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NOTES
UPON THE
FOUR GOSPELS,
</
IN A
NEW METHOD,
FOR THE USE OF ALL, BUT ESPECIALLY THE
UNLEARNED ENGLISH READER.
IN TWO PARTS.
TO WHICH ARE PREFIXED,
THREE DISCOURSES,
RELATING TO BOTH PARTS;
OF WHICH AN ACCOUNT IS GIVEN IN THE PREFACE,
BY JOSEPH TRAPP, D. D.
A NEW EDITION,
OXFORD,
AT THE CLARENDON PRESS
1805.
."eft COLLEGE,
OXFORD.
PREFACE.
J. HAVE long wondered, that among ib many
large and excellent Annotations upon the Holy
Scriptures, for the ufe of the learned, nothing
of this nature ihould be done, in a fhort and
plain method, for the ufe of all indeed, but efpe-
cially the unlearned : and yet no fuch thing
has been done ; at leaft as I know of. What
feems to be moft like it, is Dr. Clarke s Para-
pbrafe upon the Four G off els ; (I admire he did
not take in the Afts of the Apojlles :) but that,
though very good in its kind, is about two
thirds longer than this little work is intended
to be. He prints the whole Four Gofpels at
large, and paraphrafes every thing, whether it
wants to be paraphrafed, or not. My defign is
to take notice only of difficult places, and leave
the reft untouched : for to what purpofe fhould
one interpret what is plain of itfelf, and needs
no interpretation ? You will fay perhaps, diffi
cult is a relative term ; and that may not be
difficult to one, which is fo to another. I an-
fwer, I have endeavoured to omit nothing,
which has any difficulty, even to the meaneft
capacity, fo far as one man's underftanding can
a 2 judge
vi PREFACE.
judge of another's : and that anfwer, I conceive,
is fufficient.
Dr. Clarke, whofe Paraphrafe I have care
fully read, fpeaking of Bifhop Hall's Expofition,
printed in the year 1633, (which likewife I
have all along confulted,) obferves, that " be-
" caufe it was only upon particular texts, the
" defign itfelf allowed him not to regard the
" tranfitions," &c. But certainly one may in
terpret only particular texts, and yet regard the
tranfitions, by referring to, and reciting, what
goes before, or after, or both. One of the
chief things I intend, is to account for the
tranfitions and connections, which are often ob-
fcure. The other principal parts of my defign
are, to reclify the translation ; to explain pro
verbial and figurative fchemes of fpeech, as alfo
matters of fact relating to hiftory and cuftoms ;
to adjuft the application of the Prophecies ; to
Ihew the force and reafon of fome arguments,
which often lie deep, and out of fight to com
mon readers ; but chiefly to reconcile fuch paf-
fages as feem to contradict each other, and
fome which feem to contradict themfelves.
There are many other ways of explaining,
which cannot well be reduced to diftincl heads;
they will be feen in their proper places ; and no
more need be faid of them in this.
Befides
PREFACE. vii
Befides the two juft now mentioned, Biftiop
Hall and Dr. Clarke, I have carefully confulted
moft of the confiderable Commentators, both
ancient and modern ; I think I may fay, all
the beft : Dr. Hammond ; the Affembly of
Divines ; Epifcopius, fo far as he goes ; Dr.
Whitby ; the large Volumes of the Critics, as
they are called ; but above all, and which is
inftar omnium, that ftupendous work, that ma
gazine of human and divine learning, (the moft
wonderful work, fure, that ever was performed
by any one man,) the excellent Mr. Poole's
Synopjis Criticorum aliorumque, &c. who, befides
the fubftance of the Critics, has given us the
fubftance of above forty other Expofitors, moft
of them far better than the Critics themfelves,
except three or four, efpecially the great Gro-
tius, who indeed is the beft of all. From
thefe compared together, and from my own
thoughts and reflections, I formed my judgment
as well as I could, and then fet down every
thing in my own words ; except a very few
paflages, which are tranfcribed from authors in
Englifh.
If a little book of this kind can be more
ufeful to any than the unlearned, it is to fome
of the learned ; I mean the young Clergy and
Students in Divinity. Thofe of the higher clafs
in literature, whether Clergy or Laity, I pre-
fume
viii PREFACE.
fume not to inftrucl, but defire to be in-
ftrucled by them ; though even to them, to
the moffc learned, fuch a thing may not be
altogether ufelefs. It may remind them of
many particulars, which they know much bet
ter than he by whom they are fo reminded.
But, I fay, fuch a performance, if done as it
fliould be, (whether this be fo, or not, I am no
judge, I fubmit to others,) muft needs be
greatly beneficial to the young Clergy and Stu
dents in Divinity. Thefe I mean, when I re
fer the learned readers to Critics, or Gram
marians, the Commentators at large, the writ
ings of Divines upon fuch or fuch fubjeds. It
is for them likewife that I have occafionally
thrown in a few Latin, Greek, and Hebrew
words : in other refpefts, the merely Englifh
reader will not be interrupted, by what he or
fhe does not underftand.
As in the courfe of thefe Notes I met w7ith
many pafiages, which I had before largely con-
fidered and explained, in Three Difcourfes upon
very important fubjecls and occafions ; which
Difcourfes are, in truth, rather Comments,
than Sermons ; I thought it proper to join
them with this fliort Commentary, and refer
to them for the explanation of the paflages
aforefaid.
I have
PREFACE. ix
I have nothing material to add further, but
this obfervation ; that though learned Har-
monifts have taken laudable pains to adjuft our
Saviour's actions and fpeeches, with regard to
time and place, as they are related by the fe-
veral facred Hiftorians ; yet, after all, it is im-
poffible to account for the whole fcheme, with
out acknowledging, that he often did or faid
the fame things, at different times, in different
places, and to different perfons. And why he
fhould not do fo, I cannot imagine. Numerous
inftances of this might eafily be given : fome I
have taken notice of in the book itfelf ; and
every attentive reader of the Gofpels will ob-
ferve many more. Sometimes likewife the
fame fpeech, whether fpoken but once, or more
than once, is recited by different Evangelifts in
words fomewhat different. Nor is there any
juft objection againft this. There was no rea-
fon that they mould be exact -to a word, the
fenfe being in the main the fame. Nay, fuch
variation has its ufe, and that upon more ac
counts than one. ift, It mews that the Evan
gelifts did not write in concert, or confederacy ;
which adds great authority to their teftimony.
sdly, It gives us occafion to explain one ex-
preffion by another, where either of them is
obfcure ; which engages our ftudy and atten
tion in the reading of thofe facred writings.
That for this and other reafons, there not only
may
x PREFACE.
may be, but muft and ought to be, fome ob-
fcurity in them, I have elfewhere a proved, and
{hall here fay no more of it.
a Prefervative againft Unfettled Notions, &c. Vol. I. Difc. H<
ADVER-
ADVERTISEMENT
TO
THE READER.
X HE learned Author being taken away by death,
while this work was in the prefs, and having left no
ftridtures behind him, which might ferve as materials
for the completion of it, it was thought too pre-
fumptuous to make the requiiite additions in hafte,
and, though not diffembling them, to fend the whole
abroad under the original title. But, left the abrupt
breaking off in the midft of a chapter, and leaving
the following chapters in St. Johns Gofpel entirely
unexplained, mould render it more liable to objec
tions on the account of its imperfection, a continu
ation of Notes in the fame manner, to the end of
that Gofpel, was concluded to be a very neceffary
Supplement. Accordingly, it has been undertaken by
a perfon, who,, having had the pleafure and the ad
vantage of a long uninterrupted friendfhip with the
Author^ thought himfelf in fome fmall degree the
better qualified, and likewife under fome obligation,
to endeavour to fupply the deficiency. The Reader
may probably be defirous to know exactly where it
begins : but this being a curiofity not very likely to
be lading, the Continuator is the lefs inclined to fa-
tisfy it diredly ; efpecially fince the difcovery may
give occafion to an imputation of vanity, as if it
b could
xii ADVERTISEMENT.
could be thought a matter of difficulty to difcern
the difference. If the attempt he has made towards
finiihing the part left imperfect fhall be approved,
as conformable to the firft delign, and not too heavy
for the reft of the building, it is very probable that
he may be encouraged to carry up, againft the next
winter, an additional fuperftrudhire, to the fame
height with that which was originally intended.
THREE
DISCOURSES, ,
EXPLAINING SOME
ILLUSTRIOUS PROPHECIES
OF THE
OLD AND NEW TESTAMENT;
PARTICULARLY
THOSE OP THE FORMER WHICH ARE INTERPRETED
IN THE LATTER.
WITH
REMARKS upon the peculiar Genius, Turn^ and Caft of
the Prophecies in general :
BEING
The THREE DISCOURSES often referred to in the Explanatory
Notes upon the Four Gofpels.
DISCOURSE I.
The illuftrious PROPHECY concerning our Sa
viour, Ifa. vii. 14, 15, 1 6. as applied, and
interpreted, Matth. i. 33, 23. explained,
and vindicated. With incidental obferva-
tions upon the Prophecies in general.
MATTH. i. 22, 23.
Now all this was done, that it might be fulfilled which was
fpoken of the Lord by the Prophet, faying ;
Behold a Virgin Jhall be with child, andJJiall bring forth a
fon, and they Jball call his name Immanuel ; which being
interpreted is, God with us,
THE great importance of this text, with rela
tion to Chrift and Chriftianity, and how much
it has been objected againit by the enemies of both,
are points well known to all who are verfed in thefe
matters. St. Matthew, giving us the hiftory of our
bleffed Saviour's birth, which was miraculous, he
being born of a Virgin, applies to this purpofe part
of that famous prophecy, Ifa. vii. 14, 15, 16. In
which the Prophet, addreffing himfelf to the houfe
of David, which was then in great fear, and danger,
from two powerful kings leagued againft it, fpeaks
thus : The Lord himfelf Jh all give you a fign ; Behold
a Virgin fhall conceive, and bear a fon, and jhall call
his name Immanuel. Butter and honey Jhall he eat ;
that he may know to refufe the evil, and choofe the good.
For before the child Jhall know to refufe the evil^ and
B choofe
$ The PROPHECY concerning
choofe the good, the land that thou abhorrejl fljall It
forfaken of both her kings. Here the Evangelift, and
the whole Chriflian Church, are charged by the
Jews, and of late by other enemies to Christianity,
our own native Infidels, but efpecially by the Jews,
with mif apply ing at lead, if not with downright mif-
quoting ; and fundry objections they urge againft this
paffage.
It is, in truth, attended with no f mall difficulties :
but if they may be very well cleared, as we think
they may be, that is fufficient. In endeavouring to
clear them, I (hall make no diftinclion between the
objections of unbeliever 's, and real difficulties eventoowr-
felves ; becaufe in the main they fall in with one
another : and if we remove all real difficulties, we
of courfe remove all reafonable ob/effions.
But before I come to the difcuffion of this parti
cular prophecy, and its application by the Evan
gelift., I mall take notice of the general expreffion
which introduces it. Now all this was done, THAT
IT MIGHT BE FULFILLED, &c. This expreffion,
occurring very often in the New Teftament, when
the prophecies of the Old are applied, and being in.
itfelf of great contequence, ought to be rightly un-
derftood by us : and this being the firft place in
which it occurs, it will be proper to coniider it
here. *f Theie words, This zvas done, that it might
" be fulfilled^ are not to be underftood," (fays the
great Grotius,) cc as if God would have Chrift born
" of a Virgin, properly with this dejign and intention,
C( that what Ifaiah had fpoke mould come to pafs ;
Cf rather, becaufe he willed that it mould fo come to
r< pafs, he therefore willed that Ifaiah (hould fo fpeak.
" Either therefore St. Matthew's meaning is, that
" thefe things were thus done, becaufe God would
<( execute his decree, of which decree there was an
" intimation, or fome difcovery extant in Ifaiah ; or
" elfe the particle »W, here tranflatcd that, fignifies
" (as
Our SAVIOUR, Ifaiah vii. 14, 15, 16. 3
" (as it often does) not the end of the agent, but
<c only the conference of the aftion. As Pfahn li. 4.
" Luke xiv. 10. Rom. v. 20." And then the fenfe
is the fame, as if it had been faid, This being done,
that was fulfilled which was fpoken, &c. The Jews,
and other Infidels,, cavil againft this phrafe, That
it might be fulfilled -, as a ftrange way of proving*
" But it is to be noted," (fays the fame Grotius,)
"that the Apoftles do not argue againft the Jews
" with thefe quotations, as teftimonies, or proofs, that
" Jefus is the promifed Meffiah : they cite but few
" prophecies to that purpofe, being content with the
" evidence of Chrift's miracles and re fur reel; ion : for
" either this was enough, or nothing was. But to
" thofe, who were already perfuaded of that, they
" were willing to (hew how the whole ceconomy of for-
<c mer times having, as it were, before its eyes this
Cf very Chrift, and his adtions, as the moft beautiful
" and perfect object, formed and moulded all other
" things to that pattern, or flandard." This being
premiied in general, we come directly to the particular
prophecy now before us.
King Ahaz, his court, and all his fubjects, were
ftruck with the utmoft terror and confter nation
at the invalion of two confederate Kings, Rezin
of Syria, and Pekah of Ifrael. Notwithstanding
the monftrous wicked nefs of Ahaz in particular,
and of the nation in general, God had ftill a con
cern for the royal houfe of David, to which the
promifes of the Meffiah were made ; and therefore
lends his Prophet to comfort them in their dif-
trefs, and allure them that they fhould be delivered
from their enemies. Then faid the Lord unto Ifaiah,
Go forth now to meet Ahaz, thou, and Shear-jajhub
thy fon — and fay unto him, Take heed, and be quiet ;
fear not — Thus faith the Lord God, It Jhall not jland,
neither Jhall it come to pafs, &c. v. 3, 4 — 7. Then
it follows, v. 10 — 1 6. Moreover the Lord fpake
jj 2 again
4 The PROPHECY concerning
again unto Ahaz, faying, Afk thee ajign of the Lord thy
God ; ajk it either in the depth, or in the height above ;
i. e. a fign, or miracle, either from heaven above,
or from the earth or fea below. Eut Ahaz [aid,
I will not ajk, neither will I tempt the Lord. How
ever this may teem a good anlwer, as having an
appearance of humility and piety ; it was in reality
a very bad one, as proceeding from infidelity, or de-
fpair, and a profane, fallen obftinacy. And he /aid,
Hear ye now, O houfe of David — . Upon Ahaz's re-
fufal, "the Prophet very reafonably and juftly no
more addrelfes himfelf to him, (to fignify that God
had done with him for ever,) but to the houfe of Da
vid, that is, to the other princes of the blood, and the
royal family, only excluding the king himfelf. Is
it a fmall thing for you to weary men ? but will you
weary my God alfo f IV ear y -, i.e. affront, provoke,
ill ufe t as if he mould have faid, You may think,
perhaps, it is no great matter how you treat us
Prophets, who are but men : yet you would do
well to coniider, that through our lides the indig
nity redounds to God, whofe commiffion we have,
and in whofe name we fpeak. Therefore the Lord
himfelf ; i. e. he unajked, of his own accord, (lince
Ahaz, though invited to it, had refufed to aik one,)
the Lord himfelf Jh all give you a fign', E eh old a Virgin
Jhall conceive, and bear a fon, and fhall call his name
Immanuel. Butter and honey fljall he cat -, that he may
knoiv to refufe the evil, and choofe the good. It can
not be fuppofed, nor is it meant, (however the
words may found in our translation,) that his eating
butter and honey would be the caufe of his refuling
the evil, and choofing the good : but the fenfe is ;
either, he fhall eat thofe things which arc the ordi
nary food of children, that he may live till he comes
to the knowledge of good and evil, that is to the
life of re af on ; which amounts to the fame as if it had
been faid, \& Jhall live till that time : or elfe, (which
perhaps
Our SAVIOUR, Ifaiab vii. 14, 15, i5. 5
perhaps is the better verfion,) inftead of that lie may,
it fhould be rendered until he Jhall ; and then we
have the fame fenfe as before, in the very literal
expreffion. For (it Ihould be rendered and) before
the child fhall know to refufe the evil, and choofe the
goody i. e. come to the ufe of reafon ; the land
which thou abhorrejl (meaning that of Ifrael) Jhall
beforjaken of (i. e. (hall lofe by death) both her kings ;
meaning her own king Pekah, and her confederate
king Rezin. I thought proper in this place, with
regard both to the importance of the fubjeft, and to
the prefent great fejtival\ (this portion of Scripture
being appointed the firft leflbn for the afternoon
fervice,) briefly to explain this illuftrious Prophecy
throughout ; except that part cited by the Evange-
lift in my text : which muft now be largely and dij-
tinttly confidered ; and will of courfe be fully ex
plained, while its being thus quoted and applied is
cleared and vindicated.
What the Jews object about the word Alma in
the original,, that it does not always fignify a Vir
gin > but fometimes a young woman, whether a Vir
gin, or not, is upon many accounts vain and fri
volous. For in the firft place,, fuppofing it were
fo, they themfelves own that it generally iignifies
a Virgin: and why had not St. Matthew a right
to take it in its general and moft common ac
ceptation ? Nay, that it does,, and muft fo fignify
in this place, is -little lefs than demonftrably evident
from the context ; The Lord him f elf Jh all give you
a fign ; Behold a Virgin, &c. Now, according to the
Jewifh interpretation, no more is meant, than that
a young woman being joined to a man (hall con
ceive, and bear a fon. But fure there is no great
miracle in this. What fign or wonder is there in
it ? What occafion for that pompous preparation,
* Ohriftmas Day.
B 3
The PROPHECY concerning
Lord hlmfelf, &c. Behold ? Beiides, the
LXXII Translators of the Bible into Greek, who
were all Jews, and made their verfion 300 years be
fore our Saviour was born, render it, as St. Matthew
and we do, Virgin, (na^'vo?): and it was ever un-
derftood fo, till, fince the writing of the Gofpel,
the Jews, by an after -thought, coined thefe and many
other interpretations, never dreamed of by their
fathers ; in order to calumniate the penmen of
the New Teftament, and invalidate the evidence
of the Chriftian religion. Add to this, that the
root, or etymology of the word, implies a Virgin ;
and there is no other word in the language which
ib diftinguifhingly expreffes it. And whereas the
Jews pretend to allege but a two places in which
it fignifies otherwife ; the firft is not in the leafb
degree proved to make for them, and the other
makes againjl them. I might very well add, that
the firft is fo far from making for them, that the
paifage is fcarce fenle according to their expofi-
tion, and very good fenfe according to ours. Thus
for the fignification of that word.
The fubflance of the other, whether objections,
or difficulties, or both, is reducible to thefe two
heads ; ift, That the Prophecy may be applied toy
and fuppofed to have been fulfilled />/, fome other
perfon. 2dly, That to whomfoever it relates, it can
not relate to our Jefus. This laft is home to the
point indeed ; and, if true, might well fuperfede
all other confiderations. Neverthelefs, that we may
leave nothing unanfwered, we will take a little no
tice of the former.
The Jews (fome of them, I mean, for they are
* Prov. xxx. 19. and Cant. vi. 8. That the firft does
not make for them, and that the fecond is agamft them, fee
proved by Bp. Kidder in his Dcmonjlration of the Mcffiab. Part
II. p. IO2.
divided
Our SAVIOUR, Ifaiah vii. 14, 15, 16. J
divided in their opinions) tell us it was a prophe
cy of Hezekiah. But, to omit many other particu
lars which might be well alleged,, Hezekiah was
twenty-five years of age, when he began to reign ;
Ahaz reigned but fixteen ; therefore Hezekiah was
nine when Ahaz his father came to the crown ;
and much older when thefe words were fpoken :
confequently he could not be prophefied of, as a
child to be born. Some fay it was another fon of
Ahaz. To which it will be fufficient to anfwer,
that Ahaz had no fon, but Hezekiah, who was lord
of Judah ; as this Immanuel was to be. Chap. viii.
8. Thy land) O Immanuel. Others will have
it, that it was one of Ifaiah's fons. But which of
them was it ? We read but of two ; Shear-jafhub,
and Maher-fhalal-hafh-baz. The former indeed is
very probably pointed at in one part of the pro
phecy, of which hereafter ; but he could not be
meant as the child to be born ; becaufe he was there
prefent when this prophecy was uttered by his
father : beiides that he likewife was never lord of
Judaea, as Immanuel was to be ; which laft is as
true of Maher-fhalal-hafh-baz.
Come we now to the fecond and main point.
This prophecy, we are told, to whomfoever it re
lates, cannot relate to our Jefus. id. Becaufe his
name was not Immanuel. I anfwer, neither was
Hezekiah, nor any fon of Ahaz, nor any fon of
Ifaiah, called Immanuel ; and fo the argument (if
of any force) is as good againft our adversaries, as
againft us. adly, and chiefly, It is very well known,
and the Jews themfelves muft and do confefs it,
that to be called, or named, in Hebrew, very often
fignifies to be. Now though our Saviour's infti-
tuted or impofed name was Jefus ; yet his real and
natural name was Immanuel: that is, in other
words, he really and truly WAS Immanuel, God
with us 3 and that in the higheft and moft pecu-
B 4
S The PROPHECY concerning
liar fenfe imaginable ; fo that it could be applied
io no other but to him. Pie, being God, not only
lived with us, and converfed among us ; but his
divine and our human nature were united in his
p.erfon. Befides, the name Immanuel is virtually
included in the name Jefus : for he could not have
been Jefus, which lignifies Saviour, if he had not
been God and man ; which, as I faid, is being in
the higheft fenfe God with us. Thefe things we
have often proved upon other occafions -9 and to
thofe proofs I refer.
2dly. Another reafon againft our application of
the prophecy is this : that, confidering the oc-
cafion upon which it was pronounced, it makes
Ifaiah's whole difcourfe impertinent, and abfurd.
His bufmefs is to comfort the houfe of David in
their prefent diftrefs, by alluring them, that they
fliall be delivered from their enemies who have
actually invaded them : and this he does (ac
cording to our account) by telling them, that the
Meffiah (hall be born : which was not to happen
till many ages after. What comfort is this, as
to the prefent exigency, whatever it may be in
other refpedts ? and how is it at all to the prefent
purpofe ? I anfwer, it was very much to the pur-
pofe, and matter of great comfort, as to the pre
fent exigency. The tribe of Judah iu general, and
the houfe of David in particular, were in extreme
fear, and indeed in the utmoft danger of being ex-
tinguimed and deftroyed. Now the Meffiah was
promifed by God to be born of the tribe of Judah,
and in that tribe of the houfe of David. The Pro
phet therefore puts them in mind, that the tribe of
Judah therefore muft continue, and that as a known
diftind: tribe too ; and fo muft the houfe of Da
vid, as a known diftincl: family, till the birth of
the Meffiah ; which nobody had then the leaft ex
pectation of, as a thing that fhould happen in that
age;
Our SAVIOUR^ Ifaidb vli. 14, 15, i5. 9
age : confequently (if God's promifes are to be cre
dited) this was full affurance to them, that the tribe
of Judah, and the houfe of David, could not be
extirpated in the diftrefs they were then under,
and by the kings, of whofe power they were fo ap-
prehenfive.
Be it fo then, you will fay, as this was a pro-
wife-, but how could it be a Jign ? What fenfe is it
to fay, You fhall be delivered from your enemies
who have now invaded you, by the fame token that
700 years hence a Virgin fhall conceive., and bear a Jon*
&c. I anfwer, ift, Many of the prophecies (par
ticularly thofe relating to the Mefliah) had a view
to more fenfes than one ; to fomcthing immediate,
and to fomething remote. And a very good account
may be given of the matter we are now upon, if
we put it thus. " The prophecy, though in its
" true and natural fenfe it could be fulfilled in
'? none but the Mefliah, yet had an immediate
fi afpe6l upon fome particular event that mould
" quickly happen ; viz, that within the time that
" one who is now a Virgin could marry, and bring
te forth a fon, and that fon come to fome know-
" ledge of good and evil, the two kings of Samaria
" and Damafcus mould be deftroyed. It may in-
" deed feem ftrange, that any part of this illuftri-
" ous prophecy concerning Chrift fhould be fup-
" pofed applicable to any other peribn, or event.
" But to this it may be anfwered, that, as all the
" mercies promifed to the Jews were figures, or
" earnefts of the times of the MefTias, in whom
<c all the promifes of God were verified, according to
" that of the' Apoftle, 2 Cor. i. 20. All the pro*
" mifes of God in him are yea> and amen ; fo the
" Prophets, in foretelling temporal mercies, are fome-
" times carried beyond them/elves, and their fubjtcJ, to
" foretell the bleffings of the Gofpel ; and after this
" extraordinary rapture they return to the fubject
4< which
To Tie PROPHECY concerning
" which was the immediate occafion of their pro-
" phecy a." To this purpofe fpeak many learned in
terpreters ; Grotius efpecially : to which fomething,
I think, fhould be added. Becaufe it may well be
objected, that for a woman, who is now a virgin, to
be married and have a fon, is no Jign, nor any thing
Jlrange ; and that the land mould be freed from its
enemies before fuch or fuch a time, is no Jign nei
ther, but rather the thing Jignified-, and could not
for the prefent gain any credit to the prophecy. 'I
anfwer, Here is indeed no lign given, as that word
implies a miracle wrought upon the fpot,, or a pro
phecy prefently fulfilled in order to gain credit to
a fubfequent prediction ; (for fuch a one had been
offered to Ahaz, and refufed by him;) but a fign^.
tvonder, or miracle at large, as the word often fig-
niiies. Now a true prophecy proving true, or actually
fulfilled, both as to the fubftance of the thing, and
the circumjlance of time, is iff elf &Jign, or a Wonder.
Certain it is, that many of the prophecies have a
view to more events than one ; to fomething im
mediate and foon to be fulfilled, and fomething
remote and at a great diflance. Thus, for exam
ple, that of Jeremiah xxxi. 15. A voice was heard
in Ramah — Rachel weeping for her children, &c. had
two meanings : the firft relating to the captivity of
the tivo tribes, which happened in a few years ; the
fecond to the maffacre of the Innocents by Herod,
which came not to pafs till above 600 years after.
And (to omit numerous other inftances) thofe pre
dictions concerning the particular circumftances of
our Saviour's furferings, Pfal. xxii. and Ixix. Pierc
ing his hands and feet, parting his garments, and caft-
ing lots, their giving him gall to eat, and vinegar to
drink, as they refer to the Pfalmift who wrote
them, are only figurative and poetical expreffions,
a Lowthupon the place.
defcribing
Our SAVIOUR, Ifatah vii. 14, 15, 16. 11
defcribing great mifery. But it is certain, that
they were all literally and punctually fulfilled in our
Saviour : and therefore we may reaibnably conclude,
that David (who in many refpects too was a type
of Chrifl) being in great affliction, was naturally
inclined to complain ; and in that complaint the
Spirit of God moved him to make ufe of fuch ex-
preffions, and inftance mfuch particular circumftances
of pain and difgrace, as might be fo many pro
phecies of our Saviour, and were actually verified
in him. And (to obviate an objection) let it be care
fully obferved, that it is very eafy, in many cafes
at leaft, to perceive that the fenfe relating to the
near eft and more immediate event does not by any
means come up to the full import of the prophecies;
but that fomething of far greater moment is ftill
behind. Thus in the very inftance now before us.
The Lord himfelf- — Behold — A VIRGIN Jha/l conceive —
His name Immanuel — are expreffions which manifeft-
Jy carry in them fomething too fublime, wonderful,
and divine, to be applied to the prefent immedi
ate occafion of pronouncing the prophecy. And
therefore the import of the word *x*ifw^», which
we render might be FULFILLED, with reference to
the prophecies in the writings of the Evangelifb,
is very remarkable. It denotes not only being come
to pafs, but ftrictly, and literally, btuigfilled up, con-
fummated, perfected, completed. The prophecies were
•not till then, till they were verified in Chrift, grown
up, and ripened to their full accompli/hment ; though
in another Jenfe, and in other -perfons, they were partly
come to pafs before. Nor is there any thing abfurd
or irrational in this way of expofition ; nothing
that tends to illufion, or deception : on the con.
trary, it is, to my apprebenfion, exceeding congru
ous, clear, and beautiful. The Jews, of all men,
have no reafon to objedl againft our afllgning more
.fenfes than one to fome prophecies. For they not
only
IS The PROPHECY concerning
only permit it themfelves, but purfue it too far;
indulging themfelves a great deal too much in alle
gorical and myftical interpretations.
If this account of the difficulty does not fa-
tisfy, though I think it is abundantly fufficient, I
anfwer, 2dly, Let us fuppofe (as fome learned men
do) that the words, Behold a Virgin /ball conceive,
and bear a Jon — and fo on to the end of v. 15*
have no reference to any woman, but the Virgin
Mary ; and to no child, but our Jefus. I ac
knowledge here again upon this fuppoiition, as
above, according to the other interpretation, that
they could not give a fign to the houfe of David
with refpect to its dijlrejs and danger at that time,
as the \vordjtgu implies a token given, in order to
gain credit to a prefent prediction ; but they pro*
mife a Jign, or wonder at large : (as 1 obferved be
fore, the word often, I add now, moft commonly,
fignifies in the Holy Scriptures :) for what greater
miracle, Jign, or wonder, can there be, than a child
born of a Virgin? But then the next words, Before
the child Jliall know, &c. the land which thou ab-
horreji jhall be forfaken, &c. cannot be underftood
of the fame child ; but muft be applied to another ;
moft probably Ifaiah's own infant fon ; who was
there prefent, and was not, we may be fure, brought
thither for nothing, by the direct command of God
himfelf. v. 3. 'Then faid the Lord unto Ifaiah, Go
forth now to meet Ahaz, thou, and Shear-jajhub thy
Jon, &c. his name Shear-jafhub, i. e. a remnant Jhall
return, implying the deliverance here promifed. To
this purpofe it is very remarkable, that his other fon
Maher-lhalal-hafh-baz is made ufe of in a pro
phetical way, chap. viii. his name alfo, In making
fpeed to the fpoil, he hajleneth the prey, being Signifi
cative, and predictive, and impofed by the com
mand of God himfelf: and v. 18. of the fame
chapter the Prophet fpeaks thus : Behold 1, and the
children
Our SAVIOUR, Ifaiab vii. 14, 15, 16. i £
children which God hath given me, are for figns, and
for wonders in Ifrad. Againft this interpretation
I am feniible there lies a manifefl prejudice ; that
the fiidden tranfition from one perfon to another,
without any notice given, and in words, which in
their plain and mod obvious fenfe Teem to be fpoken
of one and the fame perfon, is harm, and unnatu
ral. I own it feems harm, and unnatural, as it now
ftands -, and to us at this diftance : and yet I an-
iwer, i ft, As it may be better rendered THIS chtfd,
than THE child ; we may very well fuppofe the Pro
phet to have pointed to Shear-jafhub then in his
arms, and fo to have fufficiently diflinguiflied him
from the other child before fpoken of. 2diy, Sup-
pofe it were otherwife, though it is no {trained or
forced fuppoiition, but very natural, and highly pro
bable ; there are as great difficulties, and obfcu-
rities, as harm, dark, and unconnected traniitions,
from one perfon or thing to another, in profane
and heathen authors ; particularly thofe which go
by the name of the daffies; whole works are juftly
the moft valued and admired of all Pagan antiquity:
and yet more particularly in the Poets. And, by the
way, many writings of the Holy Scriptures, the pro
phetical ones efpecially, are to the laft degree poeti
cal both in fentiments and expreffions. 3dly, Sup-
pofe again even that were otherwife •, yet furely the
divine oracles, the diftates of God himfelf, may be
allowed fome peculiar privilege* or rather preroga
tive. They have by their majefly and dignity a right
to be obfcure-, and not to be tied down by the
common rules of human method, thought, and dic
tion. It is fit fome of them fliould be difficult, and
obfcure, in order to engage our greater diligence,
our clofer ftudy and attention. It is more efpecially
Jit, that prophecies, very often, fliould be obfcure; nay,
it is even neceJJ'ary t\\3,t fome of them ihould be fo ;
the
14 Tie PROPHECY concerning
the very nature and genius of them requiring it ;
thofe, I mean, the completion of which depends
upon the actions of men : thefe, if they were plain at
firft, would feem to neceffitate thofe adions; as if men
muft do this, or that, in order to the fulfilling of
prophecies. Whereas the foreknowledge of God
docs not neceffitate the actions of men ; nor do they
act in fuch or fuch a manner, becaufe he forefees ;
on the contrary, he fo forefees, becaufe they fo
act. Therefore when he foretold things of this na
ture, he did it in fuch a manner that the predic
tions mould not at firft be fully underftood ; left
men mould think their actions forced, and them-
felves obliged to do this, or that, in order to the
fulfilling of thofe predictions. Nor is it a reafona-
ble objection againfl any prophecies, whether relat
ing to the free adions of men or not, that they
were partly obfcure at firft, and not fully under-
(lood till the event explained them. Thus many of
thofe concerning the Mefliah, though partly under
ftood at firft> yet were partly not underftood, till
they were fulfilled in the perfon of our Saviour :
but now being compared with the event, they are
perfectly plain and clear. Nor is it any juft ob
jection againft the authority of the prophecies, that
they were not fully underftood, till they were come
to pafs ; nor againft us, that we in fome meafurc
explain them by the events, as if it were an arbi
trary expofition, or application, and looked like beg
ging the qiieftion ; lince it now appears by the events
tbemf elves, that they were predictions of thofe events
to which they are by us applied : thofe events, and
no other, exactly anfwering thofe predictions written
feveral hundred years before. All who allow them
to be predictions muft grant they foretold fome-
thing ; and now they are compared with thefe events,
it appears, that thefe are the things which they
foretold.
Our SAVIOUR, Ifai-ab vii. 14, 15, 1 6'. 15
foretold. In fhort, the prophecy points out the event,
the event illiterates the prophecy, and fo they throw
.mutual light upon each other.
Nor is there, for the fame reafon, any juft ob
jection, either againft the two meanings ^ or the
two perfons, as I have above dated this matter
upon thefe two different fuppofitions. The fcheme
of the prophecies thus formed was not calculated,
as were the heathen oracles, to deceive men, and
falve their own credit, by equivocation, or amphi
bology ; but only for a while to keep back a part
of the revelation, which was not at firfl fit to be
clearly made : they were not contrived to faljify*
but only to make a gradual difcovery : to enlighten^
but to enlighten by degrees, like the fun appear
ing through a cloud, or, if you pleafe, at the edge
of the horizon : till at laft, like the fun having dif-
pelled the cloud, or being rifen above the horizon,
they difplayed themfelves at large, and (hone out
in full brightnefs and luftre. The Devil's oracles
were found by the event to be fallacious and Hlii/ive,
couching a double meaning in an ambiguous word,
or fentence; that, whatever the event were, they
might come off with an interpretation adapted to
it. But God's were found, by the event, to ^faith
ful and true ; predicting different things with refe
rence to different times and perfons, and both punctual
ly coming to pafs.
And as to the application of the Old Teftament
prophecies, however in themfelves doubtful and
difficult, the authority of Chrift and his Apoftles
in the New mould, one would think, be of great
weight in this matter ; confidering their many un-
queftionable miracles irrefragably proving, that they
themfelves fpake by the fame Spirit of God who dic
tated thofe prophecies. Who can be fitter, or better
qualified to interpret a Prophet, than a Prophet ?
See therefore the prodigious abfurdity, as well as
info-
16 The PROPHECY 'concerning
infolence and profanenefs, of our modern infidels ;
they fay the Evangelifts, and our blefled Lord him-
felf, as his words are related by them, mifinterpret
and mifapply the prophecies of the Old Tefta-
ment. But, pray, whole authority is greateft? the
authority of thefe men, or the authority of Chrifl
and his Apoftles ? Could the former prove, that the
applications made by the latter are ctntrediffious, or
impojjible to be true, they would indeed fay fome-
thing to the purpole. But that, we have (hewn,
is not the caie. It is true, many of the prophecies
are in themfelves dark, and difficult : but it is
to be hoped perfons divinely infpired are fufficiently
qualified to clear up and enlighten them, to in
terpret and apply them. I fay, many of the pro
phecies are in themfelves dark and difficult. For
whereas a late infidel writer a affirms, that all of
them are allegorical, and obfcure, and have more
meanings than one ; this, I affirm, is a moil no
torious and impudent falfehood. To confine our-
felves within the bounds of our prefent fubject :
There are very many prophecies relating to the
Meffiah, befides many others, which have no alle
gory, have but one plain, Jingle fenfe; and fpeak
only of one perfon, and event. I will juft men
tion a very few of them. Mai. iii. i. Behold I Jend
my Meffenger to prepare my way before me. And
the Lord whom ye feek ft all fuddenly come to bis tem
ple ; even the Mejjenger of the covenant, whom ye
delight in. Behold he Jhall come, faith the Lord of
hofts. Here are two plain, fimple predictions : the
one of John the Baptift ; the other of our Saviour:
both without the leaft difficulty or ambiguity.
Hag. ii. 7, 9. And the Defire of all nations flail
come ; and I will fill this hoitfe with glory, faith the
Lord. The glory of the latter boufe flail be greater
* Author of Grounds and Rcafons, 8cc.
than
Our SAVIOUR, Ifaidb vii. 14, i$, 16. 17
than the glory of the former, &;c. Zecbar. ix. 9.
Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion ; Jhout, O daughter
of Jenifalem ; behold thy King cometh unto thee, the
righteous one, and that Saviour, lowly, and riding upon
an afs, and upon a colt the foal of an afs. Zech. xii.
10. And I will pour upon the houfe of David, &c.
And they Jhall look upon me whom they have pierced,
&c. Micah v. 2. But thou, Bethlehem Ephrata,
though thou be little, &c. yet out of thee Jhall he come
forth unto me, that is to be ruler in Ifrael ; whoje go
ings forth have been of old, from everlajling. The
53d chapter of liaiah is fo graphical a deicription
of our Saviour's fufferings, that, if one did not
know the contrary, one would take it rather for
a hiflory, than a prophecy. Dan. vii. 13, 14.
/ faw in the night vifions, and behold, one like the
Son of man came with the clouds of heaven, and
came to the Ancient of days : And there was given,
unto him dominion and glory, and a kingdom ; that all
people, nations, and languages fhould ferve him : his
dominion is an everlajling dominion, &c. And now
what fhall we fay to thefe unreasonable, audacious,
and wicked men ; who, acling in open hofiility
againfl the Saviour who redeemed them, and the
God who made them, dare thus fly in the face of
the plaineft truths, and publicly affirm what all the
world knows to be falfe ? I mean all who know any
thing of thefe matters : and if thefe men do not
know that what they fay is falfe, their ignorance
upon that fuppofition is as great, as their bafenefs
and difhonefty upon the contrary one : and it is hard
to fay upon which of the two their impudence is the
greater.
But from thefe unbelievers let us who believe
turn our thoughts to the things we believe, and
to him in whom we believe, our bleffed Saviour
and Redeemer Jefus Chrift, both God and Man,
who, as about this time, having taken our na-
c ture
1 8 The PROPHECY concerning our SAVIOUR, &c.
ture upon him, was born of a pure Virgin, and
came in great humility to vifit us : who was fore
told even from the beginning of the world, in Pa-
radife itfelf, immediately after the fall of man ; and
fo downwards, through a long train or fuccefiion of
types, figures, and prophecies, ibme dark and ob-
fcure, fome plain and obvious, all now rnanifeftly
fulfilled, and completed. Not only every pious Chrif-
tian, but every rational and unprejudiced man, who im
partially confiders thefe things, and truly underftands
them, will adore, inftead of cavilling, will (land
amazed at the wonderful harmony and beauty of the
prophecies -, both the obfcure, and the plain, both
as they are in them/elves, and as they are compared
with one another. May God of his infinite mercy
turn the hearts of the unbelieving and difobe-
dient to the wifdom of the faithful and juft, that
they and we may join in that angelical hymn, efpe-
cially upon every anniverfary of this great fefti-
val a ; Glory be to God in the highejl, and on earth peace>
good will toivards men.
a Chriftmas.
DISCOURSE II.
The Office and Dignity of John the Baptift,
with the Prophecies concerning him, con-
fidered, and explained.
MAL. iii. i.
Behold, I 'will fend my mejfenger, and he Jhall prepare
tbj way before me. And the Lord whom ye feek Jball
fuddenly come to his temple, even the mejjenger of the
covenant, u-'bom ye delight in ; behold, he Jhall come,
faith the Lord of bojts.
HOW remarkable a portion of Scripture this
is, and how proper to employ our meditations
at this a facred feafon, no Chriflian, that knows
any thing of his religion, can want to be informed.
I (hall difcourfe upon the words with all plainnefs,
and take things in their natural order. Behold, I will
fend my mejfenger, and he Jhall prepare the way before
me. He who here fpeaks by the Prophet is certainly
God. And that he, whofe way was to be prepared,
was the Mefliah, both Jews and Chriflians agree.
That this Median is our Jems, all, who call them-
felves Chriflians, not only grant, but contend : they
would be flrange Chriflians indeed, if they did not.
This text therefore is an argument to the Jews
that the Meffiah is God, and to Chriflians that our
Jefus is fo. It is God who fpeaks ; he fpeaks of him-
felf, and in the firft perfon : as if he fhould have
faid, I the great God of heaven and earth will fend
a See the Collect for the third Sunday in Advent. 0 Lord
Jefu drift, <wlo at thy Jirft coming didft find tby mejfenger to pre
pare tby ivay before tbee, &c.
c 2 my
26 The Office and Dignity
my harbinger to prepare the way, before my com
ing in the flefh, as the Meffiah, and Saviour of the
world. In the next words indeed he changes the
firfl perfon into the third : but that is no argu
ment againft what I have urged : flill he docs fay
what we read in the firfl claufe, and the change
of the perfon in the fecond cannot unfay it. Nor
is any thing more common in all writers, efpe-
cially the facred, than to vary the phrafeology in this
manner ; and it is here particularly emphatical, ele
gant, and noble. Behold, I will Jcnd my mefjenger,
&c. -faith the Lord of hofts. The meffenger of the
covenant i. e. the Meffiah, the mefjenger or angel
of the new covenant between God and man -Jhall
come to bis temple. That expreffion is very material,
and muft be compared with Hag. ii. 6, 7. 9. Thus
faith the Lord of hojls ; Yet once, it is a little while, and
I will fhake the heavens, and the earth, and the fea, and
the dry land : And I willjhake all nations ; and the de-
fire of all nations Jhall come : and I will fill this houfe
with glory, faith the Lord of hojls. The glory of this
latter houfe fliall be greater than of the former, faith the
Lord of hojls. By the Jhaking of the heavens, earth,
lea, and dry land, and the Jhaking of all nations, is
to be underflood tome great and extraordinary
change to be made in the world ; and every body
knows fuch a one was made by the coming of the
long expected Meffiah, the ends of the world, (as
it is called in Scripture,) the Goipel difpenfation.
The feccnd temple was to be (landing, when the
Meffiah fliould come; and could be more glo
rious than the firft upon no other account. This
we have often iniifted upon in our controverfies
with the Jews ; and the argument is unanfwerable :
it would be too great a digreffion to difcufs it at pre-
lent j and befides the argument is fo well known,
that I need not. It is very remarkable, that the
nearer the age of the Meffiah approached, the more
plainly
of JOHN the Baptlft, &c. ai
plainly the Scriptures of the Old Teftament fpokc
concerning him : the latter Prophets being more
particular and exprefs as to time, and place, and
other circumftances -, and the very laft words of the
lad Prophet, and of the whole Old Teftament, be
ing a prediction of John the BaptifL, the forerunner
of our Saviour. As are thefe of my text. Behold, I
fend my mejftnger, &c. and the Lord—Jhall come fud-
denly : i. e. foon after the appearance of that rnef-
fenger, the Meffiah (hall come.
For the more fully underftanding of the point
before us, we mud join to this text, as it were by
way of context, thofe words of the fame Prophet
in the next chapter, ver. 5, 6. being thofe I juft
now hinted at, the very laft words in the Old
Teftament. Behold, I will fend you Elijah the Pro
phet, before the coming of the great and dreadful day
of the Lord : And he Jball turn the heart of the fa-
thers to the children, and the heart of the children to
their fathers, left I come and fmite the earth with a
curfe. The fame perfon is evidently fpoken of in
both places. But here perhaps you will aik, why
is this day of the Lord called dreadful? Does it
not mean the coming of the Meffiah, the greateft
bluffing that could be imagined ? And how can
that be dreadful? I anfwer, ift, Befides that ad
vent of our Lord, his coming in the flefh, there is
another very often meant by the infpired writers
both of the Old and New Teftament, viz. his
coming in vengeance to the deftruction of Jerufa-
lem, and the utter excifion of the Jewifh nation.
And if his harbinger came, as he did, before the
former of thefe, he muft needs come before the
latter. But, 2dly, There being in reafon and juf-
tice fo near and clofe a connexion between our
Saviour's appearance upon earth, including his death,
his being betrayed and murdered by the Jews, and
their deftruction, as a puntfhment of that moft hor
rid iin ; the whole time, taken all together, is, with
c 3 refpedt
a* The Office and Dignity
refpecl: to them, as to this world, called a dreadful,
or terrible day ; though his birth, life, and death
were the greateft bleifmg imaginable to mankind
in general, even to the Jews among the reft, with
regard to the next world. Other places of Scrip
ture there are parallel to this, and to be inter
preted the fame way, both in the Old and New
Teftament : this lafl chapter of Malachi in the
one, and the preaching of John the Baptift him-
felf in the other, is a mixture of terror and confo-
lation. For behold, the day cometh, that fhall burn as
an oven ; and all the proud, yea, and all that do
wickedly, Jhall be Jlubble ; and the day that cometh
/hall burn them up, faith the Lord of hofis, that it
ftiall leave them neither root nor branch. But unto
you that fear my name fhall THE Sun of right eoufnefs
arije with healing in his wings, &c. Mai. iv. 1,2.
/;/ thofe days came John the Baptift, preaching — and
faying, Repent ye ; for the kingdom of heaven is fit
hand. — O generation of vipers, who hath ivarned you
to flee from the wrath to come ? Bring forth therefore
fruits meet for repentance. — Whoje fan is in his hand ;
and he will throughly purge his floor, and gather his
wheat into the garner ; but he will burn up the chaff
with unquenchable fire. Matth. iii. i, 2. 7, 8. 12.
Since we are upon interpreting, 1 will briefly ex
plain the other parts of the prophecy jufl now
cited. And he foall turn the heart of the fathers to
the children, and the heart of the children to their fa
thers : i. e. either, " It will be his office to put an
" end to thofe religious differences, (fuch was that
" of the Pharifees and Sadducees,) which divided
" the neareft relations from each other : or a more
" eafy fenfe may be given of the words, if we
" tranilate the Hebrew particle al not to, but with ;
" in which fenfe it is often ufed. Then the fen-
" tence will run thus : He (hall turn the heart of
" the fathers with the children, and the heart of the
41 children with their fathers :" i. e. u his preaching
" fhall
of JOHN the Baptift 3 &c. 2$
*•' (hall produce a great reformation (as it a&ually
" did) in the minds and manners of all forts of peo-
" pie/' Left I come and f mite the earth with a curfe.
It were better rendered ,fmite the land (i. e. of Ju-
dea) with utter deftru&ion. Meaning the whole
land : as if he fliould have faid, Left I deftroy all,
and not fo much as a remnant be faved. But to re
turn. I faid juft now, that the Prophet in both thefe
paflages, that of my text, and that in chap. iv.
fpeaks of John the Baptift : yet he mentions Elijah,
and no other perfon. How is this to be accounted
for ? I anfwer, it will be fully cleared in what fol
lows. In further difcourling upon the words, there
fore, I (hail (hew,
I. That John the Baptift is the Elijah here fpoken
of by the Prophet.
II. The great eminence and dignity of that illuf-
trious perfon, John the Baptift.
III. The great and fignal ufe made of him, as
the forerunner of our Saviour.
IV. What good ttfes we may all make of thefe
confiderations, with regard both to our faith and
practice.
I. Firft then ; John the Baptift is the Elijah
here fpoken of by the Prophet. I do not fay he
was the real perfon of Elijah, or Elias ; nay, he
certainly was not : but I fay he was the perfon
whom the Prophet meant by that name. And he
ufed that name, becaufe John the Baptift refem-
bled Elijah in fo many particulars : and as he was
the forerunner of Chrift, fo Elijah was the fore
runner and type of him. Now there are inftances
in Scripture belides this, of one man's name be
ing put for another, by reafon of fuch a fimilitude
and refemblance, or the relation of type and anti
type between them. I mall give only one in-
iiance, but it (hall be an illuftrious one. The
promifed Meflias, our bleifed Saviour himfelf, is
c 4 often
34 The Office and Dignity
often by the Prophets called David ; as being the
perfon of whom David was a great and eminent
type, as being the perfon who was to fpring from
his loins, and in whom the promifes made to Da
vid were to be fulfilled. Thus Jer. xxx. 9. And
they fhall ferve the Lord their God, and David their
King ; i. e. the Mejffiah ; for David had been
dead long before thole words were fpoken. Thus
again, Ezek. xxxiv. 23. And I will fet up one Jhep-
herd over them, even my fervant David. Several
other paflages might be cited to the fame pur-
pofe ; but there is no occaiion for it. Many in-
fiances of the like nature are to be met with even
in heathen authors. Thus in Virgil, to mention
him only,
Alter erlt turn <fiphys
Atque iterum ad T'rojam magnus mittetur Achilles.
alius Latio jam partus Achilles.
Paris alter,
Funejlceqiie iterum recidiva in Pergama t&dce.
Here we have in one fingle ancient writer, among
the pagan Romans, feveral examples (and more
might be added) of perfons and places marked out
by the names of other perfons and places, who
were long fince dead or deftroyed. And it is ob-
lervable too, that every one of thofe in the hea
then poet are predictions or prophecies, as are
thefe in the facred Scriptures, of which we are
fpeaking : prophetical fchemes having (as they
ought to have) this neceflary, and at the fame
time elegant, obfcurity, and a particular turn and
manner of expreffing.
Now that by Elijah, in this paflage of the Old
Teftament, was meant John the Baptift, is evident
from feveral paflages in the New. The angel Ga
briel, foretelling the birth of the Baptift to his fa
ther Zacharias, fpeaks thus : And many of the chil
dren
of JOHN the Bapti/t, &c. 25
dren of Ifrael fhall he turn to the Lord their God.
And he fhall go before him (him, i. e. the Lord their
God, i. e. our Saviour; another proof, by the
way, of his divinity) in the fpirit and power of
Elias, to turn the hearts of the fathers to the chil
dren, and of the difobedient to the wifdom of the juft.
Luke i. 1 6, 17. Here is not only a manifeft al-
lujion to the paflage of Malachi now before us ;
but a direct quotation of fome part of it. But
more plainly, Mark i. 2. 4. As it is written in the
-prophets, Behold, I fend my mejfenger before thy face,
'which jhall prepare thy zvay before thee. John did
baptize in the wilder nefs, &c. And again, Matth.
xi. 10. For this is he of whom it is ivritten, Behold,
I fend my mejfenger, and fo on, in the fame words
as before. And ver. 14. And if ye will receive it,
(i. e. if I can make you apprehend things as you
mould do,) this is Elias which was for to come :
fpeaking all along of John the Baptift : and then
adds thofe ernphatical words, which are always
meant to engage the utmoft attention, and fhew
the matter to be of the greateft importance ; He
that hath ears to hear, let him hear. ver. 15. Thus
upon another occalion ; And his difciples ajked him,
faying, Why then fay the Scribes, that Elias muft firji
come f And Jefus anjwered, and faid unto them, Elias
truly Jhall fir ft come, and reft ore all things. But I
fay unto you, that Elias is come already ; and they
knew him not ; but have done unto him whatsoever
they lifted-, (i. e. rejected his doctrine, calumni
ated, and murdered him;) like wife fhall alfo the Son
of man fuffer of them. 'Then the difciples underftood
that he fpoke unto them of John the Baptift. Matth,
xvii. 10, ii, 12, 13.
Thefe arguments, I think, muft be fufficient to
convince and fatisfy all Chriilians; and if it be
faid, they are of no force againft the Jews, and
other Infidels, who do not acknowledge the autho
rity
26 The Office and Dignity
rity of our Jefus, nor of his Apoftles, and Evan
gel ifts, but will rather urge this interpretation as
an objection againil them ; I will confider what
thefe men may be fuppofed to allege on their
own fide, to invalidate this interpretation. They
will fay then, id, That it is precarious at beft,
and fupported by nothing but the authority of
our Jefus and his difciples ; which they deny. I
anfwer,, It does not follow, that our depending
upon that authority is precarious, becaufe they
deny it ; lince we have abundantly proved it by a
multitude of unconteftable arguments from pro
phecies, and miracles, and the whole tenor of the
Old and New Teflament : let them confute thofe
arguments, if they can. In the mean time, they,
not we, talk precarioufly, and beg the queftion.
For fure the bare denying of an authority which is
Diffidently proved, is itfelf no proof at all. adly,
The Jews allege, that in the Septuagint tranfla-
tion the words of Malachi are, Elijah the Tijh-
bite ; which muft mean his real perfon, thus dif-
tinguimed by his country, as well as by his name;
and therefore cannot mean any other man, who was
to bear his name only upon the account of fome
refemblance, or analogy, as we Chriftians pretend.
I anfwer, ift, What if it be thus in the Greek
tranflation ? It is not fo in the Hebrew original.
And the latter certainly is of greater authority,
idly, Suppofe it were fo in the original ; if John
the Baptift were meant by Elijah, (as we fay he
was,) he might as well have been called Elijah the
Tifhbite, as Elijah the Prophet. The addition of
that word fignifies nothing either way. Whoever
is really and literally Elijah, is the Tifhbite, whe
ther that appellation be mentioned, or no : and
whoever is called Elijah, though he be not really
that perfon, may as well be called the Tifhbite, or
the Prophet ; or neither the one, nor the other.
Nothing
cf JOHN tie Baptift, &c. 27
Nothing therefore can be more idle, and trifling,
than this objection. 3dly, They allege (with
more appearance of reafon, though in truth there
is nothing in it) that the Evangelifts, in their ac
count of this matter, are inconjiftent with themfelves.
Three of them make John the Baptift to be Elias;
and the fourth brings him in as pofitively declar
ing that he is not. Art thou E/ias ? And he faith,
I am not. John i. 21. I reply, He aniwered very
truly, that he was not the real Elias ; which was
what the Jews meant ; they then expecting (as
they do now) that Elias himfelf in his own perfon
fhould appear upon earth before the appearance
of the Mefliah. And yet here is nothing incon-
fiftent with what the other Evangelifts lay ; be-
caufe they never intended to affirm (which indeed
would have been abfolutely falfe) that John was
the real perfon of Elias, but only (as I have often
faid) that it was he who was fpoken of by the
Prophet under that name. If it be afked, why did
he not tell them, that in one fenfe, however, he
was Elias, though not in that which they intended ;
and in what ferife he was fo ; I anfwer, It is not
fit that divine things, of fo high' a nature, and in
the way of prophecy, fhould be underftood, or even
explained, all at once. Let men by their ftudy, and
induftry, make gradual difcoveries of it, as they may,
if they pleafe ; and if they do not, -it is their own
fault. Other Scriptures, in conjunction with this,
explain the whole matter ; and that is iufficient.
But it is now time to give an account, why
John the Baptift is by the Prophet called Elias,
and wherein confided that refemblance or fimi-
litude between them, which we have been all
along fuppoiing. In the firft place then, Elijah
was a Prophet of the firft rank, of the greateft
eminence and dignity ; fo was John the Bap
tift, as we (hall fee under the next head. Elijah
was
2$ The Office and Dignity
was one of the moft extraordinary and illuftrious
perfons that ever lived : fed by miracle, with food
brought to him by the fowls of the air; himfelf
working many and great miracles ; being full of
the Holy Ghoft ; predicting events which imme
diately came to pals ; , railing the dead ; feveral
times calling down fire from heaven-, confounding
the idolatrous priefts and worfhip, notwithftand-
ing they were fupported by the favour of the
King, gjtfeen, and Court, and the univerfal corruption
of the whole kingdom ; at once turning the hearts
of the people from Baal to God ; attended by art
angel; vocally converfing with God himfelf; and
at lafl translated without tailing of death, and
carried up to heaven in a whirlwind, and a cha
riot and horfes of fire. Thus great was Elijah :
and of his counterpart our bleifed Saviour fpeaks
thus : Verily I fay unto you., Among them that are
born of women, there hath not rifen a greater than
John the Baptift. Matth. xi. n. Their greatnefs
indeed confiiled not in all the fame circumftances :
John did no miracle ; nor was Elias's birth miracu
lous. Elias did not die a martyr ; nor had John
the privilege of not dying at all: though the lat
ter, no doubt, was as foon conveyed to heaven in
his chariot of blood, as the former was in his cha
riot of fire. But to proceed. They both paffed
a confiderable part of their lives ML folilude, in wil-
dernejfes and defarts. Their habit and drefs was
the fame. 2 Kings i. 8. And he faid, What manner
of man was he — ? And they anfwered him, He was
an hairy man, and girt with a girdle of leather about
his loins. And he faid, It is Elijah the Tiftbite.
Compare this with Matth. iii. 4. And the fame
John had his raiment of earners hair, and a leathern
girdle about his loins. They were both men of ex
traordinary zeal in the caufe of God and goodnefs ;
of a noble bcldnefi and courage in rebuking vice.
They
of JOHN the Baptifl^ &c. 29
They rebuked it with freedom in the greateft men ;
even in Kings and fovereign Princes ; the one repre
hending Ahab, the other Herod, with all authority,
and plainnefs of ipeech : / have not troubled Ifrael-, but
thoUy and thy father' 's houfe, in that ye have for 'faken the
commandments of the Lord, and thou haft followed Baa
lim, fays the one, i Kings xviii. 18. // is not lawful
for thee to have her, fays the other, Matth. xiv. 4.
They both preached repentance and reformation (and
that with great fuccefs) to a people, univerfally de
bauched and corrupted^ and over-run with vice and
wickednefs. They were both men of an aujlere and
mortified life; coming to courts indeed, when God
fent them thither ; but having nothing to do
with the foft clothing, and delicate living, much
lefs with the vices and corruptions of thofe places.
Thus was Elias the predecejjbr of John ; and thus
came John in thefpirit and power of Elias.
II. The eminent dignity of this great perfon,
John the Baptift, is the next thing to be conii-
dered. This (as it was unavoidable) has been in.
fome meafure anticipated under the foregoing head :
but a great deal more remains to be taken notice of
under this. And fure it is a fubjecl: very worthy
of our meditations ; though Chriftians (as I appre
hend) are not, generally, fo feniible of its impor
tance, as they mould be. Even the Jewifh hiftorian
Jofephus fpeaks of him with much honour ; telling
us, that he was called by the name of the Baptift ;
that he was an eminently good man ; that he bap
tized the people, exhorting them to real purity, and
to the practice of piety towards God, and of juftice
towards men; that he was killed by Herod ; and
the misfortunes which afterwards befel that Prince
were looked upon as inftances of the divine vengeance
upon him for the murder of fo excellent a perfon.
Thus fpeaks a Jew, and an enemy to the Chriftian
religion. But if we confult the facred Scriptures,
we
30 The Office and Dignity
we fliall find a far more honourable account of this
great and good man. His birth was foretold by an
angd to his father 5 even the fame angel who fore
told the birth of our Saviour himfelf to his virgin
mother. His birth likewife was wonderful, as being
belide the common courfe of nature ; both his fa
ther and mother being of a great age, and never
having had any child before. Fear not, Zacharias,
(fays the angel,) for thy wife Elizabeth /hall bear thee
a fon ; and thou jhalt call his name John. — He fhall
be great in the fight of the Lord — and Jhall be filled
•with the Holy Ghoft, even from his mother's womb —
And he fljall go before him in the fpirit and power of
Etias, &c. Luke i. 13. 15. 17. Zacharias railing
a doubt and an objection, and requiring a lign, has
a lign given him ; he is miraculoufly ftruck dumb,
and fo continues till the birth and circumcifion
of the child ; immediately upon which his fpeech
is as miraculoufly reftored to him. He is filled
with the Holy Gbqft, and prophejies, faying, Elejjed
be the Lord God of Ifraet-, for he hath vifited and
redeemed his people., and hath raifed up an horn of
falvation for us in the houfe of his fervant David,
&c. And then, child, Jhalt be called the Prophet of
the Highejt ; for thou Jhalt go before the face of the
Lord to prepare his ways, &c. Never was any
birth, except that of our Saviour himfelf, which
foon . . fucceeded this, ufhered in, and attended,
with fuch divine pomp and folemnity. Then if
;ve coniider him in his mini/try, and the execution
of his office, he worked no miracles indeed ; but
fuch a concourfe of people, even the Scribes and
Pharifees among others, flocking to his baptifm,
when he worked no miracle, was itfelf a very great
one. How highly it was for his honour, to baptize
the Saviour of the world^ is too plain to be infilled
upon. This alone would have been fufficient to
have given him the title of the Baptift KXT Ifaxiv,
or.
c/*JoHN the Baptijl, &c. 3t
or in the moft eminent and lignal manner ; though
he was called fo upon other accounts likewiie ;
viz. becaufe he baptized fuch vajl numbers, in ib
public a manner, upon fo extraordinary an occalion
as that of preparing men for the reception of the
Meffiah ; and becaufe, though baptifm was a rite
made ufe of by the Jews at the admiffion of
profelytes long before this time ; yet John's was
the firft baptifm to repentance and remijjion of fms.
The Gofpel iff elf commenced in the preaching of
this eminent perfon ; and that muft greatly tend
to his honour. The beginning of the Go/pel of Jefus
Chrift, the Son of God', As it is written in the Pro
phets, Behold, I fend my mejjenger, &c. John did bap
tize in the wilder nefs, &c. Mark i. i, 2. 4. And
Matth, xi. 12. From the days of John the Bcptift
until now, the kingdom of heaven (i. e. the ftate of
the Gofpel) fuffereth violence, &c. i. e. people prefs
and crowd into it, as if they would take it by force.
And ver. 13. For all the prophets and the laiv
prophejied until John. Compare Luke xvi. 16. And
it is remarkable, that he, and our Saviour himfelf,
begin their preaching in the very fame words ;
Repent ye, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.
Matth. iii. 2. iv. 17. From the clofe of the
Old Teftament in the Prophecy of Malachi, of
which my text is a part, till the times of which
we are now fpeaking, i. e. for about 430 years,
there was no Prophet fent to the Jewilh nation ;
•but then we have a very extraordinary account of
a new Prophet : and St. Luke fets it out with all
the particular circumflances of time and place ; giv
ing us thereby to underftand, that the fad was
of the utmofl importance. Noiv in the fifteenth
year of the reign of Tiberius Cafar, Pontius Pilate
being governor of Judea, and Herod being tetrarch
of Galilee, and his brother Philip tetrarch of Iturea,
and of the region of Trachonitis, and Lyjanias the te
trarch
32 Tie Office and Dignity
trarch of Abilene, Annas and Caiaphas being the high
priefls ; the zvord of God came unto John the fon of
ZachariaS) in the wilder nefs. And he came into all
the country about Jordan, preaching the baptifm of re
pentance for the remijjion of fins. Luke iii. i, 2, 3.
Our Saviour's teftimony of him, that a greater
than he was not born of a woman (meaning in the
natural way, of a woman and a man too) has
been already mentioned. And in the fame chapter
he fays, What went ye out for to fee ? A Prophet ¥
Yea, I fay unto you^ and more than a Prophet. For
this is he of whom it is written. Behold I fend my
me]fengery &c. Matth. xi. 9, 10. Which fuggefts
another confideration, that he was the only Prophet
(except our Saviour) who was prophefied of. He
is foretold in the ancient predictions of the Old
Teftament ; not only twice by Malachi in the
two chapters we are now upon, but alfo by the
great and noble Prophet Ifaiah. Chap. xl. 3, 4.
1 he voice of him that crieth in the wildernefs -, Pre
pare ye the way of the Lord ; make Jlraight in the
depart an high-way for our God. Every valley Jhall
be exalted^ and every mountain and hill Jhall be made
low -, and the crooked jhall be made Jlraight, and the
rough places plain. This is applied to John the
Baptift by all the four Evangelifts ; but more
largely and particularly by St. Luke, ch. iii. 4, 5.
It has indeed, like many other prophecies, (as I
have often obferved upon other occafions,) tivo
fenfes : one relating to the deliverance of the
Jews from the Babylonim captivity by the power
and providence of God ; the other to the deliver
ance of all mankind from fin and mifery by the
coming of the Meffiah. Thofe words, Every val
ley fliall be filled, and every mountain and hill Jhall
be made low, and the crooked Jhall be made Jlraight,
and the rough ways fhall be made fmooth, plainly re
fer to the "known cuftom of kings, and great po
tentates.
the Bapttft, Wf. 33
tentateSj who, when they travelled, fent before
them their <><Weioi, as they were called, way-makers,
to mend the roads, where they wanted it, by fill
ing up deep and hollow places, levelling high
Ones, fmoothing the rough, and {heightening the
crooked.
And this brings us to be a little more particu
lar upon the greater! honour of all, by which
John the Baptift was diftingui fried ; his being the
harbinger and forerunner of our blefled Saviour.
That he was fo has been over and over obferved,
both from the Old and New Teftament. And how
great an honour that was, is obvious to every body.
He was the Morning Star to the Sun of right eoufnefs .*
he was the middle of participation (as the fchools
fpeak) between the Law and the Gofpel; partak
ing of both, belonging wholly to neither. But how
was he the harbinger or forerunner of the Median?
I anfwer, in feveral refpecls : ift, By his birth. He
was his forerunner even in the womb, and at his
delivery from it ; there being by the peculiar de-
lignation of Providence fuch a connexion between
their conceptions and nativities, as was to be after
wards between their offices. After the Angel had
delivered his meflage to Zacharias concerning the
birth of a fon, who, he tells him, mould be called
John, Luke i. 13. the fame angel Gabriel in the fixtb
month (ver. 26. &c.) was Jent from God unto a city of Ga
lilee named Nazareth, unto a Virgin whcfe name was
Mary, &c. And ver. 31. Behold thoujhalt conceive in
thy womb, and bring forth a fon, and fhalt call his name
Jefus — And behold, thy coujin Elizabeth, (ver. 36.)Jbe
alfo hath conceived a fon in her old age ; and this is the
fixth month with her who was called barren. Then
how particular is that paflage, ver. 39, &c. And Mary
arofe in thofe days, and went into the hill-country with
hajle, (by a divine impulfe no doubt,) into a city of
Judah, and entered into the houfe of Zacharias, and fa-
j> luted
54 The Office and Dignity
luted Elizabeth.. The two coufins being both with
child, the one with the harbinger of the Mefliah,
the. other with the Meffiah himfelf, the latter, by the
immediate guidance of divine Providence, pays a
viiit to the former. And it came to pafs, that when
Elizabeth heard the falutation of Mary, the babe leaped
in her womb, &c. But of that adorable, and never
enough to be admired pafiage, more hereafter, and
in a more proper place. 2dly, The Baptifl was the
forerunner or harbinger of the Meffiah, by his inno
cent, holy, and exemplary life ; by his living a life of
evangelical piety, retirement, and mortification.
3dly, By his do&r'me and preaching : which begins
{as was obfervcd) in the very fame words with thofe
of our Saviour's. 4thly, By his predictions, and giv
ing warning to the world of the Median's being juft
ready to appear — Prepare ye the way of the Lord. — /
indeed baptize you ivith water to repentance ; but he
that cometh after me is mightier than I, whofe Jhoes I am
not worthv to bear : he jhall baptize you with the Holy
Ghoft, and with fire. Matth. iii. n. To his foretelling
the appearance of the Meffiah, before his coming,
may well be added his tefiifying of him, or bearing
witnefs to him, after he was come. / have need to
be baptized of thee, and comejl thou to me ? Matth. iii.
14. And John i. \$.John bare witnefs of him, and
cried, faying, This ivas he of whom I fpake ; He that
cometh after me is preferred before me ; for he was be
fore me : i. e. in his divine nature. And ver. 29, &c.
The next day John feeth Jejus coming unto him, and faith,,
Behold the Lamb of God, zvhich taketh away the fins of
the world. T'his is he cf whom 1 faid, &c. And John
bare record, and f aid, I fazv the Spirit defending from
heaven like a dove ; and it abode upon him. And I
•knew him not ; but he that fent me to baptize with
water, the fame f aid unto me, Upon whom thou fl) alt fee
the Spirit dejcending, and remaining on him, the fame is
he which baptizeth with the Holy Ghojl. And 1 faw,
and
of Jo H N tie Baptift9 '&c. 3$
find bare record that this is the Son of God. Great muft
be the importance of fuch a teftimony from ib ii-
luftrious a perfon. Which brings me to coniider,
•III. The great an-] lignal nje made of John the
Baptift as forerunner of our Saviour. In general,
it was prophelied, (as we have feen in my text, and
in other places.) that the Mefliah mould have a har
binger to prepare the world for his coming : confe-
quently, if our Jefus had not had fuch an one, he
could not have been the true Mefliah. But more
particularly, it was in the nature of things highly
fit, congruous, and rational, that it mould be ib ;
that the appearance of the greateft perfon that ever
appeared in the world, and who was of all the
greateft benefactor to it, fhould be thus folemnly
proclaimed beforehand, and fo folemnly attefted
afterwards. More particularly yet, with regard to
the four inftances above mentioned, in refpecl: of
which the Baptift was the forerunner, or harbinger
of Chrift. The illuftrious and miraculous circum-
ftances of his birth added much dignity to that of our
Saviour, which fo foon followed. His foretelling
that the Mefliah was juft ready to appear, his holy
doclrine, and exemplary life, and his baptizing to
repentance, prepared mankind for his reception.
But above all, his bearing teftimony to him fo exprefF-
ly, and in fo public a manner, was of the higheft im
portance. All men counted John, that he was a Prophet
indeed. Mark xi. 32. And therefore his teftimony
muft have had the greateft weight imaginable. He
declared, that he himielf was not the Chrift, (as many
took him to be,) and that Jefus was. He did not
perfonally know our Saviour, (it was not likely he
mould, the one living in a defart, the other in an
obfcure privacy,) but declares, that it was revealed to
him by God, that he was the Median. As Jefus there
fore teftified of John, that he was more than a Pro
's 2 phet i
3<5 The Office and Dignity
phet > fo John had before teftified of Jefus, that lie
was very much more than a Prophet ; even the Chrift,
the Son of God, the Saviour of the world. He
made himfelf us nothing in comparifon of him. — Wbofc
foocs* latchet I am not worthy to Jloop down and unloofe.
Mark i. 7. He muft increase, but 1 muft decreafe. — He
that cometh from above (meaning Jefus) is above all :
He that is of the earth (meaning himfelf) is earthly —
He that cometh from heaven is above all. John iii. 30,
3*-
But fince John thus gave notice of the coming
Median beforehand, and thus teftified of Jefus as the
Meffiah after he was come; may it not be reafonably
afked, why did he fend two of his Difciples to him, with
this queflion, Art thou he that fhould come, or do we look
for another? Matth. xi. 2, 3. Can doubt and ajjurance
about the fame thing be confident ? The anfwer is,
and it is a very fatisfaclory one; he fent this meffage,
not for his own conviction, (for he was thoroughly
convinced already,) but for the conviction of bis Dif
ciples ; who, jealous of their Matter's honour, were
emulous, and even envious, that Chrift fhould be pre
ferred before him. Thus they feem to find fault with
him, Matth. ix. 14. ^Chen came to him the Difciples of
John, faying. Why do we and the Pharifees fajl oft, but
thy Difciples fajl not? And John iii. 26. And they came
wto John, and f aid unto him. Rabbi* he that was with
ihee beyond Jordan^ to whom thou barejl witnefs> behold
the fame baptizeth> and all men come unto him. Upon
which he takes occaiion to give that further and
moft noble teftimony of our Saviour; part of which
I have above cited : Te y our f elves bear me witnefs, that
/ faid 1 am not the Chrift, &c. ver. 28. They how
ever were, it feems, ftill difTatisfied ; and therefore he
fends them to Chrift himfelf, and commands them
to enquire in his own name, as if he himfelf had
doubted, though he really did not, that fo the mef-
fengers
<5/"JoHN the Baptift, $&c.. 37
fcngers might be the more emboldened to aik the
queftion, and the more prepared to receive fatisfao
tion by the anfwer.
IV. The good ufes we may all make of the forego
ing considerations, with regard both to our faith and
practice, are eafy and obvious. As,
i ft, They greatly contribute to eftabliJJ) us in our
bply faith, and confirm the truth of the Chriftian re
ligion. Did our Infidels themfelves read and ftudy
the Bible, as they mould do, i. e. honeftly, and with
out prejudice, they would turn their cavils into
pious admiration, and adore inftead of blafpheming.
The connection between the Old and New Tefta-
ment, and the wonderful chain of prophecies in both,
even from the fall of our firft parents down to the
death of St. John, the laft furviving Apoftle, is the
moft aftonifhing and delightful profpedl that the
mind of man can be entertained with. Nothing in
this world can equal it ; and nothing fure in the
next, but the beatific vifion, can exceed it. I have
upon other occalions given fome hints or fpecimens
of this ; and every attentive and intelligent hearer
cannot but have obferved much of it through the
whole tenor of this very difcourfe.
One extraordinary paifage in the firft chapter of
St. Luke's Gofpel, in which the birth of John the
Baptift is related at large, and with a great variety
of miraculous circumftances, has been above glanced
at ; and (hall here be a little more particularly con-
fidered. It is the mutual faint ation between Eliza
beth and Mary. The two coufins being with child,
the one with John, the forerunner of Jeius, the other
with Jefus himfelf ; the latter makes a vifit to the
farmer i flf at oft, and went with hafle, (fays the text,)
undoubtedly by a divine impulfe. At their firft in
terview and greeting, they both in an inftant be
come prophetefTes ; and exprefs themfelves in fuch
words as no human art can imitate. And it came to
p 3 pafs,
3$ The Office and Dignity
y that when Elizabeth heard the falutation of Mary,
the babe leaped in her womb ; and Elizabeth was filled
with the Holy Ghofl, and Jhe fpake out with a loud
voice, and f aid, Ble fled art thou among women, and blejfjed
'is the fruit of thy womb. And whence is this to me,
that the mother of my Lcrdjhould come to me? For 70, as
f oon as the voice of thy falutation founded in my ears, the
babe leaped in my womb for joy. And bleffed is Jhe
that believed; for there fhall be a performance of thofe
things which were told her from the Lord. Whence is
this to me, &c. i. c. how can it be, that I (hould be
thought worthy of fo great an honour, as to receive
a vifit from the mother of my Lord, of the Lord and
Saviour of the whole world ? The Baptift, even an
embryo, partly by his own motion, and partly by
his mother's mouth, pays his homage to his likewife
unborn Mafter, whole forerunner he is to be; as his
mother herfelf alfo does to the mother of his Mafter.
And what return does Jhe make ? the young virgin
mother, to her who was almofl as miraculouily a
mother in her old age ? Doubly full of the Holy
Ghoft, and joining the fpirit of prophecy with the
fpirit .of the lowliefl humility, (lie attributes all to
God, .nothing to herfelf. And Mary f aid, My foul
doth .. magnify the Lord, and my fpirit hath rejoiced in
God. my Saviour. For he hath regarded the loiv eft ate
of his handmaiden : for behold, from henceforth all ge
nerations Jhall call me bleffed -, i. e. for being mother
to the Saviour of the world. I need not repeat the
whole, iince it is what we every day repeat in the
Service of the Church. Was there ever fuch a meet
ing ^ fuch a converfation as this ? Who that reads this,
fees not divine infpiration even by its own light, and
abftra&ing from all external evidence ?
adly, Another obvious ufe to be made by us of
- this difcourfe, is to imitate the virtues of the great and
excellent perfon, who is the fubjecl: of it : which I
cannot better reprefent, than by concluding all with
the
of JOHN tie Bap lift , 3&. 39
the prayer which the Church has appointed for his
feftival. ,
Almighty God, by whofe providence thyfervant John
Baptift 'was wonderfully born, and fent to -prepare the
way of thy Son our Saviour by preaching of repentance ;
make us Jo to follow his doctrine and holy life, that we may
truly repent according to his preaching ; and after his
example conftantly fpeak the truth, boldly rebuke vice,
and patiently fuffer for the truth's fake , through Jefus
Chrtft cur Lord.
To whom, with the Father, and the Holy Ghoft,
be afcribed, as is mod due, by men and angels, all
honour and glory, adoration and praife, might, ma-
jefly, and dominion, throughout all ages, world with
out end. Amen.
DIS-
DISCOURSE III,
Two of our Saviour's Advents, his Coming at
the Deftruftion of *Jerufahmy his Coming at
the Loft Judgment, and the Relation between
bothy confidered, and explained.
MATTH. xvi. 27, 28.
For the Son of man Jhall come in the glory of his Father^
with his angels ; and then bejhall reward every man ac
cording to bis works.
Verily I fay unto you, there befomejlanding here, which fh all
not tajle of 'death , till they fee the Son cf man coming in his
lingdom.
THE three chief advents of our Saviour (I fay
chief, for there are others reckoned, and pro
perly enough, which I need not now take notice of)
are his coming in the flefh, his coming in vengeance
to the dejtruftion of Jerufalem, and his coming in
judgment at the final confummation of all things.
The/r/? of thefe, which is the chief of all, and upon
which all the reft are founded, is the fubjecl of the
approaching great feftival a itfelf : to which I refer
it, and fhall fay no more of it at prefent. Concern
ing the other two, this is remarkable, that in many
places of the New Teflament, efpecially in our
blefled Lord's difcourfes,, they are blended and inter*
woven with each other ; the predictions having at the
» Chriflmas,
fame
Two of our SAVIOUR'S Advents, &c. 41
fame time a view to both ; and the firft being looked
upon as a type of the fecond. I fay, both are plainly
and certainly meant in thofe paflages : and there
fore I much wonder at fome Commentators, who
interpret them only of one, and that the leaft ; viz.
the deftruction of Jerufalem. So cold and dilute
an expoiition is to me very ftrange : as if they
thought our Saviour's advent at the laft day, which
in thofe paiTages is manifeftly defcribed, immaterial,
and not worthy their conlideration. Not that I in
the leaft fuppofe they really thought fo : the thing
itfelf, Chrift' s coming in judgment, being plainly re
vealed in many other places of Scripture, which thefe
Expolitors themfelves underftand in that fenfe, and
which indeed cannot be underftood in any other*
We mujl all appear before the judgment-feat of Cbrift ;
that every one may receive the things done in his body,
(i. e. the due reward of them,) according to that he
bath done, whether it be good or bad. 2 Cor. v. 10.
'The Lord himfelfjhall defc end from heaven with ajhout,
with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of
God, &c. i Theff. iv. 16.— The Lord Jefus Chrift, who
fh all judge the quick and the dead at his appearing.
2 Tim. iv. i . With very many other texts to the fame
purpofe ; proving not only that all mankind will brc
judged at the laft day, but that Chrift, God incar
nate, the fecond Perfon of the ever-blelfed Trinity,
will be the Judge : the Father having committed all
judgment to the Son -, as he himfelf allures us, John v.
22. Whence it is, that we make that recognition
to him in the divine hymn of our Morning Service,
We believe, that thoujhalt come to be our Judge.
But though we may, from thefe and fuch like
texts, be fully allured of the thing itfelf, that great
truth, the coming of Chrift to judgment, without the
help of thofe I now refer to ; yet fure we ought not,
by a frigid and partial interpretation, to expound
away the plainejl and even the literal meaning of thefe
i latter,
4* Two of our SAVIOUR'S Advents
latter, defcribing the manner and awful circumftances
of that ju'dgment ; a fubjecl which can never be
loo much revolved and digefted in our thoughts.
I lay, thofe paffages evidently point at the day of
judgment) as well as at the definition of Jerufalem :
becaufe there are leveral expreffions in them, which,
though partly intimating the lad mentioned, yet
muft have a view to the other likewife : becaufe,
without that, the full force and fignificancy of the
expreffions cannot be anlwered, or accounted for:
and fome there are which muft belong to the laft
judgment only, and cannot relate to the deftruclion
of Jerufalem at all. I fliall examine the mofl mate
rial texts; diflinguifhing the fenfe of them ; mew
ing which refer to the firft of thefe advents, which
to the fecond, and which to both. And then, by
way of application, I fhall fhew the great importance
of thefe confiderations, with regard both to our faith
and pr a£f ice.
The firft paflage I take notice of is that of my
text itfelf. For the Son cf man Jhall come in the glory
of his Father, with his angels ; and then Jhall he re
ward every man according to his works. This, one
would think, fhould relate folely to the day of judg
ment : and yet the moft learned, and pious, and
every way excellent Dr. Hammond interprets it
partly, nay principally, of the judgments upon the
Jewiih nation. He mentions, however, the day of
doom ; and fo he had need : for certainly thofe
words, in the glory of his Father, with his angels, muft
mean that in their firft and literal fenfe ; however
they may, in a figurative and lefs proper one, be ex
tended to fomething elfe. Befides, the foregoing
context requires this expofition. What is a man pro
filed, if he Jhall gain the whole world, and lofe his own
foul ? &c. For the Son of man Jhall come, &c. In one,
and a lower lignificat ion indeed, the fame learned Ex-
pofitor makes even thofe words relate to the national
deftruc-
Confidered and Explained. 43
deftru&ion aforefaid, explaining foul, by life. But be
that as it will, certainly the lad claufe of this firft
verfe of my text, and then he Jhall reward every man
according to bis works, muft be underftood of the lait
judgment only. Yet even them he in fome meafure
interprets of the deftru&ion of Jerulalem : but how-
forced and jejune an interpretation it is, and muft be,
any one may eafily imagine ; and I will not trouble
you with a recital of it. Though there was a difcri-
initiation made, at the deftruction of Jerusalem, be
tween the faithful Chriftians, and the hardened impe
nitent Jews, the former, mod of them at leaft, won
derfully, if not miraculoufly, efcaping the general
ruin ; yet how this could in any, even the loweft
fenfe, be called God's rewarding every man according
to his works, is altogether inconceivable. The next
words, the other verfe of my text, Verily I fay unto
you, there be fome ftanding here, which jfball not tajle of
death, till they fee the Son of man coming in his kingdom,
muft relate to the deftruclion of Jerulalem, and no
thing;; elfe: and this feems to have inclined Dr. Ham-
O
mond to interpret the foregoing verfe as having fome
relation to it likewife; becaufe otherwife he fuppofed
there would be no connection bet ween them. But, i ft,
What if there were none? Prophecies and divine ora
cular fentences are generally unconnected and ob-
fcure ; and neither are, nor ought to be, tied up to
the rules of common ftyle and difcourfe. Beiides,
adly, our Saviour may fpeak of two different com
ings in thefe two verfes; and yet there may be a. very
good connection between the verfes ; becaufe there-
is one between the advents. And fo by an ellipfis,
naturally and eafily enough to be filled up, he may
be fuppofed to fpeak thus : " I will at the end of
" the world come in judgment to all mankind in
" general ; of which, my coming in judgment to
" punim and deftroy the Jewifh nation in particu-
" lar, will be a type or reprefentation. And this
•** laft-mentioned fome now Handing here fhall live
"to
44 Two of our $ A V I o u R * s Advents
" to fee.'* Not only fome, but many thoufands,
who were at that time men and women, might and
did live to fee it ; for it happened in lefs than forty
years after. This laft verfe, I fay, muft be under-
flood of the definition of Jemfalem. That it
could not mean the laft judgment is plain : becaufe
that, we all know, is not come yet; 1700 years after
thofe words were fpoken. Nor can it be referred (as
fome would have it) to our Saviour's transfiguration
upon the Mount ; becaufe that happened but fix days
afterward?, and is related in the very next words to
thefe, at the beginning of the chapter immediately
following: and it would be poor fenfe to fay, there
are fome who Jhall live fix days longer; fuch an ex-
preffion as that always fignifying a considerable length
of time. And befide?, his transfiguration being a,
fecret thing, revealed only to three private men, of his
own Difciples, can with no propriety be called coming
in his kingdom, efpecially, with power \ as it is expreffed
in St. Mark, chap. ix. ver. i . To which may be added,
that (as it appears from Mark viii. 34.) he fpoke
thefe words to the people, as well as to his Difciples,
and fo muft mean fome public vifitation, and that
with poiver. To underiland it (as others do) of the
preaching and fpreading of the Go/pel, is worfe than
the former. For beiides that this can with no fenfe
be called Chrift's coming in his kingdom, as every
body muft needs perceive ; the Gofpel was in fome
meafure preached already ; and that there were fome
then living, who mould live to fee it fpread, is very
low, and unequal matter for fo folemn and pompous
a prophecy. But now to underftand this paflage of
the deftru&ion of Jerufalem makes all clear and
eafy : that is meant by his coming in many other
places ; as we fhall fee in the fequel. The word
coming •, as applied to God, in the Old Teflament
fometimes fignifies his inflicting punifhment and
vengeance. Thus, Ifaiah xxvi. 20. Behold the Lord
cometh out of his place, to punijh the inhabitants of the
earth
Conjidered and Explained. 4$
earth for their iniquity. And Micah i. 3. (to mention
no more,) Behold the Lord cometh forth out of his place,
and will come down — and fo on with exprefiions lite-
rally importing the day of judgment, but figuratively
the punifhment of the jews, (as thefe two are in
many places both of the Old and New Teftament
involved and twifted with each other) till ver. 5. For
the tranfgrejjion of Jacob is all this, and for the fins of
the houfe of Ifrael. Thus then our Lord's vifiting
and punifhing the Jews in this dreadful manner, to
the utter excilion of their city and commonwealth,
is called his coming; and it is called coming in his king
dom, becaufe it is one great part of his regal office, to
take vengeance of his obilinate and rebellious enemies.
Thofe mine enemies, who would not that I Jhould reign.
over them, bring hither, and Jlay them before me, fays
he himfelf, fpeaking of himlelf in a parable under the
title of a king, Lukexix. 27.
