The Gospel according to Saint Matthew

The apostle and evangelist Matthew, the author of the first synoptic Gospel, had been a publican, bearing the name of Levi, the son of Alphaeus, in or near the city of Capernaum, before his conversion, Matthew 10:3. He was sitting at the receipt of custom when Jesus called him, Matthew 9:9; Mark 2:14-15; Luke 5:27-29. There can be no doubt as to the identity of the former publican Levi and the later apostle Matthew, from a comparison of the parallel passages as well as from the established custom of the Jews to adopt a new name upon the occasion of some important happening in their lives. Cp. Acts 4:36; Acts 12:12; Acts 13:9. It is evident throughout the Gospel that the author was a Jewish Christian of Palestine, whose familiarity with the Roman method of tax collection indicates an intimate knowledge of the publican’s work. Within the circle of the apostles, Matthew was never conspicuous. His was the quiet, unostentatious content of the disciple happy in the companionship of his Lord. Of his activity after the ascension of Christ only so much is recorded that he was engaged as missionary among the Jews of Palestine. Tradition has it that he spent the last years of his life in proclaiming the Gospel in Ethiopia and other heathen countries and died at an advanced age.

Purpose

The purpose of the Gospel according to Matthew is indicated in almost every section of the book. He wrote for his fellow-countrymen, not, indeed, in the Hebrew or Aramaic language, as some have thought, [cf. Schaller, Book of Books, 180] but in Greek, the common language of the Orient in those days. His object was to show the glorious culmination of Old Testament type and prophecy, to prove that Jesus Christ, the Son of David, the Rod out of the stem of Jesse, is the promised Messiah, that His entire life, passion, death, and resurrection is the fulfilment of the Old Covenant. The genealogical table establishing the claim that Jesus is the Son of David, the continual reference to the Old Testament, the frequent repetition of the phrase “That it might be fulfilled,” furnish abundant evidence for this. It is the principal fact which the author wishes to impress upon his hearers.

Date

So far as the date of the Gospel is concerned, it appears from Matthew 27:8; Matthew 28:15 that it was written some time after the events there recorded. It seems evident, also, that it was composed before the final destruction of Jerusalem, since the author, in that event, would undoubtedly have referred to the fulfilment of Christ’s prophecy concerning the fate of that city. Ancient reports have it that Matthew’s Gospel was the first to be written, and the date 60 A.D. has been suggested with some degree of plausibility. The fact that the later extensive missionary labors of Matthew precluded the leisure required for literary work makes it probable that he wrote while still living in Palestine and composed the Gospel at Jerusalem.

Authenticity

The authenticity of our Gospel cannot be called into question. Historical and textual considerations consistently uphold not only Matthew’s authorship, but also the fact that this book is a part of the sacred canon and belongs to the inspired writings of the Bible. We may rest assured that we have to-day the Gospel as written by Matthew, one of the apostles of the Lord, in the same form in which he penned it by inspiration of the Holy Ghost.

Contents

The contents of the Gospel may be briefly summarized as follows. Matthew presents, first of all, a brief narrative of the nativity and the earliest childhood of Jesus. Then comes an account of the ministry of the Lord, which was ushered in with His baptism by John. The evangelist devotes the greater part of his Gospel to the work of the Savior in Galilee, in the course of which He also trained His disciples for the work of preaching the Gospel of the Kingdom, but which finally brought upon Him the increasing hatred of the Jews, and especially of their leaders. In the second part of the Gospel there is a detailed account of the Savior’s last journey to Jerusalem, of His last sermons and miracles, of His sufferings, death, and resurrection. The Gospel closes with the great missionary command of the Lord and His comforting assurance: “Behold, I am with you always, even unto the end of the world!”

Verses 1-17

The legal genealogical table of Christ

This is the title, or caption, which Matthew places at the head of his book. The entire Gospel is a book of the generation of Jesus Christ in the sense which the Jews usually attached to the expression in similar connections, meaning an account of the chief events in a person’s life, more or less briefly related, Genesis 5:1; Genesis 6:9; Genesis 37:2; Genesis 2:4; Numbers 3:1. The evangelist offers a history of the birth, acts, suffering, death, and resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ. But the first verses are a genealogy in the most restricted sense of the term, as presenting a table of Christ’s legal forefathers through His foster-father Joseph, rightful heir of the kingdom, the thought most interesting to Jewish Christians. Matthew calls Jesus the Son of David, the king of the Golden Age of the Jewish people, to whose family the promise of the Savior was at last restricted, 2 Samuel 7:12-13; Psalms 89:3-4; Psalms 132:11; Isaiah 11:1; Jeremiah 23:5. Christ was prophesied under the very name of “David,” Ezekiel 34:23-24; Ezekiel 37:24-25. “Son of David” was the official title which the Jews applied to the expected Messiah, Matthew 9:27; Matthew 12:23; Matthew 21:9; under this designation they had been led, by prophetic authority, to expect Him. But it would also arouse the attention and hold the interest of Christians of Jewish descent to know that the Christ whom Matthew proclaimed was the son of Abraham, for they knew that the father of their race had received the promise of the Lord: “In thee and thy seed shall all the nations of the earth be blessed,” Genesis 12:3; Genesis 18:18; Genesis 22:18. “For this reason he refers only to those two fathers, Abraham and David, since to these two alone the promise of Christ was made in these people. Therefore Matthew emphasizes the promises to Abraham and David, because he has a definite intention with regard to this nation, in order that he might influence them, as heirs of the promise, in a charming manner, to accept the Christ prophesied to them and to believe that this man was Jesus whom they had crucified.” [Luther, St. Louis Edition, 7, 6].

The evangelist now offers the genealogy proper:

In three sections of fourteen members each the progenitors of Joseph are tabulated, reaching back to Abraham, the father of the faithful. No person ever born into this world could boast, in a direct line, a more elevated or illustrious ancestry than Jesus Christ. The kingly, the priestly, the prophetic offices were represented in this list in all their glory and splendor. “The holy Matthew writes his Gospel in a most masterly manner and makes three distinctions of the fathers of whom Christ sprang forth, fourteen patriarchs, fourteen kings, and fourteen princes. … There are three times fourteen persons, as Matthew himself names them; from Abraham to David, both included, are fourteen persons or members; from David to the Babylonian captivity, again fourteen members; … and from the Babylonian captivity to Christ there are also fourteen members.” [Luther, 11, 2344].

A careful comparison of the list as here given and the account found in the Old Testament, 2 Chronicles 22-26, shows a slight discrepancy, since Ahaziah, Joash, and Amaziah followed after Joram, before Uzziah. The explanation for this difficulty is found in the fact that Matthew took up the genealogies just as he found them in the public Jewish repositories, which, though in the main parts correct, were yet deficient in some respects. But the omission of the three kings was of no consequence to the evangelist’s argument, which was to show the legal descent of Joseph, the foster-father of Jesus, and therefore of Jesus Himself, in an uninterrupted line from David, and consequently from Abraham. “What need is there of many words? Matthew himself shows sufficiently that he did not want to enumerate the generations with Jewish strictness, and so excite doubtfulness. For almost after the manner of a Jew he makes three times fourteen members of fathers, kings, and princes, but with deliberate knowledge he omits three members of the second section, as though he would say: The genealogical tables are indeed not to be despised, but herein lies the chief thing that Christ is promised through the generations of Abraham and David.” [Luther, 7, 7].

Another difficulty is in Matthew 1:11, where Josias is named as the father of Jechonias, whereas he was the grandfather, 1 Chronicles 3:14-16. The solution is found either by reference to the explanation above, showing that Matthew made use of a deliberate contraction, since the Jews were in the habit of extending the appellation “father” also to the grandparent; or we may adopt the marginal reading, which is based upon some Greek manuscripts: “Josias begat Jakim, and Jakim begat Jechonias.” This would also yield the fourteenth member of this section, unless we include Jesus in this group. In a similar manner, though Jechonias had no brethren mentioned in Scriptures, his father had, and it is by no means unusual to find more remote relatives spoken of in this manner, Genesis 28:13; Genesis 31:42; Genesis 14:14; Genesis 24:27; Genesis 29:15. “It is not to be supposed that the evangelist was at all concerned to make sure that no link in the line was omitted. His one concern would be to make sure that no name appeared that did not belong to the line.” [Expositor’s Greek Testament, 1, 63].

Another significant fact: Only four women are mentioned in the tables, and of these two were originally members of Gentile nations, Rachab and Ruth, and two were adulteresses, Thamar and Bathsheba. Note, also, that the last is not mentioned by name, the reference being both delicate and reproachful. “Of the kings and princes which Matthew enumerates, there were a few very bad knaves, as we read in the Book of Kings; yet God permits them to be entered as though they were so worthy that He should have wanted to be born of them. He also has no pious woman described: the four women that are mentioned here were all considered knaves and impious by the people, and regarded as evil women, as Thamar, who with Judas, her husband’s father, begat Phares and Zara, as is written Genesis 38:18; Rachab is called a knave or harlot, Joshua 2:1; Ruth was a Gentile woman, Ruth 1:4: though she was pious in honor, since one reads nothing evil of her, yet because she was a heathen, she was despised as a dog by the Jews and regarded as unworthy before the world; Bathsheba, the wife of Uriah, was an adulteress before David took her in marriage and begat Solomon with her, 2 Samuel 11:4. All of which, beyond doubt, is enumerated for the reason that we should see how God desired to present to all sinners a mirror that Christ was sent to sinners and wanted to be born of sinners; yea, the greater the sinners, the greater the refuge they should have with the merciful God, Priest, and King, who is our Brother, in whom, and in none other besides, we may fulfil the Law and receive God’s grace. For this He came from heaven and desires no more from us but only this, that we let Him be our God, Priest, and King. Then all shall be right and plain; through Him alone we become children of God and heirs of heaven.” [Luther, 11, 2346].

The table of Matthew ends with the words, Matthew 1:16a: “And Jacob begat Joseph, the husband of Mary.” This fact, and the further circumstance that Luke 3, has an altogether different list of ancestors of Jesus, must be considered proof positive that we have in Matthew the genealogy of Joseph, the foster-father of Jesus. The aim of the evangelist therefore undoubtedly was to set forth Jesus as the legal son of Joseph, Mary’s husband, at His birth, and as such the proper heir of David’s throne. Joseph was, before the law, father of Jesus. All his rights and privileges, by reason of his birth and ancestry, were by law transferred to his son. As long as he lived, Joseph continued in his role as the legal paternal ancestor of Jesus, Matthew 13:35; John 6:42. In this way the name and position of Jesus, especially during His ministry, were put above reproach, Deuteronomy 23:2, and His claim as to being the heir of David’s line was placed on a sound basis, even in the eyes of the sticklers for legal form.

Note the careful phraseology used by Matthew in this sentence, Matthew 1:16b: “Mary, of whom was born Jesus.” Not from them both, as natural parents, after the usual manner of procreation, was the Savior begotten, but of Mary only, thus placing the event which Matthew is about to relate entirely outside of the course of nature, beyond the plane of human understanding. Jesus is her son’s name, after the great work which He came into the world to perform, the salvation of mankind. And He is called the Christ, which has precisely the same meaning as the Hebrew Messiah: the Anointed of God. It was His official title according to His threefold office, as the legitimate descendant of David, which the genealogy showed Him to be. He alone is rightly, above all His fellows after the flesh, called the Christ; He is King of kings and Lord of lords: the great King, who governs the entire universe with His almighty power and reigns in the hearts of His followers with His benign mercy; He is the Prophet greater than Moses, with a message of truth and love and grace divine for all men; He is the great High Priest, who in His own body and by the shedding of His holy, precious blood made full atonement for the sins of the entire world.

Such is Matthew’s introduction to his Gospel. And in concluding this genealogy, which immediately places Jesus the Christ into the center before the minds and hearts of his readers, he gives a brief summary according to the divisions of Jewish history:

The three periods represent, respectively, the three forms of government which the Jews had: theocracy, monarchy, hierarchy, with judges, kings, and priests at their head. But, incidentally, the same division sums up Israel’s fortunes. First came the age of slow and steady growth, with all the manifestations of the first love’s zeal and fervor toward God, culminating in the reign of David. Then came the period of slow decline and gradual disintegration, ushered in with the luxurious reign of Solomon and characterized by the continuous and losing conflict with idolatry. And lastly came the period of a restored Church with internal ruin, of a dead orthodoxy, of an insipid ritualism. If any fact stands out clearly from this contrast, it is this, that redemption was most sorely and urgently needed.

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Verses 18-25

The annunciation to Joseph and the birth of Jesus

The reference is not so much to the actual process of generation, but expresses the general idea of origin. It was in this way that the Messiah assumed human nature, took upon Himself the form of our sinful flesh. As the Son of God He had no beginning, but is in the bosom of the Father from eternity, John 1:18. As a human being He had a beginning, and this origin the evangelist relates:

Mary had entered into a betrothal, into a contract of espousal, with Joseph. She had agreed to a marriage, she had pledged her word to Joseph, just as he was bound to her by his promise of betrothment. While Mary was in this relation to Joseph, and after she had given him her pledge as his promised bride, she still lived at her own or at her father’s house. As a rule, some time elapsed before a betrothed virgin was formally given in marriage and taken to her husband’s house, Deuteronomy 20:7; Judges 14:7-8; Judges 15:1-2. During this time, cohabitation did not take place, though the marriage contract was legal and binding. And it was then, before the celebration of the nuptials, that Mary was found with child. Her situation was not only delicate, but the most distressing and humiliating which could fall to the lot of a pure maiden. Knowing herself to be innocent of even the slightest transgression in deed, and fully convinced of the fact that her condition was due only to the supernatural working of the Holy Ghost, she nevertheless could expect no one to believe her defense, should she attempt one. “Nothing but the fullest consciousness of her own integrity and the strongest confidence in God could have supported her in such circumstances, where her reputation, her honor, and her life were at stake.” [Clarke, Commentary, 5, 39].

At this critical juncture, Joseph proved himself all that a true Christian should be:

Unable to believe her innocent, which in the face of the evidence must have been beyond the average man’s strength, he nevertheless found a way out of the difficult dilemma. As the betrothed husband he had the husband’s rights and responsibilities. And he was a just man, righteous, a respecter of the Law, which was especially strict and uncompromising on the subject of infidelity in the woman, Deuteronomy 22:22-24. Yet he did not wish to expose Mary publicly and thus heap ignominy and shame upon her, for she was the woman to whom he had given the love of a husband. His humaneness and benevolence, his affection, were put to a severe test. But the result of his weighing the matter was that he did not choose strict measures, resolving rather upon a quiet cancelation of the bond of betrothal, without assigning a cause, in order that her life might be saved. Justice was tempered by mercy.

It was here that God interfered in behalf of the mother of His Son, according to His humanity:

Joseph’s mind was still busily engaged with the perplexing problem; he was wrestling with painful, distressing, distracting thoughts, and even his kind expedient may have seemed harsh to him. But, behold! — a vivid introduction of the angelic appearance to emphasize the intervention of God. In a dream the vision came to Joseph to save him and his betrothed from an act which would result in disastrous consequences. The appearance of an angel in a dream was one of the methods which God used to make known His will, or to reveal the future in special cases. The angel addresses Joseph, “Thou son of David,” not to awaken the heroic mood, as has been suggested, but to emphasize the thought of the legal acknowledgment and adoption of the child. He should not fear to take home, publicly to accept, Mary as his wife. This simple acceptance of the angel’s words meant for Joseph an act of faith similar to those performed by the great heroes of the Old Testament, to believe the Lord absolutely, in spite of all the evidences of the senses. This public recognition would save the honor of Mary and also that of her child. For instead of being the fruit of adulterous and licentious intercourse, the product of a most unholy cohabitation, the child which was to be born of her was of the Holy Ghost, begotten by deliberate intervention of God, against the course of nature.

The climax of the angel’s message:

It was thus ordained in God’s counsel: She will give birth to a son, she is to become a mother, not only by supernatural interposition, not merely by God’s giving new life to organs that were past the age of bearing, as was true in the case of Sarah and Elizabeth, Genesis 18:10-14; Luke 1:7-18, but by a miraculous suspension of the usual process of nature, according to which men are born of the will of the flesh and of the will of man, both sexes being active. And this son of Mary he, Joseph, was to call Jesus. This is a command in the form of a prediction. By giving to the child His name, Joseph would publicly recognize and formally adopt Him as his legal son. Jesus is to be the child’s name, not indeed as a mere appellation to distinguish Him from other people, as in the case of the Hebrew synonym Joshua, Numbers 13:17; Zechariah 3:1, but as an expression of the very essence of the divine personality, through which the salvation of men would be gained. For the angel explains the name: He shall save His people from their sins. That, in a sentence, is the end and object of His coming, that alone is His errand and mission: He, and no other, He alone, and He completely, saves. He brings full pardon, free salvation, complete deliverance, not only from the pollution and power, but also from the guilt of sin. To His people He brings this priceless boon, not merely to the members of His nation according to the flesh, to the Jewish people, but to all that are in need of a Savior, Matthew 18:11. This is the Gospel-message, not that Jesus makes allowances for sin, but that He has made atonement for it; not that He tolerates sin, but that He destroys it.

Matthew now adds an explanatory note to show the fulfilment of the Old Testament types and prophecies in the person and work of Christ:

It was not an incident that just happened that way which the evangelist records, but an occurrence definitely decided upon and fully planned by the Lord centuries before. For it was He that spoke the prophecy through Isaiah 7:14. The words as written by the prophet referred to a sign or miracle which the Lord promised King Ahaz in order to assure him that the counsels of the enemies of Israel should not stand, but that the latter should finally be utterly discomfited. In giving this sign, the Lord had in mind the spiritual Israel and its enemies, the deliverance being the redemption wrought by the Messiah. Before the eternal God, the space of seven hundred years is as a watch in the night. This sign was now to be given and the prophecy fulfilled. The virgin, not any virgin, but the one designated and chosen by God, being with child, was now about to bear a son. And they, not only His parents, but men and people that would know Him, especially those that would accept His salvation, would call His name Emmanuel: God with us. In the son of Mary these words were fulfilled, her son is God Himself; in His person the strong God, the almighty Lord, is with us, not according to His condemning justice, but according to His loving-kindness and tender mercies, Isaiah 9:6; John 1:1-14; 1 Timothy 3:16.

The result of the angelic vision:

As soon as he awoke from sleep, he was immediately, energetically active and set about to act upon the divine instructions. He took Mary home as his wife, he celebrated the betrothal with all customary Jewish ceremonies. She who was his wife by betrothal now was given this position in the eyes of the whole world. But the marriage was not consummated at that time:

Joseph did not enter into the natural relations of marriage with Mary until her son, the promised Messiah, had been born. It is a moot question whether Mary and Joseph ever lived together in the usual matrimonial intercourse and begot children. The Roman Catholic theologians and a great many Protestant commentators argue with much spirit that the firstborn son of Mary was her only son. Some have held with one of the early Church Fathers that the “brethren” of Jesus mentioned in various passages, Matthew 12:46; Matthew 13:55; Mark 3:31; Luke 8:19; John 2:12; Luke 7:5; Acts 1:14; Galatians 1:19, were the cousins of the Lord, the sons of Alphaeus, Joseph’s brother, and of Mary, the wife of Alphaeus, the sister-in-law (not sister) of the mother of the Lord. Others have held that they were the stepbrothers of Jesus, by a former marriage of Joseph. As a matter of fact, the question is of little import and can have no doctrinal significance. It is not for historical, exegetical, or dogmatic reasons, but only for motives of reverence that men have been prompted to insist upon the alleged fact of Mary’s perpetual virginity. [See Schaller, Book of Books, 276].

The evangelist concludes the narrative by stating that he, Joseph, called the name of Mary’s son Jesus, thus following the divine command, assuming the legal paternity of the child, and incidentally expressing his hopeful belief in the Savior of mankind.

Summary

Jesus Christ, the son and legal heir of David, beyond whom His genealogy can be traced to Abraham, the father of the faithful of all times, was conceived and born of Mary, the virgin mother, after Joseph, His foster-father, had been instructed through a wonderful angelic vision as to God’s interposition.

Verses 1-12

The wise men from the east

The transition which the evangelist employs fitly connects the narrative of the circumstances surrounding the birth of the Savior with the story of the adoration of the Magi. It is an account of the “reception given by the world to the new-born Messianic king. Homage from afar, hostility at home; foreshadowing the fortunes of the new faith: acceptance by the Gentiles, rejection by the Jews.” [Expositor’s Greek Testament, 1, 69]. While Matthew does not fix the time of the nativity so exactly as Luke 2:1-2, he nevertheless mentions a very important point which corroborates the Old Testament prophecy in a most remarkable manner. For Herod was king at this time. History calls him Herod the Great, since he was great in political sagacity, great in diplomatic shrewdness, great in energy which expended itself in works of external beauty and grandeur, but also great, almost incredibly so, in wickedness. He was the son of the Idumean Antipater, Roman procurator of Judea. His ambition succeeded in winning for him the governorship of Galilee when he was but twenty-five years of age. He next became governor of Coele-Syria, the fertile valley between the Lebanon and Anti-Lebanon mountain ranges, including southern Syria and Decapolis, and later was made tetrarch by the Roman triumvir Antony. Driven from his province, where his standing with the people had always been insecure, by the Maccabean Antigonus, Herod fled to Rome, gained the help of Antony and Augustus, and was declared king of Judea by the Roman senate, 714 years after the founding of Rome, 37 B.C. It was necessary for him to win his kingdom by force of arms, but once in possession of it, he proceeded to use his power in a cruel and ruthless manner for his own aggrandizement. He flattered the influential party of the Pharisees by the erection of the magnificent Temple and by other feigned tokens of religious zeal; he courted the favor of Rome by a fawning servility, by various concessions to heathenism, and by the introduction of Grecian customs. Of his ten wives, he executed the Asmonean Mariamne, daughter of Hircanus, and he caused three of his sons, Antipater, Alexander, and Aristobulus, to be put to death, not to mention a multitude of other executions which were as cruel as they were unjustified. By such a degree of bloodthirstiness was his reign characterized that the slaughter of the innocents at Bethlehem is omitted by secular historians as an insignificant episode. Such was the character of Herod the Great. And by the final definite establishment of his kingdom the word of the Lord was fulfilled: “The scepter shall not depart from Judah … until Shiloh come,” Genesis 49:10. Cp. Genesis 27:40. “In the first place, the evangelist cites Herod the king to remind of the prophecy of Jacob the patriarch, who had said, Genesis 49:10: The scepter shall not be taken from Judah, nor a teacher out of his loins, until He comes that should come. From this prophecy it is evident that Christ must put in His appearance when the kingdom or government was taken from the Jews, that no king or ruler out of the tribe of Judah occupied it. That was done through this Herod, who was not from the tribe of Judah nor from the blood of the Jews, but of Edom, a stranger, established as a king of the Jews by the Romans; however, with great indignation of the Jews, so that he ground himself against them for thirty years, shed very much blood, and killed the best of the Jews, until he stunned and vanquished them. When this stranger, then, had ruled for thirty years and brought the government into his power, so that he sat in tranquillity, and the Jews had yielded, since there was no more hope to get rid of him and therefore the prophecy of Jacob was fulfilled, then the time had come, then Christ came and was born under the first stranger, and appeared according to the prophecy. As though He would say: The scepter has ceased from Judah, a stranger is sitting over My people; now is the time that I enter and also become king, the government now pertains to Me.” [Luther, 11, 296].

In Bethlehem of Judea, Jesus was born, in accordance with prophetic utterance. This Bethlehem is distinguished from another village of the same name in Galilee, in the former tribe of Zebulun, Joshua 19:15. The town of Christ’s birth is called Bethlehem-Judah, 1 Samuel 17:12, and Ephrath or Ephratah, Genesis 48:7; Micah 5:2. It is situated on a small ridge or declivity overlooking a fertile farming country, whence its name, which signifies “house of bread,” may have been suggested. It was a fitting name for the village which produced as its greatest son Him who is properly called the “Bread of Life,” John 6:35,48.

Place and time of the nativity having been indicated, the evangelist now proceeds:

He introduces the new theme in a lively manner, also for the purpose of bringing out the contrast between the reigning king of Judea and these strangers from heathen lands. Wise men, or, more literally, Magi, he calls them, not kings, as the medieval legend has it, but the scientists of those days who, at many a court, formed the king’s privy council, Jeremiah 39:3; Daniel 2:48. They cultivated chiefly medicine, natural science, especially in its occult applications, the interpretation of dreams, astronomy, and astrology. “Therefore the Magi, or wise men, were not kings, but learned and expert people in natural science. … The Magi were nothing else than what the philosophers were in Greece and the priests in Egypt, and such men as are with us the learned men of the universities; in short, they were the theologians and the learned men of Arabia Felix, just as if ecclesiastics and learned men from universities would now be sent to a prince.” [Luther, 11, 299]. Magi from the East they were, and Matthew probably used the vague indication of the locality intentionally. It matters little whether the men were from Arabia, or from Persia, or from Media, or from Babylon, or from Parthia. A tradition among the Jews has it that there were prophets in the kingdom of Saba and Arabia that were of the posterity of Abraham by Keturah, who transmitted the promise of God given to Abraham from one generation to the next. All this signifies nothing. But all the more important is the fact that these strangers from a far country come to Jerusalem on such an extraordinary errand. “Him whom His own would not seek or acknowledge, nor the inhabitants and citizens, this strange, foreign people sought in so many days’ journeying. To Him to whom the learned men and priests would not come and worship, to Him the soothsayers and astronomers come. That was truly a great disgrace for the entire Jewish land and people that Christ was born in the midst of them and they should first learn of it from strange, heathen, foreign people.” [Luther, 11, 300].

The message of the Magi was brief:

There was an assertion contained in their question. Their knowledge was definite as to His having been born. It was a fact beyond question or discussion. A Child has been born that is King of the Jews; His kingship is even now established beyond a doubt. The evidence which the Magi adduce for their belief is sensational. They had seen a star in its rising, just as soon as the phenomenon became visible; not any star, not a meteor provided for the occasion, not a comet of peculiar brilliance, not an extraordinary conjunction of planets, but His star, a star which was set in the firmament, or which flashed forth at just this time with unusual brightness. The appearance and, according to Matthew 2:9, also the guidance of this star was to them a definite sign, an unmistakable token of the fulfilment of a prophecy, tradition, or revelation which was known to them. It may have been that the prophecy of Balaam, Numbers 24:17, had been explained by their teachers as referring to an actual, physical star, or it may be, as the medieval legend, which is embodied in the Old Saxon poem of The Heliand, has it, that Daniel transmitted to the learned men of the East a tradition concerning this particular star. At any rate, they had come to worship Him whose coming the star indicated, to give Him divine homage and adoration by a gesture or ceremony of abject submission, placing themselves and all their possessions at His disposal.

The effect of this startling announcement:

The consternation of Herod may be explained in two ways. As king, because of his position as king, Herod was troubled. Having himself reached his position of ruling sovereign by methods which were not at all unobjectionable, the foreigner and usurper feared a rival, and the tyrant feared the joyful acceptance of the rival by the people. At the same time, Herod felt a dread since it was freely predicted that a great personage, the Messiah, the King of the Jews, should judge both the nation and the world, — and Herod’s conscience was not clean. On the other hand, the people were excited for different reasons. Their alarm was due to a bad conscience and the feeling of guilt because of their hypocrisy and selfishness which was sure to be found out by the Messiah, but mingled with this was the excitement of expecting a deliverer from the yoke of Rome, a hope which had been carefully cherished by the Pharisees.

Herod’s measures to meet the emergency:

Not the entire Sanhedrin, or Great Council of the Jewish people, — for that included also the elders, many of whom Herod had put to death, — but the chief priests, the present incumbent of the office as well as former high priests; and the scribes, who were also political officers, assisting the civil magistrates in the role of confidential secretaries and statisticians. All of these were men of letters. Here again was a political move planned to strengthen Herod’s tottering prestige: to be summoned to a secret meeting might be thought a rare distinction by the Jewish leaders. And Herod, accustomed as he was to commanding, in this instance was very careful about couching his request in polite, though urgent, terms. The question he submitted was a theological one: Where, according to the transmitted records, according to the accepted tradition, is the birth-place of the Christ?

The answer of the Jewish theologians savors of a hidden satisfaction:

Their opinion was given without hesitation; it reflected the current opinion and agreed with Talmudic tradition. In their Scriptural proof they do not quote the Old Testament passage literally, but combine the words of the prophet, Micah 5:2, with 2 Samuel 5:2. Incidentally, their answer was shaped by some interpretation due to rabbinical teaching. “Art not thou the least?” the text inquires. Bethlehem may be little in size and influence, especially as compared with its metropolitan neighbor, but it is by no means the least in dignity and distinction. It may have been considered small and insignificant among the thousands of Judah, the cities that could boast a population of a thousand or more families, but it still had the best-founded claim for excellence among the princes of Judah. Here is indisputable evidence:

Out of the despised village One should come forth, should regard it as His native town, who would combine the qualities of a Ruler with those of a tender, loving Friend and watchful Guardian. He whose birth was to distinguish Bethlehem-Judah, would be a Prince and Leader, who would make the shepherd’s sleepless devotion for those entrusted to him His life’s object.

Herod was convinced that the information he received was reliable. He resolved, therefore, to remove a possible rival by a speedy and thorough, though cruel method. But he must have more information:

It was a secret conference, just fitting in with his political trickery. Had he made his inquiries in a public reception, his own courtiers might have become suspicious, but the unsuspecting visitors could be coaxed to talk freely in a private interview and would not become alarmed. The exact time of the star’s first appearance was what Herod wanted, assuming probably that the birth of the child had occurred at the same time. All of which was an especially loathsome form of hypocrisy, an affectation of a kind interest in all that related to the Child in whose destinies the very stars seemed involved.

Herod carried out his scheme:

Eager for the success of his plans, he nevertheless manages to make his guileless visitors feel that he has nothing but the favorable outcome of their quest at heart. The text implies the idea of great haste. He sent them off at once with the urgent entreaty, almost command: Go and search. Leave nothing undone, make your search most thorough, in order that the Child may be found. And not only that:

He crowns his hypocrisy with a final base lie. For it was not that he wanted to bow down to the Child in adoring worship, but he intended to bow down the Child’s soul into the dust of death.

In simple trustfulness, the Magi proceed to act according to the king’s words:

They left Jerusalem, apparently all alone and with only general directions to guide them. Herod wanted no talebearers from among those that patterned after him. But the Magi, looking up to heaven, once more see their guide in the sky; they recognize the heavenly sign which had first called their attention to the miracle. And this star kept going before them all the way until, as they came to Bethlehem, it took up its definite position right over the house where the Child was, for He was the object of their search, to Him they were directed. Another proof that the star here referred to was made for just this purpose: it traveled from north to south. It must have stood much lower than other stars, since it indicated exactly in which house the Child was. “But this star, since it goes with them from Jerusalem to Bethlehem, went from north to south; which therefore establishes clearly that it was of a different kind, course, and place than the stars in the sky. It was not an attached star, as the astronomers call the stars, but a free star that could rise and sink, turn to all places.” [Luther, 11, 331. 2105].

The effect of its appearance upon the Magi:

They were overjoyed. Their long journey was successful, their arduous quest was ended. The most intense gladness, a fairly ecstatic delight, took possession of them, as the evangelist expresses it. At once they carried out the purpose of their journey:

So vivid is Matthew’s description that the words fairly gush forth in a joyful stream. The Magi saw with their own eyes Him whom they had longed to behold, the Child, the Messiah, the promised Star of Judah. His mother Mary and His foster-father, who is intentionally omitted, had now found shelter in one of the houses of the village. The Magi worshiped the Child after the Oriental fashion of falling down on the knees and touching the forehead to the earth, in complete surrender.

With full hands they come, as befits such as would enter into the presence of royalty. They open their treasure-chests; they bring forth gold, the most precious metal, frankincense and myrrh, costly aromatic gums distilled from trees, much used in religious ceremonies, Psalm 72:10; Isaiah 60:6. Whether there is any special significance, a mystical meaning, in the gifts, is an idle speculation which has engaged many commentators. It was commonly stated: Gold, as to the King; incense, as to God; myrrh, as to one destined to die; or, as a medieval rhyme has it: “The first was gold, as most mighty King; the second was myrrh, as Priest of priests being; the third was incense in tokening of burying.” Luther’s explanation is simple: “Although they [the Magi] enter a poor house, find a poor young woman, with a poor child, and also there is an appearance so unlike a king that their servant is more honorable and reputable, yet they are not troubled, but in great, strong, full faith they put everything out of their eyes and mind which nature with its arrogance might adduce and bring into play; they simply follow the verse of the prophet and the testimony of the star and believe Him to be King, fall down, worship Him, and give presents to Him.” [Luther, 11, 355. 2113].

