? Among Jews, Greeks, and Romans alike it
was the fashion that, when guests arrived at the house of their
entertainer, slaves should receive them and, taking off their
sandals, wash their feet heated with travel and soiled with the
dust of the way.^ And this custom is commonly deemed a
sufficient explanation of the scene in the Upper Room. Our
Lord's purpose was to rebuke the selfish ambition of His
disciples, and it was assuredly a very striking enforcement of
humility when He, their Lord and Teacher, went round the
> Cf. Lightfoot on Mt. xxvi. 26, 27.
' The paschal cups were mixed with water ad salttbriiatem atqtu adfugamebrUtatU.
I I was required, however, that they should retain the taste and colour of wine.
* The earthly feast was a shadow of the heavenly. Cf. Hebr. viii. 5 ; ix. 23-4.
* Cf. Augustine's fine comment (/« Joan. Ev. Tract. Iv, § 7) : " Crucifigendui
sane suis exspoliatus est vestimentis, et mortuus involutos est linteis : et tota ilia
ejus passio, nostra purgatio est."
* Q^ Lk. viL 44. See Becker, CharieUs^ sc y\, exc. i ; Wetstein on John xiii. 5.
440 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
astonished circle and wrought on each that menial office.
Yet, obvious and sufficient as this explanation may at the
first glance appear, a difficulty emerges on a more attentive
scrutiny. The customary feet-washing w^s performed at the
entrance of the guests ; but here it is not until the company
have taken their places at table that Jesus rises and addresses
Himself to the servile task.^
"With The truth is that, when Jesus rose from the Supper and
''"'^t^" washed the feet of the Twelve, it was not the cwdinary usage
at all. It was another acted parable, nor would its signifi-
cance be obscure to the disciples. The Greeks had a proverb,
which was apparently derived from the ritual of the Mysteries
and which, forasmuch as the Mysteries were of Oriental
origin, must have been no less intelligible in the East than in
the West They spoke of entering upon an undertaking
•' with unwashed feet " or, in precisely the same sense, " with
unwashed hands." ^ According to the ancient lexicographer
the proverb meant " without any preparation " ; and it is aptly
exemplified by a passage in Lucian's sketch of his ideal wise
man, Demonax the eclectic philosopher. Demonax, says his
biographer, was no novice when he entered on his profession.
" He did not rush at it, as the saying goes, ' with unwashed
feet,' but he had been nurtured with poets and remembered
most of them, and had been trained to speak, and had a
thorough acquaintance with the philosophic schools." Is not
this proverb the key to our Lord's symbolic action. His acted
parable, in the Upper Room ? Even in that solemn hour the
disciples were disputing " which of them should be accounted
the greatest " ; and, when He arose and washed their feet,
it was as though He had said : " If ye be not clothed with
* The true reading in v. 2 is Selxvov yifofdvov, "during Supper," not Seir.
yepofifyov, "Supper being ended." Augustine with the latter reading before him
insisted nevertheless, in view of the situation, that it could not mean "after
Supper." In Joan. Ev, Tract. Iv. § 3.
' etfiiTTOij TOffiy, opIktois x'fx^^"' Suidas : X*^P'* rivos TapaffKewjs, irl rwr
ifxadus ixL riva (pya Kal irpi^eit ^.(fnKvovfju'vuv. Erasmus in his Adagia applies the
proverb to the quarrel between the scholars of the Renaissance and the obscurantist
monks, " who, equipped with some frigid syllogisms and childish sophistries —
eternal God ! — dare anything, enjoin anything, determine anything. . . . One
who is ignorant of the three tongues [Greek, Latin, and Hebrew], is no theologian
but a violator of sacred Theology. Truly, with hands and feet alike unwashed, he
does not treat of the most sacred of all subjects, bat profanes, defiles, and violates it"
THE UPPER ROOM 441
humility, ye are none of Mine. Your worldly and selfish ^^ ^^ ^jj^
ambition proves you still uninitiated into the mysteries of the" =^''*-'*'
Kingdom of Heaven, whose law is love and whose glory is nu. 10.
service. Think not to enter it ' with unwashed feet.' If I
wash you not, ye have no part with Me."
He began with Peter.^ " Lord," cried the horrified Peter's
disciple, " Tkou wash vtjy feet ! " " What I am doing," Jesus P'""*'
answered, "thou knowest not just now, but thou shalt re-
cognise presently." Still Peter persisted, deeming it an
impiety that his feet should be washed by those blessed
hands : " Never shalt thou wash mjf feet." " If I wash thee
not," Jesus returned, " thou hast no part with Me " ; * and at
that the disciple gave way and, with characteristic impetuosity,
bounded to the opposite extreme. " Lord," he cried, " not
my feet only but also my hands and my head." It was ever
thus with Peter, and there would be a kindly smile on the
face of Jesus when He made reply : " He that hath been
bathed hath no need save to wash his feet,' but is clean all
over." It was only their feet that the guests needed to wash
ere taking their places at table ; and the disciples, bathed
once for all in " the laver of regeneration," needed only to be Tit iH 5
cleansed from the soiling of the way. " Daily," says St
Augustine, " He washes our feet who intercedes for us ; and
that we have daily need to wash our feet, that is, to direct the
ways of our spiritual steps, we confess when we pray : ' For-
give us our debts as we forgive our debtors.'" It was a
playful answer, but the smile would fade from the Lord's face
as, thinking of the traitor, He added : " And ye are clean, but
not all." He went round the circle, encountering no further
resistance, and He would come to Judas in his turn. He
knew the errand on which those feet had gone yester-
day, yet He laved them and wiped them with His gentle
hands.*
* Aug. In Joan. Ev. Tract. Ivi. % i. Chrysostom thinks Judas was first, then
Peter. The chief seat belonged to Peter, dXX' tUit row Tpoiinjw Ira/jibp ima <ra2 -rpo
ToO Kopv<f>aiov KakTaK\i.Orjvax.
' Aug. ibid, % 2: "Sal valor segrum ' reluctantem de ipsins salutis periculo
exterrens."
» fl (a/, tl fj.-fi) roin T63aj omitted by K, but well attested.
* Aug. In Joan. Ev. Tract. W\. § 6 : " Etiam illi non dedignatus est pedes
lavaie cujus manus jam prsevidebat in scelere."
442
THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
The Lord's
explana-
tion.
John xiiL
I2-20; Lk.
xxii. 24-
30; Mt.
zxiiL 8-13.
Announce-
ment of the
BeirayaL
Pss. cxiii-
cziv.
As soon as He had resumed His garments and His place at
table, He fulfilled His promise to Peter and explained what He
had done. He discoursed to the company of the humility
which makes men great in the Kingdom of Heaven, setting
Himself forth as their Exemplar and bidding them observe how
He had borne Himself among them, not only in that singular
act of self-abasement, but in His whole ministry of redeeming
love : " I have washed your feet ; I am in your midst as he
that serveth. An example have I given you, that, even as I
have done to you, ye also should do." It is told of Godfrey
de Bouillon, the hero of the first Crusade, that, though he
undertook the government of Jerusalem, a trust as full of
danger as of glory, he would not wear the name and ensigns of
royalty in a city where his Saviour had been crowned with
thorns ; and even so should the disciples, remembering their
Lord's infinite sacrifice, make themselves of no reputation.
Dignity was dear to the hearts of the Pharisees. They loved
to be styled Rabbi^ Father, Leader} " Be not ye called
' Rabbi,' " says Jesus ; " for One is your Teacher, and all ye
are brethren. And call none your ' Father ' on the earth ;
for One is your Father, even the Heavenly One. Neither be
called ' Leaders ' ; for your Leader is One, the Messiah." '
Here at the close of His ministry the Lord reiterates the
lesson which throughout its course He had inculcated by word
and deed : " The greater of you shall be your servant. Learn
of Me ; for I am meek and lowly in heart." It is one of the
achievements of Jesus that He introduced into the world a
new ideal of greatness, such an ideal as men had never
dreamed of. He lived the divine life before their eyes, and,
behold, it was a life of utter self-abasement and boundless
self-sacrifice. " Proud man," says St Augustine, " would have
perished for ever, had not a lowly God found him."
According to the rubric, when the master of the house had
discoursed on the significance of the Passover, the company
sang the first part of the Hallel, and the cup was passed
round. Thereafter followed a rite of peculiar solemnity pre-
liminary to the eating of the lamb which was the feast proper.
* Fathers Abba. Cf. Wetstein.
• Mt. xxiii. 8-12, incorporated inaptly wiih the indictment of the Pharisees,
find its true place here. So Keim. C/, Introd. { 9.
THE UPPER ROOM 443
The master washed his hands, took two loaves and, breaking
one, laid the fragments on the other ; then, after a blessing,
he enfolded the fragments in the bitter herbs, dipped them in
the charosheth, and, saying : " Blessed be Thou, O Lord God,
our Eternal King, who hast sanctified us by Thy command-
ments and commanded us to eat," ate of the bread and the
herbs. It was probably at this stage that Jesus startled the
disciples by an appalling announcement. The bitter herbs
were in His hands, and bitterness was in His soul. " He
was troubled in spirit and testified and said : " Verily, verily
I tell you that one of you shall betray Me." Twice already Mt. xvij. 2a
He had told them that He should be betrayed, but now He Jt'=Lk!*ix.
brings the crime home into their midst. He had a design IgLvik.'^
in so doing. He had gathered the Twelve in the Upper Room, 33= l>^
not merely that He might eat the Passover with them, but that
He might institute a sacred rite which should perpetuate the
remembrance of His immortal love ; and ere its institution,
since it was fitting that only His true disciples should partic-
pate therein, the traitor must depart.*
The announcement fell upon them like a thunder-bolt, ConstemA
and " they looked at one another, wondering of whom He disciples.
spoke." Peter would naturally have questioned Him, but two
things prevented. What had happened at the feet-washing
a little before had put an awe upon him and bridled his
impetuosity, and his position rendered it difficult for him to
address Jesus. The couches were set aslant round a low
table, each of the company resting on his left elbow with his
right arm free. The middle place was the most honourable,
and it would be occupied by Jesus. The couch behind Him,
adjoining His neck, was occupied by Peter. That in front of
Him, adjoining His breast, was occupied by John.' Peter might
have questioned Jesus, but, reclining thus behind Him, he
could not Catching John's eye, as the latter turned round in
^ John alone mentions the departure of Judas, and, since he does not record the
institution of the Supper, it is a question whether the traitor took his departure be-
fore or after it. The old opinion, relying on Lk. xxii. 17-21, is that he was present
at it. Cf. Lightfoot on Lk. xxii. 21. But Lk.'s arrangement differs from that of
Mt. and Mk, who put the institution after the announcement. From John's narrative
it appears that Judas departed immediately after the announcement, and the institution
probably follows John xiii. 38, chap, xiv being the Communion Address.
' Cf. Lightfoot on Mt. xxvi. 20 and John xiii. 23.
444 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
amazement, he made a sign to him, unseen by Jesus, that he
should put the question ; and John, with the familiarity of the
best beloved disciple, laid back his head on Jesus' breast and
asked : " Lord, who is it ? " An open declaration would have
created a painful scene, and Jesus whispered His reply : " It
is the man for whom I shall dip the sop and give it to him." ^
Thereupon He took a scrap of bread and, dipping it in the
charosheth, handed it to Judas. The latter durst not decline
it, albeit, observing the whispered colloquy, he must have
surmised the purport of the Lord's action. His crime
was known, and it was impossible for him now to draw
back. " After the sop then Satan entered into the
wretch." «
The with- As he lay confounded and irresolute, Jesus said to him curtly
judas^ ai^d significantly : " What thou art doing do promptly " • ;
and instantly he rose, hurried from the room, and went out
into the night on his errand of darkness. His withdrawal
was tantamount to a confession of guilt ; but only John knew
that he was the traitor, and no one suspected the reason of
his going, else would they have sprung up and arrested him.
He went at the Lord's bidding, and they supposed that he
was going on some errand connected with his office as
treasurer — to purchase something for the paschal season or to
give something to the poor. Ere they recovered from their
confusion, Jesus spoke. The traitor's departure removed a
load from the Lord's heart. That malign presence had been
a restraint upon Him, and now He might commune freely
with the faithful Eleven. " Now," He exclaimed exultantly,
" hath the Son of Man been glorified, and God hath been
glorified in Him. My children, a little longer am I with you ;
John viii. yc will seck Me, and, as I said to the Jews : * Where I am going
"' ' 33^4. ^w^y> y^ cannot come,' I now tell you also. A new command-
ment I give you, that ye love one another — that, as I have
loved you, ye also love one another. By this shall all recognise
that ye are My disciples, if ye have love one for another."
Chrysost. In Joan. Ixxi : \6.9pa, etpr/Kep ixrTt tn)Mva i-Kovaai.' koX yh,p o 'luivvrji
Sia TOVTO xaph. to ot^Oos dvajreffu)*' ipunq, fiovovovxl vpds rb oCj" fiare /xt; yev4ffdai <pa.i>t-
pop TOP TrpoSoTrjp. Cf. Introd. § 13.
' Keim's trivial gibe that, " if Jesus so prostituted him, as John represents, he was
to a certain extent irresponsible," is very old. Cf. Aug. In Joan. Ev. Tract.
Uii. § 13. » Moulton's Gram, of N.T. Gk. i. pp. 78, 236.
THE UPPER ROOM 445
Then * He made a second announcement well-nigh as Annoance-
horrifying as that of the Betrayal : " All of you shall stumble D^'rUon,*
at Me in the course of this night ; for it hath been written : Zech. xiu.
' I will smite the Shepherd, and the sheep shall be scattered ^'
abroad.' " It was a terrible announcement, yet Jesus never
spoke more graciously. He did not dwell upon the cowardice
of the disciples or His own utter desolation. To the last He
was the True Shepherd, and all His care was for His sheep.
He saw them shepherdless at the mercy of the spoiler ; and
His heart was sore for their piteous plight And, lest dismay
should overwhelm them, He had no sooner announced the
desertion than He added a great promise of hope, and told
them that He would meet them again in that dear northern
land where He and they had laboured and held sweet fellow-
ship. " After I have risen, I will go before you into Galilee."
The intimation of their infidelity amazed the disciples, incredulity
They deemed it incredible, and Peter, after his impulsive and ^[sdpies.
self-confident manner, protested : " Though all shall stumble
at Thee, I will never stumble." " Simon, Simon," Jesus
answered, recurring to the old name, as He was wont when
He would reprove the rash disciple, reminding him what he
had been ere grace found him, " behold, Satan hath requested cf. job l
you all, that he may sift you like the wheat; but," He adds, ""^' "* ^"^
singling out Peter with the design at once of shaking his self-
confidence and of delivering him from despair in the hour of
his apostasy, " I have prayed for thee, that thy faith may not
fail. And do thou, when anon thou hast rallied, strengthen
thy brethren." " Lord," asseverated the disciple, " I am ready
to accompany Thee both to prison and to death. Lord
where is it that Thou art going away ? " " Where I am going
away," Jesus replied, " thou canst not now follow Me, but thou Cf. John
shalt follow Me afterwards." " Lord," he persisted, supposing "'' *^
merely that Jesus contemplated some perilous enterprise,
" why cannot I follow Thee just now ? I will lay down my
life for Thy sake." "Thou wilt lay down thy life for My
sake? Verily, verily I tell thee, the cock shall not crow
until thou shalt deny Me repeatedly."* " If I must die with
Thee," protested Peter, " I will in no wise deny Thee." And
the others echoed the protestation.
> Cf. IntTod. 8 13. *Cf. Introd. § 12, 3, (a).
2 II
446 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
Wamingof Jcsus let them have their way and endeavoured to awaken
* ^"the them to the seriousness of the impending crisis. " When I
situation, g^j^^ y^y forth," He askcd, " without purse and wallet and
**=Mk^vi° shoes, lacked ye anything ? " " Nothing," they replied, and He
8-9= Lk. Yvams them that a very different experience now awaits them.
A storm of murderous passions will presently break upon
them, and they will hardly escape. They will need every
resource. " Now he that hath a purse, let him take it up, and
likewise a wallet ; and he that hath no purse, let him sell
his cloak and buy a sword. For I tell you that this that
hath been written must be fulfilled in Me : * And with trans-
gressors He was reckoned ' ; for what concemeth Me is
having its fulfilment" What this meant they would under-
stand when they saw their Master in the grasp of an armed
band and fled for their lives ; but at the moment they did
not understand it They took it literally. So threatening
had the situation of late become that, despite the law which
prohibited the bearing of arms on the Passover Day,^ Peter
Lk- xxii and another, perhaps his comrade John, had swords con-
^ x(^'ii. la cealed beneath their cloaks.* " Lord," they said, producing
their weapons, " see, here are two swords," " It is sufficient,"
said Jesus wearily. It was not a sneer at so ample an equip-
cy, Deut ment, but a dismissal of the subject Their stupidity was
* desperate. He felt the pathos of the situation. Poor souls, so
dull yet withal so faithful ! they little realised what awaited them.
Institution The Feast was well nigh ended. There remained only
Supper! th® eating of the lamb. This was the actual Passover, and
Jesus invested it with a new significance. As they were eat-
ing. He took a loaf, and after giving thanks broke it and
handed it to the disciples. " This," He said, " is My body
that is for you. This do in remembrance of Me." The
Paschal supper ended with the eating of the Iamb, and there-
after no food was tasted. But, ere the company dispersed,
they drank a third cup, the Cup of Blessing,^ and sang the
* Mifh. Shabb. 6, 4: "Non exibit vir cum gladio neque cum aren neque cum
scuto neque cum funda neque cum lancea. Quodsi exierit, peccati reus erit."
' Chrysostom thinks that the fMx<upai were the knives which Peter and John had
used in slaying and dressing the paschal lamb : elims oSy Kal naxodpat elvtu 8id rd
ipvlov. Cf. Euth. Zig. ndxO'ipa. meant both swtfrd and knife. Cf. Field, Notes.
* I Cor, X. 16 : TO Tor^piov T?f tiXoylai, T^^•^2^ D'l3 So called because thanks
were given over it. t t i -
THE UPPER ROOM 447
second part of the Hallel. This also Jesus invested with a Pts. czv.
new significance. He took the cup after the Supper and """"*
said : " This cup is the New Covenant in My blood. This
do in remembrance of Me."
Thus did Jesus institute the Sacrament of the Supper. Amemorial
It was no new rite. It was simply the ancient Feast of the Lord^s
Passover, but Jesus gave it a new significance. He said : ^*"*»-
" When ye keep this feast which your fathers have observed
all those centuries, think no longer of the deliverance from
Egypt's house of bondage, but of the greater deliverance
which I have wrought." The Christian Passover no less
than the Jewish is a memorial feast Jesus ordained it in His
Church that He might never be forgotten, and it is very
remarkable what He chose to be remembered by. He was
famous for His teaching, and still more for His miracles, yet He
chose neither. He chose His death. " When ye would re-
member Me," He said to the Eleven and to all who should
afterwards believe in Him, " turn your eyes to Calvary." He
had come into the world to give His life a ransom for many.
His death was no disaster but His supreme act of redeeming
sacrifice.
The Lord's Supper is, in the first instance, a commemora- An inter-
tion of His death ; but it is more. It is an interpretation {hereo'f°°
thereof. It embodies two ancient ideas which are full of(?)/*"°*-
ship of
significance. It is a common meal, and all over the East to food ;
this day eating in company constitutes a sacred and indis-
soluble bond. " So far was this principle carried by the old
Arabs, that Zaid al-Khail, a famous warrior in the days of
Mohammed, refused to slay a vagabond who carried off his
camels, because the thief had surreptitiously drunk from his
father's milk-bowl before committing the theft."* It was a
heavy aggravation of Judas' treachery that he had eaten and
drunk with Jesus, sharing His " table and salt" "Verily I Mk. jdv,
tell you that one of you shall betray Me, a man that eateth xiii. 18.° °
with Me." To be the Lord's guest, eating of the provision of
His house, was the Hebrew ideal of union and fellowship with
God. " Thou preparest a table before me," says the Psalmist, Ps. xriiL
" in the presence of mine enemies : Thou hast anointed my ^'
head with oil ; my cup runneth over." And thus it is with
* Robertson Smith, Xel. of the Sent. p. 252. Cf. Josh. ix. 14.5.
44? THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
those who are bidden to the Lord's Supper. He is their
Host, and He receives them into loving fellowship, and binds
them to Himself and to one another by sacred ties of friend-
ship and loyalty,
(a) cove- It embodies also the ancient idea of federal relationship,
latbnshlp. " This cup is the New Covenant in My blood," says Jesus,
jer. xxxi. alluding to the prophecy of Jeremiah : " Behold, days are
Hebr.'vm! coming, saith the Lord, when I will make with the house of
®""- Israel and the house of Judah a new covenant ; not according
to the covenant which I made with their fathers in the day
when I took them by the hand to bring them forth from the
land of Egypt. For this is My covenant which I will make
with the house of Israel : I will put My laws into their mind
and on their hearts will I write them ; and I will be to them
a God, and they shall be to Me a people. For I will be
merciful to their unrighteousnesses, and their sins will I re-
member no more."^ Even as the Jewish Passover com-
memorated the Exodus from Egypt, so the Christian Passover
commemorates the grander redemption whereof the Exodus
was a symbol.' It is the Messiah's new and better covenant ;
Exod.xxiv. and, as of old a covenant was always ratified with the blood
^'^' of sacrifice, so it is ratified with the blood of Jesus. " This
cup is the New Covenant in My blood."'
Com- After the institution of the memorial rite Jesus poured
address! °"* ^^^ heart in words of consolation and reassurance. It
had been necessary for Him in the course of that evening to
speak terrible things to His disciples, and now He would fain
compose their disquietude. He was about to leave them, and
He spoke to them like a dying father to his sorrowful chil-
dren. His discourse throbs with emotion and breathes an
unutterable tenderness, and all down the ages it has been a
stay and a strength to troubled souls in every sore strait
of life and in the awful hour of death.
ihe'Ffth'J^ " ^^ ^^^ y^"*" ^^^^ ^ troubled," He began. " Believe
House."
^ Hence doubtless Mt.'s addition els i(ptaiv ifuipriwp (xxvi, 28), proving that he,
like the author of the £/. tt the Hebr., had the prophecy in his mind.
' Cf. p. 274.
• Weizsacker {Afost. 2^it. v. i. §2), following the Pauline account, regards the
wine alone as referring to Christ's death, to <rw/«i rh i/rip inmyv applies to "the
living personal presence promised in Mt. xviii. 20." But, though kXiIi/kvov in
I Cor. xi. 34 be an interpolation, Jesus symbolised His body by broken bread.
THE UPPER ROOM 449
in God ; in Me also believe." It was the prospect of His
departure that troubled them, and He explained to them what
His departure really meant, making use of homely yet ex-
quisite imagery. At intervals along the highways of the land
stood the caravanserais where travellers lodged.^ It happened
sometimes, especially at the festal seasons when the ways
were thronged, that a traveller would arrive at the gate only
to find that the place was crowded and he must fare shelter-
less on his way. More than thirty years before a traveller
had arrived at the caravanserai near Bethlehem, accompanied
by his espoused wife who was great with child. Her pangs
had taken hold upon her and, since every lodging-place was
occupied, she had to lie down in the court-yard among the
beasts, oxen, asses, and camels. And there she brought forth
her first-bom Son and laid Him in a manger, " because there
was no room for them in the inn." Hence Jesus derives His
illustration. The disciples were like travellers, and His com-
panionship had hitherto cheered them on their journey. And
now He must leave them. But He was not forsaking them.
He was only hastening on in advance to make ready for them.
And, when they arrived, He would be waiting for them and
would bid them welcome. " In My Father's House there are
many lodging- places.* If there were not, I would have told
you, because I am going to prepare room for you. And,
if I go and prepare room for you, I am coming again, and
will receive you unto Myself, that, where I am, ye also may
be. And where I am going away, ye know the way."
" Lord," interrupted Judas the Twin, ever despondent, objection
" we do not know where Thou art going, and how do we °he ivuj.
know the way ? " Had he not learned the Master's all suffi-
ciency ? Could he not go forward, following in His steps,
rejoicing in His revelation of the Father, and trusting His
guidance to the end ? " I," answered Jesus, " am the Way
and the Truth and the Life.' None cometh unto the Father
' cf. p. 3.
'/xoi't), mansia, "station," " resting-pl»cc for the night." Cf. Paus. x. 31. § 7 ;
Jerome's Ep. De xlii Mansionibus of the Israelites in the wilderness. /to»^' only
here and v. 23 in N.T., but tUrtiv, "lodge," firequently: Lk. i. 56 ; xix. 5 ; xxiv.
29 ; John L 39, 40; Acts xvi. 15 ; xviii. 3. ndrov : </. Lk. ii. 7 ; xiv, 21
* Cf. Bern. Sirm. ii dt Asctiu. D*m. : ' ' Via in exemplo, Veritas in promisso,
vita in praemio."
450 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
but through Me. If ye had recognised Me, the Father also
ye would have known. Henceforth ye recognise Him and
have seen Him." Philip, ever slow in spiritual understanding,
Request of was puzzlcd. " Lord," he said, " show us the Father, and it is
'^' enough for us." Jesus was vexed and disappointed. Was
it in vain that He had lived His wondrous life before His
disciples? Had they not perceived the Father's hand and
the Father's heart in all that He had done and spoken and
John viii. been ? It was no marvel that the rulers, not knowing Him,
^^' had not known the Father ; but did not His disciples know
Him ? Had they not recognised who He was and whence
He had come ? " So long time am I with you," He cried,
" and hast thou not recognised Me, Philip ? He that hath
seen Me hath seen the Father. How sayest thou : ' Show
us the Father ' ? Dost thou not believe that I am in the
Father and the Father in Me ? "
Promise Sincc it was amid the toils and perils of the way
Advocate*! *^^^ ^^^Y "Ceded their Lord's succour and inspiration, the
assurance that He would meet them at their journey's end,
might seem a poor consolation ; and therefore He pro-
ceeded to assure them further that, though He was about
to leave them, He would be always with them. He had
Mt xviii. already promised His spiritual presence wherever His people
' should assemble in His name ; and now He reiterates and
enlarges the promise : " I will ask the Father, and another
Advocate ^ will He give you to be with you for ever. I will
not leave you orphans ; I am coming unto you." During
His sojourn on the earth Jesus had been God's Advocate with
men, representing Him and pleading with them on His behalf.
Henceforth He would appear in the presence of God on their
I John ii. I. behalf, their Advocate with the Father ; but God would not
leave Himself without a representative on the earth. He
would send another Advocate, the Holy Spirit, who would
* rapoKXrrrot only in John's Gospel (xiv. i6, 26 ; xv. 26 ; xvi. 7) and First Epistle
(ii. I). In the latter it mast mean Advocate, and it is inconceivable that John
should have used it in a different sense in his Gospel. In fact, being pass, not act.,
the word cannot mean " Comforter," as both our versions render it, though the Re-
visers put "Advocate" in the margin. This interpretation, accepted, singularly
enough, by the Creek Fathers, may be due to the fiurt that a Jewish name for the
Messiah was Aftna/um, CtHStleUor, and His days were called " the days of consola-
tion." Cf. Tvg. in Hitr«m. 31. 6 : " Qui desiderant annos coxisolationis ventvros."
Lk. Ii. 85. See Cremer ; J. B. Lightfoot's Frtsh Revision, pp. 50-6 ; Field, Neteu
THE UPPER ROOM 451
take the place of Jesus and carry forward His work, " teaching
His disciples all things and reminding them of all things which
He had said unto them." If they loved Him, they would
keep His commandments ; and, if they kept His command-
ments, they would enjoy His spiritual fellowship. " He that
hath My commandments and keepcth them, he it is that loveth
Me ; and he that loveth Me shall be loved by My Father, and
I will love him and manifest Myself unto him."
This puzzled the disciples. Even in that hour they clung Question of
to their Jewish expectation. Their Master, they believed, tib^us.
would extricate Himself from His embarrassments and display
His power and glory to an astonished world. What did He
mean by that promise to manifest Himself to His disciples ?
Had something happened to delay still further the Messianic
denouement which they had so long anticipated ? " Lord,"
exclaimed Judas Lebbaeus, " what hath come to pass that to cf. jobo
us Thou art about to manifest Thyself and not to the world ? " ^^ *•
Jesus made no attempt to disabuse their minds. The course
of events would soon dispel that worldly dream, and the
Holy Spirit would in due time reveal to them the true glory
of the Messiah. " If," He said, reiterating His declaration,
" a man love Me, he will keep My Word, and My Father
will love him, and we will come unto him and lodge with
him. Peace I am leaving to you. My peace I am giving to
you. Not as the world giveth, am I giving it to you." Such
was the dying Lord's bequest to His children : peace, not
such peace as the Stoic philosophy gave to its votaries, but
His own peace, the peace which had attended Him at every
step of His weary and painful way, and which was with Him
at that dread hour, a peace which the world could neither
give nor take away.
It was waxing late, and the hour was nigh. " Arise ! " Departure
said Jesus, " let us go hence " ; and, when they had sung the \^^^xc
Hallel.i they fared forth from the Upper Room into the silent ^°<"°-
street
* Mt. XXVI. 3o = Mk. xiv. 26: vV>^<»'arr«f. Lightfoot: "Ipsissima vox fUO\T
occurrit in Midras Till. fol. 4. 2 ct 42. l.**
John xw-
xvii ; Mt.
xxvi. 30=
Mk. xiv. 26
= Lk. xxii.
39=John
xviii. I ;
Mt. xxvi.
36-46=
Mk. xiv.
32-42 =Lk.
xxii. 40-6;
Mt. xxvi.
47-56=
Mk. xiv.
43-52= Lk.
«"• 47-53
=John
zviiL 2- 1 1.
Further
commun-
ing.
CHAPTER XLVI
THE ARREST IN GETHSEMANE
" Heu ! Dei Filius quot pcenis premittir ;
Latrone villus huic vita demitur.
Ah flete, flete lumina,
Dent lacrymarum flumina.
Jesu, Jesu, amor dulcissime I
Quo raperis, quae pateris
Pro mundi scelere?" — Afed. Hymn,
Jesus had still much to say to His disciples after He had led
them forth from the Upper Room, nor did He quit Jerusalem
until He had spoken all. Wherefore did He leave that quiet
retreat ere He had done communing with them ? It is
likely that He apprehended an invasion of His sanctuary by
the traitor and the Sanhedrin's emissaries, and therefore, that
He might speak all that was in His heart, He sought another
retreat. The Evangelist does not tell whither He betook
Himself, but there is reason to believe that, when He left the
Upper Room, He repaired to the court of the Temple and
there continued communing with the Eleven. At midnight
the Paschal Supper ended and the gates of the Temple were
thrown open.^ At so untimeous an hour the sacred court
would be deserted and would afford a quiet haven. And,
though the Temple was the very stronghold of His adver-
saries, there was no place in the city where He ran less risk
of arrest : it was the last place where they would look for
Him.*
* Jos. Ant. xviii. 2. § 2. On account of Exod. xi. 4 ; xii. 29 the Paschal Supper
must end by midnight. Pesach. 10 : " Pascha post mediam noctem polluit manus."
*John xv-xvii between the exit from the Upper Room (xiv. 31) and the de-
parture from the city (xviii. i). Where did Jesus go with the Eleven? Chry-
sostom thinks that, since the disciples were apprehensive lest Judas should break
in upon them, Jesus led them away "to another place" where they might listen
without distraction to what He still had to say. The parable of the Vine suggests
the Temple. Other opinions : (i) The parable was spoken on the way to Geth-
•emane, being suggested by the vines on the slope of Olivet (Wetstein). But Jesus did
45*
THE ARREST IN GETHSEMANE 453
Over the gateway of the Temple was wrought a sacred The Re«i
emblem which caught the eyes of all who entered — a wreath ^"^
of golden vines with clusters a man's stature in length.^ This
exquisite adornment was one of the marvels of Herod's
magnificent Temple ; and, when the Romans invaded the
Holy Land, it attracted their observation, and some con-
cluded that, since it bore his emblem, the Temple must be
sacred to the god Bacchus.* In truth it was a characteristically
Jewish device. In ancient days the vine had been employed
by Prophets and Psalmists as a symbol of Israel, but in later
days it was a symbol of the Messiah.' " O God of Hosts," p«. ixo.
runs the Psalmist's prayer according to the Targum's Aramaic '^ *
paraphrase, " turn now again, look from Heaven and see, and
remember in mercy this vine. And the vine-shoot which Thy
right hand hath planted, and the King Messiah, whom Thou
hast established for Thyself" Being thus a Messianic emblem,
that device over the Temple-gate lent itself to the Lx)rd's use
and furnished Him with an impressive parable. " I am the
real Vine," He said, " and My Father is the Husbandman."
His disciples were the branches, and their business was to bear
fruit : " Herein is My Father glorified." And in order to this
end, even as a branch can bear fruit only as it is united to the
parent stem, so must they abide in vital union with Him :
" Apart from Me ye can do nothing."