But the moil remarkable paffage to this purpofe
is that of Matth. xxiv. at the beginning of the chap
ter. Our bleffed Saviour, in anfwer to his Difciples,
fpeaking of the magnificence of the temple, had {aid,
See ye all thefe things? Verily ', I fay unto you, 'There Jhall
not be left here one Jlone upon another, that Jhall not be
thrown down. The Difciples afk him in the next verfe,
Tell us, when Jhall thefe things be ? and what Jhall be
thejign of thy coming, and of the end of the world? You
fee how the dejtruftion of the temple and his coming are
joined together: and that claufe, the end of the world,
is fuppofed by Dr. Hammond, and other learned
Expofitors, to mean the fame with both. The words
may as well, or rather better, be rendered, the end
of the age. And it appears, from the notions and
manner of fpeaking among the Jews, that age with
them fignified a certain determinate period of time,
including a certain difpenfation of Providence. Thofe
words of Tobit, chap. xiv. ver. 5. The times of the age
/hall be fulfilled, mean the confummation of the Jew-
ifh
46 Two of our SAVIOUR'S Advents
Ifh flatc ; as appears from the context before and
after. And this account of the matter I take to be
very probable, that the Difciples in their queftion had
a view only to (Thrift's coming in judgment to the
Jews : bur he fo frames his anjwer (more prophet ico)
after the manner of the Prophets, (who have very
often more views than one) as to take in that, and
the loft judgment too ; fome parts of it relating to
the one, ibme to the other, and fome to both. Or
if the Difciples intended to afk diitind queftions,
the one concerning Jerufalem, the other concerning
the lajl judgment, (as very likely they might, having
perhaps been before inftrucled by their divine Maf-
ter, that the one was to be a type or reprefentation
of the other,) then there is a yet plainer reafon, why
the anfwer is fo contrived as to take in both. That it
does fo will, I believe, appear very evidently from what
follows. And yet Dr. Hammond, and Dr. Whit by,
another learned and famous commentator upon the
New Teftament, in their paraph rafes and annota
tions on this noble portion of holy Scripture, (never
enough to be admired and adored,) take not the leajt
notice of the left judgment, never once name it, but
confine the prophecy to the deflruction of the JewiQi
flate only. With what reafon will appear, when we
(hall have examined the whole feries of this illuftrious
prediction.
The queftion or queflions above-mentioned, be
ing propounded by the Difciples, the Evangeliit
fubjoins, ver. 4, 5, 6. And Jefus anfwered, and f aid unto
them, 'Take heed that no man deceive you. For many Jh all
come in my name, faying^ I am Chrift, and fjjall deceive
many. And ye Jh all bear of wars, and rumours of wars;
fee that ye be not troubled : for all thefe things mujl come
to pafs ; but the end is not yet. That is, the end of
the Jewifh polity. And fo he goes on, foretelling
the hardjhips they fh.ould endure, the falfe prophets
and impoftors that fliould arife> and the wickednejs
that
Conjldend and Explained. 47
that (hould abound, till ver. 14. and then proceeds
thus: And this gof pel of the kingdom ftj all be preach
ed in all the 'world, for a witnefs unto all nations :
it was fo to all the mod confiderable nations (which
may be faid to include ail the reft) before the
deftruction of Jerufalem, all the Apoftles, except
St. John, being then dead: And then ft) all the end
come \ i. e. again, certainly, the end of the Jewifh
polity, as appears from the next verfe. When ye
therefore jh all fee the abomination of defolation, fpoken of
by Daniel the Prophet Banding in the holy place, i. e. the
Roman army belieging Jerufalem, the holy city ; the
walls 'y and inclofures^ and even the ground round about
//, being likewife deemed holy ; then let him that is in
Judea flee into the mountains^ &c. and fo to ver. 23.
Hitherto it is beyond all doubt, that he fpeaks only
of the deftruclion of Jerufalem. Upon which St.
Luke is more exprefs in his 21 ft chapter parallel to
this : And when ye fhall fee Jerufalem compafjed with
armies^ then know that the defolation thereof is nigh.
Nor can thofe exprefiions, Let him which is on the houfe-
top not come down to take any thing out of his houfey
£tc. And woe unto them that are with child, &c. But
pray ye that your flight be not in the winter 9 &c. And
except thcfe daysjhould bejhortened^ &c. have any poffi-
ble reference to the day of judgment : there being
the:: no fuch thing 2& flying or efcaping^ or faving any
thing; it being then indifferent whether a woman be
with child, or not ; whether it be in the winter, or in
fwnmer, &c. and it being equally indifferent whether
the day, or days^ \>zfhortened or not.
But at the 23d verfe, Then if any ft all fay untoyou^
Lo, here is Cbrift, or there ; believe it not. For there
/hall arife falfe Cbrifts, &c. and fo on to ver. 27.
Some Expoiitors are of opinion, that this relates to
the end of the world in general, and to Chrift's com
ing in judgment at the loft day. But for what rea-
fbn they are of that opinion, I fee not. Our Sa
viour
48 Two of our SAVIOUR'S Advents
viour had before, at the beginning of his difcourfe,
afTured his Difciples, that there fhould b&fa/fe Chrifts ;
and Hiftorians, Jofephus in particular, allure us, that
there actually were fuch about the time of the de-
ftru&ion of Jerufalem : and therefore why this part
of the prophecy mu/l needs relate to the end cf the
world, when it was in facJ fulfilled at the dejiruftion.
cf Jerufalem^ of which our Saviour has been all this
while fpeaking, I cannot by any means undeiiland.
The next words indeed feem entirely to be meant
of the laft judgment. For as the lightning cometh out of
the eaft, andjhineth even unto the weftyfo alfo /hall the
coming of the Son of man be. Ver. 27. And I believe
they do fo in part, to exprefs the fudden glory of his
appearance at that day. For though, no doubt, there
will, for reafons both natural and moral, be warnings
and prognojlics of that great cataftrophe, perhaps
for fome years before it ; yet it may be fudden, and
probably will be fo, upon two accounts, ift, Be-
caufe it will in effect be come, when the certain pro
gnojlics fhall firft appear: inafmuch as it will then be
too late for repentance, when the laft day is known
to bejujt at band, though it be not actually arrived.
2dly, Becaufe, notwithftanding thofe warnings, the
day and hour is not known ; and when the Judge ac
tually appears, it may be as fudden as a flaih of
lightning, as well as far more glorious and terrible.
But now, as the words may relate to the deflru&ion
of Jerufalem, and thefa/fe Chrifts which arofe about
that time, they have another afpect, and a fomewhat
different iignification. Wherefore, if they Jh all fay
unto you, Behold^ he is in the defart,go not forth. Seve
ral impoftors, pretending to be the Meffiah, ap-
pointed the people to meet them in defarts. Behold^
he is in the fecret chambers ; (i. e. in private cabals
and conventicles;) believe it not. For as the lightning
cometh, &c, i. e. <f My coming (hall not be in iecrecy
" and obfcurity, like that of thofe falfe Chrifts who
" (hall
Conjidered and Explained. 49
c* fliall ufurp the name of the Median ; (for that is the
" meaning of thole words in my name, not that they
<c came as bis reprefentatives, or mejjengers ; for each of
<c them denied that there was any Meffiah but him-
" felf;) but my appearance, though not in perfon, yet
" \n judgment and vengeance, fliall be as vijible^ clear,
" and confpicuous, as the lightning in the heavens."
Thefe words nnift mfome fenfe relate to the deftruc-
tion of Jerufalem ; becaufe the connection of them
with the context, both before and after, requires it.
The particle for with reference to the firft j For as
the lightning, &c. And with reference to the latter,
thefe remarkable words : For wherefoever the carcafe
is, there will the eagles be gathered together, ver. 28.
i. e. the Roman legions, compared to eagles, upon
the account of that which they carried in their ftand-
ards, fliall fly upon the body of the Jews devoted to
deftrudion, as thole birds of prey do upon a carcafe.
I am fenfible, that there is another interpretation put
upon thofe words ; " Wherefoever the body or more
" immediate pre fence of Chrifl is, there will his faith -
4< ful fervants be gathered to him :" which is a
ftrange one to my apprehension ; but it is not my
bufinefs at prefent to confute it : I only obferve in a
word, that to reprefent our Saviour's glorified body
by a dead carcafe, and his faithful fervants and
faints by ravenous birds of prey, is fo untoward a
fcheme of fpeech, that it is not to be endured.
Hitherto therefore I underftand all as referred
chiefly -, though not folety, to the deftruction of Jeru
falem. But then the next words are very remark
able, ver. 29, 30, 31. Immediately after the tribulation
of thofe days, /hall the fun be darkened r, and the moon
Jhall not give her light ; and the ft ars fli all fall from hea
ven, and the powers of the heavens Jhall be Jhaken.
And then Jhall appear the fign of the Son of man in hea
ven : and then Jhall all the tribes of the earth mourn \
they Jhall fee the Son of man coming in the clouds of
E
50 Tii'o of our SAVIOUR'S Advents
heaven, with power and great glory. And he jhall fend
his angels with a great found of a trumpet -, and they
jhall gather together his eleft from the four winds , from
one end of heaven to the other. All this, according to
many other places of Scripture, is a manifeft de-
fcription of the lajl judgment, and the final confumma-
tion of all things, and feems in every branch of it
not to be capable of any other conflruclion. Yet I
think it has partly a view to fomething elfe ; I mean
to the ruin of the Heath en powers, and \\\z prosperity of
the Church under the Chriflian Emperors. And io I
take all thofe cxpreffions, The fun Jhall be darkened, and
the ftars /hall fall from heaven, &c. to be ufed in their
neareftfenfe, (nearefl I mean in point of time j) figura
tively, and metaphorically, denoting the downfall of
the Pagan tyrants, agreeably to that of Ifaiah con
cerning the King of Babylon ; (to omit many fuch
like paflages in the Old Teflament ;) How art thou
fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, f on of the morning! Ifaiah
xiv. 12. in their remote fenfe, ftrictly, and literally,
for the dlffolution of the univerfe. I fay, I take them
in their fir ft and nearefl fenfe as to time, figuratively,
or metaphorically, to denote the fall of the Heathen
powers, not literally to fignify the end of the world.
Becaufe it is faid, Immediately after the tribulation of
thofe days, i. e. after the deftrudtion of Jerusalem, and
the miferies confequent of it to that nation for about
200 years, (for there is no neceffity of reftraining that
expreflion to the city only,) thofe things fliould hap
pen : which words may much better fignify a. few
years afterward, than about fifteen hundred at leaft :
for we fee the world is not at an end yet ; though
God knows how foon it may be. But the downfall
of the Pagan tyrants was immediately, i.e. in a fow
years after the tribulation aforefaid. I am not igno
rant, that a different expofition has by fome been
put upon thofe words, making them denote the fall,
not of the Heathen powers, but of the Jeivijh eccleji-
afticaL
Conjldered and Explained. 51
aftical hierarchy. And perhaps it might be admitted,
were it not for thofe words, immediately after the tri
bulation, &c. Becaufe the Jewifh ecclefiaftical con-
Hit uti on fell not after the Jewifh polity, much lefs a
confiderable time after, bat with it.
And now to take a review of the part lafl cited of
this illuftrious prophecy ; confider, I befeechyou, how
meagre a fenfe it carries, if the day of judgment (as
fome would have it) be excluded from it. The fun
fhall be darkened \ &c. a ad fo on, as I above recited
the whole paifage. Be it that thefe words figura
tively iignify the deftruction of Jerufalem, and the
refcue of the faithful at that time, as fome think; or
the fall of the Pagan tyrants^ and the flourifhing
ftate of the Church for fome time, as others think ;
yet is that all f Does that come up to the full im
port of the words ? Have they not a literal, as well as
a figurative iignification ; when everybody knows,
that in other places of Scripture the day of judgment is
defcribed in the fame or the like expreffions ? Did
the Jign or figure of the Son of man appear ? Did he
in perfon come in the clouds, with his angels^ at the de-
ftruclion of Jerulalem, or the fall of the Heathen
empire ? .And will he not actually and literally fo ap
pear at the day of judgment? Was there any found of a
trumpet heard in the heavens upon either of thofe oc-
cafions ? And does not St. Paul more than once af-
fure us, that the trumpet Jhall found at the refurrec-
tion ? Much the fame may be laid of the other
claufes. Were the fun and moon literally darkened
at the deftrudion of Jerufalem, or at the fall of the
Heathen powers? And will they not necejjarily be fo at
the general conflagration, when the whole world mail
O O ^
be in flames and fmoke ? Did//^n then literally fall
from heaven ? And is it not probable, that balls of
firft like liars at lead, i. e. flaming meteors, will fall
fem-the iky at that univerfal combuflion? If God's
coming ./> the clouds, and with his angels^ (as both
E 2 Jews
5^ Two of our SAVIOUR'S Advents
Jews and Chriftians have truly obferved,) does fome-
times fignify his fignally, and in an extraordinary-
manner, fuccouring his faithful fervants, and inflicting
vengeance upon his enemies with power and f error , yet
does it from thence follow, that it never means any
thing farther ? Do thofe words (as I before hinted)
mean nothing farther in this very place ? And in that
of Rev. i. 7. Behold, he cometh with clouds ; and every
eye Jh all fee him, and they djo which pierced him : and
all kindreds of the earth jhall wail becaufe of him f
Which laft claufe is parallel with this in the palTage
now before us: And then Jhall all the tribes of the earth
mourn. I am fenlible thole expreffions may be tranf-
lated, the tribes and kindreds of the land^ as well as
of the earth; and there are in the New Teftament
other inftances of the like ambiguity in the word
yv, which may be rendered either earth, or land. But
what then ? They may have a more efpecial view to
the land or nation of the Jews in particular, and yet
a view, nay the chief one, to the earth or world in
general. This I am to far from denying, that it is the
very thing I am contending for. And this double
fenfe is mod beautiful and emphatical. I acknow
ledge too, that thole words, the powers of the heavens
Jhall be Jhaken, may in one fenfe intimate, not the day
of judgment, (though that in another,) but fome
great and extraordinary change in the world, (as both
the defhudion of the Jewifli ftate, and the ruin of
the Pagan empire certainly were,) agreeably to many
fuch like expreffions in the prophecies of the Old
Teftament, ibmetimes predicting evil, fometimes
good, and fometimes both. That of Plaggai ii. 6, 7.
'Thus faith the Lord of h oft s, Tet once, it is a little while,
and I will jhake the heavens, and the earth, and the fea,
find the dry land : and I will flake all nations ; and the
Defire of all nations jhall come, &c. manifeltly foretells
the greateft good, the coming of the Mefliah. And
there is an inftance of the fame fort of exprefiion
even
Confidered and Explained. £$
even in a Heathen writer; and that too predicting
the fame thing, the coming of Chrift ; though the
writer was ignorant of it : I mean that of Virgil in
his famous fourth Eclogue, fo much quoted and re
ferred to by Divines : though this paffage which 1
am going to mention was never, as I know of, taken
notice of by any :
Afpice convexo nutantem pondere mundum,
Terrqfque, traclufque marts, ccelumque profundum :
Afpice, venturo Icetentur ut omnia facto.
Exactly agreeable to that of Haggai juft now men
tioned.
That our Saviour, in perfon, did ftrictly and lite
rally come or appear in the clouds at the deftruction
of Jerufalem, or any other time hitherto, will be af-
ferted by nobody : but that he will fo come and ap
pear, one time or other, is plain from that illuflrious
paffage, Acts i. 9, 10, 1 1. And when he hadfpoken thej'e
things, while they beheld, he was taken up, and a cloud
received him out of their fi$ht. And while they looked
Jltdfajlly toward heaven, as he went up, behold, two men
flood by them in white apparel \ which alfo faid, Te men
of Galilee, why Jland ye gazing up into heaven ? This
fame Jefus, ivhich is taken up from you into heaven, jhall
fo come in like manner as ye havefeen him go into heaven.
I hope it will be granted by all Chriftians, that our
Saviour really, ftridly, literally, perfonally, afcended
into heaven : that he afcended in a cloud, this Scripture
tells us: that he will come again fo, in like manner as
he afcended, two angels affure us : therefore he will
literally and perfonally come in a cloud, or clouds, one
time or other: and when fhould that be, but at the day
of judgment ? To proceed. If thofe words, And he Jhall
fend his angels, and they Jhall gather together his eleft,
from the four winds, from the one end of heaven to the
other, denote the discrimination made at the deftruction
of Jerufalem between the believing faithful Chriftians,
E 3 and
54 Two of our SAVIOUR'S Advents
and the unbelieving impenitent Jews, and the refcu£
of the former from the general calamity, as I make no
doubt but they do-, yet is that all? Does this come
up to the full energy and latitude of the expreflion ?
Can gathering them from Jerufalem, and the feveral
parts of the little country round about it, be called
gathering them from the four winds, from one end of
heaven to the other? The fall force and extent of them
is anfvvered by the proceedings at the day of judg
ment; but not by the proceedings at the deftruction
of Jerufalem.
Thus much for this part of the awful prediction
we are coniidering. Let us now go on with the reft
of the chapter. That admonition by way of fimili-
tude, ver. 32, 33. Now learn a parable of the Jig-tree •,
&c. may be underftood equally of either, or both thefe
advents. Thofe words, ver. 34. Ferity I fay unto you,
^his generation jh all not pafs till all thefe things' be fulfilled,
muft relate to the deftrudion of Jerufalem only, and
are exactly parallel to the laft verfe of my text ; There
be fomejlanding here, which Jkall not tajle of death, &c.
But then ver. 36. Of that day and hour knoweth no
man, no, not the angels of heaven, \nor the Son, as it is
in St. Mark,] but my Father only -, thole words muft
furely be referred to the laft judgment. For why the
day and hour of the deftrudion of Jerufalem, which
was to be in thirty-eight years after this prophecy was
uttered, fliould be kept as a fecret from angels, and
even from our Saviour himfelf as man, feems very un
accountable. An ordinary Prophet, one would think,
to whom the thing itfelf mould be revealed, might as
well be made acquainted with this circumjiance of time^
as with any thing elfe relating to it. But the laft uni-
i' erf al judgment, the end of the world, the final con-
fummation of all 'things, is an event of that infinite
importance, of fo ftupendous and ajionijhing a nature,
that the time of it may well be kept a fecret to all
creatures which ftill adds greater awe and pomp to
that
Confidered and Explained. $$
that amazing difpenfation. If it be objected, that,
according to the account I have given., our Saviour
firft fpeaks of the deftruction of Jerufalern, then of
the day of judgment, then again of the deftru6Uon of
Jerufalem, then of the day of judgment again : I
anfvver, It is very true he does fo; and this would be
incongruous and improper in a human difcourfe or
compolition; or even in any difcourfe or compofition,
though an infpired one, the nature of which required
a train of argumentation and confequences : but it
is quite otherwife in predictions and divine oracles,
for reafons which I have hinted at in this difcourfe,
and in another a have particularly infifted upon. It is
the turn and call of prophecies, according to the al-
moft perpetual practice of the Prophets in the Old
Teftament ; which is, not only to intimate two things
in the fame words, but to fkip backwards and for
wards from one thing to another, in this defultory
manner of which I am fpeaking.
As to what is faid of the carelejjnefs and fecurity
with which people mould be poiTeffed; As it was in
the days of Noah, before the deftruclion of the old
world, and (as it is added in St. Luke) in the days of
Lot, before the definition of Sodom, fo Jhall alfo the
coming of the Son of man be-, this again may very well
relate both to the deftruciion of Jerusalem in par
ticular, and to the definition of the whole world in
general. And fo likewife may what follows in the
two next verfes, 40, 41. Then Jhall t^vo be in the field;
(at harveft-work, or other work of hufbandry,) the one
/ball be taken, and the ether left. Two women Jhall be
grinding at the mill; the one Jhall be taken, and the other
left. Taken, i. e. refcued and preierved : left, i. e. left
to periJJj and be deftroyed. That there was fuch a
difcrimination made at the liege of Jerufalem, we
have already obferved; that the very defign of the
laft judgment is to make fuch a one, no Chriftian can
a Difcourfe I.
E 4 want
56 Two of our SAVIOUR'S Advents
want to be informed. And of thofe who fhall be
then found alive, fome will be caught up to meet the
Lord in the air, (as St. Paul afTures us, i ThefT iv. 17.)
the reft left to burn, firft on earth in the general con
flagration, and then in hell for ever. The fame may
be fald of the long and pathetical exhortation to
watchfulnefs, and being ready, or prepared for the
coming of our Saviour, and the punifhment of thofe
who fhall be found unprepared; to the end of thiwS
wonderful chapter, never too much to be read, pon
dered, and ftudied by us. It was neceilary for thofe
who then lived to be found /#/>/;////, and doing their
duty, when our Lord iliould come in vengeance to the
deftruction of Jerufalem, that they might not be
involved in the general ruin; and that it always was,
and ever will be, neceffary for all to be fo at his coin
ing in perfon to the loft judgment, I need not fay.
As I have feveral times obferved, that the deftruc-
tion of Jerufalem is to be regarded as a type of the
definition of the world-, which appears from their
being thus blended and twiftecl with each other; it
will here be proper to affign fome reafons why it is fo.
And the firft is this: The people of the Jews, being
God's more peculiar people, were fingled out from all
others, to be as it were a representative of the whole
world: God's proceedings with them being particu
larly recorded, and it being neceflary that fome one
nation or other fhould be fo diftinguifhed; becaufe
it is impoflible that any one fhort hiftory, as that of
the Bible, being contrived for inJiruElion, is, and ought
to be, iliould contain the hiftory of all mankind.
Now his proceedings muft in equity and parity of
reafon be the fame, the cafes being the fame with all
mankind, as they were with them. adly. Another
reafon is this : The deftrudlion of the world in gene
ral is certainly the greateft ruin and diflrefs that ever
can happen, and the deftruclion of the Jews in par
ticular was the greateft that ever did happen : there
was
Conjtdered and Explained. ^
was never any thing like it ilnce the creation, to any
one people; no, nor ever will be to the end of the
world. Thus our Saviour himfelf in this very chapter,
ver. 21. For then /hall be great tribulation, fuch as was
•not face the beginning of the world to this time-, no, nor
ever Jh all be. For the latter we may certainly depend
upon our Saviour's words ; and hiftory, efpecially
that of Jofephus, who was himfelf a Jew, fufficiently
affures us how the former was verified : the devaf-
tations, daughters of innumerable multitudes, fire,
ravage, famine, peftilence, and all the miferies which
mortals in this world are capable of fuffering, being
fuch as all the records of time cannot parallel, jdly,
The diftinttion made between the righteous and the
^uicked, in this laft great war between the Jews and
the Romans, was remarkably providential, and little
lefs than miraculous. Ceftius Callus, the Roman
general, befieging Jerufalem, in which the Chriflians
were all, in a manner, (hut up, fome months before
Titus, who finally deftroyed it, came before it, »«-
accountably, and without any vilible reafon, nay con
trary to all the rules and reafons of war, railed his
fiege; and fo gave the Chriftians leave to efcape and
jly to the mountains ; which, in puriuance of our Lord's
admonition, they accordingly did : whereas the unbe
lieving Jews, being afterwards (hut up in Jerufalem,
at the feaft of Pentecoft, when all retorted thither,
died miferably by the fword, famine, or peflilence,
or were carried into captivity. Now, that at the
laft day there will be a difference made between the
righteous and the wicked, between them that ferved
God, and them that ferved him not, (as the Prophet
Malachi fpeaks,) can, among Chriftians, I fup-
pofe, be no queftion. 4thly, The prodigies and
prognoflics preceding the definition of Jerufalem
were, according to Tacitus a Heathen, a Roman^
and Jofephus a Jewifh hiilorian, the greateft and
moft extraordinary that ever were feen or heard of.
As
55 Two of our SAVIOUR'S Advents
As a comet in the fhape of a fword hanging over
the city for a year together ; the appearance of
armies fighting in the air, earthquakes, &c. And I
have before obferved, that, for reafons both natural
and moral, it is to be prefumed, that there will
be fuch and far more dreadful prefaces before the
day of judgment. So that it is hard to fay, whether
thofe words of our Saviour, Luke xxi. are to be un-
derftood of the deftruction of Jerusalem, as a type of
the laft judgment; or (which I rather think) as a
prophecy with a double fenfe, as I have often men
tioned, including £#/£. Verie 25, &c. And there jh all
le Jigns in the fun, and in the moon, and in tbe ftars ;
find upon the earth diftrefs of nations, with perplexity ;
/be Jea and the waves roaring ; men's hearts failing
them for fear, and for looking after thofe things which
are coming upon the earth : for the powers of heaven
Jhatt be Jhaken, &c.
Parallel to part of this chapter, Matt.xxiv. is part
of the xvii. of St. Luke's Gofpel. In which are fome
peculiar paiTages requiring explanation. And when
be was demanded of the Pharifees, (ver. 20) when the
kingdom of God fowl d come-, i. e. the reign of the
Meffiah. which they expected fhould be a temporal
one; he anfiuered them, and f aid, The kingdom of God
cometh not 'with obfervation : or, (as it is in the margin)
with outward Jbew, i. e. with external pomp and
iplendour, like the kingdoms of this world. Neither
jhall they fay, (ver. 21.) i. e. Let them not jay, or they
ought not fay ; (otherwife it would be inconfiflent
with ver. 23.) Lo here, or, lo there : for behold the
kingdom of God is within you, or among you. i. e. The
Hate of the Gofpel, the difpenfation of the Meffiah
is already come, and in the midft of you Jews ;
among whom, according to the predictions of the
Old Teftament, the Meffiah was to be born, and
exercife his miniftry upon earth. Ver. 22. The days
will come, when ye foall defire to fee one of the days of the
Son
Confidered and Explained. £y
Son vfman, and ye fh all not fee it. i. e. In the days of
your diftrefs at the deftrudtion of Jerufalem, and
about that time, ye fhall wifh for my perfonal prefence
upon earth again, to comfort and relieve you, or
make you frefli offers of grace and favour; but it will
then be too late. Ver. 37. And they anfwered and f aid
unto him, Where, Lord ? And he f aid unto them, Where-
foever the body is, thither will the eagles be gathered
together. The meaning of that allegorical exprefiion
in our Saviour's anfwer I have already (hewn : and
as to the queflion, Where, Lord? which is not in
St. Matthew; he had been defcribing the future ca
lamities of the Jews ; and being alked where thefe
things mould happen, he anfwers, Not in Jerufalem
and Judea only, though chiefly there; but in any part
of the world, (which accordingly came to pafs,)
wherever the Romans could find out the Jews, they
would fly upon them as eagles to their prey.
Proceed we now to fome other texts of Scripture.
Our blefled Saviour in the 1 8th chapter of St. Luke's
Gofpel, having recommended earneftnefs and im
portunity in prayer, and aflerted that God will avenge
his own elefl, which cry day and night unto him, fubjoins,
ver. 8. Neverthelefs, when the Son of man comet h^Jh all
he find faith on the earth? As if he fhould have laid,
Though I have thus exhorted men to pray with im
portunity, and with the prayer of faith, (as St. James
fpeaks,) and have allured them that God will avenge
his faithful fervants ; yet few will, practically at leatt,
believe what I fay. How few will be found faithful,
when I come at the deftruclion of Jerufalem, to
take vengeance of mine enemies, and to refcue and
deliver my fervants! That the world (hould then
abound with wickednefs, he propheiied in the 24th
of St. Matthew, as we have feen. This paffage like-
wife, according to the fignification of the words, may
have a further view to the end of the world and the
laft judgment; but that it has we cannot certainly
fay:
60 Two of our SAVIOUR'S Advents
fay : God only knoweth , the event alone mufl in
form us.
John xxi. 21,22, 23. we have this remarkable
paiTage : Peter feeing him, [St. John] faith to Jejus^
Lord, and what Jh all this man do ? Jejus faith unto mm,
If I will that he tarry till I come, what is that to thee ?
Follow thou me. 'Then went this faying abroad among
the brethren, that that difciple Jhould not die: Tet
Jefusfaid not unto him, He Jhall not die\ but, If I will
that he tarry till I come^ what is that to thee? It is
well known how many idle (lories have been told
both by ancients and moderns, about St. John's not
dying; all founded upon this place of Scripture; which
rather difproves that fable, than gives any counte
nance to it. The coming of our Saviour here fpoken
of is not at the end of the world, but at the de-
ilruction of Jerufalem ; which St. John, and he only
of all the Apoftles, not only lived to fee, but out
lived by above thirty years. So that this place is
exactly agreeable to that of my text ; Verily I fay unto
you, 1'bere be fomefianding herc\ which Jlmll not taftc of
death, till they fee the Son of man coming in his kingdom.
To proceed:
So that ye come behind in no gift, (fays the Apoftle,
i Cor. i. 7.) waiting for the coming of our Lord Jefus
Chrijl. This may be underftood either of the deftruc-
tion of Jerufalem, or the day of judgment, or both.
But that of the fame Apoftle, i Cor. xv. 23. After
wards they that are Chrj/Fs at his coming, can relate to
his laft advent only, at the end of the world ; becaufe
St. Paul is there treating of the refurreftion. That in
the fame Epiftle, chap. xi. ver. 26. Te do flew forth the
Lord's death until he comey mud like wife be meant of his
coming in judgment at the laft day, for certainly Chrif-
tians were to receive the Sacrament of the Lord's Sup
per, not only till the destruction of Jerufalem, but to
the world's end. i Theff. ii. 19. Are ye not even in the
•prefeiice of our Lord Jefus Chrijl at bis coming ? will bear
either
Conjidcrcd and Explained. 6l
cither or both of the interpretations as aforefaid.
The fame Epiftle, chap. iv. ver. 16. ¥he Lord himfelf
Jhall defcend from heaven with a Jhout^ &c. can bear
none but the latter ; the whole paffage from ver. 13.
to the end, ver. 17. being a manifeft defcription of
the refurrection and the day of judgment. 2 ThefT.
i. 7, 8, 9, 10. The Lord Jefus JJiall be revealed from
heaven with his mighty angels, in flaming fire taking
vengeance on them that know not God, and that obey not
the gofpel of our Lord Jefus Chrift •, who jhall be
punijhed with everlafting deftruftion from the prefence
of the Lord, and from the glory of his -power-, when
he /hall come to be glorified in his faints, and to be
admired in all them that believe. And 2 Pet. iii. 10.
(which I cite in conjunction with this, becaufe of its
near affinity with it, and the fame account being to
be given of both:) But the day of the Lord will come
as a thief in the night ; in the which the heavens Jhall
pafs away with a great noife, and the elements Jhall
melt with fervent heat. The earth alfo, and the works
that are therein, jhall be burnt up. Thefe two texts,
the lad efpecially, fliould, one would think, be un-
derftood wholly and folely of the day of judgment,
and the diflblution of the world by fire. And yet
the mofl learned Dr. Hammond underflands them
wholly and folely of the deftruction of Jerufalem
and the Jewiih polity; not mentioning their having
the lead view to any thing elfe. And indeed, upon
the account of the contexts introducing them, and
the immediate defign of the writers, and for other
reaibns which he gives, I make no doubt but they
relate to the vengeance inflicted on the Jews ; but
fure they have a view, at lead, to the day of judg
ment likewiie. If thofe words — revealed from heaven
with his mighty angels, in flaming fire, &c. may mean,
as I queftion not they partly may, and do, his dread
ful judgments upon that particular people; if thofe
expreffions, the heavens f})all pafs aivay with a great
noifc,
6« Two of our SAVIOUR'S Advents
nolfe, and the elements fliall melt 'with fervent heat>
may be underftood of the diilblution of the Jewifh
government and conilitution both in church and
ftate; if by the word yy, which we render earth,
may be meant the land of J-udea in particular ; yet
certainly this does not come up to the full force and
import of thofe expreffions. The cafe therefore is
plainly the fame in thefe paflages, as in feveral parts
of Matthew xxiv. which I have largely explained.
In their firfl conftruction as to time, and the immedi
ate intention of the writers, they are to be taken
metaphorically for the deftru&ion of Jerufalem; in
their fecondary and -more remote one as to time, but
more immediate zudjlricl as to fignification, they are
to be taken literally for the general conflagration:
the words carrying two fenfes, according to the
almofl perpetual method, (as I have often had oc-
calion to obferve,) and the peculiar and never
enough to be admired genius of prophecies both in
the Old and New Teflament.
Phil. iv. 5. we have thefe words: fhe Lord is
at hand. Heb. x. 37. Yet a little while, and he that
jhall come will come, and will not tarry. James v. 7,8.
Be patient therefore, brethren, unto the coming of the
Lord — For the coming of the Lord draweth nigh. And
i Pet. iv. 7. The end of all things is at hand. All
thefe texts (and there are more iuch) muft be re
ferred to the deflru&ion of Jerufalem. And I much
wonder at thofe interpreters who underfland them
of the day of judgment; and have no other way
to account for it, but by faying the Apoftles thought
the lafl judgment would be in their own times; but
were miflaken. A ftrange compliment to perfons di
vinely infpired; fpeaking in their apoftolical capacity,
and foretelling things to come. If they were mijlaken
in this, why might they not be fo in any thing elfe ?
And how fhall we diilinguifli when they were, and
when they were not ? But it will be objected ; What
fhall
Coafidered and Explained. $*$
fhali we fay to the text laft cited, The end of ALL
THINGS is at hand? What can this mean but the
univerfe, the world in general? Did Jerufalem and
the Jewifh (late include all things? I anfwer; Were
this the only paiTage of the kind, the difficulty would
indeed be great. But as there are many others
expreffed in a different manner, thofe in all reafon
ought to interpret and explain this. By all things,
therefore, mull be meant all things relating to the
Jewifh polity and difpenfation: and thofe to whom
this Apoftle wrote being Jews, we may fuppofe his
meaning was well enough underftood,
But upon this head there feems to be another dif
ficulty. The Apoftles had often faid that this day
of the Lord (the deftruction of Jerufalem) was at
hand. And yet St. Paul, 2 Theff. ii. 2. feems to affirm
the contrary. Now we bejeech you, brethren, by the
coming of our Lord Jefus Cbrift, that ye be not foon>
Jhaken in mind, &c. as that the day of Chrift is at hand*
BY the coming^ &c. " The prepofition uVg/>" (fays the
learned Dr. Hammond, and I entirely agree with
him) " is often taken in the notion of -zzr^l, of, or,
" about, or concerning, or for, as that denotes the
u matter of the enfuing difcourfe. As when we fay
"in Englifh, Now for Jut b a matter, or point, or quef-
" tion; which is the form of entering upon any
" difcourfe. And thus it feems to be underftood
" here; making the coming of Chrift, &c. the things
cc which he proceeds to difcourfe of; which having
" been touched upon in the former Epiftle, chap.
" v. i . (and it feems what was faid in that Epiftle
" mifunderftood by them in fome circumftances,) he
" proceeds, as in a known matter, to (peak of it;
" and fo uVgfl will be beft rendered concerning" Let no
man deceive you by any means-, (continues the Apoftle;)
for that day foall not come, except (i. e. until) there
come a falling away firjl, &c. to ver. 9. mentioning an
apoftafy or defection to Simon Magus, and the de-
ftruction
64 Two of our SAVIOUR'S Advents
flruclion of that impoftor ; which fliould happen
before this day of Chrifl ihould come. This feeming
repugnancy is eaiily reconciled by the different
words in the original, though they are the fame in
our verfion. When it is faid, in other places, the
day is at band, it is ?yy»x«, or lyx»'£«, is near, or draws
nigh: here it is cvsVuxEv, denoting the immediate ap
proach of the day, or the injlant coming of it. Now
we all know an event may be near, fo as to happen in
a few years-, and yet not fo near, as to happen in a
few days.
Having thus examined the moil material texts of
Scripture relating to this fubject, diftinguifhed the
fenfe of them, fliewn which of them refer to the firft
of our Saviour's advents, which we have been con-
fidering, viz. the deftru&ion of Jerufalem ; which to
the fecond, viz. the day of judgment; and which to
both ; I come now, by way of application, to fhew
the great importance of thefe confiderations, with re
gard both to our faith and practice.
Firft then, If we make a right ufe of our reafon,
we cannot but from hence obferve the divine plenitude,
or fulnefs, (as Tertullian fpeaks, though upon another
occalion,) the wonderful depth and richnefs, the har
mony and beauty of the holy Scriptures, efpecially the
prophetical part of them. Thofe predictions in par
ticular, which have more views than one, however
they may feem liable to objection upon that account,
and appear difficult and obicure, are, when enquired
into, explained, well adjufted, and underftood, fuch
an inftance of heavenly infpiration, as we can never
fufficiently value and efteem. I have, upon another
fubject,* taken occafion to anfwer the cavils of unbe
lievers againft this admirable fcheme of prophecy;
and to obferve the extreme pleafure, as well as profit,
which attends a diligent and minute refearch into
* Pifcourfe I.
the
Conjidered and Explained* 65
the more retired and involute fenfe of them. I fhall
therefore only add at prefent, that, were there no
thing elfe in it, as there is a great deal, the delight
and fatisfa&ion, which it affords us even in this world,
is more than enough to compenfate our labour; and
that it is not near fo pleafant to be ignorant, to
wrangle, and obj-efl, as to under/land, admire, and
adore.
Secondly, We may obferve from what has been dif-
courfed, that our Saviour's prophecies concerning his
coming to the deftruflion of Jerufalem, (as delivered
in Matthew xxiv. and Luke xxi. efpecially,) and the
punctual fulfilling of them, even to the minuteft cir-
cumftances, as appears both from Jewifh and Heathen
hiftorians, are an irrefragable proof of the truth and
certainty of the Chrijlian religion. It is indeed fo great
and illuftrious a one, fo utterly unanfwerable, fo
eafy and obvious even to the meaneft capacity,
being nothing but plain matter of faR, which a child
may underftand ; that were there no other folid ar
gument for the truth of Chriflianity, (as there are
a thoufand,) this alone would be fufficient. But
having elfewhere a enlarged upon this alfo, I now
only remind you of it, but fhall fay no more about it.
Thirdly, My next inference (which is the laft, and
the chief of all) is St. Peter's ; and it (hall be in his
own words. Seeing then that all thefe things Jh all be dif-
fotoed i what manner cf perfons ought ye to be in all holy
converfation and godlinejs \ looking for, and hajiening unto,
the coming of the day cf God\ wherein the heavens be
ing on fire Jhall be diffolved, and the elements jhall melt
with fervent heat ! 2 Ep. iii. 1 1, 12. Supposing there
be a future judgment, the inference here drawn from
it is fo plain, that it needs no proof, or enforcement.
And that God will judge the world, may be, and
often has been, proved even by human reafon -9 from
* Difcourfe on the Parable of Dives and Lazarus.
F
66 Two of our SAVIOUR'S Advents
the real exiftence of, and the eflential difference be
tween., moral good and evil ; from natural confcience ;
from a Providence in this world ; from the wifdom
of God as lawgiver j and from the promifcuous dif-
penfations of things in this life. And what human
reafon makes thus highly probable, divine revelation
makes infallibly certain. Thus do reafon and revelation
fall in and confpire with one another ; fo far are they
from interfering, or being at variance, as our mo
dern pretended philofophers would fain perfuade us.
Beware then left any man fpoil you through philofophy
and vain deceit ; i.e. vain deceitful philoibphy ; phi
lofophy, or fcience^falfelyfo called : for true philofo
phy is an excellent thing; but it is a thing which
thefe pretenders know little of. What madnefs is it
to fpend all our time in this flate, in doubting, and
queftioning whether there be any other ! to argue,
and difpute, whether there be any hell, till at laft we
fall into it ! How much better is it to follow the dic
tates of right reafon and Chriftian religion, in giving
a full and hearty afTent to thefe great truths, upon
the unconteftable evidence which they have on their
fide ; and then living and praclifing accordingly I
Suppofe our Saviour at the laft day reproaching fuch
perfons with their icepticifm, or infidelity, and their
wicked lives confequent of it ; and them pleading
their excufe in this manner : " Lord, we were doubt ~
" ful about thefe matters, a judgment to come, and
" a ftate after death; yet we enquired* and argued;
" but could not be thoroughly convinced" May we
not conceive the Judge with an angry countenance
to reply thus ? " What ground had you for your
" doubts f Did not your own reafon tell you there
" muft be a time when God would fudge the world
" in righteoufnefs ? Or if it did not, had you not the
" holy Scriptures f Was not that truth plainly enough
<c revealed \i\them? And had you not proofs even to
" demonstration,, from the mod certain faffs, that
" thofe
Conjidered and Explained. 6y
** thofe Scriptures were the word of God ? Was not
" this fufficient evidence of a future judgment ? And
" had it not been much better to have lived in a
" conflant, awful, religious expectation of it, than to
" have been perpetually cavilling and difputing about
" it ? Was it not inexcufably wicked, as well as foolifh.
" and mad, to (hut your eyes, and grope about in the
" dark ; or perhaps light a candle, when the cleared
" light of the fun was mining in your faces? But the
" prejudices of your pride, ', and your lujl^ or at bell
" your too much love of the world, your idlenefs, in-
" cogifancy,&nd carelejjhefs> prevailed with you to take
" thefe wretched courfes. Light was fufficiently come
" into the worlds but you loved darknefs rather than
" light, becaufe your deeds were evil. And this was,
" and /j, your CONDEMNATION. Depart therefore,
" ye cur fed) into ev er lofting fire > prepared for the Devil
*c and his angels." O then let us not thus miferably
befool ourielves; but by a holy life be alwaysn? ady
and prepared to meet our Lord, whenever he comes.
And come he will very fpeedily to every one of us in
particular ', be his \a& general coming at never fo great
a diftance : for to every particular perfon the day of
his or her death is in effecl: the day of judgment. And
here I think proper to take notice of a maxim com
monly received ; which is not true in one fenfe,
though it is in another : the not diftinguiming of
which may have given much unneceflary trouble
and uneafinefs to fome well-diipofed and pious
Chriflians. It is this ; that we ought every day of
our lives fo to live, as if that day were our laft : be
caufe, for any thing we know, it may indeed prove
fo. Which is thus far true ; that we ought every
day to do all our ordinary and neceiTary duties, and
commit nolin; for this reafon, among others, be
caufe we do not know but we may die that day. Yet
if this be all, we may and ought to do the works
of our ordinary fecular callings likewife ; and may
F 2 divert
68 Two of our SAVIOUR'S Advents, &c.
divert ourfelves with any innocent recreation. But
if the meaning be (as fome appear to apprehend) that
we Ihould every day fo live, as if we were Jure it
were our loft, it is ablblutely falfe and abfurd. Were
a man certain he fhould die fuch or fuch a day, he
ought to have nothing to do with the ivor/d, but give
himfelf up entirely to prayer, piety, devotion, and
aftual preparation for death. But that we ought to
do the fame every day of our lives, becaufe we do not
know but we may die then, is too wild and extra
vagant, for any body in his right mind to affirm.
However, to be always habitually prepared by a holy
life to meet our Lord both at our death^ and at his
toming in judgment, is our indifpenfable duty, our
highefl interefl : and in the hour of death^ and in the
day of judgment^
Good Lord deliver us.
THE END OF THE THREE DISCOURSES.
EX-
EXPLANATORY NOTES
UPON THE
FOUR GOSPELS
EXPLANATORY NOTES
UPON THE
FOUR GOSPELS.
Of the NEW TESTAMENT in general.
THE Greek word AtaOra, which we render Tefta-
went) and that from which it is derived, fixrfiHr-
Oai, do not relate only to a lajl w///and tejlament, but
alfo tofpwiftons, contracts, covenants, and any fort of
laws. a The word therefore tranflated 'Tejlament (ufed
by our Saviour himfelf, as the Greek writers render it,
Matth. xxvi. 28. Mark xiv. 44. Lukexxii. 20. and
by St. Paul, 2 Cor. iii. 6.) is made choice of to be
prefixed before this great code, or digefl of Chriftian-
ity, becaufe it at once partakes the nature of a co
venant, of a law, and of a loft will, or teflament : all
which are included in that comprehenfive word. The
ancient Jews called their Bible (efpecially the Pen
tateuch, or five books of Mofes) only by the name
of their Law. But the Chriftian writers having, for
the reafon aforefaid, called theirs by the name which
we render Tejlament -, and this latter agreeing with
a Thus ufed by Plato, liberates, Ariftophanes, and others.
See them quoted by the Commentators at large. The Pytha
goreans called the precepts, and rules of living, prefcribed to their
feet, by the name of At«0>jxa». The Septuagint ufe it in the fame
fenfe.
F 4 the
^j^ Of the New Teflamentin general.
the other, in the main fubftance and dejign, as an In
denture does with its counterpart ; they applied the
fame word to that likevvife. For which they had
moreover this authority, that both the Covenants arc
fo called by the Septuagint, Jer. xxxi. 31, 32. Hence
therefore came the ftyle of Old and New ^ejlament.
But becaufe the former cannot, like the latter ; be
called a Tejlament in the ftricleft fenfe, as it means
the loft will of a perfon dying ; it follows, that the
word translated ^eftament, when it is indifferently ap
plied to them bothy is ufed in the wide fenfe before
mentioned. When it is applied to the former, it
includes only law and covenant ; when to the latter,
it includes law^ covenant, and loft will, or teftament.
The diftinftion of Old and New Teftament is exprefs-
ly made by St. Paul, 2 Cor. iii. 6. 14. The word
inftrument a alfo is applied to them both, in the law
fenfe, which every body knows.
Of the GOSPELS and EVANGELISTS in general.
THE Greek word EJayyg'xiov, which we render
Gofpel, lignifies, i. Good tidings. 2. More efpe-
cially, and particularly, the good tidings which Chrift
brought to mankind. 3. The book, or books, con
taining thofe good tidings ; the hiftorical account of
our -Saviour, his miracles, doctrine, &c. It is ufed
by the Septuagint, or LXXII Tranflators of the
Old Teftament into Greek, Ifaiah lii. 7. The Go/pel,
ftrictJy fo called, begins not till the preaching of
John the Baptift : [fee Mark i. i, 2, &c. Luke xvi.
1 6.] fo that what is related before concerning his, and
our Saviour's bkth, &c. is to be looked upon as an
introduction.
* Vetus et Novum Inftrumentum,
Many
Of the Go/pels in general* £3
Many have written Gofpels, as St. Luke affures us,
chap. i. i. And the ancient writers make mention
of feveral particular ones ; as of the Hebrews, of the
Egyptians, of the Nazarenes; of St. James, Philip,
Bartholomew, Thomas, See. But the Church has
received only four, which are of undoubted autho
rity. Of thefe authors, two (viz. Matthew and John)
were Difciples and Apoilles of our Saviour; fo were
car and eye witnefles of what they related. The other
two (viz. Mark and Luke) were not Apoftles indeed,
but they were continual attendants upon thofe who
were; Mark upon St. Peter, and Luke upon St. Paul;
by whofe inftruction and affiftance they wrote their
Gofpels. St. Matthew, according to the befl ac
counts, wrote about eight years, St. Mark about ten
years, after our Saviour's afceniion: St. Luke, not
very foon it feems; becaufe he fays, many others had
taken in hand to record thefe things before him. St.
John penned hisGofpel in the thirty-fecond year after
our Lord's afceniion, as the ancients a affure us. He
added what thofe who went before him had omitted.
And whereas the other three had iniifted chiefly upon
our Saviour's Prophetical Office and Mej]iahjhip\ he
infills more particularly upon his Divinity or Godhead.
a Irenaeus, Eufebius, Jerom, and others.
Exflana-
74 JVoto upon tie Gofpe?
Explanatory Notes upon the Gofpel according to
ST. MATTHEW.
CHAP. I.
VERSE i. The book of the generation of Jejus Chrift,
&c.] This relates not to the whole book, or
gofpely but only to the pedigree^ or genealogy, which
immediately follows. The Greek word here u!ed, Bi'SAoy,
and the correfpondent one in Hebrew, 13D, fhould
not, upon thefe occafions, be rendered book-, but
roll, lift, catalogue, &c.a
It is no wonder^ nor any reafonable objection, that
there mould be difficulty, and obfcurity, vn&Jeeming
inconfiflency between St. Matthew and St. Luke, in
the account of our Saviour's genealogy. Thofe who
are acquainted with the cuftoms of the Jews know
that there are many genealogies which Jeem repug
nant, and yet are not fo: and that may happen various
ways, as may eafily be proved from feveral books
which the Jews and we jointly acknowledge. Beiides,
there are feveral methods of reconciling thefe diffi
culties; though it is fometimes hard to fay which is
the beft, at the diftance of fo many ages ; all records
and even memory of thefe things being utterly loft.
Ver. 2. Judas and his brethren^ For the reafons why
brethren are mentioned here, and elfewhere in this
* The difference between ysno-x and ymwu; makes not at all
againft this account. The former, as well as the latter, fignifies
generation; nay generally fignifies fo: fee particularly Gen. v. I.
Septuag. AVTV ^ Bi^Ao? yeveo-evt; dtQpwvur. To make yevtcrig here
fignify not only our Saviour's pedigree, but every thing he did or
fujfered, is, to my apprehenfion, fomewhat incongruous j though
I confefs it may be juitified, according to Dr. Hammond's account
of it.
chapter,
according to ST. MATTHEW, Chap. I. 75
chapter, fee Mr. Archdeacon Yardley's Genealogies,
&c. page 279, &c.
Ver. 5. Salmon begat Booz of Rachab, &c.] Rahab
the harlot of Jericho. There is no mention of this in
the Old Teftament ; but it is founded upon an an
cient tradition among the Jews. Jofephus fays Booz
lived in the time of Eli, three hundred years after the
Ifraelites came into the land of Canaan. How then
could Salmon beget Booz of her ? And how happens
it, that between Salmon and David there were only
three men, viz. Booz, Obed, and JefTe ? and yet it
appears that there were three hundred and iixty years
between them. But it is certain that the hiftory of
Ruth and Booz does not belong to the age of Eli, but
is much more ancient. a The reft may be adjufledby
confidering the length offome mens lives in thofe days,
and God's particular blejfing to the anceflors of our
Saviour* Suppofe, therefore, i. That Salmon and
Rahab were very young at the taking of Jericho,
and had their fon Booz born when they were very
old. 2. That Booz, Obed, and JefTe had children
when they were each of them about a hundred years
old, which is not impoflible; and this matter may be
well enough accounted for.
Ver. 8. Joram begat Ozias.] i.e. Uzziah, or Azariah :
for he is called by both thofe names in the Old Tef
tament. And yet between them there were Ahaziah,
Joafli, and Amaziah; which lail was the father of
Uzziah; fo that Joram was not Uzziah's father, but
his great great grandfather. It is anfwered, He was
his father mediately, though not immediately. And
there are many inflances, not only in the Scriptures,
but in other writings, in which any anceftor is called
thefatbtr, and faid to have begot thofe who did not
immediately defcend from him. But ftill, how come
Ahaziah, Joafh, and Amaziah to be omitted? And
* See Spanheim in loc.
what
?6 Notts upon the Gofpel
what reafon is there for it? ANSW. St. Matthew di
vided the genealogy into three parts, each confiding
of fourteen generations,, that he might make a round
number, for the fake of diflinftion and ferfpicuity, and
for the help of memory. Firft, therefore, he digefted
the whole lineage into three periods or divifions of
time, before the kingdom, during the kingdom, and
after the kingdom; then again allotted an equal num
ber of perfons, viz. fourteen, to each divilion, flill for
the fake of perfpicuity and memory. In purfuance
of which deiign, he made no fcruple of pajfing over
iome perfons, well enough known, yet in them/elves in-
confiderable : which we fee other hiftorians do, when
they give zfummary account of things, as Solinus in
his lift of the Kings of Macedon -9 and feveral inftances
of the fame nature there are in the Old Teftament.
See them quoted by Grotius on this verfe and on
verfe 17. See him alfo on verfe 13 and 16. Qu.
But why were theft three omitted rather than others ?
ANSW. i. Why not thefe as well as any others?
2. Joram had married Athaliah, the daughter of Ahab,
againft whofe houfe a particular curfe was denounced.
So the three here omitted were defcended from the
wicked houfe of Ahab and Jezebel, and all three
came to violent deaths.
Ver. 12. And Jojiah begat Jechoniasy &c.] The two
names of Jehoiakim and Jehoiacin being fo like, the
fame Greek word,'I^ov;V, ferves for both. The former
was the fon of Jofiah, and he is meant ver. n. The
latter was the fon of Jehoiakim, and he is meant ver.
12. he being actually in Babylon as a captive. As
to the objection of his being pronounced childlefs,
the word in Jer. xxii. 20. does not always fo fignify.
See the Commentators. In the remaining part of the
T2th verfe, there is a difficulty about Salathiel and
Zorobabel: Salathiel is both here and in Luke iii. 27.
laid to be the father of Zorobabel; and yet here
Salathiel is the fon of Jechonias, and there he is the
fon
according to ST. MATTHEW, Chap. I. 77
fon of Neri. It is anfwered, Either there were two
Salathiels and two Zorobabels; thofe mentioned by
St. Luke of the line of Nathan ; thofe by St. Matthew
of the line of Solomon ; fo both from David. Or,
(which is the better account,) Salathiel was the fon
of Jechoniah, and fon in law to Neri, whofe daughter
he married. See Yardley, pages 196, 197. Another
difficulty is, that Zorobabel is faid to be the fon of
Pedaiah, i Chron. iii. 19. But it is plain to me, (fays
Grotius,) that in that place is not meant Zorobabel,
the governor or prince of the Jews, (who, as every
body very well knew, was the elded fon of Salathiel,)
but another of the fame family: for the Jons of that
Zorobabel are different from thofe of this Zorobabel
mentioned by St. Matthew, and of him mentioned
by St. Luke : and in Efdras, Nehemiah^ and Haggai,
Zorobabel the governor is mentioned as the fon of
Salathiel, of Shealtiel ; and fo he is by Jofephus. Sec
another anfwer in Mr. Yardley, page 61, &c.
Ver. 13. Zorobabel begat Abiud.'] And yet, i Chron.
iii. 19. the fons of Zorobabel are Mefhullam and
Hananiah: no mention of Abiud. It is anfwered,
i. Many among the Jews had more names than one;
fo Abiud may be the fame either as Mefliullam or
Hananiah. 2. Beiides thofe mentioned in the Chro
nicles, Zorobabel might have other fons. Farther,
St. Luke fays, chap. iii. 27. Zorobabel's Ion was
Rhefa. ANSW. Zorobabel might have two fons;
Abiud,, from whom Jofeph defcended; and Rhefa,
from whom Mary defcended. Concerning the varia
tion of names here, and i Chron. iii. this may be
very obfervable ; that Zorobabel and his fons might
have different names ; one in their owri family, and
another among the people to whom they were cap
tives. It was fcarce fafe for Zorobabel to be called
in Babylon by that name, which fignifies the win
nowing of Babel; and therefore he was, among the
Babylonians, called Shefhbazzar. So his fons were
called
7 8 Notes upon the Gofpel
called Mefhullam and Hananiah, becaufe the one
could fcarce properly, as well as fcarce fafely, be
called Abiud, my father's glory \ the other, Rhefa, a
prince.
Ibid. Abiud begat Eliakim, &c. to the end of the
genealogy.] From whence had St. Matthew this
account? Not from the Old Teftament, but from
the records of genealogies which were carefully
preferved by the Jews. The oldeft Hebrew copy of
this Gofpel has it -, Eliakim begat Abner^ and Abner
begat Azor> &c. by which interpolation the fourteen
generations are complete, which otherwife feem de
fective, as Dr. Hammond fays; though they are
plainly complete inclufively ; i. e. including Jechoniah
and Chrift. Between the times of Zorobabel and
Chrift fome perfons are omitted, without whom the
diftance of time cannot well be accounted for. How
many are omitted it is hard to fay. But why were
they not all reckoned ? ANSW. See Note on ver. 8.
to which add the great difference in the length of
men's lives: one man in one genealogy might live as
long as two, or three * in the other; fo perhaps they
were all reckoned.
Ver. 1 6. Jacob begat Jofeph J] Why does St. Matthew
bring down the genealogy of our Saviour to Jofeph,
who was not his father? Why not to Mary; fince it
was his bufinefs to give us the lineage of Chrift,
not of Jofeph? ANSW. i. Becaufe it is not the
cuftom of the Hebrews to deduce the genealogies of
•women i but only of their bufbands. But then the cafe
of Mary being fo particular and extraordinary, and
our Saviour having no father, but only a mother,
this account feems not fufficient; and therefore they
ftrengthen it by faying, 2. That the genealogy of
Chrift is not diftincl from that of Jofeph, fince Chrift
was born of her whom Jofeph retained in matrimony.
This they prove from the law of adoption, of kindred,
&c. See Grotius, Bertram, and other Commentators.
But
according to ST. MATTHEW, Chap. I. 79
But becaufe the Meffias was to be born of the tribe
of Judah and the family of David, naturally, not
only legally, as appears from Gen. xlix. 10. and Ifa.
xi. i. And it is plain from the genealogy drawn by
St. Luke, and from Rom. i. 3. and from Heb. vii.
14. that Jefus defcended from David by a proper
and natural defcent: it is anfwcred, 3. That it was
fufficient to give us the genealogy of Jofeph, becaufe
from his we may infer the Virgin Mary's,, fmce they
were both of the fame family. It appears from Luke
ii. 4, 5. that Mary was of the houfe and lineage of
David : for otherwife there would have been no oo
caiion for her going to Bethlehem, the city of David,
to be taxed-, eipecially when (he was in fuch a condi
tion as to be fo near the time of her delivery. Mary
(though a woman] was to be taxed, becaufe me was
an only child, and an heirefs, (to that little eftate
which was in the family,) and according to the law of
the Romans, by which women, and even children
were inrolled. And me could be forced to go to be
taxed in the city of David, for no reafon but becaufe
(he was of his family. But befides, it appears from
the genealogy left us by St. Luke, that (he was of
that family; as we (hall (hew immediately: and that
Jofeph was fo, this genealogy (as well as the words of
St. Luke) fufficiently proves; and it is acknowledged
on all hands. They were both therefore of the fame
family, and confequently when we have Jofeph's
genealogy, we have Mary's ; fo far, I mean, as it con
cerns our prefent purpofe, which is to (hew that
Chrift is of the tribe of Judah, and of the family of
David ; and that both by his reputed father j and real
mother s fide.
But to clear this difficult point of our Saviour's
genealogy, we muft endeavour to reconcile thefeem-
ingly dijagreeing accounts of it, which are given us by
St. Matthew and St. Luke. And firft, we muft con-
iider how far they agree. This they do, i. In their
defign
So Notes upon tie Goj'pel
defign and undertaking •, which is to trace the genea
logy of Jefus, and prove that he (as the true Meffiah)
is defcended from Abraham and David. 2. They
agree in the perfons they mention of St. Matthew's
firft fourteen generations, viz. from Abraham to
David, They differ, (for they do not properly dif-
agree, as we mail fhew,) i. In their form and manner.
St. Matthew goes descending, St. Luke goes ajcending,
which is of no conlequence. 2. They differ in the
ferjonsofc the two la/I divifions ; infomuch that between
David and Salathiel, and between Zorobabel and the
end of the genealogy, they do not agree in one name.
To folve which, it is weak to fay, that the perfons
might have more names than one; this indeed may
(and we can prove it certainly does) happen mfome
inftances; but that it fhould happen in fo many, even
in a majority, nay in all, and that the two Evangelifts
fhould fo unluckily happen to hit upon thefe different
names, efpecially when they do not differ in any one
from Abraham to David, is a thing altogether incon
ceivable. They differ alfo not only in the names,
but in the number of the perfons ; infomuch that
between Salathiel and Jofeph, St. Matthew reckons
but ten, and St. Luke nineteen. Among the feveral
ways of reconciling, I (hall mention but two, which
will be fufficient.
The firft is, that St. Matthew reckons the regal,
St. Luke the natural fucceflion: the latter proving
Chrift to be lineally and direffly deicended from
Abraham and David; the former proving him to
have likewife that right which relates to the regal
dignity : for one of thefe does not neceffarily infer
the other. He might directly defcend from David,
and yet not have the regal right ; becaufe he might
defcend from a different branch of David's family,
than that which had the regal right lineally defcend-
ing in it. Now thefe being their different defigns, it
is no wonder that they reckon different perfons, and
yet
according to ST. MATTHEW, Chap. I. 81
yet both in the right, only in different refpects.
One of them (St. Luke) mentions thofe of our Sa
viour's anceftors, from whom he defcerided in a
dire El uninterrupted line, and fo they are mod of them
private perfons, even iince David: the other (St.
Matthew) takes notice of thofe who were near eft
akin to him, fo as to prove the other right ; and fo
(fince David) they are all of them kings, or princes,
till towards the latter end of the genealogy. In
thefe things therefore there is no inconfiftency.
The other account, which is rather a confirmation
of the former, than different from it, (for it agrees very
well with it,) is, that St. Matthew deduces Jofeph's
pedigree from David by Solomon; St. Luke deduces
Mary's pedigree from David by Nathan. This ac
count, I fay, is perfectly agreeable with the former.
For either, (as tome ftate it,) Jechoniah and all the
other defendants from Solomon being dead, the regal
right legitimately devolved on Salathiel, the eldeft
branch of the family of Nathan; who among David's
fons was the next in fucceffion to Solomon. Or
(as others ftate it better) the families of Solomon and
Nathan were united in Salathiel and Zorobabel, &c.
This foundation then being laid, the other difficulties
are eafily adjufted. As ift, How happens it that in
St. Matthew, Salathiel is the fon of Jechoniah ; in
St. Luke, the fon of Neri? ANSW. He was Jecho
niah' s fon, Neri's fon-in-lavv. 2dly, Why is Zoro-
babel's fon Abiud in St. Matthew, and Rhefa in
St. Luke? ANSW. Zorobabel had two fons, Abiud
and Rhefa. Jofeph defcended from the former, and
Mary from the latter. 3dly, If the great difficulty of
all be urged, viz. How comes Jofeph himfelf to be
the fon of Jacob in Matthew, and of Heli in Luke?
Not to mention that weak iolution, of Jofeph's fa
ther having two names, and omitting other unfatif-
factory anfwers; Heli was the father of Mary, and
fo Jofeph's father-in-law ; Jacob being his father by
G nature ;
8 2 Notss upon the Go f pel
nature : and fo likewife (as was faid before) our Sa
viour's genealogy is by St. Luke deduced on the
mother's fide. The Jews reckoned Heli as the father
of Mary; and in an ancient book among them there
is a ftory told of one who faw Mary the daughter
of Heli, &c. See Lightfoot. As to that objection
that Joachim, or Jehoiakim, was the father of Mary ;
it is anfwered, that Jehoiakim and Eliakim are com
monly ufed promifcuoufly ; and Eli is a contraction
of Eliakim, and often ufed for it.
According to thefe two lines and genealogies,
Jofeph and Mary were nearly related; and both de-
fcended from David. The two lines fometimes differ,
and fometimes run into one another. Luke deduces
the pedigree from Adam to Tera, the father of
Abraham; and, with Matthew, continues it from
Abraham to David. Here the lines are divided :
that of Matthew proceeds from David by Solomon
to Jechoniah : that of Luke by Nathan to Neri. Here
they unite in Salathiel, fon of Jechoniah ; after him in
Zorobabel, fon and heir of Salathiel. Then again
the lines are feparated; that of Matthew proceeding
by Abiud, (one of ZorobabeFs fons,) Eliakim, &c.
to Matthan ; that of Luke by Rhefa, (another of
Zorobabel's fons,) to Melchi, &c.
Thus for particular difficulties; and were they more
and greater than they are, one general anfwer would
be fufficient. Had this genealogy, as drawn by the
two Evangelifts, been falfe or inconjiftent in any one
inftance, the Jews, who were living when the Gofpels
were publifhed, could not but know it ; and, being
mortal enemies to Chriftianity, could not but expofe
it to all the world; and this muft have utterly ruined
the credit of both thefe Gofpels : which we know was
not the cafe. See alfo backward, page 74. It is no
wonder ', &c.
Ver. 21. Jefus—fave — ] The word Jefus iignifies
Saviour.
Ver.
according to ST. MATTHEW, Chap. I. 83
Ver. 22. Now all this was done, THAT IT MIGHT
BE FULFILLED, &c.] This expreffion being often
ufed in the New Teftament, and being of great con-
fequence, it is neceflary to underftand it rightly. See
Difcourfe I.
Ver. 23. Behold a Virgin Jhall conceive.} See Dif
courfe I. throughout.
Ver. 25. And knew her not tillfhe had brought forth,
&c.] This word //// does not prove (according to the
frequent way of fpeaking in the facred and other
authors,) that he knew her after J}je had brought forth,
&c. See i Sam. xv. 35. 2 Sam. vi. 23. Gen. viii.
7. Pfal. ex. i.
Ibid. Her firjl born fon .] This does not imply that
(he had another child afterwards. But to be thzfirft
born, and to open the womb, are expreffions equivalent ;
fee Exod. xiii. 2. In common language we call a
child the eldeft, or firft born, before we know whether
his mother will have any more children , fo that an
only child is often called thsfirft.
CHAP. II.
VERSE i. Herod the king~\ There were three
Herods. Herod the Great, who is here meant.
He was of Afcalon, or of Idumaca; he was the fon of
Antipater, and made king of the Jews by the Ro
mans. The fecond Herod was Herod Antipas, fon
of the former ; he it was that beheaded John the
Baptift, and mocked our Saviour. He was tetrarch of
Galilee. The third was Herod Agrippa, who cut off
St. James, imprifoned St. Peter, and was eaten up
with worms. He was the father of that king Agrippa,
before whom St. Paul made his defence.
Ibid. Wife men from the Eaft^ There are various
Wii!.; G 2 opinions
84 Notes upon this Gofpcl
opinions both about the perfons, and the place from
whence they came. As to the former, they are called
Magicians, Ma'yoi, a word not always ufecl in a bad
fenie. They were probably Philotbphers, Mathemati
cians, Aftronomers. Or if they were properly Magi
cians, God might make a good ufe of them, as he
did of Balaam, from whole country thele probably
came. They are fuppofed to have been kings. That
paflage in the 7 id Pfalm, (the kings of Arabia and
Sabajhall bring gifts,} which was originally fpoken of
Solomon, may, in a fecondary fenfe, be a prophecy
oftheie men. As to the place from whence they
came, it might be Mefopotamia, (which was Ba
laam's country,) Arabia, Media, or Perfia.
Ver. 2. Hisjiarl\ Whether this were an angel, or
& flame, (for it could not be a real Jlar,) is not mate
rial.
Ver. 3. Was troubled^ Left he fliould lofe his
kingdom by the birth of a right heir, he himfelf being
a foreigner and nfurper.
Ver. 6. And thou, Bethlehem in the land cfjudah,
&c.] The quotation is from Micah, ch. v. ver. 2. And
thou, Bethlehem- Ephratah, &c. io called to diftinguifh
it from another Bethlehem. But here is a difficulty.
The Prophet lays, Though thou be little, &c. St.
Matthew quotes him, Thou art not the leajt, &c.
ANSW. i. St. Matthew does not quote it himfelf ^ but
repeats the quotation of the Scribes. But 2. The
words of the Prophet may contain an affirmative in
terrogation, which is the fame as a negation. And
thou, Bethlehem, art thou little? <kc. 3. Many words
among the Hebrews, Arabians, and even Greeks,
and Latins, have fenlcs quite contrary. And this may
be one inflance of it. See more particularly Pocock
upon the place. As to the difference between thou-
funds in the prophecy, and princes in this place, even
the words according to the Hebrew may well be re
conciled: [fee the Critics:] but beiides, thoufands and
according to ST. MATTHEW, Chap. II, 85
princes are here in fenfe the fame. For tboufands are
mentioned in allufion to the Jewifh cuftom of dividing
their tribes into thousands, over every one of which
was a prince, or chief Exod. xviii. 25. i Sam.x. 19.
Ver. 15. That it might be fulfilled, &c. Out of
Egypt have I called my Jon\ Hof. xi. i. When Ifrael
was a child) then I loved him ; and called my Jon out
of Egypt. OBJ. How can this be applied to
Chrift, when it was manifeftly fpoken of God's
bringing the children of Ifrael out of Egypt ? I an-
fwer, by referring to the two fenfe 's in prophecies, [fee
Difcourfe I.] one literal, and one myjlical. We do
not (nor did St. Matthew) urge tbcfe prophecies to
prove the truth of Chriftianity, which is done by
other arguments ; but to confirm, ilhiftrate, explain,
and apply.
Ver. 1 6. The children, ras #ai?aff.] It mould be
rendered male children.
Ibid. According to the time which he had diligently
enquired of the wife men^\ i. e. He fuppofed that Chrift
was born when the ftar firft appeared ; and fo, to
make fure work, he murdered all the male children,
that were born about and Jlnce the time of its ap
pearing, according to the account of it which the
wife men had given him. As to the difficulty con
cerning two years old, and under, and the wife men's
being lo long as two years in coming from their own
country ; the word in Greek, ^ET^, and in Latin,
bimulus, fignifies one that is entered into his fecond
year; fo that the children might be but a jear old,
and fomething more. Then the time which was
taken up between the arrival of the wife men, and
the malfacreing of the infants, might be confidera-
ble- ; fo that we need not allow above half a year for
their journey ; and fo much may very well be fup
pofed. Jofephus fays, that thofe who lived beyond
Euphrates were five months coming to Jerufalem,
G 3 and
86 . Notes upon tie Go/pel
and by various accidents it might take up more
time.
Ver. 17. Then was fulfilled, &c.] In Rama was a
voice heard, &c. Here again are the two fenfes. The
firft was fulfilled in the captivity of the two tribes ;
the fecond in this mafTacre of the Innocents. Rama
indeed was not Bethlehem ; but the text tells us
Herod flew all the children in Bethlehem, AND THE
COASTS THEREOF. Now Rama lay within the coafts,
that is, the neighbourhood of Bethlehem; though it was
iituated in a different tribe, viz. that of Benjamin,
whom Jacob had by his wife Rachel, who was bu
ried in thofe parts. On which account, upon the
murdering of the Innocents in Rama as well as
Bethlehem, the lamentations of their mothers in ge
neral is properly and elegantly reprefented by the
mourning of Rachel.
Ver. 23. That it might be fulfilled which was fpoken
by the Prophets^ He Jhall be called a Nazarenel\
OBJ. i. There is no fuch prophecy in Scrip
ture. ANSW. It is no where indeed faid in express
words ; and accordingly St. Matthew does not men
tion any 'particular Prophet^ but fays indefinitely, the
Prophets : but it is typified in Jofeph and Sampfon,
(efpecially the latter,) who were types of Chrift, as
the Jewim Rabbins themfelves acknowledge. The
former is mentioned as a Nazarene, or Nazarite,
*Vt2> Gen. xlix. 26. and Deut. xxxiii. 16. The
•T
latter, Judg. xiii. 5. and xvi. 17. The notion of a
Nazarite was one that was feparated from the world,
and particularly dedicated to God : and this cha
racter certainly belonged to our Saviour. As for
that expreffion, by the Prophets ; types are one kind
ot prophecies, and thofe parts of the Old Teflament
were written by Prophets, though they are not com
monly called the prophetical books.
OBJ.
according to ST. MATTHEW, Chap. II. 87
OBJ. 2. How could his living at Nazareth
for Jome time make him a Nazarene, when he was
born at Bethlehem ? ANS\V. He lived the greatejl
fart of his time at Nazareth ; his parents and rela
tions conftantly lived there ; he was fuppofed to be
born there ; and he was commonly by the Jews, and
in contempt, called a Nazarite, or Nazarene.
OBJ. 3. There is no analogy or agreement be
tween a name taken from a profeffion, office, or way
of living, and a name taken from a town or country.
ANSW. We muft diftinguilh between the occajlon
of giving this name to our Saviour, and the re of on or
reafons why it ^vas given. The occafion was his abode
at Nazareth : the reafons were the counfel of God, the
oracles of the Prophets, the fanclity of Chrift, &c,
There is another account of this matter % accord
ing to which Nazarite, or Nazarene, is derived from
another Hebrew word, 12^ : but I choofe this as the
better.
CHAP. III.
VERSE i. John the Baptift] See Difcourfe II.
throughout.
Ibid. In the wildernefs of Judea.~] Not a perfecl
wildernefs, or defart : for then to whom fhould he
preach? A wildernefs among the Jews did not always
fignify a place wholly void of inhabitants, but fome-
times only a place inhabited by a few. See Jofh. xii.
6 1, 62. i Sam. xxv. i, 2.
Ver. 2. The kingdom of heaven is at hand~\ By the
kingdom of heaven, and of God, is fometimes meant
the flate of glory and happinefs in the next life,
a See Dr. Hammond, and the other Commentators at large.
G 4 feme-
88 Notes upon tie Gofpel
fometimes, and indeed mod commonly, the kingdom
of the MeJJiah, or the jlate of the Gofpel in this. It
plainly means the latter in this place.
Ver. 3 . For this is he that was fpoken of- — The voice of
one crying, &c.] For the quotation and application of
this prophecy, fee Difcourfe II. The words maybe
underftood as fpoken either by the Evangelid, or by
John himfelf. I rather choofe the latter. See John i.
20. 23. This is he, i. e. the perfon whom you now fee,
and hear^ i. e. my f elf. Repent ye-, for the kingdom, &c.
FOR I am he, &c. According to the other account,
the word for is disjointed, and the word is fcarce
fenfe ; according to that, it mould be was, not is.
Ver. 7. O generation of 'viper sy who hath warned \
&c.]
OBJ. i. In Luke iii. 7. thefe words are fpoken
to the multitude in general ; here, to the Pharifees
and Sadducees in particular. ANSW. i. That very
diftindion, /;/ general, and in particular, accounts
for it : — To all, but efpecially to the Pharifees and
Sadducees. 2. The multitude themfelves, moft of
them at lead, adhered, more or lefs, to the party ei
ther of the Pharifees or Sadducees ; and were all,
mod of them at lead, very wicked. OBJ. 2. Why
ihould he alk, Who hath warned you, &c. as if nobody
had? Did not the Prophets of the Old Tedament,
and their own confciences, warn them to avoid impen
dent wrath? ANSW. The words who hath, &c. do
not imply a negation, but wonder, or admiration. As
Gal. iii. i. Who hath bewitched you f The Apodle
lure did not mean to Jay they were not bewitched ;
but wondered that they were. It is a common way
of {peaking. Thus here : " It is Jlrange that fuch
" vile wretches as you are fhould obey the warning
" given you, or be effectually warned to flee" &c.
OBJ. 3. The Pharifees, &c. rejected the bap-
tifm of John, Luke vii. 30. How then could he
here fpeak to them, as if they came to be taught
and
according to ST. MATTHEW, Chap. III. S$
and baptized by him? ANSW. i. He did not know
their hearts ; and in appearance they came to be
baptized. 2. Some of them might, and doubtlefs
did, receive his baptifm ; though many, perhaps moil,
rejefled it.
Thofe words, the wrath to come, mean either tem
poral punifhment, the vengeance of God being to
be fpeedily inflicted upon the Jewifh nation ; or eter
nal mifery ; or mod probably both.
Ver. 8. Bring forth therefore fruits meet for repent
ance^ Here feems to be an elliptical or imperfect
fentence, to be fupplied thus : " However, if you
" are come to be baptized ;" therefore, or for that
reafon, be ye truly penitent: without which, baptifm
will avail you nothing. And the only proof of true
repentance is reformation, or a change of life.
Ver. 9. And think not to fay within yourfelves, [or
tfWflflg'yourfelves, \v sauTorj] We have Abraham to our fa
ther^ i. e. Do not prefume upon your privilege of being
defcended from Abraham, to whom the promifes were
made : as the Jews were always prone to do.
Ibid. God is able of thefe Jiones to raife up children
unto Abraham^ He either pointed to t\\t /tones upon the
ground, and then the fenie is figurative and prover
bial : cc God can from the mojl unlikely materials raife
" up," &c. Or he means the Jlony-hearted Heathen
foldiers, and other Heathens there prefent. Either
way, it plainly relates to the calling of the Gentiles ;
\v ho were made Abraham's children by imitating
his faith and obedience, though they were not fo ac
cording to theflejh.
Ver. 10. ^he axe is laid to the root of the tree
—caji into the fire.] i. e. There is no time for delay.
God is now about to offer the lajl difpenfation :
and if you do not immediately repent and reform,
his vengeance hangs over you. as fruitlefs trees ready
to be cut down, &c.
Ver.
90 Notes upon the Gofpel
Ver. n. There cometh one after me] i. e. Jefus the
Meffiah, whofe forerunner I am.
Ibid. Whofe Jhoes I am not worthy to bear~\ OBJ.
In Mark, Luke, and John, it is, Whofe Jhoes*
latchet I am not worthy to unloofe. ANSW. He faid
both : St. Matthew relates the firft, and the other
three the fecond. The fenfe of the whole is, I am
not worthy to be the meanejl of his Jervants -, to
take off his fhoes, and carry them after him.
Ibid. He Jkall baptize you with the Holy Ghojl, and
•with fire.} The Holy Ghoft defcended in the (hape
of fiery tongues upon the Apoftles, Acts ii.and by them
his gifts were communicated to all true believers.
OBJ. But how could this be called baptifm? ANSW.
Not fo Jlriftly and properly as water-baptifrn ; but
figuratively , or lefs properly. See Ads i. 5. It is
elfe where called fo by our Saviour himfelf, John iii.
5. where being born again of -water, and of the Spirit >
are joined together.
Ver. 12. Whoje fan is in his hand — burn up the chaff
with unquenchable fir e~\ i.e. He will make a thorough
discrimination, or difference, between the precious and
the vile, the good and the bad ; feparating them from
each other, as wheat in •winnowing is feparated from
the chaff-, rewarding the former,, and puniihing the
latter.
Ver. 14. / have need to be baptized of thee, &c.]
John knew who he ivas, by divine revelation. See
John i. 33. Here John muft be fuppoled to be in
formed that this is he, upon whom he (hall prefently
fee the Holy Ghoft defcend.
Ver. 15. Thus it becometh us to fulfil all right eouj-
nefs^ \. e. To do whatfoever is jujl, fitting, zn& religious.
It is fit that I ihould be baptized, by way of inaugu
ration, into my office of Mejfiah ; and that you, who
by office ^are the Baptift, fhould baptize me.
Ver, 1 6. He Jaw the Spirit, &c.] Both he (Jefus)
and
according to ST. MATTHEW, Chap. III. 91
and John faw this. See John i. 32. Whether others
faw it or not, is not faid. It Teems probable they
did not -, becaufe To particular a ftrefs is laid upon
John's TESTIMONY.
Ibid. Like a dove'] The word like, or as> relates
not, I think, to the word dove, but to the word de-
fcending. It is true the Spirit defcended in a bodily
Jhape. Luke iii. 22. But it is not faid, in the Jb apt
of a dove : probably it was in fome glorious appear-
ranee. Only that fhape, whatever it was, hovered
like a dove, when it is alighting. That the Holy
Ghojl fhould aflume the form of any brute creature,
however innocent, &c. as it is vulgarly faid, feems very
incongruous. And therefore the painting him in the
fhape of a dove, is a fancy, which, however com
mon, cannot perhaps be well juilified.
CHAP. IV.
VERSE i. Led up by the Spirit into, &c.] i. e,
Moved by the impulfe of the Holy Ghoft to
go into, &c.
. Ibid, the wildernefsl\ This indeed (fee Note 2. on
the foregoing chapter) was a perfeft wildernefs, in
habited only by wild beajls. See Mark i. 13.
Ibid, to be tempted of the DeviQ For the reafont
why our Saviour was pleafed to be tempted-, and for
an anfwer to the quejlion, how fo wife and fubtle a
fpirit, as Satan, can be fuppofed to have tempted him
who was God, as well as man, efpecially tempted him
to fall down and worJJnp him ; fee the writings of
Divines, and the large Commentators; particularly
Whitby upon this chapter, ver. 3.
Ver. 2. When he had fajled forty days — he was after-
wards
93 Notes upon tie Gofpel
wards an hundred'} During the forty days and nights
therefore he did not hunger : fo his fail was miraculous.
Ver. 3. When the Tempter came unto him — ] i. e. In
a v'ifible, human fhape ; for he had been tempting him
other ways, more or lefs, during the whole forty days,
Mark i. 13. Luke iv. 2.
Ver. 4. Man Jhall not live by bread alone ; but by
every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God.]
i. e. It is not the very material fubftance of bread,
that can or doth maintain the life of man ; but the
bleffing of God accompanying it. Nor is God con
fined to the ordinary means of bread: but he is able
by his infinite power, by a word of his mouth, either
to create new means, or to work without or again/I
the means.
Ver. 7. Thou Jhalt not tempt the Lord thy God.}
'Tempting God, in common language, is taken for the
excefs of tmjl and confidence in him: as when people
run themfelves into unneceffary dangers, or fuch as it
is next to impojjible for them to efcape, faying, God
will deliver them; they are faid to tempt God. And
that fenfe here is certainly very good. Yet, in Scrip
ture, generally ', if not always, it implies the defecl of
trufl and faith in God : it always does fo, when the
Jfraelites are faid to tempt God in the wildernefs, &c.
And here too this fenfe is very good. Our Saviour,
having already had fufficicnt evidence of his being the
Son of God, &c. would not tempt or provoke him, by
making fceptical trials or experiments.
Ver. 8. Taketh him up into an exceeding high moun
tain, andjheweth him all the kingdoms, &c.] He could
not really fee all the kingdoms of the world, be the
mountain never fo high. The meaning therefore muft
be, the Devil really (hewed him as much as the eye
could reach from fuch an eminence, and reprefented
the reft partly to our Saviour's fight by his fkill in
optics, or perfpedtive j partly to his fancy and ima
gination.
But
according to ST. M A T T H E w, Chap . IV. 93
But as to thefe two kill temptations, we have/r/?,
a query ijecondly^ an objection. The query is: What is
the meaning of that expreffion, Taketb him up into
the holy city — into a mountain? Did he carry him
through the air? Or only lead him, and accompany him
in walking? The words in their//// and Jlrift fenfe
teem to import the former; but this is not at all ne-
ceflary, for they will very well bear the latter. And
though it is true that our Saviour fubmitted to many-
great indignities both from men and evil fpirits, his
iiiffering himielf to be at all tempted being one ; yet
his being hurried through the air by the Devil leems too
great an indignity. As to that expreflion, /£//<?/£ him
on a pinnacle, &c. which feems to imply that hefet
him or placed him there with his own hands ; the ori
ginal word, tru<n, does not neceffarily iignify that ; but
may mean no more than bade him, perjuaded him, or
any way caufed him to {land there. See the Critics.
I confefs I cannot well account for the time which
muft be taken up in walking from this wildernefs to
Jerufalem: and, after all, it is not very material which
of thefe interpretations we make choice of.
The objection is this: St. Matthew makes ^s. felting
him upon the pinnacle , &c. to be BEFORE the taking
him up into the mountain ; St. Luke, AFTER it. ANSW.
St. Luke does NOT obferve the order of time; nor
was it neceflary that he fliould. St. Matthew DOES
obferve that order by the words then anddgtf/;/; which
St. Luke omits. Therefore I wonder at Dr. Whit by,
who, by way of paraphrafe, twice adds the word then
in St. Luke, chap. iv. ver. 5. 9. Had it been in the ori
ginal, there had been Come colour for this objection.
Ver. 9. If tbou wilt fall dotvn, and worfaip me"\
Whether the Devil knew our Saviour to be God, or not ;
he could not but know him to be a mod eminently
wife and holy perfon; the Son of God in fome eminent
fenfe or other; one by whom he had been already
baffled, conquered, and confounded, Thefe words
there.
94 Notes upon tie Gofpel
therefore being the height of abfurdity and impudence,
it is impofiible he fhould imagine they could have
any effect ; he muft have uttered them only in the
rage of madnefs and defpair.
Ver. 12. Now when jfefus had heard that John was
eq/l into prifon, he departed into Galilee] This did not
happen immediately after his temptation, but a con-
fiderable time after j nor was this the firft time of his
returning into Galilee. It is common with the Evan-
geliils to pafs from one thing to another, without
ftrictly obferving the connection of time and place.
Ver. 14, 15, 1 6. That it might be fulfilled, &c. —
The land of Zabulon, &c. — The people which fat in
darknejs, &c.] Here Jikewife are the twofenfes fo often
mentioned. The firft, concerning the deliverance of
the Jews from Tiglath-Pilefer and Shalmanefer : the
fecond, concerning the Meffiah. See the Comments
upon Ifaiah ix. The prophecy in the latter fenfe
concerning the Meffiah is more full and particular in
the following verfes : For unto us a child is born, &c.
Ver. 15. Galilee of the Gentiles] i. e. The upper
Galilee, bordered upon by the Gentile nations, and
much reforted to by them for the fake of commerce.
But for the geographical part, here, and every where
elfe, fee the Commentators at large, and Dr. Wells's
Geography of the Old and New Te (lament.
Ver. 17. From that time Jefus began to preach, &c.]
i. e. publicly, daily, and every where. For he had in
Jome meafure preached before, difcourfed with the Jews,
with Nicodemus, and the woman of Samaria, John
ii. iii. iv. and preached at Nazareth, Luke iv. &c.
But he preached feldom, and fparingly, while John
was preaching, not with that folemnity, formality,
and authority, as he did afterwards, when John was
caft into prifon. The word begin does not always ex
clude a precedent act, nor necefTarily iuppofe fome-
thing entirely new. Nay it often denotes fomething
done before, but after another manner, and at a dif
ferent
according to ST. MATTHEW, Chap. IV. 95
ferent time and place. See Mark vi. 34. viii. n«
xii. i.
Ver. 18, 19, 20, 21, 22. And Jefits walking by the
fea of Galilee, faw two brethren., &c.] Here feem to be
ieveral inconfiftencies with other places of Scripture;
but upon examination it will appear that here is no
fuch thing.
Firft, St. Matthew and St. John feem to be in-
confiftent in their account of this matter. For St,
Matthew tells us, i. Thefe difciples, Andrew and
Simon j were called together: 2. After John's imprifon-
ment: 3. At the fea of Galilee. Whereas St. John
fays, i. Andrew was called^r/?, and Simon afterwards.
2. Before John's imprifonment. 3. InBethabara, and
therefore in Judea. A NSW. Thefe are not accounts
of the fame, but of different facts. St. John, chap. i.
does not fpeak of their being called to the difciplejhip,
but only of their converjing with our Saviour, and
flaying with him for a day. Philip indeed is faid to
be called, but the other two only fee him, and confer
with him; they then return to their ordinary employment
of fifhing, and are aftenvards called to the difciple-
Jhip, as St. Matthew relates it.
Secondly, St. Matthew and St. Mark feem to
contradict St. Luke. For, i. Thofe two Evangelifts
fay, our Saviour faw two brothers; St. Luke only one,
viz. Simon. ANSW. St. Luke fays no fuch thing.
He fays indeed, that our Saviour delired Simon to thrufl
out a little from the land, without mentioning any body
elfe; but he does not fay there was nobody elfe with
him. 2. According to St. Matthew and St. Mark,
he faw them cajling their nets -, according to St. Luke,
wajhing their nets. ANSW. I. It is not faid of them,
but of the Ji/Jjers indifferently: for there were many of
them, Mark i. 20. and ibme might be wajhing, and
2. The original w6rd in St. Matthew,
may lignify throwing the nets into the fea
to wajh them, as well as tofijh with them.
Thirdly,
96 Notes upon tie Gofpel
Thirdly, According to the two firft Evangelifls,
our Saviour is walking by the fea, when he calls thofe
Difciples ; according to the laft, he is in the Jhip.
ANSW. He was walking when he firft faw them,
though in the (hip when he called them.
Fourthly, St. Matthew and St. Mark mention the
calling of four Difciples ; St. Luke only of one, viz.
Simon. ANSW. The calling of the reft is fufficiently
intimated^ ver. 1 1. where we are told that they followed
him. Befides, if it had not been fo, to mention one,
orfome, and not all, is no contradiction.