Matthew concludes the narrative of the adoration:

Here is another instance of divine intervention to frustrate the bloodthirsty designs of Herod toward the Savior. It does not appear from the text that the simple trustfulness of the wise men had given way to suspicion as to the king’s intention, and that they had asked God for a sign. It is simply narrated that by command of God they received an earnest admonition, an emphatic warning, not to turn back on their steps over Jerusalem. Whether each individual member of the party had the vision, or whether their leader alone received God’s command, is immaterial. Enough that they complied with the request. They departed, they withdrew, and thus escaped into their own country by taking a different caravan route, away from the dangerous neighborhood of Herod. Their object had been gained, they had seen the light of the Gentiles; their hearts were filled with the content of the believing soul that has seen the salvation of the Lord.

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Verses 13-23

The flight into Egypt and the return to Nazareth

One part of Herod’s plan had not worked out: the Magi did not return to reveal the exact whereabouts of the Child. Now the Lord also foiled the design against the Child’s life.

God again makes use of an angelic vision to protect His Son, by giving the necessary instructions to Joseph. Cp. Matthew 1:20. The need of haste is expressed: Having arisen, take at once; lose no time. The Child is again named first, everything revolves about His well-being. “And His mother,” the angel says. The phraseology is very careful and once more definitely points to the virgin birth. The reason for the command is also stated, in order to prevent delay. Herod has the intention, he has planned, he is about to search for the Child with the purpose of putting Him to death. Even the place of refuge is named in the divine message. Egypt should be their temporary home until such a time as a further command or communication to Joseph would permit their return to their native land. It is probable that Egypt was chosen because many Jews had settled in that country. The holy family would therefore be among fellow-countrymen and in a Roman province, where the rage of Herod could not pursue them.

Joseph again was obedient to the angel’s word:

Matthew relates the carrying out of the command in the very words in which the angel had spoken them in order to show the obedient spirit of Joseph. That very night he quietly made his escape with those entrusted to his care. He made Egypt his home until after the death of Herod, which, by the nearest historical calculation, occurred in the same year. He died of a peculiar, loathsome disease, which caused his flesh to decay upon his bones, rendering him an abhorrent carcass before his soul finally left the body. It may be remarked, in passing, that all accounts of Christ’s stay in Egypt, as found in apocryphal sources, are entirely fanciful and gross pieces of superstition. But it is of interest to find even here a fulfilment of Old Testament prophecy, Hosea 11:1. Though the deliverance of Israel out of the serfdom of Egypt is there referred to, the Holy Ghost here gives us another true explanation, showing that the prophecy relates to the infant Jesus, in His sheltered sojourn in, and safe return from, the country where His ancestors had been held in bondage. Note the reference to the divine inspiration of the prophecy!

The evangelist, after his brief digression, returns to his story proper. Herod saw that, from his standpoint, he had been outwitted, made a fool of, by the Magi. And when he was certain that they were not going to retrace their steps to Jerusalem, to report what they had found at Bethlehem, he was enraged, extremely incensed with an unreasonable rage. This wrath demanded an outlet, it could be quenched only in blood. Herod sent executioners to Bethlehem with the command to kill all children that were to be found in the village proper and in its entire vicinity, the rural district surrounding the town. Not one was spared, not even, according to an ancient report, his own son. In fixing the age of his victims, he made use of the information given him by the Magi, probably extending the time either way in order to make sure that none escaped. Herod would not be too scrupulous: from one hour to two years old, it mattered not; if anything, it insured him an ample margin either way.

Here again there is the fulfilment, not of a literal, but of a typical prophecy:

The passage as penned by the prophet, Jeremiah 31:15, is the narration of a vision with reference to the deportation of Israel into captivity, Rachel being the representative mother of the nation, and Ramah having been a fortress of Israel on the frontier where the captives were collected. This prophetic passage Matthew applies to the slaughter of the innocents. Rachel is represented as the mother of Bethlehem and its environs, because it was here that she died, in childbirth, Genesis 35:16-20. Her sympathy for her children’s misfortunes would cause her to indulge in such bitter weeping and mourning as the mothers of Bethlehem doubtless gave themselves to at this exhibition of revolting and senseless cruelty on the part of Herod. Consolation and comfort could avail but little when they were obliged to witness the murder of their children before their very eyes and could only wring their hands in helpless sorrow and agony.

The evangelist now returns to the story of the Savior:

Herod died at Jericho in the year 750 after the founding of Rome. And his son Antipater, heir apparent to the throne, who had inherited his father’s cruel disposition, had been put to death at the tyrant’s command, five days before he himself yielded up his soul. So they whose murderous designs were most apparent were no longer living. The angel therefore gave Joseph the command to return to the land of Israel. No immediate danger threatened the Savior’s life. No apprehension need be felt regarding His safety. There is nothing, no person to fear: Go! Note again that Matthew always gives to the Christ-child the prominent position to which His divinity entitles Him. He is to be kept foremost in the minds and hearts of all readers.

Joseph lost no time in obeying the command:

Herod, indeed, was dead, but Augustus had divided his kingdom among his three sons. Archelaus obtained Judea, Idumea, and Samaria, with the designation of ethnarch; Herod Antipas, Galilee and Perea; and Philip, Batanea, Trachonitis, and Auranitis, the latter two receiving the title tetrarch (ruler over a fourth part). Like his father, Archelaus was a suspicious and cruel tyrant. It is related of him that, at one of the passovers, he caused three thousand people to be put to death in the Temple and city. No wonder that Joseph was filled with apprehension as to the safety of his charges. To settle in Judea was the most natural course to follow, and he probably had Jerusalem in mind. But once more God Himself, through the agency of an angel, solved the difficulty and indicated to him a place of security. And so he turned aside, made the journey up to Galilee, the northern part of Palestine, formerly divided into Upper and Lower Galilee, the former being Galilee proper, Matthew 4:12; John 4:43, the latter occupying the ancient territory of Zebulon. It was to Lower Galilee that Joseph journeyed with the Child and His mother:

So Joseph returned to his former city, which had also been Mary’s home, Luke 1:26; Luke 2:4. Nazareth was a small city southwest of the Sea of Galilee, not far from Cana, on the one side, and from Mount Tabor, on the west. It was situated on the slope of a hill, and was surrounded by beautiful and grand scenery. It was here that Jesus lived until He entered upon His ministry, Luke 2:51; Luke 4:16; Matthew 3:13.

This reference of the evangelist to a fulfilment of Old Testament prophecy has ever caused difficulties, since there is no individual passage, with the exact contents as given, in the writings referred to. It is significant, however, that Matthew writes: “Which was spoken by the prophets,” thus indicating a general type rather than an explicit text. The most plausible explanation: “Nazarene” or “man of Nazareth” contains the reference. For the name Nazareth is derived from a Hebrew root meaning a branch or tender offshoot. Thus the Messiah is called in Isaiah 11:1. And this passage is analogous to the expressions used in Isaiah 53:2; Isaiah 4:2; Jeremiah 23:5; Jeremiah 33:15; Zechariah 3:8; Zechariah 6:12, and to other descriptions of the humble appearance of the Messiah. Cp. John 1:46. Others have suggested that the reference is to Judges 13:7. “It is with the prophetic references in the gospels as with songs without words. The composer has a certain scene or state of mind in his view, and writes under its inspiration. But you are not in his secret, and cannot tell when you hear the music what it means. But let the key be given, and immediately you find new meaning in the music. The prophecies are the music; the key is the history.” [Expositor’s Greek Testament, 1, 78].

Summary

The Magi having been directed to Bethlehem by a special star and by prophetic direction, give to the Christ-child divine adoration, while the life of the Savior is preserved from the cruelty of Herod by divine interposition, which directs Joseph first to Egypt, then to Galilee.

Verses 1-12

The ministry of John the Baptist

The method here used by Matthew to introduce a new section in his history of the Savior is one employed by the holy writers to refer to a preceding date or occurrence, Exodus 2:11, 23; Isaiah 38:1. It was during the residence of Jesus in Nazareth, during the period of His obscurity, when He was quietly growing in wisdom and age, and in favor with God and man, Luke 2:52. Luke’s narrative is here characterized by a most careful fixing of time, Luke 3:1-2, as befits so exact an historian, but our present passage is dramatically most effective. Those were memorable days and years to which our wistful, reverent gaze turns back, which the eyes of our spirit do not tire to behold. John, surnamed the Baptist, came in those days; he entered upon his ministry, for which he had been intended and prepared even before his birth, Luke 1:15-17; Luke 1:42-44; Luke 1:76-77. He is distinguished from John the Apostle and bears the name Baptist from the outstanding feature of his public work, since he baptized those that confessed their sins. It was necessary, to this end, that the hearts of the people be properly prepared, and therefore John came,

Not primarily as a teacher, but as a preacher and exhorter he came, solemnly proclaiming, heralding the approach of the kingdom of heaven. And this with all the greater impressiveness, since his abode was in the wilderness of Judea, away from the usual haunts of men, in the mountainous, rugged country toward the Dead Sea, and in the steppes, or pasture lands, sloping down from there to the valley of the Jordan. Interesting, because different!

The emphasis of John was on one fact:

That was the chief content, the matter, the burden, of his heralding, the admonition to repentance, the watchword which characterized his preaching. He deemed a complete change of mind and heart necessary as preparation for the advent of the Messiah. For His kingdom, the kingdom of God, the kingdom of heaven, has come near; it is about to be revealed in all its glory. It is a kingdom of the heavens in opposition to an earthly kingdom of which the Jews dreamed, since Jesus, the Lord of heaven, is its Ruler, and since this kingdom, whose beauty is here often hidden by the misery of this present life, will be fully revealed in the light of the future glory above. There all those that with sorrowful and contrite hearts accepted the Savior in His lowliness and humility will be partakers of His kingdom with its eternal splendor and majesty. Sincere repentance, followed by simple faith, opens the way to all this grandeur. “But this is repentance, if I believe God’s Word, which reveals to me and accuses me of being a sinner and condemned before God, and am terrified with all my heart because I have ever been disobedient to my God, have not rightly looked upon and considered His commandments, much less kept the greatest or the least, and yet do not despair, but let myself be directed to Jesus, to seek mercy and help with Him, and also firmly believe I shall find it. For He is the Lamb of God, destined from eternity for this purpose that He shall bear the sins of the whole world and pay for them by His death.” [Luther, 7, 689].

Matthew’s manner of adducing the prophetic passage in this instance is peculiar:

He sets him apart from others concerning whom there was a prophecy. This is the man whom Isaiah had in mind when he wrote his words of comfort for Jerusalem, Isaiah 40:3. We have here an allusion to the well-known Oriental custom of heralding the coming of, and preparing the way for, princes in their travels. The typical prophecy of Isaiah became a distinct announcement in Malachi 3:1. Cp. Malachi 4:6; Luke 1:17; Matthew 11:10, 14; Matthew 17:11. John was the herald of Jesus. The purpose of his ministry was by preaching and by baptizing to prepare the hearts and minds of the people for the coming of the great King of Mercy. The King’s highway must be straight, without deviations of hypocrisy, without twists and turns of selfishness. That is the burden of the cry in the wilderness.

The appearance and habits of the Baptist should also be noted:

John was an antitype of Elijah, the great prophet and preacher of Israel, both as to his personal appearance and bearing and as to the peculiar difficulties under which his message went forth, 2 Kings 1:8; 1 Kings 19:10. His raiment, his usual clothing, was not a complete dress or cloak, but a covering or garment thrown over the shoulder, woven out of camel’s hair, a rough, uncomfortable protection against the elements. It was held together at the loins by a leathern girdle, without ornamentation. His main article of food was locusts, an edible species as named in Leviticus 11:22, still used as meat in the East: legs and wings stripped off, and the remainder boiled and roasted. To give at least some variety to the diet, or to serve for sustaining life when locusts were scarce, John used wild honey, such as was deposited by bees in trees and holes in the rocks, or the tree honey which exudes from fig-trees, palms, and other trees. The austere, ascetic appearance and mode of life of John corresponded with his message, which enjoined renunciation of the world and repentance.

The effect of his preaching:

If not instantaneous, the success was rapid. The news traveled swiftly. First came those from the surrounding country, people from either side of the Jordan, whose homes were in or near the wilderness. Then the great movement spread in ever-widening circles into Judea. And finally, haughty, disdainful Jerusalem is drawn into the excitement. This the evangelist intimates by placing the capital city first; even conservative Jerusalem goes into the wilderness, a penitent at the call of John. A remarkable testimony for the power of the Word when openly and fearlessly proclaimed!

John performed his ministry to all:

His powerful, appealing call to repentance had its effect. In ever-increasing numbers they came. The guilt-burdened men and women, whose lives had been lived in sham and deceit, made a frank, explicit, public confession of their sins, voluntarily, now general, now special, as they came under the influence of John’s personality and message. “This confession of sins by individuals was a new thing in Israel. There was a collective confession on the great Day of Atonement, and individual confession in certain specified cases (Numbers 5:7), but no great spontaneous self-unburdenment of penitent souls — every man apart. It must have been a stirring sight.” [Expositor’s Greek Testament, 1, 81]. And as they came and made confession of their sins, in a practically unbroken stream, they were baptized by John in the river Jordan. It was an awakening such as the land had not witnessed since the time of the ancient prophets.

A perplexing, disagreeable situation:

Matthew includes the members of both sects in one and the same category of unworthy intruders. The Pharisees excelled especially in their insistence upon outward observance of the Law and the traditions of the elders, and the Sadducees were rationalists that rejected all the inspired writings but the books of Moses. In either case their religion was nothing but a thin veneer of form and show of pomp, without the assent of the heart. All the more reprehensible, then, is their affront in appearing at John’s baptism, where repentance, change of heart, was the primary demand. It may have been partly curiosity, partly fascination, since they could not remain indifferent to a movement which had assumed such proportions, that brought them to John. At any rate, they came upon the scene, they appeared at the place where John was baptizing. But their reception at his hands was anything but pleasant. “Generation of vipers” is the epithet he applies to them, offspring of serpents, imbued with the nature of the slimy, stinging reptiles. It is an outburst of intense moral aversion that causes him to shrink from, and openly denounce, these visitors as both deceitful and malicious, Psalm 140:3; Isaiah 14:29; Isaiah 59:5; Psalm 58:4. It seemed indeed as though they were fleeing from the wrath to come by making application for entrance into the Kingdom, but there is every reason for distrusting their sincerity. It is impossible to escape from the wrath which will bring upon hypocrites the holy, penal justice of God, and thus the punishment itself, Romans 1:18; Ephesians 2:3.

Having thus unmasked them, the Baptist makes his demand:

An entire change of heart must precede the performing of truly good works, such as measure up to the standard of an honest repentance, as conform to a real amendment of life. John insists upon their producing proper, suitable, sufficient evidence of a true repentance, fruits of a divine flavor, before he can consent to administer Baptism to them. And his further warning is peculiarly fitting in the case of the Pharisees:

The fact that they were members, according to the flesh, of God’s chosen people, the fact that they were descendants of Abraham, in a direct line, had ever been the boast of the Pharisees, John 8:33, 39. But a mere external membership in God’s Church is of no avail. He is a Judge of the hearts and minds and may, on that score, at any time reject them as spurious children. Besides, it would be a small thing for God, out of the very stones of the wilderness, to create for Himself new children, more genuine as to faith than the Pharisees and Sadducees. “We are (said they) God’s people whom He has chosen before all nations on earth, and to whom He has given circumcision; so we have and observe the Law, visit God’s Temple at Jerusalem, and exercise ourselves in the holy service which God Himself has ordered. In short, we go our way in the spiritual and worldly government, as both have been fixed and ordered through Moses by God’s command; are also of the blood and tribe of the holy patriarchs: Abraham is our father, etc. What do we lack that we should not be pious and holy, dear and pleasing to God, and be saved? All this, he says, does not concern the matter. For God is not interested in knowing that you are proficient in boasting much and high concerning the Law, the Temple, the fathers, etc. He wants you to fear Him and to believe His promise, to obey and accept Him whom He has promised to you and now sends. The alternative is that He will reject and exterminate you with all your glory, with which He Himself has endowed and ornamented you before all nations.” [Luther, 7, 682].

And this is not all:

The ax has been placed, it is even now ready to begin its work of just retribution, of stern justice upon every spurious descendant of Abraham. Every tree which proves itself hopelessly barren cannot escape the near inevitable doom. And John makes use of careful phrasing. Not only is fruit demanded, which may, under circumstances, be unpalatable and even poisonous, but his condition is that the tree produce good fruit. Unless this demand is met, there is no other alternative: The useless tree is condemned to be firewood; the unbelieving Jew will be excluded from the kingdom of the Messiah.

John’s sermon would have been incomplete without a reference to Him whose way he was sent to prepare:

His was merely a temporary and a symbolical mission. He was only the forerunner, the herald, and he was fully satisfied with this secondary and subordinate position. His baptism was merely preparatory. By inducing men to repent and by administering the washing of Baptism, he was getting them ready for the understanding of the higher mission of the Messiah. But He who is just coming, who follows immediately after me in point of time, who will shortly make His appearance, is stronger than I; to Him pertains almighty power. And with this power is combined divine dignity. So great, so august, so exalted is His personage that John does not feel himself worthy even to take off His sandals, the work of the lowest slaves in the Orient. The ministry of this man will stand out in wonderful contrast. Himself will baptize you, will give you a peculiar baptism, with the Holy Ghost and with fire. A twofold effect of Christ’s work is here predicted: To those who with penitent hearts accept Him as Savior, He will give the precious boon of the Holy Spirit, with all His glorious gifts and powers, John 1:33; Mark 1:8; Acts 1:5; but those whose impenitent hearts would reject the purchased salvation He will immerse in fire. They have refused to accept the Spirit with His invigorating and illuminating power, and therefore the omnipotence of His outraged holiness will submerge and devour them. [The expression “with the Holy Ghost and with fire” may also be taken as a hendiadyoin and understood of the purging power of the Holy Ghost, by means of which He searches and purifies the hearts, Malachi 4:1].

This thought is carried out still further:

The picture is that of a threshing-floor in the Orient, a flat, open space paved with stones. The husbandman has driven his oxen across the floor to tread out the grain from the hulls, or his workmen have beaten it out with flails. Now comes the purging of the floor to separate the stalks and the hulls from the grain, and the winnowing of the loose matter with a fan to blow away the lighter chaff and leave the heavier kernels. God’s great threshing-floor is the earth. The test by which He decides the fate of every person in the world, by which He separates the wheat from the chaff, is the relation toward Jesus and His salvation. Those that are found secure in His redemption through faith are gathered safely into the garner of heaven. But those that are found too light, either on account of their reliance upon their own self-righteousness or because they esteem a mere external church-membership a sufficient guarantee of the joys of heaven, will find themselves subjected to the violent, inextinguishable fire, not only of the judgment, Malachi 4:1, but of hell, Matthew 25:41.

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Verses 13-17

The Baptism of Jesus

The time had now come for Jesus to enter upon His ministry, to be inducted into His office by a public ceremony:

He now came forth from His concealment, while John was at the very height of his evangelistic career. He came down to John, not like the Pharisees and Sadducees, who really all the while rejected God’s counsel against themselves, Luke 7:30, but in an open, friendly manner, to enter into amicable relations with him, and incidentally to receive Baptism at his hands. So far as His coming in itself was concerned, there was no difference between His desire for Baptism and that of the multitudes.

And yet Matthew writes:

This passage is not out of harmony with John 1:31, 33, where John says that he did not know Jesus. The apparent contradiction is in the translation only. In the original the word used signifies “to recognize beyond the possibility of a doubt, to be sure of the identity.” John had known of the existence of the Messiah, either from his mother or by direct revelation, but he did not know Him personally. When Jesus came, the majesty and dignity of His bearing caused John to surmise His identity, hence his hesitancy. But the actual identifying sign, which removed all doubts and made the recognition absolute, did not happen until after the baptism, as John relates in his gospel. In the mean time, John, impressed by the moral exaltation which emanated from the person of his visitor, sought, with some persistence, to dissuade and thus hinder Him from carrying out His intention. He cannot throw off the impression that this man is greater than he, and it behooves the smaller to receive Baptism at the hands of the greater. Well might John wonder as to the reason that actuates Christ in coming and seeking Baptism. “Why does He come and seek Baptism, as there is no sin and uncleanness in Him which Baptism would remove? That will be a blessed baptism. John here is getting a sinner who in His own person has no sin, and yet is the greatest sinner, that has and bears the sin of the whole world. For this reason He permits Himself to be baptized and confesses with this action that He is a sinner. However, not for Himself, but for us. For He here takes my place and thy place and stands in our stead who are sinners, and since all, especially the arrogant saints, do not want to be sinners, He must become a sinner for all; He assumes the form of our sinful flesh and complains, as many psalms testify, on the cross and in His passion, of the weight of the sins which He bears.” [Luther, 7, 691; 11, 2130].

So Jesus overrules John’s objection:

Obedience and fulfilment were the outstanding traits of the Messiah’s vicarious work. In applying these, He could brook no opposition. Every righteous ordinance, all religious usages that were enjoined upon the people, He wanted to fulfil. This Jesus gently, but firmly urged. It was the proper, the right, and the expedient thing to do. And so John acquiesced.

From ancient times the teachers of the Church have found here a wider, larger reference. “Jesus says: … If that shall be performed that the poor sinners may come to righteousness and be saved, you must baptize Me. Because for the sake of sinners I have become a sinner, must therefore do what God has charged the sinners to do, in order that they may become just through Me.” [Luther, 13, 1575; 11, 2139].

The occasion must needs be marked by preternatural accompaniments:

Here was a revelation of the divine essence. As soon as Jesus had been baptized, He at once walked up the bank away from the river. His baptism had been necessary, but the miracle which was now to take place was even more important as manifesting the relationship obtaining between Him and the other persons of the Godhead. In a wonderful manner, causing a surprised exclamation in the evangelist’s narrative, the heavens were opened, a most glorious apparition, since it was an actual happening and not a vision, as in the case of Jacob, Stephen, and others, Genesis 28:12; Acts 7:55-56; Acts 10:11. And he, John, saw the Spirit of God descending in a bodily shape like a dove upon Jesus, John 1:32-34; Luke 3:22. It is an idle speculation to inquire why the dove was chosen, and to find the comparison in the perfect gentleness, purity, and fulness of life of this bird. Let us rather emphasize the fact that God wanted to convey the idea of an unlimited imparting of the Holy Spirit to His Son, according to His human nature, Psalm 45:8; Hebrews 1:9; Acts 10:38. And the marvels were not yet ended. Once more Matthew calls out: Behold! God the Father is now also manifested by a voice from heaven, identifying both Him and the Son. Cp. Isaiah 42:1; Psalm 2:7. This man that was thus plainly distinguished and set apart. from all the rest of the people there present is the true Son of God, beloved of Him in a unique sense. It is an eternal act of loving contemplation with which the Father regards the Son. It is with the consciousness of the Father’s good pleasure, His full and unequivocal consent and blessing, that Christ enters upon His ministry. The Triune God, at the baptism of Jesus, set the seal of His approval upon the work of redemption.

Summary

In the course of John the Baptist’s ministry, during which he had occasion to administer a sharp rebuke to the Pharisees and Sadducees, Jesus also received Baptism at his hands, whereupon there occurred a marvelous revelation of the Triune God.

Verses 1-11

The temptation in the wilderness

Jesus, by His baptism and the accompanying supernatural manifestations, had been formally and publicly inaugurated into His ministry. But He was not to begin His preaching at once:

“Then,” immediately after His baptism, as soon as He had received the extraordinary communication of the Spirit. This same Spirit now filled His humanity and directed His actions, leading Him up, first of all, into the wilderness, causing Him to make the journey into the solitude of the desert, the haunt of wild beasts rather than the abode of men, Mark 1:13. It was a voluntary trip on the part of Jesus, His single concern being to fulfil, in all things, the will of His heavenly Father, Psalm 40:7-8; Hebrews 10: 7, 9, though the weakness of His human nature may have required some urging, Mark 1:12. For the object of this retirement was not merely to afford an opportunity for blessed rest and joy, nor to offer a chance for weighty contemplation as to the methods of revealing Himself to His people after the manner of a Buddha or a Mohammed, but to be tempted of the devil. The entire period of solitary living was occupied with this temptation, Mark 1:13; Luke 4:2. This combating of the devil was a part of the office and work for which He was sent by God and anointed with the Spirit. As the arch-enemy of mankind had tempted and overcome the first Adam, thus plunging the entire human race into condemnation, so he now proposed to vanquish the second Adam by hindering or frustrating the work of redemption. “Led up of the Spirit”: “tempted of the devil” — a powerful contrast!

A severe test, even from the standpoint of Christ’s physical nature:

The expression indicates that it was a spontaneous, voluntary desisting from food, the severity of the trials, the mental preoccupation caused by the temptations, stifling the ordinary desire for nourishment, somewhat after the manner of Moses, Exodus 34:28, and Elijah, 1 Kings 19:8. But this entire abstinence from food, which possibly included also drink, was not in the nature of an ascetic exercise. “That is also the reason why the evangelist at the beginning with great care sets down and says: He was driven into the wilderness by the Spirit that He fast and be tempted there, in order that no one may follow the example from his own choice and make a selfish, self-willed, and assumed fasting out of it, but wait for the Spirit; He will send him enough of fasting and temptation.” [Luther, 11, 534].

Of the many and various assaults which the devil employed during the forty days, Matthew and also Luke mention three incidents which took place at the end of this period. Note that the chronological sequence of the events here narrated is a minor consideration. The evangelist’s chief aim is to picture the cunning manner of the temptation:

The word tempter applied to the devil fittingly describes his evil work, his constant occupation, his ceaseless attacks, Luke 22:31; 1 Thessalonians 3:5. The time and the form of this temptation were chosen with crafty calculation. Hunger naturally diminishes the resistance of the body, both physically and mentally; it enfeebles and irritates the mind and interferes with sound judgment. The wily suggestion might therefore easily find a favorable reception. Even the phrasing of the devil’s insinuation should be noted: in harmony with his character, couched in the form of a question, implying a doubt, both as to the divine sonship of the Savior and as to His ability to provide food for Himself by miraculous means. As though he were saying: “I cannot believe that Thou art the Son of God; give me some proof. Speak, in order that these stones lying about on the desert floor may be turned, by a miracle, into loaves.” To yield to the request would have meant: giving up to the spirit of evil and darkness, lack of trust in the divine Providence and support, letting selfishness rule rather than practising self-sacrifice.

The Savior equal to the occasion:

The most powerful and effective weapon: a simple statement of Scripture truth, Deuteronomy 8:3. Jesus readily concedes the usual order of things, the dependence of man upon food for the ordinary means to live. But He declares that God is not bound by these means, but may support life by a word of His mouth. He thus frankly puts His trust in His Father, depending for the keeping of His earthly life, not on any foolish intermeddling with God’s ways, nor on satanic device and agency, but on the power of His Word alone. And this is true in general. “All creatures are God’s masks and mummeries, whom He will permit to work with Him and help carry out various things, which He otherwise, without their assistance, can do and actually does, in order that we may depend upon His Word alone, thus: If bread be there, that we do not have the more trust; or if none be there, that we on that account do not despair the more; but use it when it is there, and do without when it is not there, in full assurance that we yet live and are nourished at either time through the Word of God, whether there be bread or no bread. With such faith avarice, gluttony, and temporal worry concerning food is vanquished.” [Luther, 11, 539]. “He who would guard himself against such temptation may learn here from Christ that a person has two kinds of bread. The first and best bread, which comes down from heaven, is the Word of God; the other and more unimportant is the earthly bread which grows out of the ground. If, now, I have the first and best, the bread from heaven, and do not permit myself to be diverted therefrom, then the earthly bread will also not fail or remain away, the stones must rather turn to bread.” [Luther, 13, 1687].

Repulsed, but not routed, the devil seeks a new line of attack:

His attempt to produce distrust in God’s ability to sustain life under unusual conditions having failed, Satan tries to plant the seed of self-glorification and presumption in the heart of Jesus. He shows greater boldness, taking the Lord to himself as his companion, practically seizing hold of Him, and carrying Him along to Jerusalem, called by the evangelist, as with affection, the Holy City. Here he set Him on the pinnacle of the Temple. This refers either to the southwest corner of the Temple court, where Herod had erected a gallery of great height, from whose dizzy top the depth of the Kidron Valley below was intensified to the eye, in which case the dangerousness of a leap would have given added force to the devil’s urging; or Matthew has in mind the high roof of the Most Holy Place, the highest elevation of the Temple proper. A daring jump, an ostentatious miracle it would have been if Jesus, in the presence of the assembled multitude, had cast Himself down from this prominent point and reached the ground unharmed. By yielding to the devil at this suggestion, He might in an hour have gained more followers than the entire number of disciples amounted to whom He gathered by the laborious method of teaching.

Having been rendered cautious by his first experience, the enemy determined to ward off a second quotation from Scriptures by quoting a passage in his own favor:

The devil truly can quote Scriptures to his purpose, in the manner peculiar to him, with the omission of an essential part. For in the text referred to, Psalm 91:11-12, the words, “To keep Thee in all Thy ways,” are indispensable for a correct interpretation. It is not in the ways of a man’s own choosing that the protecting hand of God is assured him, but in the ways which agree with the rational order and the laws of the universe.

This is implied in the answer of the Lord. Note that He does not even take the trouble of rebuking Satan for misquoting Scriptures:

He offers, not a contradiction, but a qualification, to emphasize the necessity of explaining Scripture through Scripture. A significant fact: Jesus quotes the passage to which He refers, Deuteronomy 6:16, in the singular, thus making application of its truth to Himself in this instance. The leap from the pinnacle just then would not only have meant seeking escape from the cross at the cost of duty, but it would have been a bold challenge of Providence upon false understanding of the Bible, and so sinful in itself. The Lord’s method of handling the situation must be that of every Christian. “Now, this is such a temptation as no one understands unless he has tried it. For just as the first drives to despair, so this one drives to presumption and to such works as surely do not have God’s word and command. There a Christian should choose the golden mean that he neither despair nor be bold, but remain simply with the Word in true trust and faith. Then shall the good angels be with him; otherwise not.” [Luther, 13, 1690].

And still the devil is not overcome:

Once more the tempter attacks; there is no ceasing in his efforts to destroy God’s work, 1 Peter 5:8. And he has great power, he controls, to some extent, the forces and the wealth of the earth, as a prince of the power of the air, Ephesians 2:2. Cp. John 12:31; John 14:30; John 16:11; Ephesians 6:12. A stratagem of magic the devil here employed, to conjure up the wealth and the glories of all earth’s kingdoms in an alluring, almost irresistibly appealing picture, all in a moment of time, Luke 4:5. The location of the exceeding high mountain here referred to is immaterial, also the question whether the picture was a physical demonstration or a mental suggestion. The main fact in Matthew’s narrative is the refined subtlety, but also the extreme denseness of the tempter:

For an ordinary human being no proposition, in itself, could have been more attractive. What a dazzling picture of absolute sway over the world and possession of its glory was here offered to the lowly and rejected descendant of David! But what folly to presume upon the unlimited disposition of the wealth and grandeur of the world in the presence of Him who of right holds all the nations of the earth as His inheritance and the utmost ends of the world as His possession! The condition of Satan demanding homage to him as the superior was therefore almost naively awkward. But he staked all on this last powerful appeal to worldly ambition, involving the wilful yielding to the most heinous form of idolatry.

Jesus meets the insult with proper dignity:

Here Jesus rises in the power of His supreme authority, and passionately repels the Satanic suggestion. In the Greek we have here a single word: Begone! Out of My sight! It is a peremptory command. It terminates the disagreeable companionship which the devil had thrust upon the Lord. He applies the epithet “Satan” to the tempter, that is, adversary, enemy, 1 Kings 11:14; Psalm 109:6, since he not only interferes with Christ’s Messianic work, but is, from the beginning, the arch-enemy of all mankind. Yet He condescends to support His majestic dismissal with a Scripture text, Deuteronomy 6:13, adapting it to the present circumstances. Jehovah alone is worthy of honor and glory and adoration; to Him only shall the ministering of divine service, of religious veneration, be made.

This last demonstration of almighty authority decided the day:

The enemy’s rout was complete, the glorious supremacy of the Lord, not only over man, but also over the spiritual world, had been established. For a season, at least, the devil departed from Him, Luke 4:13. And angels came and acted as His servants, not primarily in bringing Him food, but in giving Him the assurance of the sympathetic understanding and the heavenly support which He now enjoyed on the part of all good spirits, thus ministering to Him with a comfort destined to sustain Him in the days to come. All Christians should take note: “This, however, is written for our consolation, that we know many angels serve us, whereas only one devil tempts us; if we but fight gallantly and stand, God will not let us suffer want. Rather must the angels come from heaven and become our bakers, waiters, and cooks, and serve us in every necessity. It is not written for the sake of Christ, who is not in need of it. If the angels have ministered unto Him, let them also serve us…. We should therefore be well equipped with God’s Word, in order that we may defend and sustain ourselves with it. Our dear Lord Jesus Christ, who Himself conquered these temptations for our sakes, give us strength that through Him we may overcome and be saved.” [Luther, 11, 545; 13, 1693].