With this preface Jesus resumed the discourse which He Encour-
had begun in the Upper Room. He told them that they **"'"" '
would encounter persecution, but in the midst thereof they
would have two great consolations. First, whatever they
might suffer, they would know that their Lord had suffered
it all and still worse before them. "If the world hate you,
recognise that Me before you it hath hated. Remember the
not cross the Kedron till His discourse and prayer were ended (John xviii. i). (a)
They lingered in the Upper Room after iytlpta$«, iyttfitp imtvOtv, and a vine trail-
ing over the window \cf. Ps. cxxviii. 3) soggested the parable (Tholuck). (3)
Chap)s. xv-xvii have got displaced : they shonld stand in chap, xiii — between w.
35 and 36 (Wendt), between 31a and 31b (Spitta). The theory of displacement i«
the resource of exegetical despair.
1 Jos. Ant. XV. II. § 3 ; D« BtU.Jud. t. 5. fV
• Tac. Hist. iv. 5.
* See Delitxsch in Expositor, Jan. 1886, pp. 68-9. Sacramental prayer in
Didache, ix : tirxp^vrwyi* irot, rirtp iffuip, inrip rijt iylat inkwO^v AafilS rm
wat86t €ov, K.T.X,
454 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
Mt X. 24 ; word which I spoke to you : ' A slave is not greater than his
John xm. j^^j , „ Moreover, they would have the succour of the Holy
Spirit. And it should reconcile them to their Lord's
departure that the promise of His spiritual presence could not
otherwise be fulfilled. His departure was really a gain not
only for Him but for them. " I tell you the truth : it is
expedient for you that I should depart. For, if I do not
depart, the Advocate shall not come unto you. But, if I
go, I will send Him unto you." While they retained Jesus
among them in bodily presence, it was impossible for them
to realise the spirituality of the Kingdom of Heaven. They
could conceive no other way of holding communion with Him
than approaching Him, accosting Him, and hearing His
gracious voice. In after days, when He had departed from
them and, scattered over the wide earth and sundered one
from another by leagues of land and sea, they still had access
to their glorified Lord through His Spirit shed abroad in their
souls, they discovered what His promise meant : " Where there
are two or three assembled in My name, there I am in their
midst."
The Re- " These things have I spoken unto you that in Me ye may
ftTyCT? have peace. In the world ye have tribulation ; but courage !
I have conquered the world." With this ringing sentence
Jesus concluded His discourse to the Eleven, and then He
lifted up His eyes to Heaven and addressed Himself to the
Father in prayer. It was a prayer of self-consecration,
thanksgiving, and intercession. He did not intercede for the
world which He had come to redeem and which was very dear
to His heart, but for Hjs disciples : first for the Eleven who
were with Him while He prayed, the men whom the Father
had given Him out of the world, whom He had kept in the
Father's name, and whom He was leaving as His representa-
tives, charged with the self-same mission whereon He had
Himself been sent ; and then for all who should be won by
their preaching, and all who from generation to generation
should share their faith and carry on their work even to the
end. There is nothing more remarkable about this prayer
than the note of exultant triumph which rings through it
As Jesus spoke, the end was nigh ; and in the world's
judgment it seemed as though His life-work were closing in
't^m dire
THE ARREST IN GETHSEMANE 455
dire and tragic failure. Where was His throne? Where His
crown ? He should, if He were the Messiah, have been the
nation's hero, encompassed by acclaiming thousands ; but
there He stood, despised and rejected, with only that little
band of Galilean peasants by His side ; and, ere many hours
had passed, His insulting enemies would be dragging Him
to the cross of shame. Yet He bore Himself as a conqueror,
and, lifting up His eyes to Heaven, He declared : " I have
glorified Thee upon the earth, having accomplished the work
which Thou hast given Me to do." One thinks of the dying
scholar's piteous cry : " My book, my book ! I shall never
finish my book ! " And it is thus that mortals ever face
death — with a sad consciousness of the imperfection and
incompleteness of their life-work. But Jesus faced death
without regret and without disappointment. His life seemed
to the world to be closing in darkness and defeat ; but He
saw the final issue, and He knew that what seemed darkness
was glory and what seemed defeat was triumph.
When He had done communing with His disciples and Departtn^
with God, Jesus left the city. He led the Eleven along the s^mane.
silent street and, passing through the gate, crossed the Kedron
and sought His accustomed retreat on the slope of Olivet
It is not without a mystic significance that St John alludes to
the crossing of the Kedron. It was no pleasant stream.
The sacrificial blood wherewith the Temple's altars were
sprinkled, drained into it,^ and it was running red with the
blood of the paschal lambs as the Lamb of God passed over
it Nothing was said by the way ; * for Jesus had spoken
His last words of warning and encouragement, and an awe
had fallen upon the disciples. There was no spare ground
within the circle of its walls, and there was, moreover, a
ceremonial objection to the use of manure in the Holy City ; •
and therefore the wealthier citizens had their gardens and
pleasure grounds outside the gates, especially on the western
slope of Olivet* One of these, the property of some friend
of Jesus, perhaps Mary, the mother of John Mark, had been
* Lightfoot on John xriif. I.
■ On the position of Mt xxvi. 3l-S«Mlt. xiT. 27-31 ef. Introd. S 13.
• Lightfoot on Mt. xxvi. 36.
« Of. Jo«. Dt Bell.Jud. V. 3. I 3 ; tI I. I i; Lightfoot on John xriii. 1.
456 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
His nightly retreat during the Passion-week. It was an olive-
grove, thence called the Close or Garden of Gethsemane, that
is, the Oil-press.^ Thither Jesus betook Himself with the
Eleven.
It was late, and the weary disciples would fain have
The Lord's wrapped themselves in their cloaks and laid them down to
distress, gjggp gy^ Jesus had other thoughts. " Sit down here," He
said, " until I go away and pray yonder " ; and, taking Peter,
James, and John, He went aside with them. As soon as they
were beyond hearing of the rest, He opened His heart to His
companions, and they perceived that their Master, a little ago
so calm and triumphant, had been stricken by a storm of dis
tress. What was it that ailed Him ? It was not the fear of
death. He had conquered that ; and it is inconceivable that
the prospect which in the Upper Room He had faced with
exultation, should so quickly have been overcast and clothed
itself with terror in His eyes. It was something more awful
that shook the Redeemer's soul.' The anguish of His vicarious
passion had begun. Already He was entering into that black
cloud which enfolded Him as He hung on the Cross. It is
impossible for us to understand the experience of the Eternal
Son of God at that supreme crisis when He was " carrying
t Pet. lu 24. up our sins in His body to the Tree"; and, where under-
standing fails, it becomes us to refrain our lips and be silent
** Deep waters have come in, O Lord 1
All darkly on Thy Human Soul ;
And clouds of supernatural gloom
Around Thee are allowed to rolL
" And Thou hast shuddered at each act
And shrunk with an astonished fear,
As if Thou couldst not bear to see
The loathsomeness of sin so near."
' Xi^plov (Mt. xxri. 36=sMk. xiv. 32), not simply a platt, but an trulosed pitct of
ground {cf. Acts i. 18), corresponding to »c^o$ (John xviii. i). Jer. : in villam
(Mt.), in pradium (Mk.). Tradition fixes as the site of Gethsemane a plot of
ground some 50 yards beyond the Kedron, and claims that eight olire trees which
grow upon it, were there in our Lord's day and witnessed His Agony and Arrest.
This it impossible. Not only are two thousand years too great an age for olive
trees, but Josephus [I.e.) says that during the siege all the trees around Jerusalem
were cut down by the Romans. The actual site is probably higher up.
• If Hebr. ▼. 7 refers to the scene in Gethsemane, the author of the Epistle con-
odred the perturbation of Jesus as due to the fear of death. Bat the phrase fr rw
THE ARREST IN GETHSEMANE 457
There, in the Garden of Gethsemanc, the first gust of that
awful storm swept over His soul. "He began," says St
Matthew, " to be grieved and bewildered." " He began," says
St Mark, " to be amazed and bewildered." ^
In that dread hour Jesus craved for sympathy. " My soul," Hi*
He said to the faithful three, " is sore grieved even unto death, p^'jj*"
Stay here," He pleaded, "and watch with Me." He withdrew n: xiiii $'
from them a stone's cast, and fell on His face and prayed,
crying aloud in the anguish of His soul. His voice reached
their ears through the still night-air : " Father, if it be possible,
let this cup pass away from Me. Nevertheless," He added,
" not as I will, but as Thou wilt" For nigh an hour He lay ml «w.
prostrate thus, and the three disciples, overcome by weariness *^^^^
and sorrow, fell asleep. By and by He came to them and,
waking them, reproachfully addressed Peter who had so lately
boasted that he would lay down his life for His sake : " Thus ! '
Had ye not strength for a single hour to watch with Me?
Watch and pray lest ye enter into temptation. The spirit,"
He added, making generous excuse for their frailty, " is eager,
but the flesh is weak." He withdrew again and prayed, no
longer asking release but making submission to the Father's
will • : " My Father, if this cannot pass away unless I drink it,
Thy will be done." Again He returned and found them
asleep, for their eyes were heavy. They were ashamed, and
He did not upbraid them but withdrew once more and
repeated that prayer of resignation to the Father's will.
Thereupon He heard the tramp of ipany feet and saw through
the trees the gleam of torches and burnished armour. He
hastened to the disciples and addressed them with sad irony :
" Sleep on and rest you. Enough ! the hour is come.
Behold I the Son of Man is being betrayed into the hands of
^fUpcus rifs aapKbi a^^ov, "quamdiu habitavit in corpore mortali," proves that the
passage has a wider reference. Straass, insisting that it was the fear of death that
troubled Jesus, presents "the dilemma, that either the farewell discourses in John,
or else the evenU in Gethsemane, cannot be historical."
' iSrinoytTv, a word of uncertain derivation, used by Plato of brmiliiermtnt tftcul
amid unaccustomtd surroundings. Phadr. 251 D: ^ ^vxh • - ■ iivf^owti t« tj
iroxlg. rov rddovt Kal iwopoikra Xvrr^. T/iMts. 175 D : irr' i^tiat dJijMorwr rt xal
ixopur. The suggested derivation from ASr/fiot *: ir6Srifiot hits the idea C/. Aug.
Enarr. in Pi. xl. § 6.
a Cf. Euth. Zig.
• W. K. bracket rhv o.^hv Xbyw tlwdif in Mk. xiv, 39.
458 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
sinners. Arise I let us be going. Behold ! My betrayer is at
hand." »
Judas and As Hc spoke, the company whose approach He had per-
■ ceived, emerged into view. On his withdrawal from the
Upper Room Judas had betaken himself to the rulers and
told them that he would that night implement his bargain,
and they had mustered a band for the Lord's arrest. It con-
sisted, in the first place, of some of the officers of the Temple.
. These might have sufficed, but they were reinforced by a
detachment of Roman soldiers. It was contrary to the Law
for a Jew to bear arms on the Passover day, and, though
Jesus was defenceless, the rulers would be apprehensive lest
an alarm should be raised and the multitude flock to their
hero's rescue. Moreover, the governor, ever jealous for the
maintenance of public order, especially at festal seasons when
the city was crowded and a spark might set it ablaze, would
have resented such an enterprise on the part of the Jewish
rulers ; and, since his countenance and co-operation were of
the utmost consequence to the success of their scheme, they
had, fretting the while at the delay, appealed to him and had
been granted a detachment of soldiers, under the command of
a tribune, from Fort Antonia.^ The soldiers wore their
armour and would march in order, but the undisciplined
Mt. xxvi. Temple-servants, armed only with cudgels and carrying lamps
xfv7^= ^"^ torches, gave the company a disorderly appearance. It
Lk. xxii. looked a mere rabble. Judas led the way, for he knew that
John jcviii. retreat whither he had repaired each evening with his Master
3- and his fellow-disciples. The motley band followed after him,
and with the rest, their dignity forgotten in their eagerness, came
some of the High Priests, the Temple-captains,^ and the Elders.
The It lay with the soldiers to make the arrest : but they did
BetravaL .
not know Jesus, and, as they approached and in the light of the
torches and lanterns saw not one man but twelve, they were
* On Lk. xxii. 43-4 cf. Introd. § 12, 7.
'John xviii. 3, 13. The regular garrison at Jerusalem was a single cohort
(«rTe7pa), i.e. 500 men. Cf. Schiirer, H.J. P. I. ii. p. 55. John's Xo)5a?i' t^v ffreTpar
does not mean that the whole cohort was sent, bat only a detachment. Cf. our
phrases " call out the military," " summon the police."
• Lk. xxii. 4, 52 : rrpa-njyol T<ft itpou, the D^JJDj officials next in dignity to the
- T ;
priests. Their business was to preserve order in the Temple. See Schiirer, £f»y. P.
u. I. pp. 257 iqq.
THE ARREST IN GETHSEMANE 459
puzzled which they should apprehend. Judas came to the
rescue. " The one whom I shall kiss," he said, " is he. Take
him ;" and, advancing, he greeted Jesus with a show of rever-
ence : " Hail, Rabbi ! " and kissed Him effusively.^ It was a
piece of shameless and heartless effrontery, and Jesus answered
with a stinging sentence quivering with scorn and indignation.
" Comrade," He said, in that single word expressing all the
traitor's baseness, " to thine errand ! " Waving Judas aside,
He stepped forward and addressed the soldiers : " Whom are
ye seeking ? " There was that in His tone and bearing which
overawed them, and they faltered : " Jesus the Nazarene."
" I am He," He replied. They were standing irresolute
beside the guilty traitor, and, when Jesus said calmly : " I am
He," perhaps making to advance towards them and surrender
Himself into their hands, they gave back in consternation and
fell on the ground. There is no miracle here. It is told of
John Bunyan that once, when a body of constables entered
the house where he was preaching and one of them was
ordered to arrest him, he fixed his eyes steadfastly on the
man, holding the while an open Bible in his hand. The
constable turned pale and fell back. " See," cried Bunyan,
looking round upon the company, " how this man trembleth
at the Word of God ! " And it is told of John Wesley that
once, in the days of his persecution, he was beset on the
street by a gang of ruffians. " Which is he ? which is he ? "
they cried, uncertain of their victim amid the throng. " I am
he," said the man of God, stepping forward and facing them
undaunted ; and they retreated in amazement* And what
marvel is it that His assailants bowed before the majesty
of the Son of Man ? It had overawed the lawless Nazarenes, Lk. iv. 29.
and stayed their wild hands when they would have hurled ^°'
Him over the precipice ; and what marvel is it that now in
Gethsemane, amid the weird shadows of the night, this band
should quail in His presence?
Jesus repeated His question: "Whom are ye seeking ?" The Arrest
and again they made answer : " Jesus the Nazarene." " I
told you," He said, "that I am He. If then," He added,
solicitous for His disciples even in that dread hour, " ye are
^ ^tXeu', itss ; KaTCufuXety, kiss effusively. Cf. Lk. vii. 38, 45.
' Cf, Plut. C, Mar. § 39 : 06 Si^i'a/iiat YaXov Mdpiov itroKrctveui
46o THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
seeking Me, let these men go their way." Recovering from
their panic, the soldiers laid hold upon Him and they would
handle Him the more roughly that they were ashamed of the
weakness which they had displayed. The Eleven were terror-
stricken ; but, when he saw those rude hands binding his
Peter's dear Master, Peter could not restrain himself. With the
M^ch^ courage of desperation, he plucked out the sword which he
carried under his cloak and, falling upon the man who stood
nearest, struck off his right ear. The unfortunate man was
Malchus, the High Priest's slave. He had stood in the back-
ground during the altercation between Jesus and the soldiers,
and, when the latter had arrested Him and were binding
Him, Malchus, like his fellows, had closed in and was watch-
ing the operation from the outskirts of the throng, when
Peter assailed him from behind. It seemed as though the
wild act had sealed the rash disciple's fate. A moment more,
and he would have been stricken to the earth ; but, ere a
blade could flash from its sheath, Jesus interposed. " Put the
sword into its sheath," He commanded Peter, and, working
His hands free from the yet unfastened cords and saying to
the soldiers : " Let Me go ; just thus far," He stepped for-
ward to Malchus and, touching the dissevered ear, healed his
wound. The miracle saved Peter's life. But for it he would
have been cut in pieces by a score of vengeful blades.
The Lords While Malchus' comrades crowded round him, examining
'^'^P'^^[^^ and congratulating him, Jesus remonstrated with Peter. " All
that take sword," He said in language that has the ring of
a proverb, " by sword ahall perish. Dost thou suppose that
I cannot appeal to My Father and He will even now send
to My support more than twelve legions of angels? How
then are the Scriptures to be fulfilled that even thus it must
come to pass ? " Did He refer, as St Chrysostom fancies,
9 Kings to the Old Testament story of the destruction of Sennacherib's
"*• 35- army ? There were six thousand in a legion ; and, if a single
angel smote that great host of an hundred fourscore and five
thousand, what could this rabble avail against seventy-two
thousand angels?
His satire The Lord's calm self-possession at that dread crisis is
Priests" jind revealed by His remonstrance with Peter and still more by
Pharisees, what He Said thereafter. He turned to the Priests and
THE ARREST IN GETHSEMANE 461
Pharisees who accompanied the band, and scornfully addressed
them. " As though against a brigand, ye have come out
with swords and cudgels to capture Me I " What had they
ever seen so terrible about Him that they should beset Him
like a fierce desperado with armed men ? " Daily in the
Temple I was wont to sit teaching, and," He adds with cutting
satire, " ye did not take Me." They would feel the sting of
His taunt. They had not taken Him in the Temple because
they were afraid of the multitude. Cowards then, they were
cowards still, coming against Him, solitary and defenceless,
with that armed band. Did His speech provoke them ? The
Did they break out into clamorous menace? Something ***'^'°'^
happened at this juncture which struck terror into the hearts
of the disciples. " They all forsook Him and fled."
Here St Mark introduces a singular incident. A solitary The young
figure^ strangely attired had all the while been hovering near[he"i^
— a young man with a linen sheet wrapped about him " over *^"^
his undress." He was not one of the Lord's company, yet
he was plainly a friend and a sympathiser ; and, when the
scared disciples took to flight, the angry rulers ' laid hold
upon him ; but he dropped his garment and, leaving it in
their hands, fled undressed.' One marvels that such an
incident should have been rescued from oblivion. It seems
merely to render the young man ridiculous besides introducing
an incongruous touch of comedy into the tragic narrative.
There must have been some reason for recounting it, and
it is an attractive conjecture that the young man was none
other than St Mark himself, who has here, according to the ProbaWy
custom of the sacred writers, affixed his signature to his book ^°*"'^*^'^
in cryptic fashion.* Long ago it was suggested that the
young man had come from the house where Jesus had eaten
the Passover with His disciples ; ' and, if it was indeed the
house of Mary, the likelihood is that he was her son. The .
* Mk. xiY. 51 : ttt Tii.
' T. R. " the young men " ; Tisch., W. H. om.
' yvfwSt, not absolutely *tt*d€. Cf. John xxi. 7. Wetstein on Mk. xiv. 51.
* Olthausen, Godet. Gregory {Moral, xiv. 23) guesses John who returned from
his flight and followed Jesus to the High Priest's palace. Epiphaoios and Theo-
phylact think of James, the Lord's brother, who always after his conversion wore
linen garments (Eus. H. E. ii. 23). Cf. Petavel's interesting art. in Expositor ^
March, 1891.
* See Euth. Zig., Theophyl.
2 I
462 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
linen sheet which he wore, was a bed-cloth ; ^ and Mark, it
may be gathered, had gone to rest after the Paschal Supper,
but, with an uneasy foreboding of trouble, he had lain awake,
and, when he heard Jesus and the Eleven descend from the
Upper Room and quit the house, he had risen and, hastily
wrapping his sheet about him, had followed after them to
observe what might befall.
Mark the The incident was trivial enough, yet it would be engraved
fingered] o" Mark's memory ; and it has a peculiar value, attesting as
it does that the Evangelist was an eye-witness of the scene.
And perhaps it was less trivial than his modesty makes it
appear. In the early Church Mark was distinguished by a
curious epithet. He was styled Mark the Stump-fingered,'
and, in the absence of any trustworthy explanation, it may
be surmised that in the scuffle on that memorable night his
fingers were shorn off by the slash of a sword-blade. If it
be so, he would wear the epithet proudly, and would feel no
shame for the mutilation which told of his devotion to the
Master in the hour of His desertion.
^ Cf. Dionysius' account of his arrest in Eus. H. E, vi. 40 : lUviav ivl r^i eiv^,
^j Ijfiriv yvfivbi, iv rip Xivcp ivOiifiari, where Heinichen comments: **iv tQ \ivQ
icOi^fjMTi idem est quod alias vocatur irivdiiy," comparing our passage.
^ Hippol. Philosoph. vii. 30: oiJre IlaOXoi 6 dT6<TToXoj otfrt Mop/rof h
KiBi\oPoSajcrv\oi.
CHAPTER XLVII
BEFORE THE HIGH PRIESTS John xTiH.
13-27= Mt.
xxvl 57-75
" Nox insomnis iUque tota ducebatur, =Mk. xiv.
Nulla prorsus requies Jesu parabatur : 53-72= Lie
Magistronim impia plebs injuriatvir, Mt'^x^wuf '
Alapis et colaphis innocens mactatur." — Med. Hymn, 3-10.
From Gethsemane they led Jesus away to His trial. Thesanhedrin
situation was complicated by the political condition of the c^tocr
Jewish nation. Had the nation been independent, it would
have sufficed that the Sanhedrin should condemn Him ; but,
since the Roman conquest, the power of the Sanhedrin had
been abridged, and, ere sentence of death could be executed,
it was necessary that the Roman governor's sanction should
be obtained.^ Thus it came to pass that Jesus had to under-
go two trials. He was in the first instance arraigned before
the Sanhedrin, and then He was brought for sentence before
the Roman governor.
The High Priest was, in virtue of his office, President ofThehousa
the Sanhedrin, and at that crisis the High Priest was Joseph '^°****'
Caiaphas, a remarkable man and allied with a remarkable
family. He was son-in-law to old Annas, who not only had
held the high priesthood from A.D. 6 to i 5 but enjoyed this
unique distinction, that after his deposition by the governor
Valerius Gratus his four sons and his son-in-law held the
sacred office. Such good fortune, remarks the historian,' " has
fallen to the lot of no other of our High Priests." Yet it was
in no wise to the credit of Annas and his family. In those
days the high-priesthood was at the disposal of the Roman
governors and the Herodian princes, and went commonly
to the highest bidder ; ' and the prolonged ascendancy of the
house of Annas is an evidence no less of their corruption than
of their astuteness. It was great good fortune to themselves,
* Jos. De B$ll,Jud. ii. 8. 1 1 ; Ant, xx. 9. i i ; Lightroot on John xviii. 31.
* Jm. Ant. XX. 9. § 1. * C^. Lightfoot oo John xviii. 13.
4«)
464 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
but to the Jewish people it was a heavy calamity. It is
Cf. Mt iii. written in the Talmud : " Woe to the house of Annas !
^ xSii.^! Woe to their serpent's hiss! They are High Priests; their
sons are keepers of the Treasury ; their sons-in-law are
guardians of the Temple ; and their servants beat the people
with staves." * They were a mercenary as well as a tyrannical
John iL 16 : race. It was they that had made the Temple "a market-
^=ML xu house " and " a robbers' den." They had a country-seat,
'7=Lk. probably on the Mount of Olives, where they drove a lucra-
' tive traffic in doves and all the materials for the offerings
of purification ; and the place was known, apparently in
derision, as the Booths of the Sons of Annas.^
Influence Annas was merely High Priest emeritus at the time of our
of Annas. Lqj.(J's arrest, but as well in fact as in sentiment the High
Priest retained his prestige after his demission of office. He
was still called the High Priest ' and retained all his obliga-
tions and many of his prerogatives.* Nor was Annas the man
to be lightly set aside ; whether in office or out of it he must
exert a predominant influence. It is therefore in no wise
John xviiL surprising that, when they had arrested Jesus, they " led Him
^^ to Annas first" ' It was still the dead of night ; and, since
the Sanhedrin could not meet till day-break,^ how better
could the intervening hours be spent than in an examination
of the prisoner by that astute veteran for the guidance of the
Sanhedrin in its conduct of the trial ?
Peter and It is probable that he resided at the Booths on the slope
I°^*°^of Olivet hard by the Garden of Gethsemane, and thither
Jesus was conducted. Two of the disciples, Peter and John,
had rallied from the panic which seized them when they saw
' Pesach. 57. I.
' Taberna filurum Chanan. Cf. Lightfoot, ii. pp. 409-10. The residence of
Annas where Jesus was arraigned, was probably the Tabernce^ and it must have
been outside the dty, since (i) doves were bred there for the sacrifices, and
a columbarium might not be built within 50 cubits of Jerusalem : Lightfoot, ii. p.
239; (2) for ceremonial reasons cocks [cf' Mt. xxvi. 74«Mk. xiv. 72 = Lk. xxii. 60
=John xviii. 27) were not allowed to be kept in the city. Cf. Lightfoot on Mt.
xxvi. 34.
•John xviii 15, 16, 19, 22; Jos. Vit. § 38 ; Z>« B*IL Jud. ii. 12. §6; iv. 3.
S 7 ; 4. S 3.
« Schlirer, H.J. P. II. i. p. 203. » Cf. Introd. § 13.
• The Sanhedrin might meet between the morning and afternoon sacrifices. Cf.
Lightfoot OQ Mk. xv. I. The morning sacrifice was offered whenever the flush of
dawn was seen on Hebron. Cf. lightfoot, iL p. 207.
BEFORE THE HIGH PRIESTS 465
their Master in the grasp of His enemies ; and they followed
at a safe distance. When the troop reached the gateway of
the Booths, Peter remained outside, but John passed in ; not
because he was bolder than his comrade, but because he had
some sort of acquaintance with the High Priest What John's ae-
acquaintanceship could there be betwixt a Galilean fisherman w'ithlhe'*^
and that exalted dignitary, as proud an aristocrat as ever sate "'8**
on a chair of state and spurned the populace like the dust
beneath his feet ? It has been supposed, on the strength of
an ancient description of St John as " a priest wearing the
mitre," ^ that, though a Galilean fisherman, he was of priestly Cf. Exod.
lineage.' But Annas would hardly have acknowledged such "*'"' ^
a claim ; and in fact the description is nothing more than
a figurative expression of the veneration which was felt in
early days for St John, that true priest of the Lord. There is
much attractiveness in an ancient tradition which has it that
he was known to the High Priest " from his fisher craft." '
Since he had plied the fishing industry on the Lake of Galilee
on a somewhat large scale in company with his father Zebedee Mt l aa
and his brother James, it may well be that he had a business
connection with the capital and supplied that wealthy mansion.
Thus it came to pass that he got admission to the court-yard
on that memorable night. It was by no means his first visit
to the Booths. He had often been there in the way of
business. The portress would admit him without demur,
and all the servants would greet him.
Peter had no such pass-port ; and, moreover, after his Peter de-
attack on Malchus he had reason to fear reprisal. He lingered ^J*uiegaie.
outside the gate until John, mindful of his comrade, inter-
ceded with the portress and procured him admittance. As
he passed in, the girl looked hard at him and said : " Thou
too art one of this fellow's disciples, art thou not ? " It was
an innocent question prompted by mere curiosity, and, had
Peter assented or held his peace, the affair would have gone
no further ; but he was at his wits' end with fright and,
blurting out : " No, I am not ! " * he hurried in confusion into
> Ep. of Polycratet in Eos. H. E. iii. 31 ; y. 24. 'So Ewald.
' Nonn. Paraphr. xviii. 71 ; lx6vp6\ov xapk Wx*^*- Caspari thinks that
Zebedee and his sons were citizens of Jerusalem and resided at Bethsaida during the
fishing season.
* Aug. In Joan. Ev. Tract, cxiii. § 3 : " Debemus advertere noa solam ab eo
466 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
the court-yard. It was unusually cold that night, and the
servants had lit a fire and clustered round it ; and Peter,
anxious to seem at his ease, joined the group and stood
warming himself with an ill-assumed air of nonchalance.
Precogni- Meanwhile Jesus had been conducted upstairs to the
Annsus! audience-chamber of Annas and was there undergoing an
wk. xiv. examination which lasted about an hour. No disciple, no
66.
Lk. xxiL friend was present, yet a report of the memorable scene
^^' reached the ears of St John. Jesus comported Himself with
fearless dignity and displayed His accustomed resourceful-
ness, proving Himself more than a match for that wily
diplomatist. Annas questioned Him regarding His disciples
and His teaching, and He answered proudly : " I have spoken
openly to the world. I always taught in Synagogue and in
the Temple where all the rulers assemble, and in secret spoke
I nothing. Why question Me ? Question them that have
heard Me what I spoke unto them. See," He exclaimed,
pointing to the spectators, " these men know what I said."
It was a crushing rejoinder. Legal procedure required that
witnesses should first of all be summoned for the defence,^
and in departing from this rule and seeking to extort from
Jesus some damning admission Annas was guilty of flagrant
illegality. It was a stinging rebuke, all the more effective
that it was spoken so calmly, and Annas would wince and
flush crimson. Observing his discomfiture and anxious, after
the fashion of his sort, to curry favour, one of the officers
gave Jesus a buffet, crying with an affectation of horror : "Is
it thus that thou answerest the High Priest ? " Perpetrated
in a hall of judgment such a deed of violence was an outrage
upon justice itself, and Jesus answered with quiet dignity not
without sarcasm : " If I spoke ill, bear witness regarding the
ill ; but, if well, why smite Me ? " Another scene rises up in
Acts xxiii. striking contrast to the Lord's bearing at this juncture.
'"^ When St Paul was making his defence before the Sanhedrin,
by command of the High Priest, Ananias, he was smitten on
the mouth. His indignation blazed up, and he cried : " Grod
shall smite thee, thou white-washed wall ! " The bystanders
negari Christum qui dicit eum non esse Christum ; sed ab illo etiam qui cum est,
negat se esse Christianum."
' Cf, Lightfoot on John zriii. 15, si.
BEFORE THE HIGH PRIESTS 467
protested : " Revilest thou God's High Priest? " and immedi-
ately he made an apology : " I knew not, brethren, that he
was the High Priest" St Paul recognised that he had
blundered ; but from the beginning of His long and vexatious
trial to the end not a single wrong move did Jesus make, not
a single false step did He take ; He never blundered, never
spoke a word which He needed to retract He bore Himself
throughout the ordeal with calm self-possession, with fearless
dignity, conscious that He was not alone, that the Father was
with Him.
Baffled and angry Annas ended the interview, and ordered Peter de-
Jesus to be led away bound to Caiaphas to stand His trial Ul^he**"*
before the Sanhedrin. Meanwhile rough play had been going court-jrarA
on in the court-yard.^ When Peter disowned his discipleship
at the gateway, thinking thus to escape molestation, he
delivered himself into the hands of the tormentors. The
portress was a mischievous maid. She noticed his perturba-
tion at her question, and by and by, when she could leave
her post, she approached the group about the fire and, point-
ing to the shrinking figure, informed them : " This fellow is
one of them." Every eye turned in Peter's direction. He
denied it, but it was useless. His very denial, spoken with
the broad northern accent, convicted him. " Certainly thou
art one of them," cried a chorus of voices ; " for thy speech
bewrayeth thee." Of course it did not necessarily follow that,
because he was a Galilean, he was a disciple of Jesus, but they
perceived his alarm and, having nothing else to do, they
thought it good sport to bait him. " I am not," he vociferated
wildly ; " I do not know what ye are talking about" As
ill-luck would have it, there was in the company a slave of the
High Priest who was a kinsman of Malchus and had been in
Gethsemane and witnessed Peter's frantic assault. He chimed
in : " Did not I see thee in the Garden with him ? " Poor
Peter was hard put to it He was fairly run to earth. He
had recourse to the desperate man's resort The habit of his
> On the differences between the accounts of the Denial cf. Introd. § is, 3, (a).
Whatever their differences, all the Evangelists report the Denial. Cf. Chrysost. /•
Psalm. 1 (li) : " The philanthropy of God, in consideration for the weakness of
the human race, not only caused the successes of the saints to be written but turned
their sins into medicines, that their wounds might prove medicines to their fellowi.
and the righteous man's shipwreck constitute a haven for the sinner. "
468
THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
old fisher days, dormant these three years, revived, and
he began to curse and swear : "I do not know the
fellow ! "
His re- Just then a cock crew. The sound checked Peter. It
pentance. j-^jj^jQ^jg^j j^jj^ q{ ^q Lord's prediction in the Upper Room :
" Ere cock-crow thou shalt repeatedly deny Me." To com-
plete his humiliation it chanced that Jesus was at that moment
being conducted, with His hands pinioned behind His back,
through the court-yard on His way to the judgment-hall of
Caiaphas. He had heard those wild imprecations, that
brutal abjuration ; and, when Peter paused conscience-stricken
and looked guiltily about him, he espied his Lord. Jesus had
turned His head and was gazing back at His faithless disciple.
" He looked on Peter," and that look broke Peter's heart He
muffled up his face in his cloak,^ hurried from the court-yard,
and wept bitterly.