Fifthly, In St. Matthew and Mark, James and
John are feen, and called at a different time and place
from the other two; in St. Luke, they are called to
gether, as companions of Simon. ANSW. Luke does
not fay fo; he only relates that feveral were called j i. e.
forae after others, a little fpace of time intervening.
CHAP. V.
VERSE i. Seeing the multitudes, he went up, &c.
and — his Difciples came unto him, &c.] The mul
titudes were in J ome meafure his Difciples. They came
to hear him, and be inftrucled by him : nor did he go
up into the mountain, that he might avoid them-, but
that he might fpeak to them more conveniently, and
be better heard by them. See chap. vii. 28. The
PEOPLE were ajlonifhed at his doftrine. And chap,
viii. i. When he came down from the mountain, GREAT
MULTITUDES followed him. Only fome were more
efpecially his Difciples, as already believing in himy and
having converged with him: and thefe came nearer to
him, than the reft of his auditors. Here, however,
cannot be meant his Difciples, as the word is after
wards
according to ST. MATTHEW, Chap. V. 97
wards generally ufed ; neither the twelve Apo/lles, nor
thefeventy Difciples; for they were not yet chofen.
Ver. 2. BleJJed are, &c.] That fome part of this
fermon upon the Mount is, in the main, the fame with
fome part of that in Luke vi, and xii. is evident.
I fay in the main ; for they vary in feveral particulars ;
and were certainly fpoken at different times and
places, and to different perfons. One proof of which-
(among others a) is this: that the fermon in St. Mat
thew was preached before the Apojlles were chofen -, that
in St. Luke, after it. See note on chap, xxiii. 27.
Concerning the beatitudes in general, or taken all
together', obferve ift, That here, and every where
elfe, when it is faid, this or that -particular virtue fhall
be fo or fo rewarded-, we cannot underftand that
virtue by itfelf^ but in conjunction with all others.
Becaufe, if we have not all, we have really and truly
none. See note on chap. vi. 14. and xxv. 35. And
yet, 2dly, A more particular ftrefs is laid upon fome
certain virtues, as being the more eminent and illuf-
trious. 3dly, Our Saviour here inftances in fome
qualities, which feem to binder rather than promote
happinefs; and yet pronounces thofe blefj'ed who have
them. As if he fhould have faid; " However the
" world may imagine the contrary, blejjed are,19
&c. This is plain of the firft, fecond, third, and
eighth beatitudes; and much the fame may be faid
of the other four; confidering the falfe and corrupt
notions of mankind. 4thly, The beatitudes are not
fo diftinguifhed) but that each of them may be afcribed
to all the virtues here mentioned ; for inftance, Seeing
God to the meek and merciful, as well as to the pure in
hearty and fo of the reft. Nay, one [Theirs is the
kingdom of heaven] is actually afcribed to two of them,
the firft and the laft. Only, this or tbat bleffmg more
a See Whitby and other Commentators,
H efpecially
98 Notes upon the G of pel
especially and particularly belongs to this or that virtue.
This is plain of the fecond, fourth, fifth, and lixth :
the reft are more at large.
Ibid. The poor in fpiritl\ i. e. i. They who are in
different to the pojjejpons and riches of this world,
whether they have them or not. 2. The humble and
lowly of heart.
Ibid. For theirs is the kingdom of heaven^ Both the
kingdom of grace here, and of glory hereafter.
Ver. 4. That mourn'} i. e. Mourn after a godly fort,
in & fpiritudt and religious fenfe; for thejins of them-
felves and others, and for the miferies of all mankind.
Ver. 5. The meek'} i. e. The gent fa, the patient, the
difpajfionate, thejlow to anger.
Ibid. Inherit the earth.'] It may be underftood,
either of their being content with and enjoying fo much
of this zvorld as they poJJ'efs : or, of their inheriting the
new earth mentioned by St. Peter, 2 Eph. iii. 13.
See the Commentators upon that place.
Ver. 6. Hunger and thirjl after right eoufnefs'] i. e.
Earnejlly dejire and long for holinefs here, and heaven
hereafter.
Ibid. Refilled'] i. e. Have their dejtres fully fatisfied.
"Whereas the things of this world are utterly unfatif-
faftory.
Ver. j. The merciful^ The tender -hearted, the for-
giving, the charitable, the liberal to the poor, &c,
Ver. 8. The pure in hearth] The chafte, the holy, the
heavenly, the, fpiritually minded.
Ibid. Shall fee Godl\ i. e. Shall enjoy the nearefl
communion with God that r0# ^ in /M life, and the
beatific vifion of him in the next.
Ver. 9. Tfe peace-makers^ Thofe who are of a
peaceable temper themfelves, and endeavour to make
peace among others.
Ibid. Shall be called the children of God '.] Be called;
i. e. by a Hebraifm, fo. So ver. iq.JJoall be called the
leajl-,
according to ST. MATTHEW, Chap. V. 99
leajl; i. z. Jhall be the leqfl. And the fame in many
other places. The peace-makers are more efpecially
the children of God; becaufe he is emphatically ftyled
the God of peace, i Cor. xiv. 33. 2 Cor. xiiu n. Phil,
iv. 9. 2 ThefT. iii. 16, &c.
Ver. 10. Perfeculedfor right eoufnefsfake^\ Or (which
is the fame thing) for Chrifisfake, ver. n.
Ver. 13. Te are the fait of the earth : But if tfe
fait trodden under foot of men~\ YE; i. e. All who
are my Difciples, all Ghrijlians, but efpecially Pajlors
and Teachers-, ARE, i. e. are by your profejjion, are in
tended to be, and ought m faff to be — The fait, &c.
Livy calls Greece the /*// </ /£<? nations, fal gentium.
Our Saviour means, that it is the duty of his Difci
ples, who are thzmklvtsfeafoned with the divine grace,
tofeafon others, to preferve them from corruption, to
make themfapid, and grateful to God, &c. But as
faltitfelf can not be recovered, if it once become injipid;
fo thefe, if they lofe the grace they have received^ are
of all the moft unprofitable^ the moft inexcufable ; and
their recovery is the moft difficult. Difficult, I fay ; for
the words here (as in many other places of Scripture,
and in other writings) are not to be underftood of an
abfolute ' impojjibility, according to the Jlritf letter of
them. See particularly Jer. xiii. 23,
. Ver. 14, 15. Te arc the light — A city — on an hill
cannot be hid: Neither do men light a candle ', &c. — all
that are in the bouje.~] i. e. Ye are^/ up as a light to
others : ye are alio, by your holy prof ej/ion, like a city on
a hill, eminent and confpicuous : therefore if you do
not give a good example, you are inexcufable. And as
a candle is not lighted to be put under a bufhel — but to
give light to all, Sec. fo ought you \.Q Jhine, and give
light by your lives and doctrines.
Ver. 1 6. Let your light fo Jhine before men, that they
may fee your good works, &c.] OBJ. How is this
reconciled with chap. vi. i, 2, 3. 5. 18; in which our
H 2 Saviour
ioo Notes upon the Gofpel
Saviour condemns thofe who do their works to befeen
cf men? ANSW. The cafes are not the fame, but very
different, i. HERE Chriflians are commanded to
give a good example in general '; the nature of which is
f itch, that it mujl be feen, and cannot be concealed.
Some good works are of a -public nature-, and nntft be
done before men, if they are done at all. THERE the
good works are of fuch a kind, that they ought to be
fecret \ giving private alms ; private prayer ; and private
fafting. 2. HERE, the works are done for the glory
of God — glorify your Father which is in heaven .-THERE,
for the glory of him who does them\ merely to gratify
his pride and vanity.
Ver. 1 7. Think not that I am come to deftroy the Law
and the Prophets ; I came not to deftroy, but to fulfil^
Our Saviour did not properly deftroy ', but fulfil even
the ceremonial Law: by his difpenfation indeed that Law-
was Juperjeded of courfe : but types and prefigurations,
as well as prophecies , are fulfilled, rather than deftroy ed,
when the things typified and prefigured are come to
pafs. The judicial Law he was fo far from deftroy ing,
that he obeyed it ; as indeed he did the ceremonial
likewife: for that was not fuperfeded immediately upon
his coming, but upon his completing the work of our
redemption. As to the moral Law; th at \\t fulfilled,
by eftablijhing and confirming it; by impofing it as his
own Law ; by explaining it, and vindicating it from tt/r-
ruptions and falfe gloffes •> by refining, heightening, and
improving it. Which he does in the whole courfe of
this fermon upon the Mount.
Ver. 1 8. Till heaven and earth pafs, one jot or tittle
jhall in no wife pajs from the Law, till all be fulfilled^
One jot — -Jhall not pafs — //// heaven and earth pafs
[away] : i. e. not at all : a common phrafe to exprefs
what fliall never happen. The fenfe therefore is; s( I
" am fo far from deftroy ing the Law, that I fulfil or
" complete every jot 2^^ tittle of it; and no part of it
« {hall
according to ST. MATTHEW, Chap. V. xoi
" fhall ceafe, while the world lofts, till the end, for
" which it was dejigned, (hall be accomplifhed"
Ver. 19. Whofoever fliall break one of thefe leaft
— in the kingdom of heavenl\ One of theje leaft (i. e. one
cf the leaft of thefe) commandments. Break it ; i. e. ha
bitually -, or (hall endeavour to abrogate and dijjblve it,
AuW Leaft in the kingdom, &c. Leaft -, i. e. none at
all. See the Critics.
Ibid. Do, and teach them^\ Them; i. e. all the Com
mandments, fmall and great.
Ver. 21. Te have heard that it was faid BY them of
old time, &rc.] It (hould rather be rendered, TO them
of old, &c. tppE'Ou TOIS a^a/oK. Here, and vcr. 17.
[fee the note there] comes the famous difpute, whe
ther our Saviour added any new precepts to the moral
Law of Mofes ; or only explained, vindicated, and
reinforced it : and whether the oppojition which he
makes between his own doctrine, and that which he
compares with it, when he fays, Te have heard that it
hath been faid, &c. But I fay unto you, &c. be to be
underftood of the Law as delivered by Mofes, or as
corrupted by the interpolations and fpurious additions
of the Scribes and Pharifees. For the difcuffion of
this point, fee Hammond both upon this place, and
in his Practical Catechifm; Grotius upon the place ;
and the other Commentators at large ; Bull's Har-
monia Apoftolica, &c. Whitby's Appendix to his
Notes on this paflage; South's Sermon on Matth. v.
33, 34. and many others. I have myfelf difcurTed
it elfewhere : but here it is befide my purpofe.
Ver. 21, 22. Te have heard — Thou JJjalt not kill —
/;/ danger of the judgment : But I fay — Whomever is
angry, &c. — in danger of the judgment : — -JJjall fay Raca
—the council— Thou fool— Hell fir e?± Of the judgment :
i. e. of being brought before the judges to be con
demned to death. Numb. xxxv. 30. And fmce caufe-
lefs immoderate anger leads to murder, he who is fo
H 3 angry
Notes upon the Gofpil
angry is in danger of that judgment. Shall fay to his
brother — i.e. with malice, or contempt, or upon any/r/-
volous occafion — Raca — It is a Hebrew word a figni-
fying the utmoft fcorn and contempt ; to exprefs an
empty, fenfelefs wretch, or fool. — The council, i. e. the
Sanhedrim, or court of judicature among the Jews ;
either the lefs, confiding of twenty-three ; or the
greater, of feventy : which punifhed with a Jeverer
kind of death, than the ordinary judges. Shall fay,
'Thou fool: i.e. with malice again. This word is worfe
than Raca : that referring to natural imperfections ;
this to moral fault s^Jins, and vices; as it is ufed in
the Proverbs, and Pfalms, and other books both of
the Old and New Teftament. Hell fire. Though the
word yiiwai, here rendered Hell, is ordinarily ufed for
Hell in the of her world; yet it is only by way of allu-
lion ; the word being derived from the valley of
Hinnomb, in which was that fophet, which was a
type of Hell. See 2 Kings xxiii. 10. Ifaiah xxx. 33.
And here, I doubt not, our Saviour ufes it in the
literal fenfe. It is true, he alludes by it to Hell in the
next world ; and fo he does in thofe other expref-
lions, the judgment, the council : for it is not to be
conceived that he {peaks ftri&ly of temporal punim-
ments ; the promifes and threatenings of the Gofpel
relating almoft wholly to a future ftate. And be-
iides, the Jewifh polity being in a manner diflblved
when our Lord fpoke thefe words ; and being quite
fo, in a few years after ; all pains and penalties in
flicted by Jewifh authority mufh foon ceafe, if they
had not ceafed already. By thefe three gradations
therefore of temporal penalties under the Law, he inti
mates or Jhadows out (after the prophetical manner)
* Derived either from pi jj>w;/j or pH vacuus.
b yttwa. from C22H N'U' See Buxtorf's Lexicon upon the
the
according to ST. MATTHEW, Chap. V. 163
the different degrees of eternal ones threatened under
the Gofpel. By the pumjhment of the valley of Hin-
nom (for though it was at firft appropriated to the
deteftable idolatry of human Jacrifices offered to Mo
loch, it was afterwards ufed as a place for the execu
tion of the worft makfaftors) was meant either burn
ing alive, the fevered punifhment infli&ed by the
Sanhedrim ; or lying unburied for a time, and then
being flung into the valley of Hinnom to be con-
fumed to allies ; where there was always a fire burn
ing for that purpofe.
Yer. 25. Agree with thine adverfary, 8cc.] While
thou art in the way with him-, i. e. while the contro-
verfy is depending. Left at any time., &c. An ele
gant tranfition from human tribunals to the divine.
Ver. 29, 30. And if thy right eye offend thee — caft
into belli] Offend thee-, i. e. draw thee,, or be like to
draw thee, into^». The fenfe of the whole is, as if
he fliould have laid ; " Perhaps thefe more ftrift and
" exalted precepts [concerning the adultery of the
" eye, hand, and heart] may feem very difficult to be
" pradifed ; like plucking out the right eye, or cutting
" off the right hand. But if any thing as dear to
" you as your right eye, or right hand, be a caufe
" of making you fin; it is much better to part with
u it, than fuffer it to be the caufe of your eternal
" ruin."
Ver. 3 1 . Whofoever /hall pit away his wife, &c.]
See note on chap. xix. 3. 7, 8. And for the cafe of.
divorce, fee Grotius upon this place, and that ; and
the other Expoiitors at large-, Bp. Cofin of Divorces ;
and other writers upon the fame fubjecl.
Ver. 33, 34, &c. Te have heard that it hath been
Jaid, &c. 'Thou Jhalt not forjwear thy f elf * &c. — Enl /
fay unto you, Swear not at all, &c.] For the lawfulnefs
*of folemn fwearing, (to which this text is no way re
pugnant,) fee the Commentators at large, efpecially
H 4 Grotius ;
104 Not us upon the Gofpel
Grotius; Archbifhop Tillotfon's Sermon uponHeb.
vi. 1 6. and many others.
Ver. 36. Neither by thy head"} A common form
of fwearing among the Heathen, as appears from Vir
gil, Ovid, Juvenal, and other ancient writers. Be-
cauje thou can/I not make one hair white or black ; i.e.
Becaufe thou art not mafter of thy bead> or of thy
life: and when thou fweareft by that, thou muft be
fuppofed to fwear indirectly by its Mafter and Lord,
who only can make its hair white, or black ; i. e. by
God. The whole force of the arguing againft indirect
fwearing, in common converfation, as by Heaven, by
Jerusalem, by one's head, &c. is this. Either it is
ultimately referred to God, or it is not: the former
is profanenefs, the latter is idolatry : in the former fenfe,
it is profanenefs to fwear in common difcourfe ; in the
latter fenfe, it is idolatry to fwear at all*
Ver. 37. But let your communication (i. e. your com
mon converfation : this plainly fhews that Jolemn
oaths are not here forbidden) be, Tea, yea-, Nay, nay -,
i. e. 'plain affirming, and denying, without fwearing.
Ver. 39. But I fay unto you, that ye refift not evil}
i. e. I fay unto you. Do not refift. It may be ren
dered evil, or the evil perfcn. The fenfe is the fame. It
is plain the word refift cannot here be taken in its full
extent ; fo that we fhould make no refiftance upon
any occafion ; becaufe that is contrary to common rea-
fon and equity. This will appear from what follows.
Ver. 39 — 41. But whofoever /hall f mite thee, &c. —
go with him twain,"} That thefe expreffions are pro-
verbid and hyperbolical, and not to be taken in their
ftritteft rigour, is evident to common fenfe : which
we muft always take along with us, in interpreting
the Scriptures, as well as other writings. Here is
nothing intended but a prohibition of revenge, a //'-
tigicus temper, and ftritlly infifting upon our right ;
when \nfome cafes of lefs moment we ought for feace
Jaks
according to S T . M A T t H E w> Chap . V . I oj
fake to recede from it. Interpreters are divided in
their opinions, whether the words, <roi xpiOrfvai, which
we tranflate,y#£ thee at the law, be meant of going to
taw, or private contention: it matters not which, iince
the prohibition above mentioned takes place as to
Ver. 24. Give to him that ajketh, &c.] i. e. accord
ing to the meafures of right reafon, equity, prudence,
and real charity. Thefe limitations muft ever be
widerjlood, though they are not exprejfed, in precepts,
and aphorifrns of this nature.
Ver. 47. Salute] Rather, embrace, aWaVuarS-s.
Ver. 48, Be ye therefore perfeft, even as your Father
which is in heaven is perfett] This, ftriclly fpeaking,
is impoflible. The meaning is ; Endeavour at per
fection, and come as near it as you can.
CHAP. VI.
VERSE 2. They have their reward] i. e. They
have what they wanted ; viz. the vain applaufe
of men ; which is all the reward they are like to have.
So Luke xvi. 25. Tbou in thy life time receivedft thy
good things, &c.
Ver. 3. Let not thy left hand know what thy right
band dothl] An expreffion proverbial and hyperbo
lical. 'c You muft be fo far from being oftentatious
" of your charity to others, that you muft conceal it
** (were fuch a thing poiTible) even from yowfelf"
Ver. 7. Vain repetitions] All repetitions in prayer
are not here condemned, but only vain ones, and
fuch as the Heathen ufed.
Ver. 9. Which art in heaven] This is faid, becaufe
heaven is the place of God's more peculiar and glorious
refidence : not but that he is prefent in all places
on earth, as well as in heaven : for as heaven is his
throne.
Io6 Notts upon the Gofpel
throne, fo earth is his /00//?00/. Ifaiahlxvi. i. Acts vii,
49. He is here applied to, as being in heaven-, be-
caufe that puts us in mind of his infinite majefty, glory,
and greatnefs ; not that he is limited to that place :
for, behold, the heaven and the heaven of heavens cannot
contain him. i Kings viii. 27.
Ibid. Hallowed be thy name] Hallowed; i.e.fanfti-
fad, or regarded as holy. By God's name in Scripture
is often meant his ejjence or being, God himfelf. Dent,
xii. ii. Caufe his name to dwell there. Deut. xxviii.
58. This glorious and fearful name ', the Lord thy God :
and fo in many other places. To hallow him there
fore as an act of ours, (for in himfelf ] he is immutably
and eiientially holy] is to reverence him, fear hirrij
worjhip, and obey him. If the word name be taken
in its common fignification, the meaning is plain to all
who know the third Commandment.
Ver. 10. Thy kingdom corned] Is he not King al
ready ? The Lord is King — in many places of the
Pfalms, and elfe where — Why then fhould we pray
that his kingdom may come? ANSW. His kingdom is
partly in this world ; partly in the next. As to the
former ; the meaning is, that his kingdom may be
complete by the universal obedience of his fubjefls. As
to the latter; that the faints may have their perfeft
consummation and blip, &c. as our Church expreffes
it.
Ibid. Thy will be done'] i. e. Let all the £00 J thou
commandeft be done ; and all the evil thou infli&eft be
patiently juffered. u Let thy will be done" by us, and
in us,
ibid. In earth, as it is in heaven^ This can relate
only to what he commands, not to what he inflicts :
for there is no fuffering in heaven. But how AS in
heaven? ANSW. That particle here, as in many
other places, denotes only Jimilitude, or likenefs, not
equality. We cannot perform our duty in the fame
perfection as the angels do theirs.; but we may upon
the
according to ST. MATTHEW, Chap. VI. 167
the fame principle, viz. the love of God, with an ala
crity > zeal, and conftancy, &c. like theirs, though not
equal to it.
Ver. 1 1 . Give us this day our daily bread^ By bread
is meant every thing neceffary for us. As for thofe
expreffions, This day— daily— day by day, (Luke xi. 3.)
let the learned reader fee the Critics and Commen
tators a. The fubftance is ; our dally and fufficietit
fuftenance, through the whole courfe of our lives,
Ver. 12. Our debts— our debtors^] Luke xi. 4. it is,
Our Jim — 'Every one that is indebted to us. — Sins are a
kind of -debts ; the iinner owing fatisfacliion and pu-
nifhment to the perfon he fins againft.. Compare
Luke xiii. 2. aWfTu^oi, with ver. 4. O^KITCU.
Ver. 13. Lead us not into temptation.] temptation is
fometimes taken for barely trying^ and proving: in this
fenfe we do not pray againft- it ; nay, the Pialmift
prays for it. Pial.cxxxix. 23. And St. James counts
it joy, &c. James i. 3. And in this fenfe God bim-
fe/f tempted Abraham, Sometimes it means SL vicious
temptation to drawr us into lin : and thus we are
tempted only by the Devil, and our own lufts, &c.
God never tempts us. James i. 13. Sometimes, nay
very often, it is taken for being actually overcome^ and
falling into fin by the temptation. Thus Matth. xxvi.
41. i Cor. vii. 5. Gal. vi. i. i Theff. iii. /;, &c. In
thefe two latter fenfes, efpecially the hft, we pray
againft temptation. OBJ. But God cannct had
us into fuch temptation : why therefore ihould we
•pray him not to lead us, &c. ANSW. By a Hebraifm b
the meaning of lead its not itito is, Juffer us not to fail
into.
Ibid. From evil, aVo TH TTOV-H^.] Or from the evil
One, i. e. the Devil : or boih.
For thine is the kingdom, &c. — Amen^ This doxo-
* Upon the word
b In the uie of the conjugation Hiphil. Seethe Critics.
logy
to8 Notes upon tie Gofpet
logy is left out in St. Luke: from whence, as well as
from other circumftances, it is plain our Saviour de
livered this prayer twice, and with fome variation.
Ver. 14. For if ye forgive — your heavenly Father
will forgive you] That is, provided you be not want
ing to yourfelves in other refpeffs. For it is not to
be fuppofed that this is the only condition.
Ver. 19. Lay not up for yourfelves treasures upon
earth] i. e. Be not anxious and folicitous to lay
them up. For the thing in itfelf is not (imply (in-
ful.
Ver. 20. Treafures in heaven] i. e. heavenly trea-
fures, the glories and joys of heaven, which we lay
up for ourfelves by doing good works on earth. See
Matthew xix. ai.
Ver. 21. Fcr where your treafure is, there will your
heart be alfo] Your heart -, i. e. your love and af-
fections. The argument (lands thus : Where your
treafUre is, there will your heart be •, but your heart
ought to be in heaven, becaufe there is your greateft
good : therefore you ought by good works to lay up
your treafure there. Or it is an eltipjis; i. e. an imperfeft
fpeech : to be fupplied thus : " By good works on
" earth fecure an intereft in heaven. FOR fo you
" ought to do, becaufe heaven is your chief good ;
" and if you judge it to be fo, you will of courfe fet
" your affections upon it."
Ver. 22. The light of the body is the eye, &c.]
The ccnneftion is this. He was before fpeaking of
forming a right judgment about heavenly and earthly
things. And now proceeds, by an ellipfis again,
mentioning only \\\zjimile, but leaving out the appli
cation : thus : <c As the eye is the light of the body,
" fo \hz judgment is the light of the/0#/. It is there -
" fore of the laft importance that your judgment of
" things be right"
Ibid. Single.] i. e. pure, (imple, free from /'// bu»
mows, which mifreprefent and difcoloitr the object.
Ver.
according to ST. MATTHEW, Chap. VI. 109
Ver. 23. If therefore the light that is in thee be dark-
nefs-, how great is that darknefs !] That is, if t\\y judg
ment > which is thy guide, be itfelfmif guided; how great
muft be thy error !
Ver. 24. No man canferve two mafters^ He returns
to the main tenor of his difcourfe : as thus : " You
" muft fet your affections either upon heaven, or upon
"earth. For it is impoffible you fhould fet them
" upon both; becaufethey are contrary to one another ;
" and no man canferve two [contrary] mafters"
Ibid. For either he will hate the one, and love the
ether-, or elfe he will hold to the one, and defpife the other .]
The difficulty lies partly in the obfcurity of the words
the one, and the other, which will be cleared by fubfti-
tuting proper names ; as Peter and John ; partly in
the doubt whether love and hold to (as our verlion
renders it) on the one hand, and hate and dejpife on
the other, are to be underflood as fy nonimou s ; i. e.
meaning the fame, or not. It is plain therefore,
i ft, if you take it thus: Either he will love John, and
hate Peter; or love Peter, and hate John. 2dly, thus:
Either he will love John, and hate Peter ; or honour
John, and defpife Peter; and fo on the reverfe. For
the word in the original, *&f£<<*aij rendered hold to,
may very well be rendered, be refpeftful to, or honour.
Ibid. Mammon^ It is a Syriac word, and lignifies
money, or worldly lucre. It may alfo be ufed personally
for the Heathen god of money.
Ver. 25. Therefore take no thought, &c.] i. e. Since
THEREFORE you cannot love and ferve both,?& above;
make the right choice, fet your affections upon hea
ven; and take NO THOUGHT what ye /hall eat, &c.
i. e. no anxious, felicitous thought; for fo the word in
the original, pfpipvuTe, fignifies, and ought to have
been tranflated in our veriion. It cannot be con
ceived that our Saviour mould forbid us to take any
care for the things of this life; which is contrary both
to reafbn and other places of Scripture. But our
Englifh
4\ ales upon the Gafpel
Englifh tranflation of the Bible (though In the main
a good one) is in fome places intolerably faulty; even
ib as to quite alter the fenfe, and give us a meaning
which never entered into the thoughts of the author.
Ibid. Is not the life more than meat, and the body
than raiment?} The fenfe is; It is God who gave us
our life and our body, which are of \^ greater value,
and gave them without any care or folicitude of ours r
he muft therefore be both able and willing to give
us whatfoever is necdfary for the [up-port of them;
which muft be of lefs value than our life and body,
for tbe Jake of which it is given.
Ver. 27. Which of you by taking thought can add we
cubit to his feature?} The word in the original, vK\ma+
may either be renderedyto/^, or age, i. e. length^ or
term of life. According to the former rendering, the
fenfe of the paffage may be this : It is God (for you
cannot do it youriclves) that makes you grow in fize
and bulk of body; but this is of lefs confequence than
furnifhing you with the neceflaries of life after you
are grown up. Shall not he therefore, who provides
for the lefs, provide for the greater? According to the
latter rendering, it is thus: With all your care and
anxiety you cannot prolong your lives for a day> or an
hour, if it pleafes God to take them away. Nor is
it any objection that the word cubit is improperly
applied to the meafuring of time. Many inftances of
the like nature may be given both in Scripture and
other writings. Nay this very inftance, Pfal. xxxix.
5. Behold then haft made my days as an hand-breadth.
Ver. 33. All thefe things \ i.' e. food and raiment,
&c.jkcill be added unto you ^\ i. e. ib far as they are w*-
cejjary, and convenient, and for your real good.
Ver. 34. For the morrow /hall take thought for the
things of it/elf] The morrow jh all take ^ &c. A figurative
expreffion. i. e. You to-morrow (hall have trouble
enough to take care for the things of that day: and
the i'ame may be faid of this prefent, and all other days.
We
according to ST. MATTHEW, Chap. VII. Ill
We mould not therefore make ourfelves more mifer-
able than we need be, by foreftalling mifchiefs, and
adding the future to the prefent. The fame fenfe is
continued in the next words : Sufficient unto the day
is the evil thereof.
CHAP. VII.
VERSE i. Judge notl\ i. e. judge not other men*
in a private capacity >, in a cenforious, uncharitable
manner.
Ver. 3. The mote the beam, &c.] It is a Jewiih
proverb. The meaning is ; Why are you fo fharp-
lighted to the fmall faults of others, when you are
blind to great ones of your own? Mote; i. e. a grain
of fand, duft, chaff, a bit of ftraw, &c.
Ver. 6. Give not that which is holy rent you.]
Being upon the fubjecl: of fraternal correption, or ad-
monifhing our neighbours of their faults; he adds,
that there are feme perfons, whom it is not proper to
reprove or adrnonifh : meaning the obftinate, incor
rigible, profane fcoffers, blafphemers, &;c. It is pro-
ftituting holy and precious things to thofe who are
not worthy of them; who will not only defpife our
advice, but be provoked to injure and infult us for
offering it.
Ver. 7. AJk, &c.] He paries to another fubjecl:, viz.
Prayer. AJk, and ye fhall receive ; i. e. If ye afk things
lawful, in faith, with devout affections, and in all re-
fpects as ye ought to afk, ye fhall have what you
pray for, or fomething which is better. For we may
be truly faid to receive, whether our prayers be an-
fwered in kind, or not : if they are anfwered /;/ the
main, that is fufficient. God knows what is fit for us,
better than we ourfelves.
Ver. 9. Or what man, &c.] Or ihould have been
left
Nates uf&rt the Gofpel
left out. The word for it in the original, ^, is redun
dant. So Matt. xvi. 26. and xx. 15. At ieaft it
implies not disjunction, but travfition.
Ibfcl. AJk bread give him ajlone^ &c.] Proverbial
expreffions again ; and the meaning of them is plain.
From the Jews they pafs to other nations. Thus
Piautus : In one hand he carries bread, in the other a ft one.
Ver. 12. THEREFORE #// thing s whatsoever ye would \
Sec.] The word a*, here rendered therefore, is fo-me-
times redundant \ fometimes it implies not inference,
but tranfition, as John ix. 18. And fb it does here.
Our Saviour from the fubjeft of prayer pafies to that
of doing as we would be done by.
Ver. 14. BECAUSE ^nz/V/V the gate, &c.] This [on]
is wrong tranflated, and fpoils the fenfe. It fhoulct
have been rendered either how, as it is in the margin
of our Bibles; or elfe, by a Hebraifm,a hut*
Ver. 1 6. By their fruits^ i. e. By their lives and
dottrincs : not by their pretences and outwardly fair
appearance.
Ver. 23. Knew youl\ i. e. Owned you, or approved
of you. So Pfalm i. 7. ¥he Lord knoweth the way of
the righteous: i. e. approves of their behaviour*
CHAP. VIII.
VERSE 4. See thou tell no man; but go thy way,
Jhew thyfelf to the prisft, &c.] He either bids
him not tell it, till he has (hewed himfelf to the
priefl; or abfolutely forbids him to fpeak of it at all.
As Matthew ix. 30. and xii. 16. and in other places.
Of his thus enjoining jilence to thofe whom he had
miraculoufly cured^ feveral reafons are given. As ift,
O for CDb* *O as Gen. xlv. 8. a Sam. xvi. 8, &c.
That
according to ST. MATTHEW, Chap. VIII. 113
That he might not feem to feek his own glory.
2. That the Pharifees, moved with envy, might not
go about to kill him before his time. 3. Left the
miracles being divulged by his own followers, there
might be fuipicion of their acting in concert, &c.
See note on chap. ix. 30.
Ibid. And offer the gift that Mofes commanded, &c.]
See Levit. xiii. 14. For a teftimony unto them: i. e. to
the Priefts, the Pharifees, and other Jews: that this
may obviate their calumnies againfl me, and be a
proof or evidence to them; ift, Of my keeping the
Law of Mofes. 2dly, Of my having wrought a true
and undoubted miracle.
Ver. 5. There came unto him a Centurion\ This is
not, as fome think it is, a different hiilory from that
in Luke vii. i, &c. but the fame. And as for the
feeming difference of circumftances -, St. Luke giving a
more particular account of the fact, St. Matthew
mud be explained by him, not he by St. Matthew.
And they are very reconcileable with each other.
St. Matthew, indeed, fays the Centurion came him-
felfi St. Luke, that he fent meffengers. But it is a
known maxim even in law, that what a man does by
another, he does by himfelf. Of this way of fpeaking
there are innumerable inftances in all writings; par
ticularly in the Scriptures, Exod. xviii. 6. i Kings
y. 7. Mark x. 35. compared with Matt. xx. 20.
And St. Luke himfelf ufes the word xiyuv, faying, as
applied to the Centurion ; reciting that which he faid
by others. And though it feems probable from thofe
words, Go thy way, &c. ver. 13. that when Chrifl was
near the houfe, the Centurion came in perfon to meet
him ; yet neither is this neceffary : for when David
fent mejjengers to Abigail, fhe anfwers as if he had
been prefent. i Sam. xxv. 40, 41. OBJ. But in
St. Luke, the meflengers defire our Saviour to come:
here the Centurion deiires him not to come. ANSW.
The meflengers in St. Luke added that of their own:
i for
upon tht Gofpct
for that the Centurion delired him not to come is plain
from St. Luke himfelf, chap. vii. ver. 6, 7.
Ver. 9. For I am a man 'under authority ', — and he
doth //.] i. e. I am a military inferior officer, yet having
Joldiers under my command: and \fmyfubaltern autho
rity is thus obeyed; how much more will yours be,
which \sjnpreme! At a word of your mouth, your
mittiftringfpir its \v\\\ come^ and difeajes fly, &c. It is
an ellipjis.
Ver. n, 12. Many [of the Heathen, as this Cen
turion was] /hall come — and fit down with Abraham,
and IJaac, &c. in the kingdom of heaven ;] i. e. mall
be received into the church of God here, and into
heaven hereafter. But the children of the kingdom
(i. e. the Jews, who were the ancient people and
church of God) Jhall be caft out into outer darknefs-,
i. e. {hall ceafe to be God's people in this world; and
[many of them] (hall be caft into hell in the next.
As heaven is light; fo in the next world, after the
day of judgment, whatever is external, or outer to
heaven, is darknefs.
Ver. 1 6. Poffefled with Devils^] Demoniacs, or perfons
polTefTed with Devils, were more particularly frequent
in our Saviour's time; partly upon account of the
Devil's rage at the coming of the Median ; partly by
the permiflion of Providence, (hewing that God fent
his Son to deftroy the works of the Devil. I fay more
particularly frequent in his time ; for they were far from
being unknown in other times, before and iince ; as
appears from Jofephus, a Jew; and from feveral Hea
then writers. See Whitby on ver. 31, and on chap,
xii. 27.
Ver. 17. That it might be fulfilled himfelf took
cur infirmities, &c.] lia. liii. 4. Fulfilled, i. e. partly
fulfilled. As the aBions of perfons in the Old Tel-
tament were often types of our Saviour's; fo fome of
bis own actions were a kind of types to fome other
adions of his own. Sins are difeafes of theybw/; and
his
according to ST. MATTHEW, Chap. VIII. 115
liis curing bodily diftempers was a reprefentation of
his curing fpi ritual. His pajfion upon the crofs, and
his taking away the fins of the world, is the chief or
ultimate meaning of that prophecy ; but not the only
one. It was fulfilled at different times, ift, When
Chrift with fatigue and bodily pain, from the crowds
thronging him, the naufeoufnefs of the difeafes, the
number of the patients, &c. bore, or endured the in
firmities of others; and likewife took them away from
the perfons afflided. adly, When he fuffered death
upon the crofs, and both bore and took away the fins
of the whole world.
Ver. 20. The foxes have holes lay his head.] i. e.
" Confider well what you do. If you follow me
" upon temporal views, you are much miftaken. For
"foxes, &c." But the Son of man, &c.
Ibid. The Son of man.] As our blefTed Saviour in
many places applies this expreflion to himfelf, it will
be proper to explain it here, where he firfl ufes it.
It may ieern ftrange that he, who was born of a
'virgin, and had no father according to ihtjlejhy mould
call himfelf the Son of man; and that too emphatically ,
and by way of diflinElion. The anfwer is : the word
man means not the male f ex, but the human nature-, as
it commonly does in all languages. Beiides; though
he had no immediate human father, yet he was the
Son of, i.e. descended from, David, Abraham, &c. and
fo up to Adam. And he ufes this expreffion empha*
tic ally : ift, To (hew that he was really MAN not in
appearance only*, as by other arguments he is proved
to be GOD. adly, To exprefs his humility and conde-
Jcenfton. Though he calls himfelf the Son of man, he
is never called fo in the Gofpels, by his Apoftles,
Evangelifts, or any other Difciples.
Ver. 22. Let the dead bury their dead^\ Do thou
follow me : and let thofe who, not following me, are
fpiritually dead \intrejpajjes and fins, Eph. ii. i.] bury
their friends who are naturally dead.
i 2 Ver.
Ii6 Notes upon the Gofpel
Ver. 28. — The country of the Gergefenes. — ] Mark
v. i. Luke viii. 26. it is the country of the Gaclarenes.
And both very true. The country, or region, of the
Gergefenes, or Gadarenes, was the fame: it might be
denominated from Gergefa, or Gadara, (which were
neighbouring cities,) or from both.
Ibid. Two po/effed, &c.] St. Mark and Luke men
tion but one. The reafon is; though there were twa,
yet one of them was much more fierce, and diftin-
guilhed by more peculiar circumftances, as breaking
his chains, being untameable, being unclothed, cutting
himjelf with ft ones i Sec.
Ver. 29. Before the time.] i. e. Before the day of
judgment.
Ver. 30. Herd of fwine] Gadara was partly a Hea
then town; and the Heathens ate f wine's flelh,
though the Jews did not: or the Jews themfelves
might have fwine for other ufes, though not to eat
them: or laftly, fome might tranfgrefs the Law con
cerning fwine' s flefh.
Ver. 31. Suffer, us to go, into the herd, &c.] Why
(hould they delire that? ANSW. Out of hatred to
men, and for the fake of doing mifchief.
Ver. 32. Go] This is only a permiffion, not a com-
mand\ as the imperative often is. The owners of the
fwine might (nay certainly did) deferve a greater
punifhment for their fins than this, whoever they
were. But if they were Jews, tranfgrefling the Law
about fwine's flefh, the cafe is yet plainer.
CHAP. IX.
VERSE i. His own city] Three cities might fitly
be called his cwn. Bethlehem, where he was
torn j Nazareth, where he was bred\ and Capernaum,
where,
according to ST. MATTHEW, Chap. IX. 117
where, after his public miniflry, he chiefly lived.
The loft is here intended. Mark ii. i.
Ver. 5 . For whether is eafier to Jay Arife and
walk .<?] He means, to Jay, EFFECTUALLY, thy fins,
&c. QT tofay, Arife > &c. that is; both are equally eafy;
for none but God can do either-, forgive fim •, or work
miracles: and he who can do one by his own power,
can do both. There is moreover this connection be
tween God's healing a fick man, and forgiving him
his fins; that as ficknefs is the confequence, and in
fome meafure the punifhment, of fin; a man's fins
are in fome fort forgiven, when he is recovered of a
.diftemper; part of the punifhment, the temporal
punifhment, being remitted. Compare ver. 2 and 6.
Ver. 6. The Son of man [being the Son of God like-
wife, and himfelf God] hath power on earth (he who
was God, as well as man, converting, vifibly, on
earth) to forgive fins, &c.
Ver. 8. Unto menJ] i. e. to any man what foe ver.
They did not know that he was God, as well as man,
though his forgiving fins in his own perfon plainly
implied it.
Ver. 9. Matthew. 1 He is called Levi, Mark ii. 14.
Luke v. 27. That Matthew and Levi are the fame
perfon, is fo plain from all the circumftances, that
I wonder the moft learned Grotius fliould be of a
contrary opinion. See his arguments fufficiently con
futed in Whitby on Luke v. 27.
Ver. 13. / will have mercy, and not facrifice~\ i. e.
Mercy more than facrifice : prefer mercy to facrifice.
It is a Hebraifm. The very next words in Hof.
viii. 6. are, and the knowledge of God MORE than burnt
offering: which explain the other. But how does
our Saviour apply this to his prefent purpofe?
Doubtlefs, it was mercy to convert linners; but was it
facrifce to eat and drink with them ? ANSW. No; but
the Pharifees deeming it to be a kind of legal -pol
lution, like the touching a dead body, &c. forbidden
i 3 under
Notes upon the Gofpel
under the Law; and Jacrifice being the CHIEF pofitive
inftitution, rite, or ceremony, it is ufed in a wide
fenfe, as including all the reft.
Ver. 15. Can the children — with them? [Can they,
i. e. they cannot:^ But the days will come — then/hall they
faft.] By the children of the bridechamber are meant
t\\z friends and attendants of the bridegroom, (fee John
iii. 29.) who alone were admitted into the bride-
chamber. That the relation between Chrift and his
Church is in Scripture frequently reprefented under
the metaphor of a marriage ', is well known. By the
bridegroom therefore our Saviour here means himfelf\
by the children of the bridechamber he means his Dif-
dples-y and fays it is not fit that they mould mourn
and faft, while he, as bridegroom, is with them, and
the marriage -feajl (as it were) is not yet ended. But
when he lhall be taken from them by death, as he
fhortly mail be, they will have mourning and fajling
enough ; when nothing but perfection, bonds, and
afflictions (hall abide them.
Ver. 1 6, 17. No man, &c. — Neither do men, &c.]
No man putteth a piece of new cloth to an old garment :
For [if fo] that which is put in to Jill it up, taketh
from the garment ; and the rent is made worfe : the new
piece which is put in, being ftrong, draws to it, and
tears off, the threads of that which is round about it,
being old, and weak.
Neither do men put new wine into old bottles : [made
otftins, as they ftill are in fome parts of Europe :]
Elfe (i. e. If they do) the bottles break, [by the heat
and fermentation of the new winey~\ and the wine runneth
cut, and the bottles perijh. But they put new wine into
new bottles-, and both are preferred. " In like manner,
" my young weak Difciples, taken not from the
" fchools, or academies, as perhaps thofe of John
" and the Pharifees were, but from their fifhing
cc trade, muft not prelently be put upon fuch fevere
i tafks, as frequent failings, and mortifications, for
" which
according to ST. MATTHEW, Chap. IX.
" which they are not yet ftrong enough, left they
" fliould be difcouraged, and fall away from me."
OBJ. But how could the Difciples be compared to old
cloth, and old bottles ; when, according to our own ac
count, and the real truth of the fact, they were young
Difciples, newly called ? ANSW. Though they were
fo ; yet, and for that very reafon, they were preju
diced by their old cuftoms, and way of living ; there
fore weak and infirm, as gld things and perfons are.
Ver. 23. — Saw the minftrels.—^ Muiical inftru-
ments were anciently ufed at funerals. — The people
making a noije — i. e. mourning and lamenting.
Ver. 30. See that no man know it.~\ Though here,
and in other places, our Saviour enjoins ^/wre to thofe
whom he had miraculoufly cured, (fee chap. viii. 4.)
yet he does not fo always ; nay fometimes, on the
contrary, commands them to tell how great things
God had done for them, as Mark v. 19. and in other
places ; the circumftances being different : particu
larly when the miracles were wrought upon Hea
thens, or thofe who lived among them, as the Syro-
phcenician woman's daughter, and the Daemoniac
at Gadara ; the Heathens not being prejudiced againft
him, as the Scribes, and Pharifees, and other Jews
were.
Ver. 36. They fainted* and were Jcattered abroad, as
Jheep having nofloepherd.] Their teachers, the Scribes
and Pharifees, neglecting them, and taking no care
of them.
Ver. 37. fbe harveft (i. e. the multitude well
difpofed to receive inftruction) truly is plenteous ; but
the labourers (the teachers and inflructors) are few.
I 4 CHAP,
I2O Notes upon the Gofpel
CHAP. X.
VERSE 5. Go not into the way of the Gentiles—
and Samaritans — ] i. e. now at prefent, go not,
&c. For afterwards, after his refurreftion, he com
mands them to teach all nations ; which they ac
cordingly did.
Ver. 6. But go rather to the loft Jheep of the houfe of
Ifrael^ To whom this dodrine of falvation is frft
fent, and is to be frft preached. Acts i. 8. iii. 26.
xiii. 46. He calls all Ifrael fheep, (though they
were not obedient to the voice of the fliepherd?) as
being all God's chofen people : he calls then loft
fheep, becaufe they went aftray like loft Jheep, Pfalm
cxix. 176. being milled, or at lead fuffered to err,
by the ignorance and wickednefs of their guides.
Ver. 8. Heal the fick> cleanje the lepers., &c. Freely
ye have receivedy freely give^ This laft claufe can
relate only to the miraculous gifts of healing^ clean/ing,
&c. (of which alone he is direttly fpeaking, and for
the exercife of which they were to take no fee or re
ward,,) not to the ordinary work of teaching, and
preaching: becaufe for that they were to be maintained
by thofe to whom they preached ; as appears from
feveral texts of Scripture ; particularly from this
very chapter, ver. 10. (almoft the next words to
thefe,) The workman is worthy of his meat.
Ver. 10. Neither Jboes, nor yetftaves.'] In the ori
ginal it is, neither Jhoes, nor a ftaff. [Some copies in
deed have itjjavesl] How comes it then that, Mark
vi. 8, 9. they are allowed the life of ajtaff, and to be
.Jhod \N\\hfandah ? Whereas here they are forbidden
the ufe of both. ANSW. They were allowed the
common ft aff) they then had in their hands; but not to
take a new, ftronger^ travelling flaif. They were al
lowed their ujual Jandah, which were thin and flight -y
not
according ftrSf. MATTHEW, Chap. X.
not travelling Jhoes, which were thicker and ftronger :
thofe to whom they preached being to Furnifh them
with all things neceffary for their journeys.
Ver. ii. — Who is worthy} i. e. Teachable ', well-
difpofed to receive inftruffiwn.
Ibid, There abide, till ye go thence.} i. e. Stay in thai
houfe, till ye go out of that city.
Ver. 13. Let your peace return to you} i. e. They
fhall not obtain the peace you wifh them ; yet you1
(Kail be rewarded for your good endeavours. Thus
Pfal. xxxv. 14. My prayer returned to my bofom.
Ver. 23. Te jhall not have gone over the cities of
Ifraely till the Son of man be come} By our Saviour's
coming is fometimes meant his coming to the loft judg
ment -, fometimes his coming in power and vengeance to
the deflruftion of Jerufalem by the Roman armies.
Thefe are two chief fignifications of the word. But
here neither can be meant. That the former cannot,
is plain of itfelf. And as to the latter, moft of the
Apoflles (if not all, except St. John) were dead,
before the deftrudtion of Jerufalem. By his coming
therefore, in this place, feems to be meant his coming
by the Holy Ghojl at Pentecoft. Thus Johnxiv. 18.
I will not leave you ccmfortlejs : I will COME to you :
i.e. by the Spirit of whom he is fpeaking. See the
two foregoing verfes of that chapter.
Ver. 26. Fear them not therefore, [i. e. fo as by
them to be deterred from preaching the Gofpcl :]
FOR there is nothing covered, that Jhall not be revealed ;
and hid) that jhall not be known} Either thus : You
have no reafon to defpond, becaufe the Gofpel is
now hidden, and obfcure ; FOR in due time it will
fhinc out, and triumph over all oppofition : and fo
the common proverb, Time brings all things to light,
may well be applied here. Or thus : Fear not the
calumnies with which they will load you ; FOR time,
and God's efpecial providence, will discover your in-
nocency, and the excellence of your doctrine. Both
thefe
liZ Notes upon the Gtfpcl
thefe fenfes are very good, and probably both were
intended.
Ver. 27. What I tell you in darknefs, [in parables, or
in privacy, or \^o\.\\^ that fpeak ye in light-, [clearly,
plainly, openly :] and what ye hear in the ear, [as
whifyered, or infecret^\ that preach ye upon the houfe-tops^]
The tops of houfes in thofe countries were plain and
level, and ufed as places for walking, and public con-
verfation.
Ver. 29, 30, 3 1 . Are not two fparrows fold for a far
thing ? — more value than many fparrows.'] That is ;
God by his general providence obferves the Jmalleft
and moft inconftderablc things : how much more does
he by an efpedal providence take care of the greatejl
things; particularly the inter eft of his faithfuly^ri/vw/j
and minjfters, fent by his own immediate commitfion
and command !
Ver. 34, 35, 36. Think not that I am come to fend
peace — / came not to fend peace, but afivord, &c. — his
own houfehold.'] This relates not to our Saviour's de-
Jign, (for that was to fend peace.} nor to the natural
tendency of his doctrine, which was to make peace;
but only to the accidental effects of it, occafioned by
the corruption of the world. Many, both Jews and
Gentiles, would be converted to his religion -, but
many would not. And fo variance and difcord be
tween the near eft relations muft often enfue.
Ver. 38. 'Taketh not his croJsJ\ i. e. is not ready
and prepared to fuffer any thing, even death itfelf,
for the fake of Chrift.
Ver. 39. Findeth his life."] Findeth, \. e. faveth.
When a man is in the utmoft danger of death, hefeems
to have in a manner LOST his life ; and fo by efcaping
is faid to find it. That byfaving our lives we may
lofe our fouls, and fo on the contrary, is plain of it
felf.
Ver. 41, 42. Receheth a Prophet in the name of a
Prophet — a Difciple 'in the name of a Difciple — ] i. e.
receiveth
according to ST. MATTHEW, Chap. XI, 123
recehetb a Prophet, or Difciple, AS SUCH ; or BE
CAUSE be isfo.
CHAP. XL
VERSE 3. Art thou be that jhould come? &c.] i. e.
the Mefliah, the Chrift, who was prophefied of
as to come about that time. John cannot be fuppofed
to afk this queftion for his own Jatis faction ^ (he being
bimfelfthz mod illuftrious witnejs that Jefus WAS the
Chrift,) but for the fatisfadtion QihisDifciples, themef-
Jengers whom he fent; who, being jealous of their own
mafter's honour, were prejudiced againft Jefus. See
Matth.ix. 14. John iii. 26, &c.
Ver. 5. The blind receive their fight — preached unto
them:] i. e. The miracles I work, and the fulfilling of
prophecies in me, (particularly that of Ifai. Ixi. i . that
the poor ', or meek, fhould have the Gofpel preached to
them,) arc proofs that I am be that Jhould come, and you
are not to lock for another.
Ver. 6. Bleffed is he that jhall not be offended in me.]
i. e. prejudiced again ft me, fo as to at/believe me, or
fall off from me. This, though true of all, is mani-
feftly a reflection upon John's Difciples in particular.
See above, ver. 3.
Ver. 7. A reed Jhaken with the wind?"\ i. e. When
you went to fee John in the wildernefs, did you go
to fee &fickle> unfteady creature ? Not fo ; but a man of
unjhdkm conftancy^
Ver. 8. A man clothed in foft raiment f — -kings
bcufes.~] i. e. John was clothed with camel's hair, not
with purple zntifne lineny &c. as courtiers are : he lived
in a defert, not in a palace.
Ver. 9. Mere than a Prophet.'] i. e. than any Pro
phet of the Old Teftament i he being the immediate
harbinger of Chrift, the fofl publiJJier of the Gofpel,
(fee
124 Notts upon the Gofpel
(fee Marki. i, 2. Luke xvi. 16. and this very chap
ter, ver. 12, 13.) and being himfelf prophefied of by
the Prophets, Ifaiah and Malachi, in a very particular
manner.
Ver. 10. to ver. 15. For this is Joe — let him hear.~]
For what relates to John the Baptift in this chap
ter, and other places of Scripture, fee Difcourie II.
throughout.
Ver. 1 6. Whereunto Jhalllllken this generation? If is
like unto children, &c.] This expreflion, and others of
the fame import, as the kingdom of heaven is like unto.,
&c. frequently occurring in our Saviour's parables, it
will be proper to explain it once for all in this place,
where we firft meet with it. The thing or perfon, to
which another, in thefe parables, is faid to be like,
is not always (nay feldom is) to be underftood as the
.direct term of the comparifon. Thus here, that cor
rupt generation of the Jews is not directly compared
to the children, &c. (John and Chrift are compared
to them :) but the fenfe is, // is with this generation,
as //"children fhould, &c. So the kingdom cf heaven
(meaning in thofe places, \hzftateofthe Gofpel) is like
unto a man that Jowed — to a merchant — to a woman
who hid — to a certain king — to a houjehclder, &c.
That is, it is with the kingdom of heaven, as if a,
merchant, a houteholder, a king, &c. Jhould do this,
or that.
Ver. 1 6, 17. Sitting in the markets, and calling —
have not lamented.] This alludes to a cuftom of chil
dren* s play in thcfe days.
Ver. 1 8, 19. For John came neither eating nor drink
ing) (i. e. in the ordinary way, he being abftemious, eat
ing locufls and wild honey,} and they fay, He hath a Devil;
(i. e. hath an eviljpirit of morofity, and is melancho
ly-mad :) the Son of man came eating and drinking, (i. e.
converting familiarly, and fociably, as others do,) and
they Jay, Behold a glutton, and a wine-bibber, &c.] The
fenfe.. of the whole parfage, ver. 16, 17, 18, 19. is
this.
according to ST. MATTHEW, Ghap. XL
this. As children of a wayward^ psrverfe humour arc
complained of by their comrades of a different tem
per, that nothing will pleafe them, that they will com-,,
fly with nothing, whether cheerful or ferious, joyful
orfad\ fo you perverfe Jeivs are juftly complained of
by John, and myfclf, that neither bis auftere, nor my
affable behaviour can pleafe you ; but you give a
wrong turn to, and maliciously calumniate, both.
Ver. 19. But wifdom is juftified of her children^ That
is, notwithftanding your perverfenefs and bijufttce-,
the wife, true, and holy doctrine I preach (which is
wifdom itfelf) will ever be juftified, vindicated, and
made to fland its ground, by all true fens of wifdom
againft z\\ Jlanderers and oppofers.
Ver. 23. And thou, Capernaum, who art exalted unto
heaven, Jbalt be brought down to helQ i. e. Thou who
enjoyed fuch mighty privileges by my prefence, mira
cles, and heavenly doffrine, malt, for thy unbelief &i\&
difobedience, be reduced to the extremeft mifery.
Ver. 25. Jefus anfwered, &c.] In the Scriptures
both of the Old and New Teflament, the word an-
fwer> as we render it, does not always refer to fome-
thing faid by another : anfwering often means no
more thznfpeaking, or faying. Things of this nature
are to be accounted for only by the different idioms
of languages. See Matth. xxi. i. Mark ix. 38. xi. 14.
Luke xiii. 14.
Ibid. / thank thee — BECAUSE thou haft hid tbefe
things from the wife and prudent, and baft receded
them unto babes^\ He does not thank God properly,
BECAUSE he had hid them from the wife, &c. but
the fenfe is, I thank thee that, HAVING hid them from
tbofe, thou haft revealed them to thefe. So Rom. vi.
17. God be thanked that YE WERE the fervants of Jin ;
but now, &c. i. e. HAVING BEEN the fervants of fin, ye
have now obeyed, &c. The wife and pnident, i. e. in
their own conceits, but realty proud, obflinate fools.
HID them/re^ them, i. e. .PERMITTED- them to go
on
125 Notes upon tie Gofpel
on in their ignorance, as a punifhment for their pride
and perverfenefs. Many more expreffions of this
nature there are in both Te (laments. See ^ ThefT. ii.
n, 12. Ezek. iv. 9. Unto babes \ i. e. the meek, humble,
and teachable.
Ver. 28. Come unto me, all ye that labour, &c.] i. e.
under the burthen of either the Jewiih ceremonies, or
of youryfoj, or of both.
Ver. 29. My ycke^\ i. e. my law.
Ver. 30. For my yoke is eafy, and my burthen is ligh
Not abjolutely, but comparatively. The law of Chri
requires the greateftftriftnefs-, greater than any other.
But (till it is eajy, and tight, compared with the
burthen of Jin internally, and with the ceremonial
law externally. And even whatever itneafinejs we feel
under it is owing not to the law itfelf, but to our cor
ruptions.
CHAP. XII.
VERSE 2. T'hat which is not lawful on thgfabbath]
Meaning, not their eating at fuch a time of the
day, and fo breaking their fail toofoon, as fome inter
pret it ; (for the time of the day is notfpecifed;) but
t\ie\T plucking the ears, and rubbing them in their hands,
Luke vi. i. which the objectors looked upon as a
kind of reaping, and threfhing the corn, and fo doing
work on the iabbath day.
Ver. 3, 4 — 8. Have ye net read what David did?
—*Lord aljo of the Jabbath^ The force of our Sa
viour's arguing inthefe fix verfes is this: " As David,
" a Jacred perfon, a prophet, anointed to be king of
" God's people, and therefore hzvmg extraordinary pri-
*' vileges, was permitted, by the authority of the High
•' Prie/l, to eat the Jhew-bread, or confecrated loaves,
according to ST. MATTHEW, Chap. XII.
** in cafe of neceffity, and when he could jftocure noj
" other food : fo my Apoftles and Difciples, let
" apart by me to attend me in my preaching the
" Gofpel, and to preach it themfelves, are by me
" permitted fo far to relax the rigour of keeping the
4< fabbath, as you fee them do; becaufe their attend-
" ance upon me, and the execution of their office,
" (hindering them from providing victuals, as they
" formerly did,) makes it neceffary. And as the Priefts
*( in the Temple without blame profane the Jabbath,
" i. e. do thofe things, as killing beqfts, and dr effing them,
<( making fires, &c. (which in others would be profan-
fs ing it,) fo my Apoftles, &c. And if you object,
" that what the Priefts do is for the fervice of the
" Temple ; I anfwer, that what tbefedo is for the fer-
<£ vice of me, who am greater than the Temple, and
<c Lord of the fabbath : i.e. I, as the Meffiah, the
" greateft of all Prophets, have authority to difpenfe
" with the rigorous obfervation of the Law; ftill keep-
*' ing within the equity of it : you yourfelves allow-
<c ing that any great Prophet [fee the Commentators
" at large] has the fame authority." For thofe words,
/ will haw mercy ^ and not facrifice, fee the note on
chap. ix. ver. 13.
Ver. 4. Shew-bread.'] i.e. bread, [it mould have been
rendered loaves, ra? «^ra?,] which always flood in a
certain place to bzfeen by every body, and, as it were,
to make zflew.
Ver. 9. And when he was departed thence, he [on
another fabbath day, Luke vi. 6.J went into their Jyna-
gogue.
Ver. 12. And they afked him, &c.] Mark iii. 4.
and Luke vi. 9. it is faid HE ajked THEM. Very con-
iiftent. fbey aik him, is it lawful to heal on the fab-
bath day ? He alks tbent\ is it lawful to do good on the
fabbath day ? Which is an excellent anfwer to their
queftion. To do good on the fabbath day is lawful :
But to heal is to do good : Therefore, &c. Nor was
there
128 Notes upon the Gofpd
there arf^Mork in his healing, like that of a phyfician,
QI furgeon\ it being done by miracle, by a word of
bis mouth.
Ver. 17. 77>rf/ // might be fulfilled^ i. e. by his gen
tle, patient, modefl, beneficent behaviour upon this
-Occaiion, in refit ing from his obftinate enemies, heal
ing, a IK! doing good, charging his followers not to
make him known:, [fee the two foregoing verfesj] which
was fpoken by the Prophet Ifaias. (Chap. xlii. i, &c.)
Ver. 19. He fhall not Jtrive, nor cry ; neither fhall
any man hear his voice in the Jlreets~\ i. e. He (hall not
be contentious , or fet forth himfelf with wife, tumult ,
or cjlentation of his works.
Ver. 20. A bruifed reed fhall he not break; and fmok*
ing flax ftjallhenot quench. ~\ A reed ALREADY bruifed
he ihall not QJJITE break : a torch, or the wick of a
candle made diflax, ALREADY going out, and fo hav
ing more fmoke than flame, he Ihall not QJIITE ex-
tinguifh : i. e. he fhall be merciful and tender to the
weak zndfinful : fo far from finking them lower than
they are already, that he (hall raife them up, com
fort, ftrengthen, and relieve them.
Ibid. Until he fend forth judgment unto vi£lory^\ i.e.
Till he make his judgments, laws, and ordinances, to
prevail in the world, or (in other words) till the Gof-
pel difpenfation be/////)' planted.
Ver. 21. And in his name Jhall the Gentiks tnift^ In
Ifaiah it is, The ijles fhall wait for his /aw. The ifles
in the Old Teftament are often put for nations or re
gions at large. Ifai. xlix. i. li. 5. Ix. 9. To wait for,
or expecly often implies hope, trujl, or confidence. The
words law and name are ufed promifcuoufly, for rea-
Tons given by Grofcius upon the place.
Ver. 27. If I by Beelzebub cajl out Devils, by whom
do your children cajl them out ? 'Therefore they foall be
your judges^ There were certain Exorcifts among the
Jews in thofe days, (fee Ads xix.) who pretended to
caft out Devils in4he name of Abraham, Ifaac, and
Jacob :
according to ST. MATTHEW, Chap. XII.
Jacob : pretended, I fay ; for it was really no more ;
as we fhall fee prefently. Our Saviour's argument
therefore in this place is only ad hominem ; i. e. an
argument which the objeflor, according to his own
principles , muft grant : as thus: " You Pharifees SAY
<c that your Jons (i. e. your difciples] cafl out Devils
*' by the afliftance of God; and I will, for argument's
<cfake, fuppofe it to be true. Why then muft I, who
" do the very fame thing, be cenfured as doing it by
<e the afliftance of Beelzebub? So that thele children of
cc yours zrejudges, or witnejjes, againft you; to convict
" you of your prejudice and partiality."
Ver. 28. But if I c aft out Devils by the Spirit of God;
then the kingdom of God is come unto you^\ This argu
ment fuppofes that he was the firft who really caft
out Devils : otherwiie, the Pharifees might have an-
fwered, How is your carting out Devils a proof of
your having the Spirit of God, or of God's kingdom
being come, any more than our children's Caning
them out? The truth is, what they performed by
their exorcifms and conjurations was mere delufion;
the Devil acting in confederacy with them: feeming
to be caft out, though he really was not fa, in
order to delude the people, and countenance the
wicked docJrines and pracJices of thofe deceivers and
impoftors. But our Saviour's argument for himfelf
is unanfwerable. If I, really cafting out Devils, (as
by the plain facts, very different from your pretended
difpofTeffions, it is manifeft I do,) and working many
other miracles, prove that I act and fpeak by the
Spirit of God; then the kingdom of God is come unto
you ; i. e. the reign of the Mejjiah, and the difpenfation
of the Gojpel is begun.
Ver. 29. Or elfe^ how can — -fpoil his houfeJ] Or
elfe is ill rendered in this place. It mould be befides,
or moreover. It is a transition to another argument a.
a So the particle v fometimes denotes. See the Critics.
K The
30 Notes upon tbe Gofpel
The force of which is this: "How can I Jfoil the
" flrong man, Satan, of his goods ^ i. e. the fouls of men,
" who are in flavery to him ; unlefs I firft bind him;
" i. e. control his power? Which I do by my miracles
<c and holy doftrine: therefore I can be no confederate
<c with him ; as you pretend I am."
Ver. 30. He that is not with me, is againft me-, and
he that gathereth not with me,Jcattereth abroad~\ This
is a cenlure of thofe who by a lazy neutrality de-
fert the caufe of God; and flatter themfelves that
they do nothing againfl him : whereas they do much
prejudice to his caufe, by not aft ing /0r it. Gathereth
not with me; i. e. concurs not with me to gather
converts : Jcattereth abroad; i. e. by fetting fo bad
an example of coldnefs and indifference, deters peo
ple from becoming converts ; and fo, inftead of ga
thering them into the Church, Jcatters and difperfes
them.
Ver. 31, 32. All manner of fin and blafphemy —
But the blajphemy again/I the Holy Ghoft, &c. — in the
world to come.~\ Concerning the Jin and blajphemy
againft the Holy Ghoft; wherein it confifts; and why
it is pronounced unpardonable-, fee thofe who have
written largely upon the fubjeft.
Ver. 33. Either make the tree — known by its fruit, ,]
Either make — or — &c. i. e. If the tree be, &c. the
fruit will be, &c. The application is: According as
your inward diffofitions and principles are good, or
evil-, fo will be your words and actions: and the
former are proved and made known by the latter.
Ver. 36. But — every idle word — day of judgment."]
Though learned Expolitors have proved from Plato
and Cicero, that by idle words are fometimes meant
very evil and wicked words; according to which
interpretation, the expreflion may here relate dire5ily
to the blajphemy againft the Holy Ghoft; yet I
rather take it thus : An account fhall be given of
all fmful words proceeding from an evil heart; [fee
the
according to ST. MATTHEW, Chap. XII. 131
the two foregoing verfesfj much more of fuch horrid
blafphemy as this.
Ver. 37. For by thy words — -juftified— condemned^
i. e. Not by thy words only ; but by thy words,
as well as by thy thoughts and actions.
Ver. 38, 39. — We would fee a fign — No fign — but
— the Prophet Jonas~\ In Luke xi. 16. it is a fign
from heaven ; meaning fome extraordinary appearance
in the Jky. Though there had been a fign even
of this nature given to them, viz. the Holy Ghoil
defcending upon him in a vifible fhape, and a
voice proclaiming, 'Thou art my beloved Son, &c.
yet their perverienefs was fuch, that they mud
needs have another of the fame fort ', notwithstanding
our Saviour's many miracles of a different nature.
This being a moft unreafonable demand, (implying
that he was obliged to be obedient to all their 'fan-
ciful and proud dictates, when he had already given
them abundant evidence of his being the Son of God,
and the true Mejfiah,} hejuftly refutes to gratify them,
treating them (as they deferved to be treated) with
great marpnefs, calling them an evil and adulterous
generation. Then tells them, they mall have no fuch
fign as they required; i. e. not one from heaven-,
(for he did many miracles of another nature, after
this;) but they (hall have one from earth \ meaning
his death for three days only, and his refurrettion from
the dead, (of which Jonas was a type,) which (hall
fully ratify and confirm all his other miracles. No
fign, BUT the fign of the Prophet Jonas. The particle
but here is not exceptive, but difcretive*: for it would
not be fenfe to fay, no fign from heaven, or /';; the
Jky, EXCEPT a refurreftion from the earth.\^
Ver. 4.0.^— Three days and three nights. ~\ i. e. accord
ing to the Jewifh computation, one whole natural
day, (including day and night, or the fpace of twenty-
•'.*!, * For the particle si ^ fee the Critics.
K 2 four
13 1 Notes upon the Gofpel
four hours,) and part of two more. This has been
often explained at large in our Sermons upon our
Saviour's Refurreclion.
Ver. 43, 44, 45. When the unclean Spirit is gone out
— this wicked generation^ Though what is contained
in thefe three verfes may well relate to any perfon, or
number of perfons, who were firft in a bad (late,
then in a good one, and afterwards, relapjing, are
in a bad one again; [fee 2 Pet. ii. 20.] yet it appears
from the laft words, that they are principally, and
more direclly, to be underflood of the Jewifh nation.
Our Saviour and his Difciples caft out Devils even
from the bodies of fome, and from \\\z fouls of more ;
many of them embraced the Go/pel, and afterwards
apofiatized', fo their loft ft ate was worfe than their firft.
Or thus: The Jews for fome time, both under and
after the Babylonifh captivity, were much reform
ed from their difobedience and rebellion: but in
our Saviour's time they were more wicked than
ever; adding to all their other crimes infidelity,
blafphemy again ft the Holy Ghoft, and crucifying the
Lord of life-, and fo were coniigned over to utter
deftruction. As to the particular expreflions in this
paffage; they zvc figurative and allegorical. Through
dry places-, i. e. defer t, and unpleafant ones; all (but
the fouls and bodies of men) being wilder nejjes, and
places of baniflment to evil fpirits, or Devils. Re
turn to my houfe\ i. e. to thofe men, from whom I was
driven. Empty ; i. e. not pojfejjed by any good fpirit,
by whom he might be excluded. Swept and gar-
ni/hed: To be fwept and garnijhed ftriclily imply real
cleanlinefs and ornament: but here the contrary: to
the DEVIL filth is cleanlinefs -, and evil difpofitions are
ornaments. SEVEN other fpirits: the certain number
feven. is in Scripture, and other writings, often ufed
for the uncertain MANY,
CHAP.
according to ST. MATTHEW, Chap. XIII. IjJ
CHAP. XIII.
VERSE 3, 4, 5, &c. Afower went out, &c.] The
parable of the fower is fully explained by our
Saviour himfelf, ver. 19, 20, 21, &c. in words fo
plain, that they need no explanation.
Ver. 10, ii. And the Difciples faid — Why fpeakeft
thou unto them in parables f And he faid — Becaufe it
is given unto you to know the myfteries of the kingdom of
heaven ; but to them it is not given .] i. e. " It is given
" to you ; becaufe you are humble, teachable, and well
" difpofed: not to them ; becaufe they are proud, ob-
" flinate, and malicious. They have already rejected
" my miracles ', and plain doftrines delivered in my fer-
*c mon on the Mount ; and therefore are not worthy to
" have the myfteries of the kingdom , the deep things of
" the Gofpel, plainly laid before them.'' If it be afked;
Since they were fo unworthy, why were thofe myf
teries laid before them at all, even by parables? I
anfwerj In cafes of this nature, the vaft majority is
commonly taken for the whole number : and it may
well be fo here ^ though there might bzfome among
them, who being well difpofed might afterwards de-
fire our Saviour (as his Difciples did) to explain his
parables in private : and even of themfelves they
might in fome meajure underftand them.
Ver. 12. For whofoever hath, &c.] See note on
chap. xxv. 29.
Ver. 13. Seeing fee not — hearing hear not — neither
do they under ft and^\ i. e. Though they fee, and hear j
yet they a£l} and behave, as if they did neither.
They do not under/land-, becaufe they will not. They
wilfully clofe their eyes, ver. 15. And it is a com
mon proverb, None Jo blind as thofe that will not^.
Ver. 17. Many Prophets, and righteous men, [and
kings, Luke x. 24.] have defire^to Jee thofe things which
K 3 ye
J34 Notes upon the Gofpel
yejee, &c. j i. e. The ancient Patriarchs and Prophets,
Ibme of them kings, (as David and Solomon) longed
to fee the time of the MeiTiah; but could not.
Ver. 19. The word of the kingdom'} \. e. The Gofpel.
Ver. 29. Left ye root up the wheat ^mth them.]
Should the wicked be deftroyed, or punifhed as they
deferve, In tins world \ the world itfelf would be al-
moft a hell upon earth ; and the innocent mud fuffer
by the tufferings of the guilty. For the reft of this
parable ; our Saviour himfelf has explained this like-
wife in words which need no explanation, ver. 37,
38, &c.
Ver. 31 — 33. Like to a grain of mujlar d-feed — To
leaven which a woman hid—-\ Thefe two parables de
note the wonderful propagation or Jpreading of the
Gofpel and the Chriftian religion.
Ver. 35. That it might be fulfilled — / will open
my mouth in parables^ &c. — ] This alludes to Pfal.
Ixxviii. 2. The Pfalmift probably had himfelf no view
to our Saviour 5 but ufes only general expreffions.
Yet he was by the Spirit of God directed to ukjuch
expreffions ; and they were predictive of our Saviour :
becaufe the Evangel ift, another infpired writer, tells
us they were fo. And that he, and the other Evan-
gelifts and Apoftles, were infpired writers, we have
often proved by other arguments.
Ver. 41. All things that offend.} i. e. All men, who
by their Jcandalous lives give offence to others, and
caufe them to fall away.
Ver. 44. Like to a treajure hid in a field — buyetb
that field^ So whofoever is apprifed of the bleflednefs
promifed in the Gofpel, the treajure in heaven, re
nounces every thing here that may hinder him from
the pofleiTion of it.
Ver. 45, 46.- — A merchant-man — who when he had
found one pearl — bought it.] This parable is of the
fame import with the former. But why fhould he
buy it, when lie had found it? Axsw. ¥>y finding it is
meant,
according to ST. MATTHEW, Chap. XIII. 135
meant, not having it in his pofTeffion; but only dif»
covering where it lay.
Ver. 47. — A net) which — gathered of every kind]
The vifibk Church, or the Church in this world, has
a mixture of members of all kinds ; bad, as well as
good: but they will be fevered from each other at
the day of judgment. Read the three next verfes.
Ver. 52. Therefore every f crib e — new and old'] The
force of the particle THEREFORE feems to be this:
Since you underftand thefe things; I therefore add,
that it is your duty,, as teachers, to be abundantly
furnijhed with divine knowledge, and improve in it
more and more. The word/tribe is here transferred
from the Jewifh Church and religion to the Chriftian.
There are many fuch like inftances in Scripture.
InftrucJed to the kingdom of heaven: i. e. qualified to
mftrufl others, and bring them to the kingdom of
heaven: it is an elliplis. — His treafure, i. e. hhjtore-
houfes — Things new and old-, i. e. New and old wines ,
fruits, and other provifions, ibme of this year, and
fome of the laft, &c. So the Chriftian fcribe, or
teacher, muft entertain his fpiritual guefts with great
variety and abundance, from the Old Teftament and
from the New, &c.
Ver. 57. A Prophet is not without honour, fave
his own houfe.\ Becaufe familiarity breeds con
tempt. Thofe among whom he was bred up are apt
to envy him, and reflect upon his perfon or family,
as here, Is not this the Carpenter's Jon? &c. But
perfons, and things, that come from far, are therefore
the more regarded by unthinking people.
Ver. 58. And he did not many mighty works there,
becaufe of their unbelief] Their unbelief not being
for want of evidence, he having wrought many mi
racles before, and having even now wrought fome,
though not many, (fee Mark vi. 5.) but proceeding
from mere perverfenefs •> it was not// he mould call
any more of fuch^r/y before fuchfwine.
K 4 CHAP,
136 Notes upon tie Gofpcl
CHAP. XIV.
VERSE 5. And when he would have put him to
death, &:c.] OBJ. How is this reconciled with
Mark vi. 19. where it is faid, that Herodias ^vould
have put him to death-, but could not prevail with
Herod to do fo? ANSW. Herod was ofhimfelf willing
enough to do it; but it is faid here, and Mark vi.
20. that be feared the people-, John being a holy-
perfon, and counted as a Prophet.
CHAP. XV.
VERSE 4. For God faid, Honour thy father and
thy mother ; and 'he that CURSETH, &c. the death^\
By honouring in Scripture is often meant relieving
and fuppor ting. See i Tim. v. 3 to 17. But the main
queftion here is. How comes that claufe, be that
CURSETH father, or mother, let him die^ to be here
inferted? Our Saviour is reprehending thofe who
do not relieve their parents; which they may be
guilty of, without curjing them. ANSW. What we
render curjing may, according to the import both of
the Hebrew, y?p, and Greek word, KowoXoyw, be
rendered, /lighting, contemning, or fetting light by. And
indeed ought to be fo rendered in this place.
Ver. 5, 6. But ye fay, Whoj'oever fliall fay to his
father, or mother, It is a gift, &c. — He fhall be free~\
Thefe lad words, he Jhall be free, are not in the ori
ginal; but added by the Tranilators to make out the
fenfe. But is it not then a ftrange imperfefl fentence
in the original ; fuch necejjary words being omitted ?
ANSW,
according to ST. MATTHEW, Chap. XV. 137
ANSW. Our Saviour refers to a do&rine of their
own, which was public and notorious : and fo it is, as
if he fhould have faid ; You fay, Whofoever, &c.
you know your own do&rine; I need fay no more.
Expofitors have produced parallel inftances from
other writers. But what is the meaning of thofe
words, 'It is a gift* \corban St. Mark calls it, which
is the fame,] by which thou might eft be profited by me?
ANSW. Either thus; That which thou wouldeft have
me give to thee I have vowed and devoted to God,
to be fet apart for religious ufes. Which, even if
true, was unjuftifiable: but it was really not trite \
but an hypocritical pretence to excufe him from re
lieving his parents. Or thus; I have by vow obliged
myfelf not to give thee any thing; and I am as much
obliged by that vow, as if I had dedicated to God
that which thou afkeft of me. How wicked this
was, we need not fliew.
Ver. 7. Ye hypocrites, well did IJaias prophefy of you. "\
Ifaiah fpoke direftly of thofe in his own time-, yet
it might have a farther view, and was in fad true
of thole in our Saviour's.
Ver. 1 1 . Not that which goeth into the mouth , fas
food eaten with unwathen hands,] but that which
cometh out of the mouth, defileth the manl] Why out
of the mouth? Words indeed come out of the mouth;
but thoughts and actions do not. Read ver. ij3 18,
19, 20. ANSW. It is that very ufaal figure r called
Jpecies pro genere ; or a part' for the whole. Thoughts
and actions are implied, though words only are men"
tioned. Therefore in Mark vii. 14. it is expreffed
otherwife; not into, and out of, the mouth; but into,
and out of, the man.
Ver. 13. Every plant, [rather plantation, or nurfery
of plants, ptmta,] winch my heavenly Father hath not
planted, Jhall be rooted upl\ Meaning the Pharifees
themfelves, or their doctrines, or both.
Ver. 15. Then anfwcred Peter I] Mark vii. 17. it
is
138 Notes upon the Gofpel
is the Difciples. i. e. The Difciples in general-, but
Peter especially ; he fpeaking in the name of the reft.
Ver. 1 8. But thcfe things 'which proceed OUT OF
THE MOUTH, come forth from the heart~\ See note
on. ver. n.
Ver. 22. A wcman of Canaan^ OBJ. It is faid,
Mark vii. 26. that fhe was a Greek, a Syrophcenician*
ANSW. ift, A Greek, i. e. as to religion ; a Gentile.
Jew and Greek in Scripture lignify the fame as
Jew and Gentile; Gal. iii. 28. Rom. i. 16. and
in many other places. 2clly, The fame perfon who
is called one of Canaan in the Hebrew, is in the
Septuagint (the Greek tranflation) a Phoenician.
Exod. vi. 15. Gen. xlvi. 10. Exod. xvi. 35. Jofh.
v. 12. Now fince Pliny informs us that Phoenicia
is comprehended in Syria, (1. v. c. 12.) the Phoeni
cian woman mud be a Syrophoenician ; and Phoenicia
being alfo Canaan, fhe muft be a Canaanite.
Ver. 23. Send her away~\ i. e. By granting her re-
quefl\ as appears from our Saviour's anfwer.
Ver. 24. / am not Jent but to the loft Jheep, &c.]
i. e. To them in the firft place. And the fame is
faid of his Apoftles. See note on chap. x. 6. Not
but that upon an extraordinary occajlon, (as this
was, confidering the great importunity and wonderful
faith of the woman,) he might turn afide, as it were,
to a Gentile. And accordingly he does fo here;
though by this anfwer to his Difciples, and after
wards, ver. 26. by his anfwer to the woman herfelf,
he feems at firft to reject her petition.
Ver. 16. It is not meet- — caft it to dogsl\ Meaning
by the bread, the favours and benefits fent from heaven
in an extraordinary manner; by the children, the
Jewifh nation, God's chojen people : by dogs, the Hea
then, or Gentiles; of whom this woman was one.
In Mark vii. 27. it is faid, Let the children FIRST
be filled-, for it is not meet, &c. Which more fully
explains the note on ver. 24. See above.
Ver.
according to ST. MATTHEW, Chap. XV. 139
Ver,' 27. Yet the dogs eat of the crumbs^ As if
fhe fhould have faid; It is true, Lord, the children
ought to be chiefly taken care of: yet even now,
at fir ft) we dogs may be permitted to eat the crumbs,
fome fragments of thy mercy ; as it were by chance,
or by the bye : the children will have never the lefs
for it, and be abundantly fed notwithftanding.
Ver. 39. The coafts of Magdala. ~\ In Mark viii. 10.
it is Dalmanutha. The fame is to be faid of Magdala
and Dalmanutha here, as of Gergefa and Gadara
in the note on chap. viii. 2,8. See that note.
CHAP. XVI.
VERSE i. Tempting him, defired him that he
would Jhew them ajign^\ For this, and the 4th
verfe, fee the note on chap. xii. 38, 39.
Ver. 2, 3. When it is evening, It will be fair wea
ther ; for the Jky is red. — In the morning. It will be
foul — -for the Jky is red and lowering^ A red Jky in the
evening is a fign of fair weather; in the morning, of
foul. Befides, the word lowering, added to the latter,
makes the diftin&ion : a dull rednefs through the
clouds; not a bright, Jerene one, without clouds;
as in the former cafe.
Ver. 3. Can ye not difcern thejigns of the times f] i. e.
Can ye not, from the predictions of the Prophets fore
telling the time of the Mejfiah, by manyy^wj, tokens,
and circumftances, difcern that the time of the Meffiab
is now come ; and that /am he?
Ver. 6, 7. Beware of the leaven of the Pharifees — // is
btcauje we have taken no bread^\ They imagined that
our Saviour, knowing they had no bread, warned them
not to buy bread (how much foever they wanted it)
of the Pharifees. and Sadducees; as being defiled &n&.
unclean ;
140 Nates upon the Gofpei
unclean : fo foon had they forgot his doftrine in the
foregoing chapter, concerning fuch imaginary pollu
tions.
Ver. 9, 10. Do ye not tinderftand, neither remember
the five loaves — neither the f even loaves — and how many
bajkets, &c.] i. e. Do ye not think that I, who fed
fo many thoufands by miracle, could now feed you ?
Why therefore fhould you imagine I was folicitous
about bread?
Ver. 12. Not — the leaven of bread — but the doc~
trine — J Leaven, for doftrine, is a very natural meta
phor. The latter, like the former, tinflures, impreg
nates, ferment 's, &c. Good doctrine, the doctrine of
the Gofpei, is compared to leaven, Matth. xiii. 33.
As is bad doctrine here, and i Cor. v. 6, 7. and in
other places.
Ver. 14. And they^ faid — Prophets'] Some fay thou
art John the Baptifl, rifen from the dead : fame, Elias,
come down from heaven : fome, Jeremias, raifed from
the dead : or one [fome one or other] of the [old]
Prophets, raifed from the dead.
Ver. 1 6. And Simon Peter anfivered, &c.] Though
the reft of the Apoflles affented to this, yet fome-
thing peculiarly eminent and extraordinary muft, no
doubt, be afcribed to St. Peter, who/r/?, at leaft, made
this explicit confeflion. Accordingly our Saviour in
his anfwer, though not excluding the reft, manifeftly
attributes fomething/>m*//<zr to him.
Ver. 17.— Simony Bar (i. e. fon of) Jona ; — Flejh
and blood hath not — in heaven^ Flejh and blood, i. e. no
man, no human creature, hath revealed this to thee ;
but God only.
Ver. 1 8. Thou art Peter, and upon this rock, &c.]
The word Peter fignifies a reck ; fo that here is an
allufion to the name ; which is loft in our language a.
Ibid. Will I build my Church] Though the Church
i irsrpx, &e.
is
according to ST. MATTHEW, Chap. XVI. 14!
is built upon all the Apoftles, Ephef. ii. 20. yet it is
built upon St, Peter in an eminent manner •, becaufe
he was certainly uifome rejpeffis (though not of autho
rity, orjurifdicJion] the prime, or chief of the twelve-,
becaufe of this noble ccnfejfion-, and becaufe he firfl of
them preached Chriil both to Jews and Gentiles.
See Ads ii. and x.
Ibid. And the gates of Hell /hall not prevail again ft
z/.] Though it be very true that the works of the
Devil, hercf.es, vice, immorality, and infidelity (hall never
totally over-run the Church ; for then it would not
continue to the world's end, contrary to our Saviour's
promife : yet that cannot be the meaning of this
paffage ; becaufe the word here tranilated Hell ['A^?,
and Heb. ^iNttf] iignifies not Hell, as the place of the
Devil, and the damned-, but only the grave with refe
rence to the body, or the intermediate ftate of the dead
with reference to the f out. The fenfe therefore is,
lit, That, notwithftanding the ftate of mortality, the
Church mail never be extinct, but continueinay#r-
cejjlon of true members. 2dly, That thofe faithful mem
bers (hall triumph over death by the refurreclion to im
mortal life. As for that expreffion, the gates of hell,
or of death, \Hades^\ it is very often ufed both by Hea
then writers, and in the Scriptures of the Old Teftament.
See the Commentators at large in Pool's Synopfis,
but efpecially Whit by upon the place.
Ver. 19. And I Will give unto thee the keys — loofed
in Heaven.} The keys of the kingdom of Heaven; i. e.
the authority of admitting into, or excluding from, the
Church. Binding and loqftng ; i. e. remitting or retain
ing fins - John xx. 23. Concerning the power of the
keys, of binding and loojing, confult the writings of
learned Divines at large.
To them likewife I refer, for a full vindication of
this whole paffage, yen 18, 19. from the abfurd
glofles of the Papifts, endeavouring from it to prove
St.
145 Notes upon tie Gofpel
St. Peter's, and (confequently, as they pretend) the
Pope's fupremacy.
Ver. 20. Then charged he* — that they Jhould tell no
man that he ivas the Chriftl\ i. e. Till after his refur-
retlion. In the mean time, he referves that difcovery
to be made only by bimfclfi as it (hall be proper and
convenient, with regard to the circurnftances of time
and perfons.
Ver. 23. Get thee behind me, Satan — of men~\ i. e.
Get thee out of my fight j thou art my adversary*
my enemy, (fo the word Satan fignifies,) a devil* a
tempter to me. 'Thou art an offence unto me-, i. e. layeft
a Jiumbling- block in my way, endeavouring to hinder
me from doing that which I was fent into the world
for. Thou favour ejt not, tqftejl, relifhejl not, the things
that be of God, the counfels, the decrees of God, the
falvation of fouls, which I came into the world to
purchafe by my pajfion and death : but thofe that be
of men ; thofe which are agreeable to flefh and blood ;
eafe, worldly fafety, the avoiding of fufferings and
death.
Ver. 24. Take up his crofs} i. e. be always in a
ftate otfujftring, or prepared for it.
Ver. 25. For whofoever—find it"} See the note on
chap. x. 39.
Ver. 27, 28. For the Son of man Jh all come — Verily
I fay unto you, There be fome ftanding here* &c.] See
Dilcourfe III.
CHAP. XVII.
VERSE i. Six days'} Luke ix. 28. it is about eight
days. Very confident. St. Matthew (and St,
Mark likewife, ix. 2.) fpeaks exclufwely, St. Luke, in-
dufively.
Ver. 2. Transfigured before tbem^\ By the transfigu*
ration^
according to S T . M A T T H E w, Chap . X V 1 1 . 1 43
ration, our Saviour was pleafed to exhibit a fpecimen
of his future glorified flats to thefe three feledb
Apoftles.
Ver. 3. Mofes and Elias'} Mafes being the giver of
the Law, and Elijah the great eft of the Prophets -,
THEIR waiting upon and difcourjing with our Saviour,
in this extraordinary manner, intimates that the
Law and the Prophets were Jubfervient to him, and
fulfilled in him.
Ver. 4. // is good for us to be here] He was fo
ravijhed and delighted with the glorious appearance.