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Verses 12-25

The beginning of the Galilean ministry and the call of the four

With a few rapid strokes the evangelist now sketches the opening of the Messianic work of Christ in Galilee. He is not so much concerned about offering a chronological sequence of events as about grouping the incidents so as to present a continuous narrative. He here omits the return of Jesus to the Jordan, John 1:35, His journey to Galilee, John 1:41, the marriage at Cana, the trip to Capernaum and that to Jerusalem before the imprisonment of John, and His ministry in Samaria, John 3-4. He gives a summary of Christ’s varied activities in the North by way of introduction:

In his usual fearless manner, John the Baptist had felt no hesitation about reproving Herod Antipas, the ethnarch of Galilee and Perea, for his adulterous union with Herodias, his niece and already the wife of his half-brother, Herod Philip. The consequence was that the enraged princess caused his imprisonment, Luke 3:19-20; Mark 6:17. John’s last field of activity had been in Aenon, John 3:23, and he probably had extended his labors into Galilee. When the mouth of this faithful witness had been silenced, Jesus knew that the time had come for Him openly to enter upon His work as prophet. His ministry in Galilee began when the Baptist’s came to an end, John 3:30.

His home town naturally came first:

The unpleasant reception which was accorded Him at Nazareth, Luke 4:16-30, caused Him to make His stay there very brief. He went to settle, to make His home, in Capernaum, which appears throughout the gospel accounts as the center of the Lord’s Galilean ministry. It was a thriving city on the Sea of Galilee, on the great road from Damascus to the Mediterranean Sea. In fulfilment of Christ’s prophecy, Matthew 11:23, this commercial metropolis was later so utterly destroyed that its very site in a region of ruined towns is doubtful, Tell Hum being now commonly conceded to have been the ancient location. [Barton, Archeology and the Bible, 98].

The evangelist locates the city only sufficiently exactly to pave the way for another prophetic reference:

What Isaiah had written, Isaiah 8:22; Isaiah 9:1-2, found its fulfilment in the ministry of Jesus in this region. Here the tribes Zebulun and Naphthali had formerly had their homes; their country lay towards or alongside of the sea; it was a place where races mix, a border population, mainly on this side, the west side of the Jordan, according to Hebrew usage of the word, or beyond Jordan, according to the Greek usage, containing a reference to Perea, which was also a scene of Christ’s activity. Of this mixed population of Jews and Gentiles, in whose midst the Greek rulers had founded new cities with heathen customs and institutions, the evangelist says, in applying the words of the prophet, that they sat in darkness. The spiritual condition of the people was such as to represent an increase in religious blindness even over the time of Isaiah, nearly 700 years before. And the evangelist repeats the verb “sat.” Theirs was an indifferent, sluggish attitude. The shadow of spiritual death had enveloped them. It effectually shut out the light of life streaming from the Old Testament prophecies. But now “Jesus Christ, the true Light, shone forth in the beauty of holiness and truth. Christ began His ministry in Galilee and frequented this uncultivated place more than He did Jerusalem and other parts of Judea. Here His preaching was peculiarly needful; and by this was the prophecy fulfilled.” [Clarke, Commentary, 5, 60].

The form of Christ’s message was familiar to the people:

It had been uttered by John the Baptist in his urgent appeal for a change of heart. But with Jesus it had a greater significance. He must needs preach repentance in order to prepare the way for the proclamation of salvation. He acted, not as a guide to a distant and coming salvation, but as the herald of the kingdom of grace now at hand in Himself. His plea was for a change from the old to the new, from the prophecy and type to the fulfilment. In this way the day-star arose in Christ and His Gospel, and had now begun to shine upon those that were covered with darkness, in order that they might see this light and rejoice in its merciful illumination and warmth.

The calling of disciples one of Christ’s first official acts:

The Sea of Galilee, also called Lake Gennesaret, Luke 5:1, and Sea of Tiberias, John 21:1, is a small body of water formed by the river Jordan, having an average length of thirteen and an average width of about seven miles. Its water is fresh and clear, and contains an abundance of fish. The hills on its western shore are low and calcareous in nature; the mountains rising along the eastern shore are much more prominent. Jesus deliberately followed the path along the shore out from Capernaum, attended by a great multitude that insisted upon His preaching to them, Luke 5:1. It was then that He saw Simon, whom He had called Cephas at the first meeting, John 1:42, the Aramaic equivalent of Peter, and his brother Andrew, of Bethsaida, plying their trade as fishermen. Both of these men were not unknown to the Lord, having been with Him in the plains of the Jordan, John 1:40-42, and later at Cana. Having come with Jesus into the neighborhood of their home, they had returned to their old occupation. At His word also they cast their nets into the sea for the miraculous draft, Luke 5:4-6.

But the Lord had need of them:

This was not a request for mere companionship, but an authoritative, though genial call to apostleship, couched in language which would appeal to their unlearned minds. They had been His disciples, but without special obligation as to attending Him; they were now chosen as His steady followers, to be trained for their great and high calling. “That was the beginning and the first call, namely, to hear the Gospel of Christ the Lord. For should they preach to others, they must first hear and learn it. Afterward, when they should preach to others, the Lord calls them by another call and gives them command how and wherein they should comport themselves, Matthew 10.” [Luther, 11, 1910]. Jesus calls them, most appropriately, “fishers of men,” since He wanted to train them to gain immortal souls for heaven, though they were but simple, unlearned men, “in order that the power and strength of God be indicated in this that He began such a great work with such lowly, simple people, and also performs it; in order that every one should understand that this is not done out of human power, but out of divine power and might.” [Luther, 11, 1917]. In this way their secular employment served as the emblem of their spiritual calling. How deeply the presence and teaching of Christ had impressed these poor Galilean fishermen appears from the fact that there was no hesitation, no conferring with flesh and blood. At once they left their nets, gave up their earthly calling, forsook all, and followed Him, became His disciples and theological students.

Others joined them on the same day:

This occurred in the same neighborhood as the event just recorded and in immediate conjunction with it, Luke 5:10. John had probably been among those that followed Jesus at the Jordan, John 1:35-40, and had, in the mean time, also told his older brother James of his wonderful experience. Therefore, although they were busily engaged with the routine of their calling, and although the call of Jesus implied the severing of family ties, there was just as little hesitation on their part. The honor of serving their Lord, even in poverty and humility, outweighs any and all temporal considerations.

With these men, as the nucleus of a loyal band of disciples, Jesus now entered upon His Galilean ministry, of which Matthew here gives a summary, in the form of an introduction to the succeeding chapters:

All of Galilee was His field of activity, not only Upper Galilee with its fertile valleys, but also Lower Galilee with its many prosperous villages dotting the landscape. In His journeyings back and forth Jesus was busily engaged, continually active, in the three functions of His ministry. He taught in the synagogs, or schools, of the Jews, principally by expounding the Old Testament; He preached the Gospel of the kingdom, the glorious news of the Messianic redemption; He healed the sick, not merely by mental suggestion, as many would have it, but by deliberate application of His divine power, for every form of disease and ailment was represented.

The result was natural:

Throughout the Syrian country, most likely along the road frequented by caravans, the accounts of the Lord’s miraculous powers were spread. And so all those that were tormented or afflicted with any kind of ailment were brought to Christ by their relatives or friends. There is a formal catalog of diseases. There were minor painful disorders that required the touch of His healing hand. There were demoniacs, such as were subject to disease through the influence of unclean spirits; there were lunatics, or epileptics, upon whom changes in the sidereal bodies, especially the phases of the moon, had an ill effect; there were paralytics, those that were palsied as the result of nervous disorders and atmospheric changes. And of them all the evangelist has the same to say, telling it in just three words: “He healed them.” The power of the sickness had to yield before the omnipotence of the divine Healer.

With His fame grew the number of His followers:

The extraordinary impression which this Prophet of Nazareth created was not confined to Galilee. People came from Decapolis, the southern part of Gaulanitis, southeast of Lake Gennesaret, whose population was predominantly Grecian. They thought nothing of the long journey from the extreme South, from haughty Judea, from exclusive Jerusalem, from far-distant Perea, beyond the Jordan from Judea. All wanted to see and hear the man whose miracles were astounding the nation.

Summary

Jesus, having successfully withstood the temptation of the devil after His forty-day fast, entered upon His Galilean ministry of teaching, preaching, and healing, Peter, Andrew, James, and John being His first disciples.

Verses 1-12

The beatitudes

The section of Matthew’s Gospel included in chapters 5-7 is one of the most beautiful and impressive in the entire New Testament. In the simplest language, but with singular force and pertinency Jesus here gave a summary of His moral teaching, the doctrine “of the fruits and good works of a Christian,” as Luther writes. For the Sermon on the Mount is not the proclamation of the Gospel, but preaching of the Law. To awaken and promote the realization and the sense, not only of comparative weakness and insufficiency in spiritual matters, but of a total and utter inability to think and speak and act in conformity with the holy will of God; to bring about the humiliating, but incidentally the most blessed conviction as to one’s being wretched, and miserable, and poor, and blind, and naked in spiritual things, Revelation 3:17; and to teach the regenerated that without Him we can do nothing, and thus lead them on the way of true sanctification: that was the object of Christ in delivering this wonderful sermon.

The time and place for this great lesson were chosen by Jesus with particular care. He had spent the night in prayer on a mountain and had then separated twelve of His disciples to be apostles, Luke 6:12-16. He was now on His way to the valley:

The people were crowding to Him in increasing numbers. They came to hear Him, they insisted upon touching Him, to be healed of various diseases, Luke 6:17-19. To get away from the crowds below, whose eagerness threatened to overwhelm Him, Jesus ascended the mountain once more. Its name and location would be interesting for sentimental reasons only. On the higher slopes of the hill the people had no chance to throng Him:

Not only the apostles, though they were surely in the front ranks, but His disciples in general, now become a considerable band, gathered about Him. To them His discourse was chiefly addressed, though the others were by no means excluded. Here was an ideal location to give instruction without distraction, far from the din of the jostling crowd, above the bustle and the sultry heat of the region below.

A solemn and dramatic description of the beginning of a weighty discourse:

It was a confidential, awe-inspiring communication of the great Teacher which the evangelist records, Job 3:1; Daniel 10:16; Psalm 78:2. A well-prepared, carefully outlined discourse is given, in which reference to existing deplorable conditions was made with utter fearlessness. “That also, as stated above, belongs to a preacher that he does not keep his mouth closed, and not only publicly performs his office that every one must keep silence and permit him to come forth as one that has divine right and command, but also opens his mouth cheerfully and confidently, that is, to preach the truth and what is committed to him; not keep silence or speak indistinctly, but without dread and terror confess and speak plainly, without regarding or sparing any one’s person, let it strike whom or what it will.” [Luther, 11, 353. 354. cf. 7, 350-677] Jesus taught them, not only His disciples, but all whom His voice would reach. It was teaching that He gave them, not preaching; Jesus is here the Master and Teacher, not the Evangelist and Prophet.

His first words strike the key-note of the entire discourse:

The reference of Jesus here is not primarily to temporal poverty, to earthly misery, as in other passages of the New Testament, 1 Corinthians 1:26-28; James 2:5. He is speaking of the poor and miserable “in spirit,” those that shrink and cower with fear and dread, that are tremblingly alive to the wants and needs of their soul, that feel in their own heart, so far as spiritual riches are concerned, nothing but a great void, a despair of their own abilities, Matthew 11:5, 28; Isaiah 61:1; Isaiah 62:2; Psalm 70:5. Such as these, who are conscious, painfully aware, of their moral deficiencies, the Lord calls blessed, happy. If they were still under the mistaken impression that they were spiritually rich and wanted nothing, they might deceive themselves into a false security which would prevent their gaining the true riches, the only abiding happiness. But as conditions are, no false pride will keep them from accepting the unsearchable riches of the kingdom of heaven, which are theirs by grace. For the kingdom of heaven is the sum total of all the gifts of God in Christ Jesus as they are enjoyed here on earth in the Christian Church and finally above, in the kingdom of glory. This being true, and the riches of the kingdom being even now in their possession, the disciples should strive all the more diligently to cultivate the poverty which the Lord here praises, and to exercise themselves in it daily.

Closely connected with this thought is the next:

The disciples are subject to conditions and circumstances which cause, which bring about, mourning, Luke 6:21, 25; John 16:20; Acts 14:22. But the chief reason for their lamenting lies in the fact that they feel their spiritual poverty, grieving over the barrenness of their carnal nature, that separates them from the fountain of blessedness. This grief on account of the absence, because of the loss of spiritual possessions, is a deep and burdensome sorrow. It realizes, in keen repentance, sin and its results, both in him who grieves and in others. Its evil effects, however, shall be prevented lest they lead into despair. “As also Christ places just these words, and promises the consolation that they do not despair in their grief, nor let their heart’s joy be taken entirely and extinguished, but mingle such mourning with the comfort and refreshment; otherwise, if they never had any comfort or joy, they would have to become faint and withered.” [Luther, 7, 368] And therefore they will be comforted. Their bitter sorrow will be converted into ultimate, abounding consolation and gladness, Romans 14:17. The very Messianic kingdom with its message of hope is called the comfort of Israel, Luke 2:25.

These two conditions form the prerequisite for the third beatitude:

Their heart is not filled with self-righteousness, pride, and conceit. They are bowed down with grief, and therefore are ready and willing to endure with a meek spirit, Psalm 37:11. To suffer and to bear uncomplainingly is their characteristic; there is no obstinate arrogance in their behavior. “For it will not fail to be forthcoming: thy neighbor will sometimes maltreat thee or otherwise overstep the bounds, either inadvertently or deliberately. If it be inadvertently, thou on thy part wilt not make it good by thy refusal or inability to bear it. But if it be malice, thou wilt but make him worse by hostile pawing and stamping; while he laughs and satisfies his desire to provoke thee to anger and do thee harm, in order that thou mayest have no peace nor enjoy what is thine with quietness.” [Luther, 7, 372]. The disciples of Christ, however, with meek and tender hearts, will be blessed and happy, since they have the promise of the earth as their inheritance. This statement, in its paradoxical form, is most startling. The expression, as the Lord uses it, cannot be referred to spiritual gifts only, though these doubtless are included. Jesus emphasizes the fact that meekness, by God’s will, is a “world-conquering principle.” As rightful lords of creation those whom the promise of Christ here concerns shall use God’s temporal gifts with a good conscience, 1 Corinthians 3:22, and be sure that God’s bounty will provide. “The expression ‘inherit the earth’ here means to possess all manner of goods here on earth. Not that each one should occupy a whole country, otherwise God would have to create more worlds, but the goods which God confers upon every one, that He gives him wife, children, cattle, house, home, and what belongs thereto, that he may remain definitely in the land where he lives and be master of his possessions, as Scripture commonly says.” [Luther, 7, 369].

Having named a few negative virtues, the Lord next mentions some positive qualifications which should characterize His disciples:

This righteousness is not that of Christ, imputed by faith, in which case this one sentence of Gospel would be out of place in the admonitions concerning the life and behavior of His followers. It is the external righteousness before the world, the piety of life which He here urges. “Therefore understand here the external righteousness before the world, as we comport ourselves one toward another. That this, briefly and simply, is the meaning of these words: That is a truly blessed person that always continues and with all his might strives after this, that all things everywhere be in proper order and every person do right, and helps to hold and further such a condition with words and deeds, with counsel and action.” [Luther, 7, 373]. The disciples of Christ should hunger and thirst, be extremely eager for the possession of such piety, in order to receive the blessing of a full and complete satisfaction. This is God’s reward of mercy for virtue, not only the happy conviction of things well done, but, according to His will, also temporal recompense, Psalm 37:25; Isaiah 3:10; Proverbs 11:18-19; Proverbs 14:34, and finally an acknowledgment of the virtue in heaven, Psalm 36:9; Revelation 7:16; Psalm 17:15.

One of the chief proofs of the Christian’s piety is mercy:

A heart filled with deep sympathy and sincere compassion for the temporal and spiritual need of the neighbor, that is deeply concerned for, and earnestly endeavors to do good to, all men, especially such as are of the household of faith, is well-pleasing to the Lord. And all the efforts thus made, insignificant as they may seem even in the Christian’s own estimation, will receive, as a reward of mercy, the compassion of God Himself.

But hypocritical behavior will not stand the test of His scrutiny:

A mere outward purity in keeping the ceremonial injunctions of the Law is not sufficient in the economy of God. He desires such hearts as keep themselves pure, unsullied with the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, Isaiah 1:16; James 4:8; 2 Corinthians 6:17. But this purity finds its expression also in single-mindedness of purpose which throws off every restraining, distracting thought and seeks the Lord and His kingdom with undivided heart, Philippians 2:12. Happy, blessed are they that are found practising such purity, for their reward again outstrips their fondest hopes. Even in this life they shall see God with the eyes of the spirit, lifting them up, in joyful confidence, to the God of their salvation, Isaiah 17:7; Micah 7:7; Psalm 25:15. But the very essence of heavenly bliss will be the seeing of God face to face in the life to come, Psalm 17:15; Psalm 42:3; Job 19:27.

A third positive Christian virtue, reflecting the perfection of Christ Himself:

The disciples of Jesus are children of peace: they not merely have peace in their own souls through purity, they are not merely peace-loving, but they are active, strenuous promoters of peace in the midst of a world torn asunder by hatred, party interest, and every form of alienation, Romans 12:18; Psalm 34:15; Mark 9:50; 2 Timothy 2:22; Hebrews 12:14. In using their best offices in the interest of assuaging passions, of settling sectional strife, they prove themselves true children of God, who has only thoughts of peace toward all men. This is their reward of grace: God is their Father, Christ is their Brother, heaven is their heritage, their home, 1 Peter 3:10-11; Isaiah 57:2.

It is inevitable that the reproach of Christ will strike the disciples in their endeavor to follow these rules, and so Jesus adds:

In living these principles of Jesus and thus confessing Christ before men, the righteousness of the Christians’ lives tends to make them conspicuous before men, to make them seem different from, morally cleaner than, the others. And therefore the children of the world will resent this aloofness, construing their attitude as a criticism of their own behavior. The hatred of the world because of this belief results in persecution, John 15:19. The consolation of the followers of Christ, in that case, is that the various evidences of hatred which they must endure will be more than outweighed by their heritage, the kingdom of heaven.

Jesus applies this to His immediate disciples:

These are a few of the forms in which the hatred of the enemies will be likely to manifest itself. It is a persistent, continuous persecution by word and deed, especially hard to bear because of malicious lies which implied, and accused the disciples of, all manner of evil. There are two facts that serve to console them. The statements thus made are deliberate lies due entirely to violent prejudice. And the hatred of men strikes them for His name’s sake. It is a distinction, an honor, to suffer in His interest, because they bear His name.

In spite of the persecutions, then:

Joy, gladness in the highest measure is possible, an irrepressible exhibition of exultation is expected of Christ’s followers. For all the hatred that can be poured out by the enemies cannot be measured against, cannot come into consideration in comparison with, the reward of grace in heaven. They will be more than amply repaid for all the disagreeable show of hatred which they were compelled to endure here, Romans 8:17-18; 2 Corinthians 4:17. Another comfort which upholds them in their trial: they thereby become, in that respect at least, the equals of the prophets. It cannot be a source of lasting sorrow to endure for a time, knowing that the prophets of old were martyred in the same way, and yet endured the afflictions gladly for His name’s sake, 2 Chronicles 36:16; Hebrews 11:33-40. Therefore, take up the work and endure the suffering of those that were before you, knowing that their reward will be yours also. [Cp. Lehre und Wehre, 1913, Mai-Juli].

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Verses 13-16

The chief functions of the disciples in the world

The Lord continues to address His disciples directly:

Having experienced the sanctifying power of the Word and Spirit of Jesus, the disciples are a salt. Note the four main qualities of salt: It is white and pure, it prevents rapid decay, it preserves nutriment and flavor, it renders the food palatable and healthy. The Christians are the salt of the earth; their business is to prevent its decay and putrefaction, to use every effort that the moral rottenness of the children of the world does not become excessive and render every class and age of society putrid by its infection, 1 Corinthians 15:33. This is not an easy task. But “our defiance, when things go badly, and when the world and the devil give us evil looks, and are as angry as they wish, is this, that He says to us: Ye are the salt of the earth. Where this word shines into the heart that it puts its trust in that and glories without doubting that we are God’s salt, then let every one be thoroughly angry that will not laugh. I can and may put more defiance and boasting upon a single word of His than they upon their might, swords, and guns.” [Luther, 7, 406]. If this salt now loses its flavor, it becomes insipid. This is true only of salt that undergoes a chemical process, either by being exposed to rain or by being stored for some length of time, as travelers from the Holy Land report. The figure of Christ is thus particularly apt. Insipid, saltless salt is really a contradiction in itself, and Christians that have lost their distinctive properties have ceased to influence their surroundings for good, have also lost their discipleship. As savorless salt has no value whatever and is treated as refuse; as a certain species of bituminous salt found in Judea which very rapidly became flat and tasteless was spread out in a court of the Temple to prevent slipping in wet weather, so the Christians that have ceased to apply themselves to their business of acting as a moral power in the world, will partake of the judgment of the world. Luther probably is right in saying: “Therefore I have always admonished, as Christ also does here, that salt remain salt and not become insipid, that is, that the chief article of faith be urged. For if that ceases, then not one piece can remain, and everything is lost; there is neither faith nor understanding, and no one can teach or counsel properly any more.” [Luther, 7, 413].

The same admonition under a different figure:

Christ is, strictly speaking, the only true light of the world, John 8:12; John 9:5; John 12:35. But His disciples partake of His nature; they are a light in and through Him; they receive their illumination as well as their power to give light to others from Him, 1 Thessalonians 5:5; Philippians 2:15; Ephesians 5:8. Their illumination, like His, is therefore not confined to their immediate neighborhood, but is supposed to extend to the ends of the world. So self-evident is this thought that Christ merely refers to a fact well known to His hearers. Many cities of the Holy Land, probably some of the smaller ones visible from the hill where they were assembled, were located on prominent elevations, and all Jews were familiar with Mount Zion. Cities thus situated could not be hid, they were the most conspicuous objects in the entire landscape. The Christians, by virtue of their discipleship, are like such a light, like such a city. Their very difference makes them marked people. That is as it should be, that agrees with the nature and with the object of their calling. To light a candle or a light, one of the small lamps used in Palestine, and then to place it under an overturned measure, a modius, an earthenware grain measure holding a little more than a peck, might be done occasionally for special reasons. But the purpose of such kindling was evidently another. The lamp should be placed on a stand, a small projecting stone in the wall in the cottages of the poor, or a lamp-stand in the form of a tripod, which could easily be moved about in the house. Then only can a lamp serve its purpose, namely, to illumine the house.

Jesus Himself applies the parable:

The policy of obscuration, of hiding beliefs and convictions, is often urged by lukewarm Christians, so-called “reasons of prudence and wisdom: gradual accustoming of men to new ideas; deferences to the prejudices of good men; avoidance of rupture by premature outspokenness; but generally the true reason is fear of unpleasant consequences to oneself.” [Expositor’s Greek Testament, 1, 103]. To think and act thus is deliberate disloyalty to Christ. Your light, given to you from above, not to be used according to expediency, but to shine; your light, not you, the object being not to make your person prominent, but your Christianity. The Christians, individually and collectively, should perform this task as their steady work. For the light which shall be thrown out from them in every direction, before all men, consists in their good works, the fruits of their regeneration, the proof of their being illuminated by Jesus. These should be seen by the people for a definite reason. All men that come in contact with their works shall be forced to draw conclusions as to the power that inspires them. And so the glory, the honor will be placed where it properly and exclusively belongs, will be given to the Father in heaven. This fact renders the admonition urgent by giving to it its real basis. Faith is the lamp; love is the light; the good works are the illumination. As little as the lamp can pride itself upon its light, so little can the Christians glory in their good works; all glory must be God’s.

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Verses 17-37

Christ confirms and expounds the law of Moses

Good works Jesus has just urged. He now proceeds to give a definition of good works from the Law. He makes clear His position with regard to the Law:

The teaching of the Kingdom, the Gospel which He came to proclaim, is a doctrine radically different from the teaching of Moses. But it does not invalidate the demands of the moral law as taught by Moses, it does not substitute a new moral law. Jesus rather emphasizes its proper understanding, and for that reason takes great pains to explain its spiritual content. He wants to fulfil, to bring out fully, the real import, to counteract the influence of the shallow, superficial explanation then in common use; and then to render a perfect obedience to the Law. He who might abrogate all its demands, who has power to modify any of its injunctions, places Himself under the Law, Galatians 4:4, and, by fulfilling its every letter, cancels the law of the letter. And He fulfils the prophets. Whatever, in the revelation of the Old Testament, is type and prophecy, finds its completion, its realization in Christ the Redeemer, Colossians 2:17.

Note the emphasis of His assertion:

With a solemn oath Christ here affirms that the Law shall be retained also in the Church of the New Testament in the unabridged exercise of its strength. The whole Old Testament is a divine revelation, and so its minutest precept has religious significance which should find recognition and proper understanding in the New. So long as the earth shall stand, the sacredness of the Scripture of olden times shall remain so absolutely unimpaired that not even an iota, the smallest letter of the Hebrew alphabet, nor a tittle, the slight projecting point on some of its letters, shall fall to the ground. There is here a gleam of Gospel glory in the midst of the proclamation of the Law, implying a fulfilment which was to be made, and was in fact made, in and through the person of Jesus Christ.

In the mean time all men should know:

Here is a conclusion. Since the above is Christ’s view, He is bound to take His stand with reference to the transgressors of that rule. He that dissolves, abrogates, sets aside even those commandments that seem small and of little import, he that disregards as much as one of the little horns or hooks, whose presence or absence may, indeed, change the meaning of an entire passage, falls under Christ’s sentence of condemnation, he is declared to be the least in the kingdom of heaven. The sincerity of his convictions will not be accepted as an excuse, and his fault will only be made greater by his extending the false opinion he holds by means of teaching. He shall be called the least, he shall be rejected in this kingdom, he shall be excluded from its glories. On the other hand, he that teaches in entire conformity with the Old Testament, that preaches not only the Gospel, but the Law in its great purpose of preparing the hearts, that keeps silence with regard to nothing, that does not add thereto nor take therefrom, he shall have a great name in the kingdom of heaven, he shall receive the reward of faithfulness. For this teaching is essential in educating men as to the true righteousness of life, in holding up before the Christians a proper rule of conduct.

How strongly this feature is brought out by the contrast:

Not in the teachers of the people as they were then acknowledged, but only in Himself there would be the perfect realization of teaching and doing. The scribes were the accepted teachers of the Law, and many of them were members of the sect, or party, of the Pharisees. The chief accusation which Christ brought against these people is recorded in many passages of the Gospels; cp. Matthew 23. The feature of their doctrine and life was this, that they set aside the great for the little, the divine for the sake of the traditional. The result was a slavish observing of externals, which gave them a great show of piety before the people, an impression which they were very cafeful to nourish. So far as the great majority of these sectarians was concerned, their hearts were far from true piety and righteousness of the heart, which seeks, in true love of one’s neighbor, to do the will of God in word and deed. Wherever such is the case, there is no faith, and therefore no idea of entering into the kingdom of heaven.

The Lord now proceeds to prove His condemning statement by expounding a few of the commandments of the Law according to their full spiritual significance:

They were accustomed to hear this in the regular synagog services, where the reading of the Law was never omitted. It was said both to them of old time, Exodus 20:13; Deuteronomy 5:17; Genesis 9:5-6, and by them of old time, in the precepts delivered by tradition from father to son as well as by the teachers of the people, 2 Chronicles 17:7-9, but the addition, fixing the penalty, was made in the interpretation of the rabbis. But by this explanation the meaning of “kill” was restricted to actual murder, and the commandment of God became a mere external legal enactment. The end of the transgression was penalized, but the beginning, in desires, in thoughts, in words, was not restrained. “Behold, that is the beautiful holiness of the Pharisees, which can cleanse itself, and remain pious, so long as it does not kill with the hand, though the heart be filled with anger, hatred, and envy, the tongue also with cursing and blaspheming.” [Luther, 7, 429].

Christ’s exposition is not so narrow:

The statement of the Lord is very general: Every one, none excepted; it is a universal prohibition of angry passion. He that gives way to such wrath is guilty of judgment, of condemnation. Anger against a brother, any member of the human family, is a deadly sin. It should properly come under the jurisdiction of the council or court, Deuteronomy 16:18; 2 Chronicles 19:5. This is speaking relatively. The person that gives way to anger is as great an offender in God’s sight as the one that slays his brother in cold blood, Galatians 5:20; Colossians 3:8; James 1:19-20. The same condemnation, but with greater emphasis, falls upon him that cannot control his anger, permitting it to burst forth in maledictions. Raca is an Aramaic word meaning an empty head, a stupid. The one using angry epithets of this nature is guilty of the Sanhedrin, the supreme council of the Jews that tried the worst offenses and inflicted the severest penalties. Anger that is not quickly controlled will become hatred combined with contempt, and freely indulge in railing, 1 Peter 3:9. A still greater insult lies in the epithet, “Thou fool,” which was used to denote a good-for-nothing, hopeless, helpless, morally worthless fool, and expressed contempt for a man’s heart and character. This expression of utter disregard of the fellow-man’s position in the eyes of God is an offense equal to that of murder, it is a damnable sin, 1 John 3:15; Revelation 21:8. It is punishable by the fire of Hinnom, the valley where the refuse of Jerusalem was burned — a figure often used by Jesus in speaking of the punishment of hell-fire.

Jesus presents the positive side of His exposition:

The forgiving attitude is pictured from a happening which was very frequent among the Jews, with which they were thoroughly familiar. A Jew might bring his Corban, his gift, used of every kind of bloody and unbloody sacrifice which was brought to the Temple, Matthew 8:4; Matthew 15:5; Matthew 23:8. But in the very act of handing it to the officiating priest at the altar there comes the remembrance. It suddenly flashes into his mind that he has been guilty of an act or a word which might have provoked a brother. The natural way of dealing with the situation might seem to be to keep on with the worship, get through as quickly as possible, and then hurry to make peace with the offended. But Christ tells us to interrupt our worship and go on the errand of seeking forgiveness first, though it may seem profane to do so. It is more important that the heart be free from anxiety for a brother’s peace of mind than that an external rite be performed: mercy before sacrifice. There will be plenty of time for sacrificing afterward. Cp. Isaiah 58:4-7.

The same truth in a different parable:

The picture is that of a debtor on the way to court with his creditor, Deuteronomy 21:18; Deuteronomy 25:1, who is his adversary, but probably might be found willing to come to terms outside of court. The advice is that the debtor be in a very conciliatory mood, ready and eager to straighten out the difficulty without litigation. In case a settlement would not be effected in this manner, the danger would be that the adversary, losing all patience, would deliver and even forcibly drag the debtor before the judge, secure a favorable decision, have this carried out by the officer of the court, and have the satisfaction of seeing him taken to prison. All hopes of obtaining mercy would then be shattered. For even the last quadrans, the fourth part of a Roman assarion, which was worth not quite two cents, would be demanded of him. Payment would be exacted to the last fraction of a penny. A very earnest admonition not to wait or hesitate about coming to terms with our adversary, with any one whom we owe reconciliation. The brief period of life is soon behind us, and the implacable that refused to agree will find in the Lord an equally implacable Judge.

A lesson from the Sixth Commandment:

The Sixth Commandment had indeed been given to “them of old time,” Exodus 20:14; Deuteronomy 5:18. But it was understood by the Jewish teachers of the sin in deed only, of the deliberate unfaithfulness of those joined in wedlock, or the carnal intercourse of the unmarried. Many rabbis expressly stated that the evil thought should not be regarded on a level with the sinful act [Tholuck, Bergrede Christi, on v.27]. Christ’s explanation opens the deeper meaning of the commandment. He finds the beginning of adultery in the deliberate nourishing of the awakening lust of the heart. A woman may be seen, come within the range of vision of a man, and there is no wrong in the act. Ordinary human intercourse would be impossible without it. But when the look turned upon any woman, married or unmarried, is deliberate and intentional, conscious and persistent, as on a person of the opposite sex, and this is followed by an impure desire of coveting her for immoral purposes, then adultery has in fact been committed, although the sin is hidden deeply in the heart.

Christ’s advice to the tempted:

The right eye and the right hand are named as prominent members in the actual committing of sin, through which the evil desire of the heart finds its expression. They are represented as the organs of temptation. According to popular view, they are the members that offend, that incite to the actual commission of sin. Therefore, symbolically speaking, these members and all the members of the body must be controlled, if necessary, by an absolute and painful renunciation. Better to be without individual organs and members of the body than have the whole body condemned. Christ speaks figuratively, and His words must be understood in the spiritual sense; for mutilation evidently may prevent the outward act, but will not kill the desire. Every member of the body shall be so controlled and governed by the sanctified will that it will not yield to sin, thus bringing the whole body into condemnation. Jesus again uses the figure of the perpetual fires of the valley of Hinnom, where the waste and refuse of the city of Jerusalem was burned, for the punishment of hell. “This, then, is the meaning: If you feel that you look upon a woman with evil lust, then pluck that eye or vision out as being contrary to God’s commandment, not of the body, but of the heart from which the burning and desire proceeds, then have you torn it out rightly. For when the evil lust is out of the heart, then the eye will also not sin nor offend you, and you will look upon the same woman with the same eyes of your body, but without desire, and it will be as though you had not seen her. For no longer is that eye there which was there before, which is called an eye of burning or desire, although the eye of the body remains uninjured.” [Luther, 7, 448].