Before the They led Jesus into the city ere yet it was astir. The
,, ""*.' eager Sanhedrin met betimes. There was a full house that
Mt. XXVI. °
57, 59; Mk. morning, and the President would have no need to ascertain
"*■ ^^ whether the minimum of twenty-three were present.^ Caiaphas,
the acting High Priest, presided, and he was supported by his
Mt. xxvi. predecessors, who still retained the title of High Priest —
xiv, 55. his father-in-law Annas and at least three others, Ismael the
son of Phabi, Eleasar the son of Annas, and Simon the son
of Kamithos, who had each held office for a brief term under
the procurator Valerius Gratus.^ The meeting-place was the
Hall of Hewn Stone within the Temple area ; and the Presi-
dent sate at the western end of the chamber with his col-
leagues on either hand forming a semi-circle. In the midst,
fronting the President, stood the prisoner, and officers were in
attendance to guard him, summon witnesses, and execute the
sentence.*
The procedure of the Sanhedrin on that memorable
^ Mk. xiv. 72 : ^irc/SoXwi' #*cXate«' has been rendered (i) " He began to weep,"
capit JUre {y\i\g.). Euth. Zig. : ^i^aXdn- <U^l toO d/j^d/tci-oj. (2) " When he thought
thereon, he wept " (A.V., R.V.). See Wetstein. (3) "Muffling up his face he wept,"
^iriicaXt/V'et/tKi'oj t^¥ KfipaX:^v (Theophyl.). The choice lies between (2) and (3), the
latter being preferable. The phrase was proverbial. Cf. Erasm. Ada^. under
^udo capite : " Qui rem pudendam faciebant, iis mos erat centonibus caput opcrire."
See Field, Notes-, Moullon's Gram, of N.T. Gk. i. p. 131.
• Lightfoot on John xviii. 15, » Jos. Ant. xroi, 2. § a.
♦ Lightfoot, ii. pp. 194, 773.
Illegal pro-
cedure.
BEFORE THE HIGH PRIESTS 469
morning was a succession of flagrant illegalities.* Justice
was straightway thrown to the winds without excuse or
shame. With a humane sense of the value of human life
the Jewish law had laid down a very complete code of
regulations for the conduct of capital trials. It was required
that the witnesses for the defence should be summoned first
and that, ere those for the prosecution gave evidence, they
should be reminded of the solemnity of their position and
enjoined to speak only from certain knowledge and affirm
nothing on hearsay.' It was required also that adverse
evidence should be subjected to a searching scrutiny and
admitted only when corroborated by a second witness.' Those
just and merciful regulations Caiaphas and his colleagues un-
blushingly disregarded. Their troubler had been delivered
into their hands, and they were bent on making short work
of Him. One consideration alone restrained them. It lay
with the Roman governor to pronounce and execute sentence
of death, and, when they handed their prisoner over to him,
they must specify His offence. It was therefore necessary
that they should go through the form of a trial and condemn
Him on some plausible ground. They met not to try but to
condemn Him. They summoned no witnesses for the defence,
but they hunted up witnesses against Him with an undisguised
determination to effect His condemnation and with no attempt .
to preserve even the appearance of judicial impartiality. Of Uieiea*
adverse witnesses they had no lack. Many were ready at *^***°**
their call to come forward with stories against Jesus, but so
foolish and contradictory were their allegations that they
afforded no ground for condemnation. It was out of the
question to go to the governor with such charges. Had there
been no governor to reckon with, they could easily have con-
demned Jesus. Was there not the crime of Sabbath-breaking
to be laid to His charge? He had frequently committed it
and nothing that He had done in the course of His ministry
had given them more grievous offence. And according to the
Jewish law it was a capital offence. But then, had they gone
to the governor with a complaint ^bout Sabbath-observance,
* It should not have met at all on a feast-day. See Lightfoot on Mt. xxsii. I ;
SchUrer, H./. P. 11. i. p. 190.
« Lightfoot on John xviii. 15 ; Schttrer, H.J. P. II. i. p. 194.
* Lightfoot on Mk. xiv. 56.
470 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
they would have fared like the Jews at Corinth in after days,
Acts xviii. when they impeached St Paul before Gallio for " persuading
^^'^- men to worship God contrary to the Law," and the proconsul
told them that he would be no judge of such matters, and
drove them contumeliously from his presence.
A promis- At length a charge was preferred which looked promising,
ojg charge, jnasmuch as it was supported by two witnesses and smacked
of anarchy. " We heard him," they alleged, " saying : ' I can
pull down the Sanctuary of God and in the course of three
days build it' " It was a distorted version of that mystic
John iL saying which He had spoken after the cleansing of the Temple
19-22. j^j. ^jjg outset of His ministry. The two witnesses were pro-
bably honest men. They had heard that saying of Jesus, and,
if it was misunderstood by the rulers, if its meaning was hidden
even from the disciples until " He was raised from the dead,"
what marvel is it that two plain citizens should have mis-
interpreted it ? Here was promising evidence. It seemed to
warrant not only a charge of blasphemy against the Jews'
Holy Place but a charge of revolutionary intentions such as
the governor durst not ignore. It promised well, but, when
the witnesses were further questioned, they got confused and
invalidated their evidence by mutual contradiction.
Silence of ^^^ ^^^ while Jesus had stood silent, uttering no protest,
Jesus, deigning no explanation. " His whole life and His deeds
among the Jews," says an ancient apologist,^ " were better
than a voice refuting the false testimony or words making
defence against the accusations." His life and deeds were
His defence, and He stood silent in " proud disdain." His
judges were troubled. They were impressed by the majesty
of His bearing and angry withal at their ill success. It seemed
as though it were impossible to bring home to Jesus any charge
which would pass with the governor. Was their prey after all
to escape from their clutches ? If only He would speak, He
might perhaps say something which could be employed to His
Adjuration disadvantage. Starting from his chair Caiaphas advanced
Caiaphas. ^^^° ^^ Centre of the circle and, confronting the prisoner,
demanded : " Answerest thou nothing ? What is it that
these men are witnessing against thee ? " Jesus held His
peace. "I put thee on oath," said the High Priest, half
» Orig. a Cels. I 2.
BEFORE THE HIGH PRIESTS 471
awed, half enraged, " to say to us whether thou art the
Messiah, the Son of God." Then Jesus spoke. The adjura- Reply of
tion was a challenge. Had He kept silence, His silence would "*'
have been interpreted as a denial of His Messiahship, a
dereliction of all His claims. At such a crisis silence would
have been disloyalty to His mission and a betrayal of the
souls that had believed in Him and owned Him as their Lord.
" Thou hast said," ^ He replied ; " and," * He continued, survey-
ing the assembly, " ye shall see the Son of Man seated at the
Right Hand of Power and coming upon the clouds of
Heaven."
Caiaphas had gained his end. He had compelled Jesus Triumph of
to speak and, with consummate dexterity, had extorted from Caiaphas.
Him precisely such a declaration as the Sanhedrin's malign
purpose required. Disguising his exultation by an affectation
of horror, he rent his garments, as the law directed a judge to
do when blasphemy was uttered or reported in his hearing.'
It was no involuntary manifestation of horror but a histrionic
conventionality. His emotion was a mere pretence. There
was no blasphemy in the Lord's declaration. It was nothing
uncommon in those restless days for an enthusiast to arise and
give out that he was the Messiah, and the worst that could be
laid to his charge was that he was either a fanatic or an im-
postor. It was no blasphemy on the part of Jesus to declare
that He was the Messiah, though the piteousness of His con-
dition might well render His claim ridiculous in His judges'
eyes. Nevertheless it served their turn to raise the cry of
blasphemy. It not only gave them a pretext for condemning
Jesus according to their Law but furnished them with a
specious complaint to urge against Him before the governor.
They knew how jealously the Romans regarded that Messianic
enthusiasm which in those dark days was continually stirring
the hearts of the enslaved Jews and inciting them to desperate
insurrection. Jesus had declared Himself the Messiah, and they
could forthwith delate Him to the governor as a seditious plot- c/. Acta
monger, an aspirant to the Jewish throne, an enemy of Caesar. *^"' ^*
^ A formula of assent Mk, gives " I am."
' Mt.'s drd^t, "henceforth," is probably an interpolation due to the primitive
expectation of an immediate wapovvla,
Cf. Lightfoot, Wetstcin.
472 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
Con- «' Blasphemy ! " cried Caiaphas. " What further need
^^of jeslL" have we of witnesses ? Behold, just now ye heard the
blasphemy. What is your verdict?" Instantly came the
unanimous response : " He is liable to death " ; and Jesus
stood condemned. Was there no one in the assembly who
sympathised with Him ? What of Nicodemus, that ruler of
the Jews, and Joseph of Arimathaea, that honourable councillor,
who were both " disciples but secret ones for fear of the Jews " ?
Did their fear seal their lip^ ? Or did they, with hardly less
cowardice, absent themselves from the Sanhedrin on that fate-
ful morning ? ^
\rioience Consider the shameless illegality of the procedure.
Sanhedrin* Lesser cases might be concluded on a single day ; but in
capital cases, while sentence of absolution was pronounced on
the same day, it was required that sentence of condemnation
should be delayed until the day following. It was required,
moreover, that the votes of the judges should be taken down
in writing, each standing up in turn, the youngest first, and
intimating his verdict^ Not thus was Jesus condemned.
They did not wait until the morrow but sentenced Him
forthwith ; nor did they vote in deliberate succession, but
declared Him guilty by tumultuous acclamation. It was
further required that after condemning a criminal to death
the Sanhedrin should mourn and fast all that day ; but no
sooner was Jesus condemned than those grave councillors,
the custodians of Israel's law and faith, arose from their seats
and compassed Him with contumely.' They spat on His
face, they buffeted Him, they blindfolded Him and, striking
Him, challenged Him, as He was a prophet, to divine who
smote Him. And the officers of the court abetted their
superiors in the brutal sport The conduct of the Sanhedrin
on that woeful morning imprinted on the reputation of the
august court an indelible stain which by and by the Jews
would fain have obliterated. Vainly seeking to rewrite
history, they told how for forty days Jesus was led through
^ According to the apocryphal Ev. Nicod. r Nicodemos pled for Jesus both in
the Sanhedrin and before Pilate.
* Lightfoot on Mt. xxvii. i ; SchUrer, H.J. P. 11. L p. 194.
' Mt. and Mk. make it plain that the mockery was done by the Sanhedrists.
Lk., perhaps deeming this incredible, has put the incident before the meeting of
Sanhedrin and attributed the brutality to " the men that held Jesus."
BEFORE THE HIGH PRIESTS 473
the city, and a herald went before Him, proclaiming that He
had been sentenced to stoning as a deceiver of the people,
and inviting any who could attest His innocence, to come
forward and do so.*
The Sanhedrin had found Jesus guilty of blasphemy, and, RemorKoi
according to the Law, He should have been forthwith stoned ^*"***"
to death. But it was necessary in those days that the Roman
governor's consent should be obtained. He resided at
Caesarea Stratonis, the Roman capital of Palestine, but he
had, according to custom, come to Jerusalem to maintain
order during the Feast, and thus the case could be im-
mediately submitted to his adjudication. As they left the
Hall of Hewn Stone and passed out into the Temple-court,
the Sanhedrists encountered a weird figure. It was the
traitor Judas, haggard and wild. Truly " man knows the
beginning of sin, but who knows the issues thereof? " With-
out a qualm Judas had carried his crime through ; and then,
like the matricide Nero," when it was accomplished, he per-
ceived its enormity and recoiled affrighted by what he had
done and stricken with remorse. Horror had taken hold of
him in Gethsemane, when before the face of his betrayed
Lord he fell to the earth ; and, in an agony of guilt and
remorse, he had followed to the house of Annas and thence
to the Hall of Hewn Stone, and had waited without until he
should know the issue, hoping that even yet Jesus might be
acquitted. When the sentence was pronounced, his last hope
was swept away. A desperate device occurred to him : might
he not even now cancel the bargain ? Clutching the accursed
shekels in his wild hands, he confronted the retiring San-
hedrists, and, addressing the High Priests who had paid him
his price, cried : " I have sinned in betraying innocent
blood ! " " What is that to us ? " they sneered. " Thou must
see to that " ; and, spuming the wretch, they passed on.
That the Sanhedrin might " sit near the Divine Majesty," the
Hall of Hewn Stone adjoined the Sanctuary' with its two
chambers — the inner chamber, the Holy of Holies, and,
separated therefrom by a veil, the outer, the Holy Place.*
Thither the High Priests betook themselves less to per-
» Lightfoot on Mt. xxvii. 31 and AcU L 3. • Tat Ann. vn. la
» Lightfoot on John xviii. 31. * ^. p. 63.
474 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
form their priestly duties than to be rid of Judas. Even in
his frenzy he durst not intrude into that sacred shrine where
none but priestly feet might tread ; but he followed them to
the threshold and, ere they could close the entrance, hurled the
the ringing coins into the Sanctuary. Before the priests had
recovered from their astonishment, he was gone. " He went
away and hanged himself."
Later Such IS St Matthew's story, and it bears the stamp of
'*^*° * truth. The traitor's crime was awful in the eyes of the
primitive Church, and it is in no wise surprising that his doom
was early invested with lurid circumstances. In the Ads of
the Apostles St Luke reports the story which was current
in his day.* It tells how Judas, unvisited by remorse,
purchased a field with the price of his iniquity and was
stricken by a manifest judgment of Heaven : " falling head-
long, he burst asunder in the midst, and his bowels all gushed
out." And hence that field was known ever after as
Akeldama, the Field of Blood. In process of time the
legend developed apace. It was told how the traitor was
horribly afflicted. His body swelled till he could not pass
where a wagon had room ; it flowed with loathsome dis-
charges ; and, when he died, he was buried in his field, and
no one could pass by the place for the stench, " even if he
stopped his nostrils with his hands." * It is no marvel that
such legends should have arisen. In like manner did the
Scottish Covenanters invest their arch-persecutor, the bloody
Claverhouse, with supernatural terrors. His coal-black steed,
they said, was a creature of no earthly sire. It was a gift
which he had received from his master, the Devil. He was
furthermore, by the same master's grace, proof against lead,
and, when he fell on the field of Killiecrankie, he was shot,
they believed, by a silver button wherewith his waiting-
servant, " taking a resolution to rid the world of this truculent
bloody monster," had loaded his musket.
Pathos of St Matthew's story, so grave, so restrained, so impressive
end. in its very simplicity, must be historical ; else had it resembled
those wild legends. It is impossible to repress a throb of pity
'Actsi. 18-9 is DO part of Peter's speech but an explanatory parenthesis from
Lk.'t hand.
* Papict Fragm. iii in Pair. Apoit. Op, ; Roatb, Reliq. Sacr. ii. pp. 9, 25-6.
BEFORE THE HIGH PRIESTS 475
for the wretch who so terribly sinned and so terribly repented.
It is a quaint fancy of one of the Fathers that, knowing that
his Master must die, he hastened to die before Him, thinking
to meet Him in the other world with naked soul, that, confess-
ing his sin and imploring forgiveness, he might obtain mercy.*
Would that, like Peter, he had sorrowed with a godly sorrow
and sought mercy at the Cross from that gracious Saviour
who died with pardon on His lips 1 There was grace enough
in the heart of Jesus even for " such an ugly man as Judas."
The priests were not a little embarrassed when they found The Poc-
their money thus thrown back upon their hands. What ^" * ^"^***
should they do with it ? It was blood-money, and therefore c/. Deut.
they might not put it into the sacred Treasury. With char- "*"* ***
acteristic moral obliquity, " straining out the midge but gulj>-
ing down the camel," they shuddered at the blood-stained
shekels and never thought of the deeper stain wherewith their
souls were dyed. What should they do with the money?
After deliberation they hit upon an appropiate use. Outside
the city ' there lay a worked-out clay-bed, at once useless and
unsightly. The potter was glad to be rid of it, and for the
poor pittance of thirty shekels they purchased it from him
and converted it into a burial-ground for strangers, that is,
Gentiles who chanced to die in the Holy City.* How could
the money be more contumeliously employed than in the
purchase of a burial-place for the carcases of Gentile dogs ?
Thus they salved their consciences and evinced their Uncon-
loathing of the blood-stained shekels, blind to the grim irony rondemwJ
of the transaction. When they bestowed upon the heathen ^^°^
the purchase of the Redeemer's blood, they were all uncon-
sciously prophets of His world-wide gracei* And, moreover,
they put themselves to an abiding shame. The place was
called the Field of Blood, and it remained for centuries*
> Orig. In Maith, Ccmm. Ser. 5 I17.
• On account of the smoke a pottery had to be at a distance from dwellings, "in
some out-of-the-way place, among plants and hedges"; cf. I Chron. !▼. 13.
P. E. F. G-. J»n- >904i PP- 5 1-2.
» Not foreign Jews sojourning in Jerusalem : they would not hare been buried
in that unclean place.
* Calv. : "Non improbo quod vetercs quidam scripserunt, hoc symbol© datam
fuisse spem salutis Gentibus, quia in pretio mortis Christi iadusK essent."
'Jer. Dt Ltt. Hebr.: " Hodieque moostratur in ^lia ad australem plagaa
montis Sion."
476 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
a monurtient of their crime, the ghastly name proclaiming
it trumpet-tongued and keeping its memory alive. The
Evangelist recognised in the episode a fulfilment of that
ancient Scripture where the prophet tells how an ungrateful
people requited his shepherd-care with a slave's price.* " They
weighed for my price thirty pieces of silver." And in scorn
of this " goodly price wherewith he had been priced of them,"
he " cast it to the potter " — a proverb for contemptuous rejec-
tion, a potter's handiworks being frail and little worth ' — " in
the House of the Lord." The coincidence is more than
accidental. The words of the Prophets have ever a deeper
I Pet i. II. meaning than they knew. The Spirit of Messiah was in
them, testifying aforehand the sufferings that should befall
Messiah and the glories that should follow these.
^ 2^h. ri. 12-3. Mt.'s "Jeremiah" is perhaps a mere lapsus memorut, due to
Jer. xviii. 1-6; xxxii. 6-10. Calv. : "How the name of Jeremiah has crept in, I
confess I know not ; nor does it greatly trouble me. That the name of Jeremiah
has certainly been put by an error for ' Zecliariah ' the fact shows, since nothing of
the sort is read in Jeremiah, nor anything approaching it." Origen suspects that it
is either a scribe's error [errorem esst scriptura) or a quotation from some secret
scripture of Jeremiah. And Jerome, while regarding it as a quotation fi-om
Zechariah, says : " I read lately in a Hebrew book, which a Hebrew of the
Nazarene sect presented to me, an apocryphal writing of Jeremiah in which I found
this passage written word for word." Cf. Aug. De Cans. Ev. iii. §§ 28-31. It is
recognised that the latter half of Zechariah (ix-xv) is a collection of prophecies
belonging to different periods, ix-xi being thought by many to have been written
before the Exile. What if xi. 12-3 were a prophecy of Jeremiah after all ?
2 Cf. Lam. iv. 2 ; Eccl. xii. 6 ; Is. xlv. 9 ; Arabic proverb : " The turning pitcher
(of the water-wheel) must one day receive a knock."
CHAPTER XLVIII **t«ru.
1-3. It-4a
Mk. XV. !•(
BEFORE PONTIUS PILATB r^^J^**
zviii. aS-
" r.jU3 corona splcndicat, xxiiL 6-16 •
Sed est contexta rubo ; Ml xxviL
Et gemmae, quot intermicant, '5-3o=*
Nascuntur mari rubro, _ *!'• ^
Scintillant sicut facula:, ^~^ ,-.j.
Nam sunt cruoris maculae." — Afed. Hymn, c John
xviii. j9-
xix. 16.
Thus " by impious show of law condemned," Jesus was led To the pro-
without delay to the governor. It was early in the morning, j^^'^via,
somewhere betwixt daybreak and six o'clock ^ — an unusual ^^^
hour even in the East where, since it is impossible to transact
business during the sultry hours of broad day, it is necessary
to begin betimes.^ So eager were the rulers for the ratifica-
tion and execution of their sentence.
The man who at that juncture held the office of procurator pootiia
of Judaea was Pontius Pilate, and for the part which he bore ^'*'*'
in the crime of the Lord's death, he has stood ever since on
the pillory of the world's scorn and execration. Nevertheless,
when his position is understood, it appears that he was to a
large extent the victim of circumstances, and may even claim
a measure of pity.' He was a typical Roman, stem and
practical, with all the Roman contempt for superstition, which
at that period was synonymous with religion of every variety,*
^ At the close of the trial before Pilate &pa ^w in ticrt) (John xix. 14), i.e., accord*
ing to John's reckoning, about 6 a.m. The Crucifixion was at 9 A.M. (Mk. xr.
35). Mt. zxvii. 19 implies that the trial was at an early hour : Pilate bad gone to
the Prsetorium ere his wife was astir.
^ At Rome the clients paid their visits from 6 to 8 A.M. ; the law-courts lat from
8 to 9 A.M. C/. Mart. iv. 8.
* Though prompted by a desire to throw the guilt on the Jews, the tendency of
some early writers to exculpate Pilate is not unjustifiable. C/. Ev. Nieod, xii ; Ev.
Petr., ed. Robinson and James, pp. 16-7.
* Gibbon defines the Roman attitude toward religion in a pithy epigram : " The
various modes of worship which prevailed in the Roman world, were all considered
by the people as equally true; by the philosopher as equally false; mod by the
magistrate as equally useful."
2 K *"
478 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
and all the Roman hatred of the Jews, " that horde of circum-
cised." Had he been set over another province, he might
have proved a successful ruler, but he was ill adapted for the
government of a race so tenacious of its faith and so quick to
resent whatever seemed a slight upon its cherished traditions.
The Jews required very tactful management, and Pilate was a
man of imperious temper, disposed to carry things with a
high hand and compel obedience.
The offence Trouble was inevitable, and no sooner had he set foot on
stan^ds^ his province than it began. His predecessors, prudently
respecting the Jewish prejudice against images, had always
taken care that, when their troops entered Jerusalem, they
should not carry their ensigns emblazoned with the Emperor's
effigy ; but Pilate, disdaining what he deemed weak deference
to a contemptible prejudice, bade the cohort which garrisoned
the Holy City, march in with their standards and plant them
on the citadel. Since the entry was made by night, the out-
rage was unobserved at the moment ; but, when morning
broke and they saw the standards floating over the citadel,
the indignant citizens thronged out to Caesarea and requested
that the offensive insignia be removed. Pilate scorned their
request, and for five days and as many nights they lay
prostrate on the ground in sorrowful entreaty. On the sixth
day he convened them in the race-course, and on their
renewing their appeal he gave a signal, and a company of
soldiers whom he had set in ambush, sprang forward and, sur-
rounding the defenceless suppliants, threatened them with
instant death unless they desisted from their clamour and
returned peaceably home. He thought to intimidate them,
but to his amazement they flung themselves on their faces
and, baring their necks, declared themselves ready to die
rather than endure the violation of their laws. Thereupon he
gave way and ordered the removal of the ensigns.^
Sacri- It is always a grievous blunder to resile from an ulti-
of T"°mpie^ matum, and Pilate's compliance was fatal to his authority
treasure, gyer after. His subjects took his measure. They perceived
that he could be concussed by clamour. Ere long another
issue emerged. Jerusalem had great need of an adequate
supply of water, and Pilate determined to build an aqueduct
^ Jos. Ant. xviii. 3. % i ; De Bdl.Jud. ii. 9. §§ 2-3.
BEFORE PONTIUS PILATE 479
It was a laudable project, but he conceived the unlucky idea
of defraying the cost out of the Temple-treasury. The Jews
were indignant at the sacrilege, and, when the governor visited
Jerusalem, he found himself beset by a clamorous and abusive
mob. Aware of the popular sentiment and apprehensive of
trouble, he had bidden his soldiers mingle in plain clothes
with the multitude and, should it prove necessary, fall upon
them with cudgels and beat them into subjection. Finding
remonstrance of no avail, he gave the signal, and the soldiers
assailed the unarmed mob with a severity greater than Pilate
had intended. Many were beaten to death, and many more
were trampled under foot The tumult was suppressed, but
the populace was the more exasperated.^
The misguided governor had plunged ever deeper into Growing
barbarity. Quite recently he had fallen upon a company of ^q^**^"
Galileans in the Temple-court and had mingled their blood
with the blood of their sacrifices — an atrocity which had sent Lk. xiii, i.
a shudder through the land. The province was seething
with disaffection, which came to a head when, " less for the
honour of Tiberius than for the annoyance of the Jewish
people," Pilate hung votive shields richly gilded and en-
graved with the Emperor's name, in the Palace of Herod in
Jerusalem. It was perhaps a lesser outrage than the introduc-
tion of the standards, but it roused the exasperated people.
Headed by a company of their nobles, including the four sons
of Herod, they approached the governor and requested that
the shields be removed. He obdurately refused, and they
addressed a complaint to the Emperor. So long as the two imperial
great imperial interests, revenue and order, were conserved, '^^""^
Tiberius cared little what went on in the provinces, least of all
in despised Judaea ; but woe to the luckless governor if the
taxes fell into arrears or an insurrection arose requiring
military operations for its suppression. The complaint from
Judaea provoked the Emperor's displeasure. He administered
a rebuke to Pilate and peremptorily ordered the removal of
the offending shields.*
* Jos. Ant. xviii. 3. § i ; Z?< Bell.Jud. ii. 9. §4.
' Phil. De Leg. ad Cat. § 38. This is probably the qaarrel alluded to in Lk.
xxiii. 12. On the somewhat precarious ground that Sejanus was the arch-enemy of
the Jews and, while he lived, his baleful influence would have prevented Tiberius
from siding with the appellants, Schtirer {H, /, P, I. iL p. 86) regards the incident
480
THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
Pilate's Thus sorcly strained were the relations betwixt Pilate and
,^^^"n! his subjects. He hated them and would have crushed them
had he dared ; but he had the dread of deposition and dis-
grace before his eyes, and was obliged to walk warily and
shun offence. He hated his subjects, but he also feared them.
He was at their mercy, and they knew it
AtthePrae- The governor's residence at Jerusalem, called the
lonum. pj^gg^Qriujn^ ^yas the palace which King Herod had built for
himself in the days when Judaea retained the semblance of
freedom. It stood on the western side of the city, and its
magnificence, Josephus declares,^ baffled description. Thither
the Sanhedrists brought Jesus bound. Eager though they
were, they would not enter. By entering a heathen dwelling
they would have incurred ceremonial pollution and been
debarred from further participation in the solemnities of the
festal season.^ Therefore they remained outside, and Pilate
was obliged, with no good grace, to come forth and hear their
complaint There they stood face to face, the antagonists in
the most momentous combat ever fought on earth : on the
one side, Pilate full of scorn which he must repress yet could
not conceal, and, on the other, the Jewish rulers aware of their
opponent's weakness and bent on forcing him to do their will.
•* What accusation," he demanded, " are ye bringing against
this man ? " and, meeting hauteur with hauteur, they answered :
** Had not this been an evil-doer, we would not have handed
him over to thee." It was an intimation that they would not
be trifled with, and it stung Pilate to the quick. " Take ye
him," he cried impatiently, " and judge him according to your
law " ; and they answered : " We may not put any one to
death." It was a significant sentence. With insolent brevity
it informed the governor how far the case had proceeded.
They had already tried the prisoner and brought in a capital
verdict ; and they had come to have their sentence confirmed
and a death-warrant granted. Pilate would fain have bidden
them begone, but they had the law on their side. They had
tried the case in due form and were now bringing it under his
review, and he must take it up.
as subsequent to the death of Sejanus in a.d. 31 and therefore subsequent to the
trial of our Lord. It was not, however, sympathy with the Jews that moved the
Emperor but solicitude for the peace of the pro\'ince.
> De BelL/ud, ▼. 4. S 4- ' Q". P. 538-
BEFORE PONTIUS PILATE 481
Thus ended the first bout, and Pilate had been worsted. PiUtecom.
He was obhged reluctantly to take up the case, and ere Sle upih«
returning to the judgment-hall he ascertained the precise •***
nature of the charge. Here the villainy of the Lord's
accusers appeared. They reported truly enough that He had
been condemned for claiming to be the Messiah, but they put
a new construction on the offence. In the Hall of Hewn
Stone, that they might sentence Him to death under the
Jewish law, they had interpreted the claim as blasphemy.
They knew, however, that the governor would not listen for a
moment to a cry of blasphemy, and therefore, that they might
secure His condemnation under the Roman law, they gave
His claim a political significance and charged Him with
plotting sedition. " We found this fellow," they said, " per- Lk. xxiiL
verting our nation, and preventing the payment of taxes to *
the Emperor, and alleging himself to be Messiah, a King."
It was bad enough that they should juggle with the indict-
ment, attaching one meaning to it in the Hall of Hewn Stone
and another at the Praetorium ; it was worse that they should
set down a deliberate falsehood, accusing Him of opposing
the payment of tribute despite His pronouncement only a few Mt kHL
days previously in the court of the Temple ; but it was worst ^^i^^xij. ,5.
of all that they should trample upon the instincts of patriotism '^^^' ""
and the ideals of religion. When they delivered Jesus to
Pilate, did they not remember that their Law forbade the
delivery of an Israelite into the hands of the Gentiles on pain
of forfeiture of any place in the world to come ? ^ And, when
they represented His claim to Messiahship as disloyalty to
the Emperor, did they not bethink themselves that the
Emperor was Israel's tyrant and that the advent of the
Messiah had been the hope and dream of her sons all down
the generations of her sacred history ?
When he had thus ascertained the charge the governor Emmin*-
retired into the Praetorium and, summoning the prisoner, J'^^
proceeded to examine Him. It needed no shrewdness to
perceive the absurdity of the accusation. Pilate looked at
Jesus. " Thou ! " he exclaimed. ^' Art thou the King of the
Jews?" It was no sneer. It happened with Pilate as with
all who had to do with Jesus in the days of His flesh and
* Lightfoot on Mt x. 4.
482 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
encountered the gaze of His wondrous Face, "always with
that high look of godlike calm " : he involuntarily bowed
before Him and marvelled what manner of man He might be.
" Sayest thou this," Jesus replied, " of thyself, or did others
tell thee about Me ? " The question recalled the governor
from his unaccustomed mood, and, as though ashamed of
his momentary weakness, he retorted brusquely : " Am
I a Jew? Thy nation and the High Priests handed thee
over to me. What didst thou do ? " Jesus knew well that
the governor's soul was beset by strange questionings and that
his rudeness was merely an attempt to daff these aside.
" My Kingdom," He said, " is not of this world. Had My
Kingdom been of this world. My servants had been striving
that I might not be handed over to the rulers. But, as it
is. My Kingdom is not from hence." It was at once a denial
of the charge which had been laid against Him and a gracious
self-manifestation to Pilate's wondering soul. " Then," ex-
claimed the latter, " thou art a king ? " " Thou sayest it,"
was the reply; "because a king I am. It is for this end
that I have been born and for this end that I have come into
the world, that I may testify to the Truth, Every one that
is of the Truth hearkeneth to My voice." Ah, now Pilate
perceived the situation. He had heard that sort of talk
before. Rome was infested by Greek sophists, " men fonder
of contention than of truth," eternally wrangling about " the
truth " to the weariness of sensible folk.^ " I cannot away
with a Greek Rome 1 " cried the satirist of a later generation ;
and Pilate would have echoed the sentiment. " The Truth ! "
he sneered. " What is ' Truth ' ? " It was clear to him how
matters stood. Jesus was certainly no dangerous revolutionary.
He was nothing but a sophist, a harmless visionary. He
was a king as the Wise Man of the Stoics was a king.
PUatepro- Thus resolved, Pilate conducted the prisoner forth and
Him said to the expectant rulers : " I find no fault in him." It
Innocent. ^,^g j^^ ^^ ^j^^ ^^ verdict which they desired, and they raised
a clamour, pouring forth a torrent of accusations. Jesus held
His peace, disdaining to reply ; and Pilate wondered at His
silence so unlike His frankness with himself a little agone.
* Cic. De Orat. i. S 47 : " Verbi enim controversia jam diu torquet Grseculos,
homines contentioois capidiores quam veritatis. "
BEFORE PONTIUS PILATE 483
Wherefore did He not repeat His repudiation of sedition and
explain in what sense He claimed to be a king ? " Answerest
thou nothing?" he said. " See how many things they are accus-
ing thee of." Still He held His peace. Pilate was astonished
and withal greatly embarrassed. Justice required him to dis- piuie'ifim
miss the case and set the prisoner at liberty ; but he durst ,^[^^'
not, in his unfortunate situation, thwart the Jewish rulers, "deferred to
Amid the babel he caught the word " Galilee," and learned Antipa*.
that Jesus was a Galilean. This discovery opened a door of
escape to the perplexed governor. Being a Galilean, Jesus
was under the jurisdiction of Herod Antipas, the tetrarch of
Galilee. It chanced opportunely that Antipas had come up
to keep the Feast and was at that moment at Jerusalem in
the old Palace of the Asmonaeans ; and Pilate, anxious to extri-
cate himself from a difficult position, remitted the case to him.