Ibid. Three tabernacles.'] Booths, or tents, to lodge
in. He was delirous they mould ftay, and make
their abode there, the place was fo pleajant.
Ver. 9 . fell the vijion to no man, until — -from the dead]
Left thofe who now believed in him fhould be fcan-
dalized at his ^sufferings* after fo glorious a transfigu
ration.
Ver. 10, ii, 12, 13. Why THEN Jay the Scribes —
Elias — John the Baptift} The import of the word
then is this : The Scribes and other Jews had a no
tion that Elias was to come, and anoint the Mefliah,
Jhew him publicly, &c. Our Saviour therefore, hav
ing upon this occafion of the transfiguration, en
joined fecrecy to his Apoftles ; they fay, " If that be
" the cafe, //this appearance of Elias muft btfuch a
" Jecret, the Scribes feem to be wrong in their no-
u tion. For if he will appear publicly, why fhouid his
"private appearing now be fo carefully concealed? Is
" therefore that notion of theirs true, or no ?" Though
this queftion was not very proper ; becaufe, though
Elias were to come publicly, there might be a reafbn
why this private appearance fhould be concealed :
yet our Saviour in his anfwer waves that, as not be
ing material. Firft come ; i. e. before the departure of
the Median at leaft ; yet what our Saviour here fays
implies the contrary. They were not to fpeak of
this appearance, /;'// after his rejurreftion. Before that
there-
144 Notes upon the Gofpel
therefore, it Teemed, Elias was not to come -publicly,
as the Scribes imagined he would : for if he were,
why (thought the Difciples) mould this private ap
pearance be concealed, as above ? Another difficulty
here is this: Whereas our Saviour fays, ver. u.
Elias SHALL come ; how could he fay, ver. 12. He
is come ? ANTS\V. The fenfe of the former is ; " It is
" true, the Prophets did foretel that Elias (hall, or
" Jhould come:" he fpeaks with reference to their
times, not to his own. Thus Matth. xi. 14. fpeaking
of John the Baptift, who was then actually come., he
fays, This is Elias that Jhall come, or is to come ;
for fo it is in the original, o pixxuv ^co-Oar though our
tranflation rightly renders it, was to come, that being
the true, though not the literal, fenfe. But how did
this Elias, i. e. John the Baptift, [fee Difcourfe II.]
reftore all things ? ver. 12. ANSW. He began the re-
ftorationof all things ^ by introducing the Gcfpel-dfyen-
Jation ; and did much towards it, though he did not
complete it. For the reft of thefe four verfes, fee Dif
courfe II.
Ver. 17. 0 faithlejs and perverfe generation^ Mean
ing either the Scribes and Pharifees, and other unbe
lieving Jews, who were difputing with the Apoftles,
[Markix. 14.16.] and perhaps triumphing over them,
(and their Mafter too,) becaufe they could not caft
out this Devil ; or the Apoftles tbemfelves, whom he
upbraids for their want of faith : [fee ver. 20.] or, it
may be, both.
Ver. 20. If ye have faith as a grain of muftar d-feed,
ye Jhall fay unto this mountain — nothing Jhall be impoffi-
•ble unto you^\ This cannot be underftood of mere
faith, though never fo true and flrong ; but of faith
in conjunction with the power of working miracles; which
the Apoftles had : and yet without faith they could
not atlually exert that power. See the notes on Mark
xi. 22, 23, 24. where the words are more full, and
the difficulties greater.
Ver.
according to ST. MATTHEW, Chap. XVII. 14^
Ver. 2 1 . This kind goeth not out, but by prayer and
fafting~\ This kind of creatures (viz. Devils) goeth not
out but by, &c. i. e. This fort of working miracles ,
cafting out Devils, is not performed even by thofe
who have a miraculous power given them, unlefs to
their faith (of which above) be added prayer and
fafting. I cannot think our Saviour makes any corn-
par i Ton between \\~\efeveral kinds or forts of Devils, as
iffome could be ejected without prayer, &c. and fome
not: though the place is commonly fo interpreted.
Ver. 25, 26. Of flr angers. — Then are the children
free^\ i. e. Qfjlrangers ONLY : otherwife our Saviour's
argument would not be good. And by ftr angers
are meant all the king's fiibjeffis, except his children.
The tribute here demanded (as learned Expositors
have (hewn) was for the ferviceof God in the Temple:
our Saviour's argument therefore turns upon his being
the Son of God. This tribute is paid to God; and
I am his Son-, therefore I am free.
CHAP. XVIII.
VERSE 3. Unlefs ye be converted — Kingdom of
heaven I\ Converted, i. e, from this emulation
and ambition, with which you are at preient poliefled.
Become as little children-, i. e. in humility, innocence*,
and fimplicitv.
Ver. 5. Whofo Jh all receive — receiveth me.} Receive,
i. e. entertain, encourage, be kind to. — One fuch little,
child; i. e. one who is like a child in humility, &c. as
above. /;/ my name-, i. e. upon my account ; or becaufe
he is my Difciple.
Ver. 6. Whofo jliall offend one cf theft little ones,
&c.] The words offend, to be offended, 'offence, gene
rally lignify in Scripture, leading into, or being led
&
L into
146 Notts upon the Gofpd
into Jin -, the occafions of Jin; efpecially of apojlafy,
or falling away from the true religion. Here there
fore— y##// offend one of thefe, &c. i. e. fliall dif courage
him by ill ufage, or contempt, (fee ver. 10.) making
him dijlike the religion to which he is newly con
verted. So in the next verfe ; Becaufe of offences ; i. e.
occafions of fin, given and taken.
Ver. 7. // mujl needs be that offences — but woe unto
that man, &c.] OBJ. If it be necejfary, the man
cannot help it; and if fo, why is a woe denounced
againft him? A NSW. Neceffary, not abfolutely, or in
the nature of things; much lefs by any decree of
God ; but neceffary conditionally, upon fuppojition of
the world's being fo wicked as it is. As if it had
been faid, " Coniidering the corruption of mankind,
" // muft needs be" &c. .
Ver. 8, 9. If thine hand — If thine eye — Hell-fire.']
See note on chap. v. 29, 30. And obferve here,,
that there is this difference between the two places :
that relates only to the perfon himfelf; this both to
himfelf and others, whom he may offend, or draw into
fin. If thy hand, &c. cut it off, &c. i. e. However
ftrongly thou art tempted to fin thyfelf, and to be
an occafion of fin to others-, endure any thing rather
than comply with the temptation.
Ver. TO. Their angels, &c.] This text, with fome
others, is alleged to prove that every particular
perfon has a particular guardian angel. Concern
ing which opinion fee Bp. Bull's Serm. xi. vol. ii.
This place may bear that interpretation, but does
not require it : no more may be meant, but that
the angels in general take care of the faithful in ge
neral : which is plain from other places of Scripture.
As for the queftion about particular guardian angels;
it is a controverfy of curiofity, rather than of ufe^
and we need not concern ourlelves about it.
Ver. ii. FOR the Son of man — was loft~\ The con-
neftion is this: UI am thus concerned to prevent
t€ JcandaL
according to ST. MATTHEW, Chap. XVIII. i/tf
*' fcandal, or offence, or the lofs of fouls which are at
" prefent in a hopeful way ; becaufe to fave is the
*c very bufinefs for which I came into the world :
" the world itfelf was loft\ and I came to recover it"
Ver. 12, 13, 14, How think ye? If a man have
an hundred Jheep — Even Jo it is not the will of your
Father — that one cf thefe — -fhould perifl}^\ The con-
neftion again is this. To prevent a lofs, and to rejoice
at the recovery of what was loft, depending upon the
fame principle,, viz. love of the thing or perfon: as
a man who has loft a fheep rejoices at the recovery
of it, more than, &c. fo God rejoices at the recovery
of a once loft fmner: and for the fame reafon, (viz.
love to mankind,) it is his will that not one — who
as yet is not loft, jhould perijh by having yhz?/^/, or
offence, or occafion of fin laid in his way.
Ver. 15. Moreover, if thy brother trefpafs againfl
thee, &c.] The connection thus: " As God is defirous
<tf that none Jhould perijh ; fo ought men to be. If
" therefore thy brother trefpafs, &c. ufe all proper
<c means to reclaim him. But if he will not be re-
" claimed, let him be unto thee," &c. ver. 17.
Ver. 1 6. 'Take with thee one or two — eftablijhedl\
One or two more; yet in the very next words
it is two or three witnefles : the injured or complain
ing perfon himfelf makes a fecond or a third. In
the mouth; i. e. by the fpeecb, teftimony, verdic-J : for
they were to be judges of the faulty as well as wit-
nejfes of the fatt. Every word^ or thing, or both,
(for fo the original word, p^a, lignifies,) may be
ESTABLISHED; i. e. the wbole bufinefs may be DE
CIDED and DETERMINED.
Ver. 17. Tell it to the Church] i. e. to the governors
or reprefentatives of the particular Church to which
you belong.
Ibid. But if he negleft to hear [i. e. difobey the de-
ciiions of] the Church, let him be — as a Heathen, &c.]
i. e. a perfon excommunicate, and no member Q{ the Church.
L a Ver.
148 Koti's upon the Gofpcl
Ver, 1 8. Wrhatfoever ye Jhall bind, &c.] See note
on chap. xvi. ver. 19.
Ver. 19. If two of you — in heaven"] tfwo of you —
In the next verie it is two or three: in both a cer
tain number for an uncertain, (a common form of
fpeech,) meaning a few, a very few. No occafion
for a general council in thefe cafes ; nor any great
council at all: two or three authorized perfons are
iufficicnt. 'Touching any thing — i. e. any thing in
itfelf^-W, or at leaft lawful. Shall ajk — How comes
prayer to be brought in here, when the fubjedl of
the difcourfe is ecclejiaftical jurifdiftion f ANSW. The
judges are Juppofed (as they always J^PO££ do) to pray
God for his guidance and direction in the judg
ment they are about to give. // Jhall be done for
them, &c. i. e. God will hear them, and guide them,
and confirm their fentence.
Ver. 20. For where two — midjl of them~\ Gathered
together", i. e. either m prayer, or council, ox both. —
In my name. This fuppofes every thing to be right,
both as to matter and manner. — / am in the midjl
of them ; i. e. to hear their prayers-, to prejide over
them-, to ajjift and direft them.
Ver. 2 1 . How oft Jhall my brother fin againft me,
&c.] This relates to ver. 15. (which gave occafion
to all that follows between that and this verfe)
If thy brother trefpafs againft thee, &c.
CHAP. XIX.
VERSE 3. Is it lawful-— for every canfe?] Every,
i. e. any caufe, reafon, or pretence ; by his
mere will and pleafure : for fo fome of the Jewilh
dodlors ftated the cafe of divorces.
Ver. 4. Made them male and female?"] This is
mentioned, becauie the difference of fexes is the:
foundation
according to ST. MATTHEW, Chap. XIX. 149
foundation of all the following do&rine ; that the
man fhould cleave to his wife, that they Jhould be
one flejh, &c.
Ver. 5. And f aid, For this cauje, &c.] The words
are here cited as fpoken by God. Yet Gen. ii. 24.
they feem to be fpoken by Adam. The anfwer is;
They may be underftood as the words of Mofes,
the writer of the hiftory,,who wrote by inspiration;
and fo what he faid God faid. Or if they were
Adam's? as it is pretty plain they were, he like-
wife fpoke, as inftru&ed by divine infpiration -, and
fo there too the fpeech is ultimately referred to God.
Ver. 7. They fay unto him, Why did Mofes , &c.]
Mark. x. 3. it is not, They fay unto him-, but, He faid
unto them, WHAT did Mofes, &c. No inconfiflency
in this. Our Saviour might afk them, WHAT did
Mofes command you? They might anfwer, Mofes
fuffered, &c. and then might proceed, and afk him,
but WHY did he, &c. if, as you fay, divorces are
unlawful ?
Ver. 7, 8. Why did Mofes COMMAND to give a
writing — He faith, Mofes becaufe of the hardnefs of your
hearts SUFFERED, &c.] OBJ. Here and Mark x. 3, 4.
commanding, and fuffering, which are very different
things, feem to be confounded with each other.
ANSW. Divorce was only permitted-, the writing a
bill, and putting it into the woman's hand, Deut. iv. i.
in cafe of a divorce, was commanded. Which latter
was a very material action; it took up time, and
gave room for deliberation; hindered the woman
from pretending to be divorced, when me really
was not, &c. The purport therefore of God's ordi
nance is this: <c If a man will put away his wife,
" which for the hardnefs of your hearts I PERMIT;
" let him write a bill, &c. which for the expediency
61 of the thing I COMMAND." The law of divorces
itfelf was barely a permiffive law; but that circum-
ftance of the bill was commanded.
L 3 Ver.
Notes upon the
Ver. 10. If the cafe — not to marry"} i. e. If a man
be fo tied to his wife, that he cannot part with her,
but for one only reafon, it is better not to marry at
all ; fince there may be many other reafons, for which
he would be willing to divorce her.
Ver. ii. All cannot — to whom it is given'} This
faying — i. e. ot yours, that // is not good to marry. —
Thofe to whom it is given; i.e. Thofe who, having the
gift of abfolute continence, can live innocently with
out marriage. See the tenor of St. Paul's difcourfe,
i Cor.vii. So again here in the next verfe, He that is
able to receive it, let him receive it. If he have not
that gift, he mufl marry, notwithflanding the inconve
niences here alleged; becaufe the inconveniences and
dangers on the other iide are greater.
Ver. 12. For there are fome eunuchs — the kingdom
of heaven s fake^\ The force of the reafoning is in the
loft claufe, There be eunuchs which have made them/elves
eunuchs for the kingdom of heaven s fake : i. e. who, for
the fake of living more purely and perfeclly> have, by
their own abftinence and mortification, afliiled by the
grace of God, obtained the gift of abfolute continence,
and fo become a kind of eunuchs ; eunuchs in a moral
'&\i& fpiritual fenfe, though not in a natural one. The
other two claufes come in by the bye ; as if it had
been faid, As there are fome born eunuchs, fome made
eunuchs by others, both in a literal and natural fenfe ;
fo there are fome who make themf elves eunuchs in a
moral, &c. as before.
Ver. 13. Pray^\ i. e. pray for them, and blefs them.
Ver. 17. Why calleji thou me good? T'here is none
good but one, that is GW.] i. e. God only is good per-
fettly, entirely, ejjentially, immutably, &c. Though there
are fome good men improperly fo called; yet their
goodnefs is mixed with evil; and this is true even of
the befl. OBJ. But does not this text prove our
Saviour not to be God? ANSW. Confidering how many
times he is in Scripture declared to be God in the
highejl
according to ST. MATTHEW, Chap. XIX. 151
highejl and Jlriftejl fenfe -, this place mull relate not
to the truth and reality of things, but to the notions
and fentiments of him who afked the queftion ; who
certainly did not think our Saviour was God; though
he was fo. For a further account of this, fee my
Sermons on the Trinity, p. 109, 1 10.
Ver. 21. If thou wilt be perfeffl\ i. e. a truly and
thoroughly good man.
Ibid. Sell that thou baft, and give to the poor"] Mark
x. 21. it is zvhatjoever thou haft; and Luke xviii. 22.
all that thou haft. The meaning muft be, as to this
young man j either that our Saviour defigned only
to try him and prove him : or that in tbofe times of
perfection a man was always in danger of parting
with every thing of this world, even with life itfelf,
for the fake of doing good, and promoting the honour of
the Gofpel; confequently ought to be actually ready
and prepared for it : not that all Chriftiam in all
ages are obliged to give all they have to the poor;
which is contrary to common fenfe and reajon, and to
many places of Scripture itfelf. See i Tim. vi. 17,
18, 19. 2 Cor. viii. 13, 14.
Ver. 24. A camel to go through the eye of a needle .]
A camel, or a cable: the word in the original lignifies
both. And though it be very true, that there is
much more fimilitude between a cable- and a thread,
than between a camel and a thread, with regard to
the eye of a needle-, yet, after all, the common tranf-
lation is not fo ablurd as fome make it; there being
mention, among the ancients, of an elephant's going
through the eye of a needle, &c. That the expreffion
either way is proverbial, and very hyperbolical, we need
not obferve.
Ver. 28. Te which have followed me in the regenera
tion, when the Son of man fh all fit in the throne of his
glory, ye alfo fhall fit upon twelve thrones, judging the
twelve tribes of IfraeQ Here is a different pointing of
the words : fome place the comma at me ; fome, at
L 4 regeneration.
Jj-i Notes upan the Gofpel
regeneration. According to the former, take it either
thus: " Ye, who have followed me, fhall (in the re-
" generation, i. e. the reformation, or new birth in the
" Hate of the Gofpel, when I fhall be glorified after
" my refurreclion, fitting on my throne as Mefliah,
" ye, I fay, fhall) fit on twelve thrones, judging the
" twelve tribes of Ifrael -, i. e. mall, as my Apoftles,
" and Governors of the Church under me, have fpi-
" ritual authority and jurifdiclion over all, but efpe-
" daily over the Jews; to whom the Gofpel isfirft
" to be preached." Or thus; " In the regeneration,
" i. e. at the refurreclion, (which is a kind of being
•" born, born again, fee Col. i. 18.) you fhall Jit in
"judgment at the laft day, on tivelve thrones, as my
" aJfelJors> approving of, and concurring with my
" judgment." But it may be afked, Why the twelve
tribes of Ifrael only ? Will not all the world be then
judged? I anfwer, Yes; and the Saints Jhall judge the
world, i Cor. vi. 2 : i. e. the Apqftles, and perhaps
other chief Saints, fhall, for the greater pomp, glory, and
folemnity of that awful judicature, Jit as aforefaid :
but ftill the Apoftles, as Jews, mail more efpecially,
and particularly, fit in judgment upon the Jews.
According to the other pointing, Te that have fol
lowed me in the regeneration ; the word regeneration can
fignify only the reformation, or new birth in the Gofpel.
For the reft, the fame in the main is to be faid, as
according to the former pointing.
Ver. 29. And every one that forfaketh — -Jhall receive
an hundred fold-, and Jhall inherit ever lading lifel\ Here
is a diftinclion between the rewards of this world,
and of the next. Receiving an hundredfold relates to
the former : that everlajling life belongs to the latter,
is plain of itfelf. But how can a tn&n'sforfaking all
he has be recompenfed an hundred fold in this world?
ANSVV. By the love and afjiftance of all good men, by
•patience, contentment, calmnefs, andferenity of mind, the
comforts of a good conjcicnce, and the certain expectation
of
according to ST. MATTHEW, Chap. XIX. 153
of eternal glory and happinefs hereafter; which is not
only an hundred times, but ten thoufand times better
than all this world can afford us. Thefe bleffings in
deed are not t>f this world ; but flill they are in this
world.
Ver. 30. But many that are firft Jhall be loft, and
the loft Jhall be firjl~\ Though this may relate to all in
common, as thus ; They, who now feem to bid faireft
for heaven, (hall, many of them, fall away; and, on
the contrary, many who are now in a bad ftate mall
be in a good one : yet (as it appears from the next
chapter) it is chiefly to be underftood of the Jews and
Gentiles. The Gofpel was preached firft to the for
mer, and many did not receive it ; or, after having
received it, apoftatized from it : preached laft to the
latter, and many did receive it, and finally perfe-
vered in it.
CHAP. XX.
VERSE i, &c. For the kingdom of heaven, &c.]
The fcope of this parable cannot, I think, relate
to the adhiaj diftribution of rewards in the other
zvorld; though moft Expofitors fo interpret it. Be-
caufe, though it be true that parables and fimilitudes
are not obliged to agree with the thing, to which the
comparifon is made, in every particular circumftance\
and fo the objection from the murmuring, and evil eye
againft the good man of the houje (which cannot be
conceived of thofe who are at all rewarded in the
other world) be by fome thrown off this way ; which,
however, is very harlh: yet lince it appears from
leveral places of Scripture that there are degrees of
happinefs in heaven, and here the reward is made
equal, jufl a penny, no more, nor lefs, to all; and even
that
Notes upon tie Gofpel
that again, according to this interpretation, would be
contraditted by thofe words firft and loft* which plainly
make an inequality: and becaufe, according to the
fame interpretation, the labourers all finally perfevere,
and are all finally rewarded ; whereas the whole tenor
of the narration mews that as fome perfevere, fo
others fall away, and are rejected; and whereas there
is no fuch thing as being called or chofen, accepting or
refufmg, per/ever ing or falling away, AT, or AFTER
the day of judgment; for all thefe reafons the parable
cannot be underftood of the procedure at that great
day. But how then is it to be underftood ? I aniwer,
it relates to the calling of the Jews and Gentiles at
different times ; and to the /// bthaviour of the former,
becaufe the latter were admitted to the fame prefent
encouragement and honour in this world, and the fame
title to reward in the next. Upon which,, out of
pridg> and envy towards the Gentiles, proceeding from
an opinion of their own fuperior privileges, many of
the Jews5 after they had embraced Chriftianity, apo-
Jtatized from it. If it be objected, that thofe words,
ver. 8. When EVEN WAS COME, the lord of the vine-
yardjaid to his flew ard, &c. muft mean the conferring
of rewards at the END OF THE WORLD; I anfwer,
i ft, This is indeed one of thole mere immaterial cir-
cumfianccs ; in which, parables (as I granted in argu
ing againft the other interpretation) are not obliged
to be exa8. sclly, and chiefly; In my account of
this matter, as above, the title even to the reward at
the day of judgment is one, and that the main- point :
this the Gofpel PROMISES equally to Jews and Gen
tiles; (equally, I mean, as they are Jews and Gentiles;
for with refpect to their greater or lejs improvement in
goodnefs, both are unequally rewarded, as I laid before ;
though even in that rdped:,^ Jews and Gentiles, they
are equal \] and fo it is in cffett the fame thing as. if
the reward were ACTUALLY conferred. This general
idea of the parable being adjufted, our notes upon
particular
according /a ST. MATTHEW, Chap. XX.
particular claufes and expreflions will be more eafily
difpatched.
Ver. i, 2, 3, 4, 5. 'The kingdom of heaven is like — •
didlikewife^} By the houfeholder is meant God, or Chrift-,
by the vineyard his Church -, by the labourers who
were hired, thofe who were called by God or Chrift, and
fo entered into the Church. By thofe who were
hired ^r/y in the morning, are to be tmderftood Abra
ham, and Ifaac, and the other Patriarchs j by thofe
at the third, fixlh, and ninth hours, Mofes, and the
Prophets, and the Jews who were/r/? made converts
by Chrift and his Apoftles : for to them the Gofpel
was to be, and actually was,/r/? tendered -> as we have
often obferved.
Ver. 6, 7. And about the eleventh hour — that JJoall
ye receive^ The eleventh hour ; i. e. an hour before
fun-fet. Others ft anding idle. This is meant of the
Gentiles, or Heathen, who were called Iqfl of all. No
man hath hired us: i. e. Nobody has yet offered to
convert us.
Ver. 12. Borne the burthen and heat of the day^
OBJ. i. How could the Jews be fuppofed to fay this,
when they looked upon their being firjl called, and
their being God's peculiar people, as a great privilege,
and were proud of it, and gloried in it ? A NSW.
Though it was an honour, yet it was a burthen/owe
one ; and they had been long working in thefervice of
God, while the Heathen were idle. OBJ. 2. How
comes a whole people for many ages to be confounded
with particular individual perfons of one certain age f
Thefe latter had laboured never the longer, upon the
account of their anceftors. ANSW. Though a people,
or nation, be a flux body; yet the individuals of one
age affect thofe of another in point ot privilege, and
in other refpecb; and a nation is often, and upon
many accounts, confidered as one fingle peribn.
The inftances are fo well known, that I. need not
mention any.
Ver.
15 -*> Notes upon tie. G of pel
Ver. 1 4. / iv III give unto this lafl even as unto thee*\
Thefe words do not fignify that God will give the
bleffings of the Gofpel to thofe murmuring Jews; the
kingdom of God being to be taken from them ; chap. xxi.
43. but only that they ihould be offered to both Jews
and Gentiles equally.
Ver. 1 6. So the laft jhall be firft, and the firft lafl -,
for many are called, but few chofen^ i. e. The Gentiles,
lafl called, believing in Chrift, and thankfully receiv
ing him, (hall become his Church, and people; while
the Jews, firfl called, murmuring, and falling off from
him, becaufe of this his kindnefs to the Gentiles,
fhall be excluded, and caft out of his kingdom : for
though many be called by the preaching of the Gof
pel ; yet few will behave themselves fo, as to be chojen
and accepted by God,
Ver. 20. Then came to him with her fons^ &c.]
Salome, the wife of Zebedee, with his and her own
fons, James and John.
Ver. 22. Ye knew not what ye ajk~\ \. e. Ye are igno
rant of the ftate of my kingdom, which is not of this
world, and will rather call you to temporal fufferings,
than advantages. This is confirmed by the next
words.
Ibid. Are ye able to drink — and to be baptized — that
1 'am baptized with />] The cup, i. e. the cup of afflic
tion, and perfection even to death. The baptifm — i. e.
being plunged and overwhelmed in the waters of af-
fliftion ; being baptized in blood, &c.
Ver. 23. Ye jhall drink indeed, &c.] Accordingly,
thefe two, like the reft of the Apoftles, were perfe-
cuted ; St. James beheaded, St. John boiled in oil,
though miraculoufly efcaping.
Ibid. — Is not mine to give — prepared of my Father .]
" Chrift fpeaks as man, in the ftate of humiliation ;
" referring all things of his kingdom (according to
<c his manner) to his Father, from whom he received
" it." Bp. Bull's Serin, vol. i, p. 288.
Ver.
According to ST. MATTHEW, Chap. XX. 157
Ver. 24. — The ten — were moved with indignation
againft the two brethren'} Not that their rcquelt was
granted, for it was not granted ; but for their ambition,
and frejumftion in making it.
Ver. 26, 27. It Jhall not be fo among you-, but — Is
your ferv ant I\ This cannot be fuppofed to forbid go
vernment and authority, either civil or ecclefiaftical^
among Chriftians ; the neceffity of both being plain
from the nature of things, and both being recom
mended in Scripture. To omit many other places,
fee Rom. xiii. i, 2, &c. Heb. xiii. 17, The meaning
therefore is evidently no more than this : It Jhall mi
be so among you ; i. e. Ye (hall not off eft government
and authority, fo as the Heathen, or Gentiles, do,
(ver. 25.) to gratify pride and ambition ; but in go
verning ye (hall look upon yourielves as minifters or
fervants to thofe you govern, by ading for their good,
not for your own greatnefs. Which is the duty of all
governors, both ecclefiaftical and civil.
Ver. 28. A ranfom for many^\ Chrift, as is plain,
from a multitude of other texts, died for all mankind.
Here therefore (as in feveral other places) the word
many has no exclujive fenfe, but means all. Thus
Dan. xii. 2. Many Jhall rife^ &c. All the dead, we
know, (hall rife. Rom. v. 15. If by the offence of one
many be dead, &c. All mankind fell in Adam. When
many is ufed in this fenfe, the meaning is, all, being
many : for it may be otherwiie ; all may be but few.
Ver. 30. Two blind men, Sec.] OBJ. In Mark x. 46.
Luke xviii. 35. it is but one. ANSW. See fecond note
on chap. viii. 28. And beiides, they may perhaps be
different faffs.
CHAP,
Notes upon tie Gofpcl
CHAP. XXI.
VERSE j . Bethphage'] OBJ. Mark xi. i. and Luke
xix. 29. it is Bethphage and Bethany. ANSW.They
bordered upon each other ; and whatever is done in
the common confines of two places may be faid to be
done in either, or in both. See note on chap.
Viii. 28.
Ver. 5. and 7. On an afs, and a colt, &c. The afs>
and the colt, and put on them, &c.] It appears from
St. Mark, St. Luke, and St. John, that he rode upon
the colt, or foal, only. Why then are the afs and the
colt here mentioned, as if he rode upon both ?
ANSW. i. The word and is fometimes ufed as exege-
ticaly or explanatory. Thus Gen. xlix. n. Ephei. i.
3. And then the fenfe is; an afs, i. e. a young afs,
a colt, or foal, yet of fuch an age as to be ridden.
2. Since the old afs accompanied the young one, upon
which our Saviour rode, and the Difciples had
clothed them both, not knowing which he would
ride upon, or perhaps thinking he would ufe them
both; this way of expreffing may well be allowed.
After all, he might really ufe them both, without any
inconfiftency between the Evangelifls: three of them
indeed mention the colt only -9 but that does not con-
tradicJ the fourth, who fays there was the dam like-
wife.
Ver. 9. Hofanna^ The literal translation of the
\vord is, Save now: it is one word made out of two ;
and ufed as a noun fubftantive : — Hofanna to, &c. like
Hail to, &c. The fenfe therefore is the fame, as God
fave the king, Mefliah. /;/ the highejl ; i. e. falvation
from him who dwells IN THE HIGHEST Heavens.
Ver. 12. The Temple of GW.] i. e. Here, the outer
court of the Temple, or the court of the Gentiles, where
the Gentile profelytes performed their devotions ;
and
according to S T . M A T T H E w, Chap . XX 1 . 159
and fb it was looked upon as a part of the Temple. It
being very wide and fpacious, there was room for
oxen,fheep, and doves, and other things fold forfacri-
fee -, alfo for flops, tables, &c.
Ibid. — Caft out all them that fold and bought in the
Temple ; and overthrew the tables, &c.] Qy . How could
he do this ? ANSW. Not by force certainly ; but by
the people's abfolute fubmiffion to his authority ; they
were then acknowledging him as the Mefliah, linging
hofannasto him, &c. OBJ. This indeed will account
for the traniaction at this time ; but what fhall we
fay to John ii. 14, 15, 1 6. where he is recorded to
have done the fame ibing, long before this his public
entry, and thefe hofannas f ANSW. He had even
then manif eft ed forth his glory at Cana in Galilee, and
probably done more miracles ; was acting as a great
Prophet, to whom the Jews allowed extraordinary
powers, &c. And beiides this, we may eaiily con
ceive that by an extraordinary providence (for, I think,
we need not call it a miracle) fomething wonderful
and divine in his eyes, and countenance, might ftrike
iuch an awe into the beholders, as to caufe this abfo-
Jute fubmiffion.
Ver. 15, 1 6. *fhe children crying in the Temple, and
faying, Hofanna, — perfected praife?\ The children-, i. e.
children, among others ; imitating the men and wo
men. Thus, if the word in the original, leouhs, be
rightly tranflated ; as indeed it is not -, it means the
fervants [of Jefus] ; his followers, and attendants.
What led our Tranflators to render it, as they have
done, feems to be the anfwer which our Saviour
makes, Out of the mouths of babes and fucklings thou
haft perfected praife . But the fenfe of that is ; God
has cholen, for the praifing of him, babes and fucklings
in knowledge, riot in age : far fucklings, that cannot
fpeak, cannot perfefl praife. See Miracles of Jefus
vindicated, part ii. p. 13. As for that expreffion,
perfefted praife, and reconciling the Septuagint-Ver-
fion
160 Notts upon tie Gofpel
lion (which the Evangelift here follows) with the
original Hebrew ; I refer the learned to the Com
mentators at large, upon this verfe, and upon Pfal.
viii. 2.
Ver. 19. 22. — He Jaw a fig-tree — And f aid unto it,
Let no fruit, &c. — ye fhall receive^ Concerning the
curfing of the fig-tree ', the difficulties and objections re
lating to it, and our Saviour's difcourfe upon that
occafion, fee the notes on Mark xi. 13, 14. 20, 21,
22, 23, 24. where the circumftances are more parti
cular, and the difficulties greater.
Ver. 23. By what authority — gave thee this autho
rity /] This queftion being manifeilly captious, and
unreafonable, after our Saviour had wrought fo many
miracles, and told them, that the works he had done in
his Father's name bore witnefs of him, John v. 36. he
vouch fafes not to anfwer it direclly. However, his
queftion is a fujficient, though indirect, anfwer to
theirs.
Ver. 25. The baptifm of John— from Heaven, or of
men ?] The baptifm of John, i. e. his commiffion to bap
tize, and, as a great Prophet, to teach and preach.
If John's authority was divine, fo was our Saviour's,
the former having declared, and teftified, that the
latter was the Meffiah.
Ibid. Why did ye not then believe him f\ Believe him
in general-, but efpecially in his affertion, that Jefus
was the Chrift.
Ver. 29, 30. He f aid, I will not ; but afterwards he
repented, and went — Said, I go, Sir; and went not^ By
the firft, are meant thofe, who being great linners,
publicans, harlots, (fee the next verfe,) at firft both by
word and deed rejected the Commandments of God,
yet afterwards repented at the preaching of John and
Chrift : by the fecond, the Scribes and Pharifees,
&c. who profejjed indeed the exact observance of the
Law, yet in reality did not obey it, nor hearken to the
doctrine either of John or Chrift.
Ver.
according to ST. MATTHEW, Chap. XXI. 161
Ver. 31. — Go Into the kingdom of God before you^\
i.e. Lead the way to you-, fo the word in the original,
tf£>oa<y*<n,, fignifies : for the Chief Priefts, &c. did not
go into the kingdom of heaven at all.
Ver. 32. /;/ the way of right eoufnefs^\ i. e. being
righteous hirnfelf; and preaching the doftrfneot right-
eoufnejs to others.
Ver. 33. A certain houfeholder, &c.] The houfe-
holder, God, or Chrift. The vineyard, the people,
and church of the Jews; fee Ifaiah v. i, 2, &c. but
efpecially ver. 7. The bujbandmen, the JewiOi go
vernors, both civil and eccleftaftical. The going into
a far country ', God's ceaiing to interpole for fome
time, and leaving the management of affairs wholly
to them.
Ver. 34. —His Servants — the fruits — ] i. e. the Pro
phets, fent in feveral ages to receive the fruits ; i. e.
their obedience, and good works.
Ver. 35. I'ook his fer-v ants — beat — killed — -ft ens d — ]
Chap, xxiii. 37. 0 Jerujalem — thou that kill eft the
Prophets, and ftoneft them that are fent unto thee.
Jeremiah was beaten, Ifaiah fawn afunder, Zecharias
ftoned,, &c. The word kill here is ufed like one in Pie-
brew, nn ; which moft commonly fignifies killing
with the f word 9 or fome fuch weapon. See Lightfoot.
Ver. 37. Laft—^fon^ Laft of all; i. e. in the ful-
nefs cf time, the laft days, the laft difpenfation. His
Jon ; i. e. our Saviour Chrift. Saying, they will reve
rence, &c. This cannot be ftridly applied to Gody
who, as omnifcient) knew they would not reverence,
&c. But the fenfe is, as if it had been faid, Sure
they will, &c. Or, if this will not do, nothing will.
Ver. 38. fbis is the heir — inheritance^ It appears
from hence that the chiefs of the Jews (fome of them
at lead) knew, and acknowledged in their ccnfciences,
that Jefus was the Chrift ; and yet murdered him.
Others indeed did it, or contented to it, in igno
rance. Let us faze on his inheritance > i. e. let us go-
M vern
Notes upon tie
vern in church and flate, according to our own will,
not God's ; lord it over his inheritance, &c.
Ver. 39. Caft him out of the vineyard^] This alludes
partly to our Saviour's being looked upon by the un
believing Jews as a peribn excommunicate ; partly to
his being crucified without the city Jerufalem; (the
vineyard in a more efpecial manner ;] fee Hebr. xiii.
II, 12, 13.
Ver. 4 1 . They Jay unto him, He will mijerally deftroy — •
/;/ their Jeajons^ OBJ. Mark xii. 9. and Lukexx. 16.
thefe are our Saviours words to the Jews ; not
theirs to him. ANSW. They are the words of both;
only related as theirs in this place, as his in the other
two. He afks them the queftion, What will the lord
cf the, vineyard do, 8tc. They anfwer, He will mifera-
bly deftroy, &c. He, repeating their anfwer, fays, He
will [indeed] miferably deftroy > &c. and by the tone of
his voice, his action , andgejtures, gives them to under-
ftand that they are the hufbandmen fo to be de-
flroyed. Upon which they fay, God forbid. Luke xx.
1 6. In general, they could not but give the anfwer
they here do ; but could not endure the particular
application.
Ver. 42, 43. Did ye never read — 'The ftone which
the builders — head of the corner? &c. THEREFORE
the kingdom of God jhall be taken from you, &c.] The
ienfe and the connection thus : " I am that chief
" cormv-ftone, prophelied of by the Pfalmift^ which
cc you builders have rejefted : THEREFORE youjy^r-
" f elves (hall be rejected, and the kingdom of God taken
" from you?'
Ver. 44. And whofoever Jhall fall on this ftone Jhall
be broken ; but upon whomsoever it jhall fall, it jhall
grind him to 'powder^ Whojoever Jhall fall on this ftone,
i.e. fhall y?«w£/£ at this corner-Jlone, the true Meffiah,
as at a rock of offence, (fee Rom. ix. 31, 32. i Pet. ii.
6.) though not finally falling away, ihall be broken,
i. s.Juffer, and be punijhed for it. But upon whomfoever
it
according to S T . M A T T H E W, Chap. XXI 1 . 1 63
it Jhall fall, &c. i. e. upon whomfoever, as being
final unbelievers, or apoftates, he (the Meffiah) (hall
execute/;/^/ vengeance, falling, like a mill-ftone, with
all its weight upon them ; they (hall be utterly crufoed*
utterly confumed, and deilroyed.
CHAP. XXII.
VERSE 2. to ver. 7. A certain King — burnt up their
cityl\ The King here mentioned is God -, his
Son our Saviour Chrift, who is in Scripture often
called the Bridegroom, and the Church his Bride. The
word ya'jtAcuf, here rendered marriage, and wedding,
ought rather to be rendered marriage-feaft, or wed"
ding-feqft; by which are meant the gifts of God's
holy Spirit, the comforts of a good confcience, all
the privileges and benefits of Chriftianity in this
world,, and eternal happinefs in the next. — Sent forth
his [ervants, i. e. the Prophets, John the Baptift, the
Apoftles, and other preachers of the Gofpel ; — to
call them that were bidden, i. e. the nation of the Jews.
The guefts were called, bidden, or invited, twice, ac
cording to the cuftom of thofe times and countries;
firft indeterminately; then more particularly, the day
and hour being fpecified. That the Jewilh nation
would not come, i. e. be converted to Chriftianity ;
that they Jpitefully entreated and Jlew God's fer-
vantSj who were fent to invite them ; that he Jent
forth his armies, (the Roman armies,) and deftroyed
thofe murderers, and burnt up their city, fo that Jerufa-
lem was utterly deftroyed j are fads well known to
the world.
Ver. 9. Go ye therefore into the highways, &c.] i. e.
to the Gentiles, or Heathen nations.
Ver. 10. Both bad, and good.'] See note on chap,
xiii. 47.
M z Ver.
164 Notes upon tie G of pel
Ver. 1 1. A wedding garment^ i. e. the robe of right-
eoufnefs, the graces and virtues of God's holy Spirit,
faith, repentance, and good works.
Ver. 14. Many are called, &c.] See note on chap,
xx. 1 6. latter part.
Ver. 1 6. Herodians.] Herod's courtiers, or thofe
who were of his party.
Ibid. Mafter, we know that thou art true, — p erf on of
men.] This they faid only to flatter and cajole him,
in order to draw him into a fnare.
Ver. 17. Is it lawful to give tribute to C<efar, or
not ?] A very enfnaring queftion. Had he anfwered
direBly in the affirmative, and without giving an »«-
anfwerable reafon for it, he had expofed himfelf to
the hatred of the Jews, who abhorred the jurifdidbion
of the Romans. If in the negative, he had been ob
noxious to the Roman government.
Ver. 20, 21. Whofe is this image, Sec. — ] Render
therefore unto Ciefar, &c. and unto God, &cc.] The ar
gument is this : to acknowledge and ufe the coin of
any prince, as current money, (at lead for any confider-
able time, and here it was during a fucceffion of ai
med 100 years,) is to acknowledge his government,
and authority : which was a received maxim among
the Jews themfelves. By rendering to God, 8cc. is
meant either paying the tribute due to his Temple-, (fee
note on chap. xvii. 25, 26.) or obeying God himfelf
by obeying thofe governors, whom his providence had
let over them.
Ver. 28. and 30. In the refurreflion.'] \. e. In
[the ilate after] the refurrecJion. An elliptical ex-
preffion.
Ver. 31, 32. But as touching the refurreffion — have
ye not read? &c. dead, but of the living'} I AM, not /
WAS, the God of Abraham, Ifaac, and Jacob: there
fore their fouls are ftill in being^ and alive : for God is
not the God of the dead^ &c. OBJ. This indeed is an ar
gument that tiitjoulcxlfts, and \*>Jenfible> and confcious,
in
according to ST. MATTHEW, Chap. XXII. 165
in i\\e feparate ftate after death : but how is it an ar
gument for the rejurreffiion of 'the body ? which is the
point our Saviour undertook to prove. ANSW. ift,
The word avaVao-*?, here rendered rejurreffion, [of the
dead-, for it is not faid of the bcdy>~\ may perhaps
fignify a future ftate in genera! ; and io the ftrength of
our Saviour's argument is clear and evident. But
2dly, Though we underfland the word flrictly of the
refurreclion of the body, as, no doubt, our Saviour
meant it ; the argument yet holds good. For fmce
the Sadducees denied the refurreclion of the body,
not becaufe they thought it impojfible for the body to
be raifed; but only becaufe they thought the foul
perijhed &\. death, and that there was no future ftate at
all ; our Saviour, by proving in general the certainty
of a life to come, takes away the whole foundation of
their objection. 3dly, The refurreffion of the body is
rightly inferred from the duration, the eternal duration,
of the foul; as well as vice verfa. This is proved by
Bp. Bull, Serm. ii. vol. i. And I have more fully
proved it elfewhere/
Ver. 36. The great commandment^ The great; i.e.
by a Hebraifm, the greateft ; the principal, or chief.
Ver. 39. — Love thy -neighbour as thyjelf~\ As\ i. e.
with the fame fort or kind of love, not in the fame de
gree : for the latter is impojfible.
Ver. 40. On thefe — hang all the Law and the Pro
phets^ i. e. On them the fubftance of what is con
tained in the Law., and in the writings of the Pro
phets^ hangs, or depends.
Ver. 43. — David, infpirit, &c.] i.e. David, being,
as a Prophet, infpiredby the Holy Ghoft.
Ver. 44. The Lord faid unto my Lord^ i. e. God
the Father faid unto God the Son -y who is my Lord,
the Median.
Ver. 45. If David then call him Lord, how is he. his
Son ?~] For fure the Son is not Lord of the Father. The
anfwer is, though the Jews knew not how to make
M 3 its
1 66 Notes upon tie Gofpel
it; He was David's Son, as to his human nature ; his
Lord, as to his divine nature and Meffiabjbif.
CHAP. XXIII.
VERSE 2. We Scribes and Pharifees fit in Mojes*
JeatJ] i. e. As bad men as they are, they (i. e.
Jome of them) are, by their office &\\& function ^ teachers
and interpreters of the Law, and ought by you to be
regarded accordingly.
Ver. 3. All therefore whatfoever they bid you — that
cbferve, and do"} All; i. e. except what is plainly con
trary to the word of God\ as many of their doctrines
were. The mod general words (it is a (landing rule
of interpretation) muft be reflrained^ according to the
nature of the fubjeff matter, and the equity and reafons
of things. Thus St. Paul commands children to obey
their parents in all things; but fure not in things un
lawful. In another place he fays all things are law
ful: which cannot be flrictly true; for how many
thoufand things are unlawful! He means therefore all
Juch things of which he was tben fpeaking: i. e. indif
ferent things. Notwithftanding this exception, the
instructions of thofe Doftors and learned Scribes might
be of ufe to the people, in explaining difficult points
of the Law, exhorting to fra&ife, &c.
Ibid. They fay -, and do not~\ Do not praftife their
own doftrineS) i. e. fuch of their doctrines as were
found and good: for/0 many of them were.
Ver. 4. Bind heavy burdens — their fingers^ i. e.
They impofe upon others fevere, rigorous aufterities,
purely of their own inventing -, but themfelves obferve
neither thofe uncommanded extraordinaries, nor the
laws of God which are necej/ary to be obferved. OBJ.
But did not the Pharifees, &c. ftrictly, and even fu-
perftitioufly,
according to ST. MATTHEW, Chap, XXIII. 167
perflitioufly, obferve their own traditions? A NSW.
Some of them they certainly did ; as washing hands
before meals, wajhing brazen vejfels, and tables, &c.
which coil them little trouble. But they might not
obferve others^ which were grievous and burthenfome-,
and it appears from this place that they did not.
What thofe others were, we are not told -, nor was it
neceiTary that we fhould.
Yer. 5. — Make broad their phylafferies, and enlarge
the borders of their garments^ Their phy latteries (from
puA*V<r«v, a word fignifying to keep or preferve) were
fcrolls of parchment, in which tome fentences of the
Law were written, and fewed to the borders or fringes
of their garments; fee Numb. xv. 385 39. Thefe the
Pharifees, &c. made broader and larger than others
did, for a more than ordinary oflentation of their keep
ing the Law.
Ver. 7. RaWi\ i. e. Mafter.
Ver. 8, 9, 10. But be ye not called Rabbi; for one is
your Mafter, even Chrift — Call no man Father ; for one
is your Father — in heaven. Nor Mafter; for one is your
Mafter, &c.] It cannot be fuppofed, in common reafon
and fenfe, that our Saviour at all forbids government
either in fpiritual or temporal affairs; [fee note on
chap. xx. 26, 27.] nor even abfolutely forbids the titles
of governors here mentioned, which are often ufed
in Scripture ; but only forbids them in fuch a fenfe
as the Pharifees, &c. (of whom he fpeaks) ufurped
them; i. e. fo as to imply an implicit obedience to
their dictates, whatfoever they were. In this fenfe,
one only is our Father-, viz. he who is in heaven: one
only our Mafter', even Chrift.
Ver. 13. Ye fhut up the kingdom of heaven againft
men, &c.] i. e. You will not enter into itycurfelves:
and by your dotlrines, authority, and example, you
hinder others.
Ver. 1 4. Devour widows' houfes^\ Infinuating them-
felves into the houfes and families of rich widows,
M 4
1 68 Notes upon the Gofpel
filly women, as the Apoftle fpcaks; and making a
prey of them, by the prefects andfalaries they received
from them.
Ver. 15. Compafs Jea and land^\ i. e. Go into all
places, ufe all endeavours, turn every ft one.
Ibid. To make one prcfelyte — hell than yourf elves'^ It
was the complaint of the Jewifh nation, that their
profelytes were thefca&s of the Church, and hindered
the coming of the MeJ/iah, &c. And Juftin Martyr
informs us, That they did not only difbelieve ChriJTs
doftrine; but were tzvice more blafphemous again jl him,
than the Jews themfelves; endeavouring to torment the
Chriftians, and cut them off, wherever they could; they
being in this the injlruments of the Scribes and Pharifees a.
Ver. 1 6, 17 — 22. Whofoever Jhall (wear by the Tem
ple — by him that Jitteth thereon~\ Concerning thefe
indireft oaths, fwearing by the Temple, by Heaven, by
one's head, &c. fee note on chap. v. 36. He is a
debtor-, (ver. 16.) i. e. he is obliged is perform his oath.
Ver. 1 8. He is guilty, i. e. if he do not perform his
oath. It ought to have been rendered, he is a debtor;
as ver. 16 : for the original word is the Jame in both
places. [c'0£iX«.] This was zftrange humour mourTranf-
lators. Ver. 20. After all things thereon, we muft fup-
ply thefe words, and by him to whom they are offered;
for fo the drift of our Saviour's argument requires.
See the two next verfes: and obferve that thefe blind
guides placed fo much facrednefs in the gold of the
Temple, i.e. of the treafury there; and in the gifts upon
the altar; becaufe they brought gain to them. And
the more holy thofc things were accounted^ the more
of them the people were like to give.
Ver. 23. Judgment. ,] i. z.juftice.
Ver. 24. Strain at a gnat, andfwallow a camel^ An
expfeffion proverbial and highly hyperbolical. The
meaning of it; Ye flick at fmall Jins, and make no
* Dial, cum Tryph. p. 3^0. Edit. Par.
fcruple
according to ST. MATTHEW, Chap. XXIII. 169
fcruple of great ones, even the greatefl and grofleft.
Inftead of Jirain at, it might be rendered Jlrain out,
piuA/^ETE,] inallufion to the percolating ex Draining one's
wine, before one drinks it.
Ver. 25. Te make clean the oufjide of the cup and
platter — extortion and excefs^\ i. e. As if a man Ihould
be very exacl in cleaning the outfide of his cups, and
other vejjels; but fuffer the inftde to befoul &\\& filthy:
fo you are very careful in the obfervance of outward
religious ceremonies; but your hearts andfecret aclions
are wicked and impure.
Ver. 26. Cleanfe firft that which Is within — that the
outjide — may be clean a/fol\ That which is within the cup
and platter •, meaning the motions and thoughts of thy
heart; THAT THE outfide of them, meaning thy out
ward actions, MAY BE clean alfo: tor fo they WILL BE
of courfe.
Ver. 27. Like to whited fepulchres — and of all un
cle annefs] This verfe, confidered barely in itfelf, has
no difficulty ; the word whited being underftood of
beautifying, or decoration. But if it be compared with
Luke xi. 44. a difficulty arifes. There the words are
thefe: Te are as graves, that appear not; and the men
that walk over them are not aware of them. This verfe
too, confidered barely in itfelf, is plain enough; only
with this obfervation, that to touch any part of a
grave or fepulchre was> by the law of Mofes, a pollution.
See Numb. xix. 16. But how are thefe places to be
reconcile dw\t\\ one another? lanfwer, i ft, They might
very well be fpoken by our Saviour at different times, in
different places, and to different perform. (See Preface.)
And though in both he alludes to graves or fepulchres,
he might make two different iimiles or companions ;
both proper and expreffive. Our Englifh Tranflators
plainly took it thus; becaufe they make no marginal
reference of thefe paflkges to each other, adly, Sup-
poling them both to refer to one and the fame fpeech
pf our Saviour's ; yet by whited may be meant not
beautified
j;o Notes upon the Gofpei
beautified or adorned, but plaiflered over with lime, to
give notice and warning, that there w#ja grave ; which
\vas the cujlom among the Jews : and though that
mark were worn out by time and weather; it was
Itill called whited, becaufe it had been fo, and was in
tended to be always fo : and then by beautiful will be
meant overgrown with herbs and flowers, &c. But
after all, admitting this reconcilement of the words, as
to the main Jenfe of them; yet why mould thefe two
Evangelifls relate the fame fpeech in words at lead fo
•very different I1 I therefore adhere to, and inlift upon,
my fir ft anfwer, as by much the letter.
Ver, 29, 30. Becaufe ye build the tombs — and gar-
info thefepulchres — And Jay, If we had been — we would
not have, &c.] He does not blame the aftion itfelf,
building and adorning the tombs of the martyrs;
but the hypocrify and falfe profejjions attending it.
" You pretend to abhor the cruelty of your fathers
** in murdering the Prophets; whereas, in truth, you
(( equal, and even exceed them in fuch cruelty." See
ver. 34.
Ver. 3 1 . Wherefore ye be witnejfes unto yourf elves,
that ye are the children, &e.] As if he ihould have faid,
" All the truth you fay, when you thus declare againft
" thole murderers your fathers, is, that they are your
4C fathers ; which makes againft you ; efpecially fince
" you are their children in wickednejs, as well as by
" blood."
Ver. 32. Fill ye up then the meajure of your fathers^
\. e. of the fins of your fathers. Fill ye up, &c. An
ironical concejfion ; " I know you will, and even do fo :
" for you are wholly given up, and there is no hope of
« you."
Ver. 35, 36. That upon you may come — to the blood
ofZacharias^fon ofEarachias — upon this generation.'] It
appears from this paffage compared with ver. 32.
that there is a certain pitch, or period, degree, or quan
tity of wickednefs, which ripens a nation for ruin and
deftruttion.
according to ST. MATTHEW, Chap. XXIII. 171
deftruftion. See likewife Gen. xv. 16. — Shall come
upon this generation. The meaning cannot be that
the punifhment was referved for this age, as if none
had been inflicled upon the foregoing ones; for they
had all feverely fmarted for their tranfgreffions-, but
that this age having made the fins of all preceding
times their own, by imitating and even outdoing
them, having now filled up the meajure of their iniqui
ties, and being ripe for final deftruftion ; the whole
mafs of divine vengeance, which had been, as it were,
hoarding and laying in for many ages, mould now be
difcharged upon their heads, to the utter ruin and
extinction of them, as a people or nation.
But who is the Zacharias, fon of Barachias, here in
tended? ANSW. i. Not the minor Prophet Zacha
rias : for, though he was fon of Barachias, yet he was
not Jlain at all; or if he had been, it could not be
between the Temple and the Altar; becaufe in his time
there was no temple or Altar {landing. 2. Not Zacha
rias the father of John Baptift; becaufe he was not
Jent by God to the Jews as a Prophet; nor does it
appear that his father's name was Barachias; nor is
there any good evidence from hiilory, of his being flain
in the Temple, or of his being flain at all. 3. Not
Zacharias the fon of Baruch, mentioned by Jofephus%
as flain in the middle of the Temple \ becaufe, this Za
charias was no Prophet, nor even a believer-, nor could
the Jews be faid to have Jlain him, when our Saviour
{poke thefe words; for he was not flain till many
years after. It remains therefore, 4thly, that we here
underftand the Zacharias, of whom we read, 2 Chron.
xxiv. 20, 21, 22. OBJ. i. That Zachariah was fon
of Jehoiada, not of Barachiah. ANSW. The words
Jehoiada and Barachiah fignifying much the fame,
(praifing God,} why might not that be tranflated in
Greek, the fon of Barachiah, which our Saviour fpoke
* Bell. Jud. 1. iv. c. 19.
in
172 Notes upon the Gofpel
in Syriac, the fon of Jehoiada? Befides, it was com
mon among the Jews to change proper names; eipe-
cially when they had any thing in them of the name
Jehovah: which is the cafe here. Thus Jehoiakim
and Eliakim, Judas and Thaddeus; and many more.
OBJ. 2. Since our Saviour begins fo high as Abel,
why fhould he end with one flain before the deftruc-
tion of the firft Temple, and not with one who was
neareft to the time in which he (poke? ANSW. i.
There was no Prophet flam by the Jews after this
Zacharias : for if the tradition concerning Ifaiah be
true, he was flain not by confent of the Jews, (as
this Zachariah was,) but only by the cruelty of Ma-
narTeh. idly. There could be no fitter inftance than
this was for our Saviour's purpofe, whether we con-
lider the occafion of this Prophet's death, the manner
of it, or \\\t judgments which eniued upon it. See the
paffage, 2 Chron. xxiv. above cited, and fo on to
the end of the chapter. See alto Whitby upon this
place more at large. But how between the Temple and
the Altar? Was not the Altar in the Temple? ANSW.
There was one Altar (viz. that of Burnt -offerings) in
the outward court of the Temple, without doors: be
tween which and the Temple itfelf this was done.
It is faicl in 2 Chron. xxiv. that he was ftoned in
the court of the Temple.
Ver. 39. Ye /hall not fee me henceforth — ] It fliould
be, after a little while^afew days : [a* a^In] for this was
fpoken juft before the Pailbver, at which he fuffered.
After this, they did fee him indeed, arraigned and
trucified, but no otherwife.
Ibid. Till y e jh all fay, Blejfed is he that cometh in the
name of the Lord.'] Theft words, by their connection
with the foregoing ones, Behold your houfe is left unto
you defclate> manifeftly relate to the deftruftion cf the
Jews, and require this fenfe. " You who have with
" luch indignation heard me faluted with, Blejfed is
" he that cometh in the name of the Lord, chap. xxi.
"9-
according to ST. MATTHEW, Chap. XXIII. 173
" 9. 15. fhall after a little while fee me no more; till
«' you flially^ me, though not ferfonally, yet in the
" effefts of my vengeance ; when you fhall feel fuch ca-
" lamities, that you yourielves will fay, BleJJed is he
<( that cometh, &c. O where is our Meffiah? O that
" he would come to deliver us !" Jofephus informs
us, that when the Jews were nigh to deflruction,
they earneftly expelled their Meffiah, as one coming
from God to deliver them.
For CHAP. XXIV.
See Difcourfe III. in which it is fully explained
throughout.
CHAP. XXV.
VERSE i. Tben\ i. e. At Chrift's coming in judg
ment, both at the deftruRion of Jenifalem, and
at the end of the world. It is a direct continuaticn of
the difcourfe in the former chapter.
Ibid. Likened unto ten virgins, &c.] In the foregoing
chapter, from ver. 42. Watch therefore^ for you know
not what hour your Lord doth come, to the end of the
chapter, our Saviour exhorts his auditors to be ready
and prepared for his double coming: and here by an
immediate connection he appofitely fubjoins the pa
rable of the ten virgins. By them are meant, i. The
Jews of thofe early times, who were all invited to
receive the Gofpel, and pretended to expect the
Median, a. All Chriftians in all ages, who make a
Jhew
174 Notes upon the Gofpel
fhew at leaft of attending upon him, and expecting
his coming to judgment.
Ver. 2. Took their lamps — bridegroom'] It was the
ancient cuftom of marriages, which were celebrated
in the nizbt. that thofe who were invited to them
t> '
mould meet, wait upon, and conduct the bridegroom,
with the light of lamps and flambeaux. By the bride
groom is meant our Saviour.
Ibid. Five — wife — and five — -fooliJhJ] Thus f owe of
the Jews embraced the Gofpel; others rejected it:
and thus in all agesfome of thofe who profefs therri-
felves Chriflians wzjincere and hearty j others not.
Ver. 3, 4. 'They that were foolijh took no oil — But
the wife took oil — ] Oil here denotes faith and good
works, the gifts and graces of the holy Spirit.
Ver. 5 . While the bridegroom tarried^ [delayed his
coming, chap. xxiv. 48.] they all Jlumbered and Jlept^
All, even the wife as well as the foolifh, the good as
well as the bad, may not be, and are not obliged to
be, always actually upon the watch in expectation of
Chrifl's coming to judgment, either IN this world, or
at the END of it. But here is the mighty difference
between them; the former are always habitually pre
pared, and therefore can foon and with great eafe be
a finally fo; even though the fummons mould be fud-
den, and they waked from fleep by it. Their lamps
are foon and eafily trimmed, and they have oil enough
at hand to replerrifh them. The cafe is quite other-
wife with the latter; who are in no degree^ in nofenfe,
prepared at all. Obferve here, ift, as to this world.
What is laid concerning the preparation in thofe days
for our Lord's coming at the deflruction of Jerufalem,
may be applied to the expectation of any great and
grievous calamity, efpecially a public and national one,
in any age whatfoever. By a holy life we ought al
ways to be ready and prepared for fuch vifitations, not
knowing how foon they may come; and to confider
that fin is the fling of afflictions* as well as of death.
Obferve,
according to ST. MATTHEW, Chap. XXV. 175
Obferve, 2dly, as to the next world. The day of
every particular performs death is to him or her, /';/ ef-
feft, the day of judgment. And fo what is here faid
concerning our Saviour's loft coming is applicable
not only to thofe who fhall be then found alive, but
to all in general.
Ver. 7. A cry — Behold the bridegroom ccmeth, &c.]
OBJ. How is our Lord's coming in judgment and
vengeance, which is matter of the utmoft terror^ re-
prefented by his coming as a bridegroom to zmarriage-
feaft, which is matter of rejoicing ? ANSW. ift, Para
bles and comparisons are not obliged to anfwer in
every circumftance : if they anfwer in the main, that is
fufficient. This all critics allow. See note ift, on
chap. xx. adly, Our Saviour's coming at the loft
judgment is matter of the greateft joy to feme, as of
terror to others : [on the other hand, in this parable
here is grief to thofe who areyftw/ out, as there is joy
to thofe who are admitted :] even at the deftru&ion
of Jerufalem, though dreadful was the fate of the ob-
jlinate unbelieving Jews, \v\\optrijhed', yet joyous was
the deliverance of the Chriflians, who providentially,
and almofi miraculoufly, efcaped. See Difcourfe IJL
on chap. xxiv.
Ver. 8. Give us of your oil'] This circumftance of
the parable fails in the application. One may indeed
borrow 0/7; but thofe mufl be more foolifh than
thefe foolifli virgins, who can think it poflible tobor-
row grac-e and good works of their neighbours. The
meaning here, and in what follows, is no more than
this ; that as the fooliili virgins being unfurnifhed
with oil, and going to buy it., flayed till the dow
was /but, and afterwards could not prevail to have
it opened for them : fo thofe who defer their obedi
ence, or repentance, till the day Q{ judgment, or death,
will find all after-endeavours too late.
Ver. 14. A man travelling into a far country, .] i. e.
our Lord Chriil, going from earth to heaven.
Ver,
176 Notes upon the Gofpcl
Ver. 15. 'To one — -Jive talents-, to another two-, to
another one~\ The parable of the talents here, and that
in Luke xix. are certainly different \ nearly related to
each other indeed, but not the fame. [See note on
chap, xxiii. 27. throughout.] This was fpoken to
the Difdples only •> that both to them, and to all the
people : this feems not to haveyb particular a view to
the nation of the Jews \ that is meant of them
chiefly. And, befides other differences, there the fums
of money diftributed by the nobleman to his fervants
are faid to be the fame, one pound to each : whereas
here the diftribution is unequal ; five talents, two,
and one. The gifts of God are twofold ; fuch as are
common, and given alike to all-, or fuch as are pecu
liar, and by which fome are diftinguiihed from
others. Now thefe two parables put together in
clude both ; teaching us that God expects due re
turns as well for the ordinary advantages afforded to
all, which are common reafon and grace, the preaching
of the Gofpel, and the necejfary fupports of life and
godlinefs -, as for the extraordinary ones diftributed
only to a few ; viz. diftingui/bing excellence of under •-
flanding^ learning, wealth, honour, power, &c.
Ibid. According to his feveral ability^ OBJ. What ca"h
this mean ? when by the feveral talents themfelves are
meant the feveral abilities, which God gives to feveral
perfons ; fo that it feems to run thus : He gave them
abilities according to their ability : for all our faculties
are given us by him ; nor do his gifts prefuppofe any
thing inherent in us, and not given by him, which
may qualify us to receive and employ them. ANSW.
Our Saviour here fpeaks after the manner of men, as it
is ufual upon fuch occafions ; not that be diftributes
gifts upon fuch a previous iuppofition ; but that men
commonly do fo, choofing to entruft their goods or
money with others, more or lefs, in proportion to
their fubftance, ikill in trade, and the like. This
claufe of this parable therefore (as we have remarked
of
•according to ST. MATTHEW, Chap. XXV. 177
of others) fignifies nothing with regard to the applica
tion, but only fills tip the narrative.
Ver. 19. After a long time the Lord cometh^ and
reckoneth with theml\ This denotes Chrift's coming to
judgment at the laft day ; and rewarding, or punifh-
ing, every perfon, according as he has improved, or not
improved, the talents Q{ nature, grace, for tune, &c. with
which he was entrufted.
• Ver. 24, 25, 26, 27. / knew the e that thou art an hard
man — And I was afraid ; and hid thy talent — that is
thine — mine own with ufury] This excufe of \htjloth-
ful fervant is moft foolifh. Beiides the flrange in-
confiftency of blaming his lord for reaping ivhere he
had not foivn, &c. when he himfelf had received a ta
lent from him, and law one of his fellow-fervants
receive two, and another five > where is the connexion
between this and the next fentence, or \\-\zfenfe of the
fentence itfelf ? And I was afraid; and went, and
hid thy talent. Afraid of what ? Afraid of doing his
duty, and acting as his lord had commanded him ?
But fuch folly is well accounted for by the confnjlon
which naturally attends guilt , and fometimes makes
men talk very bad fenfe, or no fenfe at all : which
therefore is elegantly rcpreiented in this parable by
the abfurd anfzver which the wicked and Jlothful fervant
is forced to make. But befides, becaufe his mafler
was a covetous man, did it follow that he would there
fore be pleafed with having no w/£made of his money ?
As he himfelf replies in the next words ; Tbott knew-
eft that I reap where I f owed not — Thou ought eft there
fore to have put my money to the exchangers, &c. Where
we muft obferve that in thofe words, Tbbu kneweft,
&c. he fuppofes, not grants : as if he (liould have
faid, // feems then you knew that I was a hard and
covetous man : admitting I were fo, as I really am
not, for that very reafon fure you fhould have im
proved my money. And fo out of thine own mouth, &c.
as it is in Luke xix. This part of the ilothful fer-
N vant's
178 Notes upon tie Gofpel
rant's excufe likewife cannot affect the application of
the parable. It is not to be conceived that at the
day of judgment any perfon can, or will, accufe God
of the Egyptian cruelty of requiring his fervants to
make brick without Jtr aw : the consciences of all who
have not done their duty muft condemn them/elves,
and acquit him, who has furnilhed all his iervants
with means itifficient for the difcharge of it. The
only relation that this branch of the parable can have
to him, is to (hew, that he who has fo furnifhed us
will i&ftriRly infifl upon the improvement of our talents,
to his honour , and our own happinejs, as worldly-minded
men do upon the ufe and inter eft of their money, to
the increafe of their eftates, and other temporal ad
vantages.
Ver. 29. To every one that hath Jhall be given, &c.]
In ONE fenfe this maxim is too much obferved by the
men of the world: but in the fenfe of this place, no
thing can be more reafonable and juft, than that
they who have fhould THEREFORE receive: becaufe
in this cafe their very having is itfelfa virtue ; the
improvement of their talents is fitly rewarded by the
addition of more talents ; and they therefore defer-ve
more, becaufe they have more.
Ibid. But from him that hath not ft} all be taken away
even that which he hath] It will be afked, How can
any thing be taken away from one that has nothing r
Is not here a contradiction between hath not and
bath ? The anfwer commonly given is founded upon
another expreflion, Luke viii. 18. That ^vhich he
fetmeth to have. But I think St. Matthew ought no
more to be interpreted by St. Luke, than St. Luke
by St. Matthew. For fiill the difficulty remains :
if he only fetms to have it in every fenfe, as thefe inter
preters imagine thofe words to import, he really has
it not. There is in truth no difference, and the ex-
preffions are equivalent. The right interpretation
therefore muft, I think, be this : from him that bath
HOty
according to ST. MATTHEW, Chap. XXV. 179
Hot, i. e. hath not any thing additional, or any im
provement > fliall be taken away even that 'which he
hath ; i. e. the principal, the fum which was originally
committed to his charge. As to the expreffion in
St. Luke, that which he feemeth to have; it is not
meant that he only feems to have it in his pojjeffion^
and really has not ; but that he only has it in his pof-
feffion without any original right to it : he has it, not
as his own, but as depojited by another, who can
juftly take it from him, whenever he pleaies. He
has it therefore, as it is in his pojjejjion, and only feems
to 'have it, or (which is all one) really has it not, as he
has no right to it.
Ver. 3 1 . When the Son of man /hall come in his
glory, &c.] After having declared that God will re
quire an account of the improvement of talents, and
decree rewards or punifhments accordingly, at the
day of judgment ; he proceeds, by a natural tranfition,
to defcribe the awful circumflances of the judgment it-
M-
Ver. 35. For I was an hungry, and ye gave me
meat, &c.] Though we cannot infer from this paf-
fage, that chanty in Jh swing mercy to the poor is the
only thing ; (the fcheme of fpeech being undoubtedly
2ifynecdoche, a trope by which a part is put for the
whole, and the conftant practice of all other virtues
being abfolutely neceffary ;) yet we reaibnably con
clude that fuch charity is one of the chief things,
if not THE chief thing, which will be regarded, when
we ftand at that dreadful tribunal.
N a CHAP,
180 Notes upon tie Goffel
CHAP. XXVI.
VERSE 5. Not onthe feaft-day.left there be an up
roar among the people^ It fhould be rendered,
on the feafty iv T>J topr*. The feaft of unleavened
Bread, and of the Pailbver in a wide fetife, laded
feven days, though the Pafchal Lamb was eaten only
on ihejir/l. They were afraid of an uproar, &c. be-
caufe the people generally held Jefus for a Prophet ;
and afraid of it at that time eipecially, becaufe of
the great concoiirfe to Jerufalem at the PafTover. Yet,
for Tome reafon or other, probably Judas's applica
tion to them, they altered their minds, no doubt by
an ef pedal providence, that our Lord might fuffer Jo
much the more publicly^ and that he might iufTer
at the time of the Pajfever, which was a type of
him.
Ver. 6, 7. Now when Jefus was in Bethany — Simon
the leper — A woman having an alab after -box, &c.] This
fact is not here by St. Matthew, nor afterwards by
St. Mark, related in the order of time, (for it hap
pened before our Lord's public entry into Jerufa
lem, fee John xii.) but by way of accommodation and
connexion with what follows, relating partly to Judas's
treachery, (for he being the perfon VJ\\Q found fault
with the wafte of the ointment, John xii. and being-
reproved by his M after for it, might for thofe reafons
be inclined to betray him,) partly to our Saviour's
death and burial ; the particular circumftan£esQ£vf\\ic\\
the Evangelilt is now going to relate. And all the
three Eva-ngelifls agree that our Saviour (aid, this an
ointing was in order to his burial. As to St. Luke's
narrative of the woman — weeping — wajhing — anoint
ing, chap. vii. 37, 38, &c. it is plainly a different
fad.
\
according fo ST. MATTHEW, Chap. XXVI. 181
fad:. That woman was a finner \ this an excellent
and holy perfon : there is no mention of any of the
Difciples being prefent* no objection about the wafle
of the ointment; nothing of our Saviour's burial ;
upon which circumftances all this narration turns.
That anointing was long before our Saviour's death ;
this but fix days before it : that in Galilee, this at
Bethany ; that at Simon the Phanfee's houfe, this
at Simon the Leper's. Which Simon was un
doubtedly of the fame family with, or nearly related
to, Mary, Martha, and Lazarus : the entertainment
was at Simon's houfe; Martha ferved, and Mary
anointed, &c. See John xii. i, 2, 3, &c. 'The Leper,
i.e. he had been a leper, was commonly called fo, and
therefore is Jlill called fo, though now cured : there
are many inftances of the like nature in other hifto-
ries. Cured he muft be, otherwife nobody would
converfe with him, much lefs dine with him.
Ver. 7. On his bead.] OBJ. Here, and in Mark, it
is his head, without any mention of his feet : in John
it is his feet, without any mention of his head. ANSW.
The anointing of the /<?<?/, which was more than ufual,
iuppofes in courfe the anointing of the head, which
was ulual. At word, here is no inconfiflency : only,
this writer relates one circumftance ; that, another.
From the -two relations put together, it appears that
{he anointed both his head and his feet.
Ver. 8. — His Difciples — had indignation, &c.] In
John xii. 4, 5. Judas is mentioned by name, and he
only. But though he only fpoke, and fhewed the
great eft indignation ; yet it appears from this place,
that fome of the reft, all of them perhaps, by their
looks and geftures ailented to him. Their diflike in
deed proceeded from very different principles : his
from his thievifh c&vetoufnefei theirs from real concern
for the poor.
Ver. 12. For my burial.] It being the cuftom to
anoint dead bodies at their burial, our Lord inter-
N 3 prets
1 82 Notes upon the Gofpel
prets this as a prefage or prediction of his fpeedy death
and burial.
Ver. 25. Thou haft faid.~] i.e. [It is as] //;<?# baft
faid. Ellipfis. See ver. 64. compared with Mark xiv.
62. where jT£0# /^y? /#/W is rendered by 7 ^;«. So
Luke xxii. 70. Tefay that I am ; i. e. It is ?&yejay;
viz. that 7 am. The expreflion may feem ftrange
to an Englifh reader : but it was very plain to thole
who heard it ; as appears from their behaviour.
Then the High Prieft rent his clothes > &c.
Ver. 26. And as they were eating, Jefus took bread,
&c.] From this verfe compared with Luke xxii. 20.
Likewife alfo the cup after fupper, it appears that our
Saviour confecrated the bread at fupper, and the
wine after it. For the reafon of this^ depending
upon ancient cuftoms, fee Grotius.
Ver. 26, 27, 28, 29. And as they were — in my Fa
ther's kingdom^ Compare this whole paflage with
Luke xxii. 16, 17, 18, 19, 20. And obferve, ift,
That we mud carefully diflinguifh between the
Pafibal Jupper, and our Lord's fupper. The former
is here celebrated by our Lord and his Apoflles, as
having long obtained in the Jewifli Church : the latter
is now firjl in/lit tit ed by him, as to be for ever here
after obferved in the Chriftian Church, adly, That
thofe words in Luke v. 17. And he took the cup, and
gave thanks, and Jaid^ ^Take this, and divide it among
yourfelves, relate wholly to the Pajchal fupper. The
inftitution of the Sacrament of the Lord's fupper does
not begin till ver. 19. and is contained in that, and
the next verie. 3dly, That what our Saviour fays
concerning his NO MORE eating, and drinking, &c.
UNTIL, &c, is in Luke to be underflood entirely of
the Paffbver ; in Matthew, and Mark, of the Lord's
fupper. Therefore, 4thly, That he fpoke thofe words
twice, in the main fubjlance, I mean ; though with
fame variation , firft as relating to the Paffbver -, and
then as relating to the Lord's fupper.
Ver,
according to ST. MA T T H E w, Chap . XXVI . 1 83
Ver. 27. fook the cup.'] i. e. jffter /upper, as above.
St. Luke exprejfes that circumftance ; St. Matthew
and St. Mark omit it.
Ver. 29. / w/7/ we/ drink henceforth — until I drink
it new with you in my Father's kingdom^ By ins Father's
kingdom, or (as it is in St. Mark and St. Luke) the
kingdom of God, he means the Gofpel-ftate eftablifhed,
the kingdom of God, and Chrift^ erected at his refur-
reclion, (for it is his kingdom, as well as his Father's,
he being king mjkbordinationto his Father: fee Pfal.
ex. i. i Cor. xv. 24.) and confirmed when he fate
down at the right hand of power, &c. To drink this wins
new, is to drink it when that blood of the new Cove
nant, which was reprefented by the wine, is actually
fried, and a ncwfeafl inftituted in commemoration of it.
If you flill afk, How, and when, did Chrift drink this
wine with them f One anfwer is, He did it partly in a
figurative fenfe^ by giving them power, and authority,
which they were partakers of with him, and he with
them ; fulfilling the promife made to them, Luke
xxii. 29, 30. / appoint to you a kingdom, &c. and ye
jhall eat and drink WITH ME at my table, in my king
dom. In what fenfe Ibever they are faid to drink with
him, he muft be laid to drink with them. Nor is it
ilrange, efpecially in myftical and prophetical fayings,
that the lame word, or exprefiion, fhould be ufed
both literally, and metaphorically, in the fame fen-
tence. Thus chap. viii. 22. Let the dead bury their
dead. See the note there. And John xiii. 14. the
wafting of feet in the fame fentence is ufed firft lite
rally, then figuratively. Another anfwer is ; By
drinking the wine new in his kingdom, is meant the
happinefs of heaven ; which in Scripture is often re-
preiented by the metaphor of a banquet. The dif
ferent Jenjes of the word wine, the literal and the^w-
rative one, have been juft now taken notice of.
Ver. 31. Te Jhall be offended — // is written, I will
N 4 Jmite
184 Notes upon tbe Gofpel
finite the Jhepherd, &c.] For the word offended, fee
note on chap. xi. 6. xviii. 6. As to the prophecy here
quoted, it is from Zechar. xiii. 7. And there it is,
Smite the fJoepherd ; not / will fmite, &c. How is
this accounted for ? ANSW. God, in the place re
ferred to, fpeaks to \~\\sfword, and bids it fmite -, which
is all one as if he had laid, / will fmite. Jt is ufual
with our Saviour and his Apoftles to cite the Scrip
tures of the Old Teftament, fo as to exprefs the
fenfe and Jubftance of them, but not in the very fame
words.
Ver, 32. But after I am rifen, I will go before you
into Galilee] As if he mould have faid ; " However,
" do not defpair ; I will rife again : and after I am
66 r if en, I will go ', &c." See chap, xxviii. 7. 10. 16.
Ven 34. Before the cock crow, thouflialt, &c.] OBJ.
St. Mark has it, before the ccck crow TWICE-, the
other three Evangelifts have not that word. ANSW.
No inconliftency in this. Our Saviour, doubtlefs,
ufed that word-, otherwife St. Mark would not have
inferted it. But it might very well be omitted by
the other three, becaufethe SECOND cock-crowing was
always underftood by THE cock-crowing, unlefs fome
word (as the firft) were added to determine the con
trary. For this cuftomary way of fpeaking, among
Gentiles, as well as Jews, fee the Commentators at
large. As St. Mark only has the word twice in our
Saviour's fpeech, fo he only, in relating the facl after
wards, mentions the cock's crowing twice, once after
Peter's firft denial, and once after his third. But
the fame is of courfe to be fiippofed in the narrative
given us by the other three Evangelifts -, though
there was no need of their exprejfing it.
Ver. 45, 46. Sleep on new—Rife, let us be going]
How could he in the fame breath bid them Jleep on,
and bid them rife and be going? ANSW. i. The
former claufe may be rendered interrogatively, Do ye
yet
according to ST. MATTHEW, Chap. XXVI.
Or, 2. It may be rendered, Sleep hereafter^
at another time ; [not now.] Or, 3. It muft be under-
ftood ironically, and by way of rebuke.
Ver. 52. All they that take the fivord, /hall perifh
with the fword] Either thus; "They who ufe the
" fword to refift the lawful magiftrate, though afting
" unjuftly, (hall juftly die by the fword of the ma-
" giftrate :" or thus ; " The Jews, for putting me to
" death by the fword of the Romans, fhall them-
<f felves perifh by the fword of that people."
Ver. 60, 6 1. Falfe witnejjes—faid, I am able to de-
ftroy, &c.] This was falfe witnejfing. For John ii. 19.
he faid not, the temple of God, but this temple; mean
ing the temple of his body : he faid not, / am able to
deftroy, &c. but [do yoii\ dejlroy, &c. : he faid not, build
it ; but, raife it up.
Ver. 68. Prophefy who it is that f mote thee~\ For be
ing blindfolded* [Mark xiv. 65.] he could not fee who
it was.
Ver. 69, 70, &c. Peter fate without in the hatt\ and
a damfel came to him, &c.] To reconcile fome feeming
contrarieties between the Evangelifls in their relation
of Peter s denying Chrift, we muft obferve, i ft, That
whereas St. Matthew fays Peter fate, St. John fays
he flood ; he might very well do both, fometimes fit,
and fometimes ftand. adly, Whereas it is here laid,
ver. 69. that he fate without, and yet, ver. 58. that
he followed Chrift into the High PriejFs palace ; both
are true : he was without that place, that room, or hall,
where our Saviour was examined by the Council-, but
within the walls of the palace. And he went out of
it, ver. 75. 3dly, Whereas the damfel here, ver. 69.
fays to Peter, ftou waft with Jefus ; but the perfon
in John xviii. 25. Art not thou one of his Difciples ?
The queftion in St. John, according to the way of
fpeaking in Hebrew, (and indeed in all languages),
may
1&6 Notes upon the Co/pel
may be equivalent to an affirmation. Thus (to omit
many other inftances) that expreffion which fre
quently occurs in the Old Teflament ; Are they not
written in the book of tbe Chronicles!' i. e. they are
written. Then for the other part of the objection,
his Difciples (and they only] being with him, when he
was apprehended ; to be then with him, and to be one of
his Difciples, muft be the lame thing. 4thly, Where
as it is laid here, ver. 71. that another maid faw him,
and Mark xiv. 69. that THE maid Jaw him again a;
(for ib, fome object, it ought to be rendered, not a
maid, as it is in our verfion ;) which means the fame
maid as before : it is true, the original words in St.
Mark feem at/r// fight, and in the moft obvious con-
ftruction, to imply what the objection luppofes. But
ftill they may be rendered as they are in our verfion ;
and that is fufficient : St. Matthew's authority de
termines it to this fenfe. For the argument on the
other fide drawn from the import of the article pre
fixed, &c. fee it fully anfwered by the Critics, Gro-
tius efpecially. ^thly, Whereas i\\Qjecond perfon, by
whom Peter was charged, is here, ver. 7 1 . called another
maid or woman, axxn: and in Mark xiv. 69. a damjel:
in Luke xxiv. 58. it is another in the majculine gen
der, sT££o? : and Peter anfwers, MAW, / am not. A clofe
sonfideraticn of the words will iblve all theie difficulties.
A damjel i it is true, faid the iecond time, This man
was with Jefus ; but then fhe laid this not to Peter,
but to them that were there ^ ver. 7 1 . in this chapter : to
the ftanders by, Mark xiv. 69. Comparing therefore
Matthew and Mark on the one iide, with Luke on
the other, the whole account is this; The MAID faid
to the company round about her, This man was, &c.
ONE, a MAN, of the company, taking up the words,
turns them upon Peter himielf, fpeaking diredly to
him
according to ST. MATT HEW, Chap. XXVII. 187
him : Thou alfo [as this MAID fays] art one of them :
and Peter f aid) MAN, I am not.
Ver. 70. I know not what thou fayeft~\ i. e. What
thou meaneft.
CHAP. XXVII.
VERSE 3. Then Judas — when he faw that he
condemned^ &c.] When he found that Jefus
was really condemned, and like to be pit to death ;
which perhaps he thought he would not be.
Ver. 5. — Went) and hanged himfelf ~\ In Acts i. 18.
it \*>)fell headlong^ and burjl a fonder , and all bis bowels
gufhed out. Either therefore he hanged himfelf in fucb
a manner ) that he fell down, and burjl ; or elfe threw
himfelf downfome precipice ; and then the word, which
we render hanged himfelf) muft lignify only in gene
ral deftroyed himfelf. The firft account is much the
beft*.
Ver. 7. 77j£v took counfel) and bought with them (i. e.
with the thirty pieces of filver) the -potter s field.'] A.
field near Jerufalem, called by that name. But,
OBJ. It is here faid the Chief Priefts bought it ; Acts
i. 1 8. that Judas bought it. ANSW. Judas bought it;
i. e. bargained and agreed for it, at the price of the
thirty pieces, for his own life ; but he having not paid
the money, but afterwards refunded it ; the Chief
Priefts complete the purchase of the fame field,,, and ap
ply it to the public ufe here mentioned.
Ibid. To bury _ftr angers'] \. e. Aliens, Heathens •, who
fhould die at Jemlalem, or near it ; the Jews ac
counting it a pollution to have Gentiles buried pro-
mifcuouily with themjelves.
Ver. 8.— Called the field of blood^ Called-, not by
* +**rfy*t* is ftri&ly, and properly, langcd bimfdf.
the
1 88 Notes upon the Go/pel
the Chief Priefts themielves, who purchafed it, but
by the common voice of the people in a proverbial way.
" The field of blood-" i. e. bought with the price of
blood ; innocent blood.
Ver. 9. By Jeremy the Prophet I] OBJ. There are
no fuch words in all Jeremy's Prophecy , they are in
Zech. xi. 13. ANSW. id, In fome very ancient copies
it is, by the Prophet, without the name of Jeremy.
St. Auguftine fays there were fuch copies in his time.
And the Syriac and Perlic verfions have not that
word. 2dly, There were Apocryphal books of Jere
miah, (St. Jerom fays he faw one, in which this very
pajjage was,) which, though not received into the
Canon, contained many excellent things. And the
writers of the New Teftament, in feveralplaces, refer
to fuch uncanonical books : as St. Jude to the Pro
phecy of Enoch, and the AiFumption of Mofes; and
that of St. Paul, Ephef. v. 14. Awake thou that Jleep-
effy &c. is faid to be taken from Jeremiah's Apocrypha.
The names of Jannes and Jambres, mentioned by the
fame Apoftle, are not in the Old Teftament, but taken
from an Apocryphal writing; and the author of the
Epiftle to the Hebrews, chap. xi. 35, &c. plainly re
fers to the hiftory of the Maccabees. 3dly, There
is fomething even in Jeremiah's Prophecy nearly re
lated to that of Zechariah xi. 13. See Jer. xxxii.
ver. 7, 8, 9. to ver. 14. put them in an earthen veffel, or
a potter's veflel, &c. and fo in this quotation made
by St. Matthew, there is a coalition of two prophecies;
and Jeremiah being the fuperior Prophet, he only is
mentioned. Of this kind there are many other in-
ilances a. After all, this matter may be well enough
accounted for, by a mere error of the tranfcribers,
writing Jeremiah for Zechariah ; as the words were
anciently abbreviated*. See the Critics.
* See them cited by Glaffius in loc. apud Pol. Synopf. p. 662.
11 It for Z£, or If5 for Z^y.
Ver.
according to ST. MATTHEW, Chap. XXVII. 189
Ver. 28. A fear let robe^ In mockery of his pre
tended kiugjhip. But here, OBJ. Mark and John
fay it was a purple robe. ANSW. Purple, fear let, and
crimfon, though different colours, referable each other,
and are often uled promifcuoufly a, eipecially when
applied to rich and royal robes.
Ver. 32. Him they compelled to bear his crofs^\ i. e.
part of the way : for at firtt he bore it htmfelf. John
xix. 17.
Ver. 34. Vinegar mingled with galll\ OBJ. In Mark
xv. 23. it is wine mingled with myrrh. ANSW.
Vinegar is four wine ; and the word %oAri, here ren
dered gall, and the Hebrew word, ttf>n, Pfal. Ixix.
22. might be rendered fomething bitter ; as myrrh is.
Ver. 44. 'The thieves alfo which were crucified — cafl
the fame in his teetb.~\ OBJ. Luke (chap. xxiv. 39.)
fays it was but one of them ; the other was penitent.
ANSW. i ft. They might both upbraid him atfirft; yet,
afterwards, one of them, feeing the miracles, and our
Saviour's meeknefs, and patience ', &c. might believe in
him; and fo rebuke his companion. 2dly, It is very com
mon both in the Scriptures, and other writings, when
one, out of two or more, does or fays a thing, it be
ing indefinite or undetermined WHO, or WHICH of them
it was, to exprets it not in the fingular^ but in the
plural number. See chap. xxvi. 8. compared with
John xii. 4, 5. Heb, xi. 37. Matth. xxu 2. compared
with Markxi. 2.
Ver. 45. Now from the fixth hour— to the ninth hour~\
The iixth hour, according to us, noon, or twelve
o'clock. The ninth ; three in the afternoon. Take
in here Mark xv. 25. And it was the third hour ; and
they crucified him : with John xix. 14. About thefixth
hour> — he [Pilate] faith unto the Jews, Behold your
king. OBJ. According to thefe two, Mark and
John, put together, Chrifl was condemned by Pilate
a SeeHor. Serm. 2. vi. 102, 103. eollat. cum v. 106.
about
190' Nates upon the Gofpd
about three hours after he was crucified.