A further illustration:

The form in which Jesus here speaks indicates that He disapproves of their literal interpretation of the permission granted by Moses, Deuteronomy 24:1. The Mosaic law was given in the interest of the woman, to give her at least some show of right. But the Jewish doctors, concerned only about the outward form and about getting the bill of separation into due legal shape, permitted a license which was soon carried to scandalous and criminal excesses. Pouncing upon the phrase: “She find no favor in his eyes,” they permitted divorces when a man found a handsomer woman, when he was displeased with his wife’s cooking, when he did not find her manners agreeable. Only the bill or letter of separation must be made out, that formality was insisted upon. But such a deliberate breaking of the marriage-tie, though it be sanctioned by the civil courts, has no validity before God. The Lord recognizes only one reason for divorce, when there is a plain case of unfaithfulness, of adultery, of any unlawful intercourse of a married person with any other person but the lawful spouse. In this case a divorce may be secured, but is not commanded. “We neither command nor hinder such divorce, but leave it to the government to act…. But to give advice to such as want to be Christians, it would be far better to admonish and urge both parties to stay together, and that the innocent spouse be reconciled to the guilty one (if this one were humble and willing to amend) and forgive in Christian love.” [Luther, 7, 452]. If any other reason is alleged and the divorce brought about, adultery is committed, both by the complainant, in severing the marriage-tie, and by the accused that permits the frivolous dissolution. In the same way he that marries a woman divorced from her lawful husband, to whom she still belongs before God, is an adulterer in the eyes of the Lord.

An illustration from the Second Commandment:

Jesus introduces the subject as before, referring to the customary reading of the Law and the accompanying teaching. The implication of Christ is that the people were really kept under a false impression, by being permitted to draw the conclusion that they were listening to the exact words of Moses. The words as stated are indeed found in the Law, Leviticus 19:12; Numbers 30:3; Deuteronomy 23:22. But the interpretation left much to be desired. It placed no emphasis upon the inner truthfulness of the heart. If that is missing, what object have all oaths? All the careful distinctions as to degrees of oaths, and therefore of perjury, were a yoke on the necks of the Jews that did not affect their hearts. And it was a matter of mere sophistical quibbling that permitted all manner of affirmations in which the divine name was not mentioned directly, Deuteronomy 6:13, and thus evaded the obligation of the oath. There is not the slightest difference between an oath in the name of God and such asseverations as substitute the names of holy things, heaven, or such over which God alone has control: His city, Jerusalem, the earth, His footstool, a man’s head or life. All these oaths involve a reference to God. And all of them, as He distinctly specifies them, one after the other, are superfluous where the heart is pure and truthful. The Lord distinctly condemns the incessant, frivolous calling upon the Deity in all kinds of garbled forms. He does not imply that oaths, under circumstances, are not altogether lawful and right. “In civil life the most truthful man has to take an oath because of the untruth and consequent distrust prevailing in the world, and in so doing he does not sin against Christ’s teaching. Christ Himself took an oath before the high priest.” [Expositor’s Greek Testament, 1, 111]. His demand is absolute truthfulness and straightforwardness in the dealing of people with one another. There the affirmation shall have the full value and force of the Yea, and the denial the simple power of the Nay, that there may be an unhesitating dependence upon all statements, without the support of an oath. Anything that goes beyond this simple definition is of evil, even savors of the influence of the evil one, the devil, the father of lies. Jesus expressed Himself mildly with a purpose, and did not deny the necessity of oaths in a world full of falsehood. “I know, He means to say, that in certain circumstances something beyond yea and nay will be required of you. But it comes of evil, the evil of untruthfulness. See that the evil be not in you.”

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Verses 38-48

The law of love toward the enemy

Jesus here refers to the law of retribution, or compensation, as contained in the Levitical ordinances, Exodus 21:24. This is said to the government, and is a sound principle for the instruction of the judge: Fair compensation should be granted for injuries received. But the scribes and Pharisees applied the statement to the relation of every person toward his neighbor. They taught and declared that every one had the right to take revenge and to exact compensation for himself. Christ goes on record as differing from this explanation:

Either by trying to prevent injury or by demanding revenge for it, by repelling one outrage with another. He had excellent authority for His explanation, Leviticus 19:18; Proverbs 24:29. Christian love must be willing to bear and to forbear, though a defense of right is permitted, John 18:23; Acts 23:3; Acts 22:25. If this were not true, it would follow that all outrages would go unchallenged, and a Christian would lose house and home, wife and children, as Luther says. But a disciple of Christ should be willing and patient in suffering, even wrongfully, and not seek revenge nor return evil for evil.

Christ brings out this fact by a few examples:

There is a climax in the examples chosen by Christ; injury goes from bad to worse. There will be times and circumstances when love will be ready patiently to suffer the repetition of the same injury: the disgrace of being struck with the palm of the open hand, the humiliation of giving up the more costly mantle or toga together with the tunic or undergarment, the demand and even the compulsion, coming probably from a soldier, to accompany him for some distance and assist him with his baggage. A Christian will, so far as his person alone is concerned, render such exacted service cheerfully and do more than is asked, rather than submit to the inevitable in a sullen manner. On the other hand, of course, such passive behavior must cease as soon as it comes into conflict with the law of love. A disciple of Christ has duties toward his family, his community, his country, which will sometimes compel him to protect and defend them against injustice and insult. But for the individual it is true: he that magnanimously bears, overcomes. Bather than harbor evil, vengeful thoughts and desires, the Christian will be ready to render assistance whenever this is needed:

To give and to lend are two duties of charity which Christ puts on a level, both guided by prudence and the interest of the neighbor, 2 Thessalonians 3:10; Proverbs 20:4. Stewards of God’s bounty will have to give an account at the last day, and their sentence may depend largely upon the manner in which they appreciated the trust of God. All such assistance rendered to the needy neighbor should be given cheerfully, without a thought of reward.

Final illustration, from the general law of love:

The first injunction is found in the Law, Leviticus 19:18. The second part of the sentence is an addition made by the rabbis. They understood the word “neighbor” of the members of their own nation only, arguing from the many passages of the Law in which God had commanded the children of Israel to destroy the heathen nations. But in all those instances the children of Israel were merely carrying out God’s penal justice. Their argument would therefore not stand, especially in view of Exodus 22:21; Exodus 23:9; Leviticus 19:33; Deuteronomy 10:18-19; Deuteronomy 24:17; Deuteronomy 27:19. Jesus insists that all hatred is contrary to humaneness, opposed to the spirit which He was striving to foster. His is a different law:

The injunction receives its application at all times and in all places. The impressiveness of the passage is heightened by the contrast presented in each member of the saying. Cursing is met with blessing; hatred, which leads to injuries, with well-doing; and abuse of all kinds, culminating in persecution arising from religious hatred, with prayer and intercession. Whatever meanness the enemies may devise, love’s ingenuity will find a way of overwhelming them with goodness. For its object is always to find ways and means of winning the adversary, and, above all, of gaining him for the Lord.

Such behavior is in agreement with the true nature of Christians:

To become and to be indeed the children of God, to possess and exhibit the likeness of the heavenly Father. Because His heart is filled with goodness toward all His creatures, because He makes no distinction between righteous and unrighteous, between good and evil in His providence, they shall partake of their Father’s nature. For with absolute impartiality, and with no reference to individual character, whether niggardliness or generousness is more in evidence, He causes His sun to rise and sends His rain. Just so there should be neither indifference nor ignorance, but earnest concern and kind benevolence in the hearts of those who are striving sincerely to resemble the great Friend and Benefactor above.

And there is also the moral distinction:

That is the usual, the customary way of dealing in the world: Kind deeds are rewarded with kind deeds, friendly words are given in return for friendly words. That is the height of human morality. The word “salute” may be taken in its literal sense, as a mere greeting, for even so much the Jews denied the Gentiles. Or it may imply friendly relations and a readiness to serve, as became those that were united in the same confession. Outside of that they knew nothing, more they refused to do, John 4:9b. Such a low moral level is not for the disciples of Christ. He expects them to distinguish themselves above the average morality, to carry out the ambition to excel, actually to be superior to a spirit characterized by smallness and meanness. The latter spirit might be expected in the publicans, the tax-collectors of Palestine, who were heartily disliked as being the representatives of the Roman power, and for their cheating and exactions. It is not a Pharisaic pride and arrogance that the Lord wishes to awaken, but the earnest desire to be elevated above a mere customary etiquet, which may become the most refined form of cruelty. A significant fact: Jesus finds something good even in the social outcasts!

A summary of this section:

Since all these arguments must be accepted, and since love is the fulfilment of the Law, the Lord draws His conclusion. Ye who wish to be counted as My disciples shall stand out in contrast with those whose idea of altruism is modeled after conventional standards. Nothing short of the great ideal shall satisfy you. With a single-mindedness of purpose that forgets all else they shall strive after perfection in accordance with their great model, their Father in heaven. God is perfect, the fulness, the consummation, of all good. And the perfection of the Christians consists in striving after those ideals which God has set before them in His holy will. Thus they are daily and continually renewed in knowledge, and in holiness and righteousness, after the image of Him that made and redeemed them, until the day of their final perfection will dawn in heaven.

Summary

Christ opens the Sermon on the Mount with the beatitudes, gives a short outline of the call of the disciples in the world, shows the spiritual understanding of the Law by a number of examples, and teaches love toward one’s enemy and true altruism.

Verses 1-18

Almsgiving, praying, and fasting

The first part of Christ’s sermon had treated of the right interpretation of the Law, shown by many examples. From scribe law He now passes to Pharisaic practise, holding up the false righteousness in its hollow mockery. A very prominent feature in the religious life of the Pharisees:

The reference to a universal practise would be understood at once by all. It is a warning against the common form of showing probity, of practising charity in the sight of all men, with the intention of bringing one’s own person into prominence. Christ’s idea is that the good works shall be seen and speak for themselves, but that the person of the doer be kept entirely in the background. The Pharisees took great pains that they should be seen while performing works which they falsely thought good. Theirs was a theatrical virtue; they sought only their own honor, a reputation as saints. Any one thinking himself a disciple of Christ, but guilty of such hypocritical ostentation, can expect no reward from the heavenly Father, and is foolish for indulging in a hope based upon such a false foundation. He has nothing in common, with the disposition of the Lord.

The false way to give alms:

Christ mentions no names, but with one word characterizes those that make a show of their charity. Hypocrites they are, actors; they are acting for effect, there is nothing real and sound about the righteousness they affect. The sounding of trumpets, the attracting of attention was their object, not the helping of the poor. When the collection was made in the synagogs, they were most prominent in the act, though not in the gift. When beggars stopped them on the street, they were sure to attract the attention of all passers-by before making a show at almsgiving. They want the glory which properly belongs to God alone, Matthew 5:16. In bitter irony, Christ says of them that they have their reward. The word is taken from the language of the banks. “They can sign the receipt of their reward: their right to receive the reward is realized, precisely as if they already had given a receipt for it.” [Deissmann, Bibelstudien, 229]. They have nothing more to expect, they will get nothing from God.

The right way to practise charity:

Not the act of almsgiving was condemned by Christ, but only the manner. The work was well-pleasing to Him. Give with simplicity of heart, with so little show of self-glorification that even the left hand, so to speak, shall not be admitted into the secret, lest the satisfaction which one may feel on account of having done another good work detract from God’s glory. The works shall shine brightly, but the donor shall remain hidden to all but God, who knows the secrets of men’s hearts and actions. He knows all the sacrifices that are made, and at the proper time He will give the reward of mercy; He will make public announcement on the day when He will reveal everything.

The wrong manner of praying:

Prayer is the communion of the soul with God, a confidential imparting of all needs, desires, and conditions of feeling to the heavenly Father. The faithful Israelites had the custom of observing the hours of prayer, either in their own homes or in some secluded spot in the Temple, Daniel 6:10; Acts 3:1. But the Pharisees proved themselves true actors also here. They love to stand, it is dear to their hearts, they make a practise of it which is pleasing to their vanity and conceit. Standing in the most conspicuous places, in the synagog before the assembled congregation, at the corners of the streets, at cross-roads, where they might expect a great number of loungers and passers-by to watch them in gaping admiration, they made their prayers. Their real object was, of course, to be observed of men, to attract attention, for which purpose their very standing posture was an ostentation. Strange that the hour of prayer always overtook them in the most public places!

The true manner of praying:

An emphatic contrast, “But thou.” Be as different from these hypocrites as possible, lest thy manner of praying savor of their hypocrisy. Christ does not restrict the praying to fixed hours. Whenever you feel the need of communing with God, as often as you wish to be undisturbed with Him alone. For such a purpose a room in the interior of the house or on the housetop, secluded from all interference and intrusion, will be found most appropriate. Christ advises even the shutting of the door to emphasize the intimacy which such a prayer implies. Here, with no one to disturb you, with no one present but Him who is in the secret places, whose omnipresence invites you freely to confide in Him, you may open your heart freely, even in regard to matters which may fitly be hidden before the eyes of the whole world. Every one accustomed to private prayer after this description of the Lord will receive full edification also from the public prayer in home devotions and in congregational worship. His heart has been trained to be centered in the Lord alone and to banish all distracting thoughts. Note especially that the Lord emphasizes “thy Father,” which tenderly invites and urges childlike trust and confidence. “Though I be a sinner and unworthy, still I have here God’s command, which commands me to pray, and His promise that He will mercifully hear me, not on account of my worthiness, but for the sake of the Lord Christ. With this trust thou canst put away all thoughts and doubts, and kneel down cheerfully and pray, not regarding thy worthiness or unworthiness, but thy trouble and His word, in which He commands you to put confidence.” [Luther, 7, 503].

A lesson in regard to the form of prayer:

The chief characteristic of the prayers in heathen worship is a gabbling or babbling, a repetition without end of the same forms of words, 1 Kings 18:26; Acts 19:34. Such customs were familiar to the Jews as well as to the Galileans, on account of the mixed population and the presence of strangers in their midst. The idea supporting such meaningless repetitions seems to have been that the very flood of words should argue for the sincerity of the worshiper and practically weary the gods into complying with their wishes.

Warning against such absurd practises:

The Christians should differ from the heathen by a sharp distinction. They shall not be like the heathen; there shall be no point of resemblance between their worship and that of the heathen. Their idea of prayer is essentially unlike that of the Gentiles. “Prayer requires more of the heaxt than of the tongue. The eloquence of prayer consists in the fervency of desire and the simplicity of faith. The abundance of fine thoughts, studied and vehement motions, and the order and politeness of the expressions, are things which compose a mere human harangue, not a humble and Christian prayer. Our trust and confidence ought to proceed from that which God is able to do in us, and not from that which we can say to Him.” [Clarke, Commentary, 5, 84]. Another point bringing out the absurdity of babbling prayers: our needs are known to God before we make them known in our prayers. As a true Father He is concerned about the wants and troubles of His children, and gets His information often before they are aware of their lack, Isaiah 65:24. “God commands us to pray, not indeed that we with our prayer should teach Him what He should give, but rather that we should realize and confess what kind of goods He gives to us, and will and can give much more; so that by our prayer we instruct our selves more than Him.” [Luther, 7, 506].

A model prayer to show that an infinite variety of wants and requests can be compressed into a few humble petitions:

It does not detract from the value of the prayer that many of its words and thoughts are found in the Old Testament and in the formulas in use among the Jews at that time. The marvel of its beauty lies rather in this, that the Lord arranged the petitions with reference to the importance of human wants and imbued them with His spirit, thus making the brief formula the most perfect prayer in the world. Note how He brings out this point. Thus, after this manner, not after that of the heathen, shall be your habitual prayer, for you are people who stand in a different relation to the Deity, you know the one, true God, to whom all prayers should be addressed. Father, He calls Him, to bring out the sonship of the believers. Their confidence and trust in Him is that of children sure of the father’s love. He is our Father, in the fullest sense, by His work of creation as well as by that of redemption. He is the almighty God and Lord, who reigns in heaven over all the universe and thus possesses the willing power to hear our prayer, Ephesians 3:14-15; Ephesians 4:6; Isaiah 66:1; Acts 7:55-56. His name, the entire manifestation of His essence, the revelation of His being, which distinguishes Him and gives an idea of His greatness, Psalm 48:11; Malachi 1:11, shall be hallowed, praised, glorified. This is done not only by holding Him in all esteem and reverence, by yielding to Him the position which is His by eternal right, by making Him the one object of worship the world over, but by leading such lives that every desire, thought, word, and deed will redound to His glory, Matthew 5:16.

His majesty, power and might, omnipresence, and omniscience having been confessed, the thought follows:

The kingdom of heaven, the sum total of the gifts and mercies of God in Jesus, which God has intended for all men and which is realized as the kingdom of grace in the believers, shall come. God must grant faith and keep us in faith and thus in His kingdom, John 15:1-5. But our prayer is also for others, that God may open their hearts and minds to the glorious news of their salvation by sending faithful pastors and missionaries, and that he would soon merge the Church militant into the Church triumphant. This petition implies that such is the good and gracious will of God. It follows, then, that this will of God should be perfectly, ideally done and fulfilled, and that all opposing forces should be broken and hindered. Incidentally, His will and allowance in our own lives should be carried out. Whatever of suffering and trials He is pleased to put upon us shall be borne willingly, since the angels. themselves are models in the doing of God’s will. At all times, in all places, in all things we pray that His will be done.

Temporal gifts are also included:

In putting the petition in this form, Christ teaches humility and frugality. For this day we pray, taking no thought for the morrow, not yielding to anxious care. And the daily bread we are to ask for, that which is sufficient for the present day, enough to nourish us from day to day. God, in His infinite goodness, includes much more than the things which are necessary for our bare existence, as Luther shows in his explanation of this petition.

One of the greatest spiritual and temporal needs:

We daily contract an enormous, an unbelievable amount of debts before God. And the more we desire the fulfilment of the first petitions, the more conscious we shall be of our shortcomings. This debt, in its nature, being an account of God against us, whether the sin is committed directly against Him, or whether it harms the neighbor and thus transgresses His Law, must stand charged against us forever, rendering us subject to the debtor’s damnation, Matthew 18:24-25, unless we receive forgiveness, a full and free pardon from the free mercy of God in Jesus, which we here plead for. Revenge and hatred can, of course, not be in any man’s heart when he prays this petition. The more conscious a person is of his own mistakes and shortcomings, the more indulgent his heart will be toward the faults of others, even when committed against himself. It would condemn him to everlasting damnation if his forgiveness would not be patterned after that of his heavenly Father, Matthew 6:14-15.

A final plea for help:

There are not many that reach the heights of moral heroism by which they welcome persecutions, Matthew 5:10; James 1:2. For the average Christian the thought of temptation and trial is in itself depressing. The petition not to be exposed to moral trial, to violent assaults of Satan, to such circumstances as are extremely hard to bear for mere flesh and blood, is therefore very necessary. God sometimes, for reasons of His own, suffers or permits a temptation to come near a Christian, in order to test and strengthen his faith, 1 Corinthians 10:13. We ask that He would so lead us and cause us to walk circumspectly that no evil results of the temptation may strike us, that the final outcome may ever be beneficent. This is included in the “deliver” of the last sentence. Since trials and temptations are sure to come, therefore we turn to God to draw us out of their snares, out of their bondage, and especially to deliver us from the evil one, the devil, who makes use of every occasion to bring us into his power. Thus every possible contingency in the life of the average human being is provided for. And so the doxology is most appropriate:

He is our great King and Ruler, who has our well-being at heart; He is the almighty God, in whose power lies the fulfilment of our every need; to Him we therefore intend to give all honor and glory for all the gifts and benefits which He showers upon us so freely. Of this we are so sure that we close the Lord’s Prayer with a fervent Amen, to indicate our faith and trust in our Father.

A necessary warning:

The hearing of our prayer, the granting of the benefits asked for, hinges upon our being in the right relation toward God, which is brought about by the assurance and the certainty of the forgiveness of sins. And this, in turn, depends upon the manner in which we show proofs of the right condition of our hearts toward the neighbor. Our sins toward God were called debts, and these are piled up with horrible swiftness. Our neighbor’s sins toward us are described as mere stumblings or faults in performing his duty. To be vindictive under such circumstances is folly in itself, and argues that the mercy of God is not appreciated. If we really desire the forgiveness of God, we must first show that we realize our own sinfulness and its damnableness by forgiving our neighbor his faults.

A lesson on fasting:

Fasting was a part of the religious rites of the Jews, intended to show repentance and humility, in itself an unobjectionable custom. But the hypocrites, acting out their part in all lines, made their fasting another form of self-glorification, not only by observing additional days of fasting, besides those prescribed in the Jewish law, but also by affecting a gloomy face, inviting sympathy and praise. They neglected the daily care of the face, to make the effect of the semiweekly fast appear all the more harrowing. It was an empty show in order that they might play a more important figure and get the reputation of greater holiness. They have all the reward they will ever get. They need expect nothing from the Lord.

The proper method of fasting:

Again the Lord emphasizes the contrast. A mere outward show of repentance without change of heart does not befit the followers of Jesus. Fasting they may practise indeed; that is a laudable custom and may be productive of good. But in doing so, all ostentation must be avoided. It is the heart that should feel the sorrow and humility, not the body. Therefore the usual daily washing and anointing should not be omitted, in order that men might not even know the conditions. God, their heavenly Father, that lives in the secret places, whose omniscience searches minds and hearts, will know. At the proper time He will make the necessary revelations and grant the reward of mercy.

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Verses 19-34

Warning against covetousness and care

A new topic, introducing an exposition of the first table of the Law:

The question of hoarding, the service of Mammon, demanded discussion in connection with righteousness of works and self-righteousness. For it is the self-conceited that is liable to become addicted to covetousness. How foolish such hoarding! The Lord scourges the sin in bitter scorn: to hoard up hoards, treasures of this earth, tainted with the curse of this earth, subject to the corruption of the earth. Whether it be garments, tapestry, and carpets, moths would destroy them, rust, mildew, canker would eat them; and whether it be gold and silver and jewels, thieves would find a way to steal them, even if they must dig through the wall of the house. What uncertain treasures to place your trust upon!

The only safe treasures:

The repetition of the same words serves for emphasis. Treasures you may and shall have, of the right kind. Treasure the treasures of the only lasting kind, in heaven, heavenly treasures, the gift and possession donated by God through grace. Value these above all the jewels and riches of the whole world. “But you, who are not of the world, but belong in heaven and are bought through My blood for this purpose that you should have another, eternal possession which is ready and ordered for you, — you should not permit your hearts to be taken captive here, but, though you be in an office and station in which you must deal with it, do not hanker after or serve it. On the contrary, strive to get those treasures which are kept for you in heaven. For those are true treasures, which moths and rust cannot approach, and safe against all that may eat and steal. For they are so placed that they always remain whole and fresh, and so secured that no one can dig after them.” [Luther, 7, 539]. The treasures of the Christians are even now safely included in the Word of Mercy, and their fulness and eternal enjoyment will be realized in heaven, 1 Peter 1:4; 2 Timothy 1:12,14. And therefore their minds and hearts are centered in heaven, upon their greatest treasure, secure for them in the hands of God.

The parable of the eye:

The absurdity and dangerousness of covetousness is here illustrated, probably with reference to the Pharisees, whose attention and affections were divided between temporal and spiritual things, and who therefore became spiritually blind. The eye is the organ of vision and incidentally the seat of expression. To perform its function properly, it should be the light of the body, give light for the body’s movement and labor. The candid, open, healthy eye will give this service properly; the bad, diseased eye will cause the whole body to be in darkness, though the person stand in the midst of light. In other words: The light of the body is the eye, because the eye lets light into the body and makes it available to the body. When the eye of the soul is in proper condition, free from the desire to hoard, then true Christian knowledge can control and direct the person unto every good work. But when sordid passions take hold of the soul, Christian knowledge suffers, heart and mind are blinded, judgment is perverted, and nothing but evil results. There is spiritual darkness without a single ray of light, just as the extinguishing of a lamp in a dark room intensifies the darkness greatly.

Warning against Mammon:

It is a general truth, commonly accepted: For a slave to serve two masters is impossible. True, undivided service presupposes love and attachment, or at least a strong interest. He will regard the one with devotion, the other with aversion; he will take the part of the one, or at least put up with him, the other he will disregard. The conclusion: It is impossible to be faithful to God and at the same time be a servant of riches, making an idol of them. Christ does not condemn the possession, but the service of riches. Man can have only one highest good and principle of life. The service of heaven cannot be combined with the earthly inclinations, the two cannot be reconciled. If he chooses filthy lucre as his highest good, the service of God is out of the question, and he loses substantial and eternal blessedness. The disciples of Christ will shun covetousness with all their hearts and give their life’s devotion to their God and Savior.

Counsel against worry about food and clothing:

The connection of thought is this: Avarice flows out of distrust of God, and this distrust shows itself in anxious care. Avoid the one, and you are more likely to withstand the other. Incidentally, the warnings here given are more suitable to the circumstances of the disciples, whose concern would oftener be regarding the necessaries of life than the amassing of treasures. Take no thought, have no concern about, do not let it worry you. Food, even that necessary to sustain life, and clothing, even that demanded for warmth, shall not be objects for worry. Care divides and distracts the mind, causing that distrust which goes before denial. The argument of Christ is from the more to the less important: The natural life is more than the food which sustains it; and the body containing this life is more than the clothing which protects it. Can He therefore that gave the greater, the more important, not be trusted to give the less? Solicitous concern for food and clothing, then, not only forgets the Giver of all good gifts, but weakens the members of the body, so that they cannot properly perform the work of the daily calling.

A further consideration for those of little faith:

Examples of perfect trust in God who has always provided for them: the birds do even less than that expected of human beings in the matter of providing for the future, Proverbs 6:6; Proverbs 20:4. For them there is neither seed-time nor harvest; they have no barns and granaries to store food against the coming of famine. And yet, behold them! Fix your eyes upon them and think who keeps them alive, who cares for them. Their table is always set, sometimes with the choicest of foods, sometimes with just enough to sustain life, but — He feedeth them. If He cares for these humble creatures and provides for them, is there not reason to believe that His children will not want bread?

How unprofitable is worry:

In whose case will the fact that he worries about the question continually be of any aid in increasing his height, or rather, in lengthening his life? Psalm 39:5. It is simply impossible for a person, by taking thought of the matter, both to produce the growth that comes from food and to extend the days of his life. Why, then, not leave these matters to Providence? Christ even points to the inanimate creatures as examples of God’s loving care:

To worry about clothing to cover one’s nakedness must seem strange in view of the thousand miracles surrounding us. Consider, observe well, take a lesson from the lilies, He says, including in this term all flowers, since those of Palestine are very beautiful. They grow, they become large; and yet they do nothing to provide a suitable dress for themselves; neither heavy nor light work is on their daily program. The situation demands a strong statement, and Jesus deliberately gives it. Solomon, whose riches and luxury were proverbial among the Jews as the climax and pinnacle of gorgeousness, in the very height of his glory and wealth and magnificence, could not be compared, in the splendor of his attire, with one of these flowers. Nothing on earth can equal the rich blending of colors, the velvety texture of the petals of some of the commonest blossoms that are overlooked as weeds by the heedless.

Application of the argument:

The lilies, whose blossoms teach such a great lesson, belong to the grasses; they may even be classed as weeds, if their number and persistence interferes with the tilling of the soil. They belong to the creatures with little value, comparatively speaking. The natives of Palestine, to this day, make use of hay, stubble, and withered herbs to heat their clay ovens, round pots, narrow at the top. These plants of the field, then, which stand so low in the estimation of men that they are used for fuel, are yet so highly esteemed by the Lord that He clothes them in splendid garments, more wonderful than the most gorgeous apparel of Israel’s richest king. And children of God should permit themselves to be harassed by anxious care as to the clothing that they need? Such conduct must surely be a sign of little faith.

Christ renews His exhortation against worry:

It is in the form of an impassioned peroration that the Lord pleads with His hearers. All the care and worry of providing food and clothing, the continual harping on that one theme, so that it makes up the burden of your conversation, that it is the one subject which engages all your time and energy, is sinful and heathenish. For bread, raiment, wealth, all the gifts which this world has to offer, are eagerly sought as the supreme, the most important things in life, by the heathen. They have no thought beyond the gratification of their bodily desires. As for you: Your Father above knows, He is fully aware of the conditions, He is acquainted with all your needs. His fatherly heart, filled with love toward you, is willing to do what is best for you; so drive all dull care far away from you, lest your worry lead to distrust and your distrust to the worship of Mammon. “That is not sin nor service of Mammon that a person eats and drinks and clothes himself, as the need of life and body demands that he have his food and covering; also not this that he seek and earn his food, but that he worries, that is, that he places his heart’s comfort and trust therein. For care is not enclosed in the dress or in the food, but right in the heart; which caluthennot refrain, it must needs want to cling to it, as it is said: Possessions bring confidence. To take thought, then, means as much as to cling to it with the heart. For what my heart does not dearly love, for that I have no care; and again, that for which I care, my heart must desire.” [Luther, 7, 561].

The care which God demands:

To seek, earnestly to covet, to put the whole heart to the gaining of, the kingdom of God, is a most necessary care for the disciples of Christ, for the children of God. For this kingdom is not meat and drink, but righteousness, and peace and joy in the Holy Ghost, Romans 14:17. To possess this righteousness, which is well-pleasing to God, to be filled with the fruits of this righteousness, to become rich in truly good works, that is a goal worthy of the Christian’s ambition. Such a constant seeking after purity of heart and holiness of life will incidentally stifle all care and worry of this life. And the little things of this earthly body and life will then come as a matter of course, the main object of the quest having been secured. They will be cast into our laps as an overplus, as an addition to the great bargain which our seeking has gained. Therefore, once more:

Each day brings its own evil, for it is an evil world, and the enemies without and within are ever busy devising schemes to beset the heart with care. These conditions must be met with patient cheerfulness, and each problem taken care of as it comes. To add to the difficulties and troubles of the present day by worrying about what the morrow might bring will not ease the situation confronting you now. To restrict all care to the moment when it begins to nag is to conquer it absolutely. It is only the future that brings anxiety. Put each successive day into the hands of God, and it will bring its own help and deliverance from the love of the heavenly Father, Lamentations 3:23.

Summary

The Lord gives instructions concerning the giving of alms, and on prayer and fasting, and warns against avarice, covetousness, and care, pointing out, incidentally, the seeking of the kingdom of God as the prime duty of every Christian.

Verses 1-12

Warning against unauthorized judging and admonition to persevere in prayer

A lesson from the Eighth Commandment:

The Lord’s words, in this connection, do not exclude all judging. According to God’s own creation and order, those whom He has placed as superiors have the right and duty to watch over those placed in their care and correct any wrong disposition and behavior. The executive and judicial officers of a country or a city, the heads of every household, the teachers in the schools, the officers of the church and the whole congregation, Matthew 18:15; Galatians 6:1, the voters in all democratic forms of government,—all these have the power and the duty to exercise judgment in their particular sphere. The word used by the Lord implies personal, unkind, uncharitable, unauthorized, condemnatory judgment. It was and is a common habit, “especially in religious circles of the Pharisaic type.” Even an official expression of our opinion may run into a sinful extreme. And so far as the common slandering is concerned, what ignorance, haste, levity, prejudice, vanity, and egotism is often revealed in the sentences it pronounces; what an utter disregard of the law of love! How easily even permissible criticism is entangled with personalities! Therefore the warning: Lest ye be judged in the same manner. Uncharitable, unauthorized judgment will be punished here as well as hereafter. It usually pronounces its own condemnation, Romans 2:1. And this condemnation will measure up to the severity of the original transgression: Judgment for judgment; measure for measure. Many an ill report about us may be a just reward for an uncharitable criticism uttered by us, either in thoughtlessness or in spite. An unjust blow will recoil on him who has dealt it.

The proverb of the mote and the beam:

This example or parable is an excellent comparison to bring out with the proper emphasis the warning against uncharitable judging. The mote, the tiny particle of dust, of wood, or of chaff, in the eye of another, is readily seen and commented upon, with many offers of assistance to remove the disagreeable object. But at the same time, the wooden beam, the log or joist, in one’s own eye causes no discomfort, is, in fact, not even noticed. The Lord purposely uses an exaggeration to impress His admonition on the minds of His hearers, and we cannot weaken His picture by substituting “splinter” for “beam.” The contrast is essential for the success of His teaching. A petty theft is widely advertised, but commercial dishonesty and grafting is overlooked for reasons of policy; a single unguarded expression is severely blamed, but the continual use of blasphemous epithets goes without a rebuke. And the hypocrisy stands out all the more glaringly on account of the feigned sympathy: Permit me, hold still a minute! — as though the most disinterested, charitable motives were behind the question. In righteous indignation Christ calls such an offender a hypocrite, Psalm 50:16, a base pretender at sanctification, and bids him above all remove the greater obstruction out of his own eye. After that he may consider, set himself the task, make a careful survey as to the need and possibility of, removing the mote out of the neighbor’s eye. Let everyone first watch over the reformation of his own life. Then his tendency toward uncharitable criticism will be reduced considerably, and he will be in better position to be of assistance, kindly and carefully, to a brother that may be guilty of a fault.