Antipas was delighted when the prisoner was brought Befor*
before him. He had heard the fame of Jesus in the north, ^""p*^
and with a sceptic's superstition had conceived the notion that Mt. xir. t-
He was the murdered Baptist come back to life. The idea x^=Lk-
had haunted him. He had wished to see Jesus, and had "^ 7-9-
latterly, at the instigation probably of the Jewish rulers, been Lk. niL ji,
minded to kill Him ; but, partly from the indolence which
characterised him, partly from that singular reluctance which
cowards feel to know the worst, he had never procured an
interview, preferring rather to remain in harassing uncertainty
than have his doubt resolved. At length ail unexpectedly he
found himself face to face with the mysterious personage, and
discovered to his relief that He was not the Baptist. In truth
Jesus was utterly unlike the stem prophet who had lashed his
guilty conscience with the stinging scourge of imperious and
indignant rebuke. Curiosity had mingled with alarm in the
breast of the frivolous tetrarch, and he had been in hopes of
witnessing one of those miracles whereof he heard so much.
But Jesus would not gratify him. He maintained a con-
temptuous silence, deigning no reply either to the questions of
the tetrarch or to the shrill accusations of the attendant rulers.
Antipas could make nothing of Him. He was not in the
mood to treat the affair seriously, and by way of venting his
spleen for all the uneasiness which he had suffered, he made
a mock of Jesus, his bodyguards lending their aid, and,
484 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
attiring Him in a splendid garment from his own sumptuous
wardrobe in derision of His regal claim, sent Him back to
Pilate.
Pilate's The stratagem had failed, and Pilate, to his chagrin, was
ev^nl obliged to resume the awkward case. He knew that the
a com- Jewish rulers were set upon the death of Jesus ; but his
promise. '' ,
Roman reverence for justice revolted from the idea of condemn-
ing an innocent man, and he made a feeble attempt at com-
promise, consenting to a lesser wrong in the hope of averting
a greater. " Ye brought this man unto me," he said, " as a
perverter of the people ; and, behold, on examination I found
in this man none of the faults whereof ye accuse him. Nay,
neither did Herod ; for he sent him back to us, and, behold,
nothing worthy of death hath been committed by him." ^ It
was a complete and absolute declaration of the prisoner's
innocence, and Pilate would fain have concluded, perhaps he
meant to conclude : " I will therefore release him." But he
quailed before those ruthless faces and concluded with falter-
ing inconsequence : " I will therefore chastise him and release
him."
The annual It was a poor compromise, and it would have been greeted
" ^*^" with a clamour of disapproval but for the sudden appearance
of a fresh company of actors on the scene. It was customary
for the Roman governors, with politic deference to Jewish
sentiment, to signalise the Passover by granting pardon to a
prisoner, allowing the people to name the fortunate recipient
of the imperial clemency. Just at that moment a crowd
came thronging to the gate- and craved the annual boon.
PiUte's Pilate welcomed the interruption. It opened to him
evasion : another door of escape from the odious necessity of con-
Bar Abba? demning Jesus. There was lying in prison at that crisis
a notorious criminal, one of those brigands who infested the
mountains of Judaea and rendered the Ascent of Blood so
perilous to travellers betwixt Jerusalem and Jericho. He
had been concerned in a recent insurrection, one of those
tumults which were so frequent during Pilate's term of office,
and had been taken red-handed and was awaiting execution.
^ Lk. xxiii. 14 : iv^Mv vijmp is inconsistent with John xviii. 28, 33. See
Introd. § 13.
» Mk. XV. 8 : 4ra/34f b «xXoj Tisch., W. H. dva/SoiJaoi T. R.
BEFORE PONTIUS PILATE 485
By a singular coincidence the desperado's name was Jesus.*
He was the son of one of the Rabbis, and he was known
generally, perhaps in wonderment at his fall, as Bar Adda,
the Son of the Father, that is, the Rabbi.' Pilate perceived
his opportunity and, with dexterous alacrity, presented his
petitioners with the alternative : " Which will ye that I release
unto you — Jesus the Son of the Rabbi or Jesus that is called
Messiah ? "
It seemed as though the ruse would succeed. Jesus was Ai
the popular hero, and, though that throng would be the ^[CdU.
rabble of the city, they would have no ill-will to Jesus. It
seemed inconceivable that they should " deny the Holy and
Righteous One, and ask that a murderer should be granted
unto them." Just then, however, a message was brought to
Pilate. It was a communication from his wife. Tradition
says that she was named Claudia Procula and was a proselyte
to the Jewish religion.' It is plain that she had some ac-
quaintance with Jesus. If she was indeed a proselyte, she
must have heard Him teaching in the Temple-court during
the busy days of the Passion-week. And her soul had been
stirred. When the High Priests visited Pilate on the previous
night, requesting a detachment of soldiers for the Lord's
arrest, she would learn their errand and would retire to rest
full of uneasy forebodings. Since dreams are but reflections
of waking thoughts, it is no marvel that, while she slept, she Ecd. ». 3.
dreamed of that wondrous Man.* When she woke, her dream
haunted her. Her husband was already abroad, and she
learned that he had gone to the judgment-hall and that the
'According to screral min., rers. Ann. Syr. Schol. 41 : roXaioii W wi»v
iin-iypa<p<us irrvx^ tSpow koI airbi' rb* Bapa^^ip 'ItfiroOp Xryi^rw cirtn yvvp *lx*'
ik ToiJ UiKarov rtvait ixu' "rbia 6t\ert ru* 8i5« ia-oXiVw viu», 'lifvoiv rhw Bapnfipif
If 'Irfcovr TOW \ty6ft«po9 Xpirrop ; " Origen's text had this reading, but he did not
approve it, thinking it unfit that a robber should bear the tacred name (/» Mmttk,
Comm. Ser. % \2i ; cf. % 33).
* Cf. p. 443. Bapafi^t ae ^2H *ia. Wetstein : " Nomcn apud Thalmadico*
usitatissimum. R. Samuel iar AUa, R. Nathan bar Abba, Abba bar Abbm."
Jerome says that in the G^sf. 0/ tht Htbr. the name was interpreted " Filiw
Magistri eorum."
» Niceph. H. E. i. 30 j Parados. Pi/. §$'9-ia Origcn (/« A/a//A. Cfmm,
Ser. § 122) says that she was converted to Christianity, and sees in her mysUrimm
tccUsia €X gentibus, Cf, Ev. Nitod. ii.
*■ Cf. Lucr. iv. 962 sqq. The dreams of Calpumia : Plat. C. Cm. f 63 ; Shak.
Jul. Cas. II. ii. P;in. Ep. iiL 5.
4^6 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
business on hand was the trial of Jesus. In keen apprehen-
sion she sent hira a warning message : " Have thou nothing
to do with that righteous man ; for I suffered much to-day ^
in consequence of a dream on his account"
Bar Abba Little did Claudia think, when she thus intervened on
chosen, bg^alf of Jesus, that she was sealing His doom. Her message
diverted Pilate's attention, and the astute priests and elders
clutched at their opportunity and incited the crowd to demand
the release of Bar Abba and the death of Jesus. " Well,"
said Pilate, resuming the business, " which of the twain will
ye that I release unto you ? " " Bar Abba " they shouted.
" Then what," asked the disconcerted governor, "shall I do to
Jesus that is called Messiah ? " and they shouted back : " Let
him be crucified ! " " Why," he remonstrated, " what ill hath
he done ? " His opposition only irritated them and provoked
them to the assertion of their right of choice. " Let him be
crucified ! " they shouted loud and long.
Jesus con- Grievously reluctant Pilate gave way. " He released him
demned. ^^lat for insurrection and murder had been thrown into prison,
whom they claimed, and Jesus he handed over to their will.**
He felt himself the while nothing else than a murderer.
Among the ancients, Romans, Greeks, and Jews, it was
customary for a man, after he had shed blood, to wash his
hands, thus symbolically cleansing away the stain ; ' and the
conscience-stricken governor had water fetched to him and in
sight of the assemblage washed his hands, exclaiming : " I am
innocent of this blood. Ye shall see to it." The thoughtless
rabble had no misgivings. " His blood," they cried, " be upon
us and upon our children ! " It was indeed, says St Jerome,
a goodly inheritance that they left to their sons. Were those
stout words recalled a generation later when Jerusalem fell,
and her wretched citizens were crucified around her walls till,
in the historian's grim language,' " space was wanting for the
crosses and crosses for the bodies " ?
Scourging The Romans were wont to scourge a criminal ere they
pjjj^^^°j| crucified him.* The scourge was a frightful instrument — a
' The Jewish day began at 6 P.M. C/. Mk. xiv. 30.
' Schol. on Soph. Aj. 663 : edos Jjv iraXaioti Sre ^ ^bvov ifOpiSywov ^ iWat
r^xtyit irolovv, v8aTi dxoyLirrew tAj X*V** *^* KdBapffiv rov /iiiafmroi. Deut. xxi.
6; Ps. xxvi. 6. 'Jos. De Bell. Jud. t. II. § il.
* Cf. Lips. Dt Cruc, I. ii-iv ; Wetstein on Mt. xxvii. 6.
BEFORE PONTIUS PILATE 487
whip with several thongs, each loaded with acorn-shaped
balls of lead or sharp pieces of bone. Six lictors took the
victim, stripped him, bound him to a post, and plied the cruel
lash. Each stroke cut into the quivering flesh ; the veins
and sometimes the very entrails were laid bare,^ and often the
teeth and eyes were knocked out It is no wonder that not
unfrequently the sufferer expired under the torture. The
soldiers led Jesus away and scourged Him ; and then they
took Him, faint and bleeding, and compassed Him with
ribald mockery. Over His lacerated back they put Herod's
purple ^ robe ; they plaited a crown of thorns and put it on
His head ; and in His right hand, by way of sceptre, they put
a reed ; then in mock homage they knelt before Him and
saluted Him : " Hail ! King of the Jews." And they spat
upon His face, buffeted Him, and, snatching the reed from
His hand, smote Him on the head, at each stroke driving the
thorns into His tortured brow.
When the soldiers thus added mockery to the scourging, piute'i
they overstepped the limits of Roman usage.' It was a^^^^^^,.
superfluous barbarity. Yet Pilate did not restrain them. »" appeal
Perhaps he encouraged them ; for he had an end in view, cordiam.
He hoped, says St Augustine,* that the Jews would be satis-
fied with scourging and mockery, and refrain foi very pity
from putting Jesus to death. When the brutal sport was
ended, he strode forth and said to the multitude : " See ! I am
bringing him forth to you, that ye may recognise that no
fault do I find ." ^ He was about to say " in him " ; but
he stopped short His eye had lighted on Jesus painfully
making His way from the Praetorium, pale and bleeding,
tricked out in the piteous bravery of His thorny crown and
purple robe ; and, pointing to Him, he cried : " Behold, the
Man ! " It was an appeal to their compassion. Surely the
spectacle must soften them.
> Jos. De Bell.Jud. ii. 2i. § 5. Cf. Mt. xxir. $1 : "cut asunder," u$. uxrasf^
' Mk. XV. 17: xopipvpop, John xix. 2: Ifxinov vofxpvpoOp, Mt. xxvii. 28:
xXaMi^3o KOKxiprp'. Wetstein : " Coccioae et purpurx vicinus est color, unde saepe
confundantur."
» Orig. In Mattk. Comm. Ser. § 125. Field quotes from Plat. P»mp. ndv •
similar exhibition of mockery on the part of the Mediterranean pirates.
* In Joan. Ev. Tract, cxf'x. | I.
' John xix. 4 : 5n a/rW ovx tupiaxw «* Tisch.
488 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
** O quanta vis doloris est
In Jesu patients !
Plorare, nisi tigris es,
Debes ac redamare."
The crowd apparently were not unmoved. At all events
they were silent ; but the priests, very wild beasts in their
ferocity, shouted : " Crucify him ! crucify him ! " their officers,
after the fashion of servile minions, joining in the clamour.
His agita- Sick at heart Pilate retorted : " Take ye him and crucify
*^°°" him ; for / find no fault in him." It was the speech of one
who had lost all patience and would have nothing further to
do with the odious business. Of course it was impossible for
him to maintain that attitude. Sentence had been passed,
and he was bound to see it executed. And he was promptly
recalled to the dire necessity. " We have a law," said those
relentless rulers, " and according to the law he ought to die,
because he made himself God's Son." The statement was
scarcely accurate. It was no blasphemy that Jesus had called
Himself the Son of God, which was merely a Messianic title.
His blasphemy in their eyes lay in His calling Himself the
f^. John V. Son of God in a manner which amounted to an assertion of
'*' His equality with God. Such a refinement, however, would
have been meaningless to Pilate ; and in truth their answer
was not so much a statement of the prisoner's offence as an
intimation that there must be no trifling. It threw the
governor into sudden agitation. Here was a new aspect of
the case. He had been impressed by the mystery which
encompassed that wondrous Man ; and, when he heard that
He had made Himself God's Son, his soul, unemancipated
from the superstition which he despised, was shaken with
Interview vaguc dread. He conducted Jesus within and asked Him
with Jesus, earnestly : " Whence art Thou ? " Jesus made no reply. He
had witnessed Pilate's pusillanimity, his repeated surrenders,
his base betrayals of justice ; and He despised the man. He
surveyed him in contemptuous silence. Pilate winced and
tried to brazen it out " Speakest thou not to me ? Knowest
thou not that I have authority to release thee and I have
authority to crucify thee ? " Half in scorn, half in pity Jesus
answered : " Thou hadst no authority against Me, unless it
had been given thee from above. Therefore," He added,
BEFORE PONTIUS PILATE 489
making generous allowance for Pilate's ignorance and casting
the guilt upon the Jews, and particularly Caiaphas, " he that
handed Me over to thee hath greater sin."
At their first interview, when Jesus spoke of His unearthly E>et«niiiwi
Kingdom and His mission to testify to the Truth, Pilate had f^'^
sneered ; but in the interval he had perceived the majesty of "'™-
Jesus, and his soul bowed before the thorn-crowned Man.
The terrors of the unseen had taken hold of him, and at all
hazards he must get the prisoner off. He went out and told
the Jews that he would release Him. The announcement
raised a wild storm. " They fell a-howling," says the
Evangelist. " If thou release this fellow," they cried, "thou
art no friend of the Emperor. Every one that maketh him-
self a king, opposeth the Emperor." It was a clever stroke.
In those dark days, when a gloomy and suspicious tyrant sate
upon the imperial throne, /asa majestas was the crime of
crimes, and men were hurried to death on the most trivial
evidence.^ It would be an ugly story to reach the ears of
Tiberius that his procurator in the turbulent province of
Judaea had sided with a ringleader of sedition. Pilate was in piute't
an awkward predicament, yet he persisted in his resolution to f^jon .
save Jesus. He was standing at the entrance to the Praetorium »«> appeal
to reason
on the broad landing richly tessellated and known as the and
Gabbatha,^ and there, in full view of the assemblage, setting p**"°*'*"'
Jesus down, thorn-crowned and purple-clad, upon a seat,' like
a king upon his throne, he pointed to Him and said : " See I
your King 1 " It was as though he had said : " Can you
seriously maintain that this poor broken man is a dangerous
person, a rival of the Emperor?" At the same time he appealed
to their Jewish sentiment. " It was," says St John, " the Pass-
over Friday " ; and could they at that season, sacred to the
memory of the great deliverance which had made Israel a
nation, doom a fellow-countryman to an ignominious death for
* Tac. Ann. iii. 3S : " Majestatis crimine, quod turn omDium accusationatn
complementum erat." Philostratus ( FiV. Ap^ll. iv. 39) tells of a drunken fellow
who went about the streets of Rome singing Nero's songs and arresting every one
who gave him nothing wt Lat^ovvra.. Cf. Senep. De Bent/, iii. § 26.
* Perhaps connected with 33, " back," and so a broad, elevated flatform. See
Hastings' D. B.
» Taking iKoQuav as act. Cf. Ev. Petr. § 3 : xoi fKuBMtP airi* iwl Ka9i5pap
Kplatw. See Abbott, Joh. Gram. j^. 393-5.
490 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
seeking to make Israel once more free and rid her of the
foreign yoke ?
Clamour of It was Pilate's final attempt to save Jesus, and it failed.
*'"°* ' Impervious to ridicule, deaf to the voices of patriotism and
religion, they howled like wolves athirst for blood : " Away
with him ! away with him I Crucify him ! " " Shall I crucify
your King ? " asked the governor in scorn and disgust ; and
the reply came : " We have no King but the Emperor." It
was the High Priests, worldly and sceptical Sadducees, that
uttered the ominous sentence. The Pharisees and the multi-
tude were silent. They had not sunk so low as to abjure thus
their country's liberties and swear fealty to the heathen tyrant.
Nevertheless they were silent. They made no protest. Surely
the sceptre had departed from Judah.
Sentence of The coutest was ended. Pilate had struggled hard, but all
crucifixion, j^ y^in. Siuce he had not the courage to do justice and set
the consequences at defiance, there was no more that he could
do. " Then, therefore, he handed Him over to them to be
crucified." Ibis ad cruum. I, miUs, expedi crucem.
CHAPTER XLIX
THE CRUCIFIXION Mt xxvQ.
51-66-
Mk. XV. ao
*• Found guilty of excess of love, 47aiLk.
It was Thine own sweet will that tied *«'»• 26-56
Thee tighter far than helpless nails ; » John six.
Jesus, our Love, is crucified 1 " — Fabex. '****
No sooner had the sentence been pronounced than the Prepara-
soldiers proceeded to carry it out First of all, they stripped """^
Jesus of the purple robe and reclothed Him with His own
attire. Then from the pile which lay always ready to hand
in the Prastorium,^ they selected a cross. It was a grim
custom that a criminal should carry his cross to the place of
execution ; * and they laid the ghastly gibbet on the shoulders
of Jesus. It was also the custom that, as the criminal was
led to the place of execution, he should be preceded by a
herald carrying a board whereon his name and his offence
were written, that all might know who he was and wherefore
he had been condemned.' Here Pilate saw an opportunity
for venting his spleen against those odious Jews. He put on
the board : jESUS THE Nazarene, THE KiNG OF THE Jews,
writing it, that all might be able to read it, in Hebrew, Latin,
and Greek. It was a piece of petty malice, and it was keenly
resented. " Do not," remonstrated the High Priests, " write :
The King of the Jews, but: He said: •/ am King of the
Jews' " " What I have written, I have written," was tlie
scornful answer.*
> Lightfoot, iL p. 56.
• Lips. De Cruc. II. v ; Wetstein on Mt. x. 38. In Isaac carrying the wood for
his own sacrifice (Gen. xxii. 6) TertuUian sees a prefigurement of Jesus carr>'ing
His cross (Adv. [ud. § 10).
' Eus. H. E, V. I : koX wepiax^tlt cvcXy roS dfi^iftdrpov, vlpaxtt aJbri* vp*>
iyomt (V (^ iweyfypawTo 'Pu/uoiirri ' o&rit irrw 'ArraXot i Xptoruu'it. C/. Lipt.
De Cruc. II. xi.
* Cf. Shak. Tw0 Gentl, of Vtr. I. iii : •' For what I will, I will, and there aa
end."
492 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
The pro- Jesus did not go alone to execution. Two brigands, like
cession, g^j. ^j^^a, were lying under sentence, and Pilate, regardless of
the Jewish law which forbade more than one execution on
the same day,^ sent them with Him to their doom. Setting
forth from the Praetorium, the procession passed along the
most frequented streets of the city, that the populace might
be duly impressed by so signal an exhibition of the terrors of
justice.* The prisoners were escorted by a detachment of
soldiers under the command of a centurion ; and, staggering
under their crosses, they were driven forward by lash and
goad.^ Forgetful of their dignity in their eagerness to witness
the destruction of their victim, the High Priests joined the
train ; and the rascal multitude swarmed in the rear, a jostling,
curious, thoughtless rabble. Yet Jesus was not wholly un-
befriended as He went His sorrowful way. John, the best
beloved of His disciples, was there when the procession started,
and saw his dear Lord set forth with His cross on His
shoulders. It would seem, however, that he did not follow the
procession. He hastened away to inform Mary of the issue
of the trial and support her beneath the weight of her sorrow ;
and by and by, in company with her and the rest of the
Galilean women, he went forth and stood beside the Cross.*
No disciple attended Jesus on His way to death ; but there
Lk. xxiii. were women in the crowd, and they were moved by the
27- spectacle of His woe and poured forth lamentations. No other
tokens of kindness did He receive as He went His way to die.
Theim- Enfeebled by fasting, excitement, and brutal handling,
oFstmon of 1^^"^ Staggered along beneath His burden as far as the city
Cyrene. gate,^ and there His strength utterly failed. Tradition says
that He fell. There was nothing for it but to relieve Him of
the cross and transfer it to stouter shoulders. Looking round
for one whom they might impress,^ the soldiers spied a man
* Ligfatfoot on Mt. xxvii. 31.
" Jos. Ant. XX. 6. § 3 J Z»< Bell. Jud. iv. 6. § i ; Quinct. Decl. 274.
' Lips. De Cruc. II. vi.
* Such is the account of the apocryphal Act. Pil. (x. 2), and it explains
why John omits certain things which the Synoptists mention : (i) The impressment
of Simon. He saw Jesus set out "carrying the cross for Himself" ; he did not see
it transferred to Simon's shoulders. (2) The offering of the myrrhed wine to Jesus
before the crucifixion.
• Mt xxvii. 32 : f^epxip-eni, "as they were going forth," i.e. from the city,
• Cf. p. 160.
THE CRUCIFIXION 493
who had been about to enter the city as the procession came
pouring through the gateway. He was a Hellenistic Jew
named Simon from Cyrene, a North African city where a
large Jewish colony resided ; ' and he had come up to Jeru-
salem to celebrate the Feast. He had his lodging in the
country outside the walls of the city, and he was on his way
to the Temple to join in the morning prayer. All unex-
pectedly and sorely against his will he was called to a holier
service. The soldiers arrested him in the Emperor's name,
and, laying that ghastly burden on his shoulders, compelled
him to turn his back upon the city and accompany them on
their grim errand. Nothing further is recorded of Simon save
that he had two sons, Alexander and Rufus, who were Mk. w. it,
evidently believers in connection with the Church at Rome.*
Surely Simon also believed. It were indeed a strange irony
had the man who carried the Cross, missed the salvation
whereof it is the instrument and the symbol.
While the soldiers were busy about Simon, the women "D»uitb-
lamented Jesus, beating their breasts and chanting a dirge, «»iefn.^
regardless of the law which forbade open lamentation for one ,yJt^^
sentenced to death.' Their sympathy would be sweet and '^ 3*
comforting to His heart. Yet even in that hour of utter
weakness He bore Himself right royally. He knew what would
come to pass, and He turned and said to them : " Daughters
of Jerusalem, weep not for Me ; but for yourselves weep and
for your children. For, behold, there are coming days wherein
they shall say : ' Blessed are the barren and the wombs which c/. Lk. «i
did not bear and breasts which did not give suck.' " ^ " **''
The procession resumed its march, but so shaken was caiwy.
Jesus that, though no longer burdened with His cross, He was
unable to walk unsupported and had to be borne along,* until
the place of execution was reached. Where was that place,
at once the most tragic and the most sacred on the earth ? '
Tradition, resting upon the alleged discovery of the Holy
» Jos. AtU. xiv. 7. § 2 ; Acts ii. la
" Mk., writing at Rome, mentions them as well-known persons. The Rufus ol
Rom. xvi. 13 is commonly identified with the. son of Simon. His mother had
shown Paul kindness. * Lightfoot on Mt. xxriL 31.
* Mk. XV. 22: <t>ipovaiP a6r6w, probably "they carry Him." C/. Mk. iL 3^
Lk. V. 18; Mt. xiv. ii = Mk. vi. 28; Lk. xxiii. 26.
» According to Ev. Nuod. ix, "in the garden where He bad been arrested."
2 L
494 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
Sepulchre by the Emperor Constantine,^ fixes the site on the
western side of Jerusalem ; but the discovery is a mere fable,
and the probability is that the place lay to the north of the
city. It was called Golgotha, which signifies in Latin Calvaria
and in English a Skull ; and the name is variously explained.
A legend of great antiquity says that it was the place where
Adam died and was buried ; and " Jesus, in the place where
death reigned, set up His trophy." ^ St Jerome, rejecting the
ancient fable, puts forward the opinion that Golgotha was a
place of execution and got its name from the skulls which
bestrewed it. The prevailing opinion in modem times is that
the name was derived from the configuration of the ground :
Mt xxvii. Golgotha was a skull-shaped knoll. It appears from the
Hebr^'jmh Gospel narratives that it lay outside the city ; that it was near
12-3 ; John the city ; that it was an eminence, since it could be seen from
XIX. 30 ; ' ' '
Mt. xxvii. afar ; and that a highway ran hard by it. And just outside
xv.^4o;'Mt'. the Damascus Gate there is a knoll, known as Jeremiah's
Mk^xv^2~ Grotto, which answers to all these requirements.'
Craci- It was nine o'clock when they reached the place and
fijQon. addressed themselves to their brutal work. Crucifixion was a
Mk. XV. 25.
horrible punishment. Originally Oriental, the Romans had
borrowed it from their enemies the Carthaginians, and they
reserved it for slaves and provincials, accounting it a sacrilege
that a Roman citizen should endure either the scourge or the
cross.* Though the ignominy of the crudelissimum tcBterrim-
umque supplicium was its chief terror, at all events in Jewish
eyes, the torture was appalling, insomuch that, when the
Romans would express the extremity of anguish, they fashioned
a word from criix and called it cruciatus, whence also the
English excruciating is derived. The cross was a ghastly
instrument. It was either crux simplex, a single stake whereon
the victim was impaled,^ or crux compacta, which had three
forms : the Crux Decussata, shaped like the letter X and
* Gibbon, Dul. and Fall, chap. xxiu.
* Orig. In Matth. Comm. Ser. § 126 ; ChrysosL In Joan. Ixxxiv ; Jer.; Euth. Zig.
* Cf. arts. Golgotha in Hastings' D. B. and E. B. ; Henderson's Palestine^
%\\T, P. E. F. Q., Oct. 1898, p. 248 ; Sanday, Sacr. Sit., plates xliv and xlv.
* CJc. In Verr. v. 66 : " Facinus est vinciri civem Romanum ; scelus verberari ;
prope parricidiam necari : quid dicam in crncem toUere ? Verbo satis digno tam
nefaria res appdlaxi nullo modo potest "
* Sen. Connl. ad Mart. $ 2a
THE CRUCIFIXION 495
known as St Andrew's Cross, since on such a cross he is
reported to have died at Patrae ; the Crux Cotnmissa or St
Anthony's Cross, shaped like the letter T ; * and the Crux
Immissa, whereof the upright {stipes, staticulum) projected
above the transom {antenna, patibulum), \} The last was
apparently the commonest. The victim, called cruciarius,
was first of all stripped naked,' his garments falling to the
executioners as their recognised perquisites ; * then he was
laid across the transom with outstretched arms, and his hands
were made fast to either end, usually by nails hammered
through the palms or the wrists but sometimes, to prolong
the suffering, merely by cords.'' Thereafter the transom with
its quivering load was hoisted on the upright ; and, to support
its weight which must else have torn the hands, the body
rested, as on a saddle, on a projecting peg {sedile, comu)?
Sometimes the feet, like the hands, were merely tied, but
usually they were nailed to the upright either through the
instep by two nails or through the Achilles tendon by a single
nail transfixing both.' And thus the victim hung in agony,
lingering on, unless the end were hastened, as long as two
days.'
Jesus suffered, it seems, on a crux immissa? It was a iiie
humane custom among the Jews that, ere a criminal wasdraufht.
executed, a potion of medicated wine should be administered
to him in order to dull his sensibility, in accordance with the
scriptural precept : " Give strong drink unto him that is ready Pro*, xxxi
to perish, and wine unto the bitter in soul." And there was
a society of charitable ladies in Jerusalem who charged them-
selves with the preparation of the merciful potion.^" Ere the
' Cf. Bam. Ep.%9i Lnc./i«f. Voeal. § 12.
' Lips, De Crut. I. vi-ix.
• According to Ev. Niced. x Jesus had a loin-cloth.
• Wetstein on Mt. xxvii. 35. • Lips. Dt Crut. H. viii.
• Just M. Dial, turn Tryph., ed. Sylbnrg., p. 318 C : koX rh iv tv ^»V nr)"'V-
fiivov in xipat ««l airi i^ixop irrir, i^' ^ iroxovmcu ol rravpovfitroi. Cf. Iren.
Adv. Hctr. ii. 36. § 2. ' Lips. Dt Crut. U. ix.
• Orig. In Matth. Comm. Ser. f 140 ; Lips. D$ Cruc. IL xii.
» So Iren. I.e. Cf. Lips. De Crut. I. x. The title was probably fixed to the
projection of the upright.
" Bad. Sanhedr. 43. i : •' Prodennti ad ropplicium capitis potum dedenint,
granum thuris in poculo vini, ut turbaretur intellectus ejus ; sicut didtur ProT.
xxxi. 6. Traditio est ficminas generotas Hicrosoiytnitanas hoc e spontaneo sompta
•no exhibuisse." Various drugs w^re used : frankincense, laudanum, myrrh, resin,
496 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
nails were driven through His hands, it was presented to
Jesus. Parched with thirst He put it to His lips, but, as soon
as He tasted it. He recognised what it was and refused to drink
it. It was not that He disdained relief, as though there were
virtue in mere suffering ; neither was it simply that He would
fain meet death with open eyes, like him who prayed that he
might " render up his soul to God unclouded." Was it not
rather that He still had work to do? With his parting
breath He would speak pardon to sinners and glorify the
Father.
"Father, Four soldiers were told off to do the brutal work of
them^" crucifixion. It was usual for the victims of that dreadful
Cf. John doom, frenzied with pain, to shriek, entreat, curse, and spit
at the spectators ; * but neither moan nor malediction escaped
i
the lips of Jesus. As He lay in agony. He spoke, and His
words were a prayer — not an entreaty to His executioners
to spare Him but a supplication to God that they might
be forgiven the wrong which they were doing. " Father,"
He cried, " forgive them ; for they know not what they are
doing."* Those rude soldiers had no acquaintance with
Jesus. In their eyes He was merely a rebel Jew who had
earned his doom. When they stripped Him and nailed
Him to the cross, they were simply obeying orders. It
was bloody work ; but they were accustomed to it, and
they would do it without a qualm. It was indeed the foulest
crime ever perpetrated on the earth, but they knew not
what they were doing.
Thedivi- Hoisting the transom on the upright, they fastened His
^j°°y°ffeet, not nailing them but only tying them with cords.'
garments. They fixed above His head the board with Pilate's mocking
saffron, mastich. Cf. Wetstein on Mk. xv. 23. Mk. 's iaiivpyianivov dlvop is in entire
agreement with Mt.'s olvov (3foi is a copyist's assimilation to Ps. Ixix. 21) /ictA xoKfit
fufuyfiivov, since x^Mi "wormwood" {cf. Prov. v. 4; Lam. iii. 15), was used of any
bitter draught.
1 Cic. In Verr. i. 3 ; v. 46 ; Pro Cluent. 66 ; Jos. De Bell. Jud. iv. 6. § i ;
Sen. De Vit. Beat. § 19.
' Cf. Introd. § 6.
* The sole evangelic authority for believing that they were nailed is Lk. xxiv.
39 [40] which belongs to the Synoptic cycle of unhistorical tradition. Cf. Introd.
§ 20. John mentions only the nailing of the hands (xx. 20, 25, 27). Cf. Ev. Petr.
S 6 : Tore dviTravai' rodi ffXoui diro tup X'^P^' "^ov Kvplov. The idea that His feet
were nailed is probably due to Ps. xxii. 16.
THE CRUCIFIXION 497
inscription, that all who passed along the highway might
read it and learn who He was and wherefore He was
hanging there. Then, their task being ended, they took
His raiment and divided the spoil. There were four of them,
and one got His cloak, another His girdle, the third His
sandals, and the fourth His turban. There remained still
His under-garment, the tunic. They would naturally have
torn it into four pieces, but there was a peculiarity about
it which caught their eyes and arrested their hands. It
was seamless, woven all in one piece. It was thus that the
tunics of the Galilean peasantry were fashioned, and it is
said by ancient tradition that this tunic of Jesus had been
woven by Mary for the Son of her love.^ It was a poor
man's tunic, and no Jew would have regarded it ; but it was
a novelty to the soldiers. They had never seen the like, p
and, loath to rend it, they agreed to cast lots for it, all
unconsciously fulfilling the Scripture : " They parted My Ps. xxii, iS.
garments among themselves, and for My vesture they cast lots."
Meanwhile Jesus was hanging in agony. The brigands Mockery,
also had been crucified, and were hanging on either hand,
but it was the central cross that drew every eye. The High
Priests had gathered round it, exulting in the success of
their machinations, and they wagged their heads at Him, d/aKints
and taunted Him, abetted by the unthinking rabble. Gibe p^' "Jj
after gibe was flung at the meek Sufferer. " Ah, thou that *•*='*• .»s :
pullest down the Sanctuary and buildest it in three days I
Save thyself by coming down from the cross." " Others
he saved ; himself he cannot save." " He is King of Israel !