The matter may be well enough accommodated ac
cording to the Jewifh computation only ; as learned
Commentators have (hewn : [lee them upon the
place.] But I choofe the following account as the
eafiefl and beft. St. Mark lays the third boury ac
cording to the Jewifh reckoning ; i.e. our nine o'clock
in the morning. But St. John, writing after the
definition of Jerafalem, and of the Jewifh polity,
computes in the Roman way, and fo the jixtb hour
fignifies (as it does with us)y/# o'clock. By which ob-
fervation thefe two places are fully reconciled. Upon
the whole therefore, according to this verfe of St.
Matthew, and thofe of St. Mark and St. John,
joined together, Pilate delivered up our Saviour to
the Jews about Jtx in the morning ; they crucified
him about nine ', the preternatural darknefs began at
twelve, and continued till three \ foon after which
our Saviour expired.
Ibid. Darknefs over all the land.~\ Or, as it may
well be rendered, over all the earth. The former can
mean only the land of Judaea ; the latter muft mean
all parts of the world, where the fun was not below
the horizon. Many paflTages in hiftory of good cre
dit determine it to the latter.
Ver. 48. AJpunge — and 'put it upon a reed^] John xix.
29. it is, — -filed afpunge, and put it upon hyjfcp. The
long ft em of the hyflbp might itfelf be a kind of reed\
or (which I rather choofe) the hyjfop was put upon a
retdy and thefpunge upon the tyjfip.
Ver. 51. The veil of the Temple, &c.] In Solomon's
Temple the partition between the Sanftuary and the
Holy of Holies was a wall of & cubit thick. In this laft
Temple it was a veil) i.e. a curtain^ a piece of hangings ^
or tapeflry. There was likewiie another veil between
the Sanctuary and the outer Tern fie. Which of them
is here meant, or whether both are meant, is uncer
tain.
Ver.
according to ST. MATTHEW, Chap. XXVIL 191
Ver. 54. When the Centurion, and they that 'were
with him— Jaw the earthquake — they feared greatly -,
faying, Truly this was the Son of God'} In Luke xxiiL
47. the Centurion only is mentioned ; who faid,
Certainly this was a righteous man. But here is no
inconfiftency. The Centurion laid, This was a righteous
man ; others, who were with him, faid, This was the
Sen of God. And very likely the Centurion himfelf,
and the flanders by, might fay both.
Ver. 64. Be made Jurel\ i. e. Be Jealed> watched 9
guarded \ every vwy fecured.
Ibid, Tbe loft error jhall be worje than the firftl\ i. e;
The people (hall be deceived more than ever,
V.er. 65. Awatch~\ i. e. A guar d otfoldiers.
CHAP. XXVIIL
VERSE 2, 3, 4, 5, 6. — *Tbe angel cf the Lord de-
fcended — He is not here ; for be is rlfenl\ Concern
ing thefe facts, as feverally related by the four Evan-
gelifts, (compare this place with Markxvi. i, 2, &c>
Luke xxiv. i, 2, &c. Johnxx, i. n, 12, &c.) OBJ,
i. Matthew and Mark mention but one angel; Luke
and John mention two. ANSW. i. Two there cer
tainly were : other wife Luke and John would not
have faid fo : but that is not contradifted by thofe
who name only one of them. i. Though there were
twO) yet one of them was more ej-pecially to be taken no
tice of, as being the more eminent^ the only one who
fpoke, &c. Upon fuch occalions the fingular and
plural numbers are fometimes mixed and confounded
with each other. See Gen. xviii. i, 2, 3, 4. See alfo
my fecond note on the 28th ver. of the viiith chapter
of this Gofpel. And whereas it is faid in Luke and
John, that THEY faid, &c. as if they both fpoke ; to
account
192 Notts upon the Gofpel, &c.
account for this, fee note on chap, xxvii. 44. and the
other places there referred to. OBJ. 2. In Matthew
the angel who ipoke is faid to have jfctt upon the ft one,
which he had rolled away from the fepulchre : in
Mark and John, he is laid to be fitting in the fe
pulchre. ANSW. Both very true. He might firft fit
upon the ftone; afterwards go into the fepulchre, and
ik there. OBJ. 3. Luke reprefents the two angels as
jlanding\ the other three reprefent the angel, or an
gels, as fitting. ANSW. i. The words in the original
of St. Luke, eVeVurai/ aura??, ought to be rendered not
flood by them> but, were fuddenly prefent with them.
(Let the learned reader fee Luke ii. 9. Acts xii. 7.
xxiii. 1 1".) So that the pofture of /landing is not there
implied. Or if it were, yet, 2. They might (as I an-
fwered, in effect, to the foregoing objection) {land at
firfti and fit afterwards.
Ver. 14. We will perfuade him, and fecure you"\
i. e. We will by our interefl in him, or money given
to him, prevail with him to take no notice of yourfup-
pofed negligence, and fo you will be fecure from punifh-
ment.
Ver. 15. And this faying is commonly reported among
the Jews unto this day^\ The meaning is, either, ifl,
That thisjlory of the body's being Jlolen was induftri-
oufly fpread abroad among the people by the Sanhe-
drim: or, 2dly, That this confederacy between them
and \\\zfoldiers to make this fenleleis lie, could not
be kept fo fecret, but that it took air, and was ridi
culed in common difcourfe : I fay fenfelefs lie ; for it
confutes itfelf. If they were afleep, how could they
know who flole him away? or that he was ftolen
away at all ?
THE END OF THE FIRST PART.
EXPLANATORY NOTES
UPON THE
FOUR GOSPELS,
IN A NEW METHOD.
For the life of all, but efpecially the unlearned Englifli Reader,
PART II.
Containing all the difficult Paflkges in the Gofpels
according to St. MARK, St. LUKE,
and St. JOHN.
EXPLANATORY NOTES
UPON THE
GOSPEL ACCORDING TO ST. MARK,
CHAP. I.
VERSE 12. The Spirit driveth him, &c.] i. e.
The Holy Ghoft by a firong impulfe moveth
him.
CHAP. II.
VERSE 4. <fbey uncovered the roof-, — and when
they had broken it up, they let down the bed, &c.]
See note on Matth. x. 27. Befides that the roofs of
their houfes were^z/, there was a door level with the
roof, and a part of it. By uncovering the roof therefore
is meant opening this door-, \^j breaking it up, opening
it with force, and violence-, and perhaps making fome
breach in it. But how did they get up to the roof,
without entering the houfe ? ANSW. There were
flairs, or a fixed ladder, on the outfide. See Mark
xiii. 15. See alfo, for 2, full account of the whole mat
ter, Miracles ofjefus vindicated, part iv. p. 26, 27,
&c. In Luke v. 19. it is, let him down through the til
ing ; i. e. through the roof, which, except the door,
was paved with tiles. See Miracles, &c. as before.
Ver. 26. In the days of Abiathar, &c.]
OBJ. i. How Abiathar, when it appears from
o 2 i Sam,
196 Notts upon tie Gofpel
i Sam.xxi. that Ahimelech was then Higb-Prieft, and
it was£<? who gave the (Lew-bread to David? ANSW.
i. Abiathar was Ahimelectis fon, and perhaps was
called fo from his father, who might have both thofe
names. 2. It fhould be rendered about^ rather than
/», the days of Abiathar \ who was lligh-Prieft Joon
after. For the ufe of the particle I™, in that fenfe,
fee Dr. Hammond upon the place.
OBJ. 2. But ftill why is Abiathar named rather
than Ahimelech f ANSW. Becaufe he was the more
eminent perfon ; High-Pried for many years under
King David, with great dignity and luftre.
Ver. 27, 28. The Jabbath 'was made for man, &c.
Therefore, the Son of man is Lord alfo of the Jabbath I\
The latter of thefe two verfes is explained in the
note on Matth. xii. 8. and, confidered by iff elf, has
little difficulty in it. But the former verfe, which is
omitted by St. Matthew, cafts fome obfcurity upon
this. The fab bath was made for man, and not man for
the Jabbath. For man ; i. e. for the Jake of man. Now
that, which was inflituted for the fake of another,
muft: yield to the good of that/0r whofefake it was in
flituted. Then he proceeds : THEREFORE the Son
of man is Lord alfo of the Jabbath. As if he fhould
have faid ; " SINCE the cafe between man and the
^ Jabbath is as I ftated it, there mufl be fomewhere a
"power of jelaxing the law, and difpenfing with the
" obfervation of it ; and that power is, above all men,
" eminently in me* who am Lord of the Jabbath) as be-
" ing the Meffiah." That interpretation is not to
be endured, which makes the Son of man, in this place,
fignify no more than any man^ it being an expref-
fion every where elfe (alrnofl an hundred times) appro
priated^ our Saviour to himjelf. Nor does the con-
nedtion between man in the former verfe, and Son of
man in the latter, require any fuch expolition ; as
appears from what has been faid.
OBJ. But was it not lawful ht any one to do fome
work
according to ST. MARK, Chap. II. 197
work on the fabbath in cafes of charity, or mceffityf
And does not our Saviour himfelf intimate as much,
when he fays, Matth.xii. n. What man jh all there be
among yen, that jh all have one jheep, and if it fall into a
fit en thejabbath-day, will not lay hold on it, and lift it
out? ANSW. Yes : but fure every man is not therefore
Lord of the fabbath. This expreffion implies not only
the lawfulnefs, &c. but a paramount power, and autho
rity of difpenfmg, both as to himfelf and others: which
cannot be laid of any private perfon whatfoever.
CHAP. III.
VERSE 4. Is it lawful to do good on the fabbath-
days, or to do evil \ tofave life, or to kill .-?]
OBJ. i. It is unlawful to do evil, and to kill, upon
all days, as well as the fabbath ; and as lawful to do
good on t\\z fabbath- day,* as on any other. How then
come the queftions to be put in this manner? ANSW,
Reduce the queftions to proportions, and that will
make it plain. It is lawful to dog-Won the fabbath-
tlay ; arid not to do good, when one has an opportunity
for it, is, in effect, to do evil', which is certainly un
lawful : it is lawful tofave life on the fabbath-day ;
and not tofave life, when one can, is, in effect, to jh//;
which is unlawful.
OBJ. 2. But flill why could not this cure have
been deferred till the next day? That makes very lit
tle difference. ANSW. i. That is more than any body
knows : the man might have been dead before the
next day. 2. The thing itfelf was good even on the
iabbath-day; therefore why fhould it be deferred at
all ? 3. To fuffer a man to be in mifery even for a
day, when one may prevent it, partakes of, in fome
o 3 meafure,
198 Aro/^5 upon the Gcfpel
meafure, and is reducible to, the fin of killing. For the
reft, fee the laft note in the foregoing chapter, and
that on Matth. xii. 12.
Ver. 17. Sons of thunderl\ Becaufe of their zeal, and
fervent, powerful preaching. For the word Boanerges,
let the learned confult the Critics.
Ver. 2 1 . His friends — went to lay hold on him : for
theyfaid, He is bejide bimjclf\ The word g^Vn may be
rendered, is fainting, or fwooning ; fuppofe, through
fatigue, and want of food. See ver. 20. And then
their laying hold on him mud mean fupporting him,
&c. But the better rendering is, bejide himfelf, or
diftrafted ; and then laying hold on him is plain. His
brethren did not believe in him. John vii. 5. Qu. But
what ground was there for this fufpicion of madnefs ?
ANSW. His excefs of zeal, neglecting his food, taking
(as they thought) fo much fruittefs pains, &c.
CHAP. IV.
VERSE 10. When he was alone, they that ivere
about him, &c.] OBJ. If there was company about
him, how could he be alone? ANSW. Alone, with re-
fpect to the multitude from which he was retired-, not
wholly fo. Alone often means the fame as in private.
It is often faid, " Now WE are alone" &c.
Ver. 1 1 . To you it is given — But to them that are
without, Sec.] See note on Matth. xiii. n, 12, 13,
&c. The Jews ufually called the Heathen thofe that
are without : our Saviour therefore here applying
that name to the Jews themfelves, feems to intimate
that they (hall fpeedily be rejetted, and the kingdom
of God be taken from them •, as he elfewhere fpeaks.
Ver. 13. Know ye not tt\\*>parable? How then will ye
know all parables /] i. e. If ye underfbnd not fo tafy
a para-
according to ST. MA UK, Chap. IV* 199
a parable as this, how will ye underftand all, even
the mojl difficult ones ?
Ver. 14. The word^\ i. e. The word of God.
Ver. i 5. Thefe are they by the way -fide, &c.] That
is, fays Dr. Whitby, Thefe art they who are reprefented
by the feed fown, &c. But fare the perfons are not re-
prefented by the feed (own-, but by the earth, ground, or
land, on which it is Town. The fame is to be faid at
ver. 1 6. 1 8. 20. More of this in the next note.
Ver. 20. Thefe are they which are fown on good
ground, &c.] The words, tnt»piv\ssy and a-wpopsvoi, ren
dered fown in this parable here, and Matth. xiii. do
not figmfy fowti in the fenfe of feed, but in the fenfe
of ground, that is Town; men being compared not to
the feed, but to the ground. Therefore the words here
ought not to be rendered, They that are fown upon good
ground; but, They that are fown (i. e. receive the feed)
in a good foil-, themfelves being that foil.
Ver. 2 1 . And he faid unto them, Is a candle — under a
bufhel, &c.] See note on Matth. v. 14, 15. Here the
different application of the words is only to be ob-
ferved. He had explained the parable of the fower,
and then immediately adds, Is a candle brought to be
-put under a bufhel, &c. As if he had faid ; "As a
" candle ought not to be hid — but fet in a candle-
" flick, &c. — fo you, whom I have inftructed and
<c enlightened, by explaining this parable, and many
t( other ways, ought to enlighten the world, to in-
fijtru£~i, and convert, &c."
Ver. 22. For there is nothing hid — come abroad^\ See
note on Matth. x. 26, 27. Here again the applica
tion of the words is fb me what different from what it is
there. He had faid, that as he enlightened them, they
ought to enlighten others. Then adds, for there is no
thing hid, &c. i.e. " Though it be fit atprefent to con-
" Qzdfome things from the multitude, becauie of their
" prejudices and incapacity -, yet in a little time all
" thefe things mull be publifhed to the world."
o 4 Ver.
Notes tfpon tie G off el
Ver. 24. 'Take heed what you hear^\ In Luke viii.
1 8. it is, HOW you hear. In that place the Greek
word, faeittrt, is rightly rendered, take heed : here it
fhould be rendered, conjider, or attend to. " Take heed
<c HOW you hear; i. e. with what temper or difpoji-
" tion : but attend to, and confider, WHAT you hear;
" i. e.from me ; the doctrines which I teach."
Ibid. With what meafure ye mete, &c.] Here like-
wife the application of the words is different from what
it is in another place. In Matth.vii. 2. the mean
ing of them is ; " As we judge others, fo fhall we be
"judged ourfelves." Here the fenfe and connec
tion is this : " Attend to, and praftife, what I teach.
" For in proportion as you improve, and make good ufe
" °f> y°ur prefent advantages, fo will God afford you
" greater grace and affiflance." Therefore it follows
in the very next words ; and unto you that HEAR (i. e.
both hear, and obey, or praftifc, as the word is often
ufed)y£<r/// more be given.
Ver. 25. For he that hathy to himjhall be given, &c.]
See the note on Matth. xxv. 29.
Ver. 26, 27, 28, 29. So is the kingdom of God, as if
a manfiould caft feed, &c. — putteth in the fickle, bccauje
the harvejl is come^ This parable, which is recited by
none but St. Mark, feems to relate only to the good
ground : for that alone brought forth fruit to per-
feffion. Thus therefore : As a man having fown
&ed ; it fprings up, increafes, and ripens, he knowing
not how, and taking no care, or thought, about it ; fo
the feed of God's word fown in a good heart, grows,
and brings forth fruit, though we know not how his
grace operates within us. And as the hufbandman
reaps his com when it is ripe ; fo Chrift, at the end
of the world, fends forth his angels, and gathers his
good feed, i. e. good Chriftians, into his heavenly
manfions. See Matth. xiii. 30. 38.
OBJ. i. Here, and in Matth. xiii. 30. 38. by the
feed, or corn, are meant men-, not (as elfewhere) the
word,
according to ST. MARK, Chap. IV.
, and grace of God. See note on ver. 15. 20.
ANSW. i. It is true, the application of the iimili-
tude is fo varied. But thejfoy? parable of \\-\zfower,
that of the tares, and \\\\sfecond of the fower, are not
the fame, but three different parables. However, it
mufh be owned that in this laft, itfelf, the applica
tion is fo varied. Therefore,, 2. The good feed is
properly the word, and grace, of God-, but by a meto
nymy the persons are called fo who have that feed fown
in them, and by it grow up, as feed does, to perfec
tion, and life eternal.
OBJ. 2. Our Saviour being here meant by the
fower -, can it be faid that hejleeps,znd that the feed
of his word, and grace, groweth up he knoweth not how ?
ANSW. This, though not applicable to him, yet is
fpoken as if it were ; it is fpoken after the manner of
men : the cafe is fo among us ; and that is fufficierit
in a parable ; which is not obliged to anfwer in all
circumftances. See notes on Matth. xx. i, &c. xxv.
15. The meaning is ; it growetb up gradually, and
infenfibly.
Ver. 27. — Sleep, and rife, night and day^ i. t.Jleep
by night ; and rife, and wake, by day.
Ver. 29. Is brought fort h^\ It fliould be rendered, is
ripe a: as it is in the margin of our verfion.
Ver. 33. He/pake, &c. as they were able to hear //.]
i.e. He fpake obfcurely; by little and little difcovering
the truth, as they were capable of bearing it : not (as
fome interpret it) in the moil eafy and intelligible
manner ; for that is inconfiflent with ver. 1 1, 12.
Ver. 36. 'They took him, even as he was in the foip~\
Took him ; i. e. fet fail, and carried him away. Even
as he was in the Jhip : i.e. in the fame (hip, out of
which he had been preaching.
a n*fet$u. For that word fee the Critics,
CHAP.
203 JVb/tf upon tie Gofyel
CHAP. V.
v
ERSE 39. r^ damfel is not dead, but Jleepeth]
i. e. Though me be really and naturally dead;
yet (he will be dead for fo little a time, that her
death willow to be no more than &JIeep-, from which
I will immediately raife her.
CHAP. VI.
VERSE 13. — Anointed with oil many that were Jick,
and healed them~\ The anointing was a mere cere
mony ; for that could not cure the difeafes. The heal
ing was miraculous, and without human means.
Ver. 20. Obferved himl\ It may be rendered pre-
ferved, or kept him, [<ruvrnff»,] i. e. from the malice
of Herodias.
CHAP. VII.
VERSE 19, Purging all meats'^ i. e. Carrying off
the dregs, and grofsy unclean parts of them ;
what remains in the body being turned into nourifh-
ment.
Ver. 34. Hejighed^\ Or groaned, as it Ihould rather
be rendered. [Invagf.] Qu. But why did \\ejigb, orgroan,
upon this occafion ? ANSW. In pity to the infirmities
and miferies of mankind.
CHAP.
according to ST. MARK, Chap. IX. 203
CHAP. IX.
\ TERSE 12. And how it is written of the Son of
V *##«, that be muft^ &c.l An elliptical fentence ;
to be fupplied thus. And [he moreover told them]
how it is written, &c.
Ver. 13, — Elias is come* and they have done to him,
&c. — as it is written of him.'] The laft words, as it is
written*, &c. relate to Elias is come ; the words be
tween, and they have done, &c, being, as it were, in a
parenthefis. Of this tranfpofition of words there are
many inilances in Scripture. See Whitby, and the
Synopjis Critic, upon the place.
Ver. 15. All the people, when they beheld him, were
greatly amazed^ Qu. Amazed at what ? A NSW. At
fome remainder of the glory of his transfiguration, which
was yet viiible in his countenance,
Ver. 24. / believe r; help thou my mbdief\ My unbe
lief \ i. e. my weak and imperf eft faith.
Ver. 30. Pa/ed through Galilee •, and would not that
any man Jhmld know //.] i. e. He went as fecretly as
pojflible, that he might not be hindered by company
from being at Jerufalem at the time he defigned j
and that he might, in the way thither, converfe pri
vately with his Difciples.
Ver. 31. FOR he taught his Difdples, &c.] The im
port of the particle/or is explained by the" laft claufc
of the foregoing note.
Ver. 35. If any man defer e to be fir ft, the fame fljall be
laft of all, and fervant of alll\ i.e. He (hall be moft
highly honoured, who, for the fake of doing good, fub-
mits to the lowejl offices. — Shall be laft-^\. e. let him
be laft. Or thus ; which amounts to the fame fenfe :
If any man be ambitious of the/r/? place^ he Ih all for
that very reafon have the laft.
Ver. 37^ — Not me* but him that fent me] i,. c. Not
me
304 Notes upon tie Gofpel
me only, but, &c. The word only is often underjlood>
not exprejjed.
Ver. 38, 39. And John anfwered — We Jaw one caft-
ing out devils in thy name ; — and we forbad him, &c.
But Jefusfaid, Forbid him not — lightlyjpeak evil of me.]
Cafting out devils ; i. e. really, and truly, not like the
Exorcifts : fee note on Matth. xii. 27, 28. The man
here ipoken of was probably one of John's Difciples;
well offered to our Saviour, though not as yet one of
bis followers. Followethnot its ; i. e. joineth not him-
felf with us, who follow you ; is not one either of the
twelve Apoftles, or of the feventy felect Difciples. In
Luke ix. 49. it is, followed not [thee] WITH us. — There
is no man which Jhall do a miracle in my name, that can
lightly, &c. Lightly, in the original it isfoon, [ra^u,]
i . e. eafily. " It cannot well be that a man, who
" works a miracle in my name, fhould fpeak evil of
<f that name by which he works it." Here is more
intimated than is exprejfed ; viz. that fuch a one al
ready believes, and will Jhortly make an open profeffion
of his faith.
Ver. 40. For he that is not againft us is on our
part^\ "And much more is he on our part, who has
" not only done nothing againft us, but fome thing
"for us, as he ieems to have done, who worked a mi-
" racle in my name" Qu. But how is this recon
ciled with what he fays, Matth. xii. 30. He that is not
with me is againft me ? A NSW. Proverbial fay ings
and aphorifms are fometimes uied both affirmatively
and negatively ; and both true, in different fenjes^ and
in different rejpeffs. Thus that of the Pythagoreans ;
Co in the public road; Go not in the public road3-.
Meaning, I fuppofe, Ci In fome cafes conform to the
" common cuftoms; in others not." And that of
Solomon, Prov. xxvi. 4, 5. AnJ-wer a fool according
to
according to ST. MARK, Chap. IX.
to bis folly — Anfwer not a foci according to his folly;
both very proper upon different occafions, for the rea-
fons there given. Thus here : " He who, upon _£>r/#-
" rifle, and in t\\z fixed fur f of e o£ his mind, is not with
" me, is, in effect, againft me. (Seethe reafons in note
" on Matth. xii. 30.) But a man, who in faff has as
"yet done nothing for us, may however be well in-
" dined to us ; and we ought to treat him as if he
" were fo : unlefs we knew the contrary ; which is
" not the cafe here. For the man has done nothing
" againft us : n&y,feems to be on our fide."
Ver. 41. FOR whojoever Jhall give you a cup of water
' — Jhall not lofe his reward^ The connexion thus : " The
" man we are (peaking of is to be looked upon as
" one favouring our caiife, [and to be in fome meafure
<f rewardable for it :] FOR whofoever does us any fer-
" vice, though no more than giving a cup of water — •
"Jhall not lofe, &c. Much lefs (hall a man, who calls
" out devils in my name/'
Ver. 42. And [on the contrary] whofcever Jhall of
fend — c aft into thefea^ The connexion thus : As, on the
one hand, whofoever in the leaft contributes to the
fpreading of Chriftianity, iliall not lofe his reward -, fo,
on the other, whofoever does any thing to binder it,
or dif courage the meanefl of its profefibrs, lhall be fe-
vereiy punifhed. For the reft, fee note on Matth.
xviii. 6.
Ver. 43, 44 — 48. And if thim hand offend thee, &c.]
See note on Matth. xviii. 8, 9. — ^be worm dietb not\
i. e. the gnawing worm of a guilty cmfcience.
Ver. 49, 50. For every one foal! be failed with fire ;
and every facrifice Jhall befalted with fait. Salt is good;
but if the fait hath loft itsfaltnejs, wherewith willyefea-
Jbn it f Have fait in yourfehes ; and have peace one with
another 1\ To be failed ^vith fire may feem a fhrange ex-
preflion ; and yet to be fired with fait is often read
in the Talmudical writings: [fee Light foot upon the
place in Hor. Sacr.] and a? fait as fire, is a vulgar faying
in
Notes upon the Gofpcl
our own language. After falted with fire, the word
and fhould be rather as : for fo the original particle,
xai, is fometimes rendered. See Synop. Grit, p. 789.
This being premifed, take the whole paflage thus :
" You will perhaps object, that the cutting off the
*' hand, foot, &c. is very painful : but this is of no
" force. FOR pain you muft endure, one way or
" other ; either by refilling, and even cutting off,
" your corrupt affections here ; or by being punifliecl
" eternally hereafter. Every Chriftian, (who fhould
*c offer himfelf a facrif.ce to God, Rom. xii. i.) that
" he may be acceptable, muft be falted with fire,
" (the fire of tribulation, and Buffering, mortification,
" and (elf -denial, and the grace of God's Spirit, who
" is often compared tojire,) as every fa crifice [according
€( to the Law. See Levit. ii. 13.] is to bz falted with
"fait. This fait, this patient fuffering, this grace of
" God, &c. mult needs be good: but if by keeping
" the offending members, i. e. your vicious inclinations,
" you corrupt yourfelves, [who are the fait of the
<c earth, Matth. v. 13. fee the note there,] how can
" you be recovered ? Retain therefore this youry^//,
a and -property of feafoning, and have peace, &c.J> It
is ordinarily faid [fee Dr. Hammond upon the place]
thaty^// is a zfymbol otfriendjhip and peace.
Others give a very different account of this difficult
pajjage •, [lee it in Whitby, Hammond, and the «Sy-
nopfa :] but it is liable to confiderable objeclions; and
I choofe this, as by far the better interpretation.
CHAP,
according to ST. MA UK, Chap. X. 207
CHAP. X.
VERSE 12. And if a woman fhall put away her
hufband) &c.] How comes this cafe to be put ?
The Law indeed permitted a man to divorce his
wife ; but not a woman to divorce her bujband.
ANSW. i. A woman leaving her hu(band3 , renouncing
him, &c. (as many have done,) may be faid in a lefs
proper fenfe to put him away, or to do fomething like
divorcing him. 2. One Salome (as Joiephus relates)
had actually the infolence and impudence to fend
her hufband a bill of divorce^ contrary to the Law ;
and was imitated in it by Herodias.
Ver. 19. Defraud not'} Qy. i. What is the diffe
rence between this and the eighth Commandment,
Do not jleal ; which is recited in this fame verfe ?
ANSW. It is certainly reducible to that : yet there
are many kinds of fraud9 which are not direct fteal-
ing. Since our Saviour therefore here recites the
other Commandments of the fecond Table, i.e. thofe
relating to our neighbours, he feems under thefe
words to comprehend the tenth. As thus : "Be not
" covetous of what belongs to another ; fo as to ufe
" any indirect means of over-reaching him ; though
" you do not Jleal from him, or rob him ; as the
" words are commonly and Jlriftly ufed." Qy. 2. Why
(hould our Saviour here (and the fame may be faid
.of St. Paul, Rom. xiii. 8, 9. and of St. James, in his
Epiftle, chap. ii. 8. u.) mention only the duties of
the fecond Table, relating to our neighbours-, not one
of the fir ft) relating to God ? ANSW. i. The latter
are underftood or implied in the former^ by an argu
ment from the lefs to \\\t greater \ lince every man is
much more obliged to God than to his neighbour,
2. The love of our neighbour is a certain proof that
we love God ; according to $t- John's doctrine in
many
2oS Notes upon tie Gofpel
many places of his firft Epiftle. 3. Other places of
the New Teftament mufl be taken in conjunction
with this ; and then both Tables are included. See
particularly Matth. xxii. 37, 38,39, 40. Thoujhah
love the Lord thy God., &c. and thy neighbour, &c. On
thefe two commandments hang all, &c. See likewife the
note there.
Ver. 23, 24. — HAVE riches — TRUST IN riches^
The latter mud explain the former. It is not a iin
to be rich-) but it is a fin to tnijl in riches. And
even to have them is a Jlrong temptation to tntft in
them.
Ver. 32. Jefus went before them — And they were
amazed ; and as they followed, they were afraid. And
again — he began to tell them, 'what things Jhould happen
unto himl\ He went before them-, as a commander puts
himfelf at the head of his troops in time of danger.
They were amazed, and afraid ; i. e. of his going to
Jerufalem at that time, when periecution and death
attended him. Which he was here fo far from dif-
iembiing, that he again began to tell them what things
fj)ould happen to him.
Ver. 35. James and John, &c.] With their mother ,
who firft fpeaks in their behalf, Matth. xx. 20, 21.
though it was the joint requeft of them all. And
accordingly our Saviour, even in St. Matthew, an-
fwers them in the plural number ; YE know not, &c.
And they [James and John] fay, We are able. But
here, Qy. Is it not flrange that they fhould have
fuch ambitious thoughts about dignity and precedency,
when they were in amazement and fear, and their
Mailer had juft before been difcouriing of \\isfuffer-
ings and death ? A NSW. Though he had been fo
difcourfing, yet his loft words were, that he would
rife again. From whence they imagined that he would
have a glorious temporal kingdom -, and they hoped to
have the firft preferment in it.
Ver. 46. And as he went out of Jericho, blind Barti-
according to ST. MARK, Chap. X. 209
waits, &c.] As to this one blind man, and the two
blind men, Matth. xx. 30. fee the note upon that
place. But, ,
OBJ. Here, and Matth. xx. 29. it is Taid, As he
WENT OUT of Jericho-, in Luke xviii. 35. As he CAME
NEAR to Jericho. ANSW. The word in the original,
iyyt£<i?9 does not always fignify coming near to ; but
fometimes being near to. See the Critics. And he
might be near the place, going from it, as well as com
ing to it. There is another very good anfwer in
Synopjis Critic, on Matth. xx. 30. To which I refer
the learned reader.
CHAP. XI.
VERSE 13, 14. 20, 21. And feeing a fig-tree afar
off — "The time of figs was not yet. — No man eat
fruit of the e hereafter. — The fig-tree — withered away.
OBJ. i. If the time of figs was not yet, why mould
he ex peel: to find them upon this, or any other tree ?
And befides, it is certain in faft that one fort of figs
was ripe at that time of the year, viz. at the Pajjover.
[See the Commentators at large ; and Miracles of
Jefus vindicated., part iii."j ANSW. Though there was
one fort of figs ripe at that time of the year, and fo a
man might reasonably hope to find feme ; yet there
were butfezv Qtjbat kind, and fo he was the lefs likely
to find any ; thofe which were more common, and in
much greater numbers, being not ripe till autumn.
The latter feafon therefore, being much more plenti
ful and common than this early one, was properly the
time of figs ; and of this it was true that then (at the
Paffover) it was not yet come. Our Saviour therefore
thought [or rather, (for he knew all things,) in order to
what was to follow, aRed as if he thought] that this
tree was of the early kind 9 but either found it to he
p of
•jio Notts upon the Gofpel
of the later ; or found it indeed to be of the eafly
kind, but barren. Here, I am fenfible, it may be
farther objected ; if the former were the cafe, why
fhould the tree be curfed, and dejlroyed, for not bear
ing fruit five or fix months before its time? If the
latter; the time of that tree's figs was come ; and to
fay the time of the other fort was not come, is no
thing to the purpoie. To the former it may be re
plied, that our Saviour's defign in this whole action be
ing typical, and parabolical, he might at any time caufe
a tree without fruit to wither,(though it were no defect
in the tree, but only on account of the feafon, that it
had then no fruit,) to reprefent the fate of the fmitleis
Jews. For iimilitudes are not to be carried on be
yond the main thing intended ; nor obliged to anfwer
in all circumftances, as we have often had occafion to
obferve. To the latter, we may take it thus : He
found no fruit on this tree, though it was of the
earlier kind, becaule it was barren; nor on any other in
the way, becaule it was not as yet the feafon for their
fruit. But though this may well enough folve the
difficulty; yet, after all, 2dly, Dr. Hammond's an
fwer feerns to be more eafy and natural. It was not
zfeafonable year, a good feafon , for that early fruit : for
fo the words of the original, K*ifa o-Jxwv, may well be
rendered. And I wonder he did not add, that it is
not faid, the time of figs zvas not YET ; there being
nvyef in the original. Had that been the meaning,
another Greek particle, not a, but sW, mould have
been made uie of.
OBJ. 2. Why fhould he be angry with a tree for
not bearing fruit, or for any thing elfe ? Inanimate
things are not the objects of anger. ANSW. It is not
to be conceived that any wife man, much lefs our Sa
viour, would be fo ridlculoujly angry ; nor is there, in
the whole narration, the leaft hint of any fuch thing.
But the curfe, and deftruffion of the tree, was (as we
before intimated.) purely typical, and parabolical; to
repre-
according to ST. MARK, Chap. XL 21 1
reprefent the barren ft ate of the Jewifh nation, and
the punijhment due to them, and fpeedily to be in
flicted upon them, for not bringing forth the fruit of
good works. See Luke xiii. 6, 7, 8, &c. Hefpake djo
this parable. A certain man bad a fig-tree, — and he
came, and fought fruit thereon, and found none. Then
faid he to the drejjer of his vineyard — cut it down ; why
cumber eth it the ground f And he anfwering faid, Lord,
let it alone till I Jhall dig about it — and if it bear fruit*
well: and if not, then after that thou Jbalt cut it
down.
OBJ. 3. What right had our Saviour to the fruit
of this tree, if there had been any ? ANSW. A very
legal one. Deut. xxiii. 24, 25. When thou comeft into
thy neighbours vineyard, thou may eft eat grapes to thy
Jill, &c. And when ihou comeft into the ftanding corn
of thy neighbour's, thou may eft pluck the ears, &c. And
there is the fame reafon for Jigs, and all other eatable
fruits, as for grapes, and corn : and fo the Jewifh
Doctors understood it. See Bp. Patrick upon that
place, and Miracles of Jefus vindicated, part iii.
OBJ. 4. Our Saviour, in working miracles, gene
rally does good, but here he does hurt ; and befides,
what right had he to deftroy this fig-tree ? ANSW.
i ft, It is true, by his miracles he generally did acts of
beneficence ; but fure he might Jometimes inflict funi/b-
ment by them. [See the note on Matth. viii. 30, 31,
32.] And as the great eft Prophet, as the Mejjiah, he had
an undoubted right to do fo. 2dly, The owner of this
tree, though never fo good a man, muft needs for his
fins deferve a much feverer punifhment than this. 3dly,
The whole Jewifh nation was then devoted to de-
ftruction ; which was fhortly to be inflicted by our Sa
viour. Well therefore might this Jig-tree be deftroy ed
before the univerfal ruin-, of which too this was a type.
For the reft, fee Miracles vindicated, as above.
Ver. 15. And they came to Jerufalem-, and Jefus went
into the Temple, and began to caft out them that fold and
p 2 bought^
Notes upon the Gofpcl
^ &c.] OBJ. St. Matthew, chap.xxi. places this
fadt BEFORE his curfing the fig-tree-, St. Mark AFTER
it. ANSW. Either he turned out thefe people two
days together, or one of the Evangelifts neglecled
the exaft circumftance of time, as of no confequence j as
indeed it is not. Other writers (mere human ones)
often do the fame. See note on Matth. iv. 8. [p.
93. The objection is this, &c] and on ver. 12.
Ver. 1 7 . My houje /hall be called o F all nations the
houfe of prayer^ It fhould be, — houfe of prayer TO, or
FOR, all nations*. And fo it is in Ifa. Ivi. 7, That
part of the Temple, which thefe buyers and fellers
profaned, was the court of the Gentiles ; where profe-
iytes of all nations were admitted to perform their de
votions. See note on Matth. xxi. 12. The Jews,
always valuing themfehes upon their own peculiar pri
vileges, thought that becauie this part of the Temple
belonged to the Gentiles, whom they 'defpijed, it was
no profanation to make the ufe of it they did: but our
Saviour taught them otherwife.
Ver. 20, 2 1 . And in the morning — they faw the fig-
tree dried up — And Peter calling to remembrance — be
hold the fig-tree which thou curfedft, &c.] OBJ. i. The
definition of the fig-tree, and our Saviour's dif-
courfe to his Difciples confequent upon it, are re
lated differently by St. Matthew, and St. Mark. The
former reprefents all as done, and faid, at the fame
time ; the latter, as upon two feveral days ; the turn
ing the buyers and fellers out of the Temple inter
vening between the two parts of this narration.
ANSW. The relations are indeed different, as they
very well may be, but not inconjiftent. St. Mark's ac
count is the more particular as to time, and other
circumilanccs ; St. Matthew's more general, andfitm-
mary. Nor was it required that both fhould be pre-
cije as to time, &c. See the note on ver. 15. What St.
Mark
according to ST. MARK, Chap. XI.
Mark fays is certainly true in every circumftance,
otherwife he would not have faid it. And St.
Matthew fays nothing contrary to it : only it was not
necefTary that he mould be fo particular as the other.
OBJ. 2. But St. Matthew fays,, the fig-tree withered
away prejently. According to St. Mark,, the Dilci-
ples took no notice of it, till the next morning. And
is not this inconfiftent ? ANSW. No. The word
frefently does not neceffarily mean inftantly, or that
fame minute : it often fignifies no more than very
Joon ; and Jome hours after is very Joon for a thing of
that nature. Belides, the tree might begin to wither
immediately upon the pronouncing the words ; and
yet the Difciples, having no thought of fuch an
event, and being in hafte to purfiie their journey,
cannot be conceived then to take any notice of it :
efpecially fmce the withering might at firft be very
little ) and not fo much as vijitlc.
Ver. 22, 23. Have faith in God. For — Whofoever
Jball Jay unto this mountain. Be thou removed — and
SHALL NOT DOUBT in his heart> but Jball BELIEVE
that thoje things which hejaith Jball come to pafs, he Jhall
have whatfoever he faith ~\ See note on Matth. xvii.
20. This cannot be underftood of any mere faith,
however great, but of faith in conjunction with the
power of working miracles > which was conferred upon
the Apoftles, to whom our Saviour here fpeaks. Who-
Joever (i. e. among you, or who is impowered, as you
are) ft all Jay unto Ms mountain, &c. he ft all bave, &c.
Nor can it be reafonably alleged, that this feems fu-
perfiuous; fmce as thofe who have never fo found a
faith cannot do fuch works, unlefs they have the gift
of miracles ; fo thole who have that gift can do them,
whether they have fuch a faith, or no. For that the
latter is not true, appears from Matth. xvii. In which,
after the relation of our Saviour's cafting out a Devil,
it follows, ver. 19, 20. Then the Dijtifles—faui> Why
p 3 could
214 Notes upon tie Gofpel
could not we cafl him out ? And Jefusjatd unto them, Be-
caufeof your unbelief. And then adds in almoft the fame
words with thefe we are now confidering ; If ye have
faith as a grain ofmuftard-feed,ysfl)allfayunto this moun
tain^ Remove hence to yonder place \ and it Jhall remove :
and nothing /kail be impojjible unto you. Though they
were endowed with the gift of working miracles, yet
faith) and ftir ring up the gift that was in them, (as St.
Paul fpeaks upon a not much different occasion,: Tim.
iv. 14.) they could not actually exert that power, nor
reduce it into practice.
And here it will be requifite to clear another dif
ficulty. Can a faith, fo Jmall as a grain ofmujlard-
feed, remove mountains ? What can the great eft faith
do more ? I anlwer ; Such a performance (as was
laid before) is not afcribed to faith only, whether it
be f mall, or great; but to faith in conjunction with the
power of working miracles ; which thofe had, whom
our Saviour there reproves. Nor did he mean (ac
cording to the flricleft rigour of the words) that
they had no faith bigger than & grain of muftard-feed -,
i.e. in effect, none at all-, but that they had not Jo
much of it as they ought to have had; which mould
have been exceeding great , confidering the extraordi
nary advantages which they enjoyed. And there
fore fuch a meafure of it, which in others would have
been conjiderable, in them was next to nothing. The
phrafe, as a grain of muftard-feed^ is proverbial and hy
perbolical: and the fenfe is, as if he mould have faid,
according to the common way of fpeaking, If you had
any faith in you ; really meaning as much as they ought
to have had, though the diminishing expreflion, ut
tered with indignation^ feems to imply the contrary ;
If you had any faith in you ; (for that which you
have is a mere nothing, fcarce fo much as a grain of
muftard-Jeed, confidering your privileges and advan
tages;} that faith, joined with the gift of working mi
racles,
according to S T . M A R K y Chap . X 1 .
racles, which I have conferred upon you, would
enable you to remove mountains. Which is flriclly
and literally true.
Ver. 24. therefore — What things foever ye defire
when ye pray ; BELIEVE that ye receive them, [Jhall re
ceive them,] and ye Jhall have them^\ It is not to be
imagined, from thefe words, that every confident,
groundlejs^ or, it may be,, enthufiaflical perfuafion, that
we mail certainly have what we pray for, will actually
procure it. Becaufe this is contrary to common
fenfe and reafon, as well as to other places of Scrip
ture. But it muft be a faith well-grounded, rational^
lively , and productive of good works. And even then
we are not to think ourfelves Jure of having our
prayers anfwered in kind^ or of obtaining every parti
cular thing we pray for : becaufe fometimes it may
not be proper, and convenient for us. But only in
general that iuch a faith is abfolutely neceffary in order
to render our prayers effectual, and that by it we mall
certainly have what we afk ; or fome thing which is
letter for us. This interpretation is confirmed by
that of Matth. xxi. 22. in which our Saviour's words
are recited with fome variation : All things whatjo-
ever ye ajk in prayer, BELIEVING, ye Jhall receive.
He does not fay, believing ye (hail receive thofe very
things-, but believing indefinitely. As for thofe words,
all things whatjoever ; they are explained before —
provided they be good for us. See moreover note on
Matth. vii. 7. For the peculiar and dijlinguijhing effi
cacy of faith in prayer, fee James i. 5,6, 7.
Ver. 25. When ye STAND praying^ The Jews, as we
do, fometimes prayedytod/'/2£, fometimes kneeling. The
word here does not relate to the pofture^ but to the
action, or thing itfelf. The word ftand, efpecially
when joined to a participle, fometimes lignifies to
be> or continue to be, in fuch, or fuch an aftion^ftate,
or condition. STAND praying therefore is the fame as
ARE praying.
P4 CHAP.
Notes upon .the Gofpcl
CHAP. XII.
VERSE 8. fbey killed him, and caft him out of the
vineyard^ In Matth. xxi. 39. it is, they caft
him out of the vineyard, and flew him. But iuch tranj-
fqfitions (by the figure called byfteron proteron'} are
uiual. However, I rather take this, with Grotius,
for a Hebraifm ; they killed himy AND caft him out,
for they killed him BEING caft out a.
Ver. 44. All her living] i. e. as much as (he lived
upon for a day.
CHAP. XIII.
VERSE 9 . Tejhall be beaten, and brought before rulers
- FOR A TESTIMONY AGAINST THEM.] It fllOllld
be, for a teftimony UNTO them^. i. e. By this [your
patient fuffering, and preaching'] you fhall bear tefti-
mony to them of the truth of the Gofpel. Were the
other tranflation right, the fenfe would be ; cc that
*' you may be witnejfes againft them, of their infi-
" delity, and cruelty towards you."
Ver. 1 8. — 'That your flight be not in the winter.]
Becaufe the days being ihort, and the roads bad,
travelling is then inconvenient. In Matth. xxiv. 20.
it follows, nor on the Sabbath-day. He fpeaks accord
ing to the opinion with which the Jews were then
poffefled, that it was unlawful to take a journey upon
that day, though tofave ones life : and trie generali
ty, at lead, of the firft Jewifh converts to Chriftianity
were of that opinion. Therefore if thofe who, judg
ing better, thought otherwife, fhould^ upon that
day, they would give great offence to the weak bre-
thren,
* More Hebraeo, j£ il&etarj pro
Els
according to ST. MARK, Chap. XIII.
thren, and likewife expofe themfelves to the hatred
of the Jews.
Ver. 20. Except the Lord KAT> fiortened — He HATH
/hortened, &c.] In Matth. xxvi. it is, Except thofe days
SHOULD be fhortened — SHALL be Jhortened. The fenfe
is the fame. What God HATH determined to be
done SHALL be done.
Ver. 32. But cf that day, and hour, knoweth no
man; nor the angels; nor the SON ; but the FATHER.]
In Matth. xxiv. 36. it is, my Father ONLY. OBJ. Is
not ignorance of an event here plainly afcribed to the
Son? How then can he be God? ANSW. ift, Our
Saviour is man, as well as God : and he Ipeaks this
in his human capacity. It is not faid, the Son of God
knew not the day; but the Son ; i. e. the Son of man ,
as appears from the contexts in both the Evangelifls;
in this chapter, ver. 26; in Matth. xxiv. ver. 37. 39.
If it be faid, the word only* however, appropriates this
knowledge to the Perf on of the Father, io as to exclude
all other Perfons from it ; ANSW. 2dly, The word
only cannot be fo ftrictly interpreted, as to exclude
what effentially belongs to the Father, and may be
reckoned to him, as included in him, his word, and
Jpirit. Nor do we beg the queftion by here fuppojing
that they are fo effential* and included; becaufe there
are very many other texts of Scripture, which prove
them both to be God, in the highejl and ftritteft
fenfe. Therefore fuch paflages as thefe muft be thus
reconciled* and accommodated with thole ; as they very
well may be. See my Sermons on the Trinity, p. 114.
In them likewife it is proved, that the Father is often
mentioned as God abjolutely* he being the head and
fountain of the Deity; he alone being unoriginated -y
and the other two Perfons being referred to him, as
included in him. It is there likewife (hewn that the
word only, and other exclufive terms, are in Scripture
fometimes applied to any one of the three Perfons
fingly 5 even with refpecl to the ejftntial attributes,
or
Si 8 Notts upon the Gofpd
or thofe which belong to God abfolutely confidered.
See p. in, 112. 114.
Ver. 35. Cock-crowing, or the morning~\ See note
on Matth. xxvi. 34. The firft cock-crowing, about
midnight ; \hzfecond, at \\\z dawning of the day. The
morning is full,, clear day -light.
CHAP. XIV.
VERSE 51. A certain young man, having a linen
doth, &c.] Why this ftiould be St. John, as
fome tell us, I cannot underftand. There is no hint
of any fuch thing. It is not faid who he was ; nor is
it at all material.
Ver. 55. Sought falfe witnejjes ; and found none '.] i. e.
none to anfvver their purpofe. For they did not agree
together, ver. 56. i. e. contradicted each other.
CHAP. XV.
VERSE 35. Beheld, he calleth Eiias] Becaufe of
the fimilitude between the founds Eli, or Eloi,
(which are the fame in fenfe, My God,} and Elias.
Ver. 43. Waited for the kingdom of God^\ i. e. was
inclined and prepared to become a convert to the
Gofpel.
Ver. 44. Pilate marvelled if he were [that he was]
already dead^ From hence., and from John xix. 31,
32, 33. [fee there,] it appears that our Saviour ex
pired before the two who were crucified with him ;
and fooner than it was ufual for any crucified per-
fon. It may eafily be conceived that his difpatch
upon the crofs was the more fpeedy, by reafon of the
cxquifite agony he had endured before.
CHAP.
according to ST. MARK, Chap. XVI. 319
CHAP. XVI.
VERSE 3, 4. And they f aid, Who /hall roll us
away the ftone ? — And when they looked, they f aw
the ft one was rolled away, for it was very great.} The
words, for it was very great, muft certainly relate to
who Jhall roll us [i. e. for us] away, &c. not to they
Jaw the ftone, &c. And though thole words, when
they locked, they Jaw the ftone rolled away, are gene
rally fuppofed to be in a parenthefis, and fuch tranf-
pofitions are fometimes found ; [fee note on chap,
ix. 13.] yet this being harfh, I would rather fuppofe
a few words to be underftood-, as thus : They Jaw the
ftone rolled away, [and were glad of it,] for it was very
great. In a very ancient manufcript which Beza
had, and is now at Cambridge, the words are placed
in their natural order: tfhey Jaid, Who Jhall roll away
the ftone ? For it was very great. And when they
looked, they Jaw, &c.
Ver. 7. Go, tell his Dtfciples, and Peter} OBJ. i.
As if Peter were not one of the Difciples. ANSW.
The meaning is, Tell all the Difciples, but ESPE
CIALLY Peter. For which manner of fpeaking, i. e.
the ufe of the particle *«» for especially, there are
many authorities in the beft writers. See the Cri
tics, particularly Grotius. OBJ. 2. But why Peter
efpecially ? ANSW. To comfort and revive him, after
his foul lapfe in denying his Mailer. Tell them all;
but efpecially poor Peter, afflicted, penitent Peter.
Ver. 12. In another form I\ i. e. in another habit or
drefs, fuppofe in a travelling one. For it was in the
journey to Emmaus, Luke xxii. Or perhaps in a
more augiift and glorified appearance.
Ver. 1 6. He that believeth, and is baptized, Jhall be
Javed ; but he that believeth not, JJoall be damned.~\ Be
lieveth, i. e. believeth effectually ; with a faith lively,
and
Notes upon the Gofpsl, &c.
and productive cf good works. The words faith, and
believing, are generally ib underflood in the New
Teftament ; including the whole of Chriftianity, both
faith and -practice. For the reajons of which fee the
writings of Divines ; efpeciaHy Bifhop Bull's Har-
monia Apojlolica, Exam en Genjurce, &c. Though it
be faid, He that believeth not Jh all be damned; it is not
faid, He that is not baptized (hall be damned ; be-
caufe faith is abfolutely neceflary ; baptifm is fo, only
if it can be had; as fometimes it cannot. But Qu.
Why then is it (aid, He that beUeveth, and is baptized,
(hall be faved', as if they were equally neceflary to fal-
vation ? ANSW. It is no coniequence that, becaufe
they are joined together, therefore they are equdly ne
ceflary. He that believetb, and is baptized, (hall cer
tainly be faved ; and yet he that believeth, and
would be baptized, if he could, but cannot, may be
faved too. It mud be obferved like wife even as to
faith, that a man is not damned, i. e. eternally mifera-
ble, for want of it, if he has not the means of it, and
is invincibly ignorant •, but only if he wilfully difielieves
when he has the evidence laid before him. If he be
invincibly ignorant, he is no otherwife damned, than as
he has no right to the falvation of the Gofpel- covenant,
in which he is not included ; but will be rewarded or
puniihed according to his works, in proportion to
his knowledge, This is agreeable both to reafon
and Scripture. See Rom. ii. 14, 15.
EXPLANATORY NOTES
UPON THE
GOSPEL ACCORDING TO ST. LUKE,
CHAP. I.
VERSE i. Forafmuch as many have taken In
&c.] See Part I. p. 73. Many have written GoJ-
pels, &c. to the end of the paragraph.
Ibid. Mofljurely believed^ It might well have been
added, and moft certainly done or 'performed. For the
word in the original, TTfTrArjpopo^/^W, lignifies both.
Ver. 2. Even as they delivered — of the word^ The
words in our translation are placed wrong. They
ihould run thus ; Even as they, who from the begin
ning were eye-witnejfes [of the facls], and minijlers of
the word, (meaning the Apoftles,) delivered them unto
us.
Ver. 3. Mojl excellent Tbcophilus'} Or moft noble : fo
the fame word, xfwnf*, is rendered Ads xxvi.25- xxiv.
3. This TheophiliiSj it is plain, was a perfon of qua
lity, probably in power and authority. He is faid
by the ancients to have been of Antioch, as was St.
Luke himfelf.
Ver. 5. Of the courfe of Abia^ i. e. of the eighth of
the twenty-four courtes of the Priefts who miniftered
in the Temple by their weeks. For thefe courfes, fee
i Chron. xxiv. and for Abijah, or Abia, in particu
lar, fee ver. 10. of that chapter.
Ver,
Notes upon the Go f pel
Ver. 9. When he went into the Tempk.~] i. e. the in
ward Temple, or the Sanctuary, into which the
Priefts and Levites only entered.
Ver. 10. Were fraying without^ i. e. in the out
ward Temple, where the people performed their de
votions.
Ver. 13. Tby prayer is heard] Notwithstanding
the next words, thy wife /hall bear thee a fon, the
prayer here meant is not his praying for afon; (for it
cannot be fuppofed that, himfelf and his wife being
fo old, he could have any Juch thought ;, or expecta
tion ;) but his prayer, or prayers, in general. " Thou
" art accepted by God, and (which thou little think-
" eft of) thou malt have a fon." Or perhaps it
may relate to his having formerly prayed for a fon -9
though not of late.
Ver. r 5. 4& Jhall drink neither wine, nor ftrong drink]
i. e. fliall live an abftemious, afcetic life ; be a Naza-
rite, &c.
Ibid. Be filed with the Holy Gboft, even from his
mother s womb] i. e. as foon, after his birth, as he is
capable of it. There are many other expreffions in
Scripture of the fame kind. Thus Pfal. Iviii. 3. The
wicked are ejtranged from the womb -, they go ajlray as
foon as they are born, fpeaking lies. In Jlriftnefs, they
could notfpeak ties, before they could fpeak at all.
Ver. 17. In the fpirit and power of Elias — prepared
for the Lord.] See Dili. II.
Ver. 20. Thoujhalt be dumbl\ He at once gives him
afign> and puni/hes his incredulity. For he had fuffi-
dent evidence before, by the appearance of an angel
fpeaking to him. It is probable from ver. 62. They
made Jigns, &c. that he was ftruck deaf, as well as
dumb. And the original word% ver. 22. fignifies
both.
Ver. 24. Hid herf elf five months^ It is probable Ihe
So likewife the Hebrew,
did
according to ST. LUKE, Chap. I. 223
did not absolutely hide herfelf, fo as to fee no company,
but only lived very retired. But Qu. Why ihould
(he hide herfelf at all? ANSW. For the exercifes of
piety and devotion, and thankfgiving for fo great a blei-
iing. Or perhaps the meaning is no more, than
that (he concealed her pregnancy, L e. determined to
fay nothing of it, till at the end of five months the
iigns of it Ihould be plain, and vjfible, fo that (he
mould not be fufpecled of flattering herfelf with
what was not uaL
Ver. 25. To take away my reproach^ That for a
woman to be barren was among the Jews a great
reproach, or dijgrace, is plain from many places of the
Old Teftament; which are fo well known, that we
need not cite them.
Ver. 32. The Lord God Jhall give unto him the throne
of his father David^ i.e. in zfpiritual, not a temporal,
ienfe. Paffages of this kind are numerous, both in
the Old and New Teftament. David's temporal king
dom was a type of Chrift'sfpiri/uat one.
Ver. 33. Over the houfe ofjacob~\ i.e. over the Jews
ESPECIALLY, becaufe they were his peculiar people :
though over all his Chuuh, gathered both from Jews
and Gentiles.
Ver. 34. How Jhall this be, feeing I know net a man f\
OBJ. How could me alk thisqueftion ? The angel had
not as yet told her (he ihould have a child, being a
Virgin ; and fo, one would think, (he fhould naturally
fuppofe him to mean no more, than that (lie fhould
have one by her hit/band, to whom fhe was efpoujed,
and was fhortly to be married. ANSW. The defcrip-
tion, which the angel gave her of the perfon to be
born, made it plain that he was to be the Mefliah,,
generally expetted about that* time; and (he knew
from the Scriptures (perhaps explained to her by di
vine revelation) that the Mefliah was to be born of
a Virgin. Upon the angel's word therefore (he did
not doubt of the thing itjelf, viz. that fhe, being a
Virgin,
224 Notes upon tht
Virgin^ fliould bear the child ; but only, with a pious
curiofity, enquires concerning the means and manner of
it; or rather enquires what^/fo fhould do in order to it.
She thought perhaps it might be by fome particular
diet^ by eating fome certain herb, or fruit-, attended
with certain prayers^ and other ads of piety, of which
me might think the angel would inform her. He
anfwers, that [without her ufing fuch means as (he
imagined] the Holy Ghoft Jhould come upon her ; and
the power of the High eft over/hadow her^ &c. Upon
which, with the greateft/2zV£, piety, and humble Jub-
miffion, (he makes this reply j Behold the handmaid of
the Lord : be it unto me according to thy word.
Ver. 39, 40. to 45. And Mary aroje — and went into
the hill -country — told her from the Lord] See Difc. II.
Ver. 44. — Leaped in my womb for joy] Some refer
this joy to the mother ', not to the babe\ becaufe the
latter was not capable of rejoicing : " My joy, fays
" the mother, made him leap." But I think the
much more elegant fenfe is, u He rejoiced even in the
" 'Womb ; i. e. God fo ordering it, he leaped as it
" were for joy, as JenfiUe of the honour done to me
" and him"
Ver. 60. And his mother anjwered — he fh all be called
Johnl\ As we fhould not recur to a divine power,
when there is no occalion for it, I do not think, with
fome Expolitors, that (he (poke this by revelation
from God ; when her hufband, though he could not
Jpeaky might by -writing have long fince informed her,
that the angel had told him the child's name fliould
be John.
Ver. 63. He ajked~\ i.e. by makingy?^.
Ver. 69. A horn offalvation] i. e. a mighty, an ex
cellent falvation. The word horn, in the Old Tefta-
ment, efpecially in the Pfalms, often fignifiesj^^rg/Jj^
power^ excellence, honour, &c. I need not cite the
particular places.
Ver. 70. Since the world began"] The firft predic
tion,
according to ST.LuKE, Chap. I. 325
tion concerning our Saviour was immediately after the
fall of man ; that the feed of the woman Jhould bruife the
ferpenfs head. Gen. iii.
Ver. 73. ¥he oath which he fwore, &c.] Gen. xxii.
1 6, 17. By myf elf have I fworn, &c.
Ver. 74. Being delivered— ferve him without fear^\
Without fear mufl certainly be referred to ferve him-,
not (as fome would have it) to delivered. To be de
livered without fear is fcarce fenfe.
Ver. 78. The Day-fpringfrom on high^ i. e. Chrift,
\htrifingSun, who came down from heaven; the Sun
of right eoufnefs, who arofe with healing, &c. Malachi
iv. 2. Zechar. iii. 8. Some tranflate it the Branch.
And it is true, our Saviour is fo called in feveral pro
phecies of the Old Teftament, and as true that the
word both in the Greek [aWroAif] and Hebrew [riD^J
fignifies Branch, as well as the rtfing of the Sun. But
I prefer this latter, becaufe of the very next words,
ver. 79. 'To give light unto them> &c. A branch does
not give light.
Ver. 80. His Jhewing to Ifrael^\ i. e. Shewing him-
felf, quitting his retirement in the defert, and enter
ing upon his miniflry.
CHAP. II.
VERSE i. Cafar Auguftus] The greateil, moft
powerful, and moft fortunate of ail the Roman
Emperors. He reigned forty-four years with the ut-
moft glory, and had at this time fo fettled his affairs,
that there was peace over all the world. At this
jun&ure, the Prince of peace, the Saviour of mankind,
the long expected Mejfiah, was born.
Ibid. All the world"\ i.e. all the Roman empire ;
frequently called the world both by Greek and Latin
writers.
Q Ibid,
226 Notes upon the Gofpel
Ibid. Taxed"^ i. e. That there fhould be a general
Jurvey made of all manner of perfons; that their names
ihould be regiftered, or enrolled^ and an account taken
of their eftates and poffeffionsi in order to their being
taxed in another fenfe; i.e. to their paying tribute,
whenever there mould be occafion for it.
Ver. 2. And this taxing was fir ft made when Cy re
mits was governor cf Syria. ~\ OBJ. Jofephus and Ter-
tullian fay, that at this time Sentius Saturninus was
governor of Syria. ANSW. id, St. Luke (fuppof-
ing him to be no more than a common hiflorian)
lived nearer the time, and was likely to give a truer
account than Jofephus-, who is moreover inaccurate
in many other inftances as to chronology. And Ter-
tullian, who was likewife no very exadt writer, might
be mifled by Jofephus ; riot conficlering what St.
Luke had faid. But 2dly, Admitting what Jofephus
and Tertullian fay to be true, St. Luke may very
well be reconciled with them. For, jdly, Sentius
Saturninus might be governor or procurator of Syria,
flridlly fpeaking, or in the higheft fenfe; and yet Cy-
renius [Quirinius, according to the Roman fpeiiing]
might be appointed by the Emperor to frefide in the
management of that affair, the taxation or enroll
ment, and be Jo far, or in that refyeft, governor of
Syria. That the original word % rendered governor
in our tranflation, will very well bear this fenfe,
learned Critics have (hewn. See them upon the
place. 4thly, The tax, as an enrolment only, might
be made when Saturninus was governor ; but, as a
tax for raiftng money , it might be firft executed when
Cyrenius was fo : and this Dean Prideaux tells us
was the cafe. See him at large, Connexion, Part II.
book ix. towards the end. 5thly, The words may
very properly be rendered, fhis faxing was made BE
FORE that which was made when Cyrenius was gover-
* llyspovtvut.
according to ST. LUKE, Chap. IT. £27
nor a, &c. So that the firft might be under Saturni-
nus ; the fecond under Cyrenius : which latter was
much the more famous, as it occafioned a great deal
of confufion and blood med ; the Jews refufing to
pay the tax impofed upon them. The Evangelift
therefore may be fuppofed to fay, cc I do not mean
" that famous taxing under Cyrenius, but another
" before it, viz. that under Saturninus." 6thly,
That Cyrenius,, or Quirinius, was prefecl of Syria
when that tax was impofed, againft which the Jews
rebelled as before, which was about twelve years
after our Saviour's birth, is certain, and agreed by
all : but why might he not be twice in that office ?
This tax might be begun when he was j£r/? in it ; but
fufpended (as fome learned authors fay it probably
was; fee them in Synopf. Criticorum, p. 888.) upon
the revolt of fome provinces on account of thofe ex-
aclions ; and afterwards rimmed by Saturninus when
thofe troubles were compofed ; which was at the
time of our Saviour's birth. Confidering that pro
fane hiftory leaves us in the dark as to this matter,
any one of theie anfwers^ and much more all of them
together, are abundantly fufficient to folve this diffi
culty.
Let it be here obferved, that though Jud^a, at the
time we are now fpeaking of, was by the Romans
reckoned a part of Syria in a wide fenfe ; yet it was
not then a part of it as a province to the empire, but
as a kingdom, though a tributary one. It was not re
duced into the form of a province, and had no Roman
procurator to govern it, till after the death of Herod
the Great, and the banifhment of his fon Archelaus.
However, while thofe tributary kings fubfifted, their
kingdoms were included in the taxations as enrol
ments -, though the people paid tribute only to the
, So wpaJroj {*«, Joh.i. 1^. 30. and in
other places.
king ;
Notes upon the Gofpel
king ; and the king himfelf to the Romans. After
wards, viz. when inch kings were no more, and the
countries they had governed were reduced into pro
vinces under Roman procurators, fuch as Pontius
Pilate, Felix, and Feflus, the people paid tribute to
Ctefar, as we find they did in our Saviour's time,
though not at his birth.
Ver. 4, 5. And Joieph alfo went up — -from Naza-
retb — to — Bethlehem — to be taxed — with Mary — being
great with child^ The Mefliah, according to the Pro
phets, was to be born at Bethlehem ; and fo Mary,
though living at Nazareth, is, by & fingular Providence ,
upon the occafion of this tax, brought to Bethlehem,
to be delivered there.
Ver. 7. There was no room for them in the inn~\ They
being poor mud give place to thofe who could pay
letter. And the concourfe of the people upon this
taxation muft needs be very great.
Ver. 22. And when the days of her purification — they
brought htm tojerufalem\ OBJ.I. Jofeph and the Virgin
Mary were at Bethlehem, when the wife men came with
their offerings, which we faid [note on Matth. ii. 16.]
was about a year after the birth of Jefus : here it
is faid, that when the days of her purification (i. e. thirty-
three days, Levitic. xii. 4.) were accompli/hed, they
brought him to Jerufalem^ to prefent him to the Lord.
They muft therefore return to Bethlehem after this
presentation: for thsre, according to St. Matthew, the
wife men found them, and left them. And yet, ift,
They had no habitation, and nothing to do there. 2dly,
There is no mention made of fuch a return by this
Evangelift, or any other. ANSW. ift, That they
had no habitation, and nothing to do, at Bethlehem,
is SAID without proof \ and it is more likely that they
DID lodge or fcjcurn there for tome time after the
birth of Jefus. His parents might very well think
it proper that, as he was born at Bethlehem, fo he
(hould have fome part at leaft of his education there,
by
according to ST. LUKE, Chap II. 229
by reafon of his relation to the houfe of David, whole
city Bethlehem was. adly, The filence of an hifto-
rian, as to fome particular fa£? or circumftance, proves
nothing. That they did return to Bethlehem is plain,
becaufe they were there after they went from it. But
what occaiion had any Evangelifl to give us an ex-
prefs account of their return P If we find a man in a
place which we know he went from, we may be Jure
he returned to it, without being told fo. OBJ. 2.
Well ; but, befides this filence concerning fuch their
return, we have politive evidence againft it in this
very chapter, ver. 39. And when they had performed
all things according to the law of the Lord, they re
turned [not to Bethlehem, but] into Galilee, to their
own city Nazareth. ANSW. ift, It is faid indeed, that
after the prefentation they returned to Nazareth ;
but not that this was the very next thing they did ;
they might go fome whither elfe, before they went
thither. If it be urged, that the frfl and plaineft
fenfe of the words, WHEN they had performed, &c.
They returned, &c. is, that, asfoon as they did the one,
they forthwith did the other ; I grant it. But then
I fay, id, There are innumerable inftances in all
writers, as well as thefacred, of words not to be taken
in their firft and plaineft fenfe : and they ought not to
be fo taken, if, upon comparing the authors with
themfelves, there appears good reafon that \hey Jhould
not. 2dly, They might immediately and direttly go
to Nazareth, continue there fome considerable time
too, and yet be at Bethlehem when the wife men ar
rived. And fo this text (lands not the leaft in our
way ; even if it be taken in \tsfirft ^^ plaineft fenfe ;
which, however, I have (hewn, there is no necedity
that it fhould be. Jt is here to be obferved, that
(according to this account) the time of our Saviour's
flight into Egypt mud be long after the purification,
&c. But, aher all, it is not certa;n (though much
more probable) that our Saviour was a year old, and
fome-
330 Notes upon the Gofpel
fome thing more, when the wife men arrived : Herod
indeed thought the ftar appeared at the time of his
birth ; but he might be miftaken : it might be about
the time of his conception ; and fo the wife /w*#rmight
arrive juft when he was born. Iffo, all the above-
mentioned objections vanifh at once. As for the
difficulty about the public teflimony of Simeon and
Anna, fee note on ver. 27, 28.
Ver. 25. tfhe confolation of Ifraell\ i. e. The coming
of the Meffiah, or (Thrift.
Ver. 27, 28.] And be came by thefpirit into the Tem
ple — took him up in his arms, and f aid, &c.] OBJ. How
happened it that thefe declarations, of Simeon here,
and of Anna, ver. 38. did not come to Herod's ear,
and fo endanger the child's life? ANSW. ift, Neither
of them declares him to be the Chrift in exprefs terms :
Simeon indeed ftrongly intimates it; but it is in
prophetical phrafes ; which the common people may
be eafily conceived not to have underftood, when
they were/r/? uttered. 2dly, and chiefly, The pre-
fentation of the child, and Simeon's and Anna's
fpeeches, may well be fuppofed to have been in a re
tired apartment of the Temple, where Jofeph and
Mary only, or perhaps one or two more of their rela
tions, were prefent. As to what is faid, ver. 38. that
Anna—fpake of him fo ALL them that looked for, &c.
it may very properly be underftood of all [the few]
-rHEX prefent -, and of all [her friends and acquaint
ance] as (he happened to meet, and privately converfe
with them, AFTERWARDS.
Ver. 34, 35. — Said unto Mary his mother, Behold
this child is fet—fpokcn againft. (Tea a Jword Jhall
pierce — alfo) that the thoughts — may be revealed^ Si
meon, being divinely infpired, fpeaks to the mother
only, though Jofeph was prefent ; knowing that the
child had no human father. — Is Jet for the fall and
rifing again of -many in Ifrael. i. e. Though the defign
of his coming was to lave all; yet to many, by reafon
of
according to ST. LUKE, Chap. II. 231
of their wilful infidelity, he would prove a ftumUing-
flone, or rock of offence, Rom. ix. 33. as well as' be the
author of falvation to many, who would believe in
him. Inflead of rifing again., it mould be rendered,
rifrngitp, or rifing, without any particle. Rifing, i. e.
fromyfrz; being faved. A jign, i. e. a diftinguifoed
perfon, fet up as a banner •, or enfign — That JJoallbefpoken
againft ; i.e. Jhall endure the contradiction of finners,
Heb. xii. 3. Or thus ; He (hall be fet up as a mark,
or butt, to be (hot at by the blasphemies and calum
nies of his enemies. Thofe words, Tea a Jword Jhall
pierce through thy own Joul alfo, are in a parenthelis,
and fo printed both in the original, and in tranfla-
tions : the next words, that the thoughts, &c. cannot
relate to her ; for a fword piercing her could not dif-
cover the thoughts of others. They relate to thofe
mentioned before, who mould fall, or rife ', whole
inward thoughts would be revealed, or made manifeft,
by their outward aflhns. The meaning of thofe
words, A fword Jhall pierce, &c. is, <f Nay, you your-
" felf (hall endure much grief, trouble, and affliction,
" upon the account of his fufferings." I cannot un-
derftand it, as fome do, of her own martyrdom : for
that me was martyred, is faid by nobody that I know
of, but by Epiphanius in the fourth century; whom I
apprehend to have been no very accurate writer.
And it is to me improbable that God mould fuffer a
perfon fo highly honoured, the mod fo of any mere
creature, (the higheft archangel not excepted), to be
burnt, torn, or mangled, by rude profane ruffians.
If it be faid, her holy fon, and Lord himfelf, God as
well as man, was fo treated ; I anfwer, that was necef-
fary for the falvation of mankind : which cannot be
faid in this cafe.
Ver. 37. Departed not from the T'emp/e^] i. e. Con-
jlantly attended there at the hours of prayer. It is not
to be fuppofed (lie was always there. Expreffions
of this nature are common: thus in vulgar difcourfe,
" He
«3 3 Notes upon the Gofpel
<c He is NEVER out of his company," &c. And
Levitic. x. 7. Aaron and his Tons are commanded
not to go out of the door of the Tabernacle, i. e. during
the time of their miniftry.
Ver. 43 . The child Jefus tarried behind — and Jofeph
and his mother knew not of it] OBJ. How came they
to go away without him ? And how was it pofiible
they mould not mifs him ? ANSW. The paflage is
fomewhat obfcure, for want of our being acquainted
with the manner and circumflances of people's tra
velling upon thofe occafions. It is certain they went
in vaft companies, or caravans, as they are now called
in the eaflern countries. And fome fay, the men
and women travelled feparately, till they came to
their inns at night. So that Mary might fuppofe
him to be with Jofeph, and Jofeph might fuppofe
him to be with Mary.
Ver. 44. In the company] The caravan aforefaid.
Ibid. Went a days journey] Continued their jour
ney homeivards, for a day.
Ver. 49. Wljl ye [knew ye] not that I miift be about
my Father's bujinefs?] Or, in my Father's houfe : a as
the words of the original may be rendered.
CHAP. III.
VERSE i . Pontius Pilate being governor of Judcea ;
and Herod being tetrarch — Lifanias telrarch of
Abilene] A tetrarch is a governor of a fourth divi/ion
of any region, or country. Upon the death of Herod
the Great, his kingdom was divided into four parts :
three of them called tetrarchiss, as here mentioned :
the fourth divifion was that of Judaea, which, after
the depofition of Archelaus, was made a province of
* '£» TO<V T£ TrotTfoj f^ov. See the Critics.
the
according to ST. LUKE, Chap. III. 333
the Roman empire, and governed by a Roman pro
curator, or deputy: as Pontius Pilate, Felix, Feftus.
This governor was not called a tetrarch, like the other
three, becaufe his jurifdiction was of another kind.
He was a mere lieutenant, having a commijjion only for
a certain time, or during pleafure. They were a fort of
kings, had their authority for life, &c. Accordingly,
Herod (i. e. Herod Antipas) is called both tetrarch,
and king) in the fame chapter. Matth. xiv.
Ver. 2. Annas and Caiaphas being the High Priefts~\
Qy. i. How could there be two High Priefts at the
fame time ? ANSW. We have mention in Jofephus
of Jonathan and Ananias, Ananus and Jems, as
High Priefts at the fame time. There were proba
bly many who bore that name, even all who had borne
that office, which, by the corruption of the times, and
the fubjedion of the Jews to a foreign power, was,
from being hereditary, and for life, now become an
nual. Since therefore there were fo many called High
Priefts; Qu. 2. Why does St. Luke mention only
thefe two ? Mr. Selden anfwers, As in the firft verfe
he had given an account of their external government
by tetrarchs, and procurators ; fo in this he gives an
account of that civil and facred government, which
was left to be managed by themf elves, by the Sanhe
drim, and High Prieft. And becaufe Annas was then
their Najt, or prince of the Sanhedrim, whence he is
called the Ru/er of the people, Acts xxiii. 5. and Caia-
phas was High Prieft that year ; therefore they only
are here named, as having the chief authority, facred
and civil, in their hands.
Ver. 4, 5. As it is written — Prepare ye the way —
Every valley— flail be made fmooth~\ See Difc. IJ.
Ver. ii. He that hath tivo coats — that hath meat, let
him do likewife^ For thefe proverbial e-xpieffions, which
are not to be taken literally, and Jiri&ly, fee note on
Matth. v. 39 — 41. The meaning here is : " Be libe-
" ral,
234 Notes upon the Gofpel
" ra/, according to your abilities, in giving raiment
" and/<W to thofe who want them."
Ver. 1 2. Publicans^ Ciiftom-houfe collectors, or tax-
gatherers.
Ver. 1 3 . Exaft no more than that which is appointed
jyofl.] i. e. Do not make people /vzy more than is levied
upon them by /aw, do not extort money from them
to your own private ufe.
Ver. 14. four wages^] Your pay.
Ver. 23. And Jefus himfelf began to be about thirty
years of age ; being (as was fuppofed) the fon of Jofeph >
which was the Jon of Heli^\ The firft claufe mould be
rendered thus : a And Jefus himfelf was about thirty
years of age, when he began [his mmiftry], or entered
upon his office. In the latter claufe, according to
many very learned men, Gomarus, Spanheim, LJlher,
Lightfoot, Gerrh. Joh. Voffius, a late learned French
writer, Mr. Archdeacon Yardley, band, I think, others,
with whom I entirely agree, the words are all right, as
St. Luke wrote them ; but the parenthejis is wrong
placed by modern tranfcribers and publifhers, there
being no parenthefes in ancient manufcripts. That
Jofeph was the fon of Heli, i. e. hi$fon-m-/aw, is very
true ; and it is no unufual thing to g\vezfon-in-law the
name oifon. But it does not therefore follow, that
St. Luke HERE affirms this of him. Here is no oc-
cafion for inferring Jofeph in the genealogy of Mary :
and though he be named in this verfe, yet it need
not be conceived that he here fupplies the place of
one generation, or comes in as a member of the genea
logy. Thus then. According to the printed copies of
the New Teftament, and moft tranilations, ours in
particular, the order of the words is this : " Jefus —
* Kat cti/Tct; r>v o I*jcr5? wrt) Irav rpiaxovrx, i*5A/,r.,v,.
b Some of thefe exprefsly ajfert, that the parenthefis is wrong .
the reft imply it, by faying that wbjcb was tbe fon fhould fuppofe
tic?, not via' of which hereafter.
" being
according to ST, LUKE, Chap. III. 235
cc being (as was fuppofed) the Ton of Jofeph, which
" was the ion of Heli." Tlie words, which ivas the
Jon, are not in the Greek, and therefore in our Engliih.
Bibles are printed in italic. According to which,
the Evangelift fays Jefus was fuppofed to be the fon
of Jofeph ; which Jofeph was the fon of Heli. This
conjoins Jofeph and Heli, as fon and father. But it
feems better to diftinguifh the text thus : " Jefus —
" being (as was fuppofed, the fon of Jofeph) of Heli:"
or in other words ; <c Jefus (who was fuppofed to be
« the fon of Jofeph) was the fon of Heli." There
fore as the word fon, which is exprejjed in the former
part of this fentence, relates to Jefus; fo the word fon,
which is fupplied in the latter part to complete the
fenfe, relates likewife to him, as the fon, i. e. the
grandfon of Heli : grandfon of Heli, by being fon of
Mary; [fee note on Matth. i. 16. p. 81.] who
[Mary] is not here named, becaufe it was not the
ctiftom of the Jews to deduce the genealogies of
women : and that ftie was our Saviour's mother, we
are fufficiently informed by the Evangelifls in other
places. If this then be fact, thofe who infert fon
in the genitive, inflead of fon in the nominative*, and
make the inferted word fon to be put in apportion
with Jofeph; and likewife thofe verfions which read,
which was the fon of Heli, making Jofeph to be here
mentioned, as the fon of Heli ; have miftaken the
meaning of the Evangelift. The proofs of the main
point are thefe : ill, It is beyond queftion, and al
lowed by all, that the word fuppofed relates only to
Jofeph, as a fuppofed father-, why then, according
to the rules of orthography, is not the parenthefis
placed fo as to include Jofeph, to whom alone, as the
fuppofed father of Jefus, that word particularly be
longs? 2dly, The common reading, by means of
the lituation of the parenthelis, makes Jofeph the
a yta inftead of wo$.
fou
Notes upon the Go/pel
fon of Heli ; Hcli the Ton of Matthat ; and fo of
the reft; and fuppofes that the bufinefs of the Evan-
gelift is to trace the genealogy of Jofeph up to Adam.
But is this to be conceived by any one who atten
tively regards the chapter? At ver. 21, 2-2. he tells
us, that, after Jefus was baptized, the heaven was
opened — the Holy Ghoft defcended — a voice came from
heaven, which faid, Thou art my beloved fon , &c. And
doth it feem in the leaft probable, that St. Luke,
whofe thoughts were full of this glorious manifefta-
tion, and proclamation from heaven, teftifying that
Jefus was t\\z fon of God., mould inflantly turn his
pen, and fill fifteen or iixteen verfes with the genea
logy of Jofeph ? Would not this have been a very
unfkilful, ill-timed, and ill-placed digrejjion f Was it
not more proper for him to go on in {hewing that
THIS JESUS, who was thus glorioufly declared the
fon of God, was indeed the fon of God ; and was with
equal truth the fon of man ; being, according to the
flefh, truly defcended from Heli, and fo on up to
Adam ? Upon the whole, it appears plainly that St.
Luke's mention of Jofeph is only by the bye, and
ought by a parenthens to be diftinguifhed, and cut
off from the reft of the chapter; in which there feems
not to be one word more relating to him. 3dly, It
is agreed on all hands, that it is neceffary to fupply
the fenfe with the word fon between each of the de
grees in the genealogy; but whether in the nominative
or genitive, vw or u£, is the queftion. The common
opinion is for the latter, and fo makes each perfon
in the pedigree the ion of him who is named imme
diately after him : it makes Jefus the fuppofed fon
of Jofeph ; Jofeph the fon of Heli ; Heli the fon of
Matthat ; and at length Seth the fon of Adam; and
Adam the fon of God. But this is fo far from particu
larly diftinguijbing and characterizing THAT JESUS,
whofe hiftory the Evangelift writes, that the fame ar
gument will prove every one of thefons of Adam to be
the
according to ST. LUKE, Chap. III. 537
thefon of God. We are indeed all of usfons of God in
an improper fenfe, as we are his creatures. But St.
Luke's delign (as appears from what we above ob-^
ferved) was to (hew that Jefus was properly the ion of
God, in a fuper eminent and incommunicable manner, fo
as no other man ever was, is, or can be ; and more
over to (hew that he was really and truly man, as be
ing defcended from Adam. Whereas, if, according
to the other interpretation, the fenfebe fupplied with
the word Jon in the genitive, Jefus is here laid to be
the fon of God, only as the other perfons in the ge
nealogy are fo; or at leaft only as Adam, who was
immediately created by God, was thereby entitled to
be called his fon. Which cannot be; becaufe (as we
have feen) in the words immediately before the genea
logy, we have the hiftory of his being declared the
fon of God in an infinitely higher fenfe j and from a
multitude of other texts he is proved to be the fon of
God in fuch a fenfe, and to be himfelf God. From
what has been faid it appears, that, to complete the
fenfe, the word fon in the nominative ought to be ##-
derftood, and repeated before every member of this ge
nealogy ; and muft be taken to refer to, and be put
in apportion with, Jefus, whofe genealogy this is.
Thus then : St. Luke afferts that Jefus was the fon
of Heli— That Jefus was the fon of Matthat, &c.
That Jefus was the fon of David — That Jefus was
the fon of Jefle, &c. — That Jefus was the fon of
Seth — That Jefus was the fon of Adam, and fo
truly and naturally the fon of man — And that Je
fus likewife was the fon of God. And that this is
no arbitrary expofition, appears from Gen. xxxvi.
where ver. 2. Aholibamah, one of Efau's wives,
is faid to be the daughter of Anah, the daugh
ter of Zibeon the Hivite. Now Anah appears from
the following part of the chapter to have been a
man, and the fon of Zibeon, ver. 24. And there
fore the word daughter •, in both members, is applied
to
238 Notes upon tie Gofpel
to Aholibamah ; and the conftru&ion is this : Aho-
libamah the daughter of Anah, Aholibamah the
daughter of Zibeon ; Anah being the father, and
Zibeon the grandfather, of Aholibamah. That fon
and daughter in the Scriptures,, and in other writings
too, often iignify no more than a descendant from
fuch or fuch a perfon, not an immediate fon or
daughter, is well known, and we need fay no more
of it. Note here, by the way ; this does not contra
dict what we have elfewhere faid, that women do not
bear a part in genealogies. Becaufe, ift, This fhort
account of Aholibamah deferves not the name of a
formal, pr of effed genealogy. Or if it did,, yet, 2dly, What
we faid relates to the Jewifh genealogies, not to thofe
of the Hivites, or any other heathen nation. And if
it be farther obje&ed, that in Matth. i. Tamar,
Rahab, Ruth, and Bathlhebah are named; I anfwer,
They are only named incidentally, or by the bye; not
as branches, or members of the genealogy : as the Virgin
Mary mini have been, had Jhe been mentioned, be-
caufe her fon had no human father.
Ver. 24. Which was the Jon of Matthat, which was
the fon of Levi^ That thefe two names are to be re
tained in the genealogy, not to be left out, as fome
would have it, fee fufficiently proved by Mr. Arch
deacon Yardley : [Genealogies of Jefus Ghrift, Part II.
fed. 6.] from whofe very learned, judicious, and
accurate work, far the greatefl part of the notes upon
the foregoing verfe is tranfcribed in his own words.
I recommend the whole treatife to the reader, as one
of the moil curious and ufeful pieces of criticifm I
ever law.
Ver. 36. Whkh was the fon of Cainan, ivhich was the
Jon of Arphaxad^ For the famous difpute about the
fecond Cainan, I refer to the fame learned author ;
who has very lately confidered? and, I think, exhaufted,
the fubjeft. Geneal. Part II. fed. 2.
Ver. 38, Which was the f on of Adam, which was the
fon
according to ST. LUKE, Chap. III. 239
fon of God1\ See the notes on ver. 23. St. Luke con
cludes the genealogy, by declaring the two natures in
Chrift; the human, by which he was the Ton of
Adam, and the feed of the woman, which was promifed
to Adam : the divine, by which he was the fon of
God, as proclaimed by a voice from heaven, ver. 22. It
is obfervable,that Matthew, writing to the Jews, de
duced the genealogy in fuch a manner, as to mew
that Jefus was heir of Abraham and David, and fo
THEIR Meffiah ; in whom the covenant made with.
Abraham was fulfilled. But Luke, who wrote to
the Greeks, and other Gentiles, traced up the pedi
gree to the very original of mankind-, lignifying there
by, that THIS was HE, who, being born for the com
mon good of mankind, mould confer upon all, who be
lieved in him, the right of being God's children in a
fpiritual fenfe, which Adam and his defendants had
loft ; and who mould be the Saviour not only of the
Jews, but of all defcended from Adam.
CHAP. IV.
VERSE 13. The Devil — departed from him for a
feafon^\ For he aflaulted him again at his paf-
Jion. See Lukexxii. 53.
Ver. 1 6. Stood up for to read~\ To read, and to ex
pound, the Scriptures.
Ver. 17. There was delivered to him, &c.] i.e. by
the minijler or officer of \h& fynagogue . See ver. 20.
Ver. 19. The acceptable year of the Lord^\ The year
(i. e. the time) of releafe, and deliverance from Jin,
under the Gofpelj like the joyful year of jubilee under
the Law.
Ver. 22. Is not this Jofeptfs fon /] They won
dered that one of fo mean a condition and education
mould fpeak fo poiverfully.
Ver. 23. Phyjician heal thyfelf — do a/fo here in thy
own
Notes upon tie Gofpel
own country^ Qu. How is this proverb applied, fince
he fuppoies them to fpeak not of himfelf, but of his
countrymen f ANSW. The fenfe is in effe5l the fame.
One's own relations and countrymen are next to onis
ftlf. " Since you have worked fuch miracles at Ca-
" pernaum, why do you not the lame here at Naza-
" reth, which is your own native place?" For fo they
thought it : and it was indeed the place of his abode,
though not of his birth.
Ver. 24. No prophet is accepted in his own country^]
As if he mould have faid : 'c Since you are fo per-
" veriely prejudiced againft me, upon the account of
" my mean parentage, which is fo well known to you
" among whom I have lived; you are not worthy to
<c have fo many miracles wrought among you, as
" others have had." See notes on Matth. xiii. 57, 58.
I fay fo many miracles ; for he did work fome even
among tbefe people, as appears from the pafTage in
St. Matthew now referred to.
Ver. 25. The heaven was Jhut up three years and
fix months^ OBJ. It appears from i Kings xviii. i.
compared with the narrative following, that the
drought ended in the third year : how then is it true
that the heaven was Jhut up (i. e. there was no rain)
for three years and a half? ANSW. In that place
cannot be meant the third year of the drought, (be-
caufe it was faid, chap. xvii. i. There jhall be no rain
for theft years* i. e. three years AT LEAST, the word in
the Hebrew being plural, not dual,) but. rather of
Elijah's flay at Sarepta, or Zarephath. He dwelt at
the brook Cherith a year; for the brook is faid to be
dried up at the end of days, [Heb.] i. e, a year, as the
word days is often taken. And he might flay at
Sarepta above two years; and after many days (i Kings
xviii. i.) mew himfelf to Ahab. And fure thole
many days MIGHT make up half a year -, and our Sa
viour may be allowed to have known that they DID
fo.