An additional counsel:

Moral criticism is necessary, religious teaching cannot be discarded. But it would be the height of folly and the very contrary of unauthorized judging to unload one’s religious beliefs and experiences, tender sentiments, moral convictions, on any one that comes along, no matter in what condition he might be. For Christians especially the sacred doctrines of Christ are the precious pearls on the ring of His mercy. To cast these before dogs and swine, before people to whom nothing is sacred, that blaspheme everything holy, is to expose the most sacred beauty to coarseness. And the result is that those very people are encouraged to profane the holy name of God, to think it a proper subject of blasphemous attacks. And it cannot fail: some of the mud will spatter on him that lacked judgment; he will be responsible for the desecration, and therefore also guilty before God. Note the figure of speech used by the Lord, the second verb referring to the first subject, and the first verb to the second subject.

An admonition to prayer:

The Lord’s entire sermon had dealt with the righteousness of life as expected from men by God. A great and hard lesson, demanding more strength than any man, even the most earnest Christian, possesses by nature and after conversion. But He from whom all spiritual strength must come is willing to help our infirmities, if we but approach Him with persistent supplication. Jesus piles up the verbs for the sake of emphasis; He builds up a double climax in order to teach men always to pray and not to grow faint, to be importunate in pleading, Luke 18:1; Luke 11:5-10. To the mere asking must be added an eager seeking, and this must be supplemented with a persistent knocking. Such methods cannot fail; the promises of God are too plain. God will hear, He will give, He will let us find, He will open unto us. It may not always be at just the time and in just the manner which we think best, but it will, in the end, always prove the best. Only, note the repetition: “Ask,” in all humility, but with firm confidence; “seek,” with untiring application, but also with painstaking care; “knock,” with both earnestness and perseverance. Every one, he says, shall receive if he will but come as a child to its father.

A parable to bring home this truth:

He appeals to their love as parents. It is unthinkable that a father who is worthy of the name would substitute a stone for the bread, or a serpent for the fish, which his children ask of him. There is a resemblance, purposely. A father might find it necessary to refuse a child’s petition outright, but he surely would not demean himself by mocking him. The grammatical construction is purposely made difficult in order to set the parent over against and yet beside the son. Such a selfish, grudging, mean spirit is considered unnatural even among men, from whom one might, according to the natural depravity of their heart, possibly expect a behavior of that kind. Natural affection is so strong in the average mother and father that it will not let harshness and heartlessness gain the upper hand; they have the knowledge and the common sense to give only good gifts to their children, if they give any at all. The word here used refers not only to the quality of goodness, but also to the measure in which they are given, generously, in larger amount than the children ask. Now he argues from the less important to the more important. That heavenly Father, whose benevolent power and beneficent kindness, has been declared to you, that model of goodness and love toward all His children, will surely not do less! In bountiful measure, above all that we ask and think, Ephesians 3:20, He will give good gifts. Surely no vestige of doubt can remain with such an assurance.

The Golden Rule:

Here is a summary which embraces in one short sentence all the admonitions to charity that are found in the entire sermon, all that is laid down in the sacred writings with regard to the behavior of men toward each other. As God’s goodness is bountiful toward all men, so shall men pattern their conduct after this example, applying it in all their dealings, brother toward brother, in a full measure of generosity. If this rule were always followed, perfect peace, love, and harmony would obtain in the world. “With these words He closes His teaching, done in these three chapters, and gathers it in a small bundle, in which any one may surely find it, and every one put it into his bosom and keep it well. And it is surely a fine manner of doing which Christ here affects that He uses no other example than ourselves. He thus brings His commandment so near to us that it could not be brought any nearer, that is, into our heart, body, and life and into all our members, that no one need run far after it, but thou thyself art thy Bible, master, doctor, and preacher. Thou hast so many preachers, many a business, ware, tool, and other instrument in thy house and yard. That cries loudly against thee: My friend, deal with me toward thy neighbor as thou wouldest have thy neighbor act toward thee with his possessions. And the best thing in this passage is that He does not say: Other people shall do it to you, but: You shall do it to other people. For every one likes that, when others do good to him. But some say: I would surely also do what I should, if other people would first do so to me. But this verse says thus: Thou shalt begin and be the first one, if thou wilt have other people act thus to thee; and if they will not, yet do thou do it. He that wishes to be pious may not be hindered by other people’s example. Thou mayest, then, by thine example, move people to do thee good in return, also those that formerly did evil to thee.” [Luther, 7, 609-616].

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Verses 13-25

The conclusion of the sermon

The two ways:

The Lord has finished the sermon proper, but He here adds, as a conclusion, a few warnings and gives a few hints with regard to various offenses in doctrine and life which His disciples are apt to meet with. Two ways are briefly sketched, leading from the present life to that beyond the grave. And the two ways are contrasted, either one being described by its distinctive marks and by its end. The one way is indeed a common road, no one is excluded from it. But it is narrow, with no room for frivolous liberties on either side. And it finally leads through a strait and narrow gate, which has nothing to commend it outwardly. Only comparatively few find this way. It is so untrodden that it may easily be missed. On the other hand there is a wide, broad, spacious, roomy road, with many factors that invite, that lead forward on that road. And at its end is a wide, welcoming gate. But this way and this gate, with all the qualities that commend them, with all the invitation to indulge in the free, unfettered life of the world, leads to destruction; its end is everlasting condemnation. There is no special warning necessary for the disciples of Christ. They shun that broad, inviting way as the way of the flesh, of the world, and of the devil. But the other way, which in itself offers no alluring promises, on which no noisy, jostling crowd beguiles the tediousness, nevertheless is the Lord’s choice. For it leads to life, to the true life, to the only life worth living, to the life everlasting with Him whose way was just as much a narrow pass, a rocky defile, but who has entered into the glory of His Father. Enter in at this gate, is His loving call. Conquer, in His strength, all weakness of the flesh. Overcome through Him all assaults of the world and Satan, no matter in what guise they may appear. The end is worth a thousand battles, Revelation 2:10; Revelation 3:11.

Warning against false prophets:

This shows one of the ways in which the disciples of Christ may be enticed from the narrow way to heaven, a fact which makes the warning necessary. Beware, take yourselves away from, have nothing to do with, pseudo-prophets, with false teachers. It is foolish even to stop and argue with them. For they are false prophets; they deliberately falsify God’s Word, they substitute their own lies and the wisdom of fallible men for the eternal truth. They come, without invitation, without call; they make a practise of going to such people as are members of a church with the deliberate intention of coaxing them away from the truth. They are wise in their own conceit and in the forms of deceit; they come in a very inconspicuous manner, in the garment of innocence and harmlessness. They profess to have a commission from God Himself, and are adepts at pretending gentleness. But their real character will show itself afterward, since they are by inclination and training ravening wolves. Their nature is to devour; they are greedy for money, ambitious for power, but anxious, above all, to destroy the soul. They are murderers of the souls of men.

The principle of testing false teachers and all frauds:

A significant point: Not only may the disciples of Christ distinguish these false teachers for themselves, but the Lord expects them to know them thoroughly, to understand them by making a study of their methods and their way of life. Christians are able, they have the sacred duty, to try the spirits, to examine and test the doctrine which is offered to them. They have an infallible rule, the teaching of Christ, the Word of Truth. According to this criterion, this standard, they should judge not only the doctrine, but also the works of the false teachers, which are here called their fruits. Men never think of collecting grapes from thorns or figs from thistles. They are not deceived by false resemblances, just as the botanist will tell at a glance the poisonous variety of berry or mushroom from the good. But even where so much botanical knowledge is not found, the good, the sound, healthy tree is readily distinguished from the unhealthy, the degenerate tree, standing in bad soil, or no longer fruitful on account of age. All these trees and plants bear in accordance with their nature, this test never fails. “As we perfectly know that a good tree will not produce bad fruit, and the bad tree will not, cannot produce good fruit, so we know that the profession of godliness, while the life is ungodly, is imposture, hypocrisy, and deceit.” [Clarke, Commentary, 5, 97].

The end of the imposters:

So far as the test of trees is concerned, men’s judgment in their case is so definite and absolute that they do not hesitate to cut down and burn a bad tree, knowing very well that it is beyond all possibility for that tree to bring forth good fruit the next year. But this judgment will strike also those that are guilty of false teaching and living, whose fruits must finally reveal the condition of their hearts. Theirs will be the punishment of the fire of hell. In the mean time the Christians must not forget their duty to test and examine the doctrine and the works of the false teachers, lest they become guilty of laxness in spiritual matters. “No false doctrine or heresy has ever originated without having had this sign which He here indicates, that they have produced other works than those commanded and ordained by God.… Let him that wants to judge correctly do as Christ here teaches him, and take their works and fruits, holding them beside God’s Word and commandments; then he will soon see how well they agree.… Thus thou hast a sure judgment which cannot fail, as Christ teaches thee to know them by their fruits. For I also have read up about all heretics and sects, and have found that they always made and brought forth something different from that which God commanded and enjoined, the one in this, the other in that article. The one has prohibited eating all things; a second, marriage; a third has condemned all government, every one choosing his own; and I conclude that they all walk on this path.” [Luther, 7, 640, 641].

False discipleship:

False teachers have been characterized, spurious disciples are here described. Not all of those that make a practise of public confession are in truth confessors. They may try to cover their hypocrisy by publicly acknowledging and professing Jesus as the Lord, thus apparently giving Him divine honor and glory [Cobern, The New Archeological Discoveries, 127], which is implied in this appellation. But a mouth-Christianity can never be a valid substitute for heart-Christianity. The fact that the lips readily form the name of Christ the Lord, make a practise of repeating it, will bring no one into the kingdom of heaven nor let him enter into the blessed communion of those that are one with Christ. Even a mere listening to His teaching with admiration and appreciation will avail nothing. But among those that profess Christ there are also others, such as have received Christ in faith and have by Him been renewed in heart and mind. They receive spiritual power from Him continually and are thus enabled to carry out the will of the heavenly Father in their lives. The performing of the will of God thus becomes the criterion by which the sincerity of their discipleship is tested. Christ calls God “My Father.” In His deep humility He is not seeking His own glory. He has the right to bear the name Lord and to demand obedience to His will. But He impresses upon His hearers the sacredness of the revealed will of God; that should find expression in their lives.

Christ’s warning of Judgment:

In that day, in the great, dread Day of Judgment, when the thoughts and desires of mind and heart will be revealed, there will be many, a large number, that will make a plea in their behalf. They will point to all kinds of notable deeds that have the appearance of miracles. But whether this be prophecy, or whether it be the casting out of devils, or whether it be some other wonderful work; also whether the miracles were expressly made in His name and ostensibly in His power, — all this will avail them nothing. Though they repeat the phrase “in Thy name,” clinging to it as to a forlorn hope that might soften the heart of the Judge, that very expression will prove their undoing. For He, on His part, also has a profession to make. Perhaps they are sincere in thinking that He ought to own them, acknowledge them, but He is of a different opinion. He finds it necessary to expose the hollowness of their confession. Never, during their whole career, while they were deluding themselves and leading others into delusion, while they were using His name in vain in the attempt to promote their gain, has He known them. They have never become His intimates, their hearts were always far from Him, they had no faith. To Him, therefore, all their works prove them to be workers of iniquity, having used His name without right or warrant in carrying out something which He had neither commanded nor sanctioned. Their sentence is brief, but terrible. “Depart from Me,” Matthew 25:41; be separated forever from the salvation, the glory and beauty which intimacy with Me implies. For in blessed union with Christ all is heaven; in separation from Him there is nothing but damnation.

A concluding parable:

A majestic utterance referring to the entire discourse with all its lessons, intended, as they were, to teach wisdom and understanding in the lives of His disciples, as an outflow of the intimacy with Him and the power of faith. Jesus distinguishes only two classes of men, as in other parables and sayings, Matthew 12:30. He here makes the distinction, the comparison which holds true even in this life, with regard to the foundation which men select for the structure of their faith and life. He bases His statement on the maxim that a proper hearing implies the obedience in life, James 1:22-25. There is the wise, the prudent, the thoughtful, the long-headed man, that uses his reason properly, that carefully weighs all propositions and selects judiciously what is suited to his purpose. When he builds a house, he lays the foundation firmly in solid ground, if possible, on rocky soil. Note the eloquence of the description, to denote the suddenness and the fury of the enraged elements: rain on the roof, river against the foundation, wind against the walls, — but the house stood, its foundation was laid in the heart of the mighty rock. But there is also the foolish man, whom Christ mentions only in deep sorrow, the man who neglects prudence and common sense. He may build a house whose outward appearance differs in no way from that of the wise man. But he neglects to look to the proper foundation; he chooses a place with loose sand, near the bed of a mountain torrent. And again the elements were unleashed. Down came the vehement rain; down rushed the mighty river; fiercely blew the winds. And in this case they not merely fell upon, like an enemy or a wild beast which may yet be put to flight, but they struck down that house, and the ruin of it was complete. Nothing was left of its proud beauty. Prudent is he that does, that fulfils, the sayings of Christ, and thus lays the foundation of his spiritual life in a rock. He will stand firm in the midst of all assaults of the enemies. Not that his doing, his obedience, make him firm. But his life is rooted in his faith in Christ; from Him he daily gains new strength; by faith he conquers and is more than conqueror, Romans 8:37. But foolish is he that hears the words of Christ with his ears only, but presents no evidence of the works that flow out of Christian obedience. He thereby furnishes proof that faith either never gained a foothold in his life or has died out of his heart. Tribulation and temptation will find such a one unprepared. Without faith in Christ he has no hold and will perish most miserably.

The impression made by Christ’s sermon:

Christ’s manner of teaching differed from that of the scribes, for they taught by authority only, droning out the traditions and precepts and injunctions of a Law which was, in effect, dead in their own life. Christ spoke with authority, His was the authority to teach all men to the end of time. Therefore this power also became evident in His teaching, carrying His hearers along with the force of a conviction greater than that of the polished orator. He spoke the words of eternal truth. Small wonder that the people were filled with surprise and admiration, and that they voiced their astonishment at once. Here was a teacher with a message. Not only were His statements clear, His examples apt, His arguments strong, His presence compelling, but He had a mission as teacher and must be heard: He preached the Word of God as His own.

Summary

Jesus warns against uncharitable judging, urges perseverance in prayer, points out the safe way to heaven, shows how to distinguish false prophets and guard against false discipleship, and concludes His powerful sermon with an admonition to keep His sayings.

Verses 1-4

The healing of the leper

While He was coming down from the mountain, where He had delivered His great sermon, and especially when He had fully descended into the plain, when He had, in fact, reached one of the cities of the neighborhood, Luke 5:12, the multitudes that had been swarming after Him from near and far, and who were more than ever impressed on account of His teaching, again followed after Him. Jesus at once performed a miracle:

The evangelist uses the formula for introducing a narrative, for stimulating interest. A leper came to Him, transgressing, in his eagerness and his earnest desire for help, the rules which had been made with regard to those afflicted with this disease. Leprosy is a particularly malignant contagious (not infectious) sickness, though it is not hereditary. It is wide-spread over the world, but it occurs frequently only in the East and along the shores of the Mediterranean Sea. Several varieties of the disease are recognized, since the germ that causes it has been found. In all cases, however, the sickness follows the same general course. Spots of various colors appear on the body, later on also blisters and tubercles. The face soon assumes a stupid appearance. Ulceration, atrophy, wasting away of the bone sets in, which may cause deep holes and even the loss of entire members. In some fortunate cases, death occurs within a short time, in others the disease lasts for many years. Among the Jews, lepers were considered unclean, Leviticus 13:44-46, had to rend their garments, cover their faces, go without the usual attention to cleanliness, and, upon the approach of people, utter the cry, “Unclean, unclean!” They were obliged to live outside of the camp or city, had a special section of the synagog reserved for them, and anything they touched, or any house into which they entered, was declared unclean. For their cleansing, a very elaborate ceremonial was prescribed in the Jewish law, Leviticus 19. No wonder this poor man was so anxious to be healed. He hurries up to Jesus; he throws himself to the ground in the gesture of abject pleading, fully aware of his own unworthiness and of the great superiority of Him of whom he asks the favor; he calls Him Lord, giving Him divine honor as the promised Messiah. His prayer is short, but comprehensive, a model in form and content. “If Thou wilt”; he had no doubt about the power or ability of Christ, but he is not sure as to His willingness. The humility of his faith leaves the decision to Christ. But if there is to be a cleansing by healing, let it be at once. Insistent, yet humble; willing to leave manner and time of the fulfilment of his prayer to the love and mercy of the Lord. “That means, not only to believe right, but also to pray right; as these two are always together: he that has the right faith has the right form of prayer; he that does not believe rightly cannot pray rightly. For with prayer it must first be thus that the heart be certain; God is so merciful and gracious that He will gladly take away our trouble and help us. … That the leper here moderates his prayer and says: ‘Lord, if Thou wilt, Thou canst make me clean,’ is not to be understood as though he had doubts in regard to Christ’s goodness and mercy. For faith would be nothing, though he believed that Christ is almighty, could perform, and knows all things. For that is the living faith which does not doubt: God has the good and gracious will to do what we pray. But it is to be understood thus: Faith does not doubt that God has a good will toward the person, does not begrudge him all that is good for him, but rather desires him to have it. Whether, however, that which faith begs and pleads for is good and useful, of that we have no knowledge; that God alone knows. Therefore faith prays thus that it leaves everything to the gracious will of God, whether it will be conducive to His honor and our need, and does not doubt that God will give it, or, if it is not to be given, that His divine will out of great mercy does not give it, since He sees it is best not given. But for all that the faith in God’s gracious will remains certain and sure, whether He grants it or does not grant it.” [Luther, 13, 167; 11, 482, 483].

The miracle:

Jesus was touched with compassion, Mark 1:41. His sympathy and willingness to help cause Him to stretch forth His hand and touch the leper, an intimate gesture showing complete understanding and begetting confidence. And His almighty “I will” quietly assumed the sovereign authority for a clear demonstration of unlimited power. Not a mere pronouncing clean, as the rationalists will have it, but a miracle: The leprosy that had even now rendered the leper a hideous, misshapen travesty of God’s creature disappeared at once, without delay. He was clean. Christ had reasons for avoiding a false popularity at this time. The people were wrought up to such a pitch of excitement on account of His teaching and because of His many miracles that they might have been prompted to hail Him, according to their false understanding of the Messianic kingdom, as their earthly king. This would have excited the hatred of the Jewish leaders too early and caused suspicion and jealousy on the part of the government, all of which would have hindered His ministry. Besides, a premature spreading of the news might reach the ears of the priests before the leper actually presented himself, and their enmity might cause them to refuse a recognition of cleanness. And Jesus wanted to observe the precepts of the official religion. Matthew 3:15. See to it, look you! He says: a prompt, decisive, though cordial command. Lose no time in unnecessary and useless conversation by the way; hurry is essential. Fulfil the injunctions prescribed in your case, Leviticus 14:10-32; sacrifice the gift which the Law demands, get a clean bill of health from the constituted authorities. This would be a testimony, not only for the legalists, but also for all men. In this way might the former leper spread the news of the miracle properly, as he probably also did, Mark 1:45.

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Verses 5-13

The centurion of Capernaum

The incident here narrated may have taken place immediately after the cleansing of the leper or after some time, when Jesus had made one of His Galilean journeys. Jesus had entered into Capernaum, the city which He chose for His home during His ministry in that region. Here He comes into contact with a centurion. It is immaterial whether the centurion attended to the matter here related personally, or whether he made use of the good services of others, the latter being the more probable, Luke 7:1-10. “Therefore he sends a message to Him on account of his servant, whom he loved, a delegation of the most learned and respected in the city. … And as they go and present their message in a fine manner that He should come, since the centurion is well worthy of it, and Christ is willing to come and goes with them: when he hears that Christ Himself is coming, he sends other messengers on the way, pleads and wards off: O no! Who am I that He troubles to come Himself? It is sufficient that He but say some word, then I am fully satisfied.” [Luther, 12, 1184]. It was a centurion with whom Jesus dealt, the captain of one hundred men, very likely the Roman garrison in the city. He was a foreigner, not a member of the Jewish nation or church. But he had learned to know the true God and had undoubtedly studied the Scriptures, thus gaining a knowledge of the coming of the Messiah. In his earnest devotion, he had even built the synagog for the Jews, Luke 7:4-5. He had an urgent, pleading message to the Lord for his servant, his house-boy, who had been lying now for some time and thus been reduced to a state of great weakness, ill with a sickness which caused grievous torments, a form of paralysis. The disease of the nerves was, in this case, accompanied with unusual pains, which even hindered the sick man’s being carried out on a stretcher.

The offer of Jesus and the centurion’s answer:

Christ’s sympathy is aroused, though an actual prayer for help has not been made, a mere statement of need and trouble being sufficient. He expressly declares His willingness to come and help: Coming I shall heal him. Christ’s sovereignty decides sickness and health, death and life. An astonishing answer: I am not worthy, I am not fit; not merely on account of his being a Gentile, but because his humility forbade his receiving the Lord on terms of equality. Cp. Matthew 3:11. Deprecatingly he speaks of his roof, a mere hut when the Lord is coming. A bare word will suffice. He both acknowledges the necessity of Christ’s mercy and his own total unworthiness. A sublime faith: My body-servant will be healed, a conviction born of absolute trust in His almighty and merciful power. On the other hand, unbelief, presumption, ignorance will hinder any kind of communion between God and man.

An argument from his own experience:

No self-important boasting here, but a modesty which makes his argument all the stronger, since it gives to Christ the honor which fitly belongs to Him. The centurion, for his own person, held a subordinate position, he was bound by his oath to the government and by all that this implied. And yet he had enough authority, in his official position, to give commands to his men, and in his station as head of the household, to demand work from his slave. “The argument of the centurion seems to run thus: If I, who am a person subject to the control of others, yet have some so completely subject to myself, that I can say to one, Come, and he cometh; to another, Go, and he goeth; and to my slave, Do this, and he doeth it, how much more, then, canst Thou accomplish whatsoever Thou willest, being subject to no one, and having all things under Thy command.” [Clarke, Commentary, 6,100]. Always there is the reference to the almighty power of Christ’s word.

The astonishment of Jesus:

Any evidence of implicit, trusting faith always affected Jesus very deeply, Matthew 15:28. He was here filled with great surprise and wonder. Not even in Israel, where such faith, such remarkable trust in His power, ought to be the rule, Romans 3:2; Romans 9:5, had He found such belief. This extraordinary situation causes Him to utter a prophecy concerning the conversion of the Gentiles, which reflected in a very uncomplimentary way upon His own countrymen. In the form of a parable He represents the kingdom of God as a great festival, or feast, where the riches of God’s mercy would be dispensed with a full hand. The heathen centurion represents, as it were, the first-fruits of the great multitudes whom the Lord would call from all kindreds, and tongues, and peoples, and nations, to recline at His tables and partake of His gifts, with the patriarchs, the fathers of the faithful of all times. In the mean time, the children of the Kingdom, the sons of those to whom the promises were made, the Jews that were depending upon their earthly relationship to the fathers without their faith, would lose their heritage, because they will not accept Jesus as their Savior. Outer darkness instead of the light of heaven, weeping in a repentance that came too late, gnashing the teeth in impotent rage, that would be their lot. That is, to this day, the expectancy of all unbelievers.

The reward of faith:

As was the faith, so was the cure. The trust in the power of the word brought the word with power to heal. Christ speaks under great emotion, granting the boon to which the captain’s belief clung, bidding his messengers and himself go to witness the fulfilment of his prayer. In the self-same hour, at the identical time, the miracle was performed. Thus faith receives from Christ, to whom it clings, help, comfort, mercy, and every good thing.

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Verses 14-17

Various miracles of healing

Cure of a fever:

Jesus had, on a certain Sabbath-day, attended the synagog. Returning from there, and coming into the house of Peter, who here bears his name as disciple, Jesus saw a sad condition of affairs, Mark 1:29-31; Luke 4:38-39. Peter’s mother-in-law lay bedridden with a fever. Note: Peter had a home at Capernaum, having moved there from Bethsaida, probably on account of the better market for fish, but still more probably because the Lord had chosen this city for His sojourn. And Peter was married; he was not given to a false holiness, a dangerous asceticism, as the Roman Catholic Church demands of its clergy, but made use of his right to have a sister as his wife, 1 Corinthians 9:5. Jesus was touched with sympathy. He rebuked the fever, He took hold of the sick woman’s hand to raise her up, and at His miraculous touch the sickness vanished, with all its after-effects. She arose from her bed without a sign of weakness or unsteadiness. She could wait at the table and render all manner of services, singling out, in her gratitude, especially Him to whom she owed her perfect recovery. Any gift received from the Lord should prompt us to the most active individual service.

Events of that Sabbath-evening:

All Galilee was filled with the report concerning Christ, and a steady stream of sick people with their relatives was usually pouring in from every direction. It was after the close of the Sabbath-day, Leviticus 23:32; they need hesitate no longer for fear of transgressing the Law. The fame of the Lord’s having cured a demoniac in the morning had spread like wild-fire. The majority of those brought to Him were afflicted with the same terrible disease, that of being possessed of evil spirits. With a word He cast out the demons who, like the entire spirit world, are subject to Him; with tender kindness He healed all the other sicknesses; there was none that could withstand His almighty mercy. The reference of Matthew to the prophecy, Isaiah 53:4, is very appropriate. The prophet’s reference is to griefs and sorrows, to diseases and pains of the soul, due to sin and its curse. But the evangelist rightly argues: He that bears the greater is master of the smaller. The diseases of man are connected with sin, on the one hand, and with death, on the other. And so our High Priest, touched with the feeling of our infirmities, had sympathy with the results and consequences of sin, knowing its curse, its destructive influence, upon body and soul, Hebrews 4:15; Hebrews 5:2. He bare, He took away, our sins and infirmities; they are no longer a curse for the believers.

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Verses 18-22

The discipleship of Christ

Preparations for departure:

It was getting late in the evening. Jesus had spent a very busy day teaching and healing. And still great multitudes pressed about Him. He was now on the shore of Lake Gennesaret. To escape the importunity of the crowd and to avoid an outburst of false enthusiasm which might spoil the work of His ministry, John 6:3-15, He ordered departure unto the other side. An interruption:

There were others besides His disciples in His immediate vicinity. One of these, a scribe, plucked up enough courage to speak to Him. A strong testimony for the power of Christ’s preaching and of the magnetism of His personality that one of the scribes, who, as a class, were utterly opposed to the ways of Jesus, could be carried away by his enthusiasm and ask to be admitted to the inner circle of the apostles. But it is ignorant presumption to think of being able to follow Christ in any way which he should choose or be obliged to go. He had no conception of the cost of being a disciple of Christ. So the Lord shows him the true meaning of discipleship, what it implies and what it demands. The foxes have dens, where they may rest in safety, the birds of the heaven have roosts, most of them resorting to the same tree night after night for shelter, but the Son of Man, Jesus, in His state of humiliation, is burdened with a poverty, with a homelessness, which to Him is a willing burden, but which might become a galling irritation to one that does not realize what might be demanded of the followers of the lowly Nazarene. Under certain circumstances poverty, privations, persecutions may, by God’s permission, be the lot of the Christians. “So all true Christians do: They use their goods, they have nests and dens; but when necessity demands leaving them for the sake of Christ, they do it, and gladly even move from the place where they may lay their head, as on their possession. And they are glad to be foreigners in the world and say: I am a guest upon earth; and again: I am a pilgrim, as were all my fathers.” [Luther, quoted in Stoeckhardt, Biblische Oeschichte des Neuen Testaments, 69].

Another lesson:

Here was a man that had belonged to the larger circle of disciples, that had made it a point to remain in the neighborhood of Christ. But his was a vacillating nature, he was still undecided. Jesus called him, Luke 9:59. Hesitatingly he asks for leave to bury his father, which may have been a mere pretense in order to gain time. Jesus gives him what sounds like a harsh answer. If Christ was here merely quoting a Jewish proverb, His meaning may have been: Let the spiritually dead, those that are dead to the call of the Kingdom, bury the naturally dead. But without such a supposition the words of Christ refer to an Aramaic use of the word “dead,” a play on words, meaning to say: Let the dead be taken care of by those whose business it is to inter the earthly remains; do not concern yourself about the mortal shell of your father, that is the business of the undertaker; let your concern be the kingdom of God. The discipleship of Christ is far more important than all duties toward even the nearest relatives; if there is a conflict of interests, there can be but one choice, Matthew 10:35-39.

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Verses 23-27

The storm on the lake

The ship had been prepared by the disciples in accordance with previous instructions, and when He now entered, the men that stood nearest to Him, the inner circle of His followers, embarked with Him. Worn out by the intensity of the bodily and mental strain of a hard day’s work, Jesus went off to sleep, soothed by the gliding motion of the vessel. All unexpectedly, with great suddenness, there burst down upon the little lake one of the storms which are so dreaded on account of their extreme violence. There was literally an earthquake of the sea, a hurricane with tornado-like force, before which the experienced fishermen were absolutely helpless. The waves lifted up on every side, rising high above the ship, hiding it, breaking over it, gradually filling it with water, whose amount defied all efforts at bailing out. All nature was in an uproar, wind and sea had conspired to destroy both vessel and travelers. Note the contrast: Christ was quietly sleeping, in the midst of all the turmoil, unaffected by an excitement which caused the strongest men to quake with fear. “But, now, natural sleep is the certain indication of a true, natural man. Since, then, the gospel says Christ slept in the ship, the evangelist wants to show us Christ as a real, natural man that has body and soul, and therefore had need of eating, drinking, sleeping, and other natural works that are done without sin, just as we have. In order that we do not fall into the error of the Manichaeans, who believed Christ to be a spirit, not a true man. [Luther, 13, 1627].

The terror of the disciples and Christ’s rebuke:

Coming to Him, the disciples woke Him. They may have hesitated for some time out of respect for their beloved Teacher. But their fear becomes so great that they are unable to control themselves; it is a cry rather than a report which they utter. In their last extremity He is their one thought. An important point: Christ’s first thought is for the faith of the disciples, not for the alleviation of their fear. Why be filled with fear, why so little faith? The rebuke was harsh in tone, purposely, but with a hidden kindness. His own absolute fearlessness should calm their panic. Lack of faith always renders timid; trust in God, in His power and in His help, makes bold. This most important matter having been settled, He arose from His pillow and uttered a second rebuke, directed to the fierce winds, to the tumultuous waves. “Peace, be still!” He bade them, Mark 4:39. With the sound of His voice an obedient hush fell upon the turbulence of the winds and the waves. The almighty Ruler of the universe had spoken. His human voice, by virtue of the divine power and majesty given to His humanity, controlled the forces of nature, Proverbs 30:4. “But that He rebukes the sea and the wind, and that the sea and the wind are obedient, therewith He proves His almighty deity, that He is a lord over wind and sea. For to be able with one word to quiet the sea and cause the wind to cease, that is not the work of a man; a divine power is necessary to stop the turbulence of the sea with one word. Therefore Christ is not only natural man, but also true God.” [Luther, 13, 1628]. The effect of this miracle upon the disciples and upon all that afterwards heard of the story, since the sudden quieting of the sea must have been noticed from the shore, was to fill them with amazement: What kind of man and whence is He? They had further evidence for His divinity, as well as for His loving care for those whom He has enrolled as His disciples, whose every fear He is glad to dispel, whose every prayer, even in little faith, finds careful consideration before Him.

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Verses 28-34

Jesus and the Gadarenes

On the east side of the Sea of Galilee was the territory of the Gadarenes, the Gerasenes, and the Gergesenes, the southern part of Gaulanitis, so named after the chief cities of the region, one of which, Gergesa, was located on the lake shore. Two demoniacs here ran to meet the Lord. As an eye-witness, Matthew states the number, although only one of the sick men was so exceptionally violent that he drew the attention of all, and is therefore mentioned in the other accounts, Mark 1:23-27; Luke 4:31-37. Their home was in the limestone caves along the eastern shore, which were also used for tombs. A terrible picture: The naked, filthy, raving maniacs terrorizing the neighborhood, too strong to be bound with ropes or chains, associated with darkness and death, with grave and destruction, a fitting setting for the devil’s power, under God’s permission.