Let him come down now from the cross, and we will believe
on him." " He hath set his trust on God : let Him rescue
him now, if He desireth him ; for he said : ' I am God's
Son.' " The soldiers were seated hard by, guarding the Mt nmi
crosses in case a rescue should be attempted.' They had |ohn
with them a beaker of their posca or vinegar- water, the drink "9.
' Isidor. Pelus. Ep. i. 74 ; Chrysost. In Joan. IxxxiT. Eath. Zig. Thai
baseless is the idea that the " seamless tunic " is a Johannine fiction investing
Jesus with symbolic dignity by assigning Him a garment like the High Priest's {cf.
Jos. Ant. iii. 7. § 4) or like that of Philo'i Divine Word (£>« Pro/ug., ed. Pfeiffer,
iv. pp. 2^0 sq.).
' Petron. Sat. : " Cruciarii unius parentes ut viderunt noctu laxatam custodiam,
detnuicre pendentem." Cf. Lip*. D« Cnu. \l. xvi.
nx.
498 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
of slaves and of soldiers on duty/ and, heated by their toil,
they had filled their cups. As they drank, they heard the
priests and the rabble deriding " the King," and, approaching
Lie. xxiii. the cross, they held up their cups and drank jestingly to
^^^' His Majesty.
The Nor were these the only voices that assailed the ears of
^gand! Jesus. In the frenzy of their agony the two brigands,
thinking perhaps to propitiate their executioners and win
them to mercy, joined in the chorus and reviled their fellow-
sufTerer. Presently, however, one of them relented. It may
be that he had never seen Jesus before that dreadful day,
but rumours of the wondrous Prophet must have reached
the outlaw in his mountain-fastness ; and he had heard the
prayer : " Father, forgive them," and marked the majesty of
that meek face. His soul bowed in awe, and he ceased from
his reviling.^ His callous comrade continued his blasphemies.
" Art thou not the Messiah ? " he cried. " Save thyself and
us." The taunt moved the penitent to remonstrance. " Dost
thou not even fear God," he said, " forasmuch as thou art
in the same condemnation ? And we justly, for we are
receiving what our deeds deserve ; but this man did nothing
amiss." Then he prayed : " Jesus, remember me when Thou
comest into Thy Kingdom." It was a strangely mingled
prayer, combining ignorance and faith. He knew only that
Jesus claimed to be the Messiah, the King of the Jev/s :
it was written on the board above His head. But he recognised
in that gracious and kingly Sufferer One who was worthy
of all trust and reverence ; and his dark and groping faith won
an instant and generous response. " Verily I tell thee," said
Jesus, employing with compassionate condescension Jewish
language such as that poor dark soul could understand, and
granting him a boon beyond his expectation, " to-day thou
shalt be with Me in Paradise." • There is a legend that these
^^1. Spart. Hadr. lo : "Jussit vinum in expeditione neminem bibere sed
aceto uni versos esse contentos." Lightfoot and Wetstein on Mt. xxvii. 34.
Gibbon, Decl. and Fall, chap, xxiv : "The vigilant humanity of Julian had
embarked a very large magazine of vinegar and biscuit for the use of the soldiers,
but he prohibited the indulgence of wine."
' Thus, not unreasonably, is tha apparent discrepancy between Mt. xxvii. 44
=Mk, XV. 32 and Lk. xxiii. 39-43 explained by Orig., Jer., Chrysost. {Serm. Ixii
in Paralyt. Demiss. per Ted.).
* Cf. Lightfoot and Wetstein.
THE CRUCIFIXION 499
two brigands were named Titus and Dumachus* and met
the Holy Family fleeing from King Herod into Egypt
Dumachus would have plundered them, but Titus interposed.
He saw the wondrous Infant in His mother's arms and,
taking Him lovingly in his own, he said : " O blessed Child I
if ever a day shall come for having mercy on me, then
remember me and do not forget this day."
By this time John had arrived on the scene, conducting jeiut b»-
Mary and three others with her,* her sister Salome, Mary the T^ '**
wife of Clopas, and Mary Magdalene. Reckless in their
grief, they had pressed close to the Cross. Solicitude for His
widowed mother was the one earthly care of Jesus in the
hour of death. She had indeed other sons who might have
tended her ; but they were unbelievers as yet and would have
proved sorry comforters. He would not leave her to them.
John was His cousin after the flesh and the best beloved of
His disciples. He was worthy of the sacred charge, and
Jesus bequeathed it to him as a precious legacy.' " Woman,"
He said to Mary, " see ! thy son. See ! " He said to John,
" thy mother." And right loyally did the disciple guard his
trust. For the rest of her life Mary dwelt in his house com-
passed with affection and honour ; and it would be a source
of constant wonder and gratitude to him that he was privileged
to stand thus in his Lord's room, like Simon of Cyrene,
though in a far more sacred way, the vicarius Christi. He
accepted the trust in reverent silence. As for Mary, it
would seem that she was overcome by emotion.
** O quam tristis et afflicta
Fuit ilia benedicta
Mater Unigeniti I
Quae mcerebat et doiebat
£t tremebat, cum videbat
Nati pcenas inclyti."
John tenderly conveyed her from the scene of horror.
" From that hour the disciple took her to his own home." *
It was now mid-day, and Jesus had hung for three hours DwkacM
at I
* Otherwise Dysmas and Gestas. Ev. Nifod. ix-x ; Ev. Infant. Arab, zxtii ;
" Aag." Dt Vit. Erem. § 48. * Cf. p. 147, n. 2.
* Cf. Luc Toxar. § 22 : the bequest of Eudamidas.
* His departure explains his silence regarding the darkness and the Lord's c»y
of desolation.
500 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
John xriii. on the Cross. The unusual cold during the previous night
had betokened a disturbance of the atmospheric conditions,
and the storm now broke. It was high noon, yet darkness
overspread the earth.^ It frequently happens thus in Syria
when the sirocco comes up from the desert; and, though the
phenomenon generally passes quietly, it is sometimes the
harbinger of an earthquake. A traveller has thus described
the scene which preluded an earthquake at Beirut on ist
Jan. 1837. It was "a quiet Sabbath evening. A pale,
smoky haze obscured the sun, and threw an air of sadness
over the closing day, and a lifeless and oppressive calm had
settled down over the face of nature."^ It was such a
darkness that overspread the earth on that dread noon-day.
Though incommoded by the attendant heat,^ the spectators
would feel no apprehension. It was, they would suppose,
an entirely natural phenomenon, and it would presently dis-
appear. It was indeed a natural phenomenon, yet the hand
of God was in it. It was as though creation were mourning
for her Lord and the sun, loathing the impious spectacle, had
veiled his face. In after days men recognised a portentous
significance in those signs of earth and sky, and added other
marvels, telling, for instance, that, when Jesus died, every
green leaf in the world withered. It is no slight evidence of
the sobriety and veracity of the Evangelists that they simply
and briefly recount what befell, neither calling it a miracle
nor investing it with a judicial significance.
Thedere- Jhc darkness had continued some three hours when
action.
P». xxii. I. suddenly a cry was heard from the Cross : " My God, My
God, why hast Thou forsaken Me ? " It was a sentence from
that wondrous Psalm which, as an ancient Father * said, " con-
tains the whole Passion of Christ" It is not given to blind
and feeble man to know what passed in the Redeemer's soul
at that dread season and wrung from His holy lips that ex-
ceeding bitter cry. The Evangelists make no attempt to draw
^ It was not an eclipse, since it was the season of full moon. Lk.'s rod ^\lov
fKXelvotToi need mean nothing more than "the sim's light failing." T. R. has
Kol fffKorLffOi] 6 iJiXioi, which Orig. (/« Matth. Comm. Ser. § 134) accepts, stiggesting
that enemies of the Church had changed it to rw ijk. exX. in ocder to discredit the
Gospel by introducing an impossible phenomenon.
• Thomson, Land and Book, chap. xix.
• Ibid. chap. xxxT. * Tert. Adv. Marc. iii. § 19.
THE CRUCIFIXION 501
the veil aside, and it may well become us to refrain from
curious enquiry and rather bow our heads in awe. And, if
Jesus was indeed the Eternal Son of God, " putting away sin
by the sacrifice of Himself," then the confession that here
we are face to face with an inscrutable mystery is no weak
evasion but a most reasonable recognition of our human
limitations. Yet may we, without irreverence, seek to enter some
little way into the mystery, if only that we may realise its
greatness and be delivered from narrow thoughts regarding it
There are two opinions which should be dismissed at the Two
outset. One is that the desolation of our Blessed Lord was opm!SSr
due to naught else than human weakness. His soul was
clouded by the sore anguish of His flesh and spirit It
seemed, in view of all that had come upon Him, as though
God had abandoned Him and given Him over to the will of
His enemies ; and His faith, hitherto victorious, gave way.
This sort of explanation is utterly insufficient Is it credible
that, after enduring with steadfast fortitude the sharpest pangs,
He should have faltered when the bitterness of death was
well-nigh past ? In truth it was nothing that man inflicted
or that man may fully understand that so terribly shook His
soul and wrung that cry of desolation from His lips. It was
a visitation of God. And equally false is the opposite
opinion that in that awful hour Jesus was enduring the wrath
of God in the room of sinners. God was not angry with His
Beloved Son as He hung upon the Cross, obedient even unto
death, consummating by that supreme act of self-devotion the
work which had been given Him to do. On the contrary,
He was never so dear to God, never so manifestly the Beloved
Son in whom the Father was well pleased.^
Nevertheless His desolation was a visitation of God, andTbedov
He suffered it as the bearer of sin. At the outset of His ,i«^Qa
ministry He had accepted as His vocation the Baptist's*'^****
announcement : " Behold, the Lamb of God that taketh away
the sin of the world," and throughout its course the burden of
the world's sin had been lying on Him, but He knew that on
the Cross He would feel the uttermost stress of that awful
load and drain the last dregs of the bitter cup which He had
accepted from the Father's hand. And, as the hour approached,
» Cf. Calv. iHitU. ii. i6. 9 li.
I 502 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
the darkness had gathered about His soul. " The cords of
death had compassed Him, and the pains of the grave had
gat hold upon Him : He had found trouble and sorrow."
And now the dread hour had come.
A with- A gleam of light is cast upon the dark mystery by the
theFathlr's apostoHc doctrinc that it was needful for Jesus, in order that
ministra- fjg alight redeem us, to identify Himself with us in our
Gal. iii. 13. misery and make it all His own. " Christ redeemed us from
Hebr. ii. the curse of the Law, having become a curse for us." "In
**• that He hath Himself suffered being tempted. He is able to
succour them that are tempted." Had He, in going down
into the Dark Valley, been cheered by the presence of God
and sustained by His good hand. He had then been exempted
from the most awful of human experiences, and His sympathy
would have failed us just where it is most needed. And
therefore, that He might be identified with us at all points
and know the worst that can befall us, He was forsaken
by God at that supreme crisis. It was not that God was
angry with Him and poured upon His innocent head the
wrath which is our due. On the contrary. He never pleased
the Father so well as in that hour when He hung, a willing
Victim, on the Cross. It needed not the Father's displeasure
that He might lose the sense of the Father's presence. All "T"
the days of His flesh He depended on the Father. His
John vii. wisdom was not His own, but the Father's gift ; His know-
'v/go; '^' ledge of the Father's will was the Father's revelation; His
37; XIV. 10. works were wrought by the Father's co-operation. " He went
Acta X. 38. about doing good and healing all that were under the tyranny
of the Devil, because God was with Him." Had the Father
at any moment refrained from His ministration and left Him
alone, Jesus had been weak and blind as any of the children
of men. And thus it may be dimly perceived how it came
to pass that He was forsaken on the Cross. That He might
be one with us in our sorest strait, the Father ceased for a
space to visit the soul of His Beloved Son with His com-
munion. It had been the comfort of Jesus when the Eleven
John xvi. forsook Him and fled, that He was not alone, because the
^ Father was with Him ; but now He was bereft of that
support " My God, My God," He cried astonied, " why hast
Thou forsaken Me?"
THE CRUCIFIXION 503
Jesus spoke the words in Hebrew as they were written by " 1 thint."
the Psalmist: Eli^ Eli ^ lama azabhtani?^ The cry would
be understood by the Jews, but it fell strangely on the ears of
the soldiers.* They caught the word Eli and took it for
Elias. They knew nothing about the ancient prophet ; but
Elias was an ordinary Jewish name, and they supposed that
Jesus was calling for some friend. The sirocco's sultry breath
aggravated the anguish of the fevered Sufferer, and, as they
were debating what His cry might mean, He moaned : " I
thirst." One of them took pity on Him, and, running to the
beaker of posca, dipped a sponge-stopper in the liquor and,
putting it on the end of a reed, held it up to His parched
lips.* " Hold ! " * cried his comrades. " Let us see if Elias
is coming to take Him down." * But the man persevered in
his ministry of mercy, and Jesus accepted it.
The end had come, and He hailed it exultantly. As His The death
eyes closed upon the scene of His mortal anguish, the dark- ° •'""*■
ness which had enwrapped His soul, melted away and He be-
held God's face. " Father," He cried, employing the language
of another psalm but prefixing thereto that dear name which
no psalmist had ever used, " into Thy hands I commit My Pi. xxxi. ^
Spirit." " He cried," says the Evangelist, " with a great
voice." It was a shout of triumph. His warfare was
accomplished. He had " finished transgression, and made an
end of sins, and made reconciliation for iniquity, and brought
in everlasting righteousness." He had perfected Love's
sacrifice and sealed with His heart's blood the new covenant
betwixt God and man. All the days of His flesh "the Son Ml tIII. ae
of Man had not where to lay down His head " ; but at length ^.
His work was done, and He entered into His rest. " He
said : * It is finished,' and He laid down His head and handed John x\x.
30,
over His spirit."
His cry was still ringing in the ears of the astonished The rend-
' 00 jng of H»€
> Cf. Dalman, Words of Jesus, p. 53. VeiL
' The actors in this scene are not Jews, else they would hare understood the cry
of Jesiis. Cf. Jerome, Euth. Zig.
' Cf. Aristoph. Ach. 439 : x'^P'^'O'' <nroYrl(i> fitfiwrnivop.
* d^j may be simply the sign of the imperative, like it in Mod. Grk. ; cf. Mt
vii. 4 = Lk. vi. 42. See Moulton's Winer, p. 356, n. 3 ; Moulton's Grcun. ofN. T. Gk,
i. p. 175. But to take it as an independent imperative is equally permissible on the
score of grammar and preferable in point of sense. Cf. Epict. IV. L 79.
' So Mt. According to Mk. the offering of the/*wa was a piece of ribaldry.
But Jesus did not so regard it (John xix. 30).
504 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
spectators when, as though a shuddering had seized it, the
earth trembled and shook. Syria is a volcanic region, and
all down the course of history Palestine has experienced
seismic disturbances. It was nothing strange or unpre-
cedented that happened when an earthquake shook the Hill
of Calvary. The last shock was well remembered. It had
occurred in B.C. 31, when King Herod was engaged in
military operations against the Arabians. About ten thousand
of the people of Judaea had been buried beneath the ruins of
their houses, and the army had escaped disaster only because
it was encamped in the open.^ It was a like convulsion
that shook the land on this solemn day,* and, though less
calamitous, it was nevertheless sufficiently severe. The close-
built city suffered most, and there was one disaster which
created a profound impression. The curiously wrought veil
which separated the Holy Place from the Holy of Holies,'
was rent in twain from top to bottom, laying open that
Hebr. ix. 7. sacred shrine which the High Priest alone might enter and
only once every year on the Day of Atonement* In the
eyes of the disciples it was no accident It was the stroke of
God's hand, symbolically declaring what had been achieved
Hebr. x. by the Sacrifice on Calvary. " Having therefore, brethren,
*^'^^* boldness to enter into the Holy Place by the blood of Jesus,
by the way which He dedicated for us, a new and living way
through the Veil, that is. His flesh, let us draw near with a
true heart in full assurance of faith."
The The death of Jesus and the attendant circumstances
testimony, inspired the spectators with wonderment and awe, especially
* Jos, Ant. XV. 5. § 2.
^ Mt. xxvil. 5ib-3, where alone the earthquake is expressly mentioned, is an
addition to the Evangelic Tradition, explanatory of Mt. xxvii. 5ia = Mk. xv. 38 =
Lk. xxiii. 45b. Ev. Petr. § 6 has ^ 7^ ira(ra ifftlff$i}, bat omits the ensuing
marvels which unquestionably belong to the Synoptic cycle of unhistorical tradition.
C/. Introd. § 20.
» Jos. De Btll.Jtid. V. $. § 4.
* There is a singular story in the Talmud that forty years before the destruction
of Jerusalem, i.e. about the time of the Crucifixion, the doors of the Temple opened
of their own accord, a premonition of the approaching catastrophe. See Lightfoot,
ii. p. 641. According to the Gospel of tht Hebrews it was th« lintel of the Temple
that was shattered by the earthquake. Cf. Jer. on Mt. xxvii. 51. Nestle regards
this as the true account, the Synoptic Kwraniraafui. being due to a confusion of
"ihDS, lintel^ with n3'-l3. curtain. But see Dalman, Words of Jesus, p. 56.
THE CRUCIFIXION 505
the centurion who had command of the soldiers. It would
seem that he had been present at the trial in the Praetorium.
He had heard Pilate's repeated assertion of the prisoner's
innocence, and had witnessed his perturbation on learning
that He claimed to be " God's Son." It all came back to him
at that dread crisis. " Indeed," he exclaimed, " this man Lk. xxnu
was ' righteous ' ; truly he was ' God's Son.' " The multitude xxyji, ^^
also, who had thronged forth to Calvary with no animosity ^^- **• ^
against Jesus but from mere curiosity to witness the spectacle
of a crucifixion, were deeply affected. Scared by the earth-
quake and stricken with awe, they took themselves off and
wended their way to the city, beating their breasts.
It was three o'clock when Jesus died, and the day was The emri.
fast declining toward Sabbath-eve. According to Roman *^''"''
custom it was usual for the crucified, unless mercifully
despatched, to hang until they perished slowly of loss of
blood and famine or were torn in pieces by beasts and birds
of prey ;^ but it was contrary to the Jewish law that they Deot. uL
should be left hanging overnight,* and the offence would in '^
this instance have been the greater inasmuch as the next day
was the paschal Sabbath. Pilate therefore, at the request of
the rulers, had ordered that the three victims should be
despatched and taken down from their crosses at the close of
day. The soldiers administered the coup de grace in the
customary way by shattering blows with a heavy mallet*
They performed the brutal operation on the two brigands, but,
when they came to Jesus and found that He was already
dead, they held their hands. One of them, however, whom
tradition names Longinus,* to make sure that He was really
dead, drove his spear into His side. And thereupon a
strange thing happened. As the spear was withdrawn, it was
followed by a gush of blood and water.
St John alone recounts the incident, and it was evidently The blood
wholly inexplicable to him. He could only asseverate jr»m.
solemnly that he had beheld it with his own t,yt.s. Yet it is
^ Lips. De Cruc. II. xii-xiiL
• Cf. Lightfoot on Mt. xxvii. 58.
* On the cruri/ragium, axtkoKowla see Lipt. D« Crme. II. xIt ; Wetstein on
John zix. 21.
* Ev. Nicod. xvi. Cf, " Aug." Man. xxiii : " Longinos aperuit mihi Utns Unco, et
ego intravi, et ibi requicsco securus." Longinus is perhaps derived from X^tx^, tfmr.
5o6 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
in no wise incredible ; and medical science has confirmed the
Evangelist's testimony, and has so explained the phenomenon
that it sheds light upon the death of our Blessed Lord and
reveals somewhat of the anguish of His Passion.^ Jesus
died literally of a broken heart — of "agony of mind, pro-
ducing rupture of the heart." In that awful hour when He
was forsaken by the Father, His heart swelled with grief
until it burst, and then the blood was " effused into the
distended sac of the pericardium, and afterwards separated, as
is usual with extravasated blood, into these two parts, viz.,
(i) crassamentum or red clot, and (2) watery serum." When
the distended sac was pierced from beneath, it discharged
" its sanguineous contents in the form of red clots of blood
and a stream of watery serum, exactly corresponding to the
description given in the sacred narrative, ' and forthwith came
there out blood and water.' " ^
Joseph's Among the acquaintance of Jesus who watched the cruci-
Piiate. fixion from afar in company with the faithful women, was
Lk. xxm. ^ Sanhedrist named Joseph, belonging to Arimathaea, the
ancient Ramathaim-Zophim.' He was a devout Israelite, one
" who was expecting the Kingdom of God " ; and, like his
colleague Nicodemus, he was at heart a disciple, but " a secret
one for fear of the Jews." He had not supported the San-
hedrin's sentence of condemnation that morning, but neither
had he opposed it. Probably he had adopted the prudent
course of absenting himself from the meeting. At length,
when it was too late, he had realised how ill a part he had
played ; and there he stood, with grief and shame in his
heart, surveying the tragedy which he had done nothing to
avert. It was impossible to undo the past, but he resolved
forthwith to declare himself on the side of Jesus and make
such amends as he could. He knew what would be done with
the bodies of the victims. They would be taken down and flung
out as refuse to be devoured by pariah dogs and carrion birds;*
and he determined that at least the poor boon of an honour-
^ Cf. Treatise on the Physical Cause of the Death of Christ, by William Stroud,
M.D.
' Prof. J. Y. Simpson in Append, to Hanna's Last Day of our Lord's Passion.
Cf. Calv. on John xix. 34. Orig. (C Cels. u. 36), Euth. Zig. regard it as a
miracle.
» Eus. and Jer. « Cf. Lightfoot on Mt. xxtU. 58.
THE CRUCIFIXION 507
able burial should be accorded to Jesus. It was common for
the friends of the crucified to purchase their bodies and inter
them decently,^ and Joseph was rich and could easily pay the
price. " He plucked up courage and went in unto Pilate and
asked for the body of Jesus." The awe wherewith Jesus had
inspired him, still oppressed the soul of the governor. It sur-
prised him that Jesus had died so soon, and on communicating
with the centurion and learning from him all that had
occurred, he was the more troubled, and evinced his agitation
in a striking manner. The unhappy procurator had earned
himself an evil reputation for greed of gold, and, when he was
impeached before the Emperor, the taking of bribes was one
of the chief counts in the indictment * ; yet such was his
agitation that he refused the price which Joseph offered, and
made him a free gift of the body of Jesus.*
Joseph hastened back to Calvary, and there joined his The faorial
colleague Nicodemus, his partner in remorse as he had been
his partner in cowardice. Each bore his part in the mournful
ministration. Together they took the mangled corpse down
from the Cross and swathed it in linen cloths. Joseph had
provided these, and he provided also a tomb. He had a
garden hard by where he had hewn a tomb out of the rock
for his own last resting-place ; and he gave it up to Jesus.
It was the custom of the Jews to embalm their dead with
fragrant spices, and this office Nicodemus took upon him.
With lavish profuseness he had brought a hundred pounds' rr.«
weight of myrrh and aloes, atoning for his stinted loyalty by ^^
giving Jesus a kingly burial.
Thus they laid the Lord to rest And the women watched Mu »wi.
them as they wrought their sad office, observing where they „, 47.
laid Him. ^^
> C/. Wetetein on Mk. xt. 45. • Schtlrcf, //. /. y. L U- p. 8j.
> Mk. XV. 45 : iiwfy^aTQ. Cf. WeUtein.
John XX. I-
i8 (Mt.
xxviii. i-io
= Mk.xvi.
i-8=Lk.
xxiv. i-ii
[12]) : Lk.
"'V. 13-35;
John XX.
'9;^f,<^J: CHAPTER L
43) ; Joi"»
XX. 26-31 ;
Johnxxi. THE RESURRECTION
(Mt. xxviii.
16-20); Acts
i. 3-12 (Lk. " But now Thou art in the Shadowless Land,
'cxiv. 44- Behind the light of the setting Sun ;
S3) ; I Lor. ^j^^j ^^ worst is forgotten which Evil planned,
Acts ix i-<j ^^^ ^^* ^^' which Love's glory could win is won."
=xxii. 6-11 Sir Edwin ARNoLa
=xxvi. 12-
20.
Despair The death of Jcsus Seemed to His disciples a heavy and
disdoi^! irretrievable disaster. They had deemed Him the Messiah,
and, despite His repeated and emphatic protests, they had
clung with pathetic tenacity to their Jewish ideal and ex-
pected confidently that He would manifest Himself to the
world in regal splendour, claim the throne of His father
David, and reign in Jerusalem over an emancipated and
regenerate Israel. The Crucifixion had dispelled their dream.
It was not only a heavy bereavement but a cruel disenchant-
ment. It had put them to shame. They stood convicted in
the eyes of the nation and in their own as the foolish dupes
of a preposterous delusion ; and it seemed that nothing
remained for them but to creep back to their old homes and,
amid the derision of their acquaintance, resume the occupa-
tions which they had abandoned in quest of a Kingdom.
They had fled panic-stricken when their Master was arrested,
and their first impulse was doubtless to get them back to
Galilee and put the length of the land betwixt themselves
and the truculent rulers ; but presently they changed their
purpose. They repented of their cowardice and, returning to
the neighbourhood of Jerusalem, lurked there in concealment
The Sabbath-eve was closing in when the Lord was laid to
rest in Joseph's garden, and that Sabbath was a great day,
being the paschal Sabbath ; but they kept close and took no
part in its solemnities.
The empty For three days after the burial of the dead the Jews were
Sepulchre, ^qj^^ ^q yjgj^ ^jjg sepuIchrc to sce if haply the soul had returned
S08
THE RESURRECTION 509
to its tenement of clay.* None of the Eleven thought of
visiting the Sepulchre of Jesus. They durst not It had been
madness to expose themselves to the fury of the triumphant
rulers. But there was one heart in which love had conquered
fear. In her home at Bethany Mary Magdalene remained
inactive, according to the commar.dment, until the Sabbath
was past ; and then, too eager to wait for day-light and glad
perhaps of the covert of the darkness, she repaired to the
garden on the slope of Olivet, accompanied by others of the
women.' To their surprise they found that the heavy slab of
stone which closed the cavern's entrance, had been removed.
It must have been done by strong hands from without, and
they concluded that the body had been carried off and
deposited elsewhere. Knowing the retreat of Peter and John,
Mary ran thither and told them her discovery and her
surmise. They hurried wondering to the Sepulchre ; and
John, being the younger and the nimbler, outstripped his
comrade and was the first to arrive. Passing through the
open entrance, he found himself on a floor skirted on either
hand by an excavation four cubits deep where the bodies
were laid in niches ; ' and, peering down at the place where
the Lord's body should have been, he saw the cerements lying
loose. He refrained from descending and making a closer
inspection, whether because he dreaded pollution or because
he saw plainly enough that the body was gone,* As he
stooped and gazed, Peter broke into the Sepulchre after him,
and with characteristic impetuosity leaped down and examined
the grave. It was indeed empty, but its condition was
puzzling. If the body had been stolen, the marauders would
have taken it away in its cerements ; but these were lying flat
as though the body had evaporated, and the napkin which had
been bound about His head, covering His face, was lying C/.Jotati
apart from the linen cloths where His head had rested, still
retaining its fold. It had not collapsed when His head was
withdrawn.' Prompted perhaps by an astonished exclamation
from his companion, John descended and saw how matters
1 Cf. p. 369. • Cy. Introd. i 19, i.
» Lightfoot, ii. p. 240. Latham (Xutn Master, pp. 33-5, Note A) give* a different
representation.
♦ Wetstein : " Ne pollueretur. Num. xiz. id." Eulh. Zig. : ^^«* ♦ i^wrWt.
• Cy. Latham, Riun Master.
2 M
5IO THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
stood. The wondrous truth dawned upon him : Jesus had
risen. It should have been no surprise ; the evidence of the
vacant grave and the empty cerements should have been un-
necessary ; but " not yet," he confesses with an accent of
shame, " did they know the Scripture, that He must rise from
the dead."
Appear- The two disciples quitted the Sepulchre and returned
*Mary° home, leaving Mary weeping by the entrance. Presently she
entered and peered down at the grave. To her amazement
it was no longer untenanted. Two angels were there, one at
the head and the other at the feet where the Lord's body had
lain. " Woman," they said, " why art thou weeping ? " " They
have taken away my Lord," she sobbed, *' and I know not
where they have put Him." Did some look or gesture of the
angels apprise her that one had entered behind her ? ^ She
looked round and beheld one standing there. It was Jesus,
but she did not recognise Him. " Woman," He asked, " why
art thou weeping ? Whom art thou seeking ? " She supposed
that it was the gardener charging her with trespass, and the
idea occurred to her that perhaps it was he that had removed
the body, lest his plots should be trampled by visitors to the
Sepulchre.* " Sir," she cried, " if thou didst carry Him off,
tell me where thou didst put Him, and I will take Him away,"
" Mary ! " He said, and that was enough. " Rabbdni ! " '
she cried, and turned herself about " Love," says St Bernard,
" knows no reverence," and, flinging herself at His feet, she
would have embraced them and covered them with kisses.
She thought that He had been restored to her as of old and
that their former intercourse would straightway be resumed.
^. Lk. vii. " Cling not to Me," He said, gently repulsing her ; " for I
^^' have not yet ascended unto the Father ; but go unto My
brethren and tell them : * I ascend unto My Father and your
Father, and My God and your God.' " *
* Chrysost. In Joan. Ixxxv : tiuoX hoKti ravra \ey6wn}S airrjs d^rw <fxxi>€lt 6
'Kpirrbi ontrOep ai>7-5i ^iorX^fat rovs dyyiXovi.
" It is curious that this is one of the theories whereby the Jews sought to ex-
plain away the Resurrection. Cf. Tert De Spect. § 30. Renan approves the
theory.
* Cf. p. 383.
* Aug. In Joan. Ev. Tract, cxxi. § 3 : " Non ait, Pat rem nostrum : aliter ergo
aeum, aliter vestrum ; natura meum, gratia vestnim."
THE RESURRECTION 511
That afternoon two disciples were journeying to Emmaus, Appear-
ance u
a village some seven or eight miles from Jerusalem.^ One of"""
them was called Clcopas, and the name of his companion is
unrecorded.^ They were not apostles. They belonged to the
rank and file of the Lord's followers, and they were departing
from Jerusalem in deep dejection, believing that all was over.
They had heard of the strange events of the morning : how
Peter and John had found the Sepulchre empty, and how
some of the women had seen a vision of angels who said that
Jesus lived. Of His appearance to Mary, however, they
had heard nothing, else they would hardly have left
Jerusalem.
It was all very bewildering, and, as they journeyed, they on (b«
were debating what it might mean. They were men of diverse "**^-
temperaments, Cleopas being, like Judas the Twin, prone to
despond, whereas his companion was of a sanguine turn ; and
a somewhat heated controversy arose betwixt them. In the
midst thereof a stranger joined them. It was Jesus, but they
did not know Him. " Their eyes were holden that they should
not recognise Him." He accosted them : " What are these
arguments which ye are bandying one with another as ye
walk ? " Ashamed that their quarrel had been overheard,
they stood with downcast faces.' The gloomy Cleopas
answered, not without petulance, perhaps resenting the in-
trusion : " Art thou sojourning all alone at Jerusalem that
thou knowest not the things that have been done therein
during these days ? " " What manner of things ? " asked the
stranger. " The things about Jesus the Nazarene," they
replied together, " who proved a prophet mighty in work
and word before God and all the people, and how the High
^ TiohshXy El- Khamasa, S.W. of Jerusalem. C/. Henderson, Paltstitu, fliS-
Jerome identifies the village with Emmaiu (Amwas), i6o stadia W.N.W. of
Jerusalem, known later as Nicopolis ; and for i^iiKwra. some MSS., including Ki
read kKarlv i^fiKovra. But this Emmaus was more than a ' ' village, " nor could the two
disciples have travelled back to Jerusalem 23 miles that same night. Lk.'s Emmaus
is mentioned by Josephus : D* Bell. Jud. vii. 6. § 6. Emmaus ^ Hammatk, ' ' hot
springs." There was a third town of this name near Tiberias, famed for its baths.
Some Old Lat. MSS. mistake Emmaus for the name of the companioa of Cleopas.
Cf. Expos. Times, June, 1902, pp. 429-30.
' Various conjectures: (i) Simon (Orig.). Hence the »./. "Kifwnts in ». 34.
(2) Luke (Theophyl.). Cf. Carr in Expos., Feb. 1904. Lk., however, 00 his ow«
showing, bad never seen Jesus (i. 2). (3) Nathanael (Epiphan.).
• Reading in v. 17 (coi irriSifvaf ffKv9p<inr»L
512 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
Priests and our rulers handed Him over for sentence of death
and crucified Him." " And," sighed Cleopas, " we were hoping
that it was He that should redeem Israel ; but, to crown all,
this is the third day since these things were done." ^ " Yes,"
broke in the other, who thought there might still be hope,
" but some women of our number amazed us. They went
early to the Sepulchre, and they did not find His body and
came saying that they had actually seen a vision of angels
who said that He lived. And some of our company went
away to the Sepulchre and found it even as the women said."