Ver.
according to ST. LUKE, Chap. IV. 241
Ver. 25, 2,6, 27. Many widows were in IJrael — but
to none of them was Ellas Jent, fave to Sarepta, &c.
And many lepers — hit none of them — -fave Naaman the
Syrian^ The fenfe is, ce As, in the days of Elijah and
" Elifhah, the Jews, though God's own people, were
" for their wickednefs neglefted, and fome Gentiles
" for their good difpofitions encouraged by him j fo
" it (ball be now in the difpenfation of the Gofpel."
The particle rendered fave, twice ufed in this paf-
fage, is not exceptive, but dijcretive : for it would not
be fenfe to fay, no Jews, EXCEPT Gentiles. See note
on Matth.xii. 38, 39.
Ver. 28. Filled with wrath~\ For \\Vsrefleffions upon
their unworthincjs, and his feerning to prefer the Gen
tiles before the Jews.
Ver. 30. PaJJing through the midft of them, &c.] Be
coming iftvjfible, or otherwije efcaping by miracle.
Ver. 33. Cried outl\ i. e. T^he Devil, through bis
organs, cried out.
Ver. 34. Let us alone , what have WE, &c.] It is
common for a Jingle perfon to fpeak thus in the
plural., including others with himfelf. We> i.e. I, and
the reft of us — we Devils.
Ver. 41. And Devils aljo came out of many ; crying
out, and faying, Thou art Cbrift, the Son of God : And
he, rebuking them,Juffered them not to Jpeak ; for they
knew that he was Chrift^ Qu. Why mould he rebuke
them, and not fuffer them to fpeak ; when they de
clared that he was Chrift, and the Son of God ? Is
not the teftimony of an enemy the bed evidence ?
ANSW. Suffered them not to fpeak ; i. e. not to fpeak
any more ; for they had fpoke, and teftified of him ;
and he had permitted it. He only rebukes them, and
iilences them afterwards, to (hew \\\*> authority and
power over them ; and to intimate that their bearing
witnefs 6^ him was not out of good will to him ; but
that this confeflion was extorted from them by the
R over-
242 Notes upon the Gofpel
over-ruling providence of God. Notwithftanding
this rebuke, their teftimony was \^ full force.
CHAP. V.
VERSE 3. Tbruft out a little from the land] Pujh
\thejhip, Of J!JKng*toaf\ a little from thejbore.
Ver. 8. Depart from me \ for I am a finful man., O
Lord] i. e. The fenfe of my lins awes and con
founds me, as unworthy of fo holy a prefence.
Ver. 10. Tboujhalt catch men] Men, inftead tffijh.
Catch them ; i. e. bring them into the church-, which
is compared to a net. Matth. xiii. 47. In Matth. iv.
19. he fpeaks in the plural ; / will make you fijhers
of men. He faid this to all, but to Peter more ejpe-
cially.
Ver. 17. The power of the Lord was prefent to heal
them] 'Them ; i. e. thofe wbo came to be healed of
their infirmities, ver. 15. It does not relate to the
Pharifees and Doctors mentioned in thisverfe. There
are feveral inftances of fuch conftruclions both in the
facred and otber authors. See note on chap. ix. 13. and
Whitby upon this very verfe.
Ver. 30. THEIR Scribes and Pharifees] i. e. The
Scribes and Pharifees of THAT PLACE.
Ver. 39. No man alfo, having drunk old wine,ftraight-
130 ay defer eth new ; for he faith, the old is better] u Even
<e fo my raw Difciples muft not bzprefently engaged in
" thefe aufterities of life, which may at firfl be offen-
cc five to them ; they liking their eld way beft : but
c< muft by degrees be brought to obferve them." For
. the reft, from ver. 34. to this verfe, fee the notes on
Matth. ix. 15, 1 6, 17.
CHAP-
according to ST. LUKE, Chap. VI. 243
CHAP. VI.
VERSE I. The fecond fabbath after the firfti This
may feem a ftrange expreffion. Is not every
fecond after a firft ? It is anfwered ; it ought to be
rendered, on the fecond prime, or chief ^fdbbatb*. For
there were three prime, or chief, fabbaths. i. When
the chief day of the Paffbver; 2. When the feaft of
Pentecoft -, 3. When the chief day of the feaft of
Tabernacles ; fell on a fabbath. Peniecofl therefore is
here meant; as Grotius and Dr. Hammond have
ihewn : though fome underftand it of the fabbath
after the fecond day of the Pajfover: fee Whitby;
whofe only reafon againft the other account is cer
tainly very weak. He fuppofes that at Pentecoft there
could be no corn ftanding for the Difciples to pluck ;
becaufe Pentecoft was likewife called the feaft of Har-
veft, and conlequently all the corn was then in the
barns. As if there could be no barveft-time, till har-
veft is over. The contrary, one would think, mould
be the better confequence.
Ver. 12. In prayer to God~\ If the word here ren
dered prayer be rightly fo rendered, the exprefiion in
the original is very fingular: literally thus-, [He con
tinued] in the prayer (or in prayer) of God b. But
as the word often fignifies an oratory, or place to pray
in, it were better tranflated, <c He continued all night
c< in an oratory of God, or an houfe of prayer"
Ver. 13. When — he named apoftles^\ The word.
apoftle iignifies mejjenger, amlajfador^ a perfon dif-
patched upon iomefpecial bulineis, &c.
u. That oBvrf^o7rpu~ov niould be the
fame with hvrepv v^uro», according to analogy, may be accounted
for. See Grotius and Hammond upon the place.
R2 Ver.-
244 Notes upon tie Gofpel
Ver. 20. Bleffed be ye poor, &c.] For fome parts
ofthefermon on the Mount, repeated here, and chap.
xi. xii. fee note on Matth. v. 2. Te poor: i. e.
either poor in fpirit, as Matth. v. or poor in fortune,
and bearing your poverty with a Chriftian temper ;
or both.
Ver. 21. Bleffed are ye that hunger, &c.] Either
hunger after rigbteoujnefs, as in St. Matthew •, or want
necejfary food, and bear it patiently; or £0/£.
Ibid. Weep — laugh.] See note on Matth. v. 4.
Ver. 24. #fo «»/o jy0# that are neb] i. e. Are rich,
and live ^j rich men ujually do, trufting in riches, and
forgetting God ; being covetous, or luxurious, &c.
That this is the ienfe, appears from the next words,
For you have received your confolation. Compare this
with chap. xvi. 25. It is not &fin to be rich, merely
in itjelf, or upon its own account.
Ver. 25. Woe unto you that are full — that laugh,
Sec. — ] i. e. Are full, and make an ill uje of that ful-
nefs, as above. Laugh ; i. e. rejoice, and that again
immoderately, finfully, in carnalfecurity, &c.
Ver. 26. Woe unto you, when all men Jhall fpeak well
of you] In all the ancient copies of the original the
word all is not found ; but it is added in the Syriac
and Arabic verlions. It fhould be rendered there
fore. When men Jhall Jpeak well of you. Men; i.e.
the generality : and the generality being corrupt and
vicious, it is an ill character to be well fpoken of by
them. Not that this holds univerfally, as aphorifms
of this nature feldom do : it is fo for the mcft part j
and that is fufficient to warrant fuch maxims.
Ver. 30. Give to every one — and of him that taketh
away — ajk not again] For the former, fee the note
on Matth. v. 42. For the latter, fee the foregoing
note in the fame chapter, ver. 39 — 41. " Suffer wrongy
" rather than vp to law, if the loft be not confidera-
« bier
Ver. 32. FOR if ye love, &c.] This for relates to
ver.
according to ST. LUKE, Chap. VI. 345
ver. 27, 28. the three next verfes being, as it were,
in a parenthefis. There are feveral inftances of this
conftruction, as I have more than once obferved.
Ver. 33. If ye do good to them who do good to yoit.J
i<e. to them only. So again,
Ver. 34. If ye lend to them [only] of whom ye hope
to receive.
Ver. 35. Lend, hoping for nothing (-gain.] i. e. Do
fo to thole who are in want.
Ver. 38. Shall men give, &c.] It fhould be rendered,
jhallbe given a. There is no men in the original. It
may be given by men-, but certainly will be given by
God.
Ver. 39. And hefpake a parable to them; Can the
blind) &c.] Interpreters have, I think, given them-
felves a needlefs trouble in endeavouring to find out
the connexion between thefe and the foregoing words :
and fo again at ver. 40. The difciple is not above his
mafter: and at ver. 41. And why beholdeft thou the
mote, Sec. And the fame may be faid of a palfage
above, ver. 27. BUT I "fay — love your enemies. In
thefe, and other inftances, there is no connection at
all : and what then ? Why might not our Saviour
fometimes drop his divine layings, as Solomon does his
proverbs, unconnected, and independent of one an
other ? Very often indeed there is a connection, not
perceivable atf,rft fight-, and then it is neceffary for an
Expoiitor to explain it.
Ver. 40. Every one [of the Difciples] that is perfeff,
/hall be [rather will be] as his mafter^ \. e. The Difci
ple that perfectly underjlands the rules, fees the exam-
pie of his Mailer, and Jincerely defires to imitate him,
will tread in his fteps, do and fuffer as his Mafter
did j and fo will be like him.
for &0J70-iT«». Hebraifm.
R 3 CHAP.
346 Notes upon the Gofpel
CHAP. VII.
VERSE 29. Jujtified God] i. e. approved, ap
plauded, gave thanks for, his wifdom and good-
xefs, in calling them to repentance by the preaching
of John the Baptift.
Ver. 30. The Pharifees and Lawyers rejected the coun-
Jel of God AGAINST themjelves] It mould be rendered,
TOWARDS themjelves, i\s sayraj. " They rejected the
" gracious defign and purpofe of God towards them :"
which was, that they (hould befaved by the preach-
ing and baptifm of John and of Chrift.
Ver. 21. And the Lord fold] Thefe words are not
in many of the beft and moft ancient manufcripts.
If they are admitted, the two foregoing verfes muft
be the words of the hiflorian, St. Luke : if not, they
muft be the words of our Saviour. The fenfe of
them is very good either way.
Ver. 40. Simon] That was the name of the Pha-
rifee, the mafler of the houfe.
Ver. 47. Her fins, which are many, are forgiven ;
FOR Jhe loved much] Rather, THEREFORE " Jhe
u loved, and continues to love, much-, and has given
if thefe teflimonies of it." That the particle fhould
be fo rendered, appears not only from the plain im
port of the foregoing parable ; in which he that had
the greater debt forgiven is therefore fuppofed to have
greater love to the creditor; not to be therefore for
given, becaufe he had that love; but alfo from the fig-
nification of the Hebrew and Greek particles a.
Ibid. But to whom little is forgiven, the fame loveth
little] Take the fenfe of the whole verfe in thefe
words, extracted by Dr. Clarke from Grotius, Mede,
a The Hebrew *D promifcuoufiy taken for the Greek art and
J«'T», and thofe two for each other. See Hammond and Mede
upon the place.
and
according to ST. LUKE, Chap. VII. 247
and others; with a little variation, which I (hall make.
" So far is this woman from being unworthy to touch
" me by reafon of her fins, which are indeed, as you
" fuppofe, great and many ; that, on the contrary,
" God having forgiven her thofe many and great
" fins upon her fmcere repentance, the fenfe of that
" mercy has filled her heart with fuch ardent love
" and gratitude, as exprefles itfelf in far more extra-
cc ordinary in (lances of humble and devout thank-
" fulnefs, than you, who think you have but little for-
" given you, do, or can exprefs ; or than Jhe ber/elf*
" if (he had lejs forgiven her, would have tefttfied.
" And this makes her more worthy of my company,
" than thofe who think themfelves fo holy as to need
" little or no forgivenefs."
Ver. 48. Thy fins are forgiven^ This is only &frejh
declaration, renewal^ or confirmation of the pardon ;
her fins were forgiven before, ver. 47.
Ver. 49. WITHIN tbemfehes^ Or [whifpering]
AMONG tbemf elves ^ lv l
CHAP. VIII.
\
VERSE 12, 13, 14, 15. Thofe by the way-fide
are — Tbey on the rock are — That which fell
among thorns are — That on the good ground are they,
which in an honeft> &c.] The reader is defired to per-
ufe, and confider attentively, the notes on Mark
iv. ver. 15. 20. 26, 27, 28, 29. Much has been
there faid of the exprejffions in this parable, as related
by St. Matthew and St. Mark, concerning the Jeedy
and tbofe who receive it. But here, as it is related
by St. Luke, are frefli difficulties. For the clearing
of which, I obferve, firfl, that by the feed is cer
tainly meant the word of God: for fo our Saviour
exprefsly fays, Mark iv. 14. and here in this chapter,
R 4 ver,
348 Notes upon the Gofpel
ver. ii. Secondly, That in St. Matthew and St.
Mark the feed, and thofe who receive if, are clearly
diftinguifhed from each other in all the four divi-
iions. [See Matth. xiii. 19, 20, 21, 22, 23. Mark iv.
15, 1 6, 17, 18, 19, 20.] Therefore St. Luke's ex-
preflion, which is obfcure, ought to be interpreted by
theirs, which is />/#/#. For, thirdly, here, in St.
Luke, is an unujual manner of fpeech, ver. 14, 15.
THAT which fell among thorns are THEY — THAT on
the good ground are THEY — I can account for it no
way but this; that in the word that the feed, by a
metonymy of the adjunct, is put for thofe who recei-ve it ;
as elfewhere, on the contrary, [fee note on Mark iv.
26, 27, &c.] thofe who receive it are put for the feed.
As to the two firft verfes of this paffage, the i2th
and 1 3th, 'Thofe by the way -fide — They on the rocky
(and the fame is to be faid of the fame expreffions
in the other two Evangelifts ;) it is an ellipjis, to be
filled up thus : Thofe [who are reprefented by the
ground] by the way -fide : Thofe [who are reprefented
by the ground] on the rock. So Matth. xiii. 19. This
is he [who is reprefented by the ground] which re
ceived feed by the way -fide. Mark iv. 15. Thefe are
they [who are reprefented by the ground] by the way-
fide. And fo of the reft.
Ver. 14. Go forth .] i. e. Go abroad into the world,
and are involved in the bufmefs and cares of it.
Ver. 1 6, 17. No man, when he hath light ed, &c. —
For nothing is fecret, &c.] See note on Mark iv. 21,
22.
Ver. 53. Laughed him to fcorn^\ So it is tranflated
here, and in the two foregoing Evangelifts. But in
the original it is only, they laughed at him, or derided
him, Y.ct\tyixtov auVS. Which may imply no more
than a fmile joined with fomewhat of a contemptuous
pity — " Alas ! he knows nothing of the matter : me
" is thoroughly dead." But laughing him tofcorn gives
an idea of a loud, rude laughter j of hooting and ex
ploding
according to ST. LUKE, Chap, IX. 249
plotting him. Which is too grofs in itfelf, and not
hinted in the original.
CHAP. IX.
VERSE 4. fbere abide, and thence, depart] The
fenfe is, " Stay in that houfe as long as you
" ftay in that city" Which they muft do, if they
left that houfe, and that city, at the fame time. See
note on Matth. x. 1 1.
Ver. 9. John have I beheaded', but who is thisf]
OBJ. Here he \& doubtful^ and afks a queflion: in Matth.
xiv. 2. he is pof^tive, and offer ts that this is John the
Baptift, rifen from the dead. ANSW. i. He may very
well be fuppofed to have fpoken upon this fubject at
different times ; to have been doubtful at one time,
and confident at another. Or, 2. He might very well
fpeak both thefe things at the fame time, be both
doubtful and pofitive in the fame fpeech. As thus :
<c Who is this extraordinary man? Sure it cannot be
" John the, Baptift; for him I have beheaded : though
" fome of you fay, (ver. 7.) he is rifen from the dead.
" And indeed, upon further thoughts, I am per-
" fuaded that is the real truth."
Ver. 32. Peter, and they — were heavy with Jleep^\
The transfiguration was probably in the night.
Ver. 33. Not knowing what he faid.'] He fpoke as
in a dream, or between jleeping and waking.
Ver. 44. Let thefe fay ings fink down, &c.] i. e. Let
what I am going to fay make a deep impreffion upon
you. For [notwithstanding this admiration, and thefe
applaufes of the people, upon the account of my mi
racles and good works] the Son of man jhall be de
livered, &c.
Ver. 5 1 . When the time was come that he Jhould be
received
250 Notes upon tie Gvfpcl
received up I] Received up , i. e. into heaven, and con-
fequently die at Jeruialenij which was to be before
the other.
Ibid. He Jiedfaftly fet Us face to go, Sec.] i. e. He
firmly purpofed and refolved to go to Jerufalem, and
actually let about it, by paffing from Galilee through
Samaria.
Ver. 53. Vhey did not receive him, becanfe his face
was as though he would go tojerufahm~\ Not that they
refuted to entertain all Jews who were going to Je
rufalem ; but they could not endure that fo great a
Prophet as Jefus mould go to Jerufalem upon a re
ligious account, viz. to worfhip at the feaft : which
was determining the controverfy about the place of
worfhip (fee John iv. 20.) againil them.
Ver. 55. Ye know not what manner offpirit ye are
0/7J Either, " You do not know your own hearts :
" you think this proceeds from pure zeal for me ;
" whereas there is in it a great mixture of inordinate
" paffion, and private revenge, &c." Or, <c You know
<c not tbefpirit, nature, and temper of the Chriftian re-
<f ligion, the fpirit of the Gofpel, which is very diffe-
" rent from that of the Law." This agrees befl with
the next words ; FOR the Son of man, &c.
Ver. 62. No man, having put his hand to the plough,
and looking backy is fit for the kingdom of God~\ The
proverb is eafy. He who lays his hand to the plough
(undertakes any work) muft look forwards, not back
wards. " If you are hankering after your family and
" relations ; and, before you follow me, muft needs
"fee them, who probably will divert you from your
" resolution*, you are not well difpofed* to embrace the
« Gofpel."
* So itftnvf fhould be rendered.
CHAP.
according to ST. LUKE, Chap. X.
CHAP. X.
VERSE i . Other feventy-—be himfelf would cornel]
i. e. Befides the twelve Apoftles, chap. vi. 13. ix.
i. he ordained fevenfy other fete ft Difcipks, of an infe
rior order to the Apoflles ; and fent them to be his
harbingers, by preaching the Gofpel in fuch places as
he himfelf intended to vifit.
Ver. 2. The harvefl truly — labourers into his har-
vejtl] Thefe words are fpoken upon a different occa-
Jiony and to different perfons, Matth. ix. 37, 38. See
Preface, p. ix. And fo again in this chapter, ver. 3, 4.
— to ver. 12. Part of the fame fpeech is fpoken to
the f even fy, which in Matth. x. and even in the fore
going chapter of this very Gofpel, is fpoken to the
twelve. And the words at ver. 13, 14, 15. Woe unto
tbee, Chorazin — thru ft down to hell, in Matth. xi. 21,
22, 2,3. are fpoken neither to the twelve, nor to the
feventy, but to the people. That thefermon upon the
Mount in St. Matthew is broken into feveral pieces,
and uttered upon feveral occalions, in St. Luke,
chap. vi. xi. xii. I have before obferved. And what
is faid to the multitudes, Matth. xxiii. concerning the
hypocrify and other wickednefsof the Scribes and Pha-
rifees, &c. and the woes denounced againft them, is
faid in Luke xi. to a.fma/1 company at a private enter
tainment. Many more inflances might be given, par
ticularly from the i2th and i3th chapters of this
Gofpel : but thefe are enough.
Ver. 4. Salute no man by the wayl\ i. e. fo as to lofe
time. Salutations in the eaftern countries were long and
ceremonious.
Ver. 6. The fon of peace^\ i. e. A pious and well-
difpofed perfon. For this, and the whole verfe, fee
note on Matth. x. n. 13.
Ver. 7. And in the fame — Go not from honfe to hwfel\
See
Notes upon the Gofpel
See note on chap. ix. 4. " Change not your loclg-
tf ings for the Take of better entertainment."
Ver. 1 8. / beheld Satan as lightning fall from hea-
<veu^\ As if he fhould have faid ; " No wonder the
" Devils (ver. 17.) are fobjeft to you through my name :
" for I have long forefeen, or foreknown, the fatt of
" Satan's kingdom by the power of my Gofpel." So
the Prophet concerning the king of Babylon : How
art thou fallen from heaven, O Lucifer ! Ifaiah xiv. 12.
Perhaps too this is an allufton to the real fall of Satan
from heaven, when he was expelled out of it for his
rebellion.
Ver. 20. Notwithftanding) in this rejoice not — written
in heaven.~\ i. e. Rejoice not so MUCH in your power
of cajling out Devils, which even a wicked man may
have, AS in your Jpiritual graces, and your being or
dained to eternal life.
Ver. 29. He, willing to jujlify himfeJf, faid — Who is
my neighbour f~\ <To jijftify himfelf^ i. e. to fet himfelf
out as a jujl perfon. He took it for certain, and for
granted, that he loved God, and performed his duty
to him, by ftrictly obferving the ceremonial law. But
becaufe it might be doubtful how far the word neigh
bour extended, he afked the queftion,/f#0/j my neigh
bour ? Had he been anfwered, according to the re
ceived opinion among the Jews, that only thofe of
their own nation were their neighbours, he would
have thought himfclf perfect in that refpect alfo.
Ver. 36, 37. Which no^v — was neighbour unto him,
&c . — He thatjhewed mercy on him — Go, and do thou like-
wife.] To the Lawyer's queftion therefore, Who is my
neighbour ? the anfwer is. Whoever does you good, even
though he be not your countryman ; nay, though he
be one of an enemy's country. " As therefore you
" own a Samaritan was neighbour to a Jew, by doing
" him good ; fo do you, being a Jew, (hew yourfelf
" neighbour to a Samaritan, by doing him good as
" occasion (hall offer."
CHAP.
according to ST. LUKE, Chap. XI. 253
CHAP. XI.
VERSE 5, 6, 7, 8. And be fald unto them, Which
of you fh all have a friend — as many as he needeth^
Being upon the fubjedt of prayer, and having juft
given them a, form of it ; he adds this, to recommend
earnejlnefs, fervency, and importunate perfeverance in
prayer.
Ver. 14. — A Devil, and it ivas dumb~\ i. e. made
the man dumb, who was porTeiled. Thus in other
places— dumb, and deaf Devil. It is a metonymy.
Ver. 29. He began to fay, &c.] In aniwer to thofe
who fought of him a Jign from heaven, ver. 16. See
note on Matth. xii. 38, 39.
Ver. 33. No man, when he hath lighted a candle — •
under a biifhel, &c.] The connection of theie words is
plain in Matth. v. 15. Somewhat objcure, though eafy
enough to be explained, in Mark iv. 21. and Luke
viii. 1 6. See note on the former. But here I can
perceive no connection at all: nor is it neceffary there
fhould be any. See note on chap. vi. 39. How
forced and unnatural are* the expofitions of thofe who
labour to connect them, the learned reader may judge,
in perufmg the Commentators.
Ver. 36. If thy whole body be full of light — the whole
Jh all be full of light~\ OBJ. This feems to be tautology,
and proving a thing by it f elf. ANSW. The latter
whole does not relate to the word body, but to the
courfe and tenor of the man's acJions. " If thine eye
" (ver. 34.) be Jingle, i. e. thy judgment be right, thy
" whole body will be/w// of light ; i. e. all the powers
" and faculties of fay foul, or mind, will be right like-
" wife. And if fo, the whole tenor of thy aRions
cc will be right of courfe." See note on Matth. vi.
22, 23.
Ver. 41. Give alms — and all things are clean unto
Almfgiving, by &fynecdoche, is put for all moral
good-
Notes upon the Gofpel
goodnefs. See note on Matth.xxv. 35. And it was
proper, efpecially in a difcourie to the Pharifees, who
were covetous and uncharitable.
Ver. 45. One of the Lawyers — us alfo] Scribes and
Lawyers were nearly related in their office and func
tion. The former were expounders of the Mofaic
written law ; the latter, of the oral law, or traditions.
So Dr. Lightfoot.
Ver. 48. 'Truly ye bear zvitnefs THAT ye allow the
deeds of your fathers : for they indeed killed them, and
ye build their fepulchres] It mould be rendered, bear
witnefs AND allow a, &c. though the fenfe amounts
to t\}Qfame either way. OBJ. But how does this ar
gument proceed ? How did they fliew their appro
bation of the deeds of their fathers, BY building the
iepulchresofthofe whom they had murdered •, though
they did it hypocritically; lince the action in \tfe\ffeemed
to (hew refpect and honour for thofe martyrs? They
exprefled men approbation indeed by other actions,
by their own perfection of God's meifengers : but
how did they fo by building thefe fepulchres? ANSW.
As there are feveral fentences in Matth. xxiii. 29,
30, 31. [fee the notes there,] which are not inferted
in this place ; our Saviour fpeakingat different times,
and to different perfons j and the fpeech being,
though /;/ the main, yet not quite, the fame; [fee note
on Matth. v. 2.] here mutt needs be a different turn
given to that action of building the fepulchres. They
falfely pretended to honour the martyrs ; but our Sa*
viour, who knezv their hearts, knew they did it to raife
a kind of trophy to the cruelty of their fathers.
Ver. 49. Therefore faid the wifdom of God] This is
not (as it may feem to be) a quotation from Scripture.
The fenle is, God in his wifdom faid he would fend,
&c. or decreed to fend, &c.
Ver. 52. Te have taken away the key of knowledge]
* It is xa», not O'TJ.
i. c.
according to ST. Lu KE, Ghap. XII. 255
1. e. have hindered the people from all ufeful know
ledge, and inilruction.
CHAP. XII.
VERSE i. The leaven of the Pharifees] See notes
onMatth. xvi. 6, 7. 12.
Ver. 2, 3. For there is nothing covered — -fhall not be
known. — Whatfoever ye have fpoken in darknefs — houfe-
topsl\ See note on Mark iv. 22. and on Matth. x. 26,
27. Here the words have another new fenfe. Beware
of — hypocrify. " For your hypocrify will be difcovered
tc at laft ; very likely in this world ; but certainly in
" the next."
Ver. 21. Rich towards God'] Rich in treafure laid
up in heaven. See notes on Matth. vi. 20.
Ver. 32. Fear not, lit th flock-, it is — to give you the
kingdom'] " Ye few, who are my faithful followers ;
" God will give you the kingdom of heaven ; much
" more will provide for you all things neceflary on
" earth"
Ver. 33. Sell that ye have, and give to the poor I\ See
note on Matth. xix. 21.
Ver. 35. Let your loins be girded about, and your lights
burning^ i. e. Be always ready and prepared to meet
your Lord, when he comes. Read the next five
verfes, compared with, the parable of the ten virgins,
Matth. xxv.
Ver. 37. He Jh all gird himfelf — and feme theml\ i.e.
do them the greateft honours ; as he girt himfelf \
waited upon his Difciples, and wajhed their feet,
John xiii.
Ver. 41. Unto us, or even unto all?"} i. e. to us
Apojlles, and Difciples ; or to all the multitude here
prefent ?
Ver. 42. Who then is that faithful and wife Jle ward,
&C.J
Notes upon tie
&c.] He does not anfwer Peter's queftion direflly,
but intimates that what he had laid was meant of all;
though especially of pajlors and teachers. Who then
[whether he be laic or ecclefiajlic, but efpecially the
Blatter] is t\\rt faithful, &c.
Ver. 49, 50. / am come to fend fire on the earth ;
and what will I, i F /'/ be already kindled ? But [rather
and) I have a baptifm to be baptized with ; and how am
I firaitened till it be accomplifhed /] The particle «,
here rendered IF, frequently fignifies, Oh that ! The
claufe therefore, in which it is, may well be pointed
and rendered thus : What will I ? Oh I that it were
already, &c. So the fenfe of the whole paflage is
this: "I come to deliver a doctrine, which, through
" the corruptions of the world, will kindle a fire upon
if earth, \z\feperfecution againffc me and my followers,
" and caufe me to be baptized in my own blood. [See
u note on Matth. xx. 22.] Yet I am fo far from be-
" ing terrified at the profpect, that I wifh the doctrine
" were thoroughly preached; and labour, like a wo-
" man in travail, till my fufierings are completed."
Ver. 51, 52, 53. Suppofe ye that I am come to give
peace, &c, — againjt her mother-in-law^ See note on
Matth. x. 34, 35, 36.
Ver. ^4, 55, 56. When ye fee a cloud — difcern this
time'] See note on Matth. xvi. 2, 3.
Ver. 57. Tea, and why even of your f elves judge ye not
what is right /] The words in the original, »<£ laulwv,
may be rendered, OF your [elves, or, FROM yourfe/ves.
The former thus : " Why do ye not even of yourfelves,
" by your own powers and faculties, by the true ufe
" of 'the reafon which God hath given you, judge, &c."
The latter (with reference to the following words to
the end of the chapter) thus : " Take an example
"from yourfelves : you are not wont to neglect the
" means by which you may be preierved from that
" prifon here, from which you cannot efcape till your
" whole debt be paid : why then neglect you that re-
" pentance
according to ST. LUKE, Chap. XIII. 257
tc pentance towards God, and faith in the Mejfiah,
" which alone can prevent your being caft into the
" prifonofhdir
CHAP. XIII.
VERSE i. fhe Galileans, wbofe blood Pilate had
mingled with their facrificesl\ Certain Galileans,
who had rebelled againft Caefar, by refuting to pay
him tribute ; and were by Pilate, his deputy, flain as
they were Jacrificing in the Temple.
Ver. 6, 7, 8, 9. A certain man had a jig-tret
— cut it down^\ See note on Mark xi. 13, 14, &c.
Cbj. 2.
Ver. 1 6. Whom Satan hath bound, &c.] Satan is
faid to inflict difeafes by the permiffion of God,
Job ii. and 2 Cor. xii. 7. St. Paul's thorn in the,
fle/h (fome bodily diftemper^ no doubt j fee Bp.
Bull's Serm. vol. i. §. 5.) is called a meflenger of
Satan.
Ver. 18. Thenfaidhe^ Unto what is the kingdom of
God, &c.] Here again is no connexion. See note on
chap. vi. 39.
Ver. 23, 24. — Are there feiv that be faved ? — Strive
to enter in—Jhalt not be able.} Our Saviour never gives
dire ft anfwers to queftions of curiolity -9 but turns
them off to fomething ufeful and edifying. See John
xxi. 21, 22. Acls i. 6, 7. As if he mould have faid ;
u Lay alide thefe curious, fruitlejs enquiries ; and do
" your duty : whatever becomes of other things, or
" perfons, do you your duty, and look to yourfelves"
But, Qu. What is the meaning of that claufe, Many
will feek to enter in, and jh all not be able ? According
to this, their being excluded feems to be their mif-
fortune, not their fault : they are not able> &c.
ANSW. i. Not able ; for no reafon but becaufe not
S TRULY
258 Notes upon the Gojpel
TRULY willing. 2. Seek, and defire it, when it is loo
late. Thus in the very next words : When once the
ma/ler of the houfe — hath fhut to the door — whence ye
are. The gate indeed is noiv (hut ; but the whole
pallage implies that it had flood open long enough ; and
it was their own fault that they did not comzfovner.
Ver. 32, 33. "Tell that fox-, Behold I caft out — the
third day — he perfected — out of Jerufa/emJ] That/0#;
becaufe Herod was a crafty and cruel tyrant. <£ Tell
" him, I am executing my office^ in working miracles^
" and doing good ; and will continue to do To, not-
" withstanding his menaces." To-day, and to-morrow,
and the third day, and the day following , are not here
to be underftood Jlriftly, but as intimating a foot 7,
undetermined fpace of time : a certain number for an
uncertain, is a figure frequently ufed even in common
diicourfe. Neverthelefs ; i.e. however ; or, be that as
it may: it might well enough be rendered but. [irXu'v.]
/ miift WALK ; i. e. (fay fome) continue in the exe
cution of my office ; walking, in Scripture, being
often ufed for a courfe of living or afting. But then
it mould have been a different worda in the original.
As it is, it mould be rendered not walk, but go: and
the fenfe is, I mufl, and will, purftte my journey to
Jerufalem, as I intended, [fee ver. 22.] in order to
\uffer and die there ; and Herod, notwithflanding
his threats, cannot hinder me. This is confirmed by
the next words ; For it cannot be that a Prophet peri/Ii
OUT OF Jerujalem : i. e. any where, but at Jentjalem.
And what is the meaning of that ? ANSW. Either,
i. So many Prophets have been, and will be, mur
dered at Jerufalem, that one would think it had en-
groffed ail luch murders to iff elf. Or, 2. The San
hedrim fitting there, a man could be condemned
there only : even at that time, of which our Saviour
fpeaks, (as appears from the hiftory of his own trial,
Not ir*ft£i<&bj but
con-
according to ST. LUKE, Chap. XIII. 259
condemnation, "and crucifixion.,) though they could
not put a man to death; yet they found him guilty,
and delivered him to the Roman governor that he
might be executed.
Ver. 35. Te fhall not fee me, until, &c.] This is
another inftance of our Saviour's faying the fame
thing at different times : here he fpeaks this before
his laft public entry into Jerufalem; in Matth. xxiii.
39. after it. See the note there. In this place there
fore the fentence mud be iupplied thus: "After
*6 my arrival at Jerufalem, which will be very foon,
^ ye fhall not fee me, but for a little while, until, &c."
If it be faid, this is arbitrary, and adding to our Sa
viour's words ; I anfwer, he is his own interpreter. In
St. Matthew he fays, after a while-, which mud there
fore be underftood here, though it be not exprejjed.
And the only difference is,, here he means a little
time ; there, a very little time.
CHAP. XIV.
VERSE 12, 13. Call not thy friends — nor thy rich
neighbours — but call the poor, the maimed, &c.]
i. e. Do the latter rather than the former ; prefer the
latter to the former. See note on Matth. ix. 13.
There are many more inftances of this way of fpeak-
ing in both Teftarnents, and in other writings. It
is not conceivable that our Saviour forbids us to en
tertain our friends, relations, equals, or fuperiors ;
this being contrary to common reafon, and even to
his own practice : for he was often at fuch entertain
ments; which he would not have countenanced, Jiad
they been unlawful. He only prefers charity to the
poor before hofpitality to the rich. Nor can it be
his meaning that beggars and cripples fhould be in
vited to Jit down with us at our own tables ; nor in-
s 2 deed
NoUs upon the Gofpel
deed do his words imply any fuch thing: but only
that they fhould eat and drink in our houfes ; or
that we lliould fend food, or money, to fupport them
at home.
Ver. 15. Blefledis he that foal I eat bread in the king
dom of Godl\ i. e. fhall partake the pleafures and
enjoyments of the kingdom of the Meffiah.
Ver. 1 6. Then /aid he to him, A certain, &c.]
The connection, as if he mould have faicl ; " It is in-
" deed, as you fay, a great blefling to enjoy the
" privileges of Meffiah's kingdom : and yet you
" Jews, through your prejudices and perverfenefs,
<c will rejett them. Which I illuftrate by this para-
« ble." '
Ver. 1 6, 17 — 24. A certain man made a great J "up
per — -Jhall tajle cf my f upper ^\ This parable is, in ef
fect, the fame with that of Matth. xxii. i, 2 — 14.
To the notes upon which I refer.
Ver. 21. Go out — into the ftreets and lanes of the
city ; and bring in the poor, and maimed, &c.] This
drvifo* is not in the parable, Matth. xxii. It feems
to mean the difperfed Jevvs, who were at a diilance
from Jud^a.
Ver. 23. Compel them to come in.] Not by direft
force, or compulsion properly fo called ; (that would
be a flrange way of inviting, either to a feaft, or to
the embracing of any religion;) but by vehement, im
portunate, perfuajicn. The word compel is often thus
uled in Scripture, in other writings, and in common
difcourte. See particularly Mark vi. 45. Lukexxiv.
29. Acts xvi. 15.1 Sam. xxviii. 23. The great eft evi
dence likewife is commonly (aid to compel, or force
our atfent. This was the cafe of the miracles wrought
by the Apoflles among the heathen. I fay heathen ;
for they are meant in this divifion. See note on
Matth. xxii. 9.
Ver. 26. Hate not his father and mother, — and his
own life fflfo, &c.] To bate here, and in other places
of
according to ST. LUKE, Chap. XIV.
of Scripture, fignifies no more, than to love in a lefs
degree. See particularly Gen. xxix. 31. 33. Leah
certainly was not hated by Jacob, who had. fo many
children by her ; but only loved lefs than Rachel. It
being impious to hate father, or mother, wife, or chil
dren ; and impojjible to hate our own lives, or ourfelves \
the meaning of the paflage can be no more than
this : " If a man love not his father, &c. and his own
" life itfelf, lefs than me, and my religion, he cannot
<c be my Difciple."
Ver. 28. FOR which of you , &c.] The particle for
fhould have been left out in the tranilation, there
being no caufal connection between thefe and the
foregoing words. The particle in the original3 is
Ibmetimes purely interrogative.
Ver. 28 — 32. Which of you intending to build a
tower — Or what king going to make war, &c.] Thefe
two companions, or allufions, (like many others, as
we have often obferved,) do not anfwerm <2//.refpecls.
The man who intends to build a tower, and the
king who intends to make war, may, in confederation
of the difficulties, defift from his enterprife ; and
ought to defift, if he thinks them unfurmountable.
But we muft engage in the Chriftian life : it is abfo-
lutely necejfary, be the difficulties never fo great: nor
can they be unfurmountable, if we are not wanting
to ourfelves. All therefore here meant is, that we
muft before-hand weigh the difficulties, dangers, and
difcouragements •, reiolutely encounter them ; and
then, by the affiftance of God's grace, (which never
fails us, if we do our own part,) we (hall certainly
overcome them. But if we do not thus confider be
fore-hand^ and arm ourfelves with refolution, we are in
great danger of being foiled in our attempt.
Ver. 33. So likewife, &c.] This is an ellipjis, or im-
* rȣ. See the larger Lexicons.
s 3 perfect
Notes upon the Gofpel
perfect fentence, to be filled up thus : " So he that
" forjaketh not all that he bath, [which he cannot do,
" unlefs \\tforefee, and well confider, the difficulties he
" is to encounter,] cannot be my Difciph"
Ver. 34. Salt is good, &c.] See note on Matth. v.
13. and on Markix. 49, 50.
Ver. 35. // is neither Jit for the land, nor yet for the
dunghill-, but men caft it out."] i.e. It is neither fit
(as dung is) to manure land ; nor to make dung itfelf :
being mixed with dung, it will not (as other putri-
fied matter does) turn into that fubftance ; but does
more hurt than good. Therefore it is not fo much
as caft upon a dunghill •, but upon feme piece of
ground which is already barren, and defigned to con-
tinue fo. See Dr. Hammond, who comments large
ly and excellently upon this paflage.
CHAP. XV.
VERSE 7. Joy /hall be in heaven over one fmner
that repent eth, more than over ninety and nine jufl
per fans, which need no repentance^ No repentance ; i. e.
no change of life, and manners, as to the main: for
the beft needfome repentance. In heaven; \. e. before
God, and the angels, ver. 10. For the reft; I wonder
learned men fhould make fo much difficulty about
the onefinner that repent eth, more than ninety and nine,
&c. when it is plain to common fenfe, at firft
reading. To be fure, the one penitent is not in him-
felfmore VALUABLE than the ninety -nine jufl perfons ;
no, nor than any one of them ; no, nory"0 valuable as
any one of them -, (for innocence is certainly better
than repentance:} yet he alone is REJOICED OVER
more than all they-, becauie he was loft, and \^ found,
whereas they were never loft at all. The tenor of the
three
according to ST. LUKE, Chap. XV. 363
three parables here recited, viz. of the loft Jheep, the
loft piece of money, and the prodigal Jon, makes this
evident beyond queftion.
Ver. n, 12, 13 — 32. And he f aid, A certain man
had two Jons, &c.—lojt, and is found'} This beautiful
parable needs little explication. It plainly fets forth
the folly and madnejs, the mtfery and jlavery of a
finful, extravagant, djffolute life ; the abfolute neceffity
of reforming it ; and God's readinejs to embrace all fin-
cere penitents. Though it may be very well under-
flood, and is very true, of all wicked and penitent
perfons in all ages \ yet it has manifestly a more ejpe-
cial view to the time in which our Saviour fpoke ;
to the Jews and Gentiles, as compared with each
other ; the former murmuring that the latter fhould
partake of the fame privileges with themfelves; theyy
efpecially the Scribes and Pharifees, imagining them
felves to be all perfection. By the man who had two
ions, therefore, is meant God ; by the elder fon, in
the general view, every good liver ; by the younger,
every great Jinner : in the particular view, by the el
der fon are meant the Jews, God's chofen people ;
by the younger, the Heathens, Publicans, &c. But
becaufe no really good Cbriftian can be fuppofed to
murmur that the greatefl of finners are forgiven, and
received into God's favour upon repentance, the lajl
part of the parable, concerning the elder brother s be
ing angry, &c. can relate to the Jews only. And here
too, Qu. How could our Saviour acknowledge them
to be fo good and perfeEl, as he feems to do, ver. 29.
31. [read thofe verfesj] when they were fome of the
worft men living? ANSW. He only argues upon their
own principles , Juppofing, not granting. Were they
as perfect as they imagined, they would have no
reafon to complain that a great finner was pardoned
upon his true repentance. 'That could not hurt
them, &c.
Ver. 31. All that I have is thine] i. e. all in a
s 4 manner j
364 Notes upon the Gofpel
manner ; the main bulk of my eflate. The word
all is frequently ufed thus, even in common dif-
courfe.
CHAP. XVI.
^
VERSE i. Had a fteward.} Whatever we have
of this world's goods, we are not ftrictly own
ers, or proprietors , but God's ftewards : and to him
we muft give an account : not in this world indeed,
as a fteward to any other man muft do ; but at the
day of judgment.
Ver. 2. Thou may eft be no longer fteward. } God may
be fuppofed to fpeak thus to any man, when he ad-
monijhes him of his death, by Jicknejs, or fome other
warning.
Ver. 3. / cannot dig} — c< Nor get my living by
" any other fervile labour : I am too delicately bred for
" that."
Ver. 4. They may receive me, &c.] They : i.e. his
Lord's debtors ; as appears from the next words, ver»
5. He called every one, &c.
Ver. 6, 7. Take thy bill — and write fifty— four-
fcore} So he cheated his mafter, to ingratiate himfelf
with his debtors, or tenants.
Ver. 8. The lord commended the unjuft fteward, be-
cauje he had done wifely.} He could not, and did not,
commend him for being a knave ; but Jince he was
one, he commended him for a&ing, in his way, with
fo much forecaft and prudence.
Ibid. For the children of this ivorld are, in their ge
neration, wifer than the children of light} The children
of this world are they who place their happinefs in
the enjoyment of this world : the children of light are
they who place their happinefs in heaven. Now,
though the former propofe a wrong end -, yet they
gene-
according to ST. LUKE, Chap. XVI. 265
generally purfue it with great induftry, and ufe the
proper means conducive to it. The latter, though
they propofe a right, the only right end, are gene
rally deficient in ufing the means. The former
therefore are the wijer in refpetft of the means,
though not of the end : for ftill they are wife only in
their generation, in their way, upon their principles ;
which being all wrong, they are fools too.
Ver. 9. Make to yourfelves friends of the Mammon
of unrighteoufnefs^\ Imitate the fraudulent dealers of
this world Jo far, as to fecure an eternal intereft by
the good ufe of riches •, as they do a temporal one
by the ill ufe of them. Imitate them Jo far, as to
be wife \r\ your generation, as they are in theirs. — OF
the Mammon, &c. It fhould be rendered, by, or from :
— the Mammon, i. e. riches : — of unrighteoufnefs -, i. e.
either, which are generally, though not always, got
ten by unrighteous means ; or rather falje, fallacious a
riches, in oppofition to true, real treafure, treafure
m heaven. This is confirmed by ver. n. where the
unrighteous Mammon is oppofed to true riches.
Ibid. That, 'when ye fail, they may receive you into
everlafting habitations^ Fail, i. e. die, and are put out
of your ftewardfhip. They may receive you, &c.
i. e. either, the poor, to whom you have been helpful,
may be the occajion of your being received, &c. Or5
they is ufed imperfonally, as it often is : [let the
learned reader iee Luke vi. 38. xii, 20. in the ori
ginal :] and the fenfe is^ That ye may be received,
&c.
Ver. 10. He that is faithful in that which is leaft,
is faithful aljo in much -, and he that is unjufl in the
leafl, is unjufl alfo in much^\ Thefe proportions are
not laid down as certain, and universally true ; (few
moral maxims and proverbs are fo ;) but as probable^
and generally true. By the Ieaft our Saviour means
* For fo the word ai^xoj is often ufed.
temporal
$66 Notes upon the Gofpel
temporal goods, of which he was before fpeaking ; by
much, fpiritual ones, the graces of the Gofpel, the
gifts of the holy Spirit, &c. And it is intimated
that he is like to make an ill ufe of the latter, <who
has already made an ill ufe of the former. This is
plain from the next words, ver. u.
Ver. 12. If ye have not been faithful in that which
is another mans, who jhall give you that which is your
own ?] It (hould be rendered, another's, lv ry aAAo-r/uw,
not another MAN'S. For the beft fenfe of it is,
" That which is God's, who is the proprietor : we
te are only ft e wards." It may indeed relate to the poor,
and others, who have a tight to a coniiderable part of
what we call ours Tour own ; i. e. the happinefs of
heaven, which will be ftriftly our own, and laft for
ever.
Ver. i 3 . No Jervant can ferve two maflers — God
and Mammcn~\ This is explained in note on Matth.
vi. 24. How properly it comes in here, is plain of
itfelf.
Ver. 14, 15, 1 6, 17, 1 8, 19. And the Pharifees —
derided him. And he Jaid, Te are they, &c. — The Law
and the Prophets were until John, &c. — And it is eajier
for heaven and earth, &c. — IVhcfoever putteth away his
wife, &c — There was a certain rich man, &c.] The
connection thus : The parable of the unjuft fteward,
with the application of it, from the beginning of the
chapter to the i4th verfe, is defigned to warn againft
covetoufnefs, and recommend charity towards the poor.
Then after thofe words, Te cannot ferve God and
Mammon, it follows : And the Pharifees alfoy who
were [rich, for fo they were,vand] covetous, heard all
theje things ; and they derided htm. And he Jaid unto
them, Te are they who juftify yourf elves before men -,
but God knoweth your hearts : for that which is highly
ejieemed amongft men is abomination in the fight of God^
As if he mould have faid ; " You value yourfelves
" extremely upon your outward legal ceremonies
" and
according to ST. LUKE, Chap. XVI. 367
<c and obfervances, without true piety, nay, joined
«< with covetoufnefs, extortion, and pride; and upon
" your traditions, which are contrary to Scrip-
" ture. But though all thefe make a great fhew be-
" fore men; yet God regards them with quite a
Sf different eye. Your traditions are deteftable -, and
" even your Mofaic rites are juft now going to be
" aboliilied. And the religion which I introduce
" requires a far greater degree of inward piety, holi-
" nets, and charity, than you are willing to admit."
The Law and the Prophets (continues he) were until
John : fence that the kingdom of God is preached, &c»
i. e. This new difpenfation, the Gofpel, which re
quires greater perfection, not only than the Pharifees
admitted, but even than the Law required, began, or
commenced, with the preaching of John the Baptift.
See Difc. II. p. 33. He proceeds : And it is eafier for
heaven and earth to pafs, than for one tittle of the Law
to fail : [fee note on Matth. v. 18.] i. e. He by his
Gofpel, of which he is fpeaking, did not deftroy the
Law, but fulfil and perfect it, as he fhews at large
Matth. v. In the next words, PPhofoever putteth
away his wife, &c. he gives one inftance in parti
cular of what he had before affirmed in general, viz.
that the Gofpel requires greater perfection than the
Law. Thzn ftill purfuing his argument, the guilt and
punifhment of thofe who make an /// ufe of riches, and
are uncharitable to the poor, (thofe other claufes be
ing incidental, and coming in only by the bye,) he
adds, There was a certain rich man, &c. and fo on
with this parable to the end of the chapter. I fay, a
parable, for fo it certainly is, not a hijlory of a real
fact, as fome imagine. This will appear from feveral
cir cum/lames, which (hall be taken notice of in their
proper places.
Ver. 22, 23. — -Carried — into Abraham s bofom — in
Hell he lift up his eyes.] The one did not go to the
place of his 'full reward, nor the other to that of his
full
268 Notes upon tie Gofpel
full punifhment : becaufe it is moil evident from the
holy Scriptures that a there is a middle ftate, both of
happineis and mifery, between the death of every
particular perfon, and the final confummation of all
things. The word Hades, which is here rendered Hell,
means not the place in which the damned will ever-
laftingly be punithed. As applied to the body, it fig-
nifies the grave ; as applied to the foul, it Signifies
the intermediate feparate (late of departed j^zr/Af, both
good and bad. See third note on Matth. xvi. 18.
Lazarus went to Hades, as well as Dives ; though the
one was in happinefs there, the other in mifery. And
had not this word been, in our Englifh tranilation
of the Bible, generally, if not always rendered Hell,
a great deal of trouble, error, and falfe doctrine had
been prevented. If it be objected, that the Hades, or
Hell, to which the latter went, is by him called this
place of torment, ver. 28. and that he fays more ex-
prefsly and particularly, I am. tormented in this flame,
ver. 24. 1 anfwer; to the firft; We grant, and fup-
pofe him to be in exquifite torment, from the pun
ifhment he already endures ; and from the dreadful
and certain expectation of far greater. To the fe-
cond; Thofe words, in this flame, muft be metaphori
cal. They cannot be underflood literally ; becaufe
his foul is feparated from his body : and a mere fpirit
cannot be ieniible of pain from fire, or any other
corporeal infliction. It is faid, that he lift up bis eyes
in this Hades, or Hell: and yet we all know anunem-
bodied fpirit has no eyes to lift up. Thus bodily
parts are allegorically afcribed to other fpirits -, to an
gels, and to God himfelf. Thefe expreffions there
fore muft be taken figuratively ; and by the flame he
mentions muft be underflood the vexation, the rage,
the horror of confcience, which torments, and (as it
* See Bp. Bull's Serm. III. vol. i. and my Difc. on the Parable
of Dives and Lazarus, p. 249, 250, &c.
were)
according to ST. LUKE, Chap. XVI. 26$
were) burns the foul, as fire does the body. To ac
count for this way of fpeaking, Grotius gives us fe-
veral quotations from ancient writers -y to which I
refer the learned reader.
As to that expreffion, Abraham's bofom, it is a Jew-
ifh phrafe. <c The ancients" (fays Grotius) " gene-
u rally thought that Abraham s bofom fignifies the
" region allotted to pious fouls, which the Hebrews
4< call Eden, or Paradife ; the Greeks, the Elyfian
" Fields." But thofe are certainly in the right, who
take it, not for the region or manfion itfelf, but for
the higheft and mqft honourable place in it ; which
mud be near fo illuftrious and eminent a faint as
Abraham. It is a manner of fpeaking, taken either
from little children, whom their parents fondly love,
and carry in their bofoms ; or rather, from the cuftom
and manner of fitting at table. To be carried into
Abraham s bofom, is to be admitted to fit down with
Abraham^ and Ifaac, and Jacob , in the kingdom of hea
ven ; as our Saviour elfewhere fpeaks, Matth. viii.
IT. Where, according to the then received ufage,
he reprefents the joys of heaven under the image of
a feafl or banquet. Now at banquets it was ufual for
thofe, who are the moft favoured and honoured by
the mailer of the feaft, to lean upon his bofom, as St.
John (for inilance) did upon our Saviour's. So the
Son of God himfelf is faid to be in the bofom of his
Father : an expreffion plainly equivalent to that of
fitting at his right hand, which is more frequently ufed.
Here therefore Lazarus is reprefented, not only as a
good, but as an eminent and excellent man in the eye
of God, however contemptible in the efteem of men.
Ver. 23. And feeth Abraham afar off^ and Lazarus
in his bofom'} How did he know them ? may perhaps
be a queflion afked by fome: Abraham he had never
feen before ; and even Lazarus furely muft be quite
altered from what he was in this world. They may
as vVell afk, How could hefeefo far ', as from his place
370 Notes upon the Gofpel
of torment to Paradife? with other queries of equal
weight. This (hews the narrative to be parabolical,
not a real hi/lory.
Ver. 24. And he cried— Jend Lazarus that he may
dip the tip cf his finger — tormented in this flame^ For
the laft clauie, fee note on ver. 22, 23. For the reft,
it may be afked, why fhould he requeft fo incon-
fiderable a thing, fuch a mere nothing, as a drop of
'water ? And what would that fignify, if applied to
the tongue of one burning in a furnace ? The anfwer,
I think, may very well be, he really defired much
more, and imift be fo underftood ; but fpeaks mo-
deftly, even to the extremeft hyperbole of modefly j
being confcious of his own wickednefs, and the inhu
man treatment which Lazarus had received from him*
It is a common way of fpeaking, give me a little., but
meaning much : he doubtlefs defires to be eaied of
all his torments; though in the ftyleof the moft hum
ble fupplicants, efpecially to thofe they have injured,
hefeems to beg no more than what is, in truth, a mere
nothing.
Ver. 2^.Son, remember — thou art torment ed"\ THY
good things. The pronoun is emphatical, and re
markable : i. e. fuch things as he made his chief, nay
his only good-, thofe in which he put his truft, and
placed his happinejs. It is not laid, in the oppofite part
of the fentence, and like<wife Lazarus HIS evil things:
for nobody would clefire poverty and affliction, at -lead
for its own fake. But I fay, the addition of that word,
as referred to the rich man, implies that he put his
confidence and happinefs in his wealth, worldly plea-
lures, and honours. See note on Matth. vi. 2.
Ver. 26. And befides all this, there is a great gulf —
tome from thencel\ Gulf-, i. e. a cbafm, or empty Jpace,
lay fome; a chaos, or rude indigefted heap, fay others.
It matters not which, though the word %aV|ua in the
original plainly enough determines it to the firft.
This again is manifeftly ^parabolical fcheme of ipeech:
for
according to ST. LUKE, Chap. XVI. 271
'for Jpirits cannot be hindered from paffing to and
fro, either, by the interpoiition of bodies, or by a va
cuity, or (pace empty of all bodies. The fenfe is
no more than this; that, by the will and designation
of God, the manfions of the righteous, and of the,
wicked, during the interval between death and the
re fur re 61 ion, are Separated and disjoined ; ib that
they can have no intercourfe or communication with
each other. Some Expofitors indeed tell us, that it
implies the immutability of both thofe ftates. That
they are immutable, is certain : but how it is in
ferred from Ms portion of Scripture, I fee not : for
all communication between the bleffed and the damned
may be entirely cut off, while they are in thofe ftates ;
and yet \\\t ftates tkemf elves may be changed-, though
it is evident from other places of Scripture that they
never will be.
Ver. 2,7, 2,8. I pray thee therefore, father — I have
five brethren — lefl they alfo come into this 'place of tor~
ment'] Qu. How could this reprobate and damned
fpirit be fuppoled to have any concern for his bre
thren ? Is there any charity, or even natural affection,
in Hell? ANSW. Not in Hell, finely Jpeaking; or in
the place of the reprobate, after the day of judgment.
But in the middle ft ate perhaps there may; at lean: a
little time, or immediately after the reparation of the
foul from the body, there may be fome Jmall remains
of merely human gooclnefs. Or perhaps he may be
iuppofed to have made this requeft, not for their
fakes, but his own. They might be wicked by bis
example-, and fo he might think, and very reafonably
too, that his torments would be increafed by theirs.
Ver. 31. If they hear not Mojes and the Prophet s*
neither will they be perfuaded, though one rofe from the
dead~\ Hear them not ; i. e. believe them, obey them
not. The word is often fo uied. But, OBJ. Does
it follow that becaufe a man yields not his alien t
upon the report of miracles, therefore he would not
upon
27$ Notes upon the Gofpel
upon the fight of them P Nay, is it not more proba
ble that he would, than that he would not ? ANSW.
Aphorifms, or maxims of this kind, (as I have more
than once had occafion to obferve,) are not only in
the Scriptures, but in other writings, often laid
down indefinitely, without reftri&ion or limitation ;
which yet they may admit of in certain cafes and
circumftances. If iome would certainly not be thus
perfuaded, and others probably would not, though
iome perhaps would •, that is enough to warrant the
proportion expreiled in thefe indefinite terms. If a
man be thoroughly and to the lafl degree prejudiced,
nothing will convince him, or rather make him own
that he is convinced, though he really is. For this
latter is often the cafe; and it is the worft fort of in
fidelity. Thofe who lived in the days of Chrift and
his Apoilles, when the miracles were wrought, (one
of which, by the way, was that ofonejentto them from
the dead^ and he a Lazarus too, not as an apparition*
but, which is much more convincing, reflored to life,
and raifed from the grave, John xi.) — I fay, thofe who
lived when thefe miracles were wrought, and were
themfelves eye-witnejfes of them, and owned the truth of
the facts, were not all converted : fome believed, and
fome believed not. See more at large in Difcourfe on
the Parable of Dives and Lazarus, from p. 333 to
339. — From what has been faid, I think we may con
clude, that this is sparable, not a hiftory. As for thofe
who conceive it to be a mixture of both ; like trage
dies, or epic poems, which are founded partly upon
real facl, partly upon fi&ion : this opinion feems the
moft abiurd of all. For the fictitious circumftances
which I have mentioned being taken away, nothing
remains, but that there was a certain rich wicked
man, and a certain poor good man ; that the former
was uncharitable and cruel to the latter ; that they
both died ; and the one went to hell, the Dther to
heaven. Which is a very inconfiderabie piece of
true
according to ST. LUKE, Chap. XVII. 273
true hiftory ; not worthy of fuch an hiftorian as our
Saviour.
CHAP. XVII.
VERSE i, 2. Offences will come— One of thefe little
onesl] See note on Matth. xviii. 6, 7.
Ver. $.Iftby brother trefpafs again/1 thee, &c.] That
you may not offend the weak, be particularly careful
to be gentle and courteous ', ready to forgive, &c.
Ver. 5. The Apoftles faid unto the Lord, Increafe our
faithl\ This has no connexion with what goes before;
but is faid upon another occaiion j probably upon oo
cafion of t\\Q\T failing in fome attempt to work a mira
cle. See Matth. xvii. 16. 19. Mark ix. 18. 28. It
appears likewife from the next words in this place.
Ver. 6. And the Lordfaid, If ye had faith as a grain
&:c.] OBJ. This may feem a ftrange anfwer to their
requeft. They defire him to increafe their faith -, and
he upbraids them for having fo little faith. ANSW.
It was their own fault that they had fo little ; there
fore \\QJiiftly upbraids them. He had already given
them the greateft advantages, opportunities, and
means of being ftrong in faith:, but they neglected to
improve it, by exerting their own powers and facul
ties. The anfwer therefore is, as if he had faid,
(f Why do you defire me to increafe your faith ? I
" have done my part already : you may increafe it
" yourf elves, if you will ; and it is your own fault
u that ye do not." And if ye had faith as a grain cf
muftard-Jeed~—Jay unto thisfycamine-tree — it Jhould obey
you. For the explication of which, fee note on Mark
xi. 22, 23. compared with Matth. xvii. 20. xxi. 19,
20, 2i3 &c.
Ver. 7, 8, 9, 10. But which of you, having afervant
— duty to do~\ The connexion ieems to be thus. But
T [what-
274 Notes upon tie Gofpel
[whatever good and great works you fhall perform,
for the glory of God, and the beneft of mankind, do not
value yourfelves upon them : for] which of you, &c.
unprofitable Jervants ; we have done [no more than]
I hat which was our, &c.
Ver. 14. She-w yourjelves to the prieftsl] Here is
much more implied th&\\ is exprejjed. " Well; you are
" healed : Go therefore, and Jhew yourfelves, &c."
Thofe to whom he fpoke, knowing that by the law
of Moles their /hewing themfelves to the priefts was a
confcquence of their being healed, very well under-
flood his meaning : and the concijenejs of the fpeech
is flrong and beautiful. For the reft, fee note on
Matth. viii. 4.
Ver. 1 8. This fir anger'} The Samaritans were looked
upon by the Jews as aliens. See Johniv. 9.
Ver. 20, 21, 22. ^nd when he was demanded — when
the kingdom of God /hould come — Neither /hall they fay ,
Lo here — one of the days of the Jon of man, &c.] See
Difcourfe III. p. 58, 59.
Ver. 23 , 24. — See here, or Jee there ; go not after
them — For as the lightning, &c.] See Difcourfe III.
o o ' J
p. 47, 48.
Ver. 26, 27—30. As it was in the days of Noe — in
the days of Lot— -Even thus /hall it be, &c.] See Dif
courfe III. p. 55.
Ver. 32. Remember Lot's wifel] Who, for look
ing back; was turned into a pillar of fait. Gen.
xix. 26.
Ver. 34, 35, 36. — The one /hall be taken \ and the
other left.} See Difc. III. p. 55.
Ver. 37. — Where, Lord? And he faid, Wherejoever
the body is, there will the eagles, &c.] See Difc. III.
p. 49. 59.
CHAP.
according to ST. LUKE, Chap XVIIL 275
CHAR XVIIL
VERSE 3. Avenge me of mine adverfary.} To be
rendered rather, Do me juftice againft, See.
Ver. 7. Shall not God avenge his own — though he
bear long with them f\ With them., fay fome, i. e.
with their enemies. But this is a licentious way of in
terpreting, not to be fuffered. What then is the
meaning of bearing with his faithful fervants, whom
he intends fliortly to revenge f ANSW. Inftead of,
though he bear long with them, it fhould be rendered,
according to fome of the beft and mod ancient
manufcripts a, and is he Jlack towards them ? Or, is
he jlow with regard to them f i. e. Jlack or flow to
do them juftice ? That the original words will very
well bear this fenfe, and that the interrogation is pro
per, let the learned reader fee fufficiently proved by
Dr. Hammond and Grotius upon the place.
Ver. 8. He will avenge them fpeedily'] This is clear
and plain, according to our interpretation of the
former verfe ; otherwife, hard to be reconciled with
it.
Ver. 14. Juftified} Approved of by God, pardon
ed, accepted, &c.
Ver. 15. Rebuked them'} This them relates not to
the infants^ (who could not be rebuked,) but to thofe
who brought them. 'They brought unto him alfo, &c.
at the beginning of the verfe. In Matth. x. 13. it
is more plain.
Ver. 1 6. CALLED them unto him} This likewife
relates to thofe who brought the infants.
; Ver. 34. They underftood none of thefe things.'] Qu.
Why fo ? The words are as plain as any words can
be. ANSW. They were fo ftrongly prejudiced by
T 2
their
a/ 6 Nates upon tbe Gofpcl
their notion of the Median's flourifliing temporal
kingdom, that they thought the words could not be li
terally underftood ; confequently mufl have fome
allegorical or myftical meaning ; and what that fhould
be, they could not imagine.
Ver. 35, — Nigh unto Jericho^ See note on Mark.
x. 46.
CHAP. XIX.
VERSE i. Jefus faid UNTO him.} It fliould be
rendered, of him, or concerning him. So the
particle a in the original is fometimes ufed ; and
mufl be here, as appears from the following words :
He alfo is, &c. not Thou art, &c.
Ibid. He alfo is the Jon of Abraham'} See note on
Matth. iii. 9. Though Zaccheus might be origin
ally a Jew, as Grotius makes it probable ; yet all
Publicans in general were by the Jews regarded as
'Gentiles, on account of their odious office, and wicked
fives.
Ver. 10. FOR tbe Son of man, &c.] "This day is
Jahation come to this houfe, &c. [by my means] FOR I
.am come tojave that which was loft.
Ver. 1 1 . He fpake a parable, becauje he was nigh to
Jerujalem, and becauje they thought that the kingdom of
God Jhould immediately appear^ i.e. Becaufe he w as-
nigh to Jerujalem^ where his followers thought he
would immediately take upon him his kingdomy
which they imagined would be a temporal one, and
expected great things from it. He {poke the fol
lowing parable of the Nobleman who was made a
King, and gave ten pounds to his fervants, &c. inti
mating, that the nation of the Jews would not fub-
s» So llkewife efc. Sec Synopf. Critic, in loc.
mit
according to ST. LUKE, Chap. XTX. 377
mit to him, but relift and oppofe his kingdom ; and
that all, who would be his faithful fubjecls, mud
not expect immediate glory and greatnefs, but with
labour and patience, and a diligent improvement of
themfelves in all virtues, wait for their reward in
God's due time.
Ver. 12. A certain Nobleman went into a far coun
try to receive for himjelf a kingdom, and to return .]
This feems to be taken from the cuflom of thofe,
who were to be kings over certain provinces, as
Herod, or Archelaus, over Judasa, going to Rome
for the confirmation of their kingdom, and then re
turning.
•Ver. 13, 14 — 27. And be called bis ten Jervants*,
and delivered them ten pounds — bring hither, and Jlay
them before me] See notes on the parable of the ta-
Jents, Matth. xxv.
Ver. 13. Occupy^ i. e. Employ my money in
trade.
Ver. 14. His citizens^ By them he means the
Jews ejpecially, they being his own countrymen.
Ver. 25. And they Jaid unto him, Lord, he hath
ten pounds.] A learned Commentator fays, this verfe
is not found in very ancient copies. And indeed
it feems to be fcarce fenie in itfelf, and breaks
the connection between the foregoing and following
verfes.
Ver. 27. But thofe mine enemies— Jlay them before
me] This relates to the Jewifli nation efpecially,
in this world, and to all Chrift's rebellious fubjects
in the next.
Ver. 28. Went before [them.] See note on Mark
x. 32.
Ver. 38. Peace in heaven\ i. e. Let the peace
and profperity of Meffiah's kingdom be procured in
heaven.
Ibid. Glory in the higheft^ Glory be to God, who
dwelleth in the highejl heavens.
T 3 Ver.
a; 8 Rotes upon tie Gofpel
Ver. 40. The ft ones would immediately cry out.] A
proverbial fpeech ; meaning, it is impoffible but that
the Mefliah's kingdom mould be acknowledged and
celebrated by fomey fince God has abfolutely decreed
it : therefore he would fooner change ft ones into men^
(as Matth. iii. 9.) than fuffer that decree to be
fruftrated.
Ver. 42. If thou had/I known, even thcu — the things
which belong unto thy -peace ! But now they are hid,
&c.j Some interpret it, O that thou hadft known^
&c. for fo the Greek particle a fometimes fignifies,
as we have elfewhere obferved. But I think an el-
lipjisy or imperfect fentence, is much more elegant
and pathetical. There are numberlefs inftances of
this, both in writing and in common difcourfe.
tiadft thou done Jo — But now, &c. Meaning, Hadft
thou done fo, all would have been well. — At leaft in
this thy day -, i. e. now at leaft, in this laft, great dif-
penfation, this I aft offer of grace. So ver. 44. The
time of thy vifitation : i. e. the time of my vifiting
thee with overtures of grace and pardon. — Hid from
thine eyes : i. e. either hid, becaufe thou wilt not
fee, but fliutteft thine eyes through obftinacy and
prejudice ; or, now it is too late> thou Jbalt never fee
them.
Ver. 44. Knew eft not] Wouldft not know, wouldft
not
CHAP. XX.
VERSE 15, 1 6. What therefore fiall the Lord—
God forbid] See note on Matth. xxi. 41.
Ver. 19. — Sought to lay hands on him ; and [it
fhould be but] they feared the people : for they perceived
a E?, See note on chap, xii, 49.
according to ST. LUKE, Chap. XX. 279
— againft tbeml] Thofe words, but they feared the peo
ple, ihould be in a parenthefis. The following ones,
For they perceived — againft them, relating to fought —
bands on him. They fought to kill him, becaufe he
fpoke againft them ; but durft not attempt it, be
caufe they feared the people.
Ver. 35, 36. They which Jh all be accounted worthy
to obtain that world,, [i. e. the future ftate of happi-
nefs,] and the [glorious] refurreffion from the dead, nei
ther marry ', &c. — being the children of the [glorious]
refurreffion] The words I have infer ted are not arbi
trarily inferted. For though all the dead (hall rife,
the bad as well as the good, yet that our Saviour
here fpeaks only of the latter, is plain from thofe
words, Jhall be accounted worthy ; and from thofe,
equal unto the angels, and are the children of God. But
Qcr. Why mould he mean only them f Are not the
wicked, as well as the righteous, incapable of marriage
in the other world ? ANSW. Yes ; and the one is fo
eafily inferred from the other, that there was no oc-
caiion of mentioning both. And he refers only to
good men in the other world, upon a charitable fuppofi-
tion, that thofe fpoken of in the objection were>/jtfi ;
fince nothing appears to the contrary, their names not
being mentioned.
CHAP. XXI.
VERSE 7, 8, 9—33. When /hall thefe things be ?
and what fign, &c. — but my words jh all not pafs
away^ This, in the main, falls in with Matth. xxiv.
upon which fee Difcourfe III. from p. 45. to p.
59-
Ver. 13. And it /hall turn to you for a tejiimony^
\. e. of your innocence, faith, and conftancy.
Ver. 1 8. There Jhall not an hair of your head per ijb^\
T 4 QjJ-
Notes upon the Gofpd
Qy. How fo ? when feme of them were to be put to
death ) ver. 16. as all the Apojlles, except one, actually
were. ANSW. They were upon the whole not iuf-
ferers, but great gainers ; i. e. taking the next world
into the account.
Ver. 19. In your patience pojfefs yc your fouls ^\ i.e.
Either* by patience Jave your lives here*, at lead your
fouls hereafter ; or, by patience, and the government of
all your paffions^ be mafters of yourf elves.
Ver. 21. Let not them that art in the countries en-
ter thereinto^ \ e. Let thofe of the Jews, who at
that time happen to be in other countries, continue
in thofe countries, and not return to their own.
Ver. 24. Jerujalem Jhall be trodden down cf the G en
tiles ^ until the times of the Gentiles be fulfilled^ This
being a prophecy of a great and extraordinary event,
no wonder it mould be obfcure : and perhaps, like
other fuch prophecies, it will not be thoroughly un-
derftood) till it is come to pafs. The bcft fenie of
the words feems to be this ; " Jerujalem mall be
" demolished by the Gentiles, and continue to be
" fo, //// the glorious converfion of the Gentiles^ upon
" the coming in of the Jews, who fhali then return
" to Jerufalem, rebuild it, and inhabit it." See
Rom. xi. throughout. See alfo Whitby upon the
place.
Ver. 25, 26. And there foall be figns in the fun , and
in the moon> &c.] See Difcourfe III. p. 58.
Ver. 28. Tour redemption draweth nigh~\ As this
relates to the day of judgment ', it is to be underftood
of all good Chriftians : as it relates to the definition
of Jerujalem^ it is to be underftood of the Jewifh con
verts to Chriflianity^ who were to be redeemed, or
delivered^ as the unbelieving Jews were to be de-
Jlroyed.
Ver. 35. As afnare] i. e. Juddenly, furfrifmgly.
» See Grotius.
CHAP.
according to ST. LUKE, Chap. XXII.
CHAP. XXII.
VERSE 6. /;/ the abfence of the multitude] It
(hould rather be rendered, without tumult, £T
Ver. 15. With defer e I have deJiredJ] So dejiring 1
bave dejired: i. e. I have earneftly defired. It is the
Hebrew idiom*
Ver. 1 8. 1 will not drink, &c,] i. e. I will not af
ter this time. So St. Matthew and St. Mark.
Ver. 24. There was a/fo a flrife — which of them
fiould be accounted the greate/lt\ Though what I have
faid on Mark x. 35. (fee the note there) may well
enough account for their ilrife about fuperiority at
that time ; yet it feems prodigious that they mould
fo flrive at this fad time, when their Lord had juft
told them he was to be taken from them, by a
painful and (hameful death, in two or three days ;
and that too without faying any thing of his refur-
reHiony which they had never well underflood, and
may be fuppofed now to have forgotten : for thefe
reafons I incline to Grotius's opinion, that the words
fhould be rendered, there HAD BEEN [not, there was}
a ftrife among them, &c. Our Saviour had formerly,
more than once, obferved them fo Jlriving ; and
now juft before his death, to make the greater impref-
fan upon them, he repeats what he had before faid,
to warn them effectually againit fo dangerous and per
nicious an error.
Ver. 25, 26. The kings of the Gentiles—called bene-
faftors. But ye Jhall not be fo.] See note on Matth.
xx. 26, 27. Here is nothing new to be taken notice
of, but the word benefaftors. That title was partly
a/famed by arbitrary princes, partly given them
by their flatterers, [fee the Commentators at large,]
when they had no manner of right to it, but the
direct contrary. Our Saviour's meaning therefore
feems
Notes upon tie Gofpcl
feems to be, They are called benefactors, but are ty
rants ; or at leaft fludy their own great nefs, more
than the good of their fubjects. But ye fhall not be
Jo, &c.
Ver. 28. In my temptations'] i. e. in my hardfhips,
{"offerings, and cliftreffes. The word temptation is ge
nerally fo ufed in Scripture.
Ver. 29, 30. And I appoint unto you a kingdom —
twelve tribes of IfraeL] As if he mould have faid,
" Though ye fhall not be like the kings of the earth,
" (ver. 26.) yet fince ye are they which have continued
" with me, &c. (ver. 28.) I will give you a kingdom,
" though of a different kind" For the nature of
that kingdom, and the full explication of thefe two
verfes, fee note on Matth. xix. 28. and xxvi. 29.
Ver. 3 1 . Simon — Satan hath dejired to — -Jift you as
wheat] This is fpoken of all the Apoftles in gene
ral ; but more especially of Simon Peter, to whom
the words are directed : becaufe he was not only
tempted, but foiled by the temptation.— Sj# you as
•wheat, is a figurative expreffion for trying, or prov
ing : as ty fifting, or winnowing, it appears how much
grain, and how much chaff, and what fort of grain it
is ; fo temptation fhews what ^ve are.
Ver. 32. That thy faith fail not~\ i. e. fail not fi
nally : for it did fail for a time,
Ver. 36. But now, he that hath a purfe, — and he
that hath no fword, let him fell his garment, and buy
one] This is all figurative and allegorical, not literal.
Which appears from his reproving Peter for ufing a
fword. He fpeaks of fpiritual, not of fe cular arms.
He knew they would not underjland him, when he
fpoke the words ; but intended that they fliould, af
ter they were further inflrudted and enlightened. See
more on v. 38.
Ver. ^.—Have an end^\ i. e. are accomplifhed, or
fulfilled.
Ver. 38. — Here are tivofwords — // is enough"] Not
that
according to ST. LUKE, Chap. XXII. 283
that two fwords were enough to refift the multitude
of his enemies \ for that, two hundred perhaps (had
there been fo many men to ufe them) would not
have been fufficient ; nor did he intend to make any
refiftance at all. The meaning is; So much for that ,
" Say no more of it ; I perceive you do not un-
" derfland what I faid about fwords : but ye fiall
" underftand it, when the Holy Ghoft is come up-
" on you."
Ver. 45. — Sleeping for forrowJ] OBJ. One would
think, forroiv iliould rather have kept them awake,
than inclined them to Jleep. ANSW. It may very
well have both effects upon different perfons ; accord
ing to the different tempers, both of their bodies and
minds.
Ver. 51. — Suffer ye thus far^\ He fpeaks this to
the foldiers and others who came to feize him.
" fake no notice of what my rafh difciple has thus far
" done amifs -, for I am going to repair the injury :"
or perhaps in this fenfe, which is very good too ;
" Suffer me to be fo far at liberty, as to heal this
" man's ear."
Ver. 52. — Captains of the temple'] Some learned
Commentators are of opinion, that by the Captains
of the temple, and (as it is elfewhere, Acls iv. i. v.
24.) the Captain, i.e. the chief Captain of the temple p,
are meant the Roman military officers or command
ers in the caftle of Antonia; which was a garrifon
near the temple, and, in a wide fenfe, deemed a part
of it ; appointed to curb the feditions of the Jews.
Others think, they were Jewiih officers command
ing in the temple itfelf. See Whitby on the place.
The latter opinion feems the more probable; becaufe
the Romans did not trouble themfelves with religious
difputes between the Jews and Chriftians, as equally
hating and defpifing them both ; whereas the Captain
of the temple, Acts iv. i. and v. 24. appears to be zeal
ous in that controverfy, and is ranked with the Priejls,
High
284 Nates upon tic Gvfpcl
High Pr lefts, Chief Pr lefts, and Sadducees. Bolides,
it no where elfe appears, that the Romans at all con^
cerned themfelves with taking and felzing our Sa
viour, or had any thing to do with him, till he was
by the Jews delivered up to Pilate.
Ver. 53. This Is your hour, and the power of dark-
nefsJ\ i. e. " When I was with you in the temple, &c.
"God did not permit you to lay hands on me ; be-
" caufe my hour was not come. But now my hour
" is" come, and fo is yours too, though in a very
" different fcnfe. This is your hour, and the power
" of darknefs : i. e. the devil^ and you his inftrumentsy
" are now permitted to compafs my death."
Ver. 68. AJk youl\ Any queftions whatibever.
Ibid. Answer me\ To any purpofe^ or with any
truth : becaufe you are determined to deilroy me.
CHAP. XXIII.
"T TERSE 2. Forbidding to give tribute to C*efar.]
V This accufation is diredly falfe ; as appears
from Matth. xxii. 2,0, 21. and the parallel places in
Mark and Luke.
Ibid. Saying., that he himfelf is Chrift a k'mg^ This
indeed was true ; but he claimed to be a king no
otherwife than as Chrift ; (which did not interfere
with Caefar's title ;) though he was really the rightful
heir to the crown.
Ver. 4. I find no fault in this man~\ OBJ. How
could Pilate fay fo of him, when he had afTerted
himfelf to be King of the Jews ? ver. 3. Was this no
fault againft. Csefar ? ANSW. It appears from John
xviii. 33, 34 — 38. that he faid this to Pilate alone
in the Judgment-hall^ and explained himfelf by fay
ing, My kingdom is not of this world^ &c. Upon
which
according to ST. LUKE, Chap. XXIII. 285
which Pilate went out to the Jews, and faid, I fnd no
fault in him at all.
Ver. 15. Nothing worthy of death is dene unto him]
i. e. Nothing is done unto him, as if he were worthy of
death.
Ver. 16. / will therefore chajiife him, and release,
him] Chaftife, i. e. fcourge a. Though Jcourging,
among the Romans, was ufually previous to cruci
fixion, and other capital punifliments ; yet it was
often inflicted, when no capital punilhment followed.
Pilate's meaning therefore is : " Though I do not
" think he deferves to die ; yet very likely he may
" deferve to be punijhed in a lefs degree : and, to
" oblige you, I will take it for granted that he does.
" / will therefore" &c. This plainly appears from
John xix. He fcourged him, ver. i, yet afterwards
earneflly infilled, and laboured, that he might not be
crucified.
Ver. 31. If they do thefe things in a green tree,
what Jhall be done in the dry /*] A Jewifh proverb ;
meaning, " If an innocent perion thus fuffer, what
" will become of the guilty ?" Thus Ezek. xx. 47.
// Jhall devour every green tree, and every dry tree.
Which is explained in the next chapter, ver. 3, 4. /
will cut off the righteous and the wicked.
Ver. 33. Calvary*.] The fame with Golgotha:, a
place Qifculls ; i. e. covered with bones of executed
malefactors.
Ver. 34. They know not what they do.~] i. e. many,
perhaps moft of them : not all : for fome finned a-
gainft the Holy Gboft.
Ver. 47. Glorified God, faying. Certainly this was a
righteous man.] Glorified God, \. e. for the eminent
graces and virtues which (hone in Jefus.
Ver. 54. The preparation] i. e. to the Sabbath, the
Jay before the Sabbath ; our Friday.
* See Synopf. Critic. b Gr. xfztm.
CHAP.
286 Notes upon the Gofpel
CHAP. XXIV.
VERSE 1 6. But their eyes were holden, that they
Jhould not know him^\ i. e. by his divine fewer
he fo difpofed their eye-fight, that they Ihould not,
Sec. He concealed himfelf from them at firfl^ that
they might fpeak freely, and without referve, as of
him, and not to him , that when he afterwards dii-
covered himfelf, ver. 31. he might the more fully an-
fwer all they could fay.
Ver. 21, &c.] And bejide all this, to-day is the
third day., &c.] The import of thofe words, bejide all
this, feems to be their referring to the promife of his
refur region upon that day, which was the mqft mate
rial point of all ; though, through the perturbation
of mind, under which they labour, they do not men
tion it. As if they mould have laid, " And, which
" is more than all the reft> he declared he would rife
'• this day ; and we hoped he would have (hewed
<f himfelf to us before this time, for it is now almoft
" evening, ver. 29. It is true indeed (ver. 22, 23, 24.)
" certain women of our company made us aftoni/hed —
"Jay ing, they hadjeen a vifion of angels, which Jaid that
" he was alive. And certain of them which were with
cc us — but him they Jaw not. So that, upon the whole,
<c we know not what to think.'*
Ver. 31. He vanifhed cut of their fight~\ This is
wrong translated ; the word vanifh gives an Englifli
reader the idea of a Jpirit, or apparition. It fliould
be rendered, He became invifible'*, (which by his di
vine power he might do, without vanijbing^) and Ju d-
denly withdrew from them.
Ver. 34. Saying, the Lord is rifen indeed^ and hath
appeared to Simon'} The word Jay ing is the accttfa-
tive
according to ST. LUKE, Chap. XXIV. 287
tive cafe, not the nominative*, relating to the eleven
gathered together ; not to the two, who made their
report of what happened in their walk to Em-
maus. THEY do not fpeak till the next verfe ;
And they told them 'what things were done in the
way, &c. When they entered the room, they
found the eleven difcouriing among themfelves, and
faying, the Lord is rifen, &c. But here OBJ. It is
faid, Mark xvi. 13. that after the two difciples had
made their report, the eleven did not believe them ;
how then is Mark reconciled with Luke, who lays
they believed before ? ANSW. They might very well
believe the main point, that Chrift was rifen, upon
his appearing to Peter, and other evidence ; and
yet difbelieve the circumftances of this report made
by the two in their walk to Emmaus ; particu
larly their Lord's being unknown to them at firft,
and knoivn to them afterwards : then his fudden dif-
appearing might unfettle the faith which they had
before, and make them think it was &fpirit> &c.
Ver. 41. And while they yet believed not for joy,
^nd wondered, &c.] This does not contradid; what
was faid above of their believing : they jllll believed,
nay more now than ever ; their Lord being prefent
with them, and they having handled and felt him.
The meaning here (which all, who under/land hu
man nature, muft know to be a good one) is no
more than this, that though their minds or judg
ments gave a full affent, while they attended to the
evidence ; yet the perturbation of the paffiom, joy,
and wonder, with a mixture of fear, left it fhould
not be true, was fo great, that by turns and fts
it Jufpended their aflent, and made them almojl dif-
believe their own fenfes. He muft be an ill ob-
ferver of what pailes within him, whofe own ex
perience will not make this very eafy to be appre
hended.
not X/y«>Tftf.
EXPLA-
EXPLANATORY NOTES
UPON THE
GOSPEL ACCORDING TO ST. JOHN,
CHAR I.
VERSE i. In the beginning was the WORD.] In the
beginning, i. e. when things began to be made,
he was, confequently, he was before things were made*9
confequently, from eternity. That by the WORD is
meant the eternal Son of God, our bleiTed Lord and
Saviour Jefus Chrift, is plain from ver. 14. The WORD
was made flejh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld
bis glory ', the glory as of the only begotten of the Father?)
full of grace and truth. And Rev. xix. 13. His name
is called THE WORD OF GOD. St. John, when he
called our Saviour by this name, fpoke a language
well underftood by thofe to whom he wrote. It is
often ufed by the Jewifh writers, particularly the
Chaldee Paraphrail and Philo, to exprefs a divine
perfon in the Godhead, diftinct from another^ who is the
head and fountain of the Deity. When Gen. iii.
22. we read, The Lord f aid , Behold the man, &c. the
Targum has it, The WORD of the LordGodfaid, Behold
Adam, &c. So Gen. ii. 7. The WORD of the Lord
created Adam. Ifai. i. 14. Inftead of, my foul hateth^
the Targum has it, my WORD hateth. And chap. xlv.
17. Ij'rael is delivered, or favedy by the Lord ; Targ.
The WORD of the Lord. Jer. i. 8. I am with thee.
Targ.
according to ST. JOHN, Chap, I. 289
Targ. My WORD is with thee. And Pfal. ex. (a very
remarkable paffage indeed,) The Lord faid unto my
Lord, Sit thou on my right hand, &c. Targ. TfoLoRD
faid to HIS WORD, Sit thou on my right hand. Arid
to Abraham,, Gen.xv. i. / am thy Jhield-*- My WORD-
is thyjhield. This name is ufed in the fame fenfe
even by Heathens, and in the Alcoran. See Dr.
Hammond on Luke i. 2. and Grotius on this place.
Of the grounds and reafons of this expreffion we can
give feme account, though a very imperfect one, the
lubject being an ineffable myjlery. The term in the
original, Aoyos, fignifies much more than is rendered
in our language; not only Word, but alib Reafon; not
only the external word in fpeech ; but the internal
word of the mind, which is thought. Now both thefe
fenfes are very applicable to the Son of God with re
ference to the Father : WORD ; for as words exprefs
the mind, fo the Son exprejjes the Father ; being the
brightnefs of his glory, and the exprefs image of his per-
fon, Heb. i. 3. REASON; becaufe the Son \\2&Juch re
lation to the Father, as reafon has to the mind; being
diftincJ from it, yet ejjent tally included and involved
in it.
Ibid. And the Word was with God] i. e, God the
Son was with God the Father ; which latter is called
God abfolutely, or by way of ewinency, becaufe he is
the head or fountain, the other two Perfons be
ing emanations or ftreams from him, in the fame one
Deity.
Ibid. And the Word was GW.] This fure is plain
enough. The monjlrous interpretation which the So-
cinians put upon this verfe, and other paflages in
this chapter, is well known to the learned ; to the
unlearned the recital of it would be ufelefs.
Ver. 2. The fame was in the beginning with God^\
This, though the fenfe of it was expreffed before, in
that claufe, the word was with God, is by no means a
vain tautology, but a Jlrong and emphatical repetition,
u He
290 Notes upon tie Gofpel
He is faid to be himfelf God, and again faid to be
with God ; to fliew his real Godhead, and yet his dif-
tlncl perfonality from the Father : the one overthrow
ing the herefies of the Ebionites, Cerinthians, &c.
down to the Arians, &c. who denied our Lord's Divi
nity, the other overthrowing the herefy of the Sa-
bellians, who confounded the Perfons of the Father and
the Son, making but one Perfon in the Deity.
Ver. 3. All things were made by him ; and without
'him zvas not any thing made that was made.~\ The lafl
claufe is very properly added; becaufey^z? things are
not made at all. Himfelf, and the other two Perfons
of the Trinity are not made : fin, and evil of all kinds
are not made, properly fpeaking, i. e. created ; they
are the creatures of creatures, not of God ; who made
nothing but what is good.