Their cry and confession:

Jesus, having come to destroy the works of the devil, to redeem men from his sinister influence, from his destructive power, 1 John 3:8, immediately commanded the evil spirits to leave the men, Luke 8:29. But they, speaking with the tongue of one of the demoniacs, pleaded with Him not to torment them. Note: The devil knows the man Jesus to be the Son of God; the evil spirits recognize in Him the future Judge; they fear the last judgment with its condemnation. Even now hell is for them a place of torture, excruciating, incessant. But until the last day, and especially during the days preceding the final judgment, they have, in a measure, the power and the might to destroy and to torture God’s creatures. But even so they are excluded from blessed communion with God. On the Day of Judgment they will be condemned into the abyss of hell, to be chained there forever with fetters of darkness. So they plead not to be tortured before that time.

The expulsion of the evil spirits:

In the same neighborhood, at some distance from the place where Jesus was standing, and yet within sight. A great herd of swine, animals that were unclean to the Jewish people, by the Old Testament Law. It was a neighborhood in which the heathen element of the population predominated, where the strictness of the Law was no longer recognized. Knowing that their power over these two men was at an end, the evil spirits begged to be permitted to wreak their fiendishness on the swine, always with the purpose of destruction in mind. And having obtained the permission, their advent into the herd deprived the animals of even the instinct of self-preservation. Rushing down the declivity, they were drowned in the sea. The devil is a murderer from the beginning. If God hinders his work of destruction against human beings, he kills dumb animals. But he can do nothing without the permission of God. And this permission is granted sometimes in order to carry out some punishment of God.

The result:

The swineherds fled. The disaster that befell their herds sent them back to the city in haste, superstitious terror filling their hearts. As much as they had seen and the conclusions they had drawn while they were out on the hills: their account may have been fanciful and garbled enough. All those that heard the story and were foot-loose turned out, probably with the idea of taking summary vengeance on whatever person proved guilty of the loss of their swine. They learned the truth. They were awed by the presence of Him whose power over the demons had been demonstrated beyond a doubt. And so their vindictive attitude gave way to a respectful pleading. They besought Him to go away from their coasts, to leave their country. They feared that they might be compelled to sustain still greater damage. The loss of the swine was to them a calamity. And they felt uncomfortable in the presence of the Holy One of God. They much preferred their swine and their sinful life to His pure presence. They repudiated this opportunity for grace.

Summary

Christ heals a leper, restores the sick servant of the centurion whose faith amazed Him, performs a number of other miracles, gives a lesson in discipleship, stills the tempest, and drives out the devils from two Gadarene demoniacs.

Verses 1-8

The healing of the palsied man

Jesus complied with the request of the Gerasenes to depart out of their neighborhood. Entering into the boat in which He had come over with His disciples, He crossed back to the western side of the Sea of Gennesaret, to the city of Capernaum, where He made His headquarters during His Galilean ministry. No sooner had He arrived there than the fact became known, and multitudes of people began to gather in the house and on the street. It was a day of grace for the whole city: Jesus was teaching, and His power went out to heal the sick, Luke 5:17. An important incident:

Matthew implies that there was a long process connected with the bringing of the sick man, which is told in detail by the other evangelists: The four friends bearing their burden, the impossibility of making headway through the crowds, the ascent to the flat roof, the uncovering of the tiles. Finally, the paralytic, bedridden and helpless as he was, was deposited in a cleared space before Jesus. A notable point: the Lord looks, above all, for faith. In this case He found their faith, that of the paralytic as well as that of his friends, by virtue of His omniscience. So satisfied was He with the result of His scrutiny that He addresses words of comfort to the sick man. The Savior’s intuition read in his eye the need of an assurance involving more than mere bodily recovery. The consolation of the soul was what he aspired for; the despondence, due probably to a bad conscience, must be removed. An infinite tenderness in Christ’s words: Take courage, cheer up, son! There is no reason to fear that the heavenly Father and I, His Representative, will condemn. He deals first with the disease of the soul, announcing, with absolute authority, the fact of the forgiveness of sins, applying it to this individual man. As sin is the greatest evil on earth and draws after it all the other evils that flesh is heir to, so forgiveness, pardon, is the greatest good that God can give to man, Psalm 103:3. “This is the voice of the Gospel: Be of, good cheer, live, be preserved. The entire rhetoric of the Gospel is connected with this word: Son, be of good cheer. For it indicates that the heart must be driven to confidence with all arguments and examples that praise God’s mercy, against all arguments and examples that tell of God’s wrath.… That is the kingdom of Christ; who has it thus has it right. There is no work, but only the acknowledgment of all our misfortune and acceptance of all the gifts of God; there is nothing but just consolation; there these words go without ceasing: Be glad, do not be terrified in thy conscience on account of thy sins, that thou hast not done much good; I will forgive all that. Therefore there is no merit, but all pure donation. That is the Gospel: That demands faith, wherewith thou receive and hold these words, that it be not said in vain. For we have no other defiance with which He bids us boast than that God says: Be in high spirits, be cheerful, for I forgive the sin; boast of My forgiving, of that make a show. Then hast thou cause to boast and to glory, not on account of thy works.” [Luther, 12, 1920; 11, 1716].

The condemnation of the scribes:

As usual, the enemies of Christ had their representatives in the people surrounding Jesus, to counteract, if possible, the influence of His teaching and of His miracles. It was not a rude interruption which they tried here, but their objection, to the omniscient mind of Christ, was as open as though they had shouted it at the top of their voice. They bring the accusation of blasphemy against the Lord, of an impious assumption of divine rights and powers. They challenge His prerogative, correctly stating that it was God’s office to pardon sins, Luke 5:21. Jesus read their thoughts as He read the mental state of the paralytic. His very searching and knowing of their hearts reproved their wickedness, and to this He adds the spoken rebuke: To what end, with the expectation of what, — what do you propose to accomplish with the evil thoughts that are in your hearts? His question to them: Both being equally easy to say, which takes the greater power and authority, which would prove the stronger argument as to divine omnipotence, the healing of the body or the healing of the soul?

The argument in deed:

Far from admitting a pretension on His part which would amount to a blasphemy, He, the Son of Man, deliberately assumes a divine prerogative also in healing the body. The greater includes the smaller: the right and the authority to pardon sins implies the power and the ability to heal mere bodily ailments. If He had been guilty of blasphemy, He could not have had the authority to cure the sick man by a peremptory command. He, the true human being, is nevertheless not a mere man, but can command the sickness and restore the sick to complete health by a word of His almighty power. The man that had been chained to his cot in utter helplessness could now shoulder this same cot and walk out in the fulness of perfect vitality.

The effect upon the people:

They were not interested in the scruples of the scribes and Pharisees; the miracle settled the matter so far as they were concerned. They were filled with the fear of amazement and reverence: A Healer in their midst that assumed and exercised divine rights, that manifested an authority over the soul as well as over the body! It may also be that the spirit of Christ was struggling in many of the hearts there present with the unbelief of the scribes. But finally they glorified, they praised God for giving such power to men, not only to the one man, Jesus, but through Him, to men that are His followers. “This power, which hitherto had been enthroned in the Most Holy Place as the prerogative of Jehovah, now stood embodied before them. Hence their joyous expression: He has given it to the Son of Man, and therefore to men.” God, through Christ, has given to men the power to forgive sins. It is the peculiar church power, by which the sins of the penitent sinners are remitted to them. “This power all men have that are Christians and are baptized, for therewith they praise Christ and have the word forgiveness in their mouth, that they can and may say when they want to and as often as it is needed: Behold, man, God offers thee His grace, presents to thee all thy sins, be of good cheer, thy sins are forgiven, only believe, then it is certain, or what other words one would use. This voice shall not cease among the Christians until the last day: Thy sins are forgiven thee, be full of gladness and comfort! … Learn, then, that you can say and instruct others concerning the forgiveness of sins, that God in Baptism, in Absolution, on the pulpit, and in the Sacrament speaks to us, through the servant of the Church and through other Christians; them we shall believe, and we find forgiveness of sins.” [Luther, 11, 1722; 13, 2442].

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Verses 9-17

The call of Matthew and his feast

After Christ had performed the healing of the palsied man, He left the house in order to go down to the seaside, Mark 2:13. On His way He passed the custom-house of Capernaum, which was in charge of Levi, the son of Alphaeus, who was after this called Matthew, and who proudly records the fact in his account of his call. This toll-house was a busy place, since the caravan road between Egypt and Damascus passed through the city. But at Christ’s characteristic invitation Matthew promptly complies. He may have known Jesus before, he could hardly have missed hearing of Him. The call was more than a mere invitation, it was a direct enrolling of the publican among those that stood nearest to the Lord.

The publican feast:

Matthew, either upon his own initiative or at the suggestion of Jesus, caused a feast to be prepared, Mark 2:15; Luke 5:29. But here is a significant fact: publicans and sinners were the guests beside Jesus and His disciples. They were reclining, after the Oriental fashion, on special sofas, resting on pillows; scores, possibly hundreds, were present, all of the lowly, the social outcasts of the city, those whom the Pharisees had excommunicated from the synagogs. The latter took offense:

They regarded the whole festival as a scandalous affair, but lacked the courage to address Christ directly on this matter, hoping incidentally thus to alienate the disciples from the Master. Jesus, the Friend of the sinners, is a rock of offense to all self-righteous, proud hearts. They find His behavior savoring of the gutter, and criticize severely such as follow His directions in seeking sinners.

Christ’s defense:

Jesus heard the murmuring and took the fault-finders to task. He quotes a proverb in explanation of His own conduct, implying, at the same time, a criticism of their position. A physician naturally finds his field of activity among the sick, such as feel the need of his services. Those that are well, or deceive themselves into the belief that they are in perfect health, resent the suggestion of a physician in their case. Christ is the true Physician of the soul. He that is spiritually well, that is righteous and perfect, without sin, feels no need of the Savior of sinners. Though there are no just persons in the world that would honestly belong to this class, the great majority claim perfection, a complete righteousness, for themselves. They want nothing of Jesus, the Redeemer. Only the meek and lowly in heart, that feel their sin and the curse of sin, they come to the Friend of sinners and accept healing at His hands. Jesus reminds the Pharisees, who might have felt the inference, of the word of the prophet, Hosea 6:6. Mercy goes before sacrifice. All service of the lips and sacrifices of the hands, all mere outward worship, all dead orthodoxy, is an abomination before the Lord. A merciful heart manifesting its sympathy in deeds of mercy pleases Him. But the Pharisees of all times have never felt the need of the mercy of God, and therefore have never tasted its sublime sweetness. For that reason they feel no mercy towards their fellow-creatures. All those that are called after the name of Christ must be filled with the enthusiasm of the mission of Jesus.

A question regarding fasting:

Silenced on one point, the Pharisees attack on another, aided, in this case, by some disciples of John the Baptist. They were all of them rigorous in their asceticism, keeping all the prescribed fasts, as well as many of their own choosing, with painful regularity. They resented the absence of this legal tendency in the circle of disciples about Jesus, even while they felt themselves superior to the Galilean fishermen, and asked for an explanation. Jesus enlightens them: Friends of the Bridegroom, that belong to the inner circle, to the intimates, could not possibly think of fasting and mourning, indulging in all manner of sorrowful performances, while the Bridegroom is yet with them. But when the Bridegroom is taken from them, when Jesus shall fulfil His destiny in His passion and death, there will be a great difference. Then, in those days, they will grieve, John 16:20a. In the mean time, their whole life in His companionship was like a continual wedding-feast, with nothing but joy and happiness.

Further parabolic sayings:

Just as Christ had emphasized the fitness of things in His apology for the disciples, He here insists upon proper congruity in religion, especially in external forms. To put a patch of unscoured, new and strong, cloth upon an old garment will usually result in disaster, since the patch, being stronger, will tear out at the edges, thus making the rent worse. The piety of the Pharisees, the religion of works which they flaunted before the eyes of the people, on the one hand, and the doctrine of Jesus, the preaching of the free grace of God through His blood, on the other, will never agree. If one insists on wearing his old garment of self-righteousness and works, and then believes it possible to cover an occasional revealing sin with the Gospel, he will find but poor comfort. His heart is still bound up in the old garment, and his miserable subterfuge will only make the incongruity appear the more glaring. It is just as foolish to keep new wine, grape-juice in the early stage of fermentation, in old skins that have lost their elasticity. The result is disastrous: The skins burst, the wine is spilled. But new skins and new wine are perfectly suited to each other. The sweet Gospel of the forgiveness of sins by the mercy of God does not fit into carnal, Pharisaic hearts. If the Gospel is preached to those that believe in works only, its richness is squandered. Such hearts cannot understand or keep it; they only take offense at the preaching of the Gospel, and are lost in spite of the Gospel. Only meek and lowly, believing hearts will accept the Gospel just as it reads, and will be kept by the power of God unto salvation.

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Verses 18-26

The daughter of Jarius

Jesus was still in earnest conversation with the Pharisees and the disciples of John, when there was an interruption. A ruler, or elder, of the synagog at Capernaum, a man of some influence, coming in, threw himself down before the Lord in the attitude of supplication. Matthew here, for the sake of brevity, mentions the cry of the ruler after he had received the actual report of his daughter’s death, Mark 5:35. His faith in the ability of Christ to heal, and even to bring back from death, is absolute. Even now she surely must be dead, but the touch of the great Healer’s hand could restore her to life. Jesus, ever full of loving sympathy, ready, for the sake of a soul, to go also to the bedsides, went with the distracted father.

An interlude:

Another applicant for help, a woman that had a bloody flux, a disagreeable, weakening disease, rendering Levitically unclean, Leviticus 15, having spent all her substance in the fruitless quest of health. From behind she came, partly from shame on account of her uncleanness and morbid sensitiveness due to her condition, partly from humility. Only the fringe of His coat she wanted to touch, the outer of the four tassels which Jesus, in accordance with the commandment, Numbers 15:38, wore to remind of the commandments. She had the firm conviction, based on her simple faith in His almighty power, that such a mere touching would suffice to render her whole. There was no cunning and superstition in her action. Only a living, strong faith could have such certainty that a mere touch of the garment’s hem would restore to health. She hoped, incidentally, to remain undetected in the dense crowd which was pressing about the Lord, Mark 5:30-32. But Jesus felt the touch, just as He knew of her presence and her eager desire. He turned around, and seeing her, He added His comforting assurance to the miracle which had even then taken place. All fear must vanish at His kind words, at His cheering tone of voice, in rhythmic cadence. She has entered, by her faith, into the close and honoring relation of a daughter to Him, and that same faith has gained from Him the fulfilment of her wish. She is a healed woman. He sets forth her faith as an example before the people, just as He found it necessary, about this time, to encourage the ruler with the words: Fear not, only believe, Mark 5:36. “Thus thou seest what faith is and does, when it clings to the person of Christ, namely, such a heart as deems Him its Lord and Savior, the Son of God, through whom God reveals Himself and has promised us His grace, that for His sake and through Him He wants to hear and help us. That is the true spiritual, internal worship, when the heart deals with Christ and calls upon Him, though it speak not a word, and gives Him the right honor, believes Him to be the true Savior, who knows and hears also the secret desires of the heart, and proves His help and power, though He does not at once and externally permit Himself to be felt and handled in such a manner as we think.” [Luther, 11, 1857].

At the house of Jairus:

Jesus had purposely tarried and spent some time with the woman on the way over to the ruler’s house. But now, coming into the house and seeing the flute-players and the noisy crowd of professional mourners which had even then gathered, mainly in the desire to share in the meat and drink which was forthcoming at such occasions, and hearing the confused din which arose from the motley assembly, He sternly bids them: Retire, move away, do not stay here. Not dead is the young girl, but she sleeps. Before Christ she was not in the final power of death, to Him her lifeless form presented only a sleeping maiden. The death of all the faithful is merely a sleep for some little time in the bed of the grave, from which there will be a glorious awakening when God will reunite soul and body. “Thus we also shall learn to look upon our death in the right way that we do not become frightened before it as unbelief does: That it is truly in Christ not a death, but a fine, sweet, short sleep, in which we, delivered from this present misery, from sin and from the true death’s trouble and fear, safe and without all care, may rest a short moment as on a couch, until the time comes when He will wake and call us with all His dear children to eternal glory and joys.” [Luther, 11, 1865].

The scornful laughter, the derisive jeering of the crowd did not deter the Lord. After the house had been cleared of their distasteful presence, He went into the chamber of death with the parents and with His three favorite disciples, Peter, James, and John, took hold of the little girl’s hand, and commanded her to arise. Here a body which had been claimed by death as its own was restored to life with all its manifestations. The maid could arise, she could walk, eat, and drink, perform all the usual acts of a living person. Christ, as the Fountain of life, can bring back to life even such as have submitted to the grim reaper. With His human voice He aroused the child from the sleep of death. Even in the state of humiliation the human nature of Christ is the source and the fountain of life.

Against the wishes of Jesus, who desired no notoriety for Himself, but wanted the parents of the maiden to contemplate the miracle in quiet thankfulness, the fame, the report of this resurrection spread through that entire region. It was a matter unheard of till now that a dead person was raised to life again. Jesus feared enthusiastic demonstrations.

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Verses 27-34

Further miracles on that day

There was no respite for the Lord since His power over diseases was now generally known. Waiting at the door were two unfortunates with an affliction very common in the East, especially in Egypt, Palestine, and Arabia. They were blind from disease. The stories they had heard of the healing power of Jesus and the words which they had had occasion to listen to from His own mouth, had given them the conviction that this man must be the promised Messiah. For while they followed after Him, they cried loudly, calling Him the Son of David, and beseeching Him for help. Note: The opinion was generally held in Judea at that time, that the Messiah should be the Son of David, John 7:42. Jesus was openly acknowledged as coming from this family, Matthew 12:23; Matthew 15:22; Matthew 20:30-31; Matthew 21:9-15; Matthew 22:41-45. The fact that these blind men thus publicly invoked Him amounted to a distinct profession of the Messiahship of Jesus. For that reason also the pleading cry: Have mercy on us! No grumbling against fate, no demanding of a just alleviation of an unmerited punishment; only mercy they beg.

The healing and its effect:

Jesus had taken no notice of the cries of the men on the street, either for fear of awakening false expectations, or in order to test their faith. But they were persistent with that importunity which usually conquered Jesus. When He reached His house, His lodgings, they went directly to Him. The Lord has only one question to address to them, whether they have faith in His power to help, to which they assented with a glad Yes, Lord, thus both confessing faith in His ability and giving Him the honor due Him as the Lord of heaven. Then, without further hesitation, overcome by the force of their pleading in faith, He touched their eyes and thus opened and gave sight to them. As was their faith, so was their reward. Faith is the hand which takes what God offers, the spiritual organ of appropriation, the connecting link between our emptiness and God’s fulness. It is faith which opens the heart of Jesus and storms the very gates of heaven. But this trusting faith is always an outgrowth of redeeming faith, of the firm reliance in the blood and merits of Jesus the Redeemer. The Lord, in dismissing the men that had thus received His bounty, sternly enjoined them, very emphatically charged them, on pain of His displeasure, not to spread the news abroad, to let no one know of the healing. The danger of a carnal movement, by which the people of Galilee would be roused into rebellion against the Romans, made it necessary for Him to impose silence upon them. But they, believing, probably, that it was only humility that prompted the Lord to make such a demand, and full of joy over the help which they had experienced, were most active in relating their glad news in that entire country, far beyond the boundaries of Capernaum.

The dumb demoniac:

Hardly had the men of the last miracle gone from the room, in fact, while they were leaving the house, another sufferer was brought to the great Healer. In this case the evil spirits had blunted the faculty of speech. There was no apparent physical defect, but the devil’s power held the tongue and took from the man the ability to speak. No sooner, therefore, was the evil spirit cast out than the dumb could speak in connected discourse. Again the crowd present was filled with wonder, which found its expression in the saying: The like was never seen in Israel. It was unheard of that a man should have such unlimited power, even over demons. Never before, also, had the appearance of the final deliverance been so fully realized. The Messianic revelation was gradually entering into the consciousness of the people. The Pharisees tried to weaken the impression of the miracle by a theory which they had formed: In and through the prince of demons He casts out demons. They insinuate that there is intimate relation and fellowship between Christ and the powers of evil, that He is in league with Satan and can therefore command them at will. Christ purposely ignored the remark in this case, though He might easily have put them to silence, Matthew 12:24-28.

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Verses 35-38

Continuation of Christ’s teaching and healing ministry

A ministry of the Gospel:

Another summary of Christ’s prophetical work, like Matthew 4:23-25. Repeatedly, without becoming weary, Jesus makes His trips through the Galilean country. The people of the country had full opportunity, not only to know the truth, but to become established in the truth. He visited not only all the cities, but also the villages, teaching in preparation for the acceptance of the message which He brought, preaching the Gospel-news itself, and giving proof of its divine character by the miracles of healing which He performed. The Gospel of the Kingdom He proclaimed, not of a kingdom of this world, neither a temporal principality nor a social reformation, but a communion of believers in union with Him as their Head. “That means to be in the kingdom of heaven, if I am a living member of Christianity, and not only hear the Gospel, but also believe.” [Luther, 11, 490].

Christ’s compassion:

Christ’s ministry brought Him into the most intimate touch with the people, gave Him the clearest insight into their moral and religious condition. Two pictures were suggested to His mind: A flock of sheep neglected in the desert, and a harvest going to waste for lack of reapers. The people whom He met were faint, overdriven, afflicted, beaten down, exhausted by long, aimless driving, completely worn out and scattered about. They had no faithful shepherds. The Pharisees and scribes vexed, worried their souls with their legal flaying, gave them thousands of precepts regulating the very minutest details of their lives, but neither taught them where to get the strength nor gave them the comfort of the Gospel. Most of the people were in the direst spiritual distress. A pitiful spectacle! But this is to arouse them to action. The harvest of God is always great, since He wants all men to be saved. When the souls have grown weary and surfeited with the husks of human doctrines and traditions of men, they are more apt to feel and realize their need of the Gospel of Jesus, as in the case of many of the Jewish nation, The laborers, that are in full sympathy with the Gospel-teachings, that are willing to work for Christ, are few. At that time only the Lord and here and there a true Israelite were laboring for the Kingdom. There is needed some of Christ’s compassion, some of that divine commiseration which moved the heart of Christ; there is needed some of that willingness to work and, if need be, to suffer, which characterized the ministry of Christ; and there is needed, lastly, the force of heaven-storming prayers to the Lord of the harvest, to the great Lord of the Kingdom, that He Himself would thrust out, that He will urge and make willing the hearts of the laborers as He sends them forth to reap the souls for His eternal kingdom.

Summary

Jesus heals a paralytic, calls Matthew, takes dinner with him, and gives a lesson on humility and fasting, raises the daughter of Jairus, heals the woman with the issue of blood, gives sight to two blind men, drives out a dumb demon, and draws a lesson from His ministry.

Verses 1-15

The commission to the twelve

Laborers for the harvest:

The first part of Christ’s Galilean ministry was over. He had spread the Gospel-message by His personal preaching in all parts of the northern country. But the conditions, as He had just told His disciples, demanded at the same time more general and more intensive work. And so He commissioned His twelve disciples, the twelve that were later distinguished by that name, whose relation to the Lord had been unusually intimate from the first. He had many other disciples or adherents. His Word had not returned void. Most of those that had experienced His healing power had accepted His Gospel and were His true believers. Many of these stayed in their own homes, testifying for the Lord upon occasion. Others, and among them these twelve as the most prominent, accompanied the Lord on all or most of His journeys. The twelve He here called for a special mission. The sum of His charge to them: Power over unclean spirits and power of healing both the severer sicknesses and the infirmities or weaknesses of the people. The authority to heal was especially necessary for the work in Galilee, since the fame of Jesus rested largely upon His miracles, and the populace would naturally demand some proof of their commission, if they claimed to have been sent by Christ.

The apostles enumerated:

Apostles they are called as the special witnesses of Christ and as His representatives in extending His Church, Acts 1:8; Acts 1:21, sent by Him with extraordinary authority. Note: At the head of the list is Peter, because he was called into actual discipleship first, Matthew 4:18. His name, Peter, given to him by the Lord Himself, here distinguishes him from the other Simon of the list. Bartholomew is commonly identified with Nathanael, John 1:46. Matthew expressly adds his epithet “the publican,” in modest self-abasement, and yet with a certain pride that Christ’s mercy had selected even a tax-gatherer of the lower class as His intimate friend. Simon the Canaanite, or Simon of Cana, was sometimes also called the Zealot, probably with reference to his most marked characteristic. In the last place stands the name of Judas, the traitor. His home town was Kerioth, in Judah, and he was the only non-Galilean disciple. The call of Jesus to this man was just as sincere as that to the other apostles. But Judas, by his own malice and by the temptation of Satan, thrust the mercy of the Lord from him. From petty thieving he fell to the lowest depths possible for a redeemed creature — he betrayed his Savior.

Instructions as to the place to preach:

These, twelve in all, known ever after by that designation, Jesus sent away with a definite charge as to the place and sphere of their work. They should stay away from the country of the heathens and from the cities of the Samaritans. With great solemnity, in rhythmic cadence, the emphasis is brought out. The first offer of salvation, by God’s intention, was to be made to the Jewish people. As they had been His chosen nation in the Old Testament, so He now confined His own work, through His disciples, chiefly to Israel, though He was not averse to the Gentiles’ having occasional crumbs, Matthew 15; John 4. The chief regard of the disciples was to be for the lost sheep of the house of Israel, those that were going astray without their knowledge and intention, having been worried and flayed and deliberately misled by hirelings. Neglected they were and in great danger of final perdition, but probably to be won for salvation by careful and thorough Gospel-work, preaching, not healing, being the more important.

The message itself and the accompanying signs:

While on your missionary journey, preach; preaching the first and foremost duty and necessity. Its subject: The kingdom of the heavens is even now at hand. In the person of the lowly Nazarene, Jesus Christ, all the types and prophecies are fulfilled. He that accepts Him in faith has the Kingdom, is a member of the Kingdom. So perform your work as heralds, from house to house. And whenever it was necessary, they were empowered to confirm the Word with signs following, Mark 16:20. Not only should ordinary sicknesses yield to their authority, but even the uncleanness of the lepers. Even the power to call the dead back to life and to control evil spirits was entrusted to them. Circumstances may not have required the use of all these miracles in any one city or town, and it is likely that the apostles did not raise any people from the dead before Christ Himself arose from the dead. There is also some probability that, at that time, their faith was not yet strong enough to perform the greatest miracle, Matthew 17:20. But so far as Christ’s commission to them was concerned, they received all the authority necessary to back up their preaching with such works as must be accepted as proof positive for their divine mission. But this power was not to be for hire, not to be sold for money.

Instructions as to dress and baggage:

Neither provide nor acquire on your trip; your mission is to be without material reward. Avarice and hoarding would prejudice your work. Money of any kind should not be taken, lest the gift and the benefit of miracles and of the Gospel seem for sale, least of all gold, not even silver, yea, not a single copper. The girdle of the upper garment was used not only for gathering up the loose mantle, but also for holding the purses or the loose change. In the same way a bag or wallet for provisions was not permitted, nor a second shirt or undergarment, nor traveling shoes, nor heavy staves, all of which would be a hindrance to you on your present journey. You should be like men in great haste, eager to begin and to carry on the great work. “Even the least profit from their office was prohibited; but implying neither a vow of poverty nor of mendicancy, in the popish sense. They were to introduce the great principle that the messengers of the Gospel had claim on daily support and free hospitality.” [Schaff, Commentary, Matthew, 185]. Worthy is the laborer of his maintenance, Mark 6:8; Luke 9:3. This is an axiom which contains, in the mouth of Christ, also a deep comfort. The workman that follows the other injunctions of the Lord need have no concern about his food and clothing; He will provide.

The form of approach:

This shall be a standing rule; no matter what city or village it may be, the same procedure shall be followed. They shall earnestly, accurately examine and inquire as to the moral worthiness of the probable host, for a wrong choice might seriously harm the work. But when the choice has once been made, abide by the decision. Seek no better fare or more congenial company, lest you be marked as self-seeking men. It is always best to establish a center of activity rather than depend upon a transient and broken activity. There is here also a hint for the idle chatterer, the gadabout, the busybody, that frequents the streets and the company of those that may be able to further his ambition, instead of finding time for prayer and study at home. Such a home, the worthy abiding-place, shall be distinguished by the salutation of peace, as shall all the houses that are open to the servants of the Lord. Such a salutation is not an empty formula, but a blessing in the name of the Lord, granting the blessing of the Lord. He abides where His servant abides.

Reception and rejection:

If, after your salutation, the house be worthy of the honor that a servant of the Lord remain there, then your peace, which implies the blessing of the Lord, shall come and rest upon that house. But after all the pains you have taken, your judgment and the information of others may still be at fault; yet your greeting of peace will not have been spoken in vain, rather it shall be returned to you, to bless the speaker coming with the Lord’s good will. The unkind treatment, however, shall in no case provoke you. Nevertheless, the mode of action in such a case, when both the house selected for a center of work and the entire community concur in rejecting the Lord’s apostles is prescribed. He speaks with great emotion, as the form of the sentence shows. There is an absolute cutting-off reserved for people guilty of such rejection. The symbolical act of shaking off the dust from the feet or shoes to signify utter rejection of the unclean, to be done, not in the spirit of irritation nor of vindictiveness, but in the sorrow which undoubtedly filled the Lord’s heart at the thought of such blindness. The vengeance upon such a city will be taken over by the Lord Himself. Even Sodom and Gomorrah, types and examples of the punitive justice of God, would not be so utterly rejected at the final judgment as will be the inhabitants of a city or village that refuse admittance to the servants of Christ and deliberately cast away the offered grace of the Redeemer. So highly Christ values the good tidings, the Gospel-message He commissioned the twelve to preach. Unbelief is the sin of sins.

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Verses 16-25

The perils of apostleship

The basis of the apostles’ conduct:

Their attention is called to the importance of His instructions. I send you, emphatic; He, the promised Prophet, makes use of His power in commissioning them as His assistants; in the midst of dangerous circumstances His gracious protection would attend them. Due to the natural depravity of men and the hatred of redemption, their position would be that of sheep surrounded by wolves, — but not in the power of the wolves! Danger might ever be lurking near, and vigilance untiring is demanded. Here nothing but weakness and natural timidity: there nothing but fierceness and rapacity; yet the mission must go on. The situation requires the wisdom, the prudence, the cunning of serpents, Genesis 3:1; Psalm 58:5; but, incidentally, the guilelessness, the innocence, the simplicity of doves, Hosea 7:11. “Though Christ commands His disciples to be harmless as the doves, that is, they should be upright and without bitterness, yet He also admonishes them that they be prudent as the serpents, that is, they should diligently beware of false and deceitful people and be careful, as it is said that serpents in battle with special cunning and art watch and shelter their head.” [Luther, 1, 624].

The enmity of men:

Be on your guard against such men as might turn out to be wolves in disguise. Do not, in general, trust yourselves to men, beware of confiding trustfulness, which delivers you into their power, John 2:24. A cordial aloofness may sound like a paradox, but describes the proper attitude. Upon occasion and with the slightest excuse, the enmity of men, directed in reality against the Word, will find its outlet in persecution of the bearers of the Word. Both the higher tribunals of justice, where the punishment might take a very serious form, and the synagogs, whose assemblies, as lower courts, exercised discipline and inflicted penalties, such as scourging, would be used by the enemies, Acts 22:19; 2 Corinthians 11:24. In the present instance even the civil courts may be called upon to pronounce judgment against the servants of Christ on all kinds of trumped-up charges. The Lord refers not only to the provincial governors of Palestine, but, by His omniscience, He looks far forward into the future, where He sees His confessors cited to appear before the mightiest rulers of the world. A tribulation, indeed, but also an honor, since it is for His sake, on His account. And theirs will be the glorious opportunity of witnessing for the Master, of declaring His testimony in the midst of such adverse circumstances to the enemies, who, in the earlier period, were Jews, and to the Gentiles, such as the governors and the court officers and attendants would usually be. This testimony would, as always, have the purpose of calling the sinners to repentance and of hardening the deliberately obstinate to their own damnation.

Counsel against anxiety:

Since such persecutions, such trials, will come, since that fact is established, make your preparations accordingly, put your heart and mind in a condition which will enable you to stand the ordeal. Anxious, worrying thoughts argue distrust in God, and tend to produce confusion. It is no personal defense which they are undertaking, but that of a cause. Since it is Christ’s and God’s cause, He will provide a lawyer at the critical hour. Man’s speech is at best imperfect, even in matters concerning this world only; how much greater the cause of the eternal Word! Set apologetic speeches, when the veracity and the power of the Gospel are on trial, may have their value. But so far as the apostles were concerned, they could at such times depend implicitly upon inspiration from on high; the Holy Spirit would give them the very words which they were to speak in their defense, Acts 26. And the promise holds true, in a measure, for all times. “Some of the greatest, most inspired utterances have been speeches made by men on trial for religious convictions. A good conscience, tranquillity of spirit, and a sense of the greatness of the issue involved, make human speech at such times touch the sublime.” [Expositor’s Greek Testament, 1, 163].