" But Him," added the incredulous Cleopas, " they did not
see." " Ye foolish men," exclaimed Jesus, ' and slow of heart
to put your trust on all that the Prophets spoke 1 Was it
not necessary that the Messiah should suffer these things
and enter into His glory ? " Then He quoted to them passage
after passage of the Scriptures from Moses onward through
the Prophets, showing how they had all been fulfilled by His
Passion.
In the The two men listened with kindling hearts. At length
°^^^ they reached Emmaus, and Jesus made as though He would
go further. " Lodge with us," they pled, loath to part with
the wondrous stranger and fain to hear more ; " forasmuch as
it is toward evening, and the day is now far spent" " Me-
thinks," says St Bernard, " they perhaps accosted Him with
plaints like these : ' Depart not, thou sweet one, O depart not
from us ; but still of Jesus the Nazarene let thy voice sound
in our ears. Speak, we entreat, of the joy of the Resurrection ;
lodge with us, forasmuch as it is toward evening and the
day is far spent, but we will keep night-vigils. For the day
is not sufficient that our ears may be sated with hearing of
sweet Jesus.' " He acceded to their importunities, and pre-
sently the table was spread. He was the guest, yet He
assumed the part of host and gave thanks ere they should
cat. Such was the devout custom in every Jewish home,^
but Jesus observed it after a peculiar fashion. " He took the
loaf, and blessed it, and brake it, and handed it to them."
Mt. xiv. 39 Thus had He done twice before : when He fed the five
* There was no longer any hope, he thought, not knowing the Lord's promise to
the Twelve that He would rise " on the third day."
' WeUtein on Mt. xir. 19. C/. Rom, xiy. 6 ; r Cor. x. 30 ; i Tim. iv. 3,
THE RESURRECTION 513
thousand in the wilderness, and when He instituted the «Mk. »4.
Sacrament of the Supper in the Upper Room. Cleopas and his ?6ljohi!*
companion had not been present at the Supper, but they may "^^ " '• ^'^
have witnessed the miracle. Perhaps, however, there was no -Mk. «».
particular reminiscence. None ever prayed like Jesus, and Zl^
His prayer revealed Him : " He was recognised by them in
the breaking of the loaf." ^ Ere they could accost Him, He
was gone : " He vanished out of their sight." They under-
stood all now. " Was not our heart burning ' within us," they
cried, "as He was talking to us on the road, as He was
opening to us the Scriptures ? "
Forthwith they arose and returned to Jerusalem. On At Jen-
their arrival they found that much had happened since their ****'
departure. The Apostles were no longer dispersed here and
there, dismayed and despairing. With certain of their
associates they had assembled in a lodging in the city ; and,
late as it was, they were engaged in animated and excited
converse. It was perilous for them to meet thus at the very
gates of the vengeful rulers, and for safety's sake they had
the doors fast shut. All the Apostles were there save Judas
the Twin, who had probably fled farthest in the panic of the
Arrest and had not yet returned. Cleopas and his comrade
found the meeting-place and gained admittance, but, ere they
could tell their story, they were greeted by a chorus of eager
voices : " The Lord hath indeed risen, and He hath appeared Appear*
to Simon ! " This appearance to Peter is mentioned also by ^^
St Paul, but no account is anywhere given of it ; the reason J^- ^
being, perhaps, that his interview with the dear Master whom 5.
he had so basely denied, was too sacred to divulge, and the
Apostle hid it away in his own heart.
When at length they got their turn, the new-comers told ^J^g^',^
their story, enkindling fresh wonderment. Suddenly a husho(tbe
fell upon the company. Jesus was present. None had heard i^^odMr^,
Him knock, none had unbarred the door, none had seen Him
enter ; yet there He stood. He advanced into the midst of
the company with the accustomed greeting : " Peace to you I *
They were fluttered and affrighted. They doubted whether
* Euth. Zig. : I86pruv ttji' rvn/i$ri kcU yruptfioi' tiXoylaw rod iprov.
' There is an interesting Western reading, due probably to 2 Cor. liL 14-4 : a^x*
^ Knpi, ^9 lift&p Kntm.\vfifxini ; " was not oar heart Teiled ? "
514 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
it were indeed He, and were disposed to think that they
beheld a spirit, until He gave them a token. He showed
them His wounded hands and side ; and, when they saw those
marks of His sore Passion, their doubt vanished, and they
rejoiced. Did the Apostles, amid their rejoicing, recall His
John xvi. promise in the Upper Room : " I will see you again, and
^^' your heart shall rejoice, and your joy none shall take away
from you " ? Then He greeted them anew, and gave them
another token. " As the Father hath commissioned Me," He
said, " I also send you " ; and, after the symbolic manner so
congenial to the Jewish mind. He breathed upon them and
said : " Receive the Holy Spirit. Whosesoever sins ye remit,
they have been remitted unto them ; whosesoever ye retain,
they have been retained." It was a renewal of their apostolic
Mt xviii. commission, and it would assure them that His purpose and
^^' their calling stood fast.
Appear- Judas the Twin was the only apostle who was absent on
"^Eleven! that memorable night ; and, when by and by he rejoined his
brethren and was informed that they had seen the Lord, true
to his character, he refused to believe it They assured him
that it was even so : they had seen the Lord, and He had
showed them His wounds. But he would not be persuaded.
" Unless," he asseverated, " I see in His hands the print of
the nails, and put my finger into the print of the nails, and
put my hand into His side, I will in no wise believe it"
The following Sunday the disciples met again in their room
with closed doors, and this time the Twin was with them.
Once more Jesus appeared in their midst and greeted them.
It was for the doubter's sake that He had come, like the
shepherd seeking his one lost sheep. " Reach thy finger
here," He said, " and see My hands ; and reach thy hand,
and put it into My side ; and prove not unbelieving but
believing." " My Lord and my God ! " cried the Twin,
leaping from the depth of despair to the very summit of
faith. And Jesus answered gently : " Because thou hast seen
Me, thou hast believed ? Blessed are they that saw not and
believed." Though addressed to one, it was a reproach to
all the Apostles, since they had all been slow of heart to
believe the Scripture's testimony and the Lord's reiterated
declaration that He would rise from the dead on the
THE RESURRECTION 515
third day. And it has a meaning for all time. " When,"
observes St Chrysostom, " one says now : ' Would that I had
been in those days and seen Christ working wonders ! ' let him
consider that ' blessed are they that saw not and believed.' "
The Risen Lord had much to say to His Apostles ere Appw-
He should bid them farewell and go home to the Father ; JSclSw «i
and the hostile capital was no fitting scene for His manifesta- G*iiie«.
tions. Already in the Upper Room He had promised to Mt. xx*i
meet them in Galilee ; and thither at His behest they ^^^
repaired, betaking themselves apparently to their old abodes mu xxtui
at Capernaum. There they waited for His appearing. '^
It was necessary meanwhile that they should procure
a livelihood ; and one evening, when seven of them
were gathered, perhaps in Peter's house,^ Peter, always the
leader and always impulsive, said suddenly : " I am off to
fish." His companions were Judas the Twin, Nathanael the
son of Talmai, James and John, and two others ; and they
said : " We also are going with thee." Forthwith they went
down to the beach and pushed off. All night they fished, but
they caught nothing ; and, as morning broke, they spied one
standing on the shore. It was Jesus, but they did not
recognise Him. They were only about a hundred yards from
the land, and He hailed them like a merchant who would do
business with them : * " Lads, have ye caught any fish ? " '
" No," they answered, and He called back : " Cast the net on
the right side of the boat, and ye will have a take." Suppos-
ing naturally that the stranger had skill in fisher-craft and
had perhaps observed indications of a shoal,* they obeyed,
and their net was so filled that they could not draw it. The
token flashed home to John's quick mind, recalling the
kindred wonder which he had witnessed in that very Lk. t. i-it.
neighbourhood three years earlier, and which had determined
himself and his brother and their partners, Peter and Andrew,
to cast in their lot with Jesus. "It is the Lord 1 " he
exclaimed to Peter ; and the latter, slower of understanding
* C/. John xxi. 3 : i^riXear, " they went out of the house."
' Chrysost. /« /oan. Ixxxvi : Wwi ifOponrtPiirtpv SiaXiytixu in ftiX^MP n
ufytTffffai Tap' airrup.
» waiSta' cf. Euth. Zig. : tQo\ fkp roi» ipyariKo^ ovrun dt^onA^tiw. wpoff^ytt^t
like 6\f'ow, sonuthing taken along with bread, especially fish. Cf. Wettteio ;
Moulton's Gram, of N.T. Gk. i. p. 170. * Cf. Euth. Zig.
5i6 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
but prompter in action, girt about him his fisher's cloak ^
whereof he had disencumbered himself while at work, and,
even as on that night when Jesus came walking over the
Mt. xiv. 28- waves, flung himself overboard in his haste and swam to the
^^' land.2 His comrades got into the small-boat ' and rowed
ashore, dragging the full net.
On landing they found that preparations had been made
for a meal. There was a loaf of bread, and a fire had been
kindled and fish laid thereon to broil. Jesus bade them fetch
also some of the fish which they had caught, and Peter got
into the small boat and drew the net ashore. It was found
to contain a hundred and fifty three large fish.* It was a
huge haul, and the wonder was that the net had stood the
strain. " Come and breakfast," said Jesus when all was
ready ; and He blessed and distributed the bread and the
fish in the old manner which they knew so well.'
Colloquy Jesus vouchsafed this manifestation of Himself to those
seven disciples, who were probably all apostles, in order that,
ere His departure. He might commune with them and counsel
them concerning their mission. As soon as the meal was
ended, He addressed Himself to the task. He accosted Peter,
and He did what seems a very cruel thing. He deliberately
recalled the vain boast which the disciple had made in the
Upper Room, and which he had so terribly belied in the
courtyard of Annas a few hours later : " Though all shall
stumble at Thee, I will never stumble." Peter had bitterly
repented of his unfaithfulness, and surely he had confessed it
Lk. xxiv. and been forgiven at that meeting with Jesus on the day of
^ ' XV, °s! the Resurrection. Yet here Jesus brings it up again and
^ firtpdiirrji an upper-garment, vtoSu'ttji an under-garment (Suid.). According
to Euth. Zig. eirevSijTrji was a sort of tunic without sleeves, reaching to the knees,
worn by seamen.
' John xxi. 7 Sin. Palimps. : "He took his coat and girt it about his loins, and
cast himself into the lake and was swimming, and came, for they were not far
from the land."
* The Fathers exercised their ingenuity to discover mystic meanings in the
number. C/. Aug. In Joan. Ev. Tract, cxxii. §8. Calv. sensibly remarks : "As
regards the number of the fish, there is not any sublime mystery to be sought
therein."
' John xxi. 13 Sin, Palimps. : "Jesus took the bread and the fish, and blessed
them (literally, blesied upon them\ and gave to them."
THE RESURRECTION 5,7
casts it in his face in presence of his comrades. " Simon, son
of John," 1 He said, " dost thou regard « Me more than these ? "
Regard was no name for the tenderness wherewith the heart
of Peter was overflowing. " Yea, Lord," he answered humbly,
"Thou knowest that I l(yue Thee." "Feed My lambs,"
said Jesus. Then He repeated His question : " Simon,
son of John, dost thou regard Me ? " and Peter repeated his
assurance : " Yea, Lord, Thou knowest that I love Thee."
"Tend My sheep," said Jesus. A third time He put the
question : " Simon, son of John, dost thou love Me ? " He
had accepted the correction, but this only grieved Peter the
more. It seemed as though the Lord were now challenging
not merely his regard but his love. Surely " those eyes of
far perception " could see the overflowing passion of his
heart. " Lord," he cried, " Thou knowest all things ; Thou
perceivest that I love Thee." " Feed My sheep," said
Jesus.
Was it not very ungenerous, was it not very unlike Jesus, Tb«
thus to cast up his sin to Peter, especially in the presence of {SET
the others? Nay, it would hardly seem to the latter that
their comrade was singled out for reproach. Had they
acquitted themselves better than he ? He had indeed denied
the Lord, but they had all alike proved faithless. They had
all protested in the Upper Room that they would die with
Jesus, and in Gethsemane they had all forsaken Him and
fled. And in truth Peter had done better than any save
John, inasmuch as he had presently rallied and followed the
soldiers and their prisoner to the house of Annas. The
reproach was addressed to him, but they would all take it
home to themselves. And the purpose of Jesus was in no
wise merely to upbraid them with their unfaithfulness but to
show them how they might make amends for it Did they
protest with Peter that they loved Him ? Then His answer
was : " Feed My lambs ; tend My sheep." As they had
forsaken the Shepherd, let them lay down their lives for His
> Cf. p. 262.
' For the distinction between &,iaxdj», diligert, and ^X#rr, amort, we Wettteta oo
John «. 4 ; Trench, N. T. Synon. Following Erasm. and Grot, aome allc)^ that iW
terms areased here without diatinction ; </. Crocs in Exfts., Apr. 1893; Dods ia
Expos. Gk. Tttt. Certainlj they are nsed interchangeably in John xiiu 33 and U.S,
but the case ia different when they stand in close coUocaUoa.
5i8 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
flock and thus attest at once their penitence and their love.^
I Pet. V. Nor was the charge forgotten. " Tend the flock of God that
*'^* is among you," wrote St Peter by and by to his fellow-
elders, " not of constraint but willingly, neither for filthy lucre
but of a ready mind, neither as lording it over your charges
but proving ensamples to the flock. And, when the Chief
Shepherd is manifested, ye shall win the unwithering crown
of glory."
Prophecy How far It was from the Lord's purpose to put Peter to
crucifixion! shame before his fellows appears in the sequel. " Verily,
verily I tell thee," He continued, " when thou wast younger,
thou wast wont to gird thyself and walk where thou wouldest ;
but, when thou growest old, thou shalt stretch forth thine
Cf. John hands, and another will gird thee and drive * thee where thou
*"'■ ^ ■ wilt not" It was a dark saying at the moment, but after-
wards when Peter suffered martyrdom by crucifixion,' it was
remembered and understood. " This He said, signifying by
what manner of death he would glorify God." " This end,"
says St Augustine, " that denier and lover found : by pre-
sumption uplifted, by denial crushed, by weeping purged,
by confession proved, by suffering crowned. This end he
found — to die with perfect love for His name's sake with
whom in perverse haste he had promised to die." Albeit
dark at the moment, the saying was clearly a prediction of
suffering for the Lord's sake after long and faithful service.
It was a glorious future that Jesus foretold for Peter. His
comrades would envy him. If he had been humbled in their
sight, he had also been greatly exalted.
Fancy that Peter and John were the chiefs of the apostolic company,
^°nevw°^L'^ and Jesus desired, ere His departure, to commune with them
alone. " Follow Me," He said to the former ; and, as they
withdrew, Peter observed that John also was following.
" Lord," he asked, " and what of this man ? " It was a foolish
question, characteristic of the impulsive disciple ; and Jesus
retorted : " If I will that he remain until I come, what is it to
thee? Follow thou Me." He named His coming again as
* Aug. In Joan. Ev. Tract, cxxiii. § 4 : "Sit amoris officiom pascere dominicum
gregem, si fuit timoris indicium negare pastorem."
• So Sin. Palimpi. The cioss-laden victini was driven with scourge and goad to
execution. Cf. p. 492. Perhaps, however, tict*. recalls Mk. xv. 22 : ^pov9t» ajinr6w.
See p. 493. » Cf. pp. 146-7.
THE RESURRECTION 519
the supreme consummation, the goal of His Church's toil and
desire. The slow-hearted disciples misconstrued His words,
taking them to mean that John would not die but would live
on until the Lord returned in His glory. The idea seemed
reasonable enough in early days when it was believed that
the Second Advent was imminent ; and it was confidently
believed notwithstanding the protest of the Apostle, when
he wrote his Gospel in extreme old age, that Jesus had said
merely : " If I will that he remain until I come." Nay, even
after he had actually died, it still persisted. His grave was
shown at Ephesus for centuries, and as late as St Augustine's
day it was alleged that he was not really dead but only lying
asleep, and that the earth which covered him heaved gently to
his breathing.^ And in the eighteenth century the saintly
Lavater clung to the idea. He believed that John was alive
upon the earth, and it was his heart's desire and prayer that
it might be given him to meet the Apostle whom Jesus loved ;
and he would wistfully scan the face of every stranger, if
haply it might be he.
Neither Peter nor John has divulged what passed betwixt Seerti
Jesus and them when they followed Him apart. It was a secret w,u, ivur
interview, and it was fitting that what the rest of the Apostles *"** '^^^
might not hear should be concealed from the world. Whither
did He conduct them ? It would seem that He led the way
to the uplands behind Capernaum,* to the retreat whither in ^^^ "'*•
former days, when weary with labour and controversy, He had
been wont to betake Himself for repose and prayer ; and in
that spot fragrant with holy memories the disciple whom
Jesus loved and the disciple who loved Jesus, received His
latest behests.
During the space of forty days the Risen Lord manifested Other •p-
Himself to His disciples. These, which the Evangelists have a^ljT
thus recorded, were not His only manifestations. St Paul
mentions, besides that to himself on the road to Damascus,
five manifestations, whereof two — that to the company of five i Coe t*.
hundred brethren and that to James, the Lord's brother • — c/ ActM
liil. )t.
^ Aug. In Joan. Ev. Tract. CJUtiv. § 2.
' Mt, xxviiL i6-ao i< probably a vague tradition of the joumejr to Galilee and
what befell there.
» The account of the appearance to James in the G*if*l ^ tkt Htkrtmt (Jet.
Script. Eccl.) i« plainly unhistorical.
520 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
are recorded by no Evangelist. None of the sacred writers
would know all the manifestations which the Lord vouchsafed
in the course of those forty days ; and none would record all
Cf. John that he knew, but only such as sufficed for the establishment
XX. 30-1. ^^ ^j^^ great fact of the Resurrection^. At length the wondrous
Final ap- scason drew to a close. He had appointed a last meeting
jw^^enT ^^^^^ ^^* Eleven at Jerusalem ; and there, perhaps in that room
where He had visited them on the night after the Resurrec-
tion, He appeared to them and communed with them of His
Passion and Resurrection, showing how these had been fore-
told in the Law and the Prophets and the Psalms, and open-
ing their mind to understand the Scriptures. They still clung
to their Jewish ideal of a worldly Kingdom. The Crucifixion
had dealt it a heavy blow, but the Resurrection had revived
it, and it was only when they were enlightened by the Holy
Spirit that they perceived the spirituality of the Kingdom of
Acts i. 6-8. Heaven. " Lord," they said, " is it at this time that Thou
restorest the Kingdom unto Israel ? " " It is not yours," He
answered, " to learn times or crises which the Father set in
His own authority ; but ye shall receive power when the Holy
Spirit hath come upon you, and ye shall be witnesses -for
Me both in Jerusalem and in all Judaea and Samaria and unto
the end of the earth." He had promised in the Upper Room
to send the Holy Spirit to them after His departure, and He
bade them remain at Jerusalem until the promise should be
" Begin at fulfilled, and there begin their preaching. " Begin at
fem.''^Tk* Jerusalem," He said. It was a great word of grace,
xxiv. 47. Jerusalem had been the scene of His shame, His suffering,
and His death ; and He desired that His mercy should be
offered first to the men who had wrought these things upon
Him — to the men who had falsely accused Him, to the men
who had chosen Bar Abba and sent Him to the Cross, to the
men who had spat on His face, buffeted Him, and crowned
Him with the crown of thorns, to the men who had hammered
^ There is no reason to suppose with Keim that Paul professed to give either
" the complete list or the definite sequence of the appearances." He omits the
appearance to Mary, probably not Only because he would hare women "keep
silence in the Church " (i Cor. xiv. 34) but because he would adduce only apostolic
testimony. For the same reason, though he records the appearance to Mary, John
omits it from his enumeration (zzi. 14), counting only appearances rots ftA$r)Tait,
not Tits fiAOifTpltiit (Euth. Zig.).
THE RESURRECTION 511
the nails through His hands, to the man who had driven the
spear into His side, yea, to Pilate and the High Priests.
"Oh the greatness of the grace of Christ I that be should
be thus in love with the souls of Jerusalem-sinners I that
he should not only will that his gospel should be offered
them, but that it should be offered unto them first, and before
other sinners were admitted to a hearing of it 1 Begin at
Jerusalem."
When He had done communing with them, He led them furwA
forth to Olivet, and there in the neighbourhood of Bethany
" He lifted up His hands and blessed them. And it came
to pass, while He was blessing them. He parted from
them."
Jesus had risen from the dead, as He had predicted. It v«itay«
was a veritable resurrection. The Evangelists are very care- JSJ^?*'
ful to make it plain that what the disciples saw was no^^^"***
ghostly apparition of their Master's disembodied spirit but
Himself in the body which He had worn while He companied
with them, which had been nailed to the Cross and laid in
Joseph's Sepulchre, and which had been reanimated by the
power of God. When He appeared to the ten Apostles and
their companions in Jerusalem on the night after His
Resurrection, they were disposed to think that they beheld ll nK
a spirit, until He assured them of His corporeality by showing ^'
them His wounds. And in the empty Sepulchre they had
an evidence no less convincing.^ Had it been merely His
spirit that appeared to them. His body would have remained
where it had been laid ; but Peter and John and Mary had
seen the vacant grave and the cast-off cerements. This is
indeed a strong evidence of the reality of the Resurrection,
yet it involves a serious difficulty. There was no difficulty
in it to the Anthropomorphites of eariy days, who believed
in a material Heaven and a corporeal God ; • but» if it be
true that, in the language of St Paul, " flesh and blood cannot 1 c«. w.
1 From the very firit unbelievers have recognised the force of thi« CTtdcaet aad
sought to explain it away. The Jews alleged that the disciples had stotaa iMr
Master's body and given out that He had risen. Cf. Ml. xxni. 6j-6 ; unriU. II-$ %
Just M. Dial, cum Tryph., ed. Sylbarg., p. 335 C ; Tert A^L % *il l>* Sftrt.
§ 3a So Reimarus, Renan. Origen (C. Csts. iL 56) argues caunatutff p— — *-
allegation,
" Cf. Jer. on Ps. xcit (xciii). 9.
522 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
inherit the Kingdom of God, neither doth corruption inherit
incorruption," is it conceivable that Jesus carried thither the
body which He had worn while He tabernacled among men,
and wears it there at this hour ?
Theresur- St Paul comes to our aid in this perplexity with his
'^body. wondrous conception of the resurrection-body — a conception
whereto assuredly he attained not by his own wisdom but
I Cor. XV. by the revelation of the Holy Spirit " Some one will say :
S5 . 43-4- 1 jjq^ 2LTC the dead raised, and with what manner of body
do they come ? ' Thou foolish one ! What thou sowest is
not quickened except it die. And what thou sowest, it is
not the body that will come into being that thou sowest, but
a bare grain, perchance of wheat or of some of the other
sorts ; and God giveth it a body even as He willed, and
to each of the seeds a body of its own. Thus also the
resurrection of the dead. It is sown in corruption, it is raised
in incorruption ; it is sown in dishonour, it is raised in glory ;
it is sown in weakness, it is raised in power ; it is sown a
natural body, it is raised a spiritual body. If there is a
natural body, there is also a spiritual body." It happened
to the body of Jesus even as it will happen to the bodies
of believers, whether alive or dead, at the Resurrection. It
was laid in the Sepulchre a corruptible body, a body of
ML ffl. 21. humiliation ; it was raised a spiritual body, a body of glory.^
(i) Trans- It is not given us in our present ignorance to know the
*^ change which was wrought on our Lord's body when it was
raised by the power of God ; yet something of the mystery
is revealed by the sacred narrative and claims reverent con-
sideration. It is evident from the Evangelists' accounts of
the Risen Lord's appearances, in the first place, that, while
it retained its identity. His glorified body had been wonder-
fully changed. He appeared to the disciples even as He
had appeared to Peter and James and John on the Mount
of Transfiguration. So utter was the transformation that
Mary failed to recognise Him when He stood beside her in
the Sepulchre, and took Him for the gardener. It might
* Recent science, following out the remarkable discovery of the luminiferous or
Interstellar ether, has reached a hjrpothesis closely analogous to this Pauline con-
ception. See McConnell's £vo/. of Immort., chap. xv. There is a remarkable
anticipation of the hypothesis in Aug. De Fid. et Symb. § 24.
THE RESURRECTION 523
be thought that her failure was due merely to the gloom and
the dimness of her weeping eyes, were it not that it happened
so in every instance. When He joined the two disciples on
the road to Emmaus, they never dreamed that it was He.
They took Him for a stranger and told Him their mournful
story. And, when He appeared to the seven by the Lake
of Galilee, they took Him for a stranger until He revealed
Himself; and even then they wavered betwixt certainty and
doubt, knowing that it was the Lord, yet half disposed to
ask : " Who art Thou ? " ^ In every instance it was necessary
that He should make Himself known by some token which
revealed Him and assured them that it w£is He. He gave
Mary a token when He called her by her name with the
old accent of tenderness ; He gave the two at Emmaus a
token when He blessed the bread and broke it ; He gave
the ten in Jerusalem a token when He showed them His
wounds ; He gave the seven a token when He filled their
net with fish, repeating the miracle which He had wrought
at the outset of His ministry.
Again, the Lord's resurrection-body was not subject to (a) Not
the laws which govern ordinary matter. It was able, like fhe^iaws^
the ethereal bodies whereof Science dreams, to " move freely ordinary
J matter.
amongst and through ordinary matter without let or hmd-
rance." The doors of that room in Jerusalem where the
disciples had gathered on the night of the Resurrection Day,
were closed when He appeared in the midst of the company.
Doors and walls had been no barrier to His entrance.*
Space too were naught to the ethereal bodies. " With the
swiftness of light or gravitation they could speed from where
old Bootes leads his leash to where Sagittarius draws his
bow in the south." And within the space of a single evening
the Risen Lord appeared to Peter at Jerusalem, to Cleopas
* Chrysost. In Joan. Ixxxvi : T-Jjr W fiop^p dXXotor^poi' ipvPTtt koI toXX^j
^KirXi^fewj yifiovffcw ff<p6ipa fiaav KaTatrerXrjy/Ui'oi.
s C/. Aug, In Joan. Ev. Tract, crxi. § 4 : " Moli antem corporis nbi dirinitas
erat, ostia dausa non obstiterunt. lUe quippe non eis apertis intrare potuit, quo
nascente virginitas matris inviolata pennansit." Calvin, while holding that He
entered miraculously, denies that His body "penetrated through the closed doore."
His judgment, however, was in this instance biassed by antagonism to the con-
tention of Popish and Lutheran sacramentarianism that the Lord's body was infinite
and ubiquitous.
524 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
and his companion at Emmaus, and again to the disciples
at Jerusalem.
(3)invi. And He was invisible to the eye of sense. It was very
^ eye of early urged against belief in the Resurrection that Jesus
*^^ appeared only to disciples, and never to enemies, who stood
more in need of conviction and could not have been suspected
of partiality ; and the objection has been urged also in modem
times.^ It is probably in answer hereto that the apocryphal
Gospel of the Hebrews makes Jesus appear to the High Priest's
servant,' and the Gospel of Peter represents Him as coming
forth from the Sepulchre betwixt the two angels in sight of the
centurion Petronius and his soldiers and the Jewish elders.'
In truth, however, such apologetic embellishments of the
evangelic narrative are no less ill-advised than unhistorical.
The Lord's resurrection-body was a spiritual body, and it was
invisible to the natural eye. When He visited His disciples, it
was needful that they should be endowed with spiritual vision ;
and, until this miracle had been wrought upon them, they
were unaware of His presence ; though He were by their side,
they never perceived Him.* Evidently His appearance to the
two on the road to Emmaus took them by surprise. They
did not observe His approach nor did they hear the sound of
footsteps behind them. Their spiritual vision was suddenly
unveiled, and, behold, He was by their side ! So changed
was He that, like Mary, they never recognised Him until He
gave them a token ; and then straightway " He vanished out
of their sight" The veil had been lifted from their hearts ;
and no sooner had they recognised Him than it fell, and they
saw naught but what was visible to their natural eyes. Since
only to such as are subject to the operation of the Holy Spirit
is the gift of spiritual vision vouchsafed, to such alone was it
possible for the Risen Lord to appear. " Him," says St Peter
t. 40-1. in the Acts of the Apostles, " God raised on the third day and
gave to become visible, not to all the people, but to witnesses
that had been before chosen by God." Only such as had the
>Orig. C. Cels. ii. 63 ; Tert. Apol. % ai. Strauss, Keim.
' Jer. Serif t. Eccles. MXi6x.i Jacobus qui appellaturf rater Domini.
*Ev. Petr. ^9-10.
* Cf. Chrysost. In Joan. Ixzxvi : rl ii e<rri rb " iipayipuxrep " (John xxi. l) ; eit
nvTov SrjXov 6ti o&x iuparo el fi^ avyKari^t) 5t4 t6 \oiirbv i(pQapTor *lvai t6 <ru)/ta koX
AK^parov. Probably this applies also to the visions of angels.
THE RESURRECTION 525
veil taken from their hearts could see Him ; and therefore it
is that on the day of His departure, as He passed through the Lk. «x«».
city on His way to Olivet, none marvelled or lifted a hand ^
against Him. To the Eleven He was visible, but the people
who thronged the streets, though they saw the Eleven, saw
not the wondrous form that walked in their midst^
In the light of this conception a profound significance is Perpetual
discovered in the Lord's promise to be with His people in u^"^n*^
every generation. " Where there are two or three assembled j^- .
in My name, there am I in the midst of them." " Behold, I aa*
am with you all the days until the consummation of the age." ^" """'
These words are literally true. When He parted from the
Eleven on Olivet, He did not forsake the earth and migrate
to a distant Heaven. He ceased to manifest Himself; but
He continued His presence, and He has never withdrawn it
all down the centuries. He is here at this hour no otherwise
than during those forty days after His Resurrection ; and at
any moment He might lift the veil from our hearts and
manifest Himself unto us, even as He did to Mary and
Peter and John. He actually wrought this miracle on that
great day when He met Saul of Tarsus on the road to Acts ix.
Damascus. St Paul never doubted that in that wondrous ^"^
hour he saw Jesus our Lord. It was no vision, but an actual i Cor. ix. t
appearance, in no wise different from those which had been
vouchsafed to the earlier disciples during the forty days.
Saul beheld Him, but he did not recognise Him until he
received a token ; and, since he had never known Jesus in the
days of His flesh, the token was no reminiscence but an ex-
press declaration : " I am Jesus whom thou art persecuting."
Saul saw Him because the veil had been lifted from his heart,
but his companions beheld no one.'
' As the Lord's spiritual body was invisible, so probably it was impalpable, to the
ordinary sense. It is, howerer, in no wise incredible that the grace which bad en-
dowed Thomas with spiritual vision, should have wrought a like miracle on another
of his faculties — if indeed he did actually touch the wounds (John xx. 27). C/.
Chrysost. In Joan. Ixxxvi. Curious tradition in Clem. Alex. Adumbr. in Ep.Joan, i
(Dindorfs ed., iii. p. 485) of the intangibility of the Risen Lord's body.
' The appearance to Paul was thus precisely similar to the earlier appearances,
and not a mere "internal influence of Christ on his mind," as the advocates of the
Vision theory of the Resurrection maintain, arguing hence that, since he classes his
own vision with the others, they also were merely subjective. Cf. Weizsacker : "There
is absolutely no proof that Paul presupposed a physical Christophany in the case of
2 N
17-
526 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
And Jesus is with His people now. " Where there are
two or three assembled in His name, there is He in the midst
of them," no otherwise than He was in the midst of that
company assembled in Jerusalem on that memorable first day
of the week, " the doors being shut where they were for fear
2 Kings vi. of the rulers." " Lord," prayed the ancient prophet, " open
his eyes that he may see." And the Lord opened the eyes of
the young man ; and, behold, the mountain was full of horses
and chariots of fire round about Elisha. And, if only the veil
were lifted from our hearts when we gather belie vingly in
His blessed name, we would see a far more wondrous sight :
we would see Jesus.
Lord Jesus, Who in the greatness of Thy compassion didst
leave Thy Glory, didst take our nature and dwell here, a man of
sorrows and acquainted with grief, and didst suffer for us on the
cruel Cross, that Thou mightest reveal the Father's Heart and
open for us the way to the Father's House ; as Thou art the
same yesterday and to-day, yea and for ever, may we endure as
seeing Thee Who art invisible ; may we know Thee and the
power of Thy Resurrection and the fellowship of Thy suffer-
ings ; believing utterly and steadfastly the Gospel of Thy
salvation, may we possess the peace and gladness thereof and
walk through the world like a people that carry the broad
seal of Heaven upon them. And thus witnessing for Thee
and faithfully following in Thy steps, may we be received at
last into Thy Glory and behold Thy blessed Face. Amen.
Ibe older Apostles. Had he done so, he could not have put hi« own experieaoe
CO a level with theirs." So Strauss, Keim.