Ver. 4. In him was life ; and the life [in him] was
the light of #/£;/.] i. e. /;/ him was not only life, but
\\\z fountain of life to men ; he has it in himfelf, and
gives to his creatures life, i. Natural; i. Spiritual;
3. Eternal. As for the word light, it is very fre
quently ufed for life, and joined with it, in the
Greek and Latin writers, and alfo in the language
of the Old Teftament ; particularly in Pfal. xxxvi.
9. a place parallel to this : With thee is the fountain of
life ; and in thy light Jhall we fee light. The fenfe
therefore is the fame, as if it had been faid ; In him
iv as life ; and the life [in him] was the life of men; i.e.
the fpring and fountain of it. See John v. 26. i John
v. 12.
Ver. 5. tte light Jhineth in darknefs ; and the dark-
nefs comprehended it ;/0/.] i. e. apprehended, admitted^
received it not. OBJ. But how is it poflible, that
light fliould not enlighten darknefs? ANS\V. He fpeaks
of moral, voluntary agents; of men in the darknefs of
ignorance and fin ; who might either admit or reject
the light of the Gofpel. See chap. iii. 19. Mojl of
them at firft rejected it ; for all did not. So ver.
10,
according to ST. JOHN, Chap. I. 291
10, ii. ¥he world kneiv him not. — His own received
Mm not : i. e. t\\z generality of them did not ; hi
did, ver. 12. As many as received him) &c.
Ver. 6. >£;/.] The Baptift.
Ver. 7. To bear ivitnefs of the Hght~\ i.e. of Chrift,
and his Gofpel.
Ver. 8. He was not THAT light, &c.] i.e. THE great
light of all ; Chrift was THAT ; ver. 9. That ivas THE
true light, &c. John indeed was a light, a burning,
and a jhining one, chap. v. 35. but much inferior to
him, whofe harbinger he was.
Ver. 9. Which light eth every man that cometh into the
world~\ Or rather, which., coming into the world, light-
eth every man. For that I take to be the better
verfion -, referring the original word for coming, ea^o-
fxsvcv, as the nominative neuter to that fa* tight, <p^;
not as the accufative mafculine to that for man, £v-
S-^WTTOV. The fituation of the words, I confefs, feems
to favour the other translation; but then, according
to this which I choofe, the conJlmEHon is very eafy
and grammatical and the fenfe much better. It
feems but low and jejune to fay, every man, and then
to add, that cometh into tht world -} there being no oc-
caiion for thofe words : but it is particular and em-
phatical to fay, that light, which, coming into the world,
enlighteneth, &c. he that cometh, or that foould come9
o c^c/^vof, being the known and diflinguifhing charac
ter of the Meffiab,in many places of the New Tefta-
ment. And that of this very Evangelift, chap. xii.
46. I AM COME A LIGHT into the world, is directly
parallel to this place, according to the verfion I
choofe.
Ver. 10, ii. — Knew him not — Received him not7\
See note on ver. 5. His own -, i. e. the world in ge
neral -, which was his own, becaufe he made it ; and
the Jews in particular, becaufe they were more efpe-
cially his own, his peculiar people.
Ver. 12. Received him- — believed on his name^ The
u 2 latter
29^ Notes upon the Go/pel
latter is explanatory of the former. By receiving him
is meant believing in him.
. Ibid. — Power to become, &c.] i. e. the privilege,
tgaenav, of becoming, &cc.
Ver. 13. Which were born* nut of blood, nor of the
will of the fajh, nor of the will of man ; but of God. ]
Which ; i. e. thofe who become the fons of God, ju(l
before mentioned. Born ; i. e. to the inheritance as
fons of God ; not of blood ; i. e. not by circumclfion,
which was a bloody facrament ; nor of the will of the
Jlefh ; i. e. not by carnal defcent, as from their natural
parents; — nor of the will of man ; i. e. not by human
adoption; — but of God : i. e. of God receiving them
for his children, through faith In Chrift : Gal. iii. 26*
and by his Spirit fanftifylng them ; for as many as arc
led by the Spirit of God, they are the fons of God. Rom.
viii. 14. This, I fay, feems to be the meaning of the
paffage. We Chriftians are born the fons of God ;
not by the blood of circumcifion, by which the Jews
entered into covenant with him : nor by that carnal
generation which makes us children of our natural pa
rents, fo that we mould have a right to this fonjhip by
being born into fuck, orfucb a particular family: nor
by the will of man, adopting another to be \\\s fon and
heiry for want of natural iilue : but this fonlhip arifes
from the good pleafure of God, receiving us, &c. as
above.
Ver. 14. The word was made flefh^\ i. e. The fe*
cond Perfon of the bleffed Trinity took our nature
upon him.
Ibid. Dwelt among r/j.] Literally, tabernacled or
pitched his tent among us, £<ncn'vwo-£v tv yp~v : to denote a
temporary andfoort flay, or abode in this world.
Ibid. IV e beheld his glory — as of the only begotten of
the Father^ The divine glory of his miracles, his tranf-
figuration, his re fur region, his afcevifion into heaven.
Ibid, Full of grace and truth^ Of grace, to procure
\hz\. pardon of Jin, j uft ificatlcni or aft of grace, which
the
according to ST. JOHN, Chap. I. 293
the law of Mofes could not give. Of truth, in op-
pofition to the types and JJoadows, under the law, of
fpiritual bleffings, and good things to come, (Heb. x. i.)
of which Chrift exhibited the fubftance, reality, and
truth. Thus ver. 17. For the law was given by Mofes;
lut grace and truth came by Jefus Chrift.
Ver. 15. He was before me^\ i. e. in his divine
nature.
Ver. 1 6. And of his fulnefs we have all received, and
grace for graced] i. e. We have in fome meajure par
taken of his fulmfs, and perfection, by the fpiritual
gifts communicated to us. The laft claufe Ihould
rather be rendered, grace UPON a grace, i. e. grace
added to grace.
Ver. 17. FOR the law was given by Mojes-, but grace
— h Jejus Chrift] i. e. The law indeed came from
God, as being given by Mofes his minifter ; but it
could not confer pardon, fpiritual grace, &c. For
the reft, fee the laft note on ver. 14.
Ver. 1 8. No man hath feen God— the only begotten
Son— bath declared him] i. e. Since God is invifible
to men ; and his nature, and even his will, can no
otherwife be known to them than by revelation from
him > it was neceifary there mould be feme revealer,
&c. And none could be fo well qualified for that of
fice, as the only begotten Son, who is in the bcjom of the
Father: and he hath declared him accordingly.
Ver. 19. The record of John.'] i. e. The teftimony
which he bore, or the account which he gave, both of
Chrift, and of bimfelf.
Ver. 2 1 . Art thou Elias ? £cc.] See Difeourfe II.
P-27-
Ibid. That prophet ?] Who, as the Jews expected,
was to be raifed from the dead about that time : lup-
pofed to be Jeremiah. See Matth. xvi. 14.
* For the particle aVr), fee the Critics and Grammarians.
u 3 Ver.
294 Notes upon the Gofptl
Ver. 23. / am tbe voice of one crying, &c.] See note
on Matth.iii. 3.
Ver. 25. Wby baptizeft thou then f &c.] i. e. In
this ww and extraordinary manner ; profelyting peo
ple into a religion never before heard of? For baptiz
ing itfelf was a ujual thing, at the admiilion of pro-
felytes to Judaitin.
Ver. 3 1 . And I knew him net : but that he Jhould be
made manifeft — baptizing with water^\ i. e. At firft \
only knew in general^ that the Mefflah was coming ; I
did not know who he was. But I came baptizing,
that I might afterwards be informed who he was,
and point him out to the people. Compare ver. 33.
and fee note on Matth.iii. 14. See alfo Difc. II. p.
34> 35-
Ver. 40. One of the two — was Andrew"] The other
probably was St. John, the author of this Gofpel ;
who, though often fpeaking ofbimjelf, never mentions
his own name.
Ver. 42. Cephas — a ftone~\ Cephas in Syriac (the
language our Saviour fpoke) is the lame with Peter
in Greek ; fignifying a rock: for fo it ihould be ren
dered, not aftone. See Matth. xvi. 18.
Ver. 45. Nathanael^] He is fuppofed to be the fame
with Bartholomew. See Nelfon's Feftivals, on St.
Bartholomew's day.
bid. The f on of Jofeph"] For fo he was fuppcfed
and reputed to be, though he really was not.
Ver. 46. Can there any good thing come out of Na
zareth ?] The Jews were greatly prejudiced againft
Galilee, and efpecially againft Nazareth; particularly
they were confident, that the Meffiah could not be
born there ; which was very true. And, accordingly,
cur Saviour was bom at Bethlehem, though they did
not know it. See chap. vii. 41^ 42, 52.
Ver. 5 1. Hereafter you jh all Jee heaven open, and the
angels of God ajcending and descending upon the Son of
according to ST. JOHN, Chap. I. 295
Inftead of hereafter, it fhould be,/?0r//y, in a
little time, M apri. For the reft, here are two lenfes;
the one figurative, the other literal: both very good.
The firft, " You fhall fee fo many miracles of mine,
*' that it fhall look as if you faw the heavens opened,
" and the angels afcending and defcending, to obey
" my orders.'* The Jecond, " You (hall fee the
" heavens opened, to receive me up thither; and the
*c angels afcending and defcending, to attend me.5'
Here is undoubtedly an allufion to Jacob's ladder^
Gen. xxviii. 12, 13. As to that expreffion, UPON
the Son of 'man , the particle Jwi fhould be rather ren
dered, over, or above -, hovering over, or above, bis
bead.
CHAP. II.
VERSE i. tte third day^ i. e. The third day
after what is related in the foregoing chapter :
mod probably, the teftimony which John gave of
Chrift. See ver. 34, 35, 43. of that chapter.
Ibid. Marriage^ Rather, marriage-feaft . See note
on Matth. xxii. i.
Ver. 3. They have no wine.'] She meant much more
than (hefaid-, as appears from the next verfe; (and,
no doubt, (he expreffed it by her looks and geftures\)
viz. her defire that he would by miracle fupply that
want.
Ver. 4. Woman, what have I to do with thee ?~\ This
is no undutiful or dtfrefpefffal exprefiion to his mother,
as a mere EngliQi reader may imagine. The word
woman, among the ancients, was ufed to perfons of
quality, and others, for whom the fpeakers had much
reverence. And the words tranflated, What have I
to do with tbee, are not fo harm in the original ;
W J//.9* xscl cru, yy'vai ; They are indeed a rebuke
u 4 (and
£96 Notes upo?i Ibe Gofpel
(and (lie well knew, that, by the dignity of his per-
- Ion and office, he had authority to rebuke her,
though flie was his mother) for her intermeddling in
the execution of his function.
Ibid. Mine hour is not yet come^\ Mine hour ; i.e.
the time and Jeajon for my entering upon my mini-
ftry, and publicly working of miracles. But Qu. Why
then did he work the miracle defired, at this very
time? ANSW. He did it privately, not publicly : the
fervants only knew it, when it was dene ; though af
terwards indeed it became known to all.
Ver. 5. His mother faith unto the ferv ants, TVhatfoever
he Jaith unto you, do ;V.] For though he had not in
words granted her requeft ; yet even in words he
had not denied it : and by his looks, and manner of
{peaking, he gave her to underftar.d, that he would
do what flie defired. This is natural, and eafy to
befuppofed, from the faff which followed. And it is
elegancy in an hiftorian to omit fuch little circum-
fiances, rather than to mention them.
Ver. 6 . Six wafer-pots — after the manner of the pun-
fying of the Jews^\ Their purifying; i. e. their wafoing
their hands, cups, pots, &c. at meals, according to
their (iiperftitious traditions. See Mark vii. 3, 4.
Thefe water-pots were fet there for that purpofe.
Ibid. Two or three firkins'} Two, or three ; i. e.
either, fome two, zndfome three ; or all between two
and three firkins. What is the meafure intended by
the original word, JUET^-HK, is unknown to us. Some
fay a gallon ; fome, not above a pint. But fuppofe
it to be what we call a firkin \ there mufh then indeed
be a great quantity of wine made : but we are to con-
lider, that wedding-feafts among the Jews \afrtdfeven
days: and though fome, viz. near relations, and
friends, were invited; yet many came who were nqt
invited. Befides; our Saviour may well be fuppofed
jto have made much more wine than was wanted
during this whole feaft, as a gift to the pcrtbns by
whom
according to ST. JOHN, Chap. II. 297
whom be was entertained ; which was to continue
in their family for a conliderable time after the feaft
was over.
Ver. 10. Well drunk .] i. e. cheerfully ', not to excefs,
or intemperately. The original worda is often fo ufed.
See this whole narrative fully cleared, and vindicated
from the profane illiterate cavils of infidels, in Mira
cles ofjefus vindicated, Part III. p. 22, 23, &c.
Ver. 15. A fcourge of Jmall cords'} It is not to be
fuppofed, that he drove them out with this fcourge,
or that they were at all afraid of being hurt by it.
The fcourge was only ^Jymbol^ God's anger-, and of
his own zeal and authority. For the reft, fee 2d note
on Matth. xxi. 12.
Ver. 17. His Difciples remembered — eaten me #/>.]
Pfal. Ixix. 10. That David was in feveral refpedts a
type of Chrift, is plain from many places of Scripture.
And though the Difciples at this time might not
know that he was, the application they made was,
however, very proper.
Ver. 1 8. What fign?\ i. e. of thy commiffion and
authority ?
Ver. 19. Deftroy this temple^ He probably pointed
to his body., to mew he meant that, not the real tem
ple -, though the Jews either did not olferve it, or,
through perverfenefs, would not underftand it.
Ver. 23, 24, 25. Many believed — knew what was in
man~\ They believed ; but their faith was not hearty,
their affections not doling with it ; as appears from
the next verfes : But Jefus did not commit himfdf unto
them ; i. e. did not truft them ; becatife their hearts
were not right: For he knew — what was in man : i. e.
was thoroughly acquainted with human nature in ge
neral, and knew the thoughts of every perfon in par
ticular.
a MsOz/fix. See the Commentators.
CHAP.
V
Notes upon tic Gtfpc
CHAP. III.
ERSE i. A ruler of the Jews] A member of
their Sanhedrim, or great council. Chap. vii.
Ver. 3. Jefus anfwcred — Except a manic born again,
te cannot fee the kingdom of God'] Qu. How is this an
anfwer to what Nicodemus faid in the foregoing verfe ?
ANSW. Thus : cc You own indeed, upon the evi-
" dence of my miracles, that I am a teacher come from
*' God-, but that, though neceffary, is not fujjuient :
(C you mud likewife be regenerate, or born again in a
* fpiritualfenfe ; i. e. make fuch an entire change in
" your principles and practice, as to become a mw-
man"
Ver. 5. Born of water > and of the Spirit] i. e. -re
generated by water-baptijm, and the influence of the
Holy Ghoft.
Ver. 6. That which is born of the fiejh is flefo ; and
'that which is born of the Spirit is fpirit] i. e. " Were
" it poflible a man could be born again in the grofs
u fenfe you {peak of, ver. 4. this would not qualify
" him for the kingdom of God. A natural birth can
" give him no title to any life, but this mortal one.
" But if he be renewed in the fpirit <?/ his mind, &c.
" he is indeed a fpiritual man, and entitled to immor-
" tality."
Ver. 8. "The wind bloweth where it lifteth — canft not
tell whence it cometh—fo is [i.e. it is with] every one
that is born of the Spirit"] It lifteth. The wind has no
will, properly fpeaking ; it is a metaphor, meaning, it
blows freely, as itftems to v.s\ though it is really un
der the command of God. And as we know it blows,
by \tejound, and the efefts of it, yet are ignorant of
many circumftances relating to it ; fo the Spirit of
God operates in us, though we know not the manner
of
according io ST. JOHN, Chap. III. 299
of his operation. But Qu. How is it true, that we
know not whence the wind comes, and whither it goes ?
Do we not certainly know, that a South-wind, for
example, comes from the South, and goes to the
North ? ANSW. Yes ; but we know not how far it
came from the South, nor how far it will go to
the North ; where it began, nor where it willy?0/>.
Ver. io. Art thou a mafier of Ifrael, and knoweft
not thefe things .-?] i. e. " What I have faid may be
f( underilood by an ordinary Jew, much more by
" a man of your learning and authority. Why
" fhould you wonder at my doctrine of regeneration f
" Do not you yourfelves make profelytes by baptizing
" them, and then efteem them new-born perfons ?
*c And as for that inward holinefs and purity I fpeak
«' of, have not the Prophets foretold, that God will
<: plentifully communicate his Spirit in the days of
" the Mefliah, for that purpofe ?"
Ver. 1 1 . We fpec.k that we do know, and teftify that
we have feen^\ We fpeak, &c. i. e. I fpeak, &c. The
plural is frequently ufed for the iingular. That we
do know — have feen : i. e. I deliver to you nothing
but what I certainly know to be true.
Ibid. Te receive not our witnefs^ i. e. Moft of you
do not; very few do. Inftead of witnefs, it fliould be
rendered teflimony, ryv pitfrufiW*
Ver. 12. Earthly things — heavenly things /*] ^Earth
ly things are not here taken in an /// fenfe, (as they
often are in Scripture, particularly Philip, iii. 19.)
but only in an inferior fenfe. And the meaning of
the whole verfe is this : " If you believe not thofe
" things which I have reprefented to you ty.JfftfiUt
" objects here on earth, as by the blowing of the wind,
" &c. how will you believe t\\z fublime myfteries of
" heaven, the trinity, and incarnation, &c. ?'J of which
he fpeaks in the next verfe.
Ver. 13. And nr> man hath ajc ended up to heaven^
but he that came down from heaven, even the Son of
man
300 Notes upon tie Gnfpel
man which is in heaven^\ No perfon, but the Son of
man, who is likewife the Son of God, has revealed
ifafefubtime myfteries. See note on chap. i. ver. 18.
— But Qu. i. Flow had our Saviour afcended into
heaven, when he {poke thefe words ? As God in
deed he WAS always in heaven; but that cannot be
called ASCENDING thither. ANSW. i. The fenfe,
without any force or ftrain, may very well be this.
" No man ever yet hath, nor (till after the day of
cc judgment) ever will afcend into heaven ; but I,
<c the Son of man, and of God, SHALL, in a very
" fhort time, about three years hence, afcend bodily
" into heaven." [OBJ' But did not Enoch and
Elijah afcend into heaven ? ANSW. i. Suppofe they
did ; thofe only two extraordinary cafes do not let
afide the general rule, and ordinary courfe of things,
2. Mod probably they did not afcend into heaven,
the higheft heaven of which our Saviour here fpeaks,
but into paradife. See note on Luke xvi. 22, 23.]
ANSW. 2. Our Saviour's human nature may be faid
to have afcended into heaven at his conception, it being
then perfonally united to the divine nature, which is
always in heaven. — Qu. 2. How did our Saviour
come down from heaven ? ANSW. i. As to his di
vine nature, which was perfonally united to the human,
and, asfuch, converfed upon earth. 2. Even his hu
man nature, though its production was upon earth,
may be faid to come from heaven ; as the manner of
its production was miraculous and divine. — Qu. 3. How
could he be ftill in heaven, when he was come down
from it ? ANSW. All the three Perfons, as God, are
in heaven, and on earth, and every where, at the fame
time.
Ver. 14. And as Mc/es lifted up the [brazen] Jer-*
pent in the wildernefs, even fo mufl the Son of man
be lifted #/>.] He proceeds to tell the manner and
means, by which he was to effect the redemption of
mankind. The brazen ferpenfs being lifted up on a
pole
according to ST. JOHN, Chap. III.
pole (Numb. xxi. 9.) was a type' of Chrifl's being
lifted up on the crojs ; and as the former was falutary
to the people bitten with ferpents, fo was the latter
to fouls wounded with fin.
Ver. 21. Doeth the triith^ i. e. Believes and affs
according to the truth.
Ibid. Wrought in God\ i. e. Done according to
the will and pleafure of God -, ly the grace of God,
&c.
Ver. 22. — Came Jejus, and his difcipks, &c. and
there he tarried with them, and baptized^ Baptized,
i. e. by them : for he himfdf did not baptize. Chap.
iv. 2.
Ver. 25. Then there arofe a queftion between fome of
Johns difdples and the Jews, about purifying'] A qucf-
tion-, i. e. a controverfy, or difpute. — fhe Jews-, i. e.
fome certain Jews ; probably iuch as believed in Je-
fus, and were ready to profefs themfelves his difci-
pies. — About purifying ; i. e. mod probably, about
John's and Jefus's baptifm, which of them purified
moil, what that purification was, and whither it
tended, &c. This appears from .the next words.
Read ver. 26. and fee Difcourfe II. p. 36. And
they came unto John, and f aid, &c. They, i. e. John's
diiciples.
Ver. 27. A man can receive nothing^ except it be
given him from heaven^] Nothing, i. e. of power, and au
thority. Receive ; better rendered ajjume a, take [to
himfelf.] The fenfe is, as if he mould have added,
" And my commiffion or authority from heaven ex-
" tends not fo far, as that I fliould equal myielf with
« Jefus."
Ver. 29. He that hath the bride is the bridegroom ;
but the friend — which Jlandeth and heareth him, re-
joiceth, Sec, — My joy therefore h fulfilled^ See note on
See Heb. V. 4.
Matth.
upon tie Gofpel
Matth. ix. 15. The friend of the bridegroom, ivlich
Jlandeth, and heareth him ; i. e. ftandeth in the bride-
chamber •, and heareth him converfe with his bride, &c.
" Thus all that I have done has been to prepare the
" nation of the Jews for the reception of the Mef-
" fiah, who is their true head, and the hujband of
" his fpoufe the Church. Upon his appearance, I
" pretend to no authority, but deliver you over to
** him, with great joy, &c."
Ver. 30. He mufl increafe, but I muft decreaje~\ i. e.
in honour and authority*
Ver. 31. He that cometh from above is above all:
be that is of the earth is earthly, and fpeaketh of the
earth : he that cometh from heaven is above #//.] For
the words earth and earthly, fee note on ver. 12.
The fenfe of the verle before us is well explained by
this paraphrafe. "And it is reafonable to own him
<c fuperior to me, and all other Prophets which, ever
" were in the world, even Mofes himfelf ; becaufe
** be that ccmeth frcm above (not only by his miffion
44 from God, as I and they did, but by his original,
" as he only did, ver. 13.) is above all, that are de-
«c fcended from earthly parents only : and he that is
" thus of the earth, is earthly as to his rife, andfpeak*
" eth of the earth; i. e. fpeaketh things which com-
" paratively are earthly ; Mofes of carnal ordi-
" nances, I of water-baptifm, the Prophets of obe-
« dience to the law of Mofes : But he that cometh
" from heaven is above all, not only in the excellency
« of his perfon, but in the fpiritual and heavenly
" nature of his doctrine and promifes." The laft
claufe, He that cometh from heaven is above all, is not
properly a tautology with the firft, He that cometh from
above is above all, but an epanalepfis, as the rhetori-
dans call it -, a repetition at the cloie •, which is em-
phatical, and often ufed by the bed authors. But
Qu. Are not thole words, He that is of the earth is
cf
according to ST. JOHN, Chap* III. 303
of the earth, (for fo it is in the original a) a plain tau
tology ? ANSW. No ; only an ellipfis, to be filled
up thus : He that is of the earth as to his original, is
of the earth as to his nature, his knowledge, &c.
Ver. 32. And what he hath Je en — that he teftifieth ;
and no man receiveth, &c.] No man\ i. e. next to
none. See notes on ver. n. But Qu. How is this
reconciled with ver. 26. all men, i. e. very many,
come unto him? ANSW. Very many might come to
him, and yet very few truly believe in him. See note
on chap* ii. 23. &c.
Ver. 33. He that hath received his tejlimony hath
Jet to his Jeal that God is true.~\ i. e. His miracles and
the nature of his doctrine are luch evidence of his di
vine authority, that to believe him is the fame as to
believe God, and confent to this proportion, (as it
were \yyfealing it,) God is true.
Ver. 34. He whom God hath Jent, &c.] Sent, i. e.
from heaven.
Ibid. Not by meafurel\ i.e. Without meafure,Juper*
abundantly, fo as to no other Prophet. In all others
the gifts of the Spirit were limited 5 in him unli*
mi ted.
CHAP. IV,
VERSE i, i, 3. When therefore the Lord knew
how the Pharifees had heard that Jejus made
and baptized more — He left Judxa &c.] i. e. To avoid
the envy and malice of the Pharifees, who were en
raged that fo many reforted to him, he left thole
parts, &c.
Ver. 6. Sat THUS on the wel/.] *T'bus, fay fome;
i. e. weary and thirfty^ as he was : and they produce
parallel
304 Notes upon the G of pel
parallel inflances. Thus, fay others a ; i, e.
negligently -, upon the ground, &c*-
Ver. 10. Living waterl\ i. e. Spiritual water ; the
doftrine of the Gofpel ; the grace of God ; which
refrefhes the thirftyfoul^ and gives eternal life.
Ver. 1 1 . tfhe woman Jaitb — Thou haft nothing to draw
with, and the well is deep, &c.] T^he woman [not un-
derftanding his figurative, Jpiritual meaning] Jaith,
&c.
Ver. 12. drt thou greater than our father Jacob,
who gave us the well ; and drank thereof himfelf, &c.]
i. e. " But if you mean, that you could direct me to
*' Jome other well, which affords better water than
<c this ; I fuppofe you are not greater than Jacob,
(( who gave — and drank, &c."
Ver. 1 8. Thou, haft had five hujlands'} From fome
of whom it is probable that (he was divorced: for it
is not likely (he mould outlive fo many.
Ibid. He whom thou now haft is not thy hujband~\
i. e. He with whom thou now cohabiteft, as with
a hufband, is not really and lawfully fuch.
Ver. 20. Our fathers worjhipped in this mountain -,
[mount Gerizim;] but ye fay > &c.] See note on Luke
ix. 53-
Ver. 21, 22. fbe hour comet b, when ye Jhall neither
in this mountain, nor yet at Jerufalem, worjhip — Salva
tion is ofthejews'] As if he mould have faid; " The
" difpute you mention is needlefs ; for in a very
" little time, both the Samaritan and Jewifh wor-
c< (hip will be abolilhed. However, at prefent YOU
*' are in the wrong. When your anceflors came firil
" into this land, they were heathen idolaters, 2 Kings
" xvii. 24, 25, 26, &c. And though by your neigh-
<c bourhood to the Jews you have now better inior-
<c mation than they had ; you are yet very ignorant.
" But the Jews, by Prophets raifed up among themj
* .See Whitby. See Hammond.
according to ST. JOHN, Chap. IV. 305
s &c. have all along had abundant means of know-
" ing both whom they worfhip, and how to worfhip
" him. And to them were the promifes made, that
" the Saviour of the world fhould be of their nation."
Ibid. — w or/hip the Father] Both Jews and Sama
ritans called God their Father, both in their dif-
courfes, and in their prayers.
Ver. 24. — worjhip — in fpirit and in truth"} \. e.
With the mind zndfout', without facrijices, and other
burthenfome rites and ceremonies.
Ver. 34. My meat is to do the will — and to finijh his
work} What a man takes his greateft delight in, is
often expreffed by his meat and drink, both in
Scripture, and in other writings, and in common
difcourfe. Our Saviour, when he fpoke thefe words,
and thofe before, ver. 32. probably faw a multi
tude of the Samaritans coming towards him, (fee ver.
39, 40.) and refufed to eat, that he might have time
to inftruft them.
Ver. 35. Say not ye. There are yet four months, and
then cometh harveft? Behold, I fay unto you, Lift up your
eyes, and look on the fields ; for they are white already to
bar-ieft^ i. e. " You know it is commonly faid, that
" thefower is encouraged in his labour, upon this
" consideration, that mfour months he will be abun-
" dantly rewarded by the harveft. But you have
" much better fortune : Behold" [pointing to the Sa
maritans who were coming towards them.] "your bar-
" vefl is already ripe, a multitude of well-difpofed peo-
"• pie coming to be converted." See note on Matth.
ix. 37.
Ver. 36. And he that reapeth, receive fh wages — re
joice together'} i. e. " The lord of the harveft [God]
" will reward you for gathering men into the kingdom
•' of heaven : fo that you, and thofe who have been
" before you in Jewing what you are now going to
- reap, may for ever rejoice in the good you (hall
*• have done." Obfcrve here ; the Apoflles them-
x fehes
Notes upon tie G of pel
fcfaes were afterwards both to fow and reap very
much ; but with regard to many, who were now very
fpeedily to be converted, particularly the Samaritans, of
whom our Lord here direttly fpeaks, they had fown
nothing ; i. e. not preached to them ; but were only
to confirm and receive them. See the next note.
Ver. 37, 38. And herein is that fay ing true, Onefow-
eth, and another reapeth. Ifent you to reap that whereon
ye beftowed no labour : other men laboured, and ye are
entered into their labours.~\ i. e. The Prophets, John
the Baptift, and myfelf, have prepared and difpofed
many men to receive the Gofpel; fo that, with regard
to them, the work is in a manner done to your hands.
You have nothing to do, but to reap what others
\\2L\tJown and cultivated. — Ifent you, &c. It mould
rather be rendered, / \wvefent you.
Ver. 43, 44. — Went into Galilee : for Jefus himfelf
teftified, that a prophet hath no honour in his own coun
try^ OBJ. Was not Galilee his own country? Does
he not fpeak thofe words of Nazareth, Luke iv. 24.
compared with ver. 16? And was not Nazareth in
Galilee ? A NSW. The word Galilee is not here to be
taken indefinitely ; but in a limited fenfe, for thofe
parts of Galilee in which Nazareth was not included.
This appears from that parallel place, Matth. iv. 12,
13. He departed into Galilee -, and leaving Nazareth, he
came and dwelt in Capernaum. And in this verfe what
we tranflate, in his own country, the Syriac and Arabic
verfions render, in his own city. The meaning there^
fore is, he went into Galilee indeed, which was his
country in a wide iignification ; but not to Nazareth,
which was ftric~lly his own country, or city: for he faid,
a prophet bath no honour •, Sec.
Ver. 48. Except ye fee Jigns and wonders, ye will not
believe'} OBJ. i. Why Jhould they believe, unlefs mira
cles were wrought to convince them? ANSW. He does
not abfolutely blame the nobleman, and the other Jews,
tor requiring miracles: he worked many, and great ones;
and
according to ST. JOHN, Chap, V. 307
and refolved to work even this which was now deiired.
He only intimates, that the Jews, having the Pro
phets, the teftimony of John the Baptift, and his
own divine preaching, might reafonably have be
lieved, without the evidence of miracles ; as the Sa
maritans had juft before done ; ver. 42. OBJ. 2.
The nobleman did not make his requeft, as a trial
of Jefus's power, (he believed that before; otherwife,
he would not have delired him to exert it,) but out of
love to his Jon , who was fick. ANSW. There might
very well be a mixture of both. He already believed
infome meafure, but not thoroughly At ver. 50. he
believed more ; at ver. 53. yet more than ever, even
fully, and entirely. Read thofe two verfes.
CHAP. V.
VERSE i. A feaft of the Jews'} Either Pentecojl,
or the PaJJbver \ mod probably the latter.
Ver. 2. Sheep-market^ Rather, Jheep-gate a.
Ibid. A pool^\ A bath, literally a Jwimming place,
Jbid. Eethejda~\ It iignifies houfe of mercy.
Ibid. Porches^ Little porticos, or niches •> in which
the difeafed perfons waited, undreffed, &c.
Ver. 4. For an angel went down — ] I wonder Dr.
Whit by mould in his paraphrafe infert the word vi-
Jibly ; when the ange!5 if there were any, was undoubt
edly not vifible, and very likely there was no angel at
all.. The Evangelifl may well mean no more, than
that the waters were freter naturally agitated, ftirred,
or troubled ; upon fight of which, the people were
informed, that the healing virtue was now commu-
a Either ayo^a. or irvhy is underftood as agreeing with sr
Rather the latter. See Nehem. iii. i. xii. 39.
x 2 nicated
308 Notes upon tie Gofpel
nicated to them, and afcribe this to an angel, by a
known Jewilli way of fpeaking •, great and extraor
dinary works being in Scripture often faid to be
done by angels, who are God's minifteringfpirits.
Ibid. At a certain feafon^\ It fliould be rendered
attheJeafon,Ku.raixxi£Qv, i.e. (probably) ofthe Paffover.
It does not appear that this miracle was ever wrought
before, or after, the Paflbver here mentioned. Proba
bly indeed it might be a year or two before, as a
kind of introduction to the appearance of the Meffiah,
and his miracles.
Ibid. Wbofdever — -firjl ftepped In, vvas made whole,
&c.] OBJ. Why nobody elfe ? ANSW. i. God know-
eth ; and that (if there were no other) is anfwer fuf-
ficient. He belt knows how to difpenfe his own gifts.
But, 2. This particular clrcumjlance made the miracle
more plain and conjpicuous. For a full account of
this whole matter (the pool of Bethefda) fee Miracles
ofjejus vindicated, Part iv.
Ver. ii. He that made me whole, the fame faid unto
me, Take up thy bed, &c.] " And he, proving himfelf
" by this miracle to be an extraordinary Prcphet,
" had, I thought, Jujficient authority to dljpenfe with
" me, &c." See note on Matth. xii. 3, 4.
Ver. 17. My Father worketh hitherto, and I work.]
i. e. " As God the Father has, from the beginning of
" the world to this time, worked, and done good,
" Hill does, and always will, on the fabbath-day, as
" well as any other-, fo do I his Son" God is not fub-
jected to the law of the fabbath, though men are ;
and even they may be diipenfed with^ as we have
often (hewn.
Ver. 19. *£beSon can do nothing of himfelf^ The Son,
though as God, equal to the Father, is, as Son,fubordi-
nate to him : as Man, Inferior to him. As Prophet,
and Mcffiah, he received his authority and commiffion
from him.
Ibid. What things ft ever he doetb, thefe alfo doeth
the
according to ST. JOHN, Chap. V. 309
tke Son likewife.~\ i. c. He imitates the Father in his
works, as well as affs by his commiffion.
Ver. 20. Sheweth him all things that himfelf doeth]
Sheweth him ; i. e. teacheth him, &c. It is doubtful
whether the word, himfelf, aJro?, relates to the Father,
or to the Son : the fenfe is very good, and in effect the
fame, either way.
Ibid. Greater works — marvel'} Greater works -, i. e.
than he had yet performed, as healing the impotent
man, &c. T'hat ye may marvel. " For that will be
" ally ye will wonder indeed, but will not be con-
" vinced ; at leaft will not own you are."
Ver. 2 1 . For as the Father raifeth up the dead, —
even Jo the Son, &c.] i. e. u For inftance ; to raife the
*£ dead is a greater work than any I have done yet.
" And as the Father (by his Prophets, Elijah and
" EliOia) raifed the dead -, fo will I by myfelf." He
fpeaks not here of the general re fur red: ion, (though
he does ver. 28 : fee the note there,) but of particular
perfons, as Jairus's daughter, and Lazarus. — S>uick-
eneth'9 i. e. reftoreth to life, both temporal and
eternal.
Ver. 22. For the Father judgeth no man ; but hath
committed all judgment to the Son} i. e. " FOR I have
" power to give life, and to reward, and alfo to
" punijh ; the Father judging none, but committing
" all judgment to the Son." i. e. not the Father
only ; but he judging with and by the Son. The
places of Scripture, in w\i\c\\ judgment is afcribed efpe-
cially and more peculiarly to the Son, are fo nu
merous, that we need not mention any.
Ver. 24. — Is pajjed from death unto life} Is pajjed,
i. e. Jh 'all certainly pafs (thefe tranfpolitions of tenfes
are frequent in all authors) from the death of fin to the
life ofrighteoufnefs ; from temporal death to eternallik.
Ver. 25. The hour is coming, and now is, when the
dead— -fh all live} Neither does this relate to the ge
neral refurredtion ; as the expreflion, now is, plainly
ihews , but to particular perfons. See note on ver.
x 3 21,
3io Notes upon tie Gofpel
21. Perhaps thofefainfs who rofe, Matth. xxvii. 52,
53. arc here likewiie intended. Perhaps too the jp$+
ritual refurre6tion is intimated, as well as the corpo
real -y the refurrection from Jin to life eternal.
Ver. 26. For as the Father hath life in himfelf ; fo
hath he given to the Son to have life in himfelf.} Life in
himfelf; i. e. (fee note on chap. i. 4.) the fountain of
life ; and the power of giving it to others. The Father
gives this to the Son , ift, as the Son is God by
eternal generation, idly, as he is Mediator and God-
man ; fo that in that refpect likewife he gives life to
whom he pleafes, ver. 21,
Ver. 27. Given him authority to execute judgment alfo,
becaufe he is the Son of manl\ He is not only of himfelf
judge, as he is God •, but it is given him to be judge,
even in his human nature joined with fat divine. He,
in his mediatorial capacity, is ma.de judge, and exalted
to other honours, as a reward for his fufferings in his
human nature. This feems to be the fenfe of BE
CAUSE he is the Son of man. Here is indeed an el-
lipfis, — Eecaufe he is the Son of man ; [and does and
fuffers fo great things, as fuch.] It is moreover fit,
and congruous, that as all at the laft day are to be
judged in their bodies ; he, as the Son of man, hav
ing a body, mould judge them ; that he mould be a
vijible judge, vijibly act, and fpeak, &c.
Ver. 28, 29. Marvel not at this; for the hour is
coming, in which all that are in the graves — Refurreftion
of life — Refurreclion of damnation^ The hour is coming -9
though at ever fo great a dijlance. Whatfoever is
certainly future is always coming, till it is actually pre-
fent. Here he plainly {peaks of the general refurrec*
tion, and the lafl judgment . " Do not wonder, that I
" faid I would raile fome dead perfons, ver. 21. 25.
" and that I afcribed to myfelf the power of judging,
" ver. 22.27. For a time will come, when I fhall ralfe
" all the dead, and judge the whole world."
Ver. 30. / can of mine own f elf do nothing* — the will
of the Father, &c.] See notes on ver. 19, 20. As I
hear -9
according to ST . J o H N, Chap. V.
hear ; i. e. from the Father : as he dictates and
prefcribes. I judge \ i. e. I now judge> and foall
judge at the lail day.
Ver. 31. If I bear witnefs of myfelf — is not true~\ —
Is not true, i. e. (agreeably both to the Greek and
Hebrew) is of no force or validity. A man, though
witneffing in his own caufe, may fay nothing but
what is true in itfe/f-, yet it is of no force to convince
others.
Ver. 32. There is another that beareth witnefs of we,
&c.] viz. John; as in the next verle. There is
likewife another, viz. the Father-, ver. 36, 37.
Ver. 34. But I receive not teftimony from man ; but
thefe things I fay, that ye might be faved~\ i. e. " It is
*c not upon John's or any human teftimony, that I
" need depend for the proof of my authority : only,
" becaufe you put me upon it, I am willing to ar-
*• gue in your own way ; that I may by any means
66 forward your falvat ion."
Ver. 37. The Father — hath borne zvitnefs of me. Te
have neither heard his voice — nor feen his fliapel\ i. e.
" Nor are you to expect, that the Father fhould
" teftify of me otherwife than by his word, (as he
" often does in the Old Teftament ', fee ver. 39.)
Ci and by his works, the works which I do in his
" name: for that which was granted to your an-
" ceftors belongs not to you ; viz. to fee his glory,
" and hear his voice out of the midft of the fire. Deut.
" v. 24." Properly fpeaking, God has no Jhape ;
the word here means fome glorious appearance, iig-
nifying his more immediate prefence.
Ver. 38. Te have not his word abiding in you~\ i. e.
Ye do not conjider, remember, and inwardly digeft his
word, as ye ought to do.
Ver. 39. Search the Scriptures.] Or, ye do fearch
the Scriptures. The original word, ^fumrf, is both
imperative and indicative. The fenie is very good
either way.
x 4 Ver.
313 Notes upon tie Gofpel
Ver. 41. I receive not honour from men.~\ i. e. " I
" do nothing for popular applaufe, but all things for
" the honour of God, and the good of mankind."
Ver. 43. In his own namel\ i. e. Only giving his
own word for it, that he is this, or that, without
evidence, or proof by miracles^ or any thing elfe.
This was the cafe of feveral falfe Chrifts. •*
Ver. 44. How can ye believe > which receive honour —
God only /] One of the greatefl bars to the recep
tion of the Gofpel, is pride, or vam- glory. See chap,
xii. 42, 43.
Ver. 46. Had ye believed Mofes, &<:.] OBJ. Why;
did they not believe Mofes ? ANSW. They profejjed
indeed to believe him ; and were, even to fuper-
llition, zealous for his law. Yet they did not piottjly
and practically believe him.
Ibid. He wrote of me.] He did fo, Gen. iii. 15.
Deut. xviii. 18. And befides, the tenor of the ce
remonial law is a continued type of Chrift.
Ver. 47. If ye believe not — my words /*] tc If ye be-
Cf lieve not his writings ^ for which ye profefs ib much
<f zeal and veneration, how fh all ye believe my words,
" which ye fo hate and defptfe, and againft which ye
cc are fo inveterately prejudiced ?" His words were
really preferable to Mofes9 s writings ; but they did not
think fo. The argument therefore was good to them.
CHAP. VI.
VERSE 15. Make him a King.] Being convinced
that he was that Prophet that flmdd come., &c.
(v. 14.) i. e. the Mejfiah, who (as they thought)
was to be a temporal King ; they were ready to take
him by force^ and proclaim him, crown him, &c.
Ver. 17. Towards Capernaum. ~\ Into the land of
Gennefaret, Matth. xiv. 34. They went over towards
Bethfaida,
according to S x . J o H N, Chap. VI. 311
Bethfaida, nrfa B*i3-<raV^«v, Mark vi. 45. The defert
of Bethfaida lying on the fide of the fea of Galilee
oppofite to the city; they firft croffed over that fea
towards the city ; and then failed on along that fea
to Capernaum, which was in the region of Gen-
nefaret. See Dr. Lightfoot's Map. Whitby.
Ver. 19. See above, ver. 10. — About five and twenty,
or thirty, &c.] There are other fuch expreflions as
this in the Scriptures, which is no objection againft
the divine infpiration of them. Though a writer ever
fo well knows thefe inconfiderable circumftances, he
elegantly neglefts them in his hiftory, as does every
body of any judgment, who tells a Jlory in common
conversation. Or if the infpired writer was really ig
norant of thefe immaterial circumftances, even that
is no objection : there was no occafion that the Spirit
of God mould reveal fuch trivial things ; nay, it is
abfurd to fuppofe he mould. If the writer himfelf
fhould not take notice of them, much lefs fhould
the Holy Ghojl.
Ver. 21. They willingly received him, &c."] It fhould
be, they were willing, or defirous, to receive him3-.
And they did fo, though not immediately ; for Peter
firfl walked to him upon the fea, then they both
came into the fhip, Matth. iv. 30 — 32, and then
(as it is here (aid) immediately the Jhip was at the
land.
Ver. 22, 23, 24, 25. The day following, zvhen the,
people which * flood on the other fide -, &c. — Rabbi ', when
camefl thou hither /*] Saw, rather knew, ISuv, that
[laft night] there was none other boat, &c. — There
came other boats [af ter wards] from Tiberias [which in
the morning they found] nigh unto the place where,
&c. This 23d verfe is in a parenthefis. — ver. 24.
When the people therefore faw that Jefus, &c. The
fcntence is fomewhat perplexed; but the fenfe is
plainly
314 Notes upon the Gaff el
plainly this : " I SAY, when the people which Jiood, &c.
44 ver. i^.faw that Jefus was not there * &c. they alfo
" took flipping, &c."
Ver. 26. Tefeek me, not becaufe ye faw the miracles*,
but becaufe ye did eat of the loaves, and were filled.]
Our Saviour does not anfiver their impertinent quef-
tionj (fee note on Luke xiii. 23, 24.) but takes oc-
cajion from it to enter into a difcourfe of the utmoft
importance. Not becaufe ye faw the miracles ; i. e. as
miracles ; fo as to be convinced and converted by
them.
Ver. 27. Labour not for the meat which perifheth ;
but for that meat which endureth unto everlajling life,
which the Son of manfhall give unto jyw .] Labour not ;
i. e. Labour not fo much for the former, as for the
latter : for we mtift labour mfome meafure for the for
mer too ; we cannot live without it. See note oa
Matth. ix. 13. and on Matth. vi. 19. 25.
Ibid. For him hath God the Father fealedl\ i.e.
God the Father, by bearing teftimony to him, in
his miracles, (efpecially this laft of feeding the five
thoitfand,} has/£/ his feal to his commijjion and authority.
For the better understanding of our Saviour's dif
courfe in this chapter, concerning \\\*>flefh to be eaten,
his blood to be drank, his being the bread of life, that
bread being \\\sflejh, with other expreffions relating
to food and nonri/hment, depending upon an allegory
bet ween fpiritual food and temporal; it is to be noted,
ift, That \\\s feeding the five thoufand with the miracu
lous loaves and fifhes, gave rife to this whole difpute be
tween him and the Jews. See the notes on ver. 26, 27.
zdly, That, fpeaking in this manner, he ufes a me
taphor, very familiar to the Eaftern nations, and fre
quent in the Jewith writings ; [fee many quotations
to this purpofe in Whitby on ver. 27, and 31, 32.]
fo that he was well underflood by thole to whom he
fpoke. 3dly, That their comparing his feeding them
with the loaves andfijhes, to Mofes's feeding their/<z-
thers
according to ST. JOHN, Chap. VI. 315
fbtn with manna^ ver. 31. (for that is plainly their
meaning, as we (hall fee in its place,) gave farther
occafion to his making ufe of the allegory afore-
laid.
As to the difficulties about the meaning of his be
ing the bread) &c. of our eating hisflejh, and drinking
his blood, whether he means his own perjon, with his
merits and fatisfaffion ; or faith in him, and in his
doctrine ; or his doEtrine itfelf ; whether he at all re
fers to \\-\efacrament of the Eucharift; and, if at all,
how far, &c. I cannot give the reader a better ac
count of this matter, than in the words of the late
mod learned and excellent Dr. Waterland, who had
thoroughly weighed all that the commentators have
faid upon it, and has cleared the point with his ufual
acutenefs and accuracy of judgment. In his Re
view of the Doflrine oft'he Euchariji^ chap. vi. entitled,
Of Spiritual Eating and Drinking, as taught in John
vi. he writes thus :
" The difcourfe, which our Lord had at Caper-
" naum, about the eating his flejh, and drinking his
fi bloody is very remarkable, and deferves our clofeft
" attention. His ftrong way of exprefiing himfelf,
cc and his emphatical repeating the fame thing, in
" the fame, or in different phrafes, are alone fuffi-
rc cient to perfuade us, that fome very important myf-
" tery, fome very Jignificant lefibn of instruction, is
a contained in what he faid in that chapter from
" ver. 27. to ver. 63. incluiive. From ver. 63.
" as well as from the nature of the thing, we
" may learn that this difcourfe is moflly myjlerious^
<c and ought to be fprituattyy not literally ^ underftood.
" // is thejpirit that quickeneth, the flefh -profiteth no-
" thing : The words that I fpeak unto you, they are
" fpirit, and they are life. I am aware that this
<c text has been varioufly interpreted, and that it is
<c not very eafy to akertain the conftruclion, fo as not
" to leave room even for reafonable doubt. I choofe
<f that interpretation which appears moft natural, and
<f which
Notes upon tie Goffcl
" which has good countenance from antiquity, and
" many judicious interpreters. But the reafon of
" the thing is fufficient to fatisfy us, that a great part
cf of this difcourfe of our Lord's cannot be literally
" interpreted, but muft admit of fome figurative or
" myjlical conftmclion.
" A furer mark for interpreting our Lord's mean-
(c ing in this chapter, is the univerfality of the ex-
€C prefllons which he made ufe of, both in the qffir-
" mative and negative way. If any man (whofoever)
<c eat of this bread, he Jhall live for ever, ver. 51.
" Whofo eateth my flejh, and drinketh my blood, hath
" eternal life, ver. $4..—dwelleth in me, and I in him,
te ver. 56. So far in the affirmative or pofitive
<f way. The like may be obferved in the negative
€t way. Except ye eat theflefl} of the Son of man, and
(( drink bis blood, ye have no life in yon, ver. 53. The
€t fum is : All that feed upon what is here mentioned
" have life ; and all that do not feed thereupon
" have no life. Hence arifes an argument againft in-
" terpreting the words of facramental feeding in the
" Eucharift. For it is not true, that all who re-
<£ ceive the communion have life-, unlefs we put in
(( the refiriction of worthy, and fo far : much lefs
<c can it be true that all, who never have, or never
" (hall receive, have not life-, unlefs we make feveral
<c more reftridlions, confining the proportion to per-
" fons living Jince the time of the inftitution, to per-
" fons capable \ and not deflitute of opportunity -y making
" exceptions for good men of old, and for infants ;
<c and for many who have been, or may be, invincibly
" ignorant ; or might never have it in their power to
" receive the communion. Now an interpretation
" which muft be clogged with a multitude of reftric-
" tions to make it bear, if at all, is fuch as one
" would not choofe (other circumftances being equal)
" in preference to another, which is clogged with
"fewer, or with none.
" Should we interpret the words of faith in Chrift,
" there
according to ST. JOHN, Chap. VI. 317
*c there muft be reftridions in that cafe alfo, viz. to
" thofe who have heard oi- Chrift, who not only be-
" lieve in him, but live according to his laws. And ex-
" ceptions muft be made for many good men of old,
" who either knew nothing of Chrift, or very obfcure-
" ly ; as likewife for infants, and idiots, &c. So that
" this conftruction comes not fully up to the utiiver-.
" fality of the expreflions made ufe of by our Lord.
" But if neither of thefe can anfwer in that re-
" fpecl, is there any other that will ? or what is it ?
" Yes ; there is one, which will completely anfwer in
u point of umverfality -, and it is this : All that
" fliall finally jbare in the death, paffion, and atone-
" ment of Chrift, wzjafe ; and all that have not a
" part therein are loft. All that axefaved owe their
" ialvation to \\\z Jalutary paflion of Chrift; and
" their 'partaking thereof (which is feeding upon his
^ flejh and bleed] is their life. On the other hand,
" as many as are excluded from fharing therein, and
" therefore feed not upon the atonement, have no
k"c life in them. Thofe who are bleffed with capacity,
" and opportunities, muft have faitby muft have/#-
u craments* muft be in covenant, muft receive and
" obey the Gofpel, in order to have the expiation of
"the death of Chrift applied to them. But our
" Lord's general doclrine, in this chapter, feems to
" abftraft from all particularities, and to refolve into
" this ; that whether with faith, or without ; \vhe-
" ther in the Jacraments, or out of the facraments ;
" whether before Chrift, otjince ; whether in covenant,
" or out of covenant; whether here, whereafter-, no
" man ever was, is, or will be accepted, but in and
" through the grand propitiation made by the fiejb
<c and blood of Chrift. This I take to be the main
" doclrine taught by our Lord in that chapter, which
" he delivers fo earneftly, and inculcates io ftrongly.
" — Eating, and drinking, by a very eafy, common
" figure, mean receiving: and here what is the thing
• " to
31$ Notes upon tie Gofpel
<£ to be received ? Chrift himfelf in his whole per-
" fon : / am the bread of life, ver. 35, 48, 51. He
" that eateth me, even hejhall live by me, ver. 57. But
" more particularly he is to be conlidered as giving
" his body to be broken, and his blood to be fhed, for
<c an atonement : and fo the fruits of his death are what
" we are to receive, as our fpiritual food : His flefl)
" is meat indeed, and his blood is drink indeed, ver. 55.
" His paffion is our redemption ; and by his death we
" live. This food is adminiftered to us by the hand
4e of God 3 while ordinarily we take it by the £##</ 0/*
" faith 9 and in the ufe of thzfacraments : but God may
" extraordinarily adminifter the fame food ; i. e. may
" apply the fame benefits of Chrift's death, and virtue
" of his atonement to fubjec~ls capable, without any
" atlion of theirs, as to infants, idiots, the invincibly
" Ignorant of the Gofpel, but living well, according
" to the beft of their knowledge ; who are merely
*c paffive in the receiving it, but at the fame time of-
«tf fer no obflacle to it.
" Some learned men, having obferved, that our
" Lord, in this chapter, attributes much to a man's
" believing in him, or coming to him, as the means to
" everlajiing life, have conceived that faith, or doc-
<c trine, is what he precifely meant by the bread of
" life-, and that believing in Chrift is the fame with
<c the eating and drinking here fpoken of. But the
" /£/#£ to be received is very different from the hand
<c receiving; therefore /^/V^ is not the w^/, but the
fc mean. Belief in Chrift is the condition required,
" the duty commanded ; but the bread of life is the
" reivard confequent. Believing is not eating or
ci drinking the fruits of Chrift's paflion ; but is ^r^-
" par at or y to it, as the means to the ^«<^. In fhort,
" failh, ordinarily, is a qualification', but the body
" and blood is the £/// itfelf. The doftrine of Chrift,
" lodged in the foul, is what gives the foul its proper
£t temperature, and fitnefs to receive the heavenly
" food ;
according to ST. JOHN, Chap, VI. 319
<c food : but the heavenly food is Chnft himfelf, as
" once crucified, and lince glorified. It may be true,
*' that eating and drinking wifdom is the fame with
*c receiving wifdom : and it is no lefs true, that eat-
" /«£ and drinking flefh and blood is receiving flefh
a and blood ; for eating means receiving. But
" where doesjfejb and £/^ (land for wifdom, or for
" doffrine, or for /#//& £ What rules of Jymbolical
ft language are there that require it, or can ever
" admit of it ? There lies the flrefs of the whole
f< thing. Flefo in fymbclical language may fignify
<c riches y goods , pojjejfions ; and blood may iignify life :
" but Scripture never ufes either as a fymbol of doc-
" trine 9 or of faith. To conclude then, eating wif-
" dom is receiving wifdom ; but eating Chriil's^^,
*' and drinking his bloody is receiving life and happi-
" nefs THROUGH his flefh and blood j and, in one
<c word, receiving him ; and that not merely as the
" object of our faith y but as the fountain of our Jal-
" vation, and our fovereign goody by means of his
fi death and paffion.
*c Then again as to the facrament, we ought to
" diilinguiih between interpreting and applying. It
" is right to apply the general doctrine of John vi.
" to the particular cafe of the Eucharifty conildered
<c as worthily received; becaufe the Jpiritual feeding
" there mentioned is the thing fignified in the Eu-
" charift, yea and performed likewife. After we
cc have fufficiently proved^ from other Scriptures, that
" in and by the Eucharift, ordinarily, fuch Jpiritual
" food is conveyed ; it is then right to apply all that our
" Lord, by St. John, fays in the general, to that par-
" ticular cafe. But fuch application does not amount
" to interpreting that chapter of the Eucharift. For
<c example; the words, except ye eat theflejh of Cbrift,
<£ &z. ye have no life in youy do not mean directly,
" that you have no life without the Eucharifty but that
" you have no life without participating of our Lord's
" paffion.
320 Notes upon the Gofpel
" paffion. Neverthelefs, iince the Eucharift is one
" way of participating of the pajfion, and a very confi-
" durable one ; it is very pertinent and proper to
4i urge the doftrine of this chapter, both for the
" clearer underftanding the beneficial nature of the
" Eucharift, and for the exciting Chriftians to a fre-
" quent and devout reception of it. Such was the
" uie which fome early fathers made of John vi. as
<c our Church alfo does at this day, and that very
"juftly."
In this extract from our incomparable author's
treatife, I have added a few words, and made a few
other fmall alterations, in order to make two or
three fentences more full and explicit. And the ge
neral fcope and tenor of our Saviour's whole difcourfs
being thus accounted for, our notes upon the re
maining particular verjes will be the fooner and the
more eafily difpatched.
Ver. 28. What Jh all we do, that we might work the
works of Godf\ The works of God; i. e. the works
which God requires us to do. " And we (fay they)
" have already the law of Mofes, and know what
" God requires by that law : what farther duties, or
<c what more plealing to him, can you inftruct us to
" perform ?"
Ver. 30, 31. What ft gn jhewefl thou — bread from
heaven to eat.'] i. e. " What lign do you fhew, or
" what work do you do, greater than Mofes (hewed
" and did ? You fed us indeed one day in a defert; but
" our fathers did eat manna in the wildernefs, through
" which Mofes led them, forty years ; and that too was
" heavenly food. Pfal. Ixxviii. 25. It C&tntfrofM hea-
" ven, ^ yours did not."
Ver. 32. Mofes gave you not that bread from hea
ven ; but my Father giveth. you the true bread from hea
ven^ i. e. " Do you magnify Mofes in oppofition
" to me, for giving your fathers bread from heaven ?
" I tell you, the manna which Moies, under God,
" as
according to ST. JOHN, Chap. VI. 321
" as bis minifter, and by bis "power, caufed to fall
" from the clouds ^ to fuftain your fathers in this
" Jhort and mortal life, is by no means to be com-
" pared with that heavenly bread, which God himfelf
" now fends you, truly and properly, and in the
" moft excellent fenfe, from the highefl heavens, to
" fuftain and noun ft) your fouls unto everlafting
"life" THAT Bread; i.e. THE Bread, which I
exhort you to labour for, and of which manna was
only a type.
Ver. 33. The bread cf God is HE which cometb
down, &c.] It mould be THAT which cometb down,
meaning the bread9'. This appears, both becaufe
the Jews ftill understood Jefus to fpeak literally of
material and natural bread, ver. 34. and becaufe it is
upon occalion of their fo mifunderftanding him,
that he begins to explain the figure, and apply it to
himfelf) ver. 35.
Ver. 35. / am the bread of life, &c.] See above in
the quotation from Dr. Waterland.
Ver. 36. But If aid unto ycu, that ye alfo have feen
me, and believe not^\ See note on ver. 26.
Ver. 37. All that the Father givetb me ft) all come
to me.'] Come to me, i. e. believe in me. See chap. v.
ver. 38. compared with ver. 40. and ver. 45. of this
chapter. As to the former part of the fentence, All
that the Father giveth me, compare ver. 65. — Therefore
faid I unto you, that no man can come unto me, except
it were given unto him of my Father ; referring to ver.
44. except the Father draw him. The Father draws
any one, or gives to him, or gives him to Chrift ;
i. e. (fay Grotius and mofl of the other learned
expofitors) fo that he may thoroughly believe in
Chrift : which is given to none but thole, who arc
duclile, modeft, and defirous of inftrufiion. Or it may
be taken thus, as it fome times is; Giving the thing
a "Apoj o xaraCa/wf.
Y includes
322 Notes upon the G of pel
includes its being accepted by thofe to whom it is
given3. Our Saviour then tells them, that faith is
the gift of God -, by which he is fo far from excufing
them, that his defign is to reproach them for rejecting
it when it was offered them. They had in them
therefore an evil heart of unbelief, to depart frcm the
living God, Heb. iii. 12. i. e. a corrupt, vicious heart,
inclining them to unbelief \ which was the real caitfe
of their apojiafy, ver. 66. though they made ufe of
that foolijh pretence, the hard faying, ver. 60. They
went out from us, (fays St, John upon a like occafion,
i Epift. ii. 19.) but they were not of us ; (i. e. hear
tily and fincerely :) For if they had been of us, no
doubt they would have continued with us. Compare
ver. 64. of this chapter. But there are Jome of you
that believe not. This is plainly faid by way of
blame, or reproof, and therefore mufl reflect upon
the perverfenefs of their wills, as their fault ; not
upon the weaknefs of their understandings, which
could be only their misfortune. As if he fhould have
faid ; " I do not wonder that thefe things are taken
<( perverfely by you, becaufe there are not a few
" among you who do not believe in me-, and that
" becaufe of their pride and obftinacy." For Jefus
knew from the beginning (continues the Evangelift)
who they wire that believed not, and who foould betray
him. Thefe unbelievers, we fee, are mentioned to
gether with Judas the traitor; and that he was a
wicked man, and is here mentioned as iuch, we
need not fay. From hence it appears, that to be
given of the Father cannot here iignify to be abfo-
lutely chofen by him "to eternal life \ for then the Jews
could not be reafonably acciiftd for not coming to
Chrifl, or not believing in him ; fince upon this lup-
pofition, that only they whom God had abfoiutely
a Jurifconfulti notant faepe datum id intelligi, quod et accep-
tatuni fit. Grotius in ver. 65.
chofen
according to ST. JOHN, Chap. VI. 323
chofen to eternal life coulc! come to him, it was im-
pofllble they mould believe who were not thus
elected ; and fo it could not be imputed as their
crime that they did not. Whereas our Saviour re-
preients their unbelief as their great fin. — Of fm\ be-
cauje they believe not in me, chap. xvi. 9. And chap,
xv. 22. If I had not, &c. they had not had fin ; but
now they have no cloak for their fin. And again, ver.
24. of that chapter. But what better excufe could
have been made for them than this; that they could
not come to him, as not being eleffed?
Ver. 38. Not to do mine own will — that fent me.~\
See note on chap. v. 19, 20. 30.
Ver. 39. 1'hat of all which he hath given me Ijhould
lofe nothing^ Lcfe nothing, i. e. fufFer none to perifh
for want of fufficient fupplies of grace and aflifiance.
Ver. 40. Which feeth the Sen.] It mould be, confi-
dereth, difcermtb, Siufuv ; i. e. confiders and difcerns
him as the Son of God, as the Meffiah.
Ver. 41. — Murmured — becaufe he faid, I am the
bread which came down from hea*uenl\ They mur
mured, not fo much at his calling himfelf the bread,
as at his faying that he came down from heaven.
Read the next verfe 42.
Ver. 44. — Draw him.'] \. e. not by force, but by
his powe rful, though refiflible, grace; which is given
only to the teachable and well-difpofed -, not to the
perverfely prejudiced. See note on ver. 37.
Ver. 45. It is written in the Prophets, And they
jhall all be taught of God. Every man THEREFORE
that hath heard, and hath learned of the Father, cometh
unto me.] It is fo written in the very words, Ifai. liv.
13. and the fame fenfe, Jer. xxxi. 33, 34. Mich,
iv. 2. and in other places. The import of the word
therefore is ; God has now fulfilled that prophecy ;
ail are taught of Gor\ who are willing to learn, &c.
Ver. 46. Not that any man hath feen the Father,
fave he which is of God, he hath feen the Father^
Y 2 i. e.
324 Notes upon tie Gofpel
i. e. " By the words, heard and learned of the Father,
" I do not mean direRly and immediately ; for no
" mere man hath Jeen him, or thoroughly known him,
" but by the intervention of me, who am one with
«' him ; being God, as well as Man"
Ver. 49,50. Tour fathers did eat manna — and are
dead. This is the bread — not die] This \ i. e. the
bread which / am fpeaking of, i. e. myfelf, is, &c.
But here OBJ. Even this food does not exempt from
temporal death : how then comes our Saviour to
make an oppofition between the Jews of old, who
ate manna^ yet died, and thofe who eat his flefh, &c.
yet die too, in the fame 'fenfe as the former did, though
not in another fenfe ? A NSW. Doubtlefs the oppofetion
is not direft in all its parts, the word die being taken
in different fignifications. Yet the fenfe of the
whole is very good, and plain enough ; as thus :
" The manna fuftained your fathers only for the
" Jhort term of a temporal life : but the food I fpeak
<c of, though it will not give immortality in this
" world, any more than the manna did, will give
" eternal life and happinefs in the world to come; which
" the manna did not.1*
The fame is to be faid of ver. 58.
Ver. 5L/ am the living bread — life cf the world]
See above in the quotation from Dr. Waterland.
Ver. 52. The Jews therefore ft rove — his flejh to
eat? This was a mod fenfelefs and perverfe mifun-
derftanding of his words ; thofe figurative exprejfions
j?eing very frequent among the Jews; our Saviour, in
the foregoing difcourie, having given them fufficient
hints to underftand them by; and they themfelves
having given him occajion to make ufe of the figure,
by upbraiding him with Mofes's giving their fathers
bread, &c.
Ver. 53, 54 — 58. Except ye eat the flefh cf the Son of
man — he that eateth of this bread jh all live for ever.]
See above in the quotation, &c.
Ver.
According to ST. JOHN, Chap. VL 325
Ver. 55. My Jlefh is meat indeed ', and my blood is
drink indeed] — Indeed; i. e. really and truly ^ not li
terally and naturally* really and truly, but in afpiri-
fualfenfe. Thus our Church in her Catechifm : —
" ferity and indeed taken;" but ilill in zfpiritual,
not a natural fenfe.
VTer. 6 1, 62. Doth this offend you ? What, and if ye
Jh all fee the Son of man afcend up where he was before ?]
i. e. Are ye To difturbed at my faying, I am the bread
which came down from heaven * What would ye fay,,
if ye (hould fee me return into heaven ? As many ac
tually did. — Where he was before ; not as Son of man
indeed, but as God: but the divine and human na
tures being united in the one perjon of Chrift, the
properties of the former are in Scripture fometimes
attributed to the latter, and fo on the reverfe. See
my Sermons on the Trinity ', p. 157, 158.
Ver. 63. // is the Spirit — they are life.] See above
from Waterland.
Ver. 64. There arefome of you that bdieve not. —
betray him.'] See note on ver. 37.
Ver. 65. Therefore Jaid I unto you — of my Father. ~\
See note on ver. 37.
Ver. 66. Many of his difciples went back, &c.] i. e.
his half- difciples ; not true and hearty believers. See
note on ver. 37. and on chap. ii. $3, 2.4, 25.
Ver. 70. Have not I chofenyou twelvQy — ?is adevilf\
i. e. " Not only thefe ot my common followers, who
" have now dejertedmz, are vicious and corrupt ; but
" even among you twelve Apoftles, whom I have
" especially chofen^ one is a devil \ i. e. a diabolical
" ftrfon?
Y 3 CHAP,
326 Notes upon the Gofpel .
CHAP. VII.
VERSE i. In Jewry.} i. e. in Judea, ver. 3.
Ver. 3 . That thy difciples alfo may fee the works
that thou dcefl^ Either, that thy difciples in Judea
may fee the fame works that thou doeft here in Ga
lilee; or, that thy difciples in Galilee, going up to the
feaft, and feeing thee do the fame works before the
Sanhedrim, who can befl judge of them, may be the
more confirmed in their faith.
Ver. 4. There is no man that doeth — AND he himfelf
feeketh, &c.] No man WHO feeketh to be known openly,
doeth any thing infecret. This they faid, becaufe Ga
lilee was a private corner, in companion of Judea
and Jerusalem. Yet this calumny of his brethren
was unreafonable and unjuft ; for he had before, at
another feaft , worked miracles at Jerufalem. See
chap. iv. 45.
Ver. 6, 7. My time is not yet come-, but your time is
alway ready. The world cannot hate you ; but me it
hateth ; becaufe I teftify of it, that the works thereof are
evil^\ i. e. It is not yet a proper time for me to go to
Jerufalem ; my life would be in danger there. As
io\* you, all times are alike ; whenever you go thither,
you are very fafe ; becaufe you are like the reft of
the world, &c.
Ver. 10. — Not openly, but as it were in fecret^\ i. e.
as privately as he could.
Ver. 13. No man fpake openly of hirnl] Meaning, in
his favour ; as appears from the next words, for fear
of the Jews.
Ver. 15. Letters^ i. e. Learning.
Ver. 16. — My dottrine is not mine, but his that Jent
me."] i. e. " Though I was not (as you truly fay)
<f educated in human learning; yet my doclrine is
" mod excellent, as being divine." For the reft, fee
note on chap. v. 19,
Ver.
according to ST. JOHN, Chap. VII. 327
Ver. 17. If any man will do his will, he /hall know
of the doftrine, &c.] Nothing blinds the judgment,
efpecially in divine matters, fo much as the prejudices
of vice.
Ver. 19. Did not Mofes give you the law, and yet
none of you keepeth the law f Why go ye about to kill
me /] i. e. " Ye pretend to have a mighty veneration
" for the law of Mofes, and yet continually break
" it ; as you do now, in going about to muider me,
" which is contrary to the fixth commandment."
Ver. 21. I have done one work; and ye all marvel.]
The work he refers to is healing the impotent man
at the pool of Bethefda, chap. v. — Marvel, i. e. with
anger and diflike. You wonder I mould do fo wicked
a thing, as to heal on the Sabbath-day.
Ver. 22. Mofes THEREFORE gave unto you —
circumcife a man] Therefore ; literally, for this, h» TXT&.
Some fay it fliould be connected to the word
marvel, and be placed at the end of the foregoing
verfe*: others fay, it means no more than a tranli-
tion. In this, and the next verfe, our Saviour ar
gues, that if circumcifion were (as it was) a work to
be done even on the Sabbath-day, if that happened
to be the eighth day from the child's birth, it could
not be unlawful, on the fame day, to do fuch a work
as rejloring a man to his health. Thoie words in the
parentheiis, not becaufe it is of Mofes, but of the Fa
thers, are added ; becaufe circumcilion was^r/? com
manded to Abraham, and practifed by him and the
Patriarchs, long before Mofes, who only reinforced
that law.
Ver. 23. That the law of Mofes /hould not be broken^
This may relate, either to the Sabbath ; arid then
the fenfe is (as in the margin of our Bibles) without
breaking the law of Mofes: or to circumcifion ; and
then it mud mean, left the law of circumcifion (which
Y 4
commands
3 28 Notes upon tie Gofpel
commands it to be done on the eighth day) Jhould be
broken. I choofe the latter.
Ver. 27. Howbeit, we know no man knoweth
•whence he isl\ Howbeit •, i. e. notwitbftanding what
we have faid, feemingly in his favour ; we know
his extraction, his parents, and family : (fee chap. vi.
42.) but when Cbrift comes, no man knoweth, &c.
This they grounded, either upon Scripture, which
fays he (hould be born of a Virgin, and who Jhall de
clare his generation? or upon a tradition of their
own. Concerning which, ice Whitby.
Ver. 28. Te both know me, and ye know whence 1
am.'] How, ye know, &c. can be put for ye Jhould, or
ought to know, or ye might know, if ye would, (as
fome very learned Expofitors would have it,) I can
by no means underfland. I take it to be fpoken
either ironically, or (which I much rather choofe) in
terrogatively ; the only difference being in the point
ing. Do ye know &c ? i. e. Te do not. And ib in
deed the text is cited by Tertullian.
Ver. 28, 29. — Whom ye know not. But I know
him ; for I am from him, and he hath Jent me"\ i.e.
" Him you do not/0 know, as to be competent
^judges what is his will, &c. But I, who come
" with this commifTion from him, do thus know
" him."
Ver. 33 — Saidjefus unto them, Tet a little while am
I wi+h you— Jent me] Unto THEM ; i. e. to \\~\z people,
among whom were the officers fent to apprehend \\\m.
Tet a little, &c. i. e. " I (hall be but a little while
ce with you, according to my Father's and my own
" intention : but that little while I will be with you,
" notwithftanding your prefent attempt to take me,
<c and all your other defigns again ft me."
Ver. 34. Te Jhall Jeek me cannot come.] Some
take the former part thus : " Ye (hall feek me in
" your diftrefs •, but I will not fuccour you."
Others : tf Ye fhali not be able to perfecute me
u any
according to ST. JOHN, Chap. VII. 329
" any longer." But as he applies both this and the
latter part, where I am, &c. to his Apoftles them-
felves, chap xiii. 33. I take the whole to mean no
more than his going out of the world, and returning to
the Father. But Qy. Could not his Apoftles fol
low him into heaven ? and did they not aftually fo
follow him ? ANSW. They did not prefently follow
him into heaven, in any fenfe of that word : he did
not take them along with him at his afcenfion ; but
they lived in this world feveral years after it. And
even when they died, they went not into the higheft
heaven, as be did ; but only into paradife. See note
on Luke xvi. 22, 23.
Ver. 35. — Will he go unto the difperfed among the
Gentiles, and teach the Gentiles f\ Literally ; — to the
difperfion of the Greeks, and teach the Greeks ? Though
Greeks and Gentiles in Scripture often fignify the
lame; yet here by Greeks feem to be meant, either
the Helleniftical Jews, who lived among the Greeks,
and fpoke their language-, or thofe of the Greeks
and any other Heathen nations, who were profelytes
to Judaifm. For it feems ftrange to call the Gentiles
at large a differ/ton or difperfed, when they lived in
their own feveral countries, profperous and flourifh-
ing; and were, in a manner, the whole world ; nay,
quite the whole world, one nation only excepted.
Ver. 37, 38. In the loft day-^-JeJus flood and cried—
If any man thirft< — rivers of living water^ Upon the
loft day of the feaft, which was the grtateft, it was
cuftomary for the people to fetch water from Siloam ;
fome of which they drank with loud acclamations,
and fome of which they brought as a drink-offering
to God, &c. Upon which occajion, our Saviour,
Handing in a convenient place, and alluding to that
rite, cried aloud, and faid, If any man thirfl, let him
corns unto me, and drink, &c.-*-rivers of living water.
Thofe words, as the Scripture hath faid, may relate
either to what goes before-=rHe that believeth on
me»
330 Notes upon the Gofpel
me, as the Scripture hathfaid; i. e. as the Scripture
teaches and commands, Deut. xviii. 15. 18. Ifai.
xxviii. 1 6. and the fame in the main tenor of the
types and prophecies concerning the Meffiah : or
to what follows — Out of his—Jhall flow* &c. as
the Scripture hath Jaid, Ifai. xliv. 3. Iviii. n. Zech.
xiv. 8. not in the fame words indeed, but to the fame
fenfe. See note on Matth. ii. 23. xiii. 53. — Out of
his BELLY, in this place, being an ungraceful ex-
preffion, the words of the original mould rather be
rendered, from within him, or from his inward parts.
That the faculties and operations of the mind or foul
are often metaphorically expreffed by the parts of the
body, is fufficiently known. It is likewife to be ob-
ferved, that the words belly and bowels are in the
Old Teftament fometimes put for heart. Jobxv.35-
Pfal. xl. 8. Hab. iii. 16. It may be added too,
that the word here rendered belly, xoiA/a, fometimes
iignifies a conduit-pipe, or a channel for the conveyance
of water. And how exactly this anfwers the pur-
pofe, I need not fay. — Shall flow rivers, &c. This
exprefles the ABUNDANT effujion of the Holy Spirit-,
for that is meant, as the Evangelift aflures us in the
next words, ver. 39. Compare chap. iv. 14.
Ver. 39. 'The Holy Ghojl was not yet given ; becauje
that Jejus was not yet glorified'} The Holy Ghoft was
not to be poured out upon the Apoftles themfelves,
till after our Lord's ajcenfion ; before which he was
not fully glorified.
Ver. 40. THE Prophet] Or THAT Prophet. See
note on chap. i. 21.
Ver. 41, 42. — Come out of Galilee? — where David
was?] See note on chap. i. 46.
Ver. 51. Before IT hear him — know what he do-
eth?] It — The law, for the judges, and thofe who
execute the law. Thefe metonymies are frequent in all
writers.
according to ST. JOHN, Chap. VI IT. 331
writers. What he doeth; i. e. whether he doeth any
thing worthy of cenfure, Q? punijhment.
Ver. 52. Art thou alfo cf Galilee?'] i. e. of the Gali
lean party,
CHAP. VIII.
VERSE 5. Mofes commanded us that fuch /hould be
ftoned.] OBJ. It is commanded indeed, Levit.
xx. 10. Deut. xxii. 22. that they (hould be pit to
death ; but neither there, nor any where elfe, that
they [hould \szftoned. ANSW. i. They might be
put to death that way, as well as any other ; and the
cuftom was to ft one them. The fenfe therefore is ;
" Mofes commanded that they mould be put to
" death • and that death, according to cuftom, is
(( by floning." 2. This woman, very likely, was
only betrothed^ or ej-poujed, not aftually married ;
and \ifucb were adulterefles, it was commanded that
they (hould \5tftoned. Deut. xxii. 23, 24.
Ibid. But what fay eft thou /] t. e. " Thou who
" giveft new interpretations of the law, make ft al-
" terations and additions, £rc ?"
Ver. 6. nis they Jaid, tempting him, that they
might have to accufe himl\ Ace life him, either to the
Romans, who had taken away the power of life and
death from the Jews ; or to the people, as if he were
an enemy to the law of Mofes, and their liberties.
The former, if he mould anfwer that they ought to
jtone her ; the latter, if the contrary.
Ibid. Stooped down, and with his fnger wrote on
the groundJ} He probably wrote nothing, but only
Jeemed to write ; intimating to them, that he did not
mind what they faid, as having nothing to do with it.
Ver. 7. He that is with cut fin among you, let him
firft caft aftonc at her.] By this anfwer he avoids the
fnare
33^ Notes upon the Gofpel
fnare laid for him ; neither acquitting nor con
demning her. But, OBJ. Does not this deftroy all
judicial proceedings againft criminals? For what ex
ecutioner, or magiftrate, is free from fin ? A NSW.
He does not forbid finners to do their duty in punijh-
ing the crimes of others; but only warns againft/0r-
wardnefs in accuiing, unmercifulnefs , and uncharita-
blenefs ; upon this confederation, that we are all
finners, and many of us very great ones.
Ver. 9. Jefus was left alone, and the woman ft and-
ing in the midftl\ Alone \ \. e. with refpect to the ac»
cufers, who were all gone away. For the people,
who were his auditors, were fliil there; and the wo
man ft anding in the midft of them.
Ver. ii. Neither do 1 condemn thee^ Though our
Saviour feverely condemned adultery ; yet he would
not condemn this adult erefs to be fhoned ; becaufe,
being no magiftratey he had not authority to do it.
See Luke xii. 14.
Ver. 14. Though I bear record of myjelf ^ yet my
record is true^\ How is this reconcileable with what
he fays, chap. v. ver. 31. ]f I bear witnefs of myfelfy
my witnejs is not true ? ANSW. ift, There he fpeaks of
himfelf, 2&man\ here, as God\ who can neither be
deceived, nor deceive; and confequently is a proper
witnefs even in his own caufe. zdly, Though ordiv-
narlly and generally fpeaking a man's teflimony for
himfelf is not to be admitted; yet in fome certain
(fifes it may, and ought to be : as in thofe which
are of ^fecret nature, when there is and can be no
other witnefs, but the perfon himfelf; when his
character is unexceptionable, &c. This was the
cafe here. Our Saviour affirms himfelf to be the
light of the. world) to be delegated by God the Fa
ther, &c. This could be known to none but the
Father and himfelf, &x\ And his holy doctrine
and miracles added fufficient authority to his tefli
mony.
Ibid,
according to ST. JOHN, Chap. VIII. 333
Ibid. For I know whence I came, and whither I
go; but ye cannot tell whence I ccme, and whither I
go.] i. e. u My teftimony, though in my own caufe,
" is true; FOR I know I came from God the Father,
" and return to him: and you, from my doctrine
" and miracles, might know the fame, if you
" would : but you are blinded by your vices and
" prejudices againft me."
Ver. 15. Te judge after the flefh ; I judge no man]
i. e. Te judge [me] according to my mean outward
appearance, and your own carnal affections. For my
part, I judge nobody at all. But, Qu. How is this
confident with chap. v. ver. 22. The Father hath
committed all judgment to the Son / A NSW. That
relates to the loft day ; this to the time in which he
"" lived upon earth. See chap. xii. 47.
Ver, 19. Te neither know me, nor my Father : If ye
had known me, ye Jhould [would] have known my Fa
ther a/fo] i. e. " Ye will neither underftand who I
" am, nor who my Father is ; though I have often
" and Sufficiently explained myfelf; fo that you
** have not wanted means and opportunities of
" knowing, but are only blinded with wilful arid
u obftinate prejudice. If you had been willing to
" learn who I am, by the holy doctrine I havedeli-
" vered, and the miracles I have wrought, you
<f would alfo have underftood who it is that I mean
" by my Father, who fent me into the world to
fr- make known this doctrine to you. But fo long
Cf as ye cannot endure to believe, that the doctrine
" which I preach is God's meifage to you; neither
" can ye endure to hear who my Father is, whofe
" meflenger I am to reveal it."
Ver. 20. — No man laid hands on him ; fcr his hcur
was not yet ccme] Notwithstanding their malice
againft him, God's over-ruling providence permitted
them not to lay hands on him; becaufe the time,
which
334 Notes upon the Gofpel
which the divine wifdom had appointed for his laft
fufferings and death, was not yet come.
Ver. 21. — / go my way — -feek me — cannot corned]
See note on chap. vii. ver. 34.
Ver. 22.-— Will be kill himjdf ? Becaufe he faith—
ye cannot come} This faying of the Jews is purely
malicious, and icarce fenfe. He might get out of
their reach by many ways befides killing himfelf.
Ver. 24. — Believe not that I am he.] The word be
is not in the original; but underftood, though not
expreffed. He-, i. e. the Mejfiab, the Son of God,
&c.
Ver. 25. — The fame that If aid unto you from the
beginning} \. e. " What from the fir ft I told you I
" was, I tell you I am ftill\ viz. the light of the
" world, the MeJJiah, &c. And if you aik me ever
" fo often, I can fay no more."
Ver. 26. / ha-ve many things to Jay , and to judge of
you: BUT he that fent me is true; — heard of him}
i. e. u I could charge you with many things, which
" you would not care to hear of: BUT" — Here is
an ellipsis ; either thus : " But [you will not believe
" me ; though] He that fent me is true" &rc. Or
thus : " But [I pafs them by at prefent, only leav-
** ing this with you] He that fent me" &c.
Ver. 28. — When ye have lifted up the Son of man,
then Jhall ye know that I am he, and that I do nothing of
wyfeif—fpeak thefe things'} Lifted him up ; i. e. upon
the crofs. See chap. iii. 14. xii. 32, 33. " After
" that, ye (hall, by my refurreftion, ajcenfion> and
" miflion of the Holy Ghoft, the miracles wrought by
te my dpoftles, and the wonderful definition of Je-
" ruialem, be fully afTured that I am the Mejfiab>
" the Son of God ; and that I have not gone about
" to deceive you by pretending an authority which I
<* have not j but have faithfully delivered the doc-
" trine which I received from my Father."
Ver.
according to ST. JOHN, Chap. VIII. 335
Ver. 31. — If ye continue— Difciples indeed.'} " Ye
" ihall be truly and thoroughly my Difciples, if ye
" per fever e to the end; otherwife, not"
Ver. 32. And ye fh all know the truth'} Know it ;
i. e. know it farther ; for they knew it mfome mea-
fure already : otherwife they could not have believed
on him ; as they did, ver. 30.
Ver. 33. They anfwered him, We be Abraham s
feed, and never were in bondage to any man .] THEY;
i. e. either the new raw converts, or \htjlanders-by
of the unbelieving Jews, or both. — Abraham s feed\
i. e. by Sarah the free-woman, not by Hagar the
bond- woman. — But how could thefe Jews fay, they
were never in bondage? Were they not formerly in
bondage to the Egyptians, the Chaldeans, &c. and
now to the Romans ? ANSW. They did not mean
politic aly or national, but domeftic bondage; they
were not fold z&flaves to private matters.
Ver. 34. Whofoever commit teth fin is thejervant of
fin1\ He fhews, that he fpoke not of temporal, but
oi Spiritual bondage.
Ver. 35, 36. And the fervant abideth not in the
houfe for ever \ but the Son abideth ever. If the Son
therefore /hall make you free, ye jhall be free indeed^
i. e. " And (ince you are fervants, as above, ver. 34.
" you are far from having any right to continue in
" God's family : the right to continue in a family
" belongs only to the children of it, not to the
" Jlaves. In the common account of the world, a
"fervant is fo far from having any right to the inhe-
" ritance of the family, that he is at the mercy of
<f the f on, (the eldefl fon, the heir,) when he comes to
" the father's eftate, and may by him be caft out of
" the family. And unlefs the /OH make him free^ he
*c cannot be free, nor confequently fo much as ca-
" fable of being adopted. This is the cafe of all
" fuch as you, i. e. of every great (inner. Chrift,
t( the Son of God, the heir of all things,, muft loofe
<( him
Notes upon the Gofpel
(i him from his fpiritual bondage, that of \\isjtns ; then
" he \sfree indeed : otherwife, he is a Have for ever/'
Here is indeed a change made in the (imilitude, or
metaphor ; from a fervant, orflave of fin, to a fervant,
or flave of a family. So (fays Grotius) in Rom.
vii. from the death of a hujband there is a tranfi-
tion to the death of one, who is, as it were, bound
to the law. And many like inflances occur in this
way (i. e. the allegorical way) of writing and fpeaking.
Ver. 37. I know that ye are Abrahams feed^\ i. e.
naturally, or according to \\\efiejh.
Ibid. BUT ye feek to kill mel\ i.e. "THOUGH ye
" are Abraham's children in that fenfe; YET, being
" not fo in another, (fee note on vcr. 39.) yejeek to
« kill mer
Ver. 39. — If ye were Abraham s children — ] i. e.,
morally, or according to the Spirit.
Vcr. 40. — Tejeek to kill me — This did not Abra
ham^ i. e. " Abraham, when he was living, would
" not kill any innocent man ; and therefore, were
" he now living, would not kill me."
Ver. 41.- We be not born of fornication : we
have one Father, even God^\ Idolatry is, in the Old
Tcftament, very often meant by fornication, adultery,
going a whoring, &c. Now the Jews in our Saviour's
time, and long before, even ever fince the Baby-
loniih captivity, were not guilty of idolatry, but ut
terly abhorred it, however wicked in other refpecls.
Here therefore they fay, " We are not born of an
" adulterous or idolatrous race, but of parents that
" worfhipped God, and him only •, nor do we our-
" felves ferve any other befides him. Therefore, as
" Abraham is our earthly Father ; fo God, and he
<c only, is our heavenly Father."
Ver. 43. — Why do ye not under ft and my fpeech ?
Even becaufe ye cannot hear my word.] Speech, AaXia,
relates to what he is juft now fpeaking : Word,
wcc, to his dotJrine in general. — Cannot hear ; i. e.
« While
according to ST. JOHN, Chap. VIII. 337
*< While ye are under the dominion of your vices, and
" inveterate prejudices againft me, ye cannot endure
." to hear" &c. See note on chap. vii. 17.
Ver. 44. — A murderer from the beginning — a liar,
and the father of if.] The beginning ; i.e. the begin
ning of the world. — He was a murderer from the
creation ; i. e. as foon as man was created. For
through the envy of the Devil came death into the
world. Wifd. ii. 24. — Abode not in the truth-, BE
CAUSE there is no truth in him ; i. e. becaufe there
is now no truth in him. It appears that he
apoftatized from it ; for he was created pure. — A
liar, and the father of IT ; i. e. of lying, which is
virtually included in the word liar. Of this way
of fpeaking, in authors both facred and profane, fee
many inflances in Synopf. Critic, upon the place.
Ver. 48. — A Samaritan^ The hatred of the Jews
againft the Samaritans has been often taken no
tice of.