Persecution in the family circle:

The indescribable depravity of man’s heart, causing such hatred of the purity of the Gospel, severing the closest natural ties, turning the members of the same household into mortal enemies: brother against brother, father against child; actual insurrection of children against parental authority leading to murder; all natural and family affections forgotten. The world as such has always hated the servants of Christ, and the generality of the hatred toward them has in no wise been modified, even though there is a good deal of prating about toleration. In times of unusual stress, even now, hatred of the pure Gospel and its heralds will spread over the earth like an infectious fever and will readily burst forth in persecution at the slightest apparent provocation. But again: It is for His sake, and therefore a privilege rather than a trial. And Christ holds out the promise of a reward of mercy to stimulate a cheerful courage. He that perseveres, that has enduring patience to the end when the deliverance will come (for the trial will be neither momentary nor perpetual), shall find salvation awaiting him, James 1:12; Revelation 2:10; Revelation 3:11-12.

Advice and comfort during persecutions:

If they have called the Master of the house Beelzebub, how much more shall they call them of His household! There is a far cry from shunning martyrdom to abandoning prudence and inviting the enemies to wreak their vengeance. Self-appointed martyrs often seek self-glory. Where flight during persecution is possible without a denial of truth, without abandoning a flock of souls to the wolf, it should be chosen. It will be in the interest of the cause, if the work is stopped by persecution in one city, to flee to another, where the reception is likely to be different and the cause of Christ thus furthered. Christ here makes a solemn declaration. The “coming of the Son of Man” is a term referring to the founding and propagating of the kingdom of Christ after His glorification, beginning with the Pentecostal miracle. Ye shall not have finished or completed the cities, there will be abundant room for your labors till the time of My entering into glory and the beginning of My work as the almighty Head of My Church, according to My divinity and humanity. The time is short and the work is great. Energy and courage are sorely needed. In the form of a proverb, Jesus adds another comforting admonition. They should not expect to be better off than their Lord and Master, the Head of the Christian household. To endure the same persecutions, to suffer the same injuries, to be heaped with the same maledictions, is their natural as well as their honorable lot. The enemies had gone so far as to apply the epithet Beelzebub, lord of idolatry, prince of devils, to Christ. It would be presumption for His followers to expect less. “When a person accepts the Word of God, the Gospel, let him think nothing else than that he in that hour comes into peril with reference to all his goods, his house, home, farms, and meadows, his wife, children, father, and mother, also his own life. When danger and misfortune then strike him, it will be so much easier for him, since he thinks: I knew very well before that it would happen thus.” [Luther, 3, 1079].

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Verses 26-36

Fearless confession of Christ demanded

Have no fear, is the key-note of this section. Do not let fear, which is natural under the circumstances, overpower you, since they that are your enemies and try to harm you, are human beings. Take the risks of your high calling. Two proverbial sayings are offered by Christ in support of His urgent admonition. The covered things will be revealed, the secret things will be made known. The hatred and persecution of the world are often disguised under the form of patriotism and humanity, necessity of unification, etc.; but God will, on the Day of Judgment, set everything in the proper light and render to every man his dues. In the mean time His work must go on. Its beginnings had of necessity been obscure, done, as it were, in darkness. But the disciples are to give it the proper publicity, set it forth in the light before the whole world. In the same way His confidential communications, His private teaching to them, was to be made common property. The learned doctors of the Jews had the custom of delivering their discourses in the synagogs to one of the elders, who then served as an interpreter in giving the people the sum of the dissertation in a popular form. In a similar manner, the work of the apostles should be carried on. The doctrine which they had received from Christ they are to proclaim with a loud voice from the roofs, since those of the Orient were flat and permitted such a use. Even to-day, and to-day perhaps more than ever, the disciples of Christ should make use of all legitimate ways to spread the Gospel-truths as widely as possible, never forgetting, however, that means to attract the people to the Gospel can never be made an end in themselves, lest the chief thing be made a matter of secondary importance. They shall be used to serve the Gospel only.

Further consolation:

Why harbor fear? All that the persecuting enemies can destroy or injure is the body, if God should so permit. Only one fear can and should live in the hearts of Christ’s disciples, a deep-seated fear, an awe and reverence which fears not the punishment, but stands in holy dread of Him that judges and condemns both soul and body in everlasting destruction. For this is not a mere human tempter, who tries to harm his neighbor’s soul by leading him into sin, nor is it Satan, for he has no absolute power over body and soul. It is the great God, the divine Judge Himself. Fear of human enemies implies lack of faith in Him, which may in turn lead to denial and thus to damnation. And again: Why fear? So little is the sparrow valued that one will be sold for one half an assarion, less than one cent; so small is the loss of a single hair that it is not even noticed. And yet: Not a single one of the lowest of birds falls to the ground without God’s consent; the very individual hairs of our head are numbered. Will He whose care embraces the smallest details of every-day life permit harm to befall those that put their unwavering trust in Him? Will He who gives the assurance that we are preferred above many sparrows permit the enemies to harm our bodies?

The conclusion:

A solemn reference to the final judgment. A confession of Christ in word and deed, an open proclamation of the truth and a steadfast defense of the truth, is demanded for every follower of Christ. This is all the more necessary, since we confess by the grace of Christ, and He wants to give every one that believes in Him this grace. In denying Him, therefore, we prove ourselves destitute of all grace and lacking faith entirely. As He will stand by those with an open confession and defense that cheerfully confess Him here, so will He turn from those who by their denial of Him cut themselves off from the grace of God. There is no neutral ground: for every one the choice is only between confession and denial.

The result of such uncompromising demands:

The same thought as in Matthew 10:21. Peace on earth was promised at the birth of Jesus, Luke 2:14. And peace on earth was earned by the Redeemer, Isaiah 53:5; Romans 5:1; 2 Corinthians 5:18-19. But here is where the Lord refers to the second, terrible effect of Gospel-preaching, in the case of those that persistently refuse to accept the redemption through the blood of Jesus, 2 Corinthians 2:16. Christ foresaw this hostile opposition to His message; He knew, also, that the spiritual conflict which would be brought on by carnal enmity would find its expression in actual physical persecution. His disciples should not then imagine, as they were likely to do, that there would now be a reign of earthly quietness and peace, with all the blessings which the word implies. Division, contention, war, sudden, fierce calamities would follow the introduction of the Gospel. There is no more bitter hatred and strife than that due to religious differences. It estranges the closest of friends, it disrupts families, it causes lasting enmity between members of the same household. These features will accompany the propagation of the new religion. To stand firm on the side of Christ demands the utmost fearlessness.

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Verses 37-42

Perfect consecration to Christ

The facts, as just stated by Christ, may, under circumstances, make a very painful choice necessary, that between relatives and truth. In case of dissension in a family, policy and expediency suggest compromises, and this is the form of settlement usually adopted at the present time. Too often this means yielding on the part of the believers amounting to a denial of Jesus. It implies that earthly ties, the love of parents, the affection between brothers and sisters, are stronger, have a firmer hold upon the heart, than the express commands of Jesus. If there is any yielding of principle, of the reading of Scriptures, of praying in private, of attending church services, of resenting blasphemy, then there is an express or implied denial of Christ by one who is not worthy of Him. It is a peremptory demand for preference above all earthly interests. Of course, conscientious confessing of Christ will result in unpleasantness, will lay many a cross on the earnest Christian, just as the Romans forced those that were condemned to the accursed tree to carry their own cross. There is here also a prophetic reference. The Lord by expressions of this kind was preparing His disciples for the fate which was awaiting Him. He suffered all, even death on the cross, in confessing us. Crucifixion, terrible death; but horrible though it be, it means salvation for us. Shall His disciples prove themselves unworthy by refusing to follow after Him on the way of suffering, when a few years’ tribulation will bring them eternal joy? The life of a disciple of Christ is not his to use for selfish ends. Jesus uses the word “life” here alternately for the bodily life and for eternal life, the salvation of the soul. He that seeks and apparently finds his life here in this world, in the pursuit of temporal interests, and forgets the care of his soul, will lose the salvation of his soul. But if any one, for the sake of Christ and in staunch confession of Him, loses this earthly life with all it has to offer, he will find more than full and satisfying compensation in the reward of mercy at the hand of his Lord, the glories of eternal life.

A cheering saying:

The apostles, the messengers of Christ, are His representatives. The treatment accorded them is, in them, given to Christ, and thus to God Himself, for the Master and God are one. But He makes the statement more general. He who receives, shows any kindness to, a prophet, one commissioned by God to teach the truth of eternal life, always keeping that fact in mind, will receive the reward of the prophet from God. The same holds true of him that shows a similar favor to any Christian brother, to any of the righteous. He also shall have a reward of mercy. And were it, under circumstances, only so much as a drink of cold water, as a welcome boon to a thirsty traveler, to refresh a brother, a fellow-disciple, or another sufferer, Christ affirms with great emphasis that such a person will not be without his reward. Christ speaks with great emotion, it is a question which affects Him very deeply, since the men whom He is sending out are His own messengers, who shall be consecrated wholly to Him. Any attention which may aid them in doing the great work of proclaiming the Gospel more cheerfully not only meets with His approval, but will, in the end, at least on the great day of reckoning, find such acknowledgment as will fully repay the kindness, and with thousandfold interest.

Summary

Christ commissions twelve of His disciples as apostles by transmitting to them miraculous powers, by giving them instructions as to dress, equipment, content of preaching, manner of entry, reception, and rejection of the Gospel, and demanding perfect consecration to Him.

Verses 1-6

John the baptist’s deputation to Jesus

Jesus returns to His prophetical work:

The Lord had commissioned the twelve apostles, giving them complete instructions as to every part of their ministry. But while they were engaged in this important work, Luke 9:6, Jesus Himself was not idle. When He had ceased giving His orders, He went away from that place, most likely to some place of retirement, where He had had the opportunity of being undisturbed with His disciples, and began a new preaching and teaching tour among the towns of Galilee, accompanied, as before, by temporary and permanent followers, the Twelve apparently returning to Him from time to time.

John’s second attempt to lead his disciples to Christ:

When John, in his capacity as herald of Christ, had pointed Him out to his disciples the first time, two of those that heard him speak, followed Jesus, John 1:37. Upon a later occasion, John again bore witness of Christ, John 3:27-36, which might have been taken as sufficient invitation to all that heard him to become His disciples. In the mean time, John had been imprisoned in the fortress Machaerus, in southern Perea, near the boundary of Moabitis, which, after Jerusalem, was the strongest fortress of the Jews, Matthew 14:3. He had now been in prison for some time, but seems to have received the attention and the services of his disciples as before. These men had as yet no full understanding of their master’s message, but looked upon Jesus and His work with rather jealous and disapproving eyes, Matthew 9:14; John 3:28; Luke 7:18. They brought to John an account of Christ’s work, of His preaching and its effect, of His miracles of healing and the astonishment of the people. John himself, filled with the Holy Ghost from his birth, having been a witness of the revelation of God and being thoroughly convinced of Christ’s Messiahship, Luke 3:15; John 1:15; John 1:26; John 1:33; John 3:28, had no doubts concerning Christ and His mission. But the few disciples that were still clinging to him showed no inclination to leave him and follow the greater Teacher. Therefore he sent them as a delegation with a definitely worded question: Art Thou the Coming One, or shall we expect another? The reference was clear to every one that knew the Old Testament, Psalm 40:7, and was intended to open the eyes of the questioners. “It is certain that John proposes the question for the sake of his disciples; for they did not yet deem Christ to be He whom they should believe Him to be. And John had not come to draw disciples and the people to himself, but to prepare the way for Christ and bring all men to Christ, making them subject to Him.… But when Jesus began to perform miracles and was widely spoken of, then John thought he would dismiss his disciples from him and bring them to Christ, in order that they might not after his death organize a hereditary sect and become Johannites, but all cling to Christ and become Christians; and he sent them that they might learn, not henceforth from his testimony only, but from Christ’s words and works themselves, that He was the right man of whom John had spoken.” [Luther, 11, 74. 75; 12, 1019].

The reply of Jesus:

Jesus shows a tactful kindness in dealing with the questioners: No sharp rebuke for their tardiness in acknowledging Him, no dogmatic reply to cause resentment. He appeals to their and their master’s knowledge of the Old Testament prophecy concerning the characteristic work of the Messiah. They could believe the evidence of their eyes and ears: The blind were receiving sight, the lame were cheerfully walking about, the deaf were enabled to hear, the dead were being awakened, the poor were being gospeled, were receiving the glad message of their salvation through the preaching of Jesus, Isaiah 35:4-6; Isaiah 61:1-2; Ezekiel 36-37. This was literally true and was being demonstrated before the people from day to day. But it was true also in the spiritual sense, as becoming the spiritual kingdom of the Messiah: The blind were having the eyes of their understanding opened, Ephesians 1:18-19; the limping and halting were taking certain steps with their feet, Hebrews 12:12-13; those infected with the uncleanness of sin and every spiritual evil felt the healing power of the Gospel, Acts 15:8; 1 John 1:9; those whose ears had been stopped up by the traditions of men were being healed of this spiritual malady, Matt. 13:16; the dead in trespasses and sins were realizing the fulness of life, Ephesians 2:1-5; Colossians 2:13. And all this is summarized in the last sentence. Note: The disciples of Christ are recruited mainly from the poor and weak and base in this world, 1 Corinthians 1:26-29. But their most indispensable quality is poverty of the soul, that they despair of all their own riches in spiritual matters and rely entirely upon the free grace and the unsearchable riches of Christ, Revelation 3:17; Revelation 2:9; Ephesians 3:8. “To the poor is proclaimed the divine promise of all grace and comfort, offered and brought forward in Christ and through Christ, that whosoever believes shall have all sins forgiven, the law fulfilled, his conscience delivered, and finally have eternal life donated to him. What happier news may a poor, wretched heart and afflicted conscience hear? How could a heart become more defiant and courageous than by such comforting, rich words and promises? Sin, death, hell, world, and devil, and all evil is despised when a poor heart receives and believes such comfort of divine promise; to make the blind see and to raise the dead is rather a simple thing beside preaching the Gospel to the poor, therefore He places it last, as the greatest and best of all these works.” There is a distinct warning in Christ’s final sentence, against taking offense in Him and His work, for him that expected a temporal kingdom as well as for him that was not satisfied with His patience, tolerance, gentleness, and sympathy, as shown in His words and deeds. “Natural man said: Should this be the Christ of whom the Scripture speaks? Should this be He whose shoes John did not think himself worthy to unlace, since I hardly deem Him worthy of wiping my shoes? Truly it is a great mercy not to take offense in Christ; and there is no other counsel nor help here but that one look upon the works and compare these with Scripture; otherwise it is impossible to hinder the offense. The form, the appearance, the behavior are all too lowly and contemptible.” [Luther, 11, 88].

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Verses 7-19

Christ’s testimony concerning John

The purpose of this instruction was not to restore the authority of John the Baptist, which he himself is supposed to have endangered by his embassy to Christ, but to convince the people and especially the scribes and Pharisees of their inconsistency in accepting John the Baptist as a divinely appointed preacher and at the same time rejecting Christ, to whom he had always pointed. An important point: The excellencies of John’s character as herald should even now serve to make his message emphatic. For John had not been a reed shaken by the wind, after the manner of preachers that temper the truth to the sensitive fastidiousness of fashionable hearers, 2 Timothy 4:3, whom Luther calls reed-preachers, that do not risk life, honor, favor, but are guided by the demands of the people. Neither was John clothed in soft raiment, he did not use his influence, as he might easily have done, in his own interest, for his own benefit. That is the privilege of those that live in kings’ houses. In their case it is not objectionable, their station may even be said to demand it. But refinement, luxury, a life of ease is not the object of the true servant of God, he is not accustomed to wear such fine garments. But if your answer, speaking seriously, is that the object of your quest was a prophet, then you were right. For John is a prophet and more. All the Old Testament prophets pointed far into the future and sang of a Messiah whose coming was still afar off. But John was the herald of One who was standing in the midst of the people, in regard to whose person he could bear witness. He was the second great Elijah, whose life-work consisted in preparing the way for the Lord, Malachi 3:1; he was the angel, whose message was to make ready the hearts of men for the Savior.

The application of these truths:

In solemn terms Christ gives His own valuation of the worth of John the Baptist. Not only has no greater prophet than John arisen, but among all mankind there is none that approaches him in capacity to render effective service to the kingdom of God. And yet, “he who is comparatively less in the kingdom of heaven, according to the standard of that kingdom, or who occupies a lower place in it, is greater than John, in respect of the development of his faith and spiritual life.” [Schaff, Commentary, Matthew, 206]. Every lowly disciple of the new dispensation is greater than John the Baptist. For John did not see the day of Christ; his career came to an end before Jesus entered into His glory. And so the children of the present covenant that have the entire fulfillment of the prophecy, Christ crucified and resurrected, before their eyes, have a still more perfect revelation and a more powerful light than John.

The conclusion:

Since the time that John preached his message of preparation, it is possible to get possession of the kingdom of heaven; yea, and the violent actually take hold of it with a stormy hand, with a sure grip. The whole movement was a convincing argument for the earnestness and power of John’s message. “The tax-gatherers and heathens, whom the scribes and Pharisees think have no right to the kingdom of the Messiah, filled with holy zeal and earnestness, seize at once the proffered mercy of the Gospel, and so take the kingdom as by force from those learned doctors who claimed for themselves the chiefest places in that kingdom.” [Clarke, Commentary, 5, 129]. The fact that the new era has actually begun with John the Baptist is set forth once more. The prophecy preached of a kingdom which was to come, John’s preaching referred to a kingdom realized in the coming of Jesus. Here was no more prophecy, but fulfilment: The Christ now stood revealed, all predictions and types are found in the life of Jesus, Luke 16:16. Up till John the Law ruled; he stands on the threshold between the old and the new. Since John the Gospel is in power; he is the antitype of Elijah. This fact may seem rather hard to understand, but they should make an attempt, nevertheless, to receive it. For it is a truth demanding intelligent and attentive ears, such as are ready to learn and to believe as well as to hear.

An earnest censure for the Jews:

With whom shall I compare this race, especially the Pharisees and those people that follow their leadership, that permit themselves to be influenced by their mode of thinking? Jesus points to the capricious, wilful children of the streets and the market-place, whose selfishness prevents their entering into the spirit of any game with proper energy. If the others play on the flute, they refuse to be merry; if the others tried to please them by imitating the mourning wail of funeral dirges, they would not beat their breasts nor show signs of mourning. The irony with which Christ describes the characteristic spoil-sport is brought out still more strongly in the original language which He used, where it includes a play on the words “danced” and “lamented.”

The direct application:

The proof for the accusation of childishness. When John the Baptist led an austere life, not eating nor drinking, confining his food to the articles most necessary to sustain life, the suspicion was raised that he must surely be mad. The Pharisee loved to play at fasting and act the rôle of an abstemious holy person, but he could not endure the earnest, sincere preacher. The contrast is very strong in the language of Christ: Came John neither eating nor drinking,—Came the Son of Man eating and drinking. Jesus, in His outward behavior, purposely did not distinguish Himself from ordinary men. He neither advocated nor practised false asceticism, works for mere show before men. And the result: In horrified outrage they point the finger of scorn at Him. What a glutton, what a wine-bibber, what a toper! The criticism is harsh, unjust, childish, but in total harmony with the character of the Pharisees. “They play at religion; with all their seeming earnestness in reality triflers. They are also fickle, fastidious, given to peevish fault-finding, easily offended. These are recognizable features of the Pharisees. They were great zealots and precisians, yet not in earnest, rather haters of earnestness, as seen in different ways in John and Jesus. They were hard to please: equally dissatisfied with John and with Jesus; satisfied with nothing but their own artificial formalism.” [Expositor’s Greek Testament, 1, 175]. This perverse generation has its representatives on earth even to-day. The world wants nothing either of John or of Jesus. The preaching of the Law, of repentance, hurts their fine sensibilities, but the Gospel of free grace and mercy in Christ Jesus is still less to their liking. The comfort of Christ under such circumstances is that wisdom is justified of her children, of her works, or fruits. This proverb, as it stands, may mean: Christ, the personal Wisdom, Proverbs 8-9, was obliged to justify Himself against the judicial verdict of those who should be His children, but refused to accept Him; or: The wisdom of God, present in the preaching of John, and embodied in the person of Jesus, was justified, acknowledged, given its right by the children of wisdom, who accepted its teachings. Thus the heavenly Wisdom always finds some disciples and children that receive Him gladly and are, in turn, instructed in the way of salvation by grace.

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Verses 20-24

The woe upon the Galilean cities

The historical occasion upon which Jesus said these words is not known. He may have used the same words here, in connection with His censure of the Pharisees, and also in His instructions to the seventy disciples, Luke 10:13-15. In order to avoid useless difficulties, it is a simple matter to remember that Jesus more than once found need and occasion to say the same things twice and oftener. He found Himself here obliged to objurgate, earnestly to scold the Galilean cities whose inhabitants had seen so many evidences of His divine power, in whose midst the majority of His signs and wonders in the northern country had been performed. They had marveled, they had been filled with astonishment, with amazement, they had praised the manifest glory of God, they had proclaimed Him a wonder, they had eagerly sought His help for their diseases, and welcomed Him as the Savior of the body. But — they had not repented, there was no change of mind and heart. They were just as far from the kingdom of God as they had been before the coming of Christ.

The curse upon Chorazin and Bethsaida:

It is not a mere personal opinion which Christ here utters, but a judgment which is fully equivalent to a curse. They had rejected Him and His Gospel, and so He is compelled to pronounce sentence upon them: Woe, judgment, condemnation! Chorazin was a town on the western side, on the road from Capernaum to Tyre, not far from the seashore. Bethsaida was on the other side of Capernaum, on the lake, Mark 6:45; Mark 8:22. Tyre and Sidon were heathen cities, and had often been the subject of prophetic curses, Isaiah 23:1; Ezekiel 26:2-3; Ezekiel 27:2; Zechariah 9:2; Jeremiah 25:22; Jeremiah 27:3; Joel 3:9. They are taken as representatives of the entire heathen world in their opposition to the true God, in their moral corruptness and idolatry. The contrast is purposely glaring: The Galilean cities signally blessed both temporally and spiritually from olden times, their inhabitants members of the chosen people of God, now distinguished more than ever by the sojourn of Christ in their midst with the revelation of His glory, with opportunities such as no other cities ever had; and the heathen cities that were visited only occasionally by a prophet of the Lord. The greater the grace, the greater the responsibility. On the Day of Judgment all these things will be taken into account and sentence rendered accordingly, Luke 12:47-48; Luke 13:34-35. Only the deepest and most sincere repentance, in black sackcloth, with ashes on the head, in token of penitence, is acceptable to Christ.

The curse upon Capernaum:

Capernaum, the commercial metropolis of northern Palestine, had been signally marked and blessed by Christ in that He made His home there during the Galilean ministry, and had performed some notable miracles there, and because its inhabitants heard some of His mightiest sermons: Most prosperous, with the greatest spiritual privileges, but the people, as a whole, most unsympathetic toward Christ. Exalted most high, degraded most deeply! Such is its curse. For even Sodom, representing the essence of bestial filth and immorality, would have responded to such evidences of special divine love and mercy. On the Day of Judgment, therefore, Sodom also will be preferred above Capernaum. It is a terrible thing to despise God’s visitation of grace. All those that have had an opportunity to learn about Christ and His work, but refuse repentance and faith, will receive a severer judgment on the last day and will be condemned to greater damnation than other sinners that were not so signally blessed with the revelation of truth.

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Verses 25-30

The Gospel call

A most devout prayer of thanksgiving:

The final purpose of the entire work of salvation, in all its various branches, is the glorification of God. These things, the mysteries of the kingdom of God, are hidden from those that are wise in their own conceit, that believe themselves to be above the eternal revelations of God’s wisdom in His Word. The scribes and Pharisees of Israel deemed themselves the custodians of the wisdom and understanding of the Law in all its applications. To them the Gospel is hidden, because they deliberately close their hearts and minds against its beauties. But to babes, those that are as ignorant of this world’s wisdom as little children, God has revealed the glory of the Gospel. It is necessary for him that would know the beauties of God’s message of salvation to men and of the entire Bible which contains this message that he rid himself of all preconceived ideas on moral and religious subjects, and be ready and eager to give unqualified assent to all that God says in His Word, 2 Corinthians 10:5-6. For such a condition of heart on the part of believers Christ glorifies His heavenly Father, through whose power the hearts are made ready to receive the Scriptures with all humility. That is the Father’s good pleasure, although it also redounds to His glory if the proud and wise of this world reject the Word of grace. So far as the Bible with its glorious and saving truths is concerned, especially that truth that a man is saved, not by works, but by grace through faith alone, it must always be the anxious endeavor of every Christian, aided by the strength from above, to avoid the doubting and doubt-instilling wisdom of this world, and present evermore such a heart that has a childlike trust and faith in Jesus and His merits, and in all the revealed truths of Holy Writ. “There are two things over which Jesus here is glad. The first, that God has hidden such mystery from the wise and understanding. The other, that He has revealed it to the little ones, the simple, the babes. Those are the children and babes that do not talk against the Word of God, that do not murmur against God’s will, but, as He deals with them, they are well pleased with it. This includes all those that are not wise and understanding in their own conceit, nor fall into God’s work and Word with their reason.” [Luther, 7, 829].

A majestic assertion:

A most sweeping assertion: to Christ, according to His human nature, all things are given into His power. He is the sovereign dispenser of all things, all good things and gifts come from Him, Matthew 28:18. And the relation between Him, even according to His human nature, and the heavenly Father, is a most intimate one. He alone thoroughly knows the Father, just as the Father thoroughly knows the Son. There is full comprehension, perfect understanding between the two persons of the Godhead, because they are one in essence. Whosoever acknowledges, knows, believes in the Father and the Son and in their counsel of salvation through the Son, receives this knowledge and belief from the Son, who reveals God and His love to the world. He wishes and He wills the salvation of men.

The gracious invitation:

No mere man could have spoken these words, so full of heavenly majesty and divine comfort. Christ purposely makes use of many Old Testament phrases, but He applies them all to Himself, thus showing that all the types are realized and fulfilled in Him. Full of both authority and kindness is His call, going out to the fatigued and the burdened, to the poor sinners whose weight of transgressions is bowing them down to earth, who can find no solace or relief in all the wide world. In Him they all find rest, relief, new life, new strength, whether their burden be one placed upon them by others or foolishly taken up by themselves. Instead of this load, which is bound to drag them down to everlasting damnation, Christ will supply another, far different burden, one which, by a paradox, is rather a privilege. For it is His yoke, the yoke of the cross, which the Christians must bear in this world, as followers of Him that bore His cross for our sake. His example will be a steady reminder that we must learn in all things, in the midst of the sorrows and tribulations of the world, to follow His meekness and lowliness, which was not outward, assumed, but a meekness of the heart. This burden of Christian obligation is kindly to bear, it is light to stand up under; there is nothing grievous and oppressive about it, because, in the final analysis, He bears both us and our burdens in love: He gives rest unto our souls, such rest, such complete satisfaction as comes through the knowledge of the Savior and His complete redemption, 2 Corinthinas 4:17; 2 Corinthians 7:4; Romans 8:35. Far from separating us from the love of God in Christ Jesus, the tribulation of this present life, the cross which we bear for the sake of our Lord, binds us more closely to Him with bands of everlasting strength. “The believers look upon the invisible only and not upon the visible, they adhere with simple, pure faith to the Word. And it is true also in regard to temporal things, as we said above, that the goods which we have from God are more important and more excellent than temporal misfortune can be. But how much more is this true in the Church, where this word is sounded: My burden is light, namely, for those that believe My words; and My yoke is easy, namely, if we look upon Christ, who has promised to give us rest, as He Himself says there: And ye shall find rest unto your souls. For these words: Ye shall find, indicate that the pious are without rest for a time. But such turbulent time is short; the rest of the souls, however, which the believers will find, will be important and eternal.” [Luther, 1, 1343, 1344]. That is the final comfort of the Gospel-promise: There remaineth a rest to the people of God, Hebrews 4:9.

Summary

John sends a delegation to Christ, which gives the latter an opportunity to testify concerning the Baptist and His own work. Jesus also pronounces a woe upon the chief Galilean cities and issues a majestic Gospel invitation.

Verses 1-13

The Lord of the Sabbath

The hungry disciples:

While Jesus was engaged in the work of His ministry in Galilee, He came into conflict with the Sabbath observance of the Pharisees. His disciples, who accompanied Him on His walk, became hungry. Now they were on a path leading through a field of grain, which was ready for harvest. “These paths are often exceedingly rough. They were never surveyed and never repaired. They were simply devoted to public use by immemorial custom. If a landowner wished to raise grain in a field through which one of these paths ran, he plowed up to the very edge of the narrow path and put in his seed. There were neither fences nor ditches to separate the road from the field. Fields traversed by such roads are still very common in Palestine. It was along such a road that Jesus and the disciples were traveling when they plucked the ears of wheat on the Sabbath.” Note: The Law permitted a hungry man to pluck ears from the field of another, in order to still the pangs of his hunger, Deuteronomy 23:25. But this was on a Sabbath, or, as Luke says, on the second Sabbath after the first, Luke 6:1, that is, the first Sabbath after the second day of the Passover, when the sheaf of first-fruits was offered, Leviticus 23:10-11; for in this way, and from this day, did the Jews reckon the time until the Feast of Weeks, or Pentecost. Hardly, however, had the disciples begun to pluck ears when fault was found.

The objection of the Pharisees:

The malicious faultfinders deliberately made a mountain out of a mole-hill and construed the action with their usual intolerance. The plucking to them became reaping, and the rubbing with the hands to remove the hulls in their eyes became threshing. There was no wrong done even from the standpoint of the strictest interpretation of the Jewish Law. But the Pharisees so construed it and took offense, incidentally accusing Christ as an accomplice for permitting the sacrilege. Christ’s answer:

Jesus had a most disconcerting way of quoting Scripture to His enemies, which usually resulted in their chagrin and shameful rout. He has two examples for them: David, in fleeing before the wrath of Saul, came to the sanctuary of the Lord at Nob, 1 Samuel 21:1-6, where Ahimelech, the priest, gave him the show-bread, the bread of the countenance of God, from the table in the Holy Place. These consecrated bread-cakes were to be eaten by the priests only, Leviticus 24:8-9, and yet David, the great model of Jewish piety, ate of this hallowed bread with his men. And again: The priests, in the regular discharge of their duties, in sacrificing the burnt offerings in the morning and evening services of the Sabbath day, were technically transgressing the Sabbath law, with its absolute prohibition of work, thus, if one would argue from the standpoint of the Pharisees, actually profaning the Sabbath.

The application of the argument:

Christ’s argument itself could not be challenged, but He now brings out the principles involved to reveal the smallness and the uncharitableness of their hearts. In the first place: He is greater than the Jewish Law and the Temple. What was permitted to the priests that served in the Temple must surely be conceded as a right to His disciples. Then also: The Sabbath was made for man, and not man for the Sabbath. The greatest law finding its application here is the law of charity, Hos. 6:6. All the sacrifices made in punctilious observance of the letter of the Law cannot be placed on a level with the mercy, with the love, which is the fulfilment of the Law. A heart that realizes the need of the neighbor and cheerfully helps in obtaining all that is needed, is engaged in a higher form of worship than that which upholds a rigorous legalism. And finally: Christ openly declares that He is the Lord of the Sabbath. He is the founder of the New Covenant. All the Old Testament precepts concerning sacrifices, Sabbath, festivals, were only shadows of things to come. They have lost their force since Christ has now been revealed. The Word of God and the law of love alone rule in the New Testament.

The application of these principles:

The hatred of the Pharisees was intensified with each new defeat. They had received a well-deserved rebuke based upon Scriptural grounds, but they were determined to turn the admiration of the people into suspicion and then into opposition. And so they laid their plans for another Sabbath, Mark 3:2; Luke 6:6. Jesus, according to His custom, went into the synagog to teach. And there, evidently by design, was a man with a dried-up, shriveled hand. Here was a case which could bear postponement till the morrow. But so eager are the Pharisees to provoke the Lord that they put a question with reference to the lawfulness of healing on the Sabbath day. Christ’s reply, two counter-questions and an irresistible conclusion. A man with any feelings at all, seeing the misery of a dumb beast, aside from the fact that it is his one possession, will draw the sheep out of the cistern. Their own rabbis, at that time, made provision for such cases. And a man should not receive as much consideration as an animal? Their own canons permitted the doing well on the Sabbath. It is, therefore, right to heal. Christ defied the authority of the Pharisees, and challenged them to bring accusation against Him. And the sick man, in obeying the command of Christ, acknowledged His authority and set aside that of the Jewish leaders. A signal manifestation of faith, on the one hand, an instance of divine power, on the other: the best fulfilment of the Sabbath.

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Verses 14-30

The enmity of the Pharisees and Christ’s answer

Overawed for the moment, and unable to formulate an answer, their envy and malice soon leads them from finding fault to plotting against the Lord’s life. They came together and conferred with one another with the express object of finding ways and means to put Him to death. So far can hypocrisy debase a person that the most outrageous uncharitableness and lack of mercy, even deadly hatred and enmity, are covered over with pious customs and a sanctimonious behavior.