APPENDIXES
OBJECTIONS TO THE MIRACULOUS CONCEPTION P.«
I. The story is of one sort with the heathen fables of commerce
betwixt gods and mortals. So Celsus,^ who cites the myths of Danae,
Melanippe, Auge, and Antiope, and above all the story about Plato
that Periktione bore him to Apollo ere she had connection with
her husband Ariston.' Cf. the stories of Romulus and Alexander.*
Such stories, though congenial to the Greeks who conceived of
their gods as simply •' magnified men," would have seemed nothing
less than blasphemies to Jewish minds. It is true that Philo had an
idea that uncommon men, while begotten by human fathers, were
born of divine seed, as it were by the special co-operation of God.
"I will mention the holy Moses," he says,* "as a credible witness
to what I say. For he introduces Sarah as conceiving when God
visits her in her barrenness, yet bearing not to Him but to Abraham.
And more plainly does he teach it in the case of Leah, saying that
God opened her womb. To open a womb is a man's office, and
she, when she conceived, bare not to God but to Jacob." This, how-
ever, is obviously very different from a birth wherein a human father has
no part. And it is really a Greek idea. Philo was an Alexandrian Jew,
and his mind was so steeped in Greek pantheism that a saying was
current : " Either Plato philonises or Philo platonises." ' The idea
of a virgin conceiving by the operation of the Holy Spirit is utterly
un-Jewish ; and the mere fact that it arose on Jewish soil is a singular
attestation of the evangelic story.
2, According to Strauss Jesus was really the offspring of an ordinary
marriage between Joseph and Mary, but in conformity with Is. vii. 14
the belief prevailed that the Messiah would be bom of a virgin by
divine operation, and the history was squared with the prophecy. As
a matter of fact, however, no such belief prevailed among the Jews.*
They expected that the Messiah would be born "a man of man."^
> Orig. C. CeU. i. 37. • Cf. Diog. Laert. iii. a.
• Plut Rom. § 2 ; Akx. § 3. Cy. Lys. § 26. * De Cherub., ed. Pfeiffer, ii. p. 2d
• Suidas under Philo. • Cf. Gore, Dititrt., pp. 289-91.
' q/. p. 142.
528 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
And that prophecy of Isaiah does not really contain the idea. The word
HD^J? which Matthew (i. 23), following the LXX, renders Trapd'aoi,
means merely a young woman, and it is rightly rendered nam by
Aquila, Theodotion, and Symmachus.^ The prophecy had a contem'
porary reference. In face of confederate Syria and Ephraim Isaiah
assures King Ahaz of deliverance and gives him a sign : ere a young
woman, perhaps the prophet's betrothed {cf. viiL 3), bring forth a son,
Assyria shall intervene. No Jew ever understood the prophecy of the
Messiah,' and the Evangelist's far-fetched application of it proves that
the virgin-birth of Jesus was a fact. The history was not adapted to the
prophecy ; on the contrary, the prophecy was adapted to the history.
3. It discredits the story of the virgin-birth that it is never alluded
to, at least expressly, by John or Paul. It is hardly likely that there
is an allusion to it in Gal. iv. 4 : ytvofiivoi 1% ywaixog, and it is a
precarious contention that Mary's anticipation of help from Jesus at
the wedding at Cana was founded on her knowledge of His wondrous
Birth.s
But may it not be that they knew and believed the story and
yet had reason fer keeping silence regarding it ? Aware how it was
perverted by the malignant Jews, who mentioned even the name of
Mary's paramour,* they would judge it unmeet to give occasion for
blasphemy and would " keep the Lord's mystery for the sons of His
house." It was indeed necessary that a biographer of Jesus should
tell the story, but, when John wrote, it had already been sufficiently
told by Matthew and Luke. Besides, he was not concerned about
the human birth. His task was to tell of the Eternal Word made
flesh, and so he begins with that sublime Prologue. And as for Paul :
(i) He says practically nothing about the earthly life of our Lord
(cf. 2 Cor. v. 16). If all that he does not allude to be unhistorical,
how little is left ! (2) The " argument from silence " is specially
precarious in the case of one who wrote much that has perished. One
thing is certain : whatever be the explanation of their silence about
the virgin-birth, each of those great apostles recognised Jesus as the
Lord from Heaven : " the Word made flesh," " in God's form primally
existing."
4. The virgin-birth served no end. It did not secure our Lord's
sinlessness ; for, though He had no inherited sin on the father's side,
He must have shared the evil heritage on the mother's side.
But observe the Scriptural representation. Jesus never called Mary
* Irenseus {j4dv. Hacr. iii, 23) pronounces this rendering an attempt to "frustrate
the testimony of the prophets."
■ Cf. Wetstein on Mt. i. 23. » Chrysost. In Joan. xx.
• Orig. C. Ctli. L a8, 3a.
APPENDIXES 529
" mother." Cf. His emphatic repudiation (Mt. xii. 46-50) and a striking
passage in the Gospel of the Hebrews which makes Him say " M7
Mother the Holy Spirit." He styled her " woman " at Cana (John ii. 4)
and on the Cross (John xix. 26). The mystery of His Birth is best
viewed in the light of the Pauline thought of Christ as the Second
Adam, the Head of a new Humanity (i Cor. xv. 22, 45-7). Humanity
had in Him a fresh beginning. He stood where Adam stood when
he came from the hand of God. His Birth was a creation. He was
not generated ; He was created by the operation of the Creator Spirit
in the womb of the Virgin. He derived nothing from her. She was,
as it were, His cradle, and the Law of Heredity had nothing to do
with Him. Thus the Second Adam began where the first Adam
had begun, and conquered where the first Adam had failed. Cf,
Newman : —
" O loving wisdom of our God i
When all was sin and shame,
A second Adam to the fight
And to the rescue came.
" O wisest love 1 that flesh and blood
Which did in Adam fail,
Should strive afresh against their foe.
Should strive and should prevail."
Observe: (i) This is not opposed to the true humanity of our Lord.
The Second Adam was as truly man as the first. (2) It does not
imply that He was exempt from temptation and moral conflict. He
fought Adam's battle over again, and conquered on the field of his
defeat.
It is noteworthy, as proving how early the virgin-birth was accepted
in the Church, that it was denied by Cerinthus, John's adversary at
Ephesus, and that Irenaeus includes in the apostolic Frtsdu<Ui»
Veritatis ri^v ix Hapdivou y'mvrign.^
II
ST JOHN'S METHOD OF RECKONING THE HOURS Pp- 45. 74.
OF THE DAY *^'
The Jewish day began at 6 p.m., and the hours were reckoned from
6 P.M. to 6 A.M. and again from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. The modern method,
however, was not unknown in the ancient world. The Romans
^ Adv. liar. L S, SI.
530 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
reckoned their sacerdotal and their civil day from midnight to noon
and again from noon to midnight. So also the Egyptians counted
their hours.^ Nor is evidence lacking that a like system obtained
in Asia Minor. Polycarp was martyred in the Stadium at Smyrna
upcL iyhir\,^ and this must mean 8 a.m. since public spectacles began
at an early hour,^ The Synoptists follow the ordinary Jewish method,
but it were natural that John, writing at Ephesus, should follow the
method in vogue in Asia Minor, and so he appears actually to have
done.
1. i. 39. If " the tenth hour " be here 4 p.m., it could hardly be
said that " they lodged with Him that day." Since the Jewish day
began at 6 p.m., only two hours remained.
2. iv. 6. The weariness of Jesus indicates that He had done a
long day's journey, and it was in the evening that the women
came to draw water (Gen. xxiv. 11). Cf. P. E. F, Q., July 1897,
p. 196.
3. According to John xix. 14 it was "about the sixth hour" when
Jesus was condemned by Pilate. If this means noon, it is irreconcil-
able with the Synoptic representation that He was crucified at 9 a.m.
(Mk. XV. 25) and died at 3 p.m. (Mt. xxvii. 46 = Mk. xv. 34 = Lk.
xxiii. 44) ; but, if it means 6 a.m., the narratives agree.
The other side of the question is argued by Ramsay in Expositor,
March, 1893, pp. 216-23 j June, 1896, pp. 457-9-
in
Pp- 49-si. THE SON OF MAN
There is no question in the whole range of N.T. study which has
been more largely discussed or regarding which there is less agree-
ment than the meaning of this title. According to one opinion it
means the Ideal Man, and constitutes a claim on the part ot Jesus to
a unique character and mission ; according to another it means the
Mere Man, and identifies Him with the other members of the human
race, " the sons of men " {cf. Mk. iii. 28 : roij uioTi ruv avdpwrrui
» Mt xii. 31 : ToTi dvdpu'rroif). Some regard it as a Messianic title;
others maintain that it has nothing to do with Messiahship. And
recently, on the ground that in Aramaic " the son of man " would
mean simply " the man," the startling opmion has been propounded
that the title is unauthentic and never was used by Jesus at alL
In face of such wide divergence of opinion there is reason to
» Plin. ff. N. u. 79. « Martyr. Polyc. xxL
• Becker, Charicfes, p. 409.
l^
APPENDIXES 531
suspect that the investigation has been prosecuted along Calse pathi,
and a fresh starting-point and a new clue are necessary in order to a
satisfactory solution of the problem. Nor is the initial fallacy far to
seek. It has been generally assumed that Jesus derived the title from
the apocalyptic literature, in the first instance from the Book of
Daniel and then from the Book of Enoch. This, however, is very
questionable. It is even doubtful whether the Enoch-passages be
pre-Christian {cf. Schiirer, H. J. P. II. iil pp. 54 J^^^.); and in
neither book is " son of man " an appellation. In Dan. vii. 1 3 " one
like unto a son of man " means merely a figure with a human Jorm,
and the Book of Enoch simply quotes the phrase when it speaks of
the Messiah as "that son of man." As Jesus used it, the title has no
connection with the apocalyptic literature.
And it is certain that it is not a Messianic title. Indeed it is
surprising that it should ever have been taken as such in view of the
use which Jesus made of it. " Who," He asked at Csesarea Philippi,
•' do men say that the Son of Man is ? " And Simon Peter answered :
"Thou art the Messiah." The point here is that the title, so far from
being Messianic, concealed the Messiahship of Jesus and made
the recognition thereof difficult, nay, impossible without divine
illumination. " Flesh and blood did not reveal it unto thee, but My
Father in Heaven " (Mt. xvi. 13, 16-7).
See Bruce, Hum. of Chr., pp. 225 sqq., Kingd. of God, pp. 166
sqq.\ Westcott, St John, pp. 33-5 ; Charles, Book of Enoch, App. B. ;
Dalman, Words of Jesus, pp. 234 sqq. ; Driver's art. Son of Man in
Hastings' D. B.
IV
"SECOND-FIRST SABBATH" P.xss-
(Lk. Ti. I)
This cumbrous compound occurs nowhere else. It was a sore
puzzle to the Fathers, and it is significant that they knew of no
traditional explanation. They had nothing but conjecture to guide
them, and their explanations are, for the most part, a chaos of con-
tradictions and impossibilities. It is possible that a technical term of
the Jewish calendar should have passed into disuse in the course of
two or three centuries, but its meaning could hardly have been utterly
forgotten.
It were weary and unprofitable work to exhume the multitude of
discredited and forgotten theories. " I have," says Erasmus, "found
532 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
nothing satisfactory on the subject in authors hitherto"; and his
verdict may be reiterated now after other four centuries of discussion
and conjecture. "It were simpler," remarks the caustic humanist,
" to say * I do not know.' " As early as the fourth century Jerome
recognised the hopelessness of a reasonable solution. " I once," he
says {Ep. ii, ad Nepotianum), "asked my teacher, Gregory of
Nazianzus, to explain what is meant by * a second-first Sabbath ' in
Luke ; and he answered with a pretty jest ' I will teach you on the
subject,' quoth he, 'in Church where, amid the applause of the
congregation, you will be compelled in spite of yourself to know what
you don't know, or, depend upon it, if you be the only one silent, you
will be condemned as the only fool in the congregation.' "
Erasmus tells another anecdote. Once at a banquet — was it that
immortal symposium at the house of Richard Charnock, Prior of St
Mary's College, Oxford {Ep. v. i, Joanni Sixtino) ed. Lond. 1642)?
— a certain monk, who was likewise a professor of Theology, was asked
by a learned man of another profession, probably Erasmus himself^
what Luke's "second-first Sabbath" meant. He replied that there
was nothing of the sort anywhere in the Gospels. The other insisted
that it was in Luke, and the professor laid a wager that it was not
" I will doflf my cowl," he declared, " if Luke wrote anything of the
sort" Did he mean that the word was an interpolation ? If he did,
he was probably in the right. Om. kBL. It is most likely that the
bewildering word is a confused marginal note which has found its
way into the text Some copyist, with his eye on p. 6 : ''on another
Sabbath," wrote " first " over against v. i ; then some other, in view of
iv. 31, prefixed " second " by way of correction. It is remarkable that
several MSS. have actually dtuTtptfj vpwrtft. Cf. Vulg. secundo prima.
See Field, Notts \ W. H., Notts.
Pi3^ THE UNNAMED FEAST
(John ▼. i)
The Evangelist says merely: "There was a feast" (ABD, Orig.,
Chrysost, W. H., A.V., R.V.) or : " the feast (kCL, Tisch.) of the
Jews"; and it has been much disputed which feast it was. The
opinion that it was the Passover seems most reasonable, (i) It is
supported by the earliest tradition. Cf. Iren. Adv. Hctr. ii. 32. § i.
Nor is it without significance that an 8th c. MS. reads " the Feast
of Unleavened Bread " (A rm d^v/iuv). (2) The very vagueness of
APPENDIXES 533
the Evangelist's reference indicates the Passover {cf. Mk. xv. 6). It
was the only feast which all Israelites were required to attend. It was
the custom of Jesus to go up yearly to its celebration ; and, had this
been another feast, it must have been specially designated. Cf. John
vii. 2 ; X. 2 2. (3) The open and murderous enmity of the rulers when
Jesus went up to Jerusalem {v. 18), proves that John v. must be placed
not near the outset of His ministry but after the declaration of hostility.
Their knowledge that " He was in the habit of breaking the Sabbath"
{p. 18) implies a date subsequent to the Sabbatarian controversies at
Capernaum (Mt xii. 1-14 = Mk. ii. 23 — iii. 6 — Lk. vi. i-ii). Between
John iv. and v. comes the Synoptic record of the Lord's varied activity
during the first year of His ministry.
VI
CHRONOLOGY OF THE PASSION- WEEK P-3«3.
John xii. i is the basis of calculation, rl viaya.^ not identical with
^ 'irpurrj ^/lipa ruv a^ufiuv, Srt ri irda^u iiut* (Mk. xiv. 12 — Mt. xxvi.
i7 = Lk. xxii. 7), is the Paschal Supper on the evening which ushered
in Friday, 15th Nisan. Six days before the 15th, according to the
ancient reckoning which included the terminus a quo and the terminus
ad quem, would be Sunday, loth Nisan. The following arrangement
seems justified by the narratives : —
Sabbath, ^th Nisan. — At Jericho with Zacchseus.
Sunday, 10th Nisan. — Journey continued; arrival at Bethany; supper
in the house of Simon the Leper.
Monday, nth Nisan. — Entry into Jerusalem ; retiral to Olivet
Tuesday, 12th Nisan. — Cursing of the Fig-tree; teaching in the
Temple-court (Mk. xi. 17 ; Lk. xix. 47) and miracles (Mt. xxi.
15); children's acclamations and remonstrance of rulers; retiral
to Olivet
Wednesday, i$th Nisan. — Disciples remark on the withering of the
Fig-tree ; captious questions ; the Great Indictment ; visit of the
Greeks ; consultation of rulers in the High Priest's palace and
compact with Judas ; retiral to Olivet
Thursday, 14th Nisan. — Discourse on Olivet about things to come;
the Preparation.
Friday, 15//4 Nisan. — The Supper in the Upper Room; Gethsemanc;
the Betrayal and Arrest ; the Crucifixion.
Sabbath, i6th Nisan. — "Sabbatizat in sepulchro.*
Sunday, 1 7M Nisan. — The Resurrection.
534 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
VII
P. 416. THE MURDER OF ZECHARIAH
(Mt xxiii. 35 = Lk. zL 51)
Matthew's reading " 2^hariah son of Barachiah " has occasioned
much perplexity. It seems indubitable that u/eu Bapa^iou is merely
a gloss on our Lord's words, whether by the Evangelist or by some
early copyist, due to Zech. i. i. It is omitted by K* and several
cursives. Accepting it, Origen takes Zechariah the son of Barachiah
as Zechariah, the father of John the Baptist,^ who, according to the
apocryphal Frotevangelium, was murdered in the Temple by the
servants of Herod. This was the prevailing opinion in early days.
Jerome and Chrysostom mention three opinions. The martyr in
question was (i) Zechariah son of Barachiah, the Minor Prophet, (2)
the father of John, (3) Zechariah son of Jehoiada. According to
Chrysostom, Jehoiada had two names. Jerome mentions that in the
Gospel of the Hebrews the reading was "son of Jehoiada" — manifestly
a correction.
These ancient fancies are far surpassed in wild improbability by
the modern identification of Zechariah son of Barachiah with that
Zechariah son of Baruch who was slain in the Temple in a.d. 68.^
Strauss rejects the suggestion, but Keim welcomes it as proving the
passage a late interpolation and disposing of the prediction in v. 34.
The idea is utterly unreasonable. It is true that both the martyrs
were named Zechariah and both perished in the Temple ; but
Barachiah and Baruch are different names, and the Zechariah of
Josephus fell by the hands of the E^senes in league with the
Idumaeans.
VIII
Pp. 491- THE DAY OF THE CRUCIFIXION
507.
All the Evangelists agree that our Lord was crucified on a Friday and
rose on the ensuing Sunday ; and, were the Synoptics the sole records,
it would be no less certain that the Friday was Passover-day, 15th
Nisan, and the supper which He had eaten with His disciples in the
Upper Room on the previous evening the regular Paschal meal (Mt
* In McUth. Comm. Ser. § 25. Elsewhere he suggests that our Lord was
referiing to some extra-canonical history (/« Ev. Matth. x. i 18).
» Jos. Dt Bill. Jud. iv. 5. § 4.
APPENDIXES 535
xxvi. 1 7 - Mk. xiv. 1 2 - Lk. xxii. 7). But, turning to the Fourth
Gospel, one finds what looks like a different representation, (i) John
xiii. I seems to put the Last Supper " before the Feast of the Passover.*
(3) Next morning, when they brought Jesus before Pilate, the rulen
would not enter the Praetorium, " that they might not be defiled, but
might eat the Passover" (xviii. 28) — a clear evidence, apparently,
that they had not eaten the Paschal meal the previous evening but
had it still in prospect. (3) Thrice over (xix. 14, 31, 42) it is said that
the day of the Crucifixion was •^rafatxiu^, meaning, it is supposed, 1 4th
Nisan, the day of preparation for the Passover.
Hence it would appear that, according to John, the Friday on
which Jesus was crucified, was not, as the Synoptists represent, Pass-
over-day, 15th Nisan, but Preparation-day, the 14th ; and the supper
which He had eaten with His disciples the previous evening, if it
was indeed the Paschal meal, had been eaten a day too soon, on the
evening which closed the 13th day of Nisan, and which, according
to the Jewish reckoning, ushered in the 14th.
Here is no mere question of curious scholarship but one which
hivolves great issues. Not only is such a discrepancy regarding that
supremely sacred event painful to religious sentiment, but it touches
the historicity of the evangelic narratives ; and therefore it is no
wonder that students of the N.T. have laboured, often with amazing
ingenuity, to effect a reconciliation. Perhaps the boldest device is
that of Lightfoot, who identifies the Johannine supper, not with the
Synoptists* Passover supper in the Upper Room, but with the supper
in Simon the Leper's house (Mk. xiv. 3-9 — Mt. xxvi. 6-13), which,
misled by Mk. xiv. 1 = Mt. xxvi. 2, he supposes to have been held
at Bethany two days before the Passover.* It is true that St John
says nothing about the Passover, and does not report the institution
of the Lord's Supper; but a comparison of John xiii. 38 with Ml
xxvi. 34 — Mk. xiv. 30 = Lk. xxiL 34 suffices to establish the identity
of the Johannine supper with that of the Synoptists in the Upper
Room.
Reconciliation has been attempted along two main lines :
I. JohrCs account has been accepted and that of t}u Synoptists brought
into harmony therewith.
(i) The supper in the Upper Room wcu not a Passover at cUi. So
Clem. Alex. : In previous years Jesus had kept the Passover and
eaten the lamb, but on the day before He suffered as the true
Paschal Lamb He taught His disciples the mystery of the type.*
^ The supper in Simon the Leper'i house ii unquestionably identical with lh«
Johannine supper at Bethany six days before the Passover. Cf. Intiod. § la
^ Fragm. in Chrm. Pazch. See Dindorfs Ckm. Altx. Of. iii. p. 49^.
536 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
So also, according to the Chronicon PaschaU^ Apolinarius kA Hierapolia,
Hippolytus, and Peter of Alexandria.
(2) Sinu the Passover-day ^ falling that year on Friday^ was reckoned
as a Sabbath (Lev. xxiii. 6, 7, 11, 15), the Jews, to avoid the incon-
venience of two successive Sabbaths, postponed the Passover by a day :
Jesus adhered to the day fixed by the Law. So Calvin.^ The Synoptists
are therefore right in calling the Lord's Supper a Passover, and John
also is right in saymg that, when the Jews crucified Jesus, they had
their Passover still in prospect. The objection to this is that, while
in certain circumstances the Passover might be postponed to a
later month, it had always to be celebrated on the 15th day; nor,
moreover, would the priests have suflFered any, least of all Jesus and
His disciples, to sacrifice their lamb in the Temple on another day
than that appointed by the Sanhedrin.'
(3) J^sus anticipated the Passover, knowing that at the proper time
He would be lying in His grave. This is put forward by Chrysostom '
as an alternative explanation of John xviii. 28 ; and it is the theory
of Grotius, who holds that there was no lamb at the Lord's Supper ;
it was a wa'c^^a fx^vri/itytunxiv, not a vda^a Sweifiov. Fatal, however,
alike to this theory and to Calvin's is Luke's express statement (xxii.
7) that Jesus ate the Passover on the general Passover-day, <» fj fdti
iufffScu TO ncaSycL.
The supposed Johannine account is not without a certain attrac-
tiveness, since there are facts which seem at the first glance to tell
against the Synoptic representation and to prove that the Lord's
Supper must have taken place on the evening before the Passover-
day. The Synoptists all record that after the Supper Jesus and the
Eleven left the city and went out to Olivet (Mt. xxiv. 30 = Mk. xiv. 26
— LL xxiL 39), whereas the Law required that no one should "go
out at the door of his house until the morning" (Exod. xii. 22).
This requirement, however, had been set aside in the time of our
Lord;* and even had it been still in force, it would hardly have
restrained Jesus. " Permit," says Lightfoot, " the Lion of the tribe
of Judah not to be bound by those spider-webs." Again^ since the
> On Mt. xxvi. 17. Cf. Chrysost. In Matth. lixxv : The rulers spent the
night waiting for the return of the arrest-party with Jesus, and therefore they did
not eat the Passover. Next day they ate it and broke the Law *t4 tV eri$vfd<w Hjr
* Cf. Lightfoot on Mk. ziv. 12.
* Infoan. Ixxxii : fp-ot, oir to r(£<r%a riir ioprip' rivav \iyei, Ij Uri rdrt irolovf
TO Tiffxa, avTot Si rpo fuSit airo rapiSuxe rtjpuif ttJv ^airroC cipayrjp rj xapaffKeirg
8t€ Kol TO raXttioi' tylvero to t(£<7xo. This sentence, it has been remarked, writes
the programme for subsequent discussion down to the present day.
* Wetstein on Mk. xir, 26.
APPENDIXES 537
Passover-day was reckoned as a Sabbath, it has been deemed
inconceivable not merely that Judas, Joseph of Arimathsea, and the
women should have gone to the market (John xiii. 19 ; Mk. xv. 46 ;
Mk. xvi. i), but, above all, that Jesus should have been crucified
on that day. In fact, however, the Passover-day, though called a
Sabbath, was less strictly observed than the ordinary Sabbath.
Servile work was prohibited, but trade went on.^ And, while the
Athenian law forbade the execution of criminals during religious
festivals,' Jewish sentiment, singularly enough, was less fastidious.
Executions during the Passover season were in no wise uncommon,
instances occurring from King David's time (2 Sam. xxi. 9) down
to apostolic days : James the Apostle was executed during the days
of Unleavened Bread (Acts xii. 1-4), and James the Lord's brother
on the Passover-day.' The strict R. Akiba ordained that a certain
criminal should be conveyed to Jerusalem and kept till the Passover,
and then executed in the sight of the people, in accordance with
Deut. xvii. 13.* The Talmud indeed asserts that Jesus was executed
on the day before the Passover,* but this is nothing else than an
attempt on the part of the later Jews to eliminate an ugly fact by
rewriting history and thus silence the taunts of Christian writers.
Once more, when Simon of Cyrene was impressed, he was coming
Alt' aypoj, from his work, it is supposed; and he would not have
been working in his field had it been the Passover-day. But Simon
was not a resident in Jerusalem. He was one of the multitude of
strangers who had come up to celebrate the Feast, and, lodging, as
so many, including Jesus and the Twelve, were obliged or preferred
to do, outside the gates, he was coming "from the country" (o**
&ypou, rure) to worship in the Temple at the hour of morning
prayer.
2. The Synoptist^ account has been accepted and that of John brought
into harmony therewith.
Recent criticism* rejects the latter as unhistorical, and explains
it as originating in the idea, suggested by St Paul (i Cor. v. 7) and
expressly asserted by Clement of Alexandria, Apolinarius, Hippolytus,
and Peter of Alexandria, that, since Jesus was Himself the Paschal
Lamb, He must have been slain on T4th Nisan. In support of this
theory it is pointed out that John, by way of proving Him the true
Paschal Lamb, cites the legal requirement that the lamb's bones
» Edersheim, Life and Times, ii. p. 508 ; Elghtfoot, U. p. 759.
» Cf. Plat. Phad. 58 A ; Plut. Phoc. § 37.
' Hegesippus apud Eus. H, E. ii. 23.
* Wetstein on Mt. xxvi. 5. • Ughtfoot on Mt. xxtrii. 31.
• After Strauss Keim, Schmiedel (in E. B., art. Jphn, son ef ZtbtdttY
538 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
should not be broken (ExoA xii. 46; Num. ix. 12) as fulfilled in the
case of Jesus (xix. 36) ;^ that he throws the anointing at Bethany back
to the loth Nisan (xii. i), the day on which the Paschal lamb was
chosen (Exod. xii. 3) ; and that, in opposition to the Synoptists (Mk.
XV. 25; Mt. xxvii. 45 = Mk. xv. 33-Lk. xxiii. 44), he represents
Jesus as still before Pilate at the sixth hour, i.e. noon (xix. 14), with
the design, it is alleged, of making the Crucifixion coincide with the
sacrifice of the Paschal lambs, which were slain in the Temple from
3 to 5 P.M.- The theory is more ingenious than convincing. It
takes no account of the probability that John reckoned the hours,
not, like the Synoptists, from 6 o'clock, but, according to the
alternative method from midnight and from noon ; ^ and since by
the "sixth hour" he means 6 a.m., he is in full agreement with
the Synoptists (if. Mt. xxvii. 1-2 = Mk. xv. i). Moreover, Jesus was
none the less the true Paschal Lamb though He was not crucified
between 3 and 5 p.m. on 14th Nisan but at 9 a.m. on the 15th.
Although he spoke of Christ as "our Paschal Lamb" (i Cor. v. 7),
Paul regarded the Last Supper as the regular Paschal meal, calling
the communion cup in the same Epistle (x. 16) "the Cup of
Blessing." *
While recent critics are right in accepting the Synoptic account,
it may be questioned whether their rejection of the Johannine account
as irreconcilable therewith be not a hasty verdict, due partly to a
foregone conviction of the unhistoricity of the Fourth Gospel and
partly to misunderstanding of the passages at issue. Let us consider
these afiresh : —
John xiii. i is the crucial passage, and the difficulty connected
with it is due to misapprehension of its significance. It is in truth
an independent paragraph, and has no bearing whatever on the
date of the Supper. What the Evangelist says is that, as the end
drew near, the disciples observed a singular access of tenderness in
their Master's bearing toward them. He had always loved them,
but then He showed them His heart and demonstrated His affection
as He had never done before.* It was the tenderness of imminent
farewell. Then, beginning a new paragraph, the Evangelist goes on
to recount the story of the Supper {w. 2 sgq.), assuming, according
to his wont, an acquaintance on the part of his readers with the
details of time and arrangement given by the Synoptists (Mt. xxvi.
17-9-Mk. xiv. i2-6-Lk. xxii. 7-13). Had he been dating the
Supper, he would not have used so vague a phrase as "before the
Feast." Had he diflFered from the Synoptists, he would, as in other
» Probably John refers rather to Ps. xxxiv. 2a » Jos. De Bell. Jud. vl 9. § 3.
» Cf. Append. II. « Q: p. 446. » C/. pp. 435*6.
APPENDIXES 539
instances, have corrected their error with a precise definition ol
the day.
Again, it is a mistaken inference from John xviii. a8 that on ihc
day of the Crucifixion the Jews had the Paschal meal still in prospect,
and that it was therefore the Preparation-day, 14th Nisao. They
would indeed have been defiled had they entered a heathen house,
but the defilement would have lasted only until evening, and then,
after due ablution, they could have eaten the Paschal mcaL The
reply of Strauss, that they would nevertheless have been disqualified
for the business of preparing the Passover on the afternoon of the
14th, overlooks the fact that it was not necessary for them to make
the preparations themselves ; according to the Law they could have
deputed the business to their servants, even as Jesus deputed it to
Peter and John.* It was not the Paschal supper that they would have
been debarred from eating had they entered Pilate's praetorium, but
the Chagigah or thankoffering, which consisted usually of a bullock.
And not only was 15th Nisan the day on which the Chagigah should
be offered,' but every worshipper had to present it in the Temple in
proprid personA} To our minds the phrase "eat the Passover"
naturally suggests the Paschal supper, but on Jewish lips it had also
a larger significance. Alike in the Scriptures and in the Talmud it is
used of the celebration of the entire feast, including the Chagigah,*
Nor should it be overlooked that elsewhere in the Fourth Gospel ri
rrdisya is invariably employed in its larger sense, denoting not the
Paschal supper as in Mt. xxvi. i7«^Mk. xiv. la^-Lk. xxii. 7-8, but
the whole feast, TTir io^rj^if TatfaK.^ It is inconceivable that in this
solitary instance John should have departed from his usus loquendi.
It is noteworthy in this connection that after the Crucifixion, h^ixii
'yivo/if¥t)g, Joseph of Arimathaea visited Pilate and requested the Lord's
body (Mt. xxvii. 57-8 -Mk. xv. 42-3 -Lk. xxiii 50-2 -John xix. 38).
He had no less reason than his fellow-Sanhedrists to dread pollution,
and he went without scruple to Pilate's house because, unlike them in
the morning, he had already that afternoon celebrated the solemnity
of the Chagigah.
Finally, with regard to St John's reiterated statement that the day
of the Crucifixion was Preparation, it is a hasty assumption that
<Kapaexfuri here means the day of preparation for the Passover, ix.
14th Nisan. It is true that the word was used of the preparation for
^ Cf. Lightfoot on Mk. xiv. 26.
• Cf. Lightfoot on John xriii. 28. • ItL on Mk. xv. «5.
«Deut. xvi. 2; 2 Chron. xxx. I, 23, 24; xxxv. I, 8-19; Eiek. xiv. 21-4.
Menach. 3. i : " Vitulus et juvencus quem mactant nomine Pascbatis." AW« iUmd^
a«ys Lightfoot, vitulus tst Ptscha uti et agnus.
» Cf. John ii. 13, 23 ; vL 4 ; xi. 5S ; »ii. i ; xiiL I.
540 THE DAYS OF HIS FLESH
the Passover or any other feast, but it was also used by the Jews,
alternatively with frfoad^^ctroy} as the regular name for Friday, the
day of preparation for the weekly Sabbath.^ The term was taken
over by the Christians," and to this day it remains the regular name
for Friday on the Greek calendar. It means Friday in Mk. xv. 42,
Mt. xxvii. 62, Lk. xxiii. 54; and a false presupposition is the sole
reason for attaching to it a different significance on the lips of John.
When he says h leapaaxtur^ rtZ vaeya. (xix. 14), he means, not "it was
the Preparation for the Passover," but " it was Friday of the Passover-
season." And if by vapagMuri he means Friday in xix. 31, the reason
of his statement is obvious. "That Sabbath-day was a great one,"
not because, being at once the weekly Sabbath and Passover-day, it
was Sabbath in a double sense, but, as Lightfoot puts it, because (i)
it was a Sabbath, (2) it was the day on which the people appeared
before the Lord in the Temple (Exod. xxiii. 17), and (3) it was the
day on which the sheaf of the first-fruits was reaped (Lev. xxiii. 11).