Ver. 50. I feek not mine own glory-, there is one
thatfeeketb, and judgeth^ There is one (i. e. my Fa
ther) that Jeeketh [my glory] , and judgeth [thofe who
defame and hate me] .
Ver. 5 1 . — If a man keep my faying, he Jhall never
fee death~\ i. z.fpiritual, eternal death.
Ver. 52, 53. — Abraham is dead, and the prophets —
Art thou greater than our father Abraham f &c.]
What he fpoke of fpiritual death they perverfely un-
deriland of temporal. And the fenfe is; " If you
*f can make others immortal, fure you yoiirfelfaxz fo.
" Yet Abraham and the prophets are dead ; and
" are you greater than they ?"
Ver. 56. Tour father Abraham rejoiced* to fee my
day ; and hefaw it, and was glad^\ Saw it j i. e. at
& great diftance; (fee Heb. xi. 13.) in vifion, and by
divine revelation.
Rather, earneftly de/ired, ^
z Ver.
33 8 Notes upon the Gofpel
Ver. 57. — nott art not yet fifty years old] He was
really not thirty-four years old : but by the venerable
gravity of his countenance, his mortification, labours^
and Jujfer ings, he appeared to be much older.
Ver. 58. — Before Abraham was, I am'] He fays
not, I was, but / am ; to intimate that he is God-, to
whom, as being eternal, all things are prejent. He
likewite alludes to the name of God., I AM, Exod.
iii. 13, 14.
Ver. 59. Hid himjelf — going through the midfl of
them, &c.] See note on Luke iv. 30.
CHAP. IX.
VERSE 2. — Who did Jin, this man, or his parents,
that he was born blind?'] OBJ. His being born
blind might be occaiioned indeed by the fin of his
parents ; but how could he himjelf fin before he was
lorn f ANSW. Some of the Jews, as well as the Py
thagoreans among the heathen, had a notion of the
pre-exiftence of fouls, the tranfmigration, or metempfy-
chofis ; i. e. that fouls were in being, and had other
bodies, before they had thefe which they now in
habit.
Ver. 3. — Neither hath this man finned, nor his pa
rents^ The meaning cannot be, that he and his pa
rents werQ/mtefs; for nobody is : but that they did
not Jo fin, as to cauje this blindnefs ; or that this
blindnefs was not inflicted as a punijhment of their
fins.
Ibid. — But that — manifefl in him'] But [it was per
mitted that he mould be born blind] that the works
cf God, &c. by my having this opportunity of work
ing a miracle.
Ver. 4. — While it is day^\ i. e. " While I am in
" this
according to ST. JOHN, Chap. IX. 339
" this world ; giving day and light to it." Read
the next verfe.
Ibid. T'be night ccmeth, when no man can work I]
Meaning his being taken cut of the world ; after
which, he could no longer perfonally and vifibly work
in it.
Ver. 6. — The pool of Siloam, which is by interpre
tation, SENT.] And ib might intimate the Meffiah,
the great Meffenger or Ambaffador of God, (the Shi-
lob, Gen. xlix. 10.) SENT to give light to the
blind, &c.
Ver. 17. — What Jay eft thcu cf himy that he hath
opened thine eyes /*] i. e. " What fayeft thou upon the
" Jubjett of his opening thine eyes ? And what doft
" thou think of him ?"
Ver. 22. — Put out of the fynagogue^\ Excommu
nicated.
Ver. 29.- — Whence he /V.] Whence he has his com-
miffion or authority.
Ver. 34. — Born in Jins^ Punifhed with blindnefs
even at thy birth, forjins committed in thy former
ftate, or body. See note on ver. 2.
Ver. 39. — For judgment I am come into this world-,
that they which fee not might fee, and that they which
fee might be made blind^ From corporal blindnefs he
makes a natural tranfition tofpiritual blindnefs ; and
fays, " For [manifefling the juft] judgment [of God
" on men] / am come into this world, that they which fee
•' not (i. e. they who are rude and fimple, and fit in
" darknefs, but are ready to acknowledge their own
u blindnefs, and come to the light) might fee ; and
" that they which fee (i. e. they who do fee a great
<f deal, as my miracles, &c. and might fee much more,
*• were it not for their own prejudice and perverfe-
" nefs) might be made blind-, i.e. might have the
" light, againft which they have wilfully (hut their
<c eyes, juflly taken from them, and fo be left in a ju-
<; dicial blindnefs,*'
i::» z a Ver,
340 Notes upon tie Gofpel
Ver. 41. — If ye were blind, yefhould [would] have
no Jin : but now ye fay, We fee ; therefore your fin re-
maineth.~\ i. e. "• If ye were unable, for want of means,
" to difcern who I am ; if ye had not the Law and
" Prophets to dired you, which is the cafe of the
u Gentiles ; ye would have no Jin \ i. e. in THIS parti-
" cular of UNBELIEF : but now ye fay -, Wefee\ [and
" arrogate to yourfelves the knowledge of the Law
" and the Prophets -, and are confident that you are
"guides to the blind, Rom. ii. 19. and yet will not
" receive the light which mines in your eyes 3] there-
" fore your Jin remaineth inexcufable."
CHAP. X.
VERSE i, 2. — He that enter eth not by the door
into thejheepfold, but climbeth upfome other way,
the fame is a thief and a robber . But he that enter eth in
by the door, is the Jhef herd of the JJjeep^ This difcourie
takes its rife from the fads in the foregoing chapter.
The man cured of his blindnefs is excommunicated ;
Chrift is reprefented as a feducer -, the Pharifees pre
tend to be the only guides and teachers of the peo
ple. Hence our Lord takes occalion under the me
taphor tf&Jhtepfold (by which is meant the Church)
to enlarge upon the fubjecl: of true and falfe paftors,
or fpiritual (hepherds. Of the true ones he is the
chief, ver. n. 14. And the door through which be
entered was the divine authority, manifefted by his
miracles, holy life and dodrine, and the Scripture
prophecies concerning him. To all other true and
good fpiritual fliepherds he himfelf is the door, ver.
7. 9. Through him they enter into the fold, and
take t\\ejhepherd's office upon them ; i. e. they de
rive their commiffion and authority from him. By thofe
therefore,
according to ST. JOHN, Chap. X. 341
therefore, who enter not by the door, but climb up Jome
other way, are meant, ift, falie pretenders to the
Meffiahfhip in and about thofe times ; adly, unau
thorized pallors, ufurpers of the facred function, and
falfe teachers in all times. How juftly thefe may be
called thieves, and robbers, and murderers too, mur
derers of fouls, [fee ver. 10.] is plain of itfelf.
Ver. 3. — *fbe porter openeth] The porter vtzfljeep-
fold may feem flrange to us, according to our cuf-
toms. But here is meant not a fold made of hurdles
in an open field ; but a kind of Jlable, with a roof,
walls, and door. In the application of the parable the
word porter is dropped ; no more being meant, than
that the door is opened. Some indeed will have it
that God is importer ; which is very untoward to rny
apprehenfion.
Ibid. The foeep hear his voice.] i. e. Know his voice,
and obey his call.
Ibid. He calleth his own Jheep by name] I think I
have been told by country people, that fome (hep-
herds know every ftngle fheep among a hundred;
which I can hardly believe : to me their faces are
all alike. Some commentators upon this place
go farther; and fay, that in certain countries the
fhephercls gave diftincl: names to their (heep, as we
do to dogs, borfes, <kc. But I think, with others,
that thefe words relate not to the thing Jignifying, but
to the thing fignified. The fpiritual paftor, or fhep-
herd, knows the names of particular perfons in his
flock.
Ibid. And leadeth them out] i. e. to their paflures.
With us, fhepherds always drive their fheep, never
lead them. With the eajlern nations, it feems, it was
otherwife. So in the next verfe, goeth before them.
Ver. 5. And a fir anger will they not follow — voice of
grangers] So Chrift's true and faithful (heep, i. e.
prudent and pious ChrifHans, will not follow fa/fe and
z 3 unauthorized
34-3 Notes upon the Gofpel
unauthorized guides ; but only him, and thofe de
puted by him.
Ver. 7. — I am the door of the Jheep.~] And likewife
of the jhepherds : the door, by which the fheep go
into the fold, and the fhepherds to the fheep. See
note on ver. 1,2.
Ver. 8. All that ever came before me are thieves
and robbers^ Came before me^ or (hall come after me \
i. e. all pretenders to the MeJJiahJhip, and all falje
prophets. For he cannot mean the true prophets of
the Old Teftament.
Ibid. But the J}jeep did not hear them^\ See note on
ver. 5.
Ver. 9. — Go in and cut. "\ A Hebrew way of fpeak-
ing. See Deut. xxviii. 6. i Sam. xxix, 6. Pfal.
cxxi. 8. Ads i. 21. By it is meant a man's daily
converfation, or the courje of his actions. And the
ienfe of go in and out, and find pafture, is ; " He
" mail, through the courfe of his life, be fecure,
" and want nothing.'7 Paflure ; in allulion to jheep^
to whom men are compared through the whole dif-
courfe.
Ver. ii. I am the good Jhepherd~\ Referred to by
Ezek. xxxiv. 23. xxxvii. 24. and act peculiarly as
the good Jhepberd, who giveth, or layeth down, bis
life for the jheep.
Ver. 12. — An hireling^ The hireling here, as Dr.
Whitby juftly obferves, is not one who receives
maintenance from his particular flock; which he
may do by virtue of Chrift's ordinance, Luke x. 7,
i Cor. ix. 13, 14; but he who is an intruder, whcje
own the Jheep are not.
Ibid. The wolf.} i. e. perfecution.
Ver. 14. — Know my fheep, and am known of mine^
With a knowledge of the higheft approbation and love.
Ver. 15. As my Father knoweth me, even fo know I
the Fatherl\ Thefe words may properly enough be
included
according to ST. JOHN, Chap. X. 343
included in a parenthefis. But Dr. Clarke obferves,
that the tranilation fhouldnot be even Jo, but limply,
and /, xa-yw, know the Father ; theie words not
being the latter member of a fimilitude, beginning,
As my Father, &c. but this whole verfe is one mem
ber of a fimilitude, in refped of the former verfe.
Ver. 1 6. And other Jheep 1 have, which are not of
this fold.'] The Gentiles; whom, being not of the
Jewifh fold., he calls his Jheef, by way of antici
pation.
Ibid. Them alfo I miifl bring, &c.] " According to
** my Father's decree, that they may be laved, who
" would othervvife perifh."
Ibid. And there Jhall be one fold, and one fhepherd'.\
Not as the Jews were under various doctors of the
law, and the Gentiles under feveral different philo-
fophers. But thefe " mail all become one flock under
" one Jhepherd, Ezek. xxxvii. 24; being joined toge-
" ther in the profeflion and practice of one pure re-
rt ligion, and making one holy and undivided church
<c of God, under one head, which is CHRIST."
Clarke.
Ver. 17. therefore — becaufe, &c.] He fpeaks as a;
man, whom the Father loved for feveral caufes, and
for this in particular. That I might, &c. THAT,
i'va, is not caufal here, but confequential, denoting
what would certainly follow.
Ver. 1 8. No man taketh it from me~\ By force,
againft my will, or before the time. — / have power,
full and abfolute, divine and peculiar to God.
Ibid. This commandment^ Not abfolute command,
but commifiion, order, or appointment, that I
ihould lay down my life., in order to fave my fheep.
Ver. 20. He hath a Devil, and is madl\ See note
on Matth. XL 18, 19.
Ver. 22. And it was at Jerusalem, the feafl of the
Dedication, and it was winter^ This feqft was cele
brated by burning lights in their houfes all night,
z 4 and
344 Notes upon tie Gofpel
and in all places ; in which laft refpecl: it differed
from the feafts of the Paflbver, Pentecoft, and Ta*
bernacles, which could be kept only at Jerufalem.
It was kept in commemoration of Judas Macca-
beus's cleaniingthe Temple, and fetting up and con-
fecrating a new altar, after the profanation by An-
tiochus. i Mace. iv. 59. Moreover, Judas and his
brethren, with the whole congregation of IJrael, or
dained \ that the days of the dedication ofthealtarjhouldbe
kept in their feajon from year to year, by the f pace of eight
days, from the five and twentieth day of the month
Cajleu, with mirth and gladnejs. Part of which
month anfwered to part of our December.
Ver. 23. /// Solomon s porch^\ So called, becaufe
it was built in the fame place where that of Solo
mon formerly flood ; and it was very convenient for
the people to meet in and converfe in bad weather.
This portico, or porch, we are allured by Lightfoot
from Jofephus, was on the eaftern fide of the Temple,
and was different from the royal perch, which was on
the fouthern.
Ver. 24. Make us to doubt j] Hold us in fufpenfe*.
— Tell us plainly. By drawing a plain declaration
from him, they hoped to render him obnoxious to
the Romans.
Ver. 26. — Becaitfe'} FOR, oJ y«£ — Te are not of
my Jheep. Of thole who are difpofed to attend to
and obey my doctrine, being of tempers contrary to
that humble and teachable di {petition of thofe whom
I called my fljeepy ver. iv. 16.
Ver. 28. — They Jhall never jierifh, neither Jh all any
pluck them out of my hand.] They Jhall never perijh,
through any defect on my part ; for none Jfjall pluck,
&c. Dr. Whitby obferves, that the Greek particles,
xat «'p£, .are here illative. ,But he adds another in
terpretation., which fome may think more eligible :
« That
according to ST. JOHN, Chap. X. 345
;i That neither death, nor he that hath the power of
*f death, fhould make them perifbfor ever-, for Chrifl
" would ratfe them tip at the I aft day" This fenfe
feems more agreeable to the original*. He will pre-
ferve them to the time of the refurredtion, which
was foretold by Daniel, believed by the Maccabees,
and (had owed forth by the freeing of the people
from the yoke of Antiochus ; which prophecies and
hiflories, as Grotius obferves, were publicly ex
plained during the fe aft of the Dedication.
Ver. 30. / and my Father are one] u Not only in
** will and power, as occasionally communicated to
<c me by him, but conftantly reading in me.1*
From whence St. Chryfoftom juftly infers a unity of
eflence. land my Father denote two Perfons; and
are one^ one God : and that the Jews underilood it
thus, is plain from their anfwer, ver. 33.
Ver. 34. — In your Law] Judges and fupreme ma-
giftrates are called Elohim, Exod. xxi. 6. xxii. 9. 28.
But our bleffed Lord refers here in particular to Pfalm
Ixxxii. 6. Thus the whole Scriptures are called the
Law and the Prophets, Matth. xxii. 40 ; and the book
of Pfalms alone has the fame appellation as here,
chap. xv. 25.
Ibid. Te are Gods.] As acting by my authority.
Ver. 35, 36. If he called — becauje I faid, I am
the Son of God] — Some explain unto whom the word of
God came, of conftituting and appointing them to
the magiftracy; others, of reproving and reprehend
ing them, as is done in the Pfalm ; the original pre-
poiition, Trpoc, adverfus, fignifying againft, as well as
unto. — The Scripture cannot be broken^ or dijjblved, Xu$?~
vxi : what the Scripture faith muft be true. — 'Whom the
Father hath Janftified, by the holy Ghoft dwelling in,
or without mealure imparted to, him, John iii, 34.
— The force of our blefled Saviour's reafonino: in
Off
thefe
346 Notes upon tie Gcfpd - y^
thefe two verfes is reprefented by Dr. Whitby in two
different manners. Either thus ; " ^fthey are called
" Gods in the Scriptures, which are of unqueftion-
" able truth, who had the fpirit of a prophecy, wif-
cc dom, and government, more fparingly, and only
" at fome certain times ; Jay ye of me, to whom the
" Father hath given thejpirit without meafure, and in
" whom he fb abideth effentially, that, by virtue of
"him, I am in the Father^ and the Father in me,
" Thou blajphemejl, &c ?" Or thus; " If they are
" called Gods, b unto whom this WORD, o Aoyos, only
u came, and with whom he converfed; can I, who
" am this very WORD, be laid to blalpheme, in
" faying, &cr" — Chrift does by no means here infi-
nuate, that he is God, in the fame fenfe only that
judges are called gcds\ but refutes the calumny of
the Jews, who objected blafphemy to him,, for only
calling himfelf the Son of God-, which was lefs than
if he had called himfelf God, and fhewed their cavil
to be the more malicious. He never denied himfelf
to be God, nor declined the adoration of men;
though he does not here exprefsly after t himfelf to
be God, but defers the open profeffion and declara
tion of this my fiery till his refurreclion and afcen-
fion.
Ver. 37. — Believe me not] <c When I fay, / and
" my Father are one." ver. 30.
Ver. 38. — The Father is in me, and I in him]
" And fo am ONE with him" For the words de
clare, i. An identity of nature or elfence, or the in
dividual unity, whereby the two Perfons fubfift, or
* The Jewifh doftors underftand the Pfalmift's words to be
meant, not of civil magiftrates, but of their prophets and dot/prs
fitting In tie chair of Mdfes.
b According to the tradition of the ancients, received from
the beginning of Chriftianity, it was this Ao?*;, or WORD, who
appeared to the patriarchs, and converfed with the judges and
mag'if.rates of the Jews.
are
according to ST. JOHN, Chap. X. 347
are mutually in each other. 2. A diftin&ion of Per-
fons, becaufe no one is faid to be in himfelf. 3. The
mofl intimate and perfect inhabitation of each Per-
fon in the other.
Ver. 39. — To take him"] Not to flone him as a
blafphemer, but to deliver him up to the Sanhedrim,
who might find him guilty of fome other crime.
Ver. 40. — Where John atfirft baptized^] Bethabara:
before he did the fame in Enon, near to Salim. Chap,
iii. 23.
Ver. 41. — 'There'] Remembering the teftimony,
which John the Baptift had given concerning him, in
that very place.
CHAP. XI.
GROTIUS affigns the following reafon, why the
wonderful hiftory here recorded had been
omitted by the other Evangelifts, viz. Becaufe this
Lazarus, according to Epiphanius, lived thirty years
after his refurrection ; within which period they all
wrote : and the publifhing this great miracle might
have created fome danger to him from the Jews ;
who, even immediately after the performance of it,
conjultcd that they might put him to death. Chap,
xii. 10.
Ver. i. 'The town of Mary, &c.] Thus chap. 1.44.
The city of Andrew and Peter. Thefe two lifters are
particularly mentioned, as having frequently enter
tained our blefled Saviour ; and had been fpoken of
by the former Evangelifts, who fay nothing at all of
Lazarus.
Ver. 2. // was THAT Mary which anoint ed, &c.]
To diftinguifh her from Mary Magdalene. This is
fpoken by a prolefi/is, or by way of anticipation, as
Judas
348 Notes upon the Gofpet
Judas is laid to have been the traitor, Luke vi. 16 :
for this anointing was performed afterwards ; of which
an account is given in the next chapter. See note
on Matth. xxvi. 6, 7.
Ver. 4. — Not unto death] A common and lafling
death.
Ver. 5. Now Jefus loved, &c.] As man, with a
natural affection.
Ver. 6. — He abode two days, &c.] That the glory
of God might (hine forth more confpicuoufly, by
railing one from the dead, when he had continued fo
long in that ftate ; fince there could be no pretence,
that he was only in a delirium.
Ver. j.—Into Judea again] Farther into Judea,
from Jordan towards the city; for they were then
in Penea or Judea beyond Jordan.
Ver. 9. twelve hours in the day] The day was di
vided into three hours, each of which was fubdivided
into four ; thefe were unequal, according to the
length or (hortnefs of the day. This divifion into
tivelve the Jews took from the Romans. " As
" there is a certain and dated (pace of time in every
" day ; fo there is a certain time allotted me, in
" which I am to walk, i. e. to live and dilcharge
" my office/'
Ibid. In the day] Before fun-fet ; though at the
iaft hour.
Ibid. He feeth the light of this world] The fun.
" How much more fafely then do I walk, who have
" the fupra-celeftial light, and the divine knowledge
" of my Father's will, fhining before me !"
Ver. 10. No light in him] Or in it, viz. the world ;
the original, lv a-Jru, will bear both interpretations. — »
The allegorical fenfe here intimated is, that Chrift
ihould continue fafe, in the midft of the greatefl
dangers, during the day, or time appointed him to
inftruft and convince the world by his words and
works,
according to ST. JOHN, Chap. XF. 349
works, till the night of his paffion fliould approach,
which he tells the Jews is pur hour, and the power of
darknefs. Luke xxii. 53.
Ver. ii. Sleepeth^ The word in the original, xzxoi'-
jwflraj, fignifies both is afleep, and is dead.
Ver. 12. If hefleep, 'he jhall do we/L] They fup-
pofe that his illnefs, which had kept him awake, was
now gone off, and that InsJIeepmg was a fymptom of
his recovery ; being very defirous to keep their maf-
ter from expoling himfelf to danger by going into
Judea.
Ver. 15. That I was not there^\ Intimating, that
then he mud either have recovered his friend from
his (icknefs, or reftored him immediately to life ;
neither of which would have been an action fo con-
ipicuous, as that which he intended to perform.
Ibid. To the intent ye may believe. ~\ (C That I, as
" the true Meffiah, have power, after my death and
" paffion, to raife my own body from the grave,
" having been able to raife that of another perfon,
" who had lain dead four days."
Ver. 1 6. Thomas — called Didymus1\ Thomas in He
brew fignifies the fame with Didymus in Greek, a
twin.
Ibid. That we may die with him^ Either with La
zarus, or with Chrift, who is now going to expofe
himfelf to certain death, (ver. 8.) nor is it fit that
we (hould defert him.
Ver. 1 8. About fifteen furlongs^ See the note upon
chap. vi. 19.
Ver. 25. / am the refurreclion, and the life] " /
" am, in my own perfon, the author of the refurrec-
x<r //0«, and of fife, both prefent and future, temporal
" and eternal." See chap. v. 22. 26.
Ver. 26. Shall never diel\ In the Greek, Jkall not
die for ever9-.
* n* v " $ ' -' A '" •
Ibid.
35° Note$ upon the Go/pel
Ibid. Believe/I thou this?] Our blefTcd Saviour
generally requires faith, before he performs any mi
racle.
Ver. 28. She went away] Being fent by Chriil.
Ibid. The Mafter] So called by that family, which
were his diiciples.
Ver. 33. He groaned in the fpjrit, and was troubled.
— Ver. 35. Jefus wept] " Humane affedions and
cc commotions are not to be condemned as finful, if
" they do not incline us to do any thing repugnant
" to piety or reafon, but only to exprefs our affec-
<c tion to our friend, or our companion to man-
" kind." Whit by. — Chriil, being about to give a
proof of his divinity, exhibits firft plain figns of
his humanity, that he may be believed to be both
God and man.
Ver. 39. He hath been dead four days] It fliould
rather have been tranflated, been buried* ; as is plain
from ver. 17. Within this time the vifage of the
dead began to change in thofe countries, and all
hopes of any return to life ceafed. They go to the
fepidchres, fays Dr. Light foot from Maimonides, &c.
and viftt the dead for three days ; but then they certify
of the dead: for after three days his countenance is
changed.
Ver. 41. That thou haft heard me.] Requeuing,
not that he might receive power to raile Lazarus,
for that he teftifies he had already, chap. v. 22. 26.
but that this miracle might confirm the faith of his
apoflles, and convince the multitude that he was
the Meffiah.
Ver. 44. Bound hand and feet with grave-clothes, &c.]
That a perfon, whofe body was thus wrapped up,
and bound hand and feet, fhould come forth out of his
fepulchre, was a circumftance, that rendered this
miracle more confpicuous.
Ver.
according to ST. JOHN, Chap. XT. 351
Ver. 48. All men will believe in him, &c.] And
let him up for their king ; and then the Romans Jhall
come, &c. — Our place , our temple, city, or country.
— Obferve the juft judgment of God upon their
carnal policy: to preferve and fecure their religion
and liberty from the Romans, they murdered the
Meffiah, and by that very wickednefs drew upon
themfelves that vengeance, which the Romans exe
cuted in fo terrible a manner.
Ver. 49. Being the high-prieft that year'} The higli-
priefthood, according to God's inftitution, was to
have continued for life ; but the Romans changed
the high-priefls at pleamre, though keeping ftill to
the line of Aaron : upon which account, and be-
caufe the ppwer was irrefiftible, Chrift himfelf ac
knowledges their authority.
Ver. 51. But being high-prieft that year, he prophe-
Jied^\ He did not prophefy as being high-prieft ; for
there had been no prophet of that order for above
four hundred years : but he being then in that office,
it pleafed God, that the words fpoken by him out of
human policy, in a fenfe very different, fhould be
delivered in fuch a manner, as to be accommodated
to' the delign of God in giving up his only-begotten
Son to death, and to appear an exact prophecy
of it.
Ver. 52. And not for — gather together in one the
children of God, &c.] Dr. Whitby does not look
upon this verfe as part of Caiaphas's prophecy, but
explains it thus : And indeed he died not for that na
tion only, &c. — The children of God, i. e. believers,
called the Jons of God, chap. i. 12-, meaning Gen
tiles, as well as Jews, who fhould by faith become
fuch. See note upon chap. x. 16.
Ver. 54. Walked no more openly, &c.] Till the time
of his paffion was fully come.
Ver. 55. To purify themfehes^\ Either from fome
defilement to be expiated by facrifice, or by reafon
of
353 Notes upon the Go/pel
of foine vow of Nazaritifm, which was upon them.
Ads xxi. 23. IF hit by.
CHAP. XII.
VERSE 2. There they made him a j upper.] At the
houfe of Simon the leper; where poffibly La
zarus and his lifters dwelt : if not, Simon was their
friend and acquaintance.— Served, i. e. affifted in
preparing the entertainment. — The Apoftle's words
do not necerTarily fix the time of this {upper to the
fame day on which Jefus came to Bethany, fix days
before the pajjbver. Neither do thofe of St. Matthew
xxvi. 2. 6. and of St. Mark xiv. 1.3. exprefsly de
clare, that it was two days before the pajjbver. There
is therefore little or no caufe to doubt, whether
this be the fame hiflory recorded there.
Ver. 3. — Anointed the feet.] Both St. Matthew and
St. Mark mention only his head. See the note on
Matth* xxvi. 6, 7.
Ver. 4. — One of his difciples, &c.] See the note on
Matth. xxvi. 8.
Ibid. Which Jhould) &c.] Who was about to be
tray him.
Ver. 7. Againfl the day of my burying, &c.] She is
come aforehand to anoint my body to the burying. Mark
xiv. 8. See note on Matth. xxvi. 12.
Ver. 9. — Knew that he was there] Either Jefus, or
Lazarus.
Ver. 1 1 . — Many of the Jews went away] From the
city. Or perhaps it may be more clofely tranflated,
Many withdrew themfelves from the Jews % and be
lieved on Jefus.
Ver. 12. On the next day] i.e. on the loth of
Nifan,
according to ST. JOHN, Chap. XII. 353
Niian, when the Pafchal Lamb was taken up, and
referved till the paflbver, Chrift, the true Pafchal
Lamb, cometh up to Jemfalem.
Ver. 13. Hofanna.] See the note upon Matth.xxi. 9.
Ver. 16. Was glorified'] Had afcended into hea
ven, and was advanced to the throne of his glory,
and had (lied upon them the Spirit of truth.
Ver. 17. Bare record] By their hofannas, that he
was the Chrift.
Ver. 20. Certain Greeks] Dr. Hammond thinks
thefe Greeks were profelytes of the gate, at leafl
who worfhipped the God of the Jews, as the Creator
of heaven and earth ; fuch as were Cornelius, and
the Treafurer of Queen Candace ; for fuch ufed to
worfhip in the Court of the Gentiles, and alfo to
offer facrifice. Grotius takes them to have been
Syrophcenicians, perhaps dwelling about Tyre and
Sidon ; who fo might ealily be acquainted with the
Galileans, with whom they had commerce, and par
ticularly with Philip of Bethfaida. Whitby.
Ver. 22. Philip cometh and telleth .Andrew] Con-
fulteth him as his fenior, and the firft difciple of
Chrift, what was proper to be done.
Ibid. Andrew and Philip told Jefus] They both
agree to acquaint Jefus with the deiire of thefe
Greeks -, being under fome doubt, whether fuch
uncircumcifed perfons were to be admitted to con-
verfe with him ; fmce he himfelf, when he fent them
forth to preach, had forbade them to go into the
coafts of the Gentiles. Matth. x. 5.
Ver. 23. The hour is come, that the Son of man
fljQiild be glorified] i. e. That he who is contemned by
the Jews, his own people, to whom he was firft fenr,
ftjould be glorified by the Gentiles. Whitby.
Ver. 24. Except a corn of wheat — -forth much fruit']
" Even fo, were I not to die, I fliould bring none
" to falvation $ but after my death, I (ball have
A a *' much
354 Notes upon the G of pel
" much fruit among the Gentiles, who fhall be con-
" verted by the preaching of my Apoftles."
Ver. 25. He that loveth his life] So as to reject me
to preferve it.
Ibid. He that haleth his life in this world.] By
cleaving to me with the lofs of it.
Ver. 26. Let him follow me.~] -In taking up his crofs.
Ver. 27. Now is my foul troubled] Left thole,
whom he invites to follow his example in fuffering,
mould imagine that he had not the natural deiires of
living, and of avoiding fhame and pain, he declares
how much his foul is troubled with the apprehenlions
of his approaching paffion; but that he had fur-
mounted them all, by an ardent delire to perform
his Father's will, and to promote his glory.
Ver. 28. 'Then came there a voice from heaven] Ac
companied probably with thunder.
Ver. 30. Becaufe of me] i.e. "To comfort me
" by this aflurance of the divine favour.*'
Ibid. But for your fakes] " That you might have
" an evident and immediate teftimony from heaven
" of my divine commiffion."
Ver. 31. Now is the judgment See.] The time is
juft at hand, when, as the natural confequence and
neceflary effect of my death and paffion, the caule
of this world (hall be brought vato judgment ^ and de
termined in its favour, agtinft the unjuft ufurpation
and tyranny of Satan. Some expound it of the
conviction and condemnation of thofe of the world,
who believed not in Chrifi. Chap. xvi. 9.
Ibid. Now ft all the Prince of this world be caft
out] The Devil is io called, fays Dr. Whitby, be-
cauie he had rendered the whole world, except the
Jewiih nation, fubject to his idolatrous worfhip.
And he was eminently cajl out, when, for three cen
turies together, he was expelled, through the name
of Chrift, from the temples and altars where he was
worshipped,
according to ST. JOHN, Chap. XII.
worfhipped, and from the bodies which he had pof-
fefled. IVhitby. He is called tbe God of this world,
2 Cor. iv. 4.
Ver. 32. And if I 'be lifted up, &c.] It fliould ra
ther have been tranflated, ivhen, or after that*, I
am lifted up from the earth, upon the crofs. — All men ;
i. e. men of all nations.
Ver. 34. Out of the law."] The writings of the
Prophets are here particularly denoted, as the Pfalms
are by the fame expreflion, chap. x. 34. xv. 25. —
This objection of the people was grounded upon thofe
places of the Prophets, Dan. vii. 14. Ezek. xxxvit.
25. Ifai. ix. 7. where the perpetuity of Chrift's
kingdom is foretold.
Ver. 35. Is the light with you"] The Son of man, or
the MeJ/iah. See chap. viii. 12.
Ver. 36. Departed^] And retired to Bethany.
Ver. 38. That the fating of Efaias the prophet might
be fulfilled &c.] See Difc. I. p. 2, 3.
Ver, 39. Therefore they could not believe, becauje &c.]
Becanfe that was fulfilled upon them, which Efaias faid,
or, it had happened to them as he had foretold. And
indeed, it was impoflible they fliould be convinced,
being fuch perfons as the fame Prophet defcribes,
chap. vi. 9.
Ver. 40. He hath blinded their eyes, &c.] The
word be is not in the original ; which may be ren
dered, ^Malice or wickednefs hath blinded, &c. as we
read, Wifd. ii. 21. Or, the perfonal is put for the
imperfonal, the affive for the paffive ; Their eyes are
blinded, and their hearts are hardened. That this
muft be the fenfe here, we learn, not only from the
Septuagint, the Syriac, and the Arabic, which ren
der thefe words of Ifaiah thus; The heart of this people
is waxed grofs, and their eyes have they clofed, left they
faouldfee with their eyes -, but alfo from our bleiTed
«\ Signifies fo fometimes. b TIT^«*S» nvrut ra; o^
A a 2 Saviour,
356 Notes upon the Gofpcl
Saviour, who, Matth. xiii. 15. and from St. Paul,
who, Acts xxviii. 26, 27. exactly follow this tranfla-
tion. Whitby.
Ver. 41 . His glory — of him] Thefe are not the words
of the Prophet, but of the Evangelift; and there
fore mufl be referred to HIM, who had done fo many
miracles, in whom they believed not, ver. 37. and in
whom/foy could not believe, ver. 39.
Ver. 44. — Believeth not on me] Only, or not fo
much on me, as &c. See note on Mark ix. 37.
Ver. 45. — Seeth me,feeth &c.] Seeth me doing the
works of God, cannot but plainly perceive the
power of him thatjent me.
Ver. 47. 1 judge him not] I do not now condemn
him.
Ibid. For I came not to judge &c.] Or condemn the
world at prefent. See chap. iii. 17. Chrift neither
doth nor could deny, that he would judge all men
at the laft ; but denies only, that he was to afTume
this office whilft he was on earth.
Ver. 48. Hath one that judgeth him'} His own con-
fcience, which muft needs condemn him.
Ibid. The word that I have fpoken, &c.] Shall rife
up in the judgment, and bear witnefs againfl him
to his final condemnation.
Ver. 50. His commandment is life everlajling] Obe
dience to his commandments is the condition of
ieternal falvation. Thus Chrifl is faid to be the re-
furreftion, and the life, chap. xi. 25 ^ the effect for
the caufe.
CHAP. XIII.
VERSE I. Now before the feajl &c.] On the
evening before the pajjbver.
Ibid. — To the end] Or, clofe of his life.
Ver. 2. Supper being ended] Or rather, while /up
per
according to ST. JOHN, Chap. XIII. 357
per continued*. It was only the firft part of thefupper
that was ended.
Ver. 3. — That he was come — to God} See chap.
xvi. 28.
Ver. 4. — His garments'} His upper garment. The
plural for the fingular.
Ver. 7. — Hereafter^} After thefe things, when I
have performed the ceremony.
Ver. 8. — If I wajh thee not, thou haft no part with
me"} " If thy heart and thy affections be not cleanfed
" and purified by me, as thy feet will be by the ap-
u plication of this water; thou canfl not be quali-
" fied for my fervice, nor become a worthy apoftle
" and preacher of the Gofpel, nor receive any man-
<( ner of benefit from me."
Ver. 10. He that is wajhed, needeth not, fave to
wajh his feet} By the cuftom of wearing fandals in
the eaflern countries, the foot and part of the leg
were much expofed to duft and dirt, and confe-
quently required frequent ivajhing. — " He that has
" been wajhed, and is become clean, has no occa-
" iion to wafli himfelf all over again, but only his feet,
" which are apt continually to contract foil and
^ dirt." — But is clean every whit. i. e. In all parts
of his body, except his feet. Which figurative ex-
prellions exhibit this doctrine : u He, who * by
" fincerely receiving and practifing the doctrine
" of the Gofpel, has once thoroughly cleanfed
" his heart and affections, cannot have occafion for
<* any total change of mind ; but needs only to
" cleanfe himfelf from the ftains, to which he is ex-
" pofed by daily infirmities."
Ibid. And ye are clean, but not all} " In heart and
" affections; except one, who is contriving to be-
66 tray me."
Ver. 13.— Mafter and Lord} " Mafter by teaching,
A a 3 ^ and
358 Notes upon the G of pel
" and Lord by commanding; fo Grotius. But the
" word Lord, o Ku'/>»o?, here Teems to import the
" Lord from heaven, ver. i. or him, who is Lord of
(( a/I-, in which fenfe, to us Chriftians, there is but
'' one Lord. Acts ii. 36. i Cor. viii. 6." Whit by.
Ver. 14. 7> tf^/o ought to wqfh one another's feet]
Not literally ; but " ye ought to do all ads of kind-
" nefs, charity, and humility, condefcending to the
" meaneft offices for the temporal and fpiritual ad-
" vantage of your brethren."
Ver. 1 6. The fervant is not greater than his Lordy
neither — than he that fent him] You therefore, who
profeis yourfelves to be my fervant s, and whom, as
your Lord, I fend to preach the Gofpel, cannot think
it too mean to imitate my humility.
Ver. 1 8. I /peak not of you all] " I do not expect
" obedience from you a//."
Ibid. / know whom I have chofen: but that the
Scripture &c.] " I know the difpoiition of every one
" of you, whom I have chofen to be my Apoftles ; and
<c though I knew it from the beginning, it was ne-
" ceffary that I mould permit it, for the full com-
^ pletion of that place of Scripture, Pial. xli. 9."
Ibid. Hath lift up his heel againft me~\ Like an un
grateful horfe, that kicks at him who feeds him ; or
like a wreftler, that fupplants his adverfary.
Ver. 19, — That I am he.J In the original it is only
That I AMa: meaning, not only theChrift, but Hea
who knoweth the fecrets of the heart, and foretels
future contingencies : which to do is the property of
/""• j 1
God alone.
Ver. 27. — Satan entered into him^\ More fully, into
the inmoit receffes of his heart; hurrying him on to
the immediate execution of his intended wickednefs.
Ibid. Do quickly] " As foon as (hou wilt, for I am
k4 prepared for my fuflerings." Shewing the traitor,
* 'Or» \yu EI'/A»'.
that
according to ST. JOHN, Chap. XIII. 559
that he was not ignorant of his villany, and up
braiding him with it. The like way of (peaking is
ufed Ezek. xx. 39. Go ye, ferve ye every one his idols.
Ver. 28. Now no man &c.] From this verfe it is
plain, that all which is recorded in the 24th, 25th, 26th,
27thverfes, was done fecretly; St. Peter making figns
only to St. John, and he whifpering to Chrift, who
anfwered him in the fame manner. — St. John him-
felf did not perfectly underfland the words in the
laft verfe, not fufpefting that his Matter was to be
betrayed fo foon ; and as for all the reft of the
Apoftles, they entirely miftook the meaning of
them.
Ver. zg.—mefeafl] i. e.'The Pafchal/^.
Ver. 31. — Is the Son of man glorified^ Ready to
ItegJortfiedby his fufferings and death, which will
neceflarily foon advance him to glory.
Ver. 32. — Glorify him in hiwfelf] By figns in the
heaven and the earth at his crucifixion ; by his refur-
re&ion, afcenfion, and feffion at his own right hand ;
and by all power given to him in heaven and earth,
&c.
Ver. 33. / am with you'} By my bodily prefence..
Ibid. As Jfaid to the Jews^ (chap. vii. 34.) whi
ther I go ye cannot come.~\ " Te cannot go with me at
" prefent, though ye may fo/low me afterwards"
Ver. 34. A new commandment &c.] Cfc That you
" may the better keep up my memory in my ab-
" fence, I now leave with you, as my laft legacy, a
" new and folemn commandment^ &c."
Ver. 35. By this foall all men know &c.] This
precept was fo univerfally obferved by Chriftians
in the primitive times, that the Heathens were
wont to cry out with admiration, See hoiv they love
one another ! Hence Julian the apoftate himfelf pro-
pofed the former to the latter, as a fit pattern for
their imitation.
Ver. 36. — Thou fo alt follow me afterward^ " Even
A a 4 " in
360 Notes upon the C of pel
" in the likenefs of my death, and thereby be made
"partaker alfo of my glory/*
CHAP. XIV.
VERSE i. — Be troubled.] At my paflion and
departure from you.
Ibid. Te believe in God, &c.] Dr. Whitby, with
other Commentators, choofes rather to render both
the verbs in the fame mood, to this purpofe : " As
" the beft remedy for this trouble, believe in God*
" the author of the doctrine which you are to
" preach ; and alfo in ME, in whofe name you are to
" preach it; who, having all power in heaven and
"i earth, will be always prefent to aflift you here,
" and to reward you hereafter."
Ver. 2. — Many man/ions'] Sufficient to receive you,
and all that fhall believe in me.
Ver. 4. And whither I go ye know, &c.] " And
" you have been plainly enough informed whither 1
'< am going, and by what way you are to follow
«< me."
Ver. 5. — Lord., we know not &c.] Thomas faid
this, as ilill retaining fome expectation of temporal
power and glory.
Ver. 6. — I am the way, and the truth, and the life.]
By pointing out to you the way of truth, which
leadeth to life eternal.
Ver. 7. If ye had knoivn me.] Rightly, fully, and
perfectly.
Ver. 8. — Shew us the Father] In fome glorious
manifeftation of his prefence, as he appeared to
Mofes.
Ver. 12. — And greater works than thefejhall he do]
By fpeaking all kinds of tongues himfelf, and com
municating the power of doing the fame to others ;
and
according to ST. JOHN, Chap. XIV. 361
and by propagating my religion fwiftly throughout
the world, in opposition to all the powers of earth
and hell.
Ibid. Becaufe I go to my Father^ To fend the Holy
Ghoft from him.
Ver. 13. And whatfoever ye Jhall ajk See.] In or
der to promote and propagate the Gofpel.
Ibid. That will I do 7\ As being both omnifcient,
fo as to know your requefh; and omnipotent, to
affift you in the performance of all which you can
delire.
Ver. 1 6. Comforter^ And Advocate.
Ibid, That he may abide with you for everJ\ i. e.
With you, and thofe who mail fucceed you.
Ver. 18. — / will not leave you comfort left"} In a
deftitute condition, as orphans, o^ava?. At the begin
ning of this fpeech he had called them little children^
chap. xiii. 33 ; and juft now he had given them the
promife of the Holy Spirit.
Ibid. I will come to you.~\ Return, or come again.
Ver. 19. — The world~\ The men of the world, or
unbelievers.
Ibid. Biityefeeme.'] Rather, (hall fee me.
Ibid. Becaufe I live, [or (hall live again,] ye
[though afiaulted by the mofl violent perfecutions]
Jhall live alfo.
Ver. 20. At that day^\ Either, when having van-
quifhed death, I ihall appear to you ; or when I (hall
fend to you the Holy Ghoft the Comforter.
Ibid. That I am In my Father, [by receiving this
Spirit from him,] and ye In me, and I in you, [by our
being united by this Spirit, communicated from me
your head; to you my members.]
Ver. 21. — Will manif eft my f elf to him.] By the pre-
fence and illuminations of this Spirit, and the mira
culous powers conferred by him.
Ver. 22. — How is it that thou wilt manlfefl &c.]
" How comes it to pafs^ or what hath happen-
" ed.
3 62 Notes upon the Gofptl
" eda, that &c?" He fpeaks thus, as ftill retaining
iome hopes of the Mefliah's temporal kingdom.
Ver. 23. — If a man love me, hs will keep my words ,
and my Father will love him, &c.] Our bleffed Sa
viour's anfwer is to this purpofe : " You need not
" wonder that I (hall not manifejl my f elf to the world
" in general^ fince they are not difpoied to obey my
" commandments ; which they muft be, in order to
" receive this particular favour. But if any man love
" me, as you do, he will obey my commandments,
" and then both my Father and I zvilllove him^ &c."
Ibid. And we will come to him, and make our abode
with him'} By the Spirit of the Father and of the Son
dwelling in him.
Ver. 24. — Is not mine'} Originally and primarily.
Ver. 26. — Whom the Father will fend} Chap. xv.
26. Whom I will Jend to you from the Father. The
Holy Spirit is faid to befent both by the Father and
the Son, as proceeding from both.
Ibid. In my name.} In my ftead ; that he may carry
en and complete the great affair which I have begun.
Ibid. Hejh&ll teach you all things. ~] Neceflary for
you to know, in order to inftruct others.
Ver. 27. Peace I leave with you, my peace I give
witoycu} " At my departure from you, I leave my
" blefTing with you, internal peace of conference, arif-
" ing from an afiurance of the pardon of your fins,
" and of the favour of God ; this I may juftly call my
" peace, as being obtained by my fufferings and death."
Ibid. Not as the world giveth, &c.] " I do not fpeak
" this according to the cuflom and fafhion of the
" world, where perfons fiequently wifh that peace to
" their friends at parting, which they are not able
'* to give them, and very often do not heartily defirc
" they may receive."
Ver. 28. My Father is greater than /.] Greater as
to
according to ST. JOHN, Chap. XIV. 363
to his original, the Son being begotten by him ;
whofe divine nature therefore may be laid to be lefs,
as being received dependency from the Father, though
as to ellence they are both equal.
Ver. 29. — / have told you before it come to ffffs."]
That I am going to afcend up to my Father in hea
ven, and will from thence fend the Holy Ghoft down
to you.
Ver. 30. Hereafter I will not talk much &c.]'u I
" fhall not any more talk much &c."
Ibid. For the Prince of this world comethJ\ " For
<c Satan is coming at this inflant, by his agents, Judas
" and the officers of the Jews, to take away my life."
Ibid. And hath nothing in me.~\ a Though2- he hath
(i nothing againjl me, to accufe me of; or, he hath no
" power over me, to inflict death on me, on the ac-
Cf count of fin, as he hath over others/* Heb. ii. 14.
Ver. 31. But that the world &c.] Here is an ellip-
Jis ; " The power neither of the Devil, nor of wicked
" men, compels me to undergo my approaching fuf-
" ferings; but I voluntarily fubmit to them, that the
" world may have the plained demonflration of my
" love and obedience to my Father."
Ibid.- — Arife, let us go hence. ~\ Moft probably, to
the place where our blefTed Saviour's two diiciples,
Peter and John, had made ready the pajfover. Matth.
xxvi. 19. Mark xiv. 16. Luke xxii. 13.
CHAP. XV.
VERSE i. I am the true vine, &c.] Grotius is of
opinion, that our blefled Lord took occafion
to deliver this parable from his fupper, which he had
then celebrated, or was juft going to celebrate. Dr.
Clarke thinks, that our Saviour's words after the fup-
* Ka» for xatVej.
per,
564 Notes upon the Gofpel
per, Matth. xxvi. 29. / will not drink henceforth of this
fruit of the vine., &c. gave occafion to it.
Ver. a. Every branch in me that beareth not fruit.}
Unfruitful branches are Chriftians merely by profel-
fion, who, having been admitted into the Church by
baptifm, are here (aid to be in Chrift.
Ibid. He taketh away] Chrift here feems to hint
particularly at Judas, who had juft now feparated
himfelf from thisfm*, and was a type of all following
hypocrites and apoftates. — God takes away fuch un
fruitful barren branches, either cutting them off by
his juft judgments, or accounting them to be no
Chriftians i and rejecting them accordingly.
Ibid. He pur get h //.] With regard to the Apoflles,
who laboured under many infirmities and prejudices
as to the nature of Chrifl's kingdom, the calling of
the Gentiles, &c. the Father, as the good hufband-
man, purged or pruned them, by fending the Holy
Ghoft upon them, who removed all their prejudices
and infirmities. With regard to fincere and pious
Chriftians in all ages, thefe he purges and cleanfes by
afflictions, and the various difpenfations of his pro-
ridence.
Ver. 3. Noiv] i. e. Since Judas has left you. — Te
are clean^ &c. Not fully and abfolutely, but partly
and comparatively, in refpect of thofe who do not
believe or obey my word.
Ver. 4. — And I in you.] " And I will abide in you
<c by my Spirit ; by which you (hall derive all fpiritual
" bleflings from me, as the branches receive nourifh-
" ment from the vine." — No more. Original, So neither,
Ver. 5. 7 'am the vine -.] "The root and ftock of
ts the vine" — Without me. Being divided or feparated
from me. — Te can do nothing. As this refpe<5h the
Apoftles, the meaning is, " If you do not abide in
" me, you cannot receive the gifts and powerful
i£ affiftance of the Holy Spirit, and consequently can
(t do nothing towards converting the world." As it
refpects
according to ST. JOHN, Chap. XV. 365
refpedb all Chriftians, the fenfe muft be, " If you do
<c not &c« you can do nothing acceptable to me, or
" worthy of my Gofpel."
Ver. 6. — As a branch] That beareth no fruit. — Gather
them. Such withered branches.
Ver. 7. — Tefljall ajk what ye will. Sec.] " For the
" gl°ry °f God, and the propagation of my religion."
See chap. xiv. 13.
Ver. 8. — -So Jh all ye be my Dijciples.] " And her tin
" (ev THTW, repeated from the beginning of the verfe)
" you Jhall evidently appear to be my true Djfci-
" pies."
Ver. 1 1. — That my joy might remain in you, and that
your joy might be full] tc That the confolation you have
" received from thefe words of mine might be con-
" tinued to you in my abfence, and even increafed
" to the higheft pitch by the coming of the Holy
" Ghoft."
Ver. 12. This is my commandment] " My principal
" commandment." Chap. xiii. 34.
Ver. 15. — What his Lord doeth] Defigns or in
tends to do. — For all things that I have heard, &c.
Not abfolutely, for fome they could not at prefent bear,
chap. xvi. 12 5 but all things neceflary and proper to
be told them.
Ver. 1 6. — That you Jhould go] " Abroad into the
" world." — And bring forth fruit : by converting mul
titudes to the faith. — And \\Myourfruit Jhould re-
main : in a continued fuccefiion of Chriftians to the
end of the world.
Ver. 19. If .ye were of the world] " Conforming
<c yourfelves to the wicked cuftoms and manners of
" it." — I have chofen you cut of the world : to preach
a doctrine contrary to its vices, and to lead a life en
tirely free from them.
Ver. 20. — That Ifaid] Chap. xiii. 10. — If they have
kept my faying, they will keep : had kept, would keep.
Ver. 2T. — Come andfpoken to them.] " The words
cc of my Father, and plainly revealed his mind and
" will."
366 Notes upoji the Gofpe.1
u will." — They had not had fin : the fin of wilful igno
rance, in not knowing, and reject ing/6/;;; that fent me.
Ver. 24. — No other man did.'] Original, bath done —
Not had fin : they/;/ of infidelity. — But now they have
bothfeen the miraculous works, andyzt have hated &c.
and therefore are utterly inexcufable.
Ver. 25. But this cometh to pafs, that the word
&c.] This cometh to pafs is not in the Greek. See in-
flances of the like el!ipjis> chap. ix. 3. xiii. 1 8. xiv. 31.
Ibid. They hated me without a caufe] Dr. Whit by
here obferves, " That what David, a type of Chrift,
" fpake of himfelf, Pfal. Ixix. 4. may reafonably be
44 thought to relate to the Son of David, efpecially
" lince that Pfalm is truly referred to Chrift."
Ver. 26. — Hejhall teftifyof meJ\ By his miraculous
gifts and operations.
Ver. 27. — From the beginning] From my firft en
trance on the execution of my office.
CHAP. XVI.
VERSE i.— Offended] Surprifed, and deterred
from the performance of your duty.
Ver. 2. They will put you out of thefynagogues.~\ In
the Jewiili fynagogues the Scriptures were read every
Sabbath-day, and on other days likewife there were
public prayers, and exhortations to the people. Of
fences againfl the law were there alib corrected, and
punifhed fometimes with fcourging. If neither
ftripes, nor the leflfer excommunication,, which re
moved offenders to four foot diftance from others, had
no efrl-ci in reforming them, they were then, by a
public recitation of their names, cajl out of the com
munion of the Church. IVhitby from others.
Ibid. — That be doth Godfervice] According to the
original, That he ofereth afacrifice to Gcd a.
—y.
Ver.
according to ST. JOHN, Chap. XVI. 367
Ver. 4. — Eecauje 1 was then withyou^\ u To com-
" fort and fupport you by my prefence."
Ver. 5. — And none of you ajketh me, &c.] " Now juft
** at my departure, when there is greater reafon for
" repeating the enquiry lately made." Chap. xiii. 36.
Ver. 7. — The Comforter will not come untoyou~\ " This
" being the order and appointment of my Father's
'* eternal counfel, that liefoall not ccme till after my
" afcenfion."
Ver. 8. — He will reprove] <c And convince the
" world, attefting and confirming the truth of my
" doclrine by miraculous gifts and powers."
Ver. 9. Of fin, lecauje they believe not in me] " Of
" their great and heinous^/?/?, in not believing, but re-
<c jecting me."
Ver. 10. Of rightemijmjs, lecauje I go to my Father]
<c Of my righteoujnefsy or the juftice of my caufe, and
" the excellency of the difpenfation which I came to
cc reveal ; of which my afcenfion to my Father, and,
*' in confequence of that, my fending of the Holy
" Ghoft, is a full demonilration."
Ibid. And ye fee me no morel] cf Here on earth.'*
Ver. 1 1. Of judgment, becaufe the Prince of this world
is judge d~\ <c Of my power and authority to execute
"judgment; becaufe Satan is condemned, and fhall
" be difpofleiled of his dominions by my fervants ;
<f which is an earner!, that all thofe who mall adhere
fi to him, and reject me, (hall be condemned by me
" at the laft day."
Ver. 12. / have yet many things to fay unto you]
" There axzyet many things, which I might tell you ;"
viz. concerning the abolition of the ceremonial law,
the rejection of the Jews, the calling of the Gentiles,
Sec. See note on chap. xv. 15.
Ver. 13. — Into all truth.'] " NecefTary to your
sl apoftolical office, and to the good government of
'c the Church."
Ibid. — Shall not Jpexk of himfelf.] <£ Alone, or any
" thing that is different from, and diiagrees with,
tf what
Notes upon tie Gofpel
« what I have already fpoken." In allufion to an
ambafiador, who cannot go beyond the inftrudUons
he has received, but muft act precifely according to
the orders of him who fends him.
Ibid. — He Jhall hear] " Receive from the Father
<f and me." — Things to come. This feems to point
particularly at the Revelations of St. John.
Ver. 14, 15. — He Jhall receive of mine, Sec. — All
things that the Father hath are mine, &c.] In thefe
two verfes are contained two arguments for the di-
Tinity of Chrift. — All doctrinal truths, and future
contingencies refpefting the Church to the end of the
world, are the things which the Holy Spirit is to re
ceive from Chrift, and to Jhew to the Apoflles. The
knowledge of thefe things necelTarily implies a divine
prefcience. He therefore who imparts or communi
cates them to the Spirit, muft be God. — Chrift, by
fiying, All things that the Father hath are mine, claims
to himfelf the incommunicable attributes, and confe-
quently the effence infeparable from them. Whitby.
Ver. 1 6. — Te Jhall not Jee mel\ " Being taken from
" you by death." — Ye Jhall Jee me : " Being rifen from
" the dead."
Ver. 20. — Ye Jhall weep and lament ', but the world
Jhall rejoice.] " At my fufferings and death."
Ibid. — Your for row (hall be turned into joy ~\ " At
" my refurredion, afcenfion, and miflion of the Holy
" Ghoft."
Ver. 23. — /;/ that dav"\ Either from the refurrec-
^J <S -M
tion to the afcenfion, or from the day of Pentecoft.
Ibid. Ye Jhall ajk* me nothing'} " In order to your
fc own information."
Ibid. — Wh at Jo ever ye Jhall a fit* ^ Defire or requeft.
Ver. 24. — In my name^ " By me, as Mediator be-
Ci twixt God and man."
Ibid. — AJk9 \in my name for the future,] and ye /hall
receive^ " Every thing that is neceifary to the dif-
C{ charge of your office."
fc Alr^rri.
Ver.
according to ST. JOHN, Chap. XVI. 369
Ver. 25. /// proverbs.] i. e. in phrafes and ex-
preflions fomewhat obfcure. Referring chiefly to
what he had (aid, ver, 16. 20.
Ver. 26. And I fay not unto you] " And I need not
" iz\\you, for your comfort."
Ver. 28. I came forth from the Father ? &c.] cc Not
" by leaving heaven, but by manifefting inyfelf on
" earth, in my divine nature, dwelling in, and per-
cc fonally united to, the human." See note on chap,
iii. 13.
Ver. 30. — That thou knowefl all things] " Even the
" fecret thoughts of men, fince thou knowefl our's."
See ver. 19.
Ibid. — And needeft not that any man jhould ajk thee]
" Any queftion for his own information."
Ver. 31.— — D0 ye now believe?] "ACT* wir«um ; This
may perhaps be better tranflated indicatively, " Tou
" do now indeed believe, at this inflant, when no great
<f danger appears."
Ver. 33. — I have overcome the world] (i And am
" both able and ready to afiift you in obtaining as
" certain a victory over it."
CHAP. XVII.
GROTIUS conjectures, that the following prayer
of our bleffed Saviour was offered up as he
parTed by the temple, the northern and eaflern fides
of which were towards the valley of Cedron. But the
late Rev. Mr. John Johnfon, with more probability,
is of opinion, that it was pronounced at the time of
the inftitution of the holy communion.
Ver. i. — The hour] <c Of my fufferings and death."
Ibid. Glorify thy Son] " By fuch wonders attend-
" ing his fufferings, and fuch a glorious refurrec-
" tion, as may entirely remove the fcandal of the
" crofs."
B b Ver.
37 o Notes upon tie
Ver. i. — May glorify thee] " By the propagation
" of the Gofpel throughout the world."
Ver. 2. As thou haft given him power] " According
" to the full defign of that office and power, which
" thou didfl originally confer upon him."
Ibid. — To as many as] Greek, to them, auW?. Who
fliall be fitly difpofed to receive and practife the
Gofpel.
Ver. 3. — The only true God] In exclufion of all
thofe falfe gods, whom the Gentiles worfhipped.
Ver. 4. — 1 have finished the work &c.] Dr. Whitby.
with former Commentators, interprets this of the dif-
charge of his prophetical office : but Mr. Johnfon
applies it particularly to his offering himfelf as a fa-
crifice for the fins of the world in the holy Eucharift,
which he had juft now celebrated. " This/' fays
he, " was the greatefl work which Chrifl had to do
" in this world. This he had done, as to his part,
<f when he had, as a prieft, given his body and blood
" for us to God in the communion. He did not
c< indeed fay, // is finijhed, till he was juft giving up
" the ghoft; for his murderers had not performed
" their part till he was actually flain : and fatisfac-
" tion for the fins of men could not be made but by
" his death."
Ver. 5. Glorify thou meJ] " Even in my Luman
<c nature."
Ibid. With the glory which I had with thee] " In
" my divine nature."
Ver. 6. — Unto the men which thou gaveft me out of
the world] " To thefe my Difciplesa whom, being
" of a teachable difpofition, and thereby prepared for
cc the reception of my doctrine, thou haft given to
" me, feledled out of the reft of the world."'
Ibid, Thine they were] a By believing in thee before."
Ver. 7. — That all things -whatsoever thou haft given
me, are of thee] *4 That whatfover I have taught them,
'f as delivered to me by tbee, is really a divine doc-
" trine."
Ver,
according to ST . Jo H N, Chap. XVII. 371
Ver. 9.— / pray not for the world, but for them
which &c.] cf I do not pray, at this prefent time, for
" the unbelieving world \ but for my Apoftles only,
" whom &c."
Ver. 1 1 . — / am no more in the world] c< I am about
<c to leave the world."
Ibid.— Through thine own name] i. e. by thy power.
So name is ufed Matth. vii. 22. A6ls iv. 7, &c.
Ibid. — That they may be one, as we are.] ". Con-
" tinning fteadfaft in the profeffion, pradice, and
" preaching of the fame holy doctrine, may be united,
" like us, by the participation of the fame Spirit."
Ver. 12. — Is loft '•] Either by temporal death, or
by apoftatizing from me.
Ibid. But the fon of perdition*-^] Judas, fo called,
becaufe moft worthy cf perdition. Thus a Jewifli
profelyte, made fo by the Pharifees, is ftyled the child
of bellb, Matth. xxiii. 15 -, and heretics are called by
St. Peter, accurfed children, or children of the curfec.
Ibid. — That the Scripture might be fulfilled'] That, in
this place, as in feveral before, is not to be taken
caufally, but only eventually. " Which has hap-
*' pened by thy permifllon, that what had been fore-
" told in the Scripture might be fulfilled" Pfal. xli, 9.
cix. 8.
Ver. 1 3 . — That they might have my joy fulfilled in
themfelves.] " That the joy they have had hitherto
" from my love, my prefence, and my care, may be
" increafed in my abfence, by that Spirit, whofe fruits
" are joy and peace-, and by whom, though abfent in
" body, I fhall even ftill continue prefent with
" them." Whitby.
Ver. 15. — From the evil"] Either of the world, or
from the evil one, the prince of this world, who, in
order to fupprefs the Gofpel, will excite the moft
barbarous perfecutions againft the preachers of it.
Ver. 17. San&ify them through (Gr. in or for) thy
B b 2 truth]
Notes upon the G of pel
truth^\ " Coniecrate, and fet them apart, for the pro-
" pagation of thy truth" SanRifaation, or confecra-
tion, to the Jewifh priefthood, was performed by the
oblation of a facrifice for the perfons, and by folemn
undion with holy oil. Exod. xxix. i. 7. Thus our
blefled Saviour Janftified his Apoflles, by offering up
himfelf for them, and by pouring out the Holy
Ghoft, the oil of gladnefs, upon them.
Ver. 1 8. As thou haft fent me into the worldl\ To
reveal thy will to mankind.
Ver. 19. And for their fakes Ifanftify myfelf.] "And
"for them I offer up myfelf ^ be ilain, as a piacular
" victim ^" as Whitby explains it from St. Chryf-
oftom. And Mr. Johnfon, " I confecrate myfelf,
<c by entering as man on the exercife of my prieftly
" office; the firft ad of which, he fays, was the
" offering his body as a facrifice : nor was it necef-
44 fary that he, who was folemnly pronounced and
" fworn to be a priefl by God, mould be otherwife
" inaugurated."
Ver. 2 1 . — May be one in ns7[ By one holy and in-
diiToluble bond of faith and charity, and by the
participation of that Holy Spirit which is in thee
and me.
Ver. 22. And the glory > which thou gave/I me, &c.]
The glorious power of working miracles by virtue of
the Holy Spirit.
Ver. 23. — l^hat they^ may be made perfeft in oneJ] In
cne fpirit, working miraculous effeds in them, as it
has done in me.
Ver. 24. — Be with me where I am.] After their re-
furred ion.
Ver. 26. — And will declare //.] By frequent conver-
fations with you after I am rilen, and by the illumin
ations and other operations of the Holy Spirit.
Ibid. That the love — may be in them, &c.] Not the
fame in an equal degree, but of the like nature to
wards them, as being made thy fons by adoption and
grace.
CHAP.
according to ST. JOHN, Chap. XVIII. 373
CHAP. XVIII.
VERSE i. — He went forth.] Not only out of the
houfe, but out of the city, the gates of which
flood open in the night, there being fuch a concourfe
at the time of the paffover, that the multitude could
not be contained within the walls.
Ibid. — Over the brook Cedron] Towards the mount
of Olives. — Where was a garden] Called Gethfemane,
between the brook and the mount, at the foot of the
latter. The Fathers obferve on this occafion,, that,
as the fin of the firfl Adam was committed in a gar
den, fo the falutary paffion of the fecond began in a
like place.
Ver. 4. — Went forth] Either out of the garden,
or from that part of it where he underwent his agony.
Ver. 5. Thy anfwered him, Jefus &c.] Not dif-
cerning him, by reafon of a fudden blindnefs, though
he had been marked out by Judas kifling him.
Ver. 6. — They went backward, and fell to the ground]
Jefus fpoke with fuch majefly and divine power, that
they all in furprife and aftoniihment retired, anc( fell
proflrate.
Ver. 7. Then] When, being recovered from their
furprife, they had rifen up.
Ver. 8. — Let thefe &c.] My difciples.
Ver. 9. Have I loft none] This relates chiefly to
temporal perdition. See note on chap. xvii. 12.
Ver. 10. Drew it] In great zeal for his Matter's
fafety, without his order.
Ver. 12. Then the band, and the captain, &c.] The
Roman prefident was wont to fend, during the time
of the paflbver, a whole band of a thoufand men, to
guard the temple, the captain of which band was
called a chiliarch, pt'^PX0*- So Whitby from Gro-
tius : but in his note upon Luke xxii. 52. he was of
a different opinion.
Ver. 13.20 Annas firft] Either as being the prince of
B b 3 the.
374 Notes upon the Gofpel
the Sanhedrim > or on account of his greater age, and
experience in the law ; whofe houle was probably
very near to that of Caiaphas.
Ver. 15. — Another Difcipk] Very uncertain who.
Theophylact thinks it was St. John, who, out of hu
mility, conceals his name.
Ibid. — Went in with Jefus &c.] Who had been
now fent by Annas to Caiaphas. ver. 24.
Ver. 1 6. — Spake to her that kept the 'door] It was
common among the Jews for women to be employed
in this office.
Ver. 17. Art not thou alfo one &c ?] See note on
Matth. xxvi. 69, 70.
Ver. 1 8. For it was cold"} The Jews teftify, faith
Dr. Lightfoot, that there might be froft and mow at
the time of the paflbver : and Radulphus, that great
clews ufually fell then, which made the air very cold.
It was now paft midnight.
Ver. 20. And in Jeer -et have I f aid nothing'} "Which
" I was afhamed or afraid fhould be known to the
" whole world."
Ver. 23. Whyjmitefl thou me ?~\ It is evident from
hence, that the precept of turning the other cheek to
him thatjmites us, Matth. v. 39. is not to be under-
flood literally.
Ver. 28. Then.'] When the morning 'was come.
Matth. xxvii. i. Mark xv. i.
Ibid.— To the hall of judgment] To Pilate the Ro
man governor ; as in St. Matthew, Mark, and Luke.
Ibid. — Left 'they Jhould be defiled] By touching any
of the Gentiles, whom they accounted unclean.
Ibid. But that they might eat the pajover^ But
flayed without, that they might be fit to eat of the cha-
gigahy or peace-offerings ; the fheep and oxen, which
began to be offered and eaten on the i^th day, and
continued to be fo all the feven days of the feaft, and
were therefore exprefsly called the pajjover, as the
whole feaft of unleavened bread is, Luke xxii. i.
Ver. 3 1 .— // is not lawful for i*s to put any man to
death]
according to ST. JOHN, Chap. XVIIL 375
death] The Jews fay, that the power of infli&ing
capital punifhments was taken from them by the
Romans, forty years before the deftruction of their
city and temple ; and yet the High Prieft and his
council certainly exerciied this power upon St. Ste
phen, Acts vii. and would have done the fame upon
St. Paul, chap. xxii. had they not been prevented by
Lyfias, the chief captain. They feem therefore to
have retained this privilege over thofe of their own
nation, in offences committed againft their own laws,
though they could not regularly exercife it, without
the leave of the Roman prefident. But in the cafe of
Chrift they feem to declare, that they could not law
fully punifh him with death, becaufe they had ac-
cufed him before Pilate, not of crimes committed
againft their law, but of fedition, and of afpiring to
a kingdom, in prejudice to Qefar and the Roman
government. Whitby.
Ver. 32. That the faying ofjefus &c.] Matth. xx.
19. John iii. 14. xii. 32. Crucifixion was not a
Jewifh, but a Roman punifh ment.
Ver. 33. — Entered into the judgment-hall again.]
Where he was before he came out to them. Again
is ufed in the fame manner, chap. vi. 15. x. 17. This
he did, that he might examine Chrift the more freely,
being by himfelf.
Ibid.— Art thou the king of the Jews ?] Some will
rather have it, Thou art the king &c. which feems
more probable from our bleffed Saviour's queftion in
reply. But take it which way one will, it is certain,
that the Jews had actually charged him before Pilate
vtith for bidding to give tribute to Ctefar* and fay ing, that
he himfelf was Chrift a king, Luke xxiii. 2.
Ver. $$.—Am I a Jew?] That I fhould make this
enquiry of myfelf, for my own fatisfaction ?
Ver. 36. — My kingdom is not of this world, &c.]
" Has not an earthly, but a heavenly original, con-
" cerns not itfelf with the governments of this world*
" affects no temporal pomp and fplendor, endeavours
B b 4 " not
376 Notes upon the Gofpel
" not to fupport itfelf by any external force and
<c power ; but is entirely of a fpiritual nature, -claim-
" ing no authority over the bodies, but only over the
" fouls of men."
Ver. 37. — Art thou a king then?} This qucftion,
by way of inference, is grounded on our Saviour's
anfwer in the preceding verfe. If thou haft a king
dom, art thou not then a king?
Ibid. — fbat I jhould bear witnefs to the truth^
" That I am Chrift, the Son of God, and as fuch
" have a fpiritual and everlafting kingdom."'
Ibid. — Of the truth] Sincerely difpofed to embrace
the truth.
Vcr. 39. — The king of the Jews'] Calling him fo by
way of contempt.
CHAP. XIX.
X TERSE i. — Scourged him'] By his liffors. Though
V it was the cuflom of the Romans tofcourge
thofe who were to be crucified, Pilate had no fuch
view ; but hoped; by this inftance of feverity, in fame
meafure to appeafe the rage of the people. He in
flicted this punifliment, frequently exercifed by the
Jews upon the tranfgreffbrs of their law, not in order
to his crucifixion, but to his prefervation from it.
Ver. 4. Luke xxiii. 16.
Ver. 5. — Beheld the man] " See, how defpicable
" and ridiculous he appears ! and confider how ir-
" rational and foolifli it is to imagine, that fuch
" a one could affect a kingdom, or attempt any thing
<c againft Casfar's government."
Ver. 6. — -Take ye him, and crucify him ; for I find no
fault in Mm] (t If you will have it fo, take ye him, &c.
" at your own peril ; for I cannot condemn a man, in
" whom I find no fault at all."
Ver. 7. — We have a law] When the Jews found,
that
according to ST« JOHN, Chap. XIX. 377
that the crime alleged by them againft Chrift, with
refped to the Roman emperor, was not regarded by
Pilate, they then bring a new charge againft him, as
deferving death by having violated their own lain.
Ibid. — And by our law he ought to die, &c.] As a
blafphemer, (Lev. xxiv. 16.) in making bimjelf equal
with God. For this they had fought to kill him, chap,
v. 1 8 ; for this they had endeavoured to Jlone him*
chap. x. 31 ; and for this the High Prieft and the
whole C0ff»f//had declared him to be guilty of death.
Matth. xxvi. 66.
Ver. 8. — He was the more afraidJ] Calling to mind
probably the wonderful works, which it was reported
he had performed ; and from thence, and from his
affuming this title, fufpecting that he might poffibly
have a divine extraction, as the Greeks and Romans
were inclined to believe concerning their heroes.
Ver. 1 1 . — Except it were given thee from above]
" Except it had pleafed the divine Majefly to permit
" thee to exercife this power upon me."
Ver. 12. — If thou let this man go, thou art not
Ctffar s friend : <whofoever &c.] This threatening ex-
poflulation had the greateft influence upon Pilate,
who knew the fufpicious temper of Tiberius, and the
danger to which he fhould cxpofe himfelf, by pro
voking the Jews to bring a complaint againft him of
this nature.
Ver. 13. lie brought Jefus forth] Out of the judg
ment-hall.
Ibid. — A place that is called the Pavement] The
tribunal or judgment-feat was placed before the
pratorium, tranilated here the judgment -hall, being
erected upon a tejfellated pavement.
Ver. 14, — T^he preparation^ wapao-xEui, of the pajf-
over] The Friday in the feftival of thepaffbver, which
lafted a whole week. For as the par of c eve m prepa
ration abfolutely put, or with relation to \htftMktby
always denotes Friday -3 fo t\\e parafceve of the pajfover,
Notes upon the Gofpcl
rou TraV^a, can denote only the Pafchal Fri
day, or the Friday in the Pafcbal feftival. Whitby.
Ver. 14. — About thefixth hour~\ See the note upon
Matth. xxvii. 45.
Ver. 1 6. 'Then delivered he him to themy &c.] Not
immediately to the Jews, but to \kejoldiers ; though
Chrift might properly enough be faid to have been
delivered to the former, becaufe it was folely to fatisfy
their tumultuous clamours, that he was refigned up
into the hands of the latter.
Ver. 17. And he bearing his crofs went forth, be."}
He bore it only at firft, part of the way ; but it was
afterwards laid upon Simon a Cyrenian. Luke
xxiii. 26.
Ver. 19. Wrote a title~\ Ordered one to be written.
Ver. 23. — His garment s~\ His outer garment, which
confided of feveral parts ; fome fay four, fewed or
joined together. — His coat. His inner garment.
Ver. 25. Mary the wife of Cleophas^ Called Al-
pheus, the father of James the Lefs, Matth. x. 3.
Ver. 26.— The Difciple ftanding by, whom he loved^\
St. John, the author of this Gofpel.
Ibid. Beheld thy Jon?^ Hence it is juftly inferred,
that Jofeph her hufband was then dead.
Ver. 28. — That all things^ Relating to his life on
earth, except the particular following.
Ibid. I thirjl^ The exquifite pain, and the flux of
blood, necefTarily caufed a violent thirft.
Ver. 29. A veffel full of 'vinegar^ For the ufe of
the foldiers, whole ufual drink was vinegar^ or four
wine, as has been (hewn by Dr. Lightfoot.
Ibid. And -put it upon byjfof, &c.] See the note
upon Matth. xxvii. 34. 48.
Ver. 30.— // isfinijhed:\ All is fulfilled.
Ver. 31. — On the Sabbath-day^\ Which began on
the approaching evening, at fun-fet.
Ibid — An high day^ Being the fecond day of un
leavened bread, (from which they counted their Sab
bath
according to ST. JOHN, Chap. XIX. 379
bath to Pentecoft,) and likewife the day of preferring
or waving the fheaf-offering. Lev. xxiii. n. 15.
Ibid. That their legs might be broken] This was ex
ecuted upon perfons crucified, in cafe they continued
alive longer than ordinary, that the additional pain
might foon difpatch them, or at lead prevent any
fraudulent attempt to recover them.
Ver. 34. — Pierced his fide] Either in order to be
afcertained of his death, or by way of infult.
Ver. 35. — 'That ye might believe] That Jefus Chrift
did really die upon the crofs, and confequently that
he really rofe again.
Ver. 37. — IVhom they pierced] The Jews may juftly
be faid to have done that themfelves, which the Ro
mans did by their fole inftigation.
Ver. 39. — About an hundred pound weight] This is
a proof not only of Nicodemus's wealth, but of his
great regard and veneration for our Saviour, in bu
rying him after the manner of great perfons.
CHAP. XX.
VERSE i.— Cometh Mary Magdalene] With the
other Mary and Salome, Mark xvi. i. defign-
ing to anoint our blerTed Lord's body.
Ibid. Early] Mr. Weft obferves very judicioufly,
" that the original word, TT^\, iignifies not only early,
" but over early, before the appointed time, and that
" mod probably it has this meaning here. The
" many pious women, who had been together on the
<c evening after the paflion, and beheld thefepulchre,
" and how the body was laid, Luke xxiii. 55. made
" an agreement then to meet there very early on the
" firft day of the week, about fun-rifing. But Mary
" Magdalene fet out together with the other Mary,
" juft as the day began to break ; and having either
" called upon Salome, or joined her in the way, came
" thither
3 So Notes upon the G of pel
" thither before the time agreed en. Hence it is eafy
" to reconcile St. Mark's account, who fays, that
" thefe women came to the fepulchre at the rifing of the
"fun, chap. xvi. 2. with the account of St. John,
<c and that of St. Matthew, chap, xxviii. I. who
" fays, they came as it began to dawn, by only fup-
" poling that the firft fpeaks of the time of the
" women's arrival at the fepulchre, and the two laft
Ci of their fetting out."
Ver. 7, 8. — Seeth the linen clothes lie-, and the nap
kin — zvrapped together in a place by itfelf.'] From this
careful diipofition of the iinen, Peter muft needs
conclude, that the body could not have been fecretly
ilolen, or hurried away in hade.
Ver. 8. And he Jaw, and believed^ Not the words
of Mary Magdalene, (though neither of them fuf-
pected her at all of falfehood,) that the Lord had been
taken away out of the fepulchre -, but that he was really
rifen from the dead. And his belief proceeded from
his reflecting upon Chrift's promife, After three days I
will rife again, and upon the orderly difpofition of
the things in the fepulchre.
Ver. 9. For as yet they knew not the Scriptures, &c.]
They did not underfland the prophecies relating to
the death and refurrection of the Meffiah, the hopes
and expectations of whofe temporal kingdom had fo
pofTefied their minds, that though he often affured
them, that he mull fufTer, die, and rife again, they
underflood not what he f aid, and this faying was concealed
from them. Mark ix. 32. Luke ix. 45. Whence, even
after his refurrecYion, he upbraids them with their
Jlownefs in believing all that the prophets hadfpoken.
Luke xxiv. 25. Nor is their ignorance and incre
dulity much to be wondered at in their prefent iitu-
ation, when the ignominious death of their Mafler
muft necefTarily have thrown them into the greateft
doubt, perplexity, terror, and defpair.
Ver. lo. Then the Difciples] Thefe two Difciples.
Ver. ii. But Mary &c.] Magdalene, who had
followed
according to ST. JOHN, Chap. XX. 381
followed Peter and John to the fepulchre, flayed
there after they were gone home ; and while ihe flood
weeping, Jloofed down, &c.
Ver. 14. — Knew not that it wasjefas^ Being difap-
pointed in paying her laft duty to her Mafter, and
imagining that his body was fallen into the hands of
his enemies, (he was feized with a violent paffion of
grief, which overflowed her eyes with tears, and ren
dered her incapable of difcerning outward objects
diftinctly, and from making any calm reflections.
Ver. 15. — Supf ofing him to be the gardener, Jaith>
&c.] Being prepofTefled with the notion, that the
body had been taken away, (he imagines, at the firil
view, that the perfon whom (lie faw was the gardener ~,
by his being there fo early, and that he was the mod
likely to have taken it away.
Ver. j 6. Jefus Jaitb unto her, Mary.'] As foon as
Mary had fpoken the words related in the foregoing
verfe, (he turned herfelf towards the fepulchre. Upon
which, Jefus, having altered his appearance and voice,
calls her by her name, with the very fame accent
which he ufed before his death.
Ver. 17. — Touch me not.~\ " Do not hold or en-
*c deavour to detain me now : thou wilt have time
" enough hereafter to converfe with me, and to be
" fatisfied of the truth of my refurrection." From
our Saviour's words it is highly probable, that Mary
fell down at his feet, and endeavoured to embrace
them : as the other women did, Matth. xxviii. 9.
Ibid. For 1 am not yet afcended to my Father."]
" Nor have thereby finally quitted this world. — But
(C go fo my brethren, and fay unto them, I afcend &c. /
" am fhortly to afcend to my Father, &c." Which
words allude to the long difcourfe which our Saviour
held to his Difciples the very night in which he was
betrayed, chap. xiv. xv. and xvi. particularly to that
part of it, xvi. 16. 28 : in both which verfes the ex-
preffion is, I go to my Father ; inftead of which, he here
twice ufes the word afcend t Whereupon Mr. Weft
obferves,
383 Notes upon the G of pel
cbferves, that " as by the former expreflion he in-*
" tended to fignify in general his final departure out
<* of this world ; fo by the latter is the particular
" manner of that departure plainly intimated/'
Ver. 19. — When the doors were /hut] Had not St,
John intended to fignify, that Chrift came into the
room miraculoufly, he would not have mentioned
this circumftance both here and at ver. 26. Yet he
could not poffibly defign to intimate, that he paffed
through the walls or doors, without either caufing any
change in them, or differing any in his own body
during his palling-, a miracle which contains a con
tradiction and impoffibility. Befides, fuch a paffage
would have proved the fpirituality of his body, con
trary to the very intention of the Apoftie, who de-
figned by this relation to (hew the materiality of it.
Ver. 21, 22. As my Father hath fent me, even fo fend
I you. — Receive ye the Holy Ghoft] " As my Father
"fending me, baptized me with the Holy Ghoft, and
<e fo anointed me to my office, (Luke iv. 18. John
" x. 36.) fo will I fend you, baptizing you allb with
" the Holy Ghoft, and (o anoint you for your office^
" in teftimony of which, I fay to you now, Receive ye
<c the Holy Ghcft ; and will foon after my afcenfion
*f fend him more plentifully down upon you."
Whitby.
Ver. 23. Whofe fcever fins ye remit, — they are re
tained.] " You being fent to preach repentance and
<c remiffion of fins in my name, vohcje Jo ever fins, upon
*f their repenting and embracing my Gofpel,j0# (hall
"in my name declare remitted, /hall be actually re-
*c mitted unto them : and wh of e JG ever fins, committed
" by rejecting or tranfgreffing it, you (hail declara-
" tively retain, Jhall certainly be retained.1''
Ver. 26. And after eight days] Including the day
of the refurrection. Grotius conjectures, that the
Difciples, having been honoured with their Lord's
prefence, the fir(l time after his refurrection, upon
the firft day of the week, fet apart that day for their
future
according to ST. JOHN, Chap* XX. 383
future folemn afTemblies ; whence it is called by this
Apoftle the Lord's day, Rev. i. 10.
Ver. 27. Then faith he to Thomas, Reach &c.] Shew
ing thereby that he fully knew what Thomas had
laid in his abfence.
Ibid. — a Behold my hands^\ i. e. Touch my hands.
Ver. 28. And Thomas anfwered, — My Lord, and my
Godl\ Thomas, having done as Jefus ordered him,
cries out in an ecftafy, tc Thou art my very Lord and
" Mailer, who waft crucified, and my only true God,
" who knoweft all things."
Ver. 29. — Eecauje thou hafljeen me.] By having feen
is here meant fomewhat more; as in ver. 27.
Ibid.— Ble/ed^ &c.] More blejfed\ the virtue of
faith confiding in yielding to arguments highly pro
bable, againft which we have no folid objection, and
in acquiefcing under fuch evidence as determines us
to aft in the inoft important concerns of this life.
Ver. 30. And many other figns truly did Jejus &c/J
" And many other infallible tokens of the truth of his
" refurre&ion, and of his divine power, did Jefus
« mew, &c." Clarke.
Ver. 30,31 . — Which are not written in this lock. But
theje are written — ye might have life through his name~\
Some think St. John ended his Gofpel here, and that
the next chapter was added by fome other hands :
but the like additions, after a feeming conclufion,
are made in the Epiftles to the Romans and to the
Hebrews ; in the former, of a whole chapter j in the,
latter, of four verfes.
CHAP. XXL
VERSE i.— To the Difciples.} To fome of them,
who, according to his order, had retired firft
into Galilee.
»*!&,
Ver,
384 Notes upon tie Gofpel
Ver. $.~—Any meat.] The original word
fignifies any thing that is eaten with bread, but par
ticularly^.
Ver. 7. — His ft/her* s coat.'] His inward garment
next his Chirt ; which, though faid here to be naked,
he in all probability had on. For in this fenfe only
Saul lay naked among the Prophets^ i Sam. xix. 24.
and David was naked when he danced before the ark,
2 Sam. vi. 20. W 'bit lby.
Ver. 9. — A fire — -and fijh — and bread.] All mira-
culoufly provided by Chriil.
Ver. 13. Jejus — taketh bread, and giveth them, &c.]
As the father of the family, he both makes provifion
for them, and gives to every man his portion. So
Grotius and Whitby. — It is moil probable that he
himfelf did likewife eat with them, in proof of the
reality of his body ; as he had done before, Luke
xxiv. 43. See Afts x. 41.
Ver. 14. — To his Diftip/es.] Publicly, to any num
ber of them together.
Ver. 15. — More than theje.] The generality of in
terpreters think, that Chrift here afks Peter, whether
he loved him more than the other Difciples did. To
which queftion, Dr. Whitby obferves, he could re
turn no anfwer, unlefs he had known their hearts. He
therefore takes the words in a very different fenfe ; and
becaufe Peter, after he had fo lately received a com-
miffion to preach the Gofpel, chap. xx. 21, 22. be
took himfelf to his Mi ing- trade again, he fuppofes
that our Saviour's enquiry was, whether he loved him
more than his nets and fifhing- boats ; and commanded
him to fhew that fuperior love for him, by leaving
them, and wholly employing himfelf for the future
in feeding his lambs zndjheep. But furely it is much
more probable that our bleiled Lord intended gently
to remind St. Peter of thofe flrong profeilions of his
zeal and love towards him in a higher degree than all
others, Matth. xxvi. 33. 35. and of his ihameful
denial of him, which almoft immediately followed.
And
according to ST. -Jo UN, Chap. XXI. 385
And in confirmation of this, it is agreed by all Com
mentators, that the very fame queftion, here put to
him three times, has a plain alluiion to his threefold
denial.
Ibid. — Feed my lambs.'] The newly converted and
weak in the faith ; according;; to fome.
Ver. 1 6. — Feed my JheepJ] Thofe who are more
confirmed arid ftrong. But the two words are ufed
promifcuoufly, Matth. x. 16. Luke x. 13.
Ver. 1 8. Verily, verily, I fay unto thee, 8tc.] This is
a confirmation of the perfeverance of St. Peter's
love; as if Chrift had faid, " I know that thou wilt
" continue to love me to the laft, even to lay down
" thy life for my fake."
Ibid. — Thou Jfoalt Jlr etch forth thy hands. ~] In order
to be fattened to the crofs.
Ibid. And another jhall gird thee'} Either to the
pillar where thou malt be fcourged, or perhaps to
the crofs.
Ibid. — Where thou wouldefl not'} According to thy
natural defires.
Ver. 21. — And what mail this man do?] " But
" what (hall become oft this man?"
Ver. 22. — Till I come} To the definition of Je-
rufalem, which St. John alone, of all the Apoftles^
outlived.
Ver, 23. — That that Difciplt Jbould not die} This
faying was grounded upon their miftaking their
^Mailer's meaning, and imagining that he fpoke of
his final coming to judge the world.
Ver. 24. — And we know Src.j Hence fome have
fancied that this chapter was written by the church
at Ephefus. But the perfon plural is often ufed in
the New Teftament for the linguiar. Thus St. Paul
fpeaks, WE would have come to you, I Paul, &c.
i TheiT. ii. 18. For WE KNOW that the law is f pi-
ritual) but I am carnal, Rom. vii. 14. And fo likewife
even this Apoflle, WE bear record, Epift. iii. 12. And
in chap. xx. 2, Mary Magdalene {ays, WE KNOW not
c c where
385" Notes upori the Gofpel
where they have laid him, inftead of / know not &c.
as fhe fpcaks at ver. 13.
Ver. 25. — Ifupptfe] Thefe words entirely remove
the preceding objection, and demonftrate that this
whole chapter was written by this Apoftle.
Ibid. — The world itjelf could not contain Sec.] Origen
Interprets this, not in refpect of the multitude of the
books, but of the greatnejs of the works recorded in them ;
taking the original word, ^wprjo-at, to be ufed in the
fame fenfe as in Matth. xix. n. All men cannot re
ceive this faying. Which interpretation is followed
by Dr. Whitby. But the generality of Commenta
tors look upon this expreffion as an hyperbolical one,
fomewhat like that in chap. xii. 19. Beholdy the world
is gone after him-, and meaning no more than if it
had been faid, " There could be no end of the books
4( which muft be written"
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