Jesus retires:

The hour of Jesus had not yet come in which He would be delivered into the hands of His enemies, so He left the city in which He had had the encounter with the Pharisees. The spell of His personality and of His words was still upon the people, who followed Him in crowds. And His Savior sympathy went out to them in the same miraculous manifestations, in works of healing. But more than ever He disliked and discouraged publicity, since it was bound to do harm to His work at this stage. He therefore begged them with an almost threatening attitude not to reveal Him. He wanted to perform His ministry, for the present, almost in concealment. And herein was the prophecy Isaiah 42:1-4 fulfilled. The servant of Jehovah is the Messiah, Jesus Christ, who, according to His human nature, had received the Spirit of God at His baptism, who, at the same time, had been acknowledged as the Son of God, whose Gospel-message was to be the light of the Gentiles till the ends of the earth. His spirit would be neither that of contention nor of blatant self-advertising after the manner of preachers that bring their names to the front, but forget the Gospel they were sent to preach. So gentle, sympathetic, and kind would His spiritual ministry be that those that are weak, whose faith was at the point of extinction, could depend upon His help. The bruised reed is carefully bound up until the contusion is healed; the weak Christian receives strength from above. The lamp of faith which is at the point of expiring will receive fresh oil from the Gospel. By this manner of working in and through the Gospel the Messiah will lead His Gospel to victory over all the forces of Satan and man’s pride, and the Gentiles themselves, at present still far from the testimonies of promise, will learn to trust in His name. A short, but comprehensive statement concerning the Messianic work of Christ, the miracles of His prophetic office.

A demoniac healed:

This narrative fittingly illustrates the gradual growth of opposition, hatred, enmity, malice, and calumny on the part of the Pharisees. A man was brought to Christ whom the Evil Spirit had deprived of both sight and speech, thus torturing him by the loss of these senses.

Their minds had not yet been saturated with the poison of enmity toward Christ; they were frankly overwhelmed by this new evidence of divine power, and openly declared their conviction that this man must be the Son of David in the absolute sense, the promised Messiah, in whom the prophets had bid them trust. They still express themselves somewhat doubtfully, however: Can this possibly be He? There can surely no longer be any doubt. The Pharisees, ever present, immediately harbored bitter thoughts:

This thought was provoked by the frank expression of amazement on the part of the people. Apparently, they did not voice their sentiments outside of their own circle, because they feared the multitude; but, after the manner of their kind, they murmured and grumbled among themselves, accusing Christ of being in league with the devil, as once before, Matthew 9:34. Beelzebub, which means god of flies, and Beelzebul, god of dung, had originally been names of idols, and were by the Jews applied to the devil. It was an insult without parallel which they thus heaped upon the Lord.

Christ takes them to task:

Christ not only knew of the efforts of the Pharisees to discredit Him, but as He that searches hearts and minds He knew their very words, and therefore immediately shows the foolishness of such talk, the absurdity of the accusation and its implication. Just as it is proverbially true that lack of unity and harmony disrupts a nation, and that the same condition in a household or in a community will sever the relations which make for growth and prosperity, so it is true of the kingdom of Satan. There seems to be a lurking implication in the expression of Christ: Such follies are sometimes committed by communities, civil wars being by no means unknown, although history shows the fatal consequences in scores of cases. But Satan, wicked as he is, is not such a fool. The thought that Satan would try to evict Satan or any of the devils is the height of absurdity. Give him credit for greater sharpness of wit. And Jesus strengthens His argument by showing how their accusation against Him condemns themselves. The Pharisees had children, or disciples, whom they trained to be exorcists, Acts 9:13-14, who made a practise to journey through the country and attempt to drive out demons from those possessed. They used certain medicines, but depended mainly upon magical formulas, in which the name of Jehovah was freely used. The reference to these performances effectually blocked the Pharisees. To answer now meant to condemn themselves and their own practises. They were silenced, judged, and condemned by their own criticism. Jesus, however, in His extraordinary success in expelling demons, demonstrated beyond doubt that the Spirit of God was on His side, the same Spirit who, in and through Him, had brought the kingdom of God to them and sought to work faith in their hearts.

Another illustration:

In case they were not yet convinced, He will attempt to establish His position by another parabolic saying. Every demoniac is a captive of Satan, bound, body and soul, in his power, to do his will. But Christ has come to destroy the works of the devil, 1 John 3:8. He wants to take the stronghold of the enemy and wrest his prey from him. This Jesus did, not only in the individual cases when He cured demoniacs, but by His entire life, suffering, and death, by His active and passive obedience in behalf of all men. He has gained a complete deliverance from the bondage of the devil. On His side, in His strength is victory, and there alone. This fact gives emphasis to the warning statement as to the alternative: either for or against Christ. There is no middle ground in this decision, there is no neutrality in this fight. This referred not only to the Pharisees, whose enmity was growing more evident every day, but especially to those among the people that were still undecided. The so-called neutral people that do not wish to oppose Christ outright, but also do not wish to antagonize the children of the world, the wise blasphemers, are, in the last analysis, enemies of the work of Christ and hinder the coming of the Kingdom. Instead of gathering with the Lord of the harvest, their hesitancy, their vacillating policy, harms His cause.

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Verses 31-37

The sin against the Holy Ghost

A solemn warning:

The Jews were having their day of grace with manifestations of God’s mercy such as had never been granted to any nation before. The Spirit was making a most gracious effort to reach their hearts and minds through the Word as preached by Christ and His disciples. But their leaders and many of the common people were deliberately hardening their hearts against the influence of Christ’s work and message. As long as the opposition and even the blasphemy would flow mainly from ignorance and be directed chiefly against the person of Christ, there would be opportunity and probability of repentance. Just as soon, however, as there is blaspheming against the Holy Ghost, then all this is changed. For this implies that a person has, indeed, conceded and acknowledged Jesus as the Redeemer of the world, that he has had the conviction of faith, that he was unable to deny the evidence; but in the face of evidence and conviction he deliberately, blasphemously rejects the work of the Holy Ghost for his salvation. The phrase: Neither in this world nor in the world to come, emphatically declares that the peculiar nature of this sin precludes all forgiveness; there is absolutely no hope.

Kindred warnings:

These words no longer describe the sin against the Holy Ghost, but they characterize the conduct of such as may be in danger of hardening their hearts against the benign influences of Christ and His Gospel-message. It is the nature of a good tree to yield good fruit; it is the nature of a putrid, rotten tree to have rotten, bad fruit. All depends upon the relation to Christ, whether a person does good or evil works. As for those that followed the Pharisees in their hatred and its consequences: generation of vipers, He calls them. The malice, the hypocrisy, the deceit of serpents is their outstanding trait, Matthew 3:7; Psalm 140:3. John the Baptist and Christ agree in their judgment of them. Satanic evil is all that one may expect from a morally hopeless brood. The poison of their nature must come out in the filthiness, in the malevolence, in the enmity of their tongue. A significant fact: In the midst of His scathing denunciation Jesus uses a proverb that has a good interpretation as well as an evil. The heart, filled to the brim with certain thoughts, naturally overflows in the words expressing the condition of the heart. If the heart be a treasure-house of good, edifying thoughts and desires, they strive to come out in kind, edifying speech. But if sinful desires have taken possession of the heart, there will be passionate outbursts in words directed against all the commandments, Matthew 15:19; Mark 7:21. And this is no small matter: Every idle, vain, empty, superfluous word, spoken without need or the purpose of edifying, is a matter of record before God, and must be answered for at the final Judgment. For the word, as the ancient Greeks were wont to say, is the revelation of the soul. Words are the index of a good or a bad heart, of a heart firm in the faith in Christ and full of love toward Him, or of a heart that has never taken thought of the will of the Lord, and is bad out of pure inertness toward that which Christ has declared to be good — the poorest species of unbelief.

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Verses 38-45

The sign from heaven and a warning

A request:

The emphatic manner of speaking which Christ had been employing may not have been without influence upon some of His hearers. Some of those that were not yet open blasphemers may have been sincere enough in asking for some proof of Messianic authority in making such statements. On the other hand, the connection will hardly permit such a charitable interpretation. No, those that had just cast the suspicion of Satanic influence upon Christ resented the fact that He was assuming royal and judicial authority before them. They rejected His claims. Probably in open derision they ask for a sign from heaven to substantiate the claims which they believed absurd.

The refusal:

An evil brood and adulterous He calls them. He saw into their hearts and judged them accordingly. He knew what their purpose in asking a miracle was, since they were not earnest seekers after truth. In a spiritual sense they were adulterers, Isaiah 23:17; they were idolaters, since they rejected Him, the Messiah of the world. They would join with the heathens in the act of His condemnation and crucifixion. One sign, one great miracle, indeed, would be given to them and to the world: His resurrection, typified in the history of the prophet Jonas. The belief in His resurrection will for this generation and for all the generations to come be the touchstone by which the followers of Christ will be distinguished from His enemies. Jesus refers to the time between His burial and resurrection according to the Jewish manner of reckoning time, any part of a day being counted as a full day.

A warning call:

The mention of Jonas brings on the further thought. The Ninevites heard and heeded the call to repentance as it was made by Jonas, Jonah 3:10. He was only a prophet called by God to bring this message, whereas here was the Author of the message Himself in the midst of the Jews, and both His person and His message were unheeded. On the Day of Judgment, therefore, these heathen people will rise in accusation against the Jewish nation and their leaders. They will bring a formal charge and complaint, and show them to be guilty in their rejection of Christ. In the same way the great queen that came to see Solomon and hear his wisdom, 1 Kings 10, will appear before the tribunal of God on the last day and add her testimony to that of the Ninevites for the condemnation of the Jews. From a far country, from Arabia Felix, she came to hear the wisdom of a mere man. But here the eternal Wisdom from on high was expounding the counsel of God from eternity, and yet that generation rejected Man and message.

A comparison:

The last words give the key to the entire passage. The people of that generation were like demoniacs, from whom the evil spirits have been driven. They had their opportunity now to be rid of the Evil One’s influence forever. If they would continue to despise His message, their experience would be like that of the man whom He describes. The deserts were represented as the habitation of the devils, Job 30:3; [Luco note: Kretzmann writes “Rev. 28, 2”. He may refer to Revelation 17:3 or Revelation 18:2]; Leviticus 16:21, Banished into the wilderness of desolation, but continually moving in search of a resting-place, and failing to find relief from the tediousness and monotony, the evil spirit resolves to return to his former habitation. The recital is dramatic: Coming, he finds it empty, swept, and garnished; no good spirit has been permitted to make his home there; all love, meekness, and every good impulse has been thrust out, and vain, showy trifles of fashion and folly are decorating the heart. With so much encouragement the result is easily seen. Seven associates the evil spirit chooses, all of them morally even lower than himself; and all of the devils together make such a person their lasting home. Such is the damnable self-surrender of such as deliberately harden their heart in rejection of Christ and in voluntary unbelief. Theirs is the sin of sins. The fate here pictured by Christ is the one which will overtake all that despise the merciful visitation of Christ in and through His Gospel, that have heard His message of love, but have forgotten and despised His gifts. They are children of destruction in a twofold sense, by nature and by choice. And their end is damnation.

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Verses 46-50

Christ’s relatives

This interruption is not to be explained as vanity or a desire to interfere with the Lord’s work. Mary had not learned her lesson in vain, Luke 2:49; John 2:4. And His other relatives, whether they were His cousins, or stepbrothers, or true brothers, were guided by Mary. It was rather tender solicitude on the part of Mary. It may have happened more than once that the friends of Jesus were afraid He might become distraught on account of too constant application to preaching and healing, Mark 3:21. Jesus makes use of the opportunity to give a lesson to at least a part of the assembled multitude. Natural affection and relationship cannot interfere with the sovereign claims of duty. It may be necessary, under circumstances, for the sake of Christ and the Kingdom, to deny all human ties, as Christ did here. With an eloquent, sweeping gesture, which included His disciples standing near Him, He gave His definition. They whose hearts are bound up in Christ’s, they whose faith in Christ causes them to acknowledge the true Fatherhood of God, and makes them eager to live a life of service in doing His will, are knit together with Him in the closest possible union. To them Christ is in deed and truth their brother, and they are, in the fullest sense of the word, brothers, and sisters, and mothers of Christ. This spiritual relationship is the most wonderful and the most valuable in the world, it is often the one thing which upholds the Christian in the midst of the opposition and the trials of these last days, since the full acknowledgment will be made in heaven.

Summary

Christ proclaims Himself Lord of the Sabbath, performs a miracle in support of this principle, defends Himself against the accusation of being in league with the devil, warns against the sin of blasphemy against the Holy Ghost and hardening of the heart, refers to the final sign of His resurrection, and teaches what relationship with Him implies.

Verses 1-23

The parable of the sower

Though the shadow of unbelief and of spiritual hostility is evident even in this chapter, it nevertheless affords a welcome relief from the strained condition of Christ’s last encounter with the Pharisees. It was on the same day, indeed, but under entirely different conditions. Note: Christ hardly ever is represented as having become weary; He was untiring in His labors for the salvation of men; He never permitted an opportunity to do good to escape His tender solicitude. Leaving the house where He was staying in Capernaum, He went out to the shore of the lake and sat down, probably for a confidential talk with His disciples. But the usual crowds came together and surrounded Him, making it necessary for Him to enter into a boat, where He sat down, while the people occupied the space between the sea and the rise of land toward the west as a natural amphitheater. His power and popularity as a teacher had not yet diminished, in spite of all the efforts of the Pharisees, but Christ Himself was preparing for a change of sentiment, as His parables indicate.

The parable story:

Parables are stories of comparison, and as Jesus employed them, He made use of the familiar in nature and in human life and experience to teach and bring home the great facts of His kingdom in its real and in its apparent form. Even ordinarily the Orientals were fond of parables, but Jesus had, besides, a remarkably effective way of catching the attention of His hearers, and emphasizing the important points in the comparison. The parable of the fourfold soil is an example. There is a farmer, a husbandman, such as the people of Galilee were accustomed to see, engaged in sowing his grain, broadcast. It cannot be avoided that some of the seed falls upon the pathway leading through the field, such as were common in Palestine. The result: The grains are trodden under foot; the birds, all manner of birds, pick them up as welcome food. Some of the seeds find lodgment in the stony soil, where the rock was close to the surface, with only a thin covering of earth. The result: The rock holds the heat, there is a quick sprouting and shooting up into the air, but a still quicker scorching by the sun, since the roots have no chance to enter deeply into the ground. Other grains fell among the thorns, where the plow had indeed been used, but had not succeeded in clearing away all the thorn roots. The result: The hardier weeds with their heavy foliage cut off air, light, and moisture from the tender stalks of grain, thus suffocating them. But other seed fell upon good soil, rich, loamy, soft, deep, clean, where it had moisture and sunlight in the right proportion, and could grow up and fulfil the hopes of the husbandman, bringing a rich return for his labor. Jesus cries out in conclusion:

A hint that there is a hidden meaning in the story, and that every hearer should find this meaning and apply it properly. Where is there a similar experience in the spiritual life?

The request for an explanation:

The disciples who were present with Jesus, including probably even some of the twelve apostles, were still remarkably dense in spiritual matters. They had little understanding of the kingdom of God and of the real reason and end of Christ’s mission. They were not mainly concerned about the method of teaching, but about the explanation of the story. — The reason for speaking in parables:

Christ divides His hearers into two classes; but far from expounding a Calvinistic double decree in God, He makes a very careful distinction in explanation of the different positions toward Him and His message. To you it is given, He tells the disciples. It is not a matter of greater intelligence or of greater moral worth, but only of God’s gracious gift through the Holy Ghost. The mysteries of the kingdom of heaven they are to know through His agency, the truths once hidden, but now revealed and made known in order to add souls to the Kingdom, to His Church. The disciples had been given, and they had received, this knowledge for the salvation of their souls. The Spirit gave it to them that they not only heard and saw, but also understood with the heart and believed, as Luther says. And these mercies were to be multiplied upon them. Their understanding and their possession of the wonderful mysteries of God should grow from day to day, giving them, finally, a rich abundance of God’s mercies. But the other class did not receive Christ’s message, therefore to them nothing more is given. He that lacks understanding in spiritual matters will become more and more impoverished from day to day. It is the judgment of God upon a perverse people, due entirely to their own guilt and rejection of Him and His mercy. Isaiah had been obliged to take them to task for this refusal to bow under the hand of God, Isaiah 6:9-10. He had announced to them the judgment of God. Their physical eyes and ears may be in commission, but the understanding of their soul would become duller with the passage of time. Their heart would become stupid, they would have ever greater difficulty in hearing the voice of God, their eyes would become closed to the offering of His mercy. That is the judgment of God upon those that harden their hearts against the Gospel of mercy, whose prime purpose is to save souls. This judgment upon Israel began in the days of the Prophet Isaiah, and was completed in the days of Christ and the apostles. The great mass of the people of Palestine, both in Judea and Galilee, hardened their hearts against Christ’s Word and work. And so the preaching of Christ finally became unto them a savor of death unto death, 2 Corinthians 2:16.

The blessedness of Christ’s followers:

The full and true happiness is that of having eyes and ears opened by the benign mercy of Jesus. Not only were the outward members of the disciples’ bodies blessed for being witnesses of the fulfilment of the Old Testament, of seeing Him and being in constant, intimate communion with Him, to whom the whole ancient covenant pointed forward, whom the prophets and the righteous people from Eve and Jacob to Malachi and Simeon had longed to behold, but the eyes of their understanding were enlightened by His power. They knew Jesus as their Savior, and were happy in this knowledge.

The interpretation of the parable:

He sets His disciples apart: Ye therefore hear, and, in hearing, learn the lesson. The seed that is sown in the Kingdom and for the purpose of winning for the Kingdom, is always the same, the Word of God, just as He is the same that does the sowing, either personally, as in the days of His earthly career, or through His servants, as at the present time. But there are also four different kinds of soil in spiritual matters. Some there are (and it is true of all that act in the same way) that pay fleeting attention to the Message of the Kingdom. They have somehow come into contact with the Church, some phase of church-work has struck their fancy. But there is no understanding, they literally do not take it into their hearts and minds, the Word never becomes a real factor in their lives. In this case the Evil One, Satan, has little difficulty in snatching away the truth which they have just barely grasped with their intellect, 2 Timothy 4:4; 2 Thessalonians 2:11. “To us it does not seem a dangerous matter to hear the Word of God, and yet not keep it; those that do it we regard as bad, inattentive people and think it is natural that they hear the sermon and still forget it. But Christ judges differently here and says: The devil takes the Word out of the heart of the people. … Therefore, if thou seest a person who permits himself to be talked to and preached to as to a log, and the whole matter amounts to as much as if one strikes into water, … then think nothing else than that the devil has sat down in his heart and snatches the seed, the Word of God, away, that he does not believe and is not saved.” [Luther, 13, 204. 205].

Another class of people that are temporary Christians are characterized by the eagerness and apparent joy with which they accept the Word. Their avidity for instruction is sometimes almost embarrassing. But they are quick, emotional, shallow natures. Their faith, though genuine, is not rooted deeply enough to withstand disappointment, especially tribulation, suspicion, hatred, enmity, and the resulting open or hidden persecution on account of the Word. Their rapid acceptance of the Word is equaled only by their hasty offense when they are asked to suffer for the sake of Christ. They want the crown, but not the cross. Not much different is the case of another class, whose members are said to hear the Word, probably with at least an intellectual acceptance. Their hearts have not properly been cleared of the roots of worldly cares and desires. They are not sincere toward the Word, do not use it to purify their hearts. The cares and worries of this world, the love and the desire of riches, fill their hearts and engross their attention. There is no real Christianity in their souls.

Only the fourth class of hearers present soil ready for a crop and fruit that is well-pleasing to the Lord. They are they who hear and heed the Word in fine and good hearts. In this instance the soil of the hearts has been well prepared by the plowing of the Law, which incidentally weeded out all earthly love and care of this world, all selfishness and self-righteousness. Then the Master has sowed His good seed, the Gospel of His mercy. He also sends the fountains of His grace and the sun of His righteousness. And, behold, there is good fruit, though the measure depends upon differences of gifts, of disposition, and of the capacity for receiving and spreading the kingdom of God.

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Verses 24-52

The parable of the tares, and others

An important point: The parable is set forth, is presented, as spiritual food, for instruction of the soul. The kingdom of heaven, the Church of Christ, strictly speaking, includes only such as are united under His leadership by the bonds of a common, sincere faith in Him. But the Lord here, as often, describes the Church as it appears in the world, as we deal with it in concrete form. His picture is again taken from the work of the farmer. A man will certainly sow only the best seed obtainable in his field if he wants a large and heavy crop. That was also the custom of this husbandman. But during the time when men, that is, the average honest man, usually slept, his enemy came with a certain malignant seed, a degenerate form of wheat, whose stalks and spikes closely resemble the true grain (bastard wheat, or darnel), and deliberately and maliciously sowed this weed-seed in the midst of the wheat as thickly as though there were nothing there. Having done his spiteful deed, he went his way. The damage, he knew, could hardly be discovered until it would be too late to remedy matters.

The result of the scheme:

The enemy’s plan certainly proceeded from devilish ingenuity. For not until the field began to mature and form spikes did the spiteful trick become evident, since the false wheat branches out with ears on each twig. The surprise of the farm-laborers is due to the extent of the area infested with the weeds: surely not due to bad seed nor a case of volunteer growth. The householder knew the reason, some hostile man being the only one that could carry out such a thorough plan to work him harm. Moreover, he is opposed to the plan suggested by the workmen that they go out and pull up all the false wheat. The roots of the tares being intertwined with those of the wheat, the danger was that both would be uprooted together. His plan is rather to wait until the wheat is ripe, when the present objection no longer holds good. The reapers could easily make the proper selection, after which the tares could be tied into bundles to be burned, while the wheat could be brought into the granary. Aside from the Lord’s explanation below, there is a lesson in these words of the householder which should be carefully noted. “According to this example thou canst now also get the proper idea of the manner in which we should proceed against the tares, which are called false doctrine, or the heresies and false Christians of whom this Gospel speaks. For in the Church it happens just the same way: We cannot avoid having evil men in our midst, such as heretics and sectarians, for if one be rooted up, the evil spirit will awaken others. How then shall I proceed? I must eliminate and yet not destroy them. … How so? Why, do as the grain does here, let them grow a while. Only be sure to remain lord in thy dominion. Thou preacher, pastor, and hearer, hinder and prevent them, the heretics and rebellious teachers, from ruling and reigning. Let them indeed grumble in the corner, but do not, so far as in thee lies, permit them to come into the pulpit and to the altar. In no other way can one restrain them; for if I should want to eradicate one with force, two would grow in his stead. Therefore thou must act against them in this way, by restraining them through the Word and faith; and let no one take thy pure faith, confession, and Christian life; admonish and upbraid them as much as thou canst; if that has no results, excommunicate them publicly, that every one may regard and shun them as dangerous weeds.” [Luther, 12, 1248. 1249].

Parable of the mustard seed:

He set before them choice spiritual food for their instruction and edification. The kingdom of Christ in its growth is like a grain of mustard seed, whose size and appearance give no intimation of the force of its sprouting nor of the size of the herb at its full maturity, whether one restricts the word to the garden herb or includes the mustard tree of the Orient, whose great size is often referred to by Jewish writers. So large does it become that the birds may make their roosts in its branches. It seems almost incredible that such a tiny seed can produce such a large, treelike plant. But even so, as Christ here predicts, the kingdom of Christ grows from small beginnings until it extends over the whole earth, and becomes a place of rest and of peace for all people. The few despised disciples whom Christ gathered about Him were the nucleus of the great Christian Church, which came into existence and is maintained through the power of the Gospel.

Parable of the leaven:

A very small piece of leaven, or yeast, if set to flour or meal, under the proper conditions, will quickly impart its properties to the entire mass. Jesus purposely takes a large quantity, three satons or seahs being equal to about sixty pints. The yeast may be hidden by the process of kneading, but it will not be long before its strength will become apparent, and the whole mass be leavened. Thus the Word of God, which builds the Kingdom, also exerts its leavening power in case of individuals as well as in that of whole communities and nations. It has the inherent strength to change and to renew the heart and the life of men and to fit them ever more thoroughly to be true members of the kingdom of God.

An explanation by the evangelist:

It was at this time that Jesus made use of this form of teaching for reasons which Matthew had indicated above, Matthew 13:13. Here again was a prophecy fulfilled, Psalm 78:2. But, though the majority of the audience no longer had the true spiritual benefit from the beautiful stories which Jesus told them, yet there were a few that would understand His language. For them His teaching became in reality a revealing, a making known, of the wonderful things of God which had been hidden since the foundation of the world, known only within God’s council. The invisible, heavenly beauties are here unfolded before the eyes of the unlearned disciples in a simple, appealing manner, though Christ was obliged, especially at first, to open the eyes of their understanding.

Jesus explains the parable of the tares:

The narrative reveals a respectful intimacy on the part of the disciples. When Jesus had returned home, they did not hesitate to ask for an explanation, in order that the meaning of the parable might be altogether clear to them. He was patient with them. He interpreted to them one point after another. The wide world is the harvest-field of the Son of Man, who here represents Himself as the Lord of the Church. His seed are the believers; the unbelievers are the children of the devil. At the time of harvest their unbelief will become apparent, though they have skilfully hidden it under a semblance of piety. They are called offenders that hinder the development of the good grain; they are guilty of behavior contrary to law, of a deliberate ignoring of the law. These facts should not be a matter of surprise to the Christians. “Christ not only tells us about this, but also indicates the reason where such rubbish comes from, that in the Church where the true seed is sown, that is, the Word of God is preached in its truth and purity, there are still so many noxious weeds, so many hypocrites and false Christians. But He indicates the reason to warn us against the offense, which otherwise scandalizes the whole world and causes her to say that nothing good comes from the preaching of the Gospel. … Such is not the fault of the doctrine, which is pure and wholesome; neither is it the preachers’ fault, who would like to see, and apply all diligence to have, the people become more pious. But it is the enemy’s, the devil’s, fault; he does like a wicked farmer or neighbor: When people sleep and are not thinking of harm, he does not sleep, but comes and sows tares in the field. That is the point which is brought out also in the parable before this: He takes hold of the hearts that they pay no attention to the Word, and thus day by day are farther removed from it, and let the devil lead and drive them as he will, into all manner of sin and shame.” [Luther, quoted in Stoeckhardt, Biblische Geschichte des Neuen Testaments, 64].

On the Day of Judgment the sifting will take place: The false Christians will receive their sentence and be condemned to suffer the tortures of hell-fire, where wailing and gnashing of teeth will be their lot. But those whom Christ has declared righteous, who are righteous in His eyes through the merits of the Savior whom they have accepted,—they will receive the reward of mercy. Their glory will be a shining, visible brightness, as of the sun. And they will have the full realization that God is their true Father in Jesus Christ, through whom they are justified in His sight and have received the adoption of sons. It is a matter of earnest, prayerful anticipation.

Parable of the treasure:

Jesus is here not concerned about the moral aspect of the act, if, indeed, this comes into consideration here. It is a story which finds its parallel often enough, as in the discovery of a vein of coal or of the ore of some precious metal. In this case the treasure had been deliberately hidden or buried. By chance or by design a man finds this treasure. Realizing its great value, he carefully covers over once more what he has discovered. Hardly able to contain himself for joy over his lucky find, he goes and sells all his property and buys that same piece of land. A lively effect in the telling! The salvation taught in the Gospel is like such a rich treasure, like a hidden mine whose veins run out in all directions in Holy Scriptures, a treasure of inestimable value. “The point of the parable is that the kingdom of heaven outweighs in value all else, and that the man who understands this will with pleasure part with all.”

Parable of the pearl:

Knowing that a perfect pearl, of large size, of regular spherical shape, of even luster, would far surpass in value hundreds of small, imperfect pearls, this merchant, an expert in his line, set out to seek, and, if possible, to find, such a rare valuable. Having found one which seemed to him exceedingly precious, he risked his all, stripped himself of all his possessions in the one great venture of his life. The glory and beauty of God’s mercy in the Gospel is so great and precious that all else sinks into insignificance beside it. The pearl of the Christians is the greatest treasure in the kingdom of God, the salvation in Christ. He who has learned to know this priceless gift will gladly renounce all goods, joys, and delights of this world, and consider all human wisdom and righteousness as loss, in order to gain Christ.

Parable of the net:

This parable offers a picture with which the disciples were very familiar. A large net, as used for deep-sea fishing, is cast into the sea and compasses a great number of fish of various kinds, good and bad, edible and unwholesome. Although the entire netful is drawn to the shore, the value of the catch is in the good fish, the rest being separated by a careful sorting and thrown away. They are not really counted as belonging to the catch. The kingdom of heaven, in the form in which it appears here on earth, is like such a net. The working of the Gospel-preaching results in an outward collection of such as are really members of the Kingdom and such as merely bear the semblance of such membership, but have not accepted the Gospel. The latter add to the bulk, but do not belong to the essence. On the last day the separation will take place, and the sorting will result in the eternal condemnation of those that were merely feigning membership, who care nothing for faith and salvation.

Conclusion of the parables:

With the aid of the instruction which Christ had previously given them, the disciples were able to some extent to follow His parabolic sayings and draw the right conclusions, to realize the importance of their proper application. Pleased with this evidence of understanding on their part, He gives them some more instruction pertaining especially to their future work. Every transcriber and interpreter of the sacred Scriptures, in this connection every Christian teacher, taught of God in the mysteries of the Gospel of Christ, because he is a pupil of the kingdom of heaven and a disciple of Jesus, is able freely to distribute from the treasure entrusted to him. He will be able to use old, familiar facts, types, and doctrines to illustrate the truths of the Kingdom. He will present the old Gospel in a new dress, applying it to the conditions and times in which he is working, throwing the spotlight of a new understanding, of a more thorough interpretation on passages which may have become familiar by constant repetition. As he himself grows in knowledge, so he aids his hearers to grow in the grace and the knowledge of Jesus Christ, their Savior.

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Verses 53-58

A visit to Nazareth

Jesus now closed this series of parables. For a time at least His disciples would be kept busy digesting the great spiritual truths which He had made known unto them. He went away from Capernaum; literally, removed Himself thence. Coming to His old home, Nazareth, He taught His former neighbors in their synagog. This was undoubtedly a second visit, different from that spoken of Luke 6:16-30. But the results differed little from that time. At first His hearers were almost stupefied with amazement; they wondered at His wisdom, at His powers, at His ability to perform miracles. But on second thought they remember His youth in their midst. He is nothing but the son of a carpenter, a worker in wood. We know all the members of His family. The text here points very strongly both to natural brothers and sisters of the Lord. “Whence, then”: an expression of contempt; they thought they knew His whole bringing-up. They evidently did not realize that they were condemning their own town and its schools in disparaging the worth of a native son: He certainly could not have gotten all that from us!

Christ’s behavior in this crisis:

The offense which they took discredited only themselves; their pride and their envy caused their own destruction. Christ therefore merely calls to their mind the proverbial saying as to a prophet’s being without honor in his own home. Their unbelief grieved Him very deeply. He had made every effort in their behalf, but their rejection made further endeavors useless. The number of His miracles was greatly reduced, restricted to the few exceptional cases in which belief was evident. The unbelief and contempt of the people of Nazareth drove Jesus out of their midst; they did not recognize God’s visitation of grace.

Summary

Christ teaches the people, but especially His disciples, by means of the parables of the fourfold soil, of the wheat and the tares, of the grain of mustard seed, of the hidden treasure, of the pearl of great price, of the net with fish, and of the householder, and makes a visit to Nazareth, where He is rejected.

Verses 1-11

The temptation in the wilderness

Jesus, by His baptism and the accompanying supernatural manifestations, had been formally and publicly inaugurated into His ministry. But He was not to begin His preaching at once:

“Then,” immediately after His baptism, as soon as He had received the extraordinary communication of the Spirit. This same Spirit now filled His humanity and directed His actions, leading Him up, first of all, into the wilderness, causing Him to make the journey into the solitude of the desert, the haunt of wild beasts rather than the abode of men, Mark 1:13. It was a voluntary trip on the part of Jesus, His single concern being to fulfil, in all things, the will of His heavenly Father, Psalm 40:7-8; Hebrews 10: 7, 9, though the weakness of His human nature may have required some urging, Mark 1:12. For the object of this retirement was not merely to afford an opportunity for blessed rest and joy, nor to offer a chance for weighty contemplation as to the methods of revealing Himself to His people after the manner of a Buddha or a Mohammed, but to be tempted of the devil. The entire period of solitary living was occupied with this temptation, Mark 1:13; Luke 4:2. This combating of the devil was a part of the office and work for which He was sent by God and anointed with the Spirit. As the arch-enemy of mankind had tempted and overcome the first Adam, thus plunging the entire human race into condemnation, so he now proposed to vanquish the second Adam by hindering or frustrating the work of redemption. “Led up of the Spirit”: “tempted of the devil” — a powerful contrast!