In his account of the Quartodeciman controversy Eusebius*
quotes from Irenaeus a remarkable story. The Christians of Asia
Minor " observed the 14th day of the moon in connection with the
Feast of the Saviour's Passover," and, when Polycarp, John's disciple
and fnend, visited Anicetus at Rome, he defended the usage on the
ground that it had been the usage of John and the rest of the Apostles
in the days when he companied with them. That is to say, Polycarp
had it from John that the Lord had celebrated the Passover and
instituted the Supper, agreeably to the Synoptic representation, on
the 14th day of the moon or, according to the Jewish reckoning, on
15th Nisan; and it follows either that, as Baur argues, the Fourth
Gospel is not John's or that, in accordance with our reasoning, the
Johannine and the Synoptic accounts agree.
* Mk. XV. 42 ; Epiphan. Hares. 72. § 2.
• Jos. Ant. xvi. 6. § 2. Wetstein on Mt xxvii. 62.
• Didacfu, viii ; Clem. Alex. Strom, vii. § 75 ; Tert. Dt Jejun. % I4.
* H. R. ▼. 23-4.
INDEXES
NAMES AND SUBJECTS
ABOARtJS, 417-8.
Ablution, 43.
Acted parables, 345.
Adam and the Tree of Life, 139.
Calvary, 494.
Adulteress, question about an, 401-2.
Advocate, 450, 454.
Mnon, 69.
Agony in Gethsemane, 456-7.
Akeldaraa, 474, 475.
Alliance of Pharisees and Sadducees,
29, 257-
Alms, 102-3, 314-
Alpbseas, 151.
Ambition of James and John, 378.
Andrew, 30, 44, 146, 234, 41S, 423.
Angels, 285.
Anna, 6.
Annas, 463-4.
Anointing :
(i) in Simon the Pharisee's house,
203-4 ;
(2) at Bethany, 388-9 ;
(3) of the Lord's body, 507.
Anthropomorphites, 521.
Antipas, see Uerod.
Anxiety, 293-5.
Apostles, 145-56.
, ordination of, 157-67.
, commission of, 216-20.
Appearances of the Risen Lord :
(1) to Mary, 510;
(2) at Emmaus, 511-3 ;
(3) to Simon, 513;
(4) to ten Apostles and others, 513 ;
(5) to the Eleven, 514-5 ;
(6) by the Lake of Galilee, 515-9 ;
(7) to 500 brethren, 519 ;
(8) to James, 519;
(9) to the Eleven, 520-1 ;
(10) to Paul, 519, 525.
Archelaus, 386.
Aretas, 71.
Arrest, 458-61.
"Ascension," 521.
Ascent of Blood, 34.
Ass, 391-2.
Authority of Jesus, 95, 109.
— — , question aboat, 397-8.
Baptism of Jesus, 31.
John, 398.
repentance, 28, 43-4.
Bar Abba, 484-5.
Bartholomew, see NathanaeL
Bartimsens, 382-3.
Sa(h Kol, 32.
Beatitudes, 157-8.
Beelzebul, 177.
Bethabara, 25.
Bethany beyond Jordan, 25.
, the village of Lazarus, 330, 39^
Bethesda, 138-9.
Bethlehem, 3.
Beth phage, 391.
Bethsaida Julias, 233, 240, 259.
of Galilee, 83.
" Bind and loose," 265.
Birth of Jesus, 2-3.
•, date of, 1 1-3.
Blasphemy against the Spirit, i77-8i
, Jesus charged with, 121.
Blind-bom man, 343-8.
Blind man at Bethsaida Julias, 259.
Blood and water, 505-6.
Bloody flux, 197.
Boanerges, 147.
Boat, the Lord's, 145.
Body, spiritual, 522-5.
Bread of Life, 241.
Brethren of Jesus, 18, 181, 300-1.
Brigands, the two, 492, 498-9.
Burial of Jesus, 507.
Burial-places, 221.
Burr of Galileans, 16.
CiCSAREA PHILIPPI, 26a
Stratonis, 473.
Caiaphas, 375, 463.
Call of Jesus, 33.
Peter and Andrew, James and
John, 88-9.
Matthew, 125-6.
Calrary, 493-4.
Camel s hair, 27.
Cana, 53.
Canansean, see Zealot.
Capernaum, 58, 82-5.
Captains of the Temple, 458.
O ^
54^
INDEXES
Caravanserai, 3, 449.
Carrying the cross, 491.
Casuistry, 132, 299, 413.
Catechisers, xvii.
Census, 2-3.
Centurion at Capernaum, 1 16-9.
at the crucifixion, 505.
Celibacy, 357-8.
Cephas, 47.
Charity, lesson in, 284.
Charosheth, 438.
Child in the midst, 283.
Children brought to Jesus, 358.
in the Temple-court, 395-6.
Chinnereth, 83.
Chorazin, 289.
Christmas, 12-3.
Church-discipline, 286-7.
Chuza, 212.
Circumcision of Jesas, 5>
on Sabbath, 333.
Claudia Procula, 485-6.
Clearing the Temple-court, 58-61.
Cleopas, 51 1-2.
Cloak, 160.
Clopas, see Alphxns.
Cock-crow, 468.
Commandment, the chief, 407-8.
Confession, the Great, 261-2.
Contention in Upper Room, 438.
Cor ban, 244-5.
Courtier of Capernaum, 81-2.
Cross, forms of, 494-5.
Crown of thorns, 487.
Crucifixion, 494-5.
of Peter, 518.
Crurifragium, 505.
"Daily bread," 170-1.
Dalmanutha, 256.
Darkness at noon, 500.
"David's Son and David's Lord,"
409-10.
Deacons, 94.
Deaf and dumb epileptic, 277-8.
Death of Jesus, 503.
Debtor, the unforgiving, 287-8.
Dedication, Feast of, 350.
Deity claimed by Jesus, 121-2, 142, 158,
220, 281, 351-2.
Demoniacal possession, 105-8.
Denarius, a day's wage, 234.
Deposit, xv-xvi.
Deputation from Sanhedrin to John,
42.4.
Dereliction, 500-2.
Desertion, 461.
announced, 445-6.
Destruction of Jerusalem, 423.
Devil, 39.
— , alliance with, 176-7.
Dionysius Exiguus, II.
Disciples, 87.
Dispersion, 335.
Divorce, 355-7.
Dogs, 165, 248, 250-1.
Dove, 32-3.
Drachma, the lost, 310-I.
Dropsy healed, 306.
Eagles, 423.
Earthquake at Crucifixion, 504.
EccUsiasHcus, 5.
Education, 19-21.
Egypt, 10- 1.
''Eli, Eli," S°Z-
Elijah, 43.
Elisabeth, 25.
Emmaus in Galilee, 85.
in Judaea, 511.
Entry, the Triumphal, 390-4.
Ephraim, 376.
Eschatology, 422-34.
Essenes, 26.
"Eternal Life, ^Vhat shall I do to
inherit ? " 328.
"Eternal Tents," 314.
Eunuchs, 357-8.
Evangelic Tradition, three editions of,
xvii-xviii.
Excommunication, 345.
Expectation of Redeemer, 6-7, 27.
Face of Jesus, 46.
Fasting, 104, 127-30, 324.
Fatherhood, 19-21.
Feast, the Messianic, 303-4.
Feeding the 5000, 234-7.
the 4000, 255.
Feet-washing, 439-41.
Field of Blood, 474, 475.
Fig-tree, parable of barren, 297-8.
, withering of fruitless, 395, 397.
Fish, draughts of, 88-9, 515-6,
Fish's mouth, shekel in, 281-2.
Fishery, 83.
Flight to Egypt, lO-l.
Fold, 348.
Forgiveness and healing, 1 20- 1.
and love, 205.
Forgivingness and forgiveness, 171,
287-8.
Friend of Sinners, 123-7.
Fringes, 197, 412.
Gabbatha, 489.
Gadara, see Gerasa.
Galilee, 14-7.
Garments of Jesus divided, 497,
Gate, the Narrow, 302-3.
Gehenna, 97.
, three doors into, 193.
INDEXES
543
Gennesaret, 84.
Gerasa, 190.
Gerizim, 73, 76.
Gethsemane, 395. 456.
Glory of the Cross, 274-5*
Goats, 431.
Golden Rule, 164.
Golgotha, 494.
" Gospel," 86.
Gospels, apostolic origin of the, xvii-
xriii.
Greeks enquiring for Jesos, 417-21.
Guests, the politely insolent, 308.
Hades, 316-7.
Hair unbound, 204.
Half-heartedness, 92-3.
Hallel, 442, 447, 451.
Handicraft, 21.
Healing on Sabbath, 135, 306.
Heathen, judgment of, 432-4.
" Heavy" and "light," 408,
Herod the Great, 9-12.
Antipas, 71-2, 229-30, 232-3,
483-4-
Herodias, 71-2, 229-30.
Hezekiah of Galilee, 16.
High Priest, 463-4.
Hours, John's reckoning of, 529-30.
" House of the Book," 20.
" Midrash," 21.
Humility, lessons in, 282-4, 440-2.
Hypocrite, 102.
Impressment, 160, 163, 492-3.
Inheritance, division of, 291.
Intimations of Passion, 267-70, 379,
377-
Intolerance, 284.
Israel destroyed for rejecting Jesus, 297.
Itabyrium, 272.
Tacob's Well, 74-S.
Jairus, 196.
James (i) the Lord's brother, 18, 519.
(2) the son of Alphxus, 151.
(3) the son of Zebedee, 147-8, 326,
378.
Jeremiah's Grotto, 494.
Jericho, 328, 382, 383-4.
Jerusalem, dear to Jesus, 423.
Jesus Bar Abba, 485.
ben Sira, 5.
, the name, 5.
" Jews, the," 62.
Joanna, 82, 212.
John (i) the Baptist, 25-33, 69-72, 222-
231 ;
his disciples, 26, 127-9, 231.
(2) the son of Zebedee, 30, 44,
147.8, 284, 326, 378 ;
acquaintance with High Priest,
46s;
belief that he would never die,
519.
Jordan, sources of, 26a
oseph, foster-father of Tesus, 2, 19.
of Arimathsea, 506-7.
Judsean Ministry, xxxiv-xxxv.
Judah, city of, 25.
Judas (l)the Galilean, 16, 35.
(2) the Man of Kerioth, 152-6, 389,
436-7, 444, 473-5 ;
(3) the son of James (Libbai,
Taddai), 151-2;
(4) the Twin (Thomas), 149-50,
369. 514.
Judge, 322.
Judgment, the Last, 429-34.
Kkdron, 455.
Keys of the Kingdom of Heaven, 265.
Kingdom of Heaven, 27.
not "with obsefo
s o
vation,' 321.
Kiss, of welcome, 203.
, the tnutor's, 459.
Labourers in Vineyard, 365-6.
Lasa majestasy 489.
Lake of Galilee, 83.
Lamb of God, 44.
Lamentation for the dead, 200, 371.
Laugh, Jesus never seen to, 38.
Law, Our Lord's completion of the, 96-
lOI.
loyalty to the, 31-2, 95, 227.
at Scripture, 351, 420.
Lawyer, 327.
Lazarus of Bethany, 367-74.
the Beggar, 315-9.
Leaven of Pharisees and Sadducees, 258.
Lcbbseus, 151.
Leper, 1 12-5.
Lepers, the ten, 320.
Levi (Matthew), 125-6.
Levite, 329.
Licentiousness of the Rabbis, 4l4-5>
" Lifted up," 38.
" Light of^the World," 159, 339.
Limitation of our Lord's mission, 37-8«
Lip-homage, 166-7.
"Little ones," 285.
Living water, 75, 336.
Locusts, 27.
Longinus, 505.
Lost, God's care for the, 310-3.
" Love your enemies," 164.
Machjbrds, 72, 229.
Mad, Jesus' brethren think Him, iSl.
Magadan, 256.
Madchos, 460.
544
INDEXES
•* Mammon of unrighteousness," 314-5.
Marriage, 357-8.
Martha and Mary, 330-I, 367-74.
Mary (l) mother of Jesus, 2, 19, 23, 52-
54, 181-2, 499 ;
(2) of Bethany, 330-1, 388-9;
(3) of Magdala, 212, 509-10.
Mary of Bethany, Mary of Magdala, and
the sinful woman identified, 206-11.
Massacre at Bethlehem, 10.
of Galileans, 295-7.
Master of the Feast, 55.
Matthew, 125-6, 150.
Matthias, 384.
Mercenary service, 363-6.
Messiah's manifestation, 44-9*
origin unknown, 333-4.
Messianic consciousness, dawn of, 23.
ideal in our Lord's day, 35, 50,
237, 262, 297, 362-3, 378, 386-7, 451.
" Mine hour," " My time," 54.
Miracle, the first, 52-7.
Mishnak, xiv.
Multitude's goodwill a protection to Jesus,
334-
MockeryofJesu»(i)mthePr8etonum,487;
(2) on the Cross, 497-8.
Nain, 221.
Narcotic at crucifixion, 495-6.
Nathanael bar Talmai, 30, 47-9, 149.
Nazareth, 17, 48, 212-5.
"Neighbour," 328.
Nicknames of Jesus, 50-1.
Nicodemus, 63-8, 338-9, 507.
Oaths, 100- i, 230, 413,
Obdurate to be let alone, 165.
•• Offering of the poor," 5.
Officer of the Synagogue, 94, 213.
Old and new, 129, 183.
Oral Tradition, xiii.
Ordination of the Twelve, 157-67.
Palm Branches, 392.
Pan, death of, 7.
Parabolic teaching, 183-4.
Paralytic at Bethesda, 140-2.
carried by four, 120-1.
Passover, 22, 58, 435.
" People of the land," 338.
'Peter, 30, 46-7, no, 146, 261-8, 273,
280-2, 441, 443. 44Si 465. 467-8, 509.
513, 515-9.
Pharisees, 42, 324, 411-6.
, friendly, 304-5.
Pharisee and Tax-gatherer, 323-5.
Pharisee, the Bleeding, 77.
, the " Let -me -know- what -is- my-
duty-and-Lwill-do-it," 359.
Philip, 30, 47, 90, 148, 417.
Phoenix, 7.
Phylacteries, 41a.
Physicians, 197.
Pilate, 12, 295, 477-8a
Pilate's wife, 485-6.
Pinnacle of the Temple, 39.
" Pious talk," 307-8.
Play-actor, 102.
Posea, 497-8.
Potter's Field, 475-6.
Pounds, parable of the, 386-7.
Praetorium, 480.
Prayer, 103, 168-75, 323-4. 4H.
, The, 169.
, the Redeemer's, 454-5.
Pre-existence of Jesus, 1-2, 343.
Prescience of the Cross, 38.
Presence of Jesus, spiritual, 525-6.
Presentation of Child in the Temple, 5.
Priest, 329.
Prophecy, cessation of, 26.
of Caiaphas, 375.
Prophet, the, 27, 43.
Prophets, false, 165-6.
of Galilee, 17.
Proselytes, 412-3,
Proverbs, 17, 18, 56, 78, 80, 91, 92, 95,
129, 165, 167, 173, 177, 218, 220, 228,
239, 24s, 250-1, 263, 285, 307, 316,
322, 362, 368, 397, 413, 427, 429, 440,
460,
Publicans, see Tax-gatherers.
Purification, 5.
Purple, 315, 487.
Quarrel between Herod Antipas and
Pilate, 479.
Quartodeciman controversy, 539.
Rmb, Rabbi, RabbOni, 383.
Rabbis, Jesus among the, 22-3.
reverence for, 90-1, 412, 442.
Rabbinical arguments, 351-2, 497,
409-10.
Rachel, lo.
Ramah, la
Ransom, 381.
Rapacity of the Pharisees, 414.
Relationships, Jesus' repudiation of
human, 54, 182.
Remnant, the godly, 5.
Repentance, 28.
Restitution, 385-6.
Resurrection, Jewish idea of, 37a
of Jesus, 508-26.
of Lazarus, 368-74.
, question about, 404-7.
Retirals of Jesus :
(i) into the wilderness, 34 ;
(2) "into the land of Judaea," 69;
(3) into the inland of Galilee, in ;
(4) across the Lake, 189 ;
INDEXES
543
Retirals of Jems — ctntinutd.
(5) into the inland, 202, 213 ;
(6) across the Lake, 2ji ;
(7) into Phoenicia, 247 ;
(8) to Magadan, 356 ;
(9) to Caesarea Philippi, 260;
(10) to Belhany beyond Jordan, 354 ;
(il) to Ephraim, 376.
Revival under John the Baptist, 26-30.
Rheumatic woman healed, 29S-9.
Rich Fool, 291-3.
Rich man and Lazarus, 3IS-9-
Riches, 36i-3.
use of, 313-S.
Rock, the, 263-4.
Rulers of the Synagogue, 94.
Sabbath, 131-3.
breaking, 133-7, 139, 298^, 306,
346.
day's journey, 132.
feasts, 306.
Sabbatic River, 131.
Sadducean insolence, 43, 375.
Saducees, 42, 404-5.
Saliva, 255, 259, 344.
Salome, daughter of Ilerodias, 229-30.
, wife of Zebedee, 147, 378.
"Salt of the earth," 158-9.
"Samaritan," 51, 342.
Samaritan, the Good, 329.
, the Grateful, 320.
Samaritans, 73-4.
reject Jesus, 325-6.
Sanctuary, 03.
Sanhedrin, 464, 468.
. decrees death of Jesus, 374-5.
Saturnalia, 12-3.
"Saved, Are they few that are being?"
302.
Scourge, 486-7.
Scribe rejected by Jesus, 89-90.
Scribes=" counters," 144.
Seamless tunic, 497.
Second Advent, 424-9.
. Seed of Abraham, 30, 342.
" Sermon on the Mount," xx-zxL
" Seven Good Men of the Town," 94.
Seventy Apostles, 290, 326-7.
Sheep, the Lost, 310.
and Goats, 431.
Shepherd, the True, 349*50.
Shrewd Factor, the, 313-5.
Sidon, 253.
Sign, request for a, 62, 178-9, 256-7.
Silent Years, 14-24.
Siloam, 336, 345.
Simon :
(i) see Peter ;
(t) the Zealot, 152 ;
(3) the Pharisee, 202-6 ;
Simon — <0nHntnd.
(4) the Leper, 387 |
(5)ofC7reoe, 493.
Sinlessneas of Jesus, 40-1.
Slave, 117.
Sleeps death, 200, 368 9.
Smiting on the face, 160.
Soldiers, 29.
Solomon's Cloister, 35a
Son of David, 301, 247, 382, 393
409- la
of God, 33, 49, 142, 347, 37a
of Man, 49-51.
of the Fallen, 5a
of the Law, 21.
, the Lost, 311-3.
Sons of Thunder, 147.
, the Two, 399.
Soul hovering about the tomb, 369^
Sower, 185-8.
Stones at the Jordan, 30.
Storm on the Lake, i^-9a
Stumbling-bluck, 2S5.
"Stump hngered," 462.
Suffering and sin, 296, 344.
Suicides' Hell, 340.
Supp>er, the Last, 438-48.
Susanna, 212.
Swine, 165.
of Geriisa, 192-3.
Sycamore, 384.
Sychar, 74.
Symeon, 6.
Synagogue, 94-5.
Syrophoenician woman, 247-52.
Tabbrnaclks, the Feast of, 300, 3J&^
Table-talk, 307.
Tabor, 272.
Talents, parable of the, 427-9.
TalUha, 19, 20a
Tarichese, 83.
Tassel, 197.
Tax gatherers, 29, 84, 123$, 324-5.
Temple, 12, 422.
g»te. 343-
tax, 28a
Temptations in the wilderness, 34-41.
"Tempting God," 39.
Thaddaeus, 151.
Theological prepossession, 339, 34*^
419-20.
Thirty Shekels, 437.
Thomas, 149-50.
Tiberias, 85.
Tithing, 324, 41}.
Tokens of the Risen Lord, 523.
Tombs of the Piophets, 415.
Traffickers In the Temple, 58-6a
Transfiguration, 272-5.
Treasury, 339, 394-
546
INDEXES
Tree, the, 139.
Trial of Jesus :
(i) before Annas, 466;
(2) before the Sanhedrin, 468-73 ;
(3) before Pilate, 480-90.
Tribute, question about, 403-4.
" Trumpets," 339.
"Truth," 482.
Tyre, 253, 289.
Unrightbous Judge, 322-3.
Unwritten Sayings, xix, xl, 135, 170,
315, 426, 432.
Upper Room, 437-8.
Veil, rending of the, 503-4.
Veronica, 199.
Vine, the Real, 453.
Vine-dressers, the Wicked, 399-401.
Vine-yard, Labourers in the, 365-6.
Vinegar, 497-8.
Virgin-birth, xxxvii-xixviii, 2, 527-9.
Virgins, the Ten, 425-7.
Voice from Heaven, 32-3, 273, 419.
Walking on the water, 237-9.
Washing of feet, 203, 439-41.
hands, 244, 486.
Way of the Sea, 18, 84.
Ways, the Two, 302-3.
Wedding, 52, 425.
Weeping of Jesus, 372.
" White City on the HiU," 18.
Wliite- washed tombs, 415.
Widow, the Persistent, 322-3.
Widow's offering, 394.
Widows, oppression of, 414.
Wizards, 8-10.
"Woman I" 53.
Woman applauds Jesus, 181.
, Jewish estimate of, 77.
, the sinful, 203-11.
Women bewailing Jesus, 493.
Women's Court, 339.
Worshippers at Passover, 22.
Writing on the ground, 402.
YOKB, 337.
Young man with linen sheet, 461-2.
men, the Apostles, 156.
Ruler, 358-62.
Zacch/BUS, 384-6.
Zacharias, father of John, 25.
Zealots, 35, 152, 163.
Zebedee, 147.
Zechariah, son of Jehoiada (Barachiah),
416. 534-
II
GREEK WORDS AND PHRASES
iyarav, 361, n. I ; 436, n. 2.
, <pi\€iv, 517, n. 2.
dyyaptia, 1 60, n. 6.
iypavXtiy, 4, n. 3.
dSTjfioyeu^, 457, n. I.
iXdfia^rrpoy, 388, n. I.
dvayevvriffis, 65, n. I.
dvaa-aiJew', 337, n. I.
dvwdev, 65, n. I.
dTrXoOr, xxriii.
dvoTdffvt96a.i, 92, n. I.
d/>Xtr/>UXn'oi, 55, n. 2.
ApX^i 196, n. 2 ; 359, n. i.
avKij^tffdai, 395, n. I.
40«», S03i n- 3-
/SarroXoTffty, 104, n. I.
ytviffia, 229, n. 2.
yvni'6t, 461, n. 3.
SaKpieiw, KXaltif, 393, n. I.
itVTtpbiwputTov, 53 1 -2.
ilSpaxpu)', 280, n. I ; 310, n.
iUatot, " kindly," 2, n. 3.
SiKtuoffApr) "alms," 102, n. 2.
Wf H>la.v TV e«v, 346, n. I.
tli Tf Xos, 436, n. 2.
iKK\ijffla, 286, n. 3.
ifj.ppifjLcUr0ai, I14, n. I ; 372, n. I.
iv Toit rod llarpos fiov, 23, n. 2.
ivrbs iftQv, 321, n. 3.
ivevivrrii, 5 1 6, n. I.
ivipdkdiP, 468, n. I.
(irioiffios, 170, n. 2.
iTTiffTdrrit, 88, n. 2.
Irniffay, 437, n. 2.
i/XiKla, 294, n. I.
fXec&s o'ot, 267, n. 4.
KaOll^np, 489, n. 3.
xaA6i, "genuine," XV, n. 4; 349, n. X
KdyoLObi, 187, n. 3.
Ktp/JMTiffral, 59, n. I.
K\altu>, SaKpvfiw, 393, n- I.
AcoXXu^ioreU, 59, n. I.
K6«fH.yot, 235, n. 2 ; 255, n. 2.
XatXa^, 190, n. I.
Xtirpov, 381, n. 2.
fMfutp&t, 295, n. I.
/^X*«^, 446, n. a.
fiivttv, 449, n. 2.
M«^i, 331. n- 4-
fioy^, 449, n. a.
'a**! 63, n. 1.
6^aXfi6t, ICX3, n. I.
TatSio, 515, n. 3.
xap<ido<nt, xv.
»ttpotf>)«1J, XV.
TapdLKXijTot, 450, n. I.
Tapao'KCin}, 540.
rapaT-^pTjffit, 321, n. 2.
Tiarevtw rtrt, eft rira, 34I«
Tv*vfia, 66, n. 2.
To»^p4», ** niggardly," xxix.
, i, 169, n. 2.
TpocipxtffOcu, 379, n. I.
T/HxrKf^Xcuor, 189, n. I.
St Matthew.
i. t8-ii. 23
iii.
iv. i-ii
12
18-22
23-S
V. 1-16
17-30
31-2
33-39*
39b-48
vi. 1-8
9-iS
16S
19-34
Tii. 1-6
7-11
12
»3-4
15-27
28-9
viii. I
2-4
5-10. 13
1 1-2
147
19-22
18, 23-34
ix. 1-8
9-17
18-31
32-4
35-8
X. 2-4
I. 5-«6
INDEXES
$47
#Ksrl«Xi^Mi>, 99, n. I.
0K\nfOKti^U, 357, n. I.
WKvrvift, xxix.
wn\K«9t*i, 118, n. I.
rraOtlt, 323, n. 1.
rraHip, 280, n. I.
f<f>vplt, 255, n. 2.
^Vx<'i34>.n- «•
iroKpi-Hji, 102.
^(^Tuifeo, 322, n. 4.
^tX«u', iyavar, 517, n. 2-
, nira^iXdf, 205, D. 2 ; 459, O. I
^ptmw ri Twot, 268, n. I.
Xpn^rit, 337, n. 2.
X**/>'«'i 456, n. I.
Ill
THE GOSPEL TEXT
St Matthkw— <wit/iM«M£
pp. 2.13.
17-23
pp. 4*4.
25-33-
24-42
ai8-20w
34-41.
xL 1-19
aaa-9.
70.
(14-5
«75-6).
82-6.
20-4
253. •89^
87-9.
«5-7
353.
112.
2S-30
337.
157-60.
xii. 1-21
iTl^Sa!
95-100.
22-50
355.
(30
183-i.
lOO-I.
xiii. i-5a
164.
(2450
tyo).
101-4.
53-8
ai3-4.
168-75.
xIt. I -a
832-3.
104.
<3-5
70-a.
293-5.
6-11
—9-V>'
164-5.
la
•31.
173.
'in
XT. 1-20
l«S^
164.
302-3.
2432
165-7.
21-9*
«47-53-
104-5.
176.
29b-xH. la
xvi. 13-9
m
112-5.
20-xrii. 13
967-76.
«77-«.
1 16-9.
xvii. 14-xviii. 10
304-
xviii. 1 1 -3
31?-
IIO-I.
14
286.
89-92.
i5"7
286-7.
189-95.
18-20
265-6.
119-22.
21-35
287-8.
i23-3a
xix. t«
^A'
196-201.
ib-xx. 16
354^
176.
«. 17-34
377-8J.
215-6.
145 6.
xxL l-ll
12-3
3^
216-8.
14-9
39S-*.
548
INDEXES
St Matthew-
-coniintud.
20-46
pp. 397-401.
xxii. I -14
401.
15-46
403-10.
xxiii. 1-7
41 1-2.
8-12
442.
13-36
412-6.
37-9
352.
xxiv. 1-51
422-5.
XXV. 1-46
425-34.
xxvi, l-S
436.
6-13
387-9.
14-20
436-8.
2I-S
442-4.
26-9
446-8.
30
451. 455-
• 31-5
445-
36-56
456-61.
57-75
463-73.
xxvii. 1-2
477.
3-10
473-6.
11-30
477-90.
31-66
490-507.
xxviii. I -10
509-10.
11-15
521.
16-20
515-9.
St Mark.
L i-ii
«5-33.
12-3
34-41.
14-5
82-6w
16-20
87-9.
21
94-5.
22-8
104-9.
29-45
110-5.
iL 1-12
119-22.
13-22
123-30.
23-iii. 6
131-7.
iii. 7-12
145-
13-5
157.
l6-9a
144-56.
I9b-3S
176-82.
hr. 1-20
185-8.
21-2
„ ^59.
23.25
185, 429.
24
165.
26-34
184, 270.
35-v. 20
189-95.
T. 21-43
196-201.
▼i. I-13
2I2-2a
14-6
232-3.
17-20
70-2.
21-8
229-3a
29
231.
30-52
233-9.
53-6
243.
»ii. 1-23
243-6.
24-31
247-53.
32-viiL 26
254-9.
yiii. 27-9
260-6.
30-ix. 13
267-76.
IX. 14-50
277-86.
St Mark — continued.
X. la
pp. 301.
ib-31
354-65.
32-52
377-83.
xi. 1-14
390-5.
iS-7
58-61.
18-9
395-6.
20-4
397.
25 [26]
^71-
27-33
397-8.
xii. 1-12
399-401.
13-37
403-10.
38-40
411-4.
41-4
394-
xiii. 1-33
422-5.
34-7
427-9.
xiv. 1-2
436.
3-9
387-9.
10-7
436-8.
18-21
442-4.
22-5
446-8.
26
451. 455.
27-31
445.
32-52
456-62.
53-72
463-73.
XV. 1-19
477-90.
20-47
491-507.
xvi. 1-8
509-10.
[9-20]
xlii. n. I.
St Lokk.
i. 5-25
25-
26-38
2.
39-80
25-6.
ii. 1-39
2-13.
40-52
21-4.
iii. 1-18
25-30.
19-20
71-2.
21-2
30-3.
23
12.
iv. 1-13
34-41.
14-S
70.
16-30
212-5.
31
82-6, 94-5.
32-7
104-9.
38-44
IIO-I.
V. l-ll
87-9.
12-6
112-5.
17-26
11922.
27-39
123-30.
vi 111
131-7.
I2-I3a
157.
I3b-i6
145-56.
17-38
157-65.
39
245.
40
219.
41-9
165-7.
vii. i-io
1 16-9.
"-3S
221-9.
36-50
202-11.
viii. 1-3
212.
4.IS
183-8.
INDEXES
St iMvm—iontintucL
St Lokb— r<m/iMiM£
i6
PP- »59.
45-6
pp. 5MI.
17
218.
47-8
395-6.
i8
185, 429.
XX. 1-8
3978.
19-ai
l8l-2.
919
399401 .
22-39
189-95.
20-40
4037.
40-56
196-201.
41-4
409-10.
ix. 1-6
215-20.
45-7
411-4.
7-9
232-3.
xxi. 1-4
394.
10-7
233-7-
536
42»-5.
18-20
260-6.
37-8
396-7.
436-8.
21-36
267-76.
xxU. 1-14
37-45
277-9.
15-8
442I;
46-50
2825.
19-20
Si-6
125-6.
89-93-
21-3
442-4-
57-62
24-30
438.
X. I
290.
31-8
445-6.
2-ia
215-8.
39
451. 455-
13-S
253. 289.
4053
456-61.
16
219-20.
...54-71
463-73.
17-20
326-7.
xxiu. 1-25
477-90.
21-2
353-
26-56
490-507.
23-4
185.
xxiv. i-ii [12]
509-10.
25-37
327-9.
13-35
5H-3.
38-42
330-1.
36-43
5 '3-4.
xi. 1-13
168-75.
44-53
520-1.
14-36
176-81.
37-8
244. 305-
St John.
39-54
413-6.
L 1-18
1
xii. la
290.
19-51
43-51-
lb
258.
ii. I- 1 1
52-7.
2-9
218-9.
12-iiL 21
58-68.
10
177-8.
iti. 22-36
69-70.
II-2
424.
iT. 1-3
70.
13-34
290-5.
4-42
729.
35-8
425-
43-54
802.
39-53
424. 434-
V.
13844-
54-7
257-
vi. 1-21
2339.
58-9
98.
22-vii. 1
240-3.
xiii. 1-17
295-9.
vii. 2-10
300-1.
18-21
270.
.^■52
332-9.
22-33
301-5.
53-vil»- "
401-2.
. 34-5
352.
viii. 12-x. 39
339-52.
wv. 1-33
306-9.
X. 40-2
3S4-5.
34-5
158-9.
xi. 1-53
367-75-
xv.-xvL 12
309-15-
.. 54-7
376-7. 390
xvi. 13
294-5-
XII. l-tl
387-9.
i4-3»
315-9-
12-9
390-4.
16
227.
20-50
417-21.
17
95-
xiii. 1
435-6.
18
355-
^•35
36-8
439-44.
xTii. 1-4
285-7-
^^
5-6
307.
xir.
448-51.
7-10
363-4.
XT-XVii.
452-5.
4556.
45f6i.
II-2I
320-1.
xviii. I
22-37
423-4-
211
33
220.
12-27
463.8.
xviii. I- 14
322-5-
28-xix. 16
477-90.
15-30
358-65.
xix. 17-42
491. 507.
31-43
377-83-
XX. 1-18
509.1a
xix. 1-28
3837-
19-XXL
5»3^
3944
390-3.
549